April 25, 2022 / Published by: Alison
Fifty-eight years after the premiere of the original Broadway production in 1964, the first revival of Funny Girl was unveiled last night at the August Wilson Theater. On Barbra Streisand’s 80th birthday, no less! This time, the titular funny girl Fanny Bryce is played by Binny Feldstein, and I’m sure everyone involved in this revival was hoping for the kind of reviews Babs saw in the ’60s. But alas, a whole bunch of critics had to go and fall on everyone’s metaphorical parade. This is wild because there is a song in Funny Girl that specifically asks you not to do that! But these critics did it, or rather, some of them did. Meanwhile, some of them enjoyed what they saw and heard.
Funny Girl’s original 1964 production did not win a single Tony Award, although it was nominated for eight awards, including Best Musical. And according to the sounds of some of these reviews, this revival may have something to do with the original. Unfortunately, there aren’t many reviews that play out the potential of the words in this title, such as “Funny Girl: It’s Not That Funny” or “Funny, the girl had to ask first if it was a good idea.” Critics were much more sympathetic to their reviews, simply expressing that perhaps Beanie was wrongly chosen in the role or that the show was quite “uninspired” for a revival.
The revival of Broadway’s “Funny Girl” starring Beanie Feldstein debuted with unfavorable reviews. pic.twitter.com/p5YB1lZYJt
– Pop Crave (@PopCrave) April 25, 2022
Of course, not all reviews are that bad. According to the site Dod They Like It ?, yes, many people are squeezing his thumb down, half of them are squeezing it, but the largest group are those who landed in the middle. Not good, not bad, just the movement of the hand with a flat palm, which is usually accompanied by apathetic “Ex”. The New York Times writes that Funny Girl only succeeds if his lead role is charismatic enough to carry the entire show. Time Out adds to this by suggesting that Beanie isn’t exactly the strongest singer, which is a must for Funny Girl if anyone wants to take the role out of Barbra’s huge shadow. Meanwhile, the New York Theater Guide writes that it’s a little difficult to run a show called Funny Girl, which never really brings the funny.
And if you want to hear how Beanie’s singing voice sounds like Fanny Price, here it is:
Well, something tells me that Lea Michele is walking in front of the August Wilson Theater today, clutching a pile of footage and musical notes, threatening to shit in a wig unless he gives her a meeting with the director for a quick audition. Two, three songs, tops.
Photo: YouTube
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