Avenue Q Tour: Still Funny and Fresh

Like many people, I was disappointed when the producers of Avenue Q initially opted to forgo a national tour in favor of a sit-down production at the Wynn Las Vegas hotel.  Well, that production shuttered after only five months, which is great in the long run, because now Avenue Q is in the midst of its first national tour, which plays at Boston's Colonial Theater until March 23.

I loved the show when I saw it in New York, and had hoped the tour would do justice to my fond memories of the show. Fortunately, it did. The best part for me was hearing all the jokes afresh, as well as the audience's uproarious response. The experience reminded me of how fresh and funny this show is, as well as how the great creative touches that director Jason Moore employs, including some very funny props and set pieces, really enhance the show's impact.

The show definitely has some slow spots: "I'm Not Wearing Underwear Today" never seems to work. I know it's not supposed to be funny, but I think Jeff Marx and Robert Lopez, who wrote the score, could have found a way to make it humorous in a not-supposedly-to-be-funny way, if you know what I mean. And I've never been a fan of the Lucy the Slut song, "Special." The staging makes it work, but the song itself falls flat. The same is true for "You Can Be As Loud as the Hell You Want." It's not really the song people are responding to, but the full-on puppet sex. But overall, Avenue Q remains for me a charming and efficient show: everything has...well...a purpose.

The tour cast seemed not to be aping original performers, instead finding their own idiom. Boston Conservatory grad David Benoit is terrific as Nicky/Trekkie Monster. It would have been all too easy for Benoit in particular to simply imitate original cast member Rick Lyon, but he admirably takes the characters in his own direction. Robert McClure and Kelli Sawyer, as Rod and Kate respectively, sometimes appeared to be working too hard, especially at the beginning of the show. but eventually they settled in and found a very comfortable, effective, and moving style.

In other Avenue Q-related news, director Jeff Whitty and librettist Jason Moore are working on a musical version of Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City. I can't wait to see what these two talented men do with one of my all-time favorite books.

Comments

[Esther]

I like "Tales of the City," too, and San Francisco is one of my favorite cities, so I'm looking forward to this. I can actually picture this working more than a lot of other ideas for musicals that get tossed around. There's something about the story of this sheltered Midwestern girl coming to the big city and all of the characters she meets that just seems inherently musical.

[Marc Acito]

Armistead Maupin is also one of my favorites. So much so that I asked him to blurb my next book and he agreed. YIPEE. The Avenue Q boys will bring a fresh sensibility to material that might otherwise feel dated. I'm eager to see what they come up with.

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