THEATRE REVIEW: "The Lost Boys" at the Palace Theatre (New York, NY)

 

     On the afternoon of May 27th, 2026, I saw a performance of the Broadway musical "The Lost Boys" at the Palace Theatre in New York City.  "The Lost Boys" began previews on March 27th (exactly two months prior to me seeing it), and officially opened April 26th.  I had won the ticket lottery for "The Lost Boys" a few weeks back, but saw "Chess" instead.  When I won again this time, I was determined to see it.  I only saw parts of the movie years back, but never in its entirety.  I will probably watch the entire movie now that I saw the musical.  

     As I write this blog post, the 2026 Tony Awards haven't happened yet.  But "The Lost Boys" has been nominated for 12 of them.  I think it most likely earned every one of them.  This musical had moments of terror, humor, sadness, and sometimes all three at once.  There was even a love story intertwined throughout the plot.  All this occurred in, on, and throughout a set ingeniously designed by Dane Laffrey.  The main set was three stories tall.  There was also a set of the Emerson's home (various floors), which would either move up into the rafters or would seemingly disappear from view below the stage.  Of course, the various characters would do this too, but I tended to be far more mesmerized by the scenic design accomplishing this.

     "The Lost Boys" is a pop-rock musical about the Emerson family as they try to start their lives anew in Santa Carla, California (a  fictitious town name, though it sounds a lot like Santa Clara).  Santa Carla, a 1987 beach community, is primarily made up of vampires.  The Emerson family doesn't notice this right away because they are so focused on trying to fit in--or in Lucy Emerson's case, how much the town's changed since she was little. 

     On the afternoon I saw the show, the cast included LJ Benet (Michael Emerson), Ali Louis Bourzgui (David), Benjamin Pajak (Sam Emerson), Maria Wirries (Star), Paul Alexander Nolan (Max), Jennifer Duka (Alan Frog), Miguel Gil (Edgar Frog), Brian Flores (Marko), Sean Grandillo (Dwayne), Dean Maupin (Paul), and Shoshana Bean (Lucy Emerson).  "The Lost Boys" features a book by David Hornsby and Chris Koch, with music and lyrics by a band called The Rescues.  The Rescues was formed in 2007 or 2008, and is made up of band members Kyler England, Adrianne Gonzalez, and Gabriel Mann.  They've created a bold tracklist for "The Lost Boys" -- songs with names like "If We Make it Through the Night" and "Have to Have You." The songs, in turn, are performed by a bold and talented cast.

LJ Benet, Ali Louis Bourzgui, and the Broadway Cast of "The Lost Boys."  Photo by Matthew Murphy. 

     Even if "The Lost Boys" sweeps the Tony Awards this year, I don't see it running for more than a few years. I say this because it has a production cost of about $25 million, and could be too expensive to run as the months go by, and as newer shows premiere.  I hope I'm proven wrong.  Yet when a show is too costly for an Out-of-Town Tryout run, as was the case for "The Lost Boys," that might be a good time to redesign the production to make it less costly.  For instance, rather than have the actors fly around the theatre, why not use rubber bats?  That way, the show could have a Tryout run in Utica, and not break the bank.  However, I would see this show again in its current incarnation, and recommend it to anyone who wants a cheep thrill, but would settle for an expensive one.