Theater Thursday -Groundhog Day

What: Groundhog Day

Where: August Wilson Theatre
             245 W. 52nd St.
             New York, NY

Who: Ages 10 and Up

Me - Groundhog Day was good. It was really funny. It is based on the movie of the same name. In case, you have never seen the movie, Groundhog Day, it is about a guy named Phil Connors and for some reason, every morning when he wakes up it's the same day, Groundhog Day. The show was similar to the movie in a lot of ways, but not completely. There are a lot of things you can't do in a Broadway show. Other things you couldn't do in a movie. For instance, there was magic in the show. One minute, the character of Phil was in one place, and literally the next minute he would be back in bed all the way across the stage. It was so cool! They also had an interesting car chase with these cars that were almost like car puppets. The acting was good. Andy Karl was especially good. I liked the way his character changed over the course of the show from a not very nice to a nice person. Andy Karl's acting made the change very believable. Barrett Doss who played Rita was good too. The singing was good. The songs were okay. I liked some more than others though. The only one that stuck in my mind was If I Had My Time Again although I liked some of the others. It must have been hard to be in the show because you had to do the same thing but not exactly they same thing so many times. The actors have to remember which day they are on because if somebody messes up it could mess up everybody and then mess up the whole show. All in all, it was a great show!

Mom - Groundhog Day is a charming musical. It is full of quirky characters and entertaining moments, and even a little bit of magic. Andy Karl is just terrific in the lead role. His Phil Connors is just likable enough at his most caddish to make you want to go on the journey to his redemption with him. Barrett Doss is equally likable in her role as his love interest Rita. The other characters are entertaining and funny. The story is pretty similar to the movie with changes as necessary to make it work better on the stage. The staging works well, and they even found a way to stage some events from the movie that you wouldn't think they would be able to pull off on stage like a car chase. They also find a way to make the continuous repetition of the same day that the plot calls for different enough to stay interesting. This is something that is a lot harder to do on stage than in a movie. The songs are okay, but there is no standout number that will really stick in your head. Some of the musical numbers just seem to be thrown in and don't really even seem to move the plot along. Tweens and up would probably enjoy this very entertaining show although some parts may be inappropriate for younger children. 

For more information or to purchase tickets visit www.groundhogdaymusical.com

And that's our view. Tune in tomorrow for Funtivity Friday.
Photo credits: All Groundhog Day production photos by Joan Marcus