Legally Blonde The Musical

The opening act of this new Broadway musical (in previews) was so awful I thought we were in for a very long night. It could have been The Wedding Singer The Musical all over again (don't ask, it was the single most horrible theater experience I've ever had to watch.) The song was rushed, the first half hour of the movie was condensed into the first scene, the band was louder than the singers, and the chorus mumbled and bumbled their way through the dense fog of words. I think the words might have been witty and funny, but it was impossible to hear them. Plus, the cliche of a sorority girl obsessed with marriage to her idiot boyfriend just isn't a theme I am interested in.

Then, as the play progressed and the cast started to loosen up and find their voices, it got better, much better. By the middle of the first half I was laughing out loud. This play does not take itself seriously and turned out to be 2 1/2 hours of pure fun. The plot was even stupider than the movie, but its silly jokes and songs ("is he gay or just European?") make you laugh without going over the deep end into moronic. Nothing insightful, nothing inspirational, just great singing, dancing and humor.
The UPS man stole the show. If you saw the movie you know that he was the hunk that the salon owner drooled over. In the play, when he entered, the set went quiet and dark, the spotlight shone brightly on his too-tight brown shirt and shorts, and sexy stripper music played as he strutted his stuff across the stage. After his exit, the play continued as usual. Also, the Greek Chorus was well executed, with the girls popping up to add witty commentary to the scene and sing the plot forward.

However, the best part was seeing the Asian man on the subway with a baseball cap that said, "Paris Loves My Oui Oui."