Young Frankenstein

Last night it was off to see the big musical blockbuster of the Fall season Mel Brook's Young Frankenstein. I have to start of this review by saying I'm not a Mel Brooks fan, nor a fan of the movie, so keep that in mind. First off, the star of the show, Roger Bart was out due to back issues. Thank god, I say, since I really don't care for him (he kind of creeps me out). The understudy did a great job in the Dr. Frankenstein role regardless. The biggest commercial name on the marquee is Megan Mullally. Basically she brought her usual Karen Walker to the role of Elizabeth. The real show stealer was Andrea Martin in the role of Frau Blucher, basking in the deadpan humor. There were definitely some fun moments in the show, especially the "Hayride" sequence with Sutton Foster. Many of the special effects were cool and you can tell that they've sunk some money into this production. But all in all the glitz cannot save a script that dragged on way too much for me. As for the music, there were a few catchy tunes, but nothing that would make me visit iTunes to download once the cast recording is released. Even though I didn't love this show, the majority of the audience seemed to, and I predict it may still very well clean up at the 2008 Tony's. It really is what it's supposed to be - one big tourist trap.