Cast List (With nomination chances out of 10 as of this time)
NY TIMES REVIEW EXCERPTS: Excuse Me, Got Any Spare Fame?:Now that Martha Stewart is out of circulation for a while — and with who-knows-what hard times lurking around the corner for the rest of us — why not take some do-it-yourself tips on reusing your trash from "Brooklyn the Musical," the loud and gooey new show about street singers that opened last night at the Plymouth Theater? The enterprising design team of this aggressively maudlin musical by Mark Schoenfeld and Barri McPherson has come up with all sorts of ideas for converting everyday urban detritus into glamorous props and accessories. Now throw in a helping of funky disco à la LaBelle and a soupçon of Motown as it was reinterpreted in the 1981 musical "Dreamgirls." Filter the whole thing through the throat-stretching, note-holding, eardrum-testing vocal pyrotechnics of "American Idol," and you've got "Brooklyn the Musical." If the idea of such an amalgamation appeals to you, you're welcome to it. If not, you may find yourself feeling like a cranky commuter in a subway car, trapped with a perky team of harmonizers who say they just want to leave you with a smile on your face. It would of course be much more pleasing for everyone, for theatergoers as well as for the "Brooklyn" team, if it could be reported that this was the refreshing, inspiring work its creators obviously intended it to be. After all, "Brooklyn" is the only new musical scheduled to open on Broadway this fall. And it has genuine street cred in that Mr. Schoenfeld once lived on the streets of New York, where he performed as a musician. A Broadway triumph for "Brooklyn," which received a workshop production in Denver, would indeed be the stuff of urban fairy tales. But while it repeats the phrase "I believe in miracles," the show has a healthy and realistic skepticism about the possibility of fairy tales coming true. And regrettably, "Brooklyn" feels less like the next "Rent" than a soot-and-sugar revue bound for Vegas, where it might fit comfortably amid the simulated big-city authenticity of the New York-New York Hotel. --------------------------------------- TONY AWARD HAVEN OPINION: I am no longer predicting a Best Musical nod since almost all of the reviews were scathing. There could be nods for Best Set and Costumes, as well as one for the score. Espinosa, Derricks, and Keller are locks, and for the rest, well, we shall just have to see what the box office does. Could this be the next RENT? Apparently not.
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