"BIG FISH" on Broadway is a good example of how not to adapt a successful film into a musical. It is overly busy and lacks anything approaching a genuine emotion. Norbert Leo Butz is good in the lead role, but he seems to be in a different show than the other actors around him. For me, "Big Fish" was a big disappointment and a big waste of time.
Julie Taymor's and Theatre for a New Audience's take on "MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM" (which I saw in previews), suffers from a similar lack of restraint and focus. Perhaps this will improve in previews, but what won't likely improve are several key roles populated with actors unable to perform Shakespeare well.
Finally, I was underwhelmed by Nico Mulhy's new opera "TWO BOYS," at the Met, which lacked storytelling cohesion and seemed downright silly or overly creepy at times. I think this is a noble effort by this young composer and the Met to tackle some thing new and different, but the show largely left me cold. To be fair, opera is not my thing, but I was hoping for something more engaging (like my recent trip to the in incredible "Einstein On The Beach" @LA Opera.)
