Honeymoon in Vegas
On Broadway at the Nederlander Theatre
Remember that ridiculous movie where the husband gives his wife away for $1,000,000. It was Indecent Proposal I think. That movies entire premise made me so sick, but this lively musical on the other hand made me absolutely giddy because it puts the idea of selling your wife for a weekend, or in this case, losing $58,000 in a card game and giving the winner Tommy Korman (Tony Danza) the use of your fiancé as payback in the right perspective. A comedy where it belongs, thank you!
Jack Singer (Rob McClure) & Betsy Nolan (Brynn O'Malley)are in love and want to get married. Betsy has been patiently waiting for 5 years for this to happen and Jack so badly wants to do the deed, but something keeps getting in the way. The curse of his dead mother Bea Singer (Nancy Opel) who made him promise that he would never get married, and she keeps popping out of the woodwork every time he’s about to tie the knot. Finally they decide to run off to Vegas to just get it over with quick, but trouble begins when Tommy Korman (Tony Danza) feasts his eyes on Betsy, who happens to be the spitting image of the love of his life, his deceased wife Donna. He invites Jack to a low stakes game of poker, which he accepts eagerly as he is still tentative about getting married. As I mentioned in my intro, he gets $58,000 in deep doo doo, and somehow ends up to making “an agreement” to let Tommy take Betsy for the weekend. This leads the action from Vegas to Kauai and back again in madcap comedy fashion.
Tony Danza looks and sounds terrific. His voice is not a big broadway voice, nor is he the cream of the crooners, but I found his voice very pleasant and soothing. Kind of like your dad singing you to sleep at night. He’s very loveable, even playing this dastardly character. He also put on quite a soft-shoe performance and the audience went mad. Rob McClure is a dreamboat. After seeing him in Chaplin, I have a never ending respect for this guy. Brynn O’Malley is also wonderful, beautiful, with a gutsy voice. I could go on and on about this cast. Even the minor roles had major memorable performances. So when you add to this explosive list of headliners, a terrific ensemble cast of Vegas Showgirls, Elvis’s, flying Elvis’s, bling and feathers, a fanciful score it all together equals highly entertaining, and good old fashioned musical fun that will tickle you pink. It’s a race to the alter, and somebody’s going to get married. You are going to need to get down to the Nederlander Theatre if you want to find out, and I highly recommend that you do. There are many discounts available for this show, so check out my discount ticket link here. -ThisbroadSway 12/18/2014