Back To The Future - The Musical Reviews

Kimble Slaton from Vicksburg MS

TECH SCREWED THIS ONE UP FOR ME

The Strand Shreveport is a magnificent venu. I had never been to a broadway production so my family drove 3 hrs to see Waitress. I was astounded, as a techy, to see equipment rigs outside rivaling a concert tour. We sat in the middle balcony and was discussing the tremendous line array system on either side of the stage. I thought this might be a touch overkill. When the show started we were sadly disappointed that we couldn’t understand a work the cast was saying and it got worse when the band played. I will assume it sounded fine at the mix position but was useless in the balcony, even with speakers aimed that way. Lighting was good but sound screwed this cast out of a stellar performance. Do everything you do excellent, every time.

Marie Karan from Allen, Texas

UNDERWHELMED

I had wanted to see Waitress for a long time because I love Sara Bareilles and her music. Unfortunately, I missed Sara in it when I was in New York last year; but I saw it at the Winspear in Dallas. Most of the songs were lackluster except for “She Used to be Mine”, and I found it was difficult to make out what people were saying even tho we had great orchestra seats. I thought at times the cast was singing flat, and even the band did not sound as professional as I would have expected. Most of the traveling Broadway shows are close to what I would expect to see on Broadway; but not this one. I rarely feel this way about a show, but I have to be honest; I was disappointed.

David from Tucson, Arizona

WAITRESS

Sound quality was horrible. Could not hear the majority of spoken word. Overall it was so so. Would not recommend it as a musical.

Paul from Chicago, Illinois

BLAH

Although the voices were good enough, the music was forgettable and the story was not very interesting. Didn't really connect with any of the characters, especially the lead. Unlike most of the musicals I've seen there is not one song I'd be interested in hearing again on a soundtrack.

David Silverman from Washington, District of Columbia

THIS WAS LIKE WATCHING A CARTOON WITH CARTOON CHARACTERS.

I have seen a lot of shows, both on Broadway and here in DC. As far as shows go, this one was (unfortunately) closer to the bottom than the top. The story was predictable, the songs were forgettable and the acting was way over the top for no apparent reason. Just like the skits in Saturday Night Live always go on longer than they should, all of the actions and reactions are overblown as if the audience is a mile away and could not otherwise see what is in front of them. If the characters had merely acted like normal human beings, this play could have been much better and the characters more relatable. But as presented, it was like watching a cartoon with cartoon characters. The one bright spot was Desi Oakley's singing (she plays the lead, Jenna). She has a phenomenal voice...even better than the leads we saw in Les Mis. I would love to hear more of that, whether she is acting or just being herself.

Patty L from Vancouver, British Columbia

SERIOUS ISSUES NOT FUNNY

We came to be entertained but found the stories and characters out dated and offensive. When Earl slings Jenna over his shoulder for "marital ____". We felt serious issues are not entertainment or a laughing matter especially as there are women that continue to face abuse daily. We really wanted to enjoy the show, rationalize the story lines and not be "downers" about it but just couldn't wrap our heads around the messaging so we googled the ending online and made the decision to leave at the intermission.

Elle from Vancouver, British Columbia

OK, BUT NOT DEFINITELY NOT GREAT.

A friend and I (both huge fans of Sara Bareilles and her work) went to see Waitress at the QE Theatre in Vancouver and within the first 3 minutes of the curtain rising were already disappointed. The singing was pitchy and the harmonies garbled. Many of the lead solo singers seemed to be belting so hard that all emotion was lost from the songs and it actually made it difficult to understand the lyrics. There was also zero chemistry between the two romantic leads. It was so disappointing we momentarily considered leaving at intermission but stayed only with the hope that the rendition of "She Used to Be Mine" would redeem the whole experience. It did not. The musical itself is cute and humorous, but I wouldn't recommend going to see it with this cast.

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