Chicago The Musical Review is back looking at some of the highlights from this amazing show.
I suspect this review is going to be in four parts...there is far too much I want to say (what a surprise!). If you haven't read Part 1, click here to read.
Favourite Lines...In no particular order..
"Hey Snow White (or Fishy Fish or New Fish - depending on Lucy's choice for the evening) get out of my chair!" Velma to Roxie during the jail scene and intro to Roxie in jail
"Look, I don't give no advice and I don't take no advice. You're a perfect stranger to me and let's keep it that way." Velma to Roxie
"Well I guess... I'll just tell them the truth - Roxie.
"Tellin' the Jury the truth? That's really stupid." Velma to Roxie. Lucy's delivery made this line funny
"Jesus, Mary and Joseph, what I'm gonna do?" - Roxie
"You know everyone!" Velma to Roxie. Lucy's delivery made this line funny
"Well, as they say in the Hamptons you're shit out of luck, my dear," Velma to Roxie. Again Lucy's delivery made this line VERY funny
"What do I care. I've had enough of these religious fanatics. I'm going to retire to my cell and answer some fan mail, maybe have a bubble bath. You'll call me when dinner is ready, Mama?" Velma says before leaving the stage.
"He saw himself as alive and I saw him dead!" The delivery is the key here by Will. Woo <g>
"First she steals my publicity. Then she steals my lawyer, my trial date. And now she steals my shoes!" Velma to Mama Morton
"Look at that dress, hasn't she suffered enough..." member of the press about Roxie's less than revealing dress at the trial
"This dress makes me look like a Woolworths lamp shade. I'm not wearing this dress." Roxie says and breaks the silence of the hanging of the Hungarian. VERY powerful moment. It seems so frivolous compared to the death.
"Agoraphobia? Look that up on Google," Stephen (press guy) to the blow up doll and the audience after Billy is bitten by Miss Kitty
"You're so sexy, Billy," press pack say to Billy after Miss Kitty is knocked on the head by Mama Morton and taken away
"Here Kitty, Kitty, Kitty," Mama Morton to Miss Kitty who is now off stage
"You're been screwing the milk man!" Rebekkah SCREAMS while standing on Mike's chest.
"There was a time when you could get really good floorshow in prison..." Roxie to the very dejected Velma after Velma's sister act performance
"You're fucking my husband!" Velma screams out and lashes out with her whip to "Veronica" and down Veronica goes during "I Can't Do It Alone."
"He was leaving me! Put that in your fucking report," Roxie confessing to killing Fred.
"Shit! Why didn't I think of that!" Velma on realising she could have come up with the idea of having a baby to get the sympathy of the jury.
"I started fooling around. And then I started screwing around. Which is fooling around without dinner." Roxie to the audience
"Thank you Wonder Woman," Roxie to Wonder Woman after being given flowers at the end of Nowadays
"My exit music please..." Amos to a very silent band. "Okay..." and walks off to huge audience applause
The least favourite Chicago Moment...
The End. Fini. End of Show <g>
Seriously. You didn't think I would say anything negative about this show? There wasn't a portion of this show I didn't like. From the moment the lights went out to start the show to the very end when we cheered like mad for the cast and musicians that ended the show. It was FABULOUS! Just FABULOUS!
I can't praise this show highly enough. If you made the trek to see it, you wouldn't have been disappointed.
The Most Surprising Revelation
I could sit through a lot of performances and LOVE EVERY SINGLE MINUTE. The show evolved and choreography changed and every night something was different. I was never bored and found myself looking forward to the next performance just after it ended. This has never happened before and it's very surprising to me.
Oh WOW did they REALLY do that!
The whole Billy Flynn intro was just...WHAT THE?!!! moment. Shane in his short robe, James coming out in that g-string and bunny ears was just hysterical! The drug induced choreography was riveting and somewhat shocking. There was so many moments like that but let's go with James and his bunny ears <g>
Best Choreography
This one is hard because there are so many to choose from but, for me, the standout of the standouts has to be All That Jazz and the crisscross of the performers - a little hard to visualise writing it down but the sheer beauty of the moves captivated me. I wish I was an artist so I could draw it but alas I suck at drawing so you will just have to make do with my words. The bunny hop in All That Jazz and in other numbers made my feet tap and ALMOST made me want to hop myself. Hannah's split and then morphing into a head / handstand in Cell Block Tango! So much to choose from!
The Ugly Baby Award Goes To....
Rebekkah - that was one very ugly baby mask she wore during "Me and My Baby". I had a ball watching the audience member in the last seat in row A of Block B. That was where Rebekkah would come and surprise the hell out of the person in the audience. HYSTERICAL. The audience member is not expecting that to happen because they are watching Amanda and the boys during the song. Rebekkah comes out and stares down the audience member which is just so funny - she got such a varied response; mostly surprise and hysterical laughter! I loved that little side show. Ugly baby mask <g>
Let's Count The Tattoos...
All the cast had them (some fake, some real except Lucy, Shane and Andrew). Rebekkah's were impressive (and fake), Hannah's "skull on fire" was impressive (and fake). I loved Amanda's flower on her stomach (hard to miss and fake although it kinda grew a little bit and it got darker). Reading that back it seems I paid way too much attention to Amanda's stomach <g>
The Most AMAZING move
There were quite a few...Hannah and her backward crawl (see Part 1 for more on that), Hannah's split which turned into standing on her head and then back again so effortlessly, Mike's backward somersault in Cell Block Tango, Rebekkah standing on Mike's chest during Cell Block Tango, Lucy's intro to All That Jazz, Lucy and her whip, Lucy in the cowboy outfit and stomping around like a slim Sumo wrestler, Lucy's John Wayne impression...far far too many!
I REALLY Don't Want to Look At That Moment...
The Hungarian hanging. Sorry Katie but I just couldn't bring myself to see it the first few times. I did eventually and it's very powerful. The theatre is just so silent. The scene is extremely distressing - you know it's fake, of course, but the realisation that this did happen and the reason the Hungarian did not get off was because she was poor and couldn't afford Billy Flynn and his corrupt but effective defence. WOW.
"This dress makes me look like a Woolworths lamp shade. I'm not wearing this dress." Roxie says and breaks the silence of the hanging of the Hungarian. VERY powerful moment. It seems so frivolous compared to the death.
The What Magazine Is She Holding Moment...
Velma (Lucy) comes out in the middle of the Mama Morton song to regale Mama about having her name spread across the press and the possibility of her getting more gigs. For eagle eyed audience members (especially those in the front rows), you would have noticed Lucy holding a copy of the Womans Day - this copy "Dancing Diets and All That Jazz" October 2013 Issue - Nice little touch and made me smile.
Go Look At My Facebook Profile Moment...
This is just hysterical. Roxie is talking to the audience about how she thought life would be with blow up doll in hand. She then pulls out her "Roxie Rocks Chicago" clipping and hands it to an audience member. Amanda varied where she would hand it to - usually in Block B or Block C front row. It morphed into Amanda's facebook page and urging people to friend her. I just cracked up!
Billy Is Not A funny Lawyer Moment
Billy and his very flat joke about Chicago being so tough that they shoot the girls from right under you. That is just so funny by the non reaction it got and most of the audience in the front row remained stony faced on purpose. It was just too funny! (one of those moments you had to be there!).
You Need Strength To Do That Moment...
Colleen in a 3/4 squat, in high heels, on a moving table, singing, with Hannah under the table hanging off the side and doing the crawl backwards! WOW! You don't know who to look at. While you are watching that, the other cast are moving the table ever so slowly.
Let's Count The Blow Up Dolls Deflate Moment
Those blow up dolls. I was watching which ones would deflate first. They got a new lot in with "hair" that seemed to stand up to all the tossing about. A few escaped into the audience. One night the person sitting in Block B front row watched the doll sail his way and just ignored it. It went under the stage and forgotten <g> I have never seen so many blow up dolls in all my life. My horizons have been broadened <g> The dolls represented the manipulation and corruption of the press. It was also used as the degradation of women since Billy was the master puppeteer with Roxie. It's a very powerful way to portray this. Once you got over the giggles over seeing so many dolls, you watched the choreography and it all made sense. VERY creative.
How To Turn Down Someone's Request The Gentle Way
It's not with Roxie's style. After Velma shows Roxie the act she did with her, now deceased, sister Veronica, Roxie gives Velma the one fingered salute and blows a raspberry. Poor Velma. She used to be top dog in the jail to nobody because of the new girl and her publicity machine. Roxie just doesn't want to know. Awww. You have to feel for Velma.
Visual Gags
Wonder Woman (Rebekah) on roller skates with different signs - Truth, Justice and a photo of Jesus during the trial - that says it all! <g>
Velma about to punch out the "radio" after the announcer says that Roxie is wearing Velma's shoes with rhinestone buckles at the trial
Those are some of the highlights from this fantastic show. More will be incorporated in Act 1 of the next review which is Part 3.
Stay tuned!