THEATRE REVIEW: "Altar Boyz" at Dodger Stages (New york, NY)

      During the summer of 2005, my grandma and I went to see the off-Broadway musical comedy "Altar Boyz" at Dodger Stages in New York City.  The venue is known as New World Stages today.  Doger Stages became New World Stages in 2006, the year after my grandma and I saw "Altar Boyz."  But the show didn't close then.  Rather, it continued to run until January 10th, 2010.  It had been running since March 1st, 2005 (preview performances began February 15th of that year).  Dodger Stages opened in September of 2004.  With "Altar Boyz" having just opened a few months before Grannie and I saw it, it goes without saying that we saw the original cast.







     The cast of "Altar Boyz," when Grannie and I saw the show, included Ryan Duncan (Juan), David Josefsberg (Abraham), Andy Karl (Luke), Tyler Maynard (Mark), Scott Porter (Matthew), and Shadoe Stevens (Voice of G.O.D).  Kevin Kern and Daniel Torres were the two understudies of the cast.  The Book for "Altar Boyz" was written by Kevin Del Aguila.  The music and lyrics were by Gary Adler and Michael Patrick Walker.  I'm not sure if Grannie was still a member of Audience Extras at the time.  If so, that was most likely how she got the tickets to the show.  I had the opportunity to see the Broadway production of "Chicago: the musical" the summer before, but didn't go because we had just seen "42nd Street."  Instead I went to Coney Island.  Anyway, "Altar Boyz" became so popular that a national tour of the show was launched.  The LaSalle Bank Theatre (now called the CIBC Theatre) in Chicago was the tour's second stop.




Andy Karl, Ryan Duncan, Scott Porter, Tyler Maynard, and David Josefsberg in "Altar Boyz."






     Before there was a National Tour for "Altar Boyz," there was the 2005 Award Season.  "Altar Boys" won the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding New Off-Broadway Musical.  It also won the 2005 Theatre World Award.  I had no idea about this.  I'm not sure if Grannie did either.  By the time summer ended, I pretty much forgot about the show.  But, looking back, I'd say it's pretty neat that she and I saw the musical before the tag line "Holy Hit!" was associated with the show.  I barely remember anything about the show though.  I remember Grannie and I were seated near the front.  But that's about it.  I do remember that one of the characters was struggling with his sexual identity.  I remember little else about it though.  Apparently it was a great show.  The critics seemed to think so.  







Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

THEATRE REVIEW: "Stranger Things: the First Shadow" at the Marquis Theatre (New York, NY)

Image
       On the moderately warm afternoon of July 2nd, 2025, I saw a performance of the jaw-dropping Broadway spectacle "Stranger Things: the First Shadow" at the Marquis Theatre in New York City.  I won the ticket lottery for the performance the day before, and it became the perfect 40th Birthday present from my mom.  By that, I don't mean I received 40 gifts.  I mean that the present was in honor of me turning 40.  Incidentally, I've probably received far more than 40 gifts...    "Stranger Things: the First Shadow" is a prequel of the Netflix show "Stranger Things."  It takes place in 1959 in Hawkins, Indiana when a young Henry Creel and his family move there for a fresh start.  It doesn't take long before things go wrong.  This is a play full of amazing set designs and visual effects.  There are also frightening moments along with funny ones (occasional sad moments, too).         At the perfo...
Read more

THEATRE REVIEW: "Oh, Mary!" at the Lyceum Theatre (New York, NY)

Image
     On October 5th, 2025, Kathryn and I saw the matinee performance of the Cole Escola play "Oh, Mary!" at the Lyceum Theatre in New York City.  The play, while a comedy, is about a stifled Mary Todd Lincoln during the weeks leading up to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.  The production opened July 11th, 2024 after beginning previews on June 26th.  One synopsis of the play described it as being told through "the lens of an idiot."  Yet it's been one of the hottest tickets on Broadway for months now.  Kathryn and I were thrilled to finally see the play.      At the performance of "Oh, Mary!" that Kathryn and I saw, the cast included Hannah Solow (Mary Todd Lincoln), Jenn Harris (Mary's Chaperone/Bill), Phillip James Brannon (Abraham Lincoln, or "Mary's Husband" as credited in the Playbill), Martin Landry (Mary's Husband's Assistant/Kyle), and James Scully (Mary's Teacher).  The cast was amazing.  The entire show was e...
Read more

THEATRE REVIEW: "Beetlejuice" at the Palace Theatre (New York, NY)

Image
      On the afternoon of Saturday, November 1st, 2025, I saw a performance of the musical comedy "Beetlejuice" at the Palace Theatre in New York City.  While I first heard of this musical in 2018, when it had its World Premiere Engagement in Washington D.C., finally seeing it felt like seeing a brand new show.  However, this was the third time "Beetlejuice" was performing on Broadway.  While the first two times were official Broadway Productions of the show, the production I saw at the Palace Theatre was technically the North American Tour, and New York City was the tour's final stop.  After the tour closes in early January of 2026, the next big production of the show will be in the West End, also in 2026.        Before seeing "Beetlejuice," I felt a sense of trepidation because I heard the humor in the show was pretty inappropriate at times.  The most inappropriate musicals I had seen prior to "Beetlejuice" were "Silence...
Read more