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7 reviews for:
Avenue Q - The Musical: The Complete Book and Lyrics of the Broadway Musical
Robery Lopez, Jeff Marx, Jeff Whitty
4.2 AVERAGE
7 reviews for:
Avenue Q - The Musical: The Complete Book and Lyrics of the Broadway Musical
Robery Lopez, Jeff Marx, Jeff Whitty
4.2 AVERAGE
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
OVERALL: 6/10, or 3/5 stars.
I'm going to address the elephant in the room- yes, Avenue Q won the Tony over Wicked. Do I agree with that?
Yeah, absolutely. Wicked, for all its wonder (and its faults), has an incredibly inconsistent and weak Act II while Avenue Q's quality remains consistent throughout.
Do I think Avenue Q is a perfect show? Of course not.
I played Kate Monster in a recent production of Avenue Q. My review is not just a review of the material from the perspective of a reader or an audience member, but a review of the material from the perspective of an actor as well.
This show is funny. This show is laugh-out-loud funny in a way that very, very few shows manage to achieve. It is an effortless translation of the quaint charm of classic Sesame Street into a bastardized adult circus sideshow that, somehow, still manages to have the same heart. As ridiculous as all the puppet sex is, it's hard not to feel bad for Kate when Princeton decides his quarter-life crisis is more important than the relationships he's building. It's hard not to feel bad for Rod, the closeted gay republican with the world's strongest crush on his straight stoner roommate. Hell, it's hard not to feel bad for Christmas Eve, because even though the show likes to remind us that she is a portrayal of a Japanese woman with an insanely racist accent (racist in that it's written that way by non-Asian folk to be funny, not that she has one in the first place), she is by and large the most intelligent, kind, and empathetic of the entire Avenue Q Crew- and it's hard not to feel bad that she isn't getting any clients!
A lot of the humor works well even twenty years into the future. Trekkie is, of course, a standout character and his song "Internet is for Porn" continued to be hit for the duration of our run. Lucy the Slut is so ridiculously a caricature of busty, lusty women that it loops around to becoming funny again (and her "heartbeat" being the shape of two breasts still gets a laugh out of me). There's something charming and endearing about the Bad Idea Bears, who I'm sure have visited my own friends a plethora of times before. That being said, for every joke that continues to work well, there are others that don't. The entirety of "Everyone's a Little Bit Racist" is a bit difficult to listen to in this modern world where white progressives have (for the most part, anyway) learned that acknowledging our differences does not mean make it's okay to make racism "funny-" and conservative audience members view the song as justification for their vile acts, not making light at the idea that most people have been racist in their lifetime. Performing this under our current American political landscape, you can feel how palpable the tension in the room is when it's being performed.
Still, the script and the licensing is beyond generous, letting us make minor adjustments to the material as needed to help keep the show relevant. It's impossible to fix every element of the show that's dated (you need a dedicated rewrite team to tackle the problem of Gary Coleman alone), but there is a lot more leeway here to make changes that are needed, and that is always appreciated.
The music isn't anything new or innovative, but it's deceptively catchy and it captures meaning in much the same way beloved songs and melodies from Sesame Street do (actually, Trekkie Monster has an entire line in "There's Life Outside Your Apartment" that is literally the melody for "C is for Cookie" !). My personal favorite is "I Wish I Could Go Back to College" as it makes me so irrevocably sad as a (relatively) recent college grad. The song's funny before you go to college, not so much after.
A show worth seeing, even if it shows its age (and boy, does it show its age). Great material here for auditions or cabarets, and let it be known that we need more puppets on Broadway! Come back, John Tartaglia!!
I'm going to address the elephant in the room- yes, Avenue Q won the Tony over Wicked. Do I agree with that?
Yeah, absolutely. Wicked, for all its wonder (and its faults), has an incredibly inconsistent and weak Act II while Avenue Q's quality remains consistent throughout.
Do I think Avenue Q is a perfect show? Of course not.
I played Kate Monster in a recent production of Avenue Q. My review is not just a review of the material from the perspective of a reader or an audience member, but a review of the material from the perspective of an actor as well.
This show is funny. This show is laugh-out-loud funny in a way that very, very few shows manage to achieve. It is an effortless translation of the quaint charm of classic Sesame Street into a bastardized adult circus sideshow that, somehow, still manages to have the same heart. As ridiculous as all the puppet sex is, it's hard not to feel bad for Kate when Princeton decides his quarter-life crisis is more important than the relationships he's building. It's hard not to feel bad for Rod, the closeted gay republican with the world's strongest crush on his straight stoner roommate. Hell, it's hard not to feel bad for Christmas Eve, because even though the show likes to remind us that she is a portrayal of a Japanese woman with an insanely racist accent (racist in that it's written that way by non-Asian folk to be funny, not that she has one in the first place), she is by and large the most intelligent, kind, and empathetic of the entire Avenue Q Crew- and it's hard not to feel bad that she isn't getting any clients!
A lot of the humor works well even twenty years into the future. Trekkie is, of course, a standout character and his song "Internet is for Porn" continued to be hit for the duration of our run. Lucy the Slut is so ridiculously a caricature of busty, lusty women that it loops around to becoming funny again (and her "heartbeat" being the shape of two breasts still gets a laugh out of me). There's something charming and endearing about the Bad Idea Bears, who I'm sure have visited my own friends a plethora of times before. That being said, for every joke that continues to work well, there are others that don't. The entirety of "Everyone's a Little Bit Racist" is a bit difficult to listen to in this modern world where white progressives have (for the most part, anyway) learned that acknowledging our differences does not mean make it's okay to make racism "funny-" and conservative audience members view the song as justification for their vile acts, not making light at the idea that most people have been racist in their lifetime. Performing this under our current American political landscape, you can feel how palpable the tension in the room is when it's being performed.
Still, the script and the licensing is beyond generous, letting us make minor adjustments to the material as needed to help keep the show relevant. It's impossible to fix every element of the show that's dated (you need a dedicated rewrite team to tackle the problem of Gary Coleman alone), but there is a lot more leeway here to make changes that are needed, and that is always appreciated.
The music isn't anything new or innovative, but it's deceptively catchy and it captures meaning in much the same way beloved songs and melodies from Sesame Street do (actually, Trekkie Monster has an entire line in "There's Life Outside Your Apartment" that is literally the melody for "C is for Cookie" !). My personal favorite is "I Wish I Could Go Back to College" as it makes me so irrevocably sad as a (relatively) recent college grad. The song's funny before you go to college, not so much after.
A show worth seeing, even if it shows its age (and boy, does it show its age). Great material here for auditions or cabarets, and let it be known that we need more puppets on Broadway! Come back, John Tartaglia!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Homophobia, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Suicide attempt
Minor: Gun violence
I still haven't seen Avenue Q, but I want to. I have one complaint - from what I can see, the play addresses the injustices of racism, homophobia, classism, etc., etc. . . . but it is unkind to Sluts! OK, I'm kind of joking, but the "villain" of the story, if she can be said to be such, is Lucy the Slut, who is bad because . . . she likes to have sex? Boo! Shame on you, Avenue Q! There are some ethical sluts out there, after all . . . it just seems weird that such a progressive play makes the girl who likes having sex into the bad guy . . . .
It's not my favorite play and some of the songs and characters haven't aged super well, but I do like the general message about how we're all just trying to find our purpose.
Do you love Avenue Q? Do you wish you owned a book with a cover flocked in neon Orange fur? Do you frequently find yourself wondering “is Brian wearing underwear today”?
If you answered yes to these questions, then Avenue Q: The Book is the perfect book for you!
If you answered yes to these questions, then Avenue Q: The Book is the perfect book for you!
Yes, the show is problematic. But it continues to resonate with me, especially as a twenty-two year old with a BA in English. I don’t only relate to Princeton though. Every character I can relate to in some way. I just don’t think I could watch this show without being entertained and inspired.
"Crabby old bitches are the bedrock of this nation!"
The script is great, as I knew it would be. The extras aren't as cool as I had hoped.