iTunes Exclusive Episode Bullets Over Broadway The Musical
Rob Ryan and Don review Bullets Over Broadway, a musical based on Woody Allen's film, presented by Dallas Summer Musicals at Fair Park. The production features strong technical elements including live orchestra, impressive lighting, sets, and props, but the performances of the main characters—particularly the actress playing Olive—detracted from an otherwise solid production.
About this episode
Key takeaways
- Technical execution was strong: live orchestra, lighting, set transitions, and props all worked seamlessly
- Jeff Brooks' performance as Cheech was a standout, bringing charisma and energy to the henchman character
- The actress playing Olive overdid the annoying character trait, making her grating rather than comedic
- Michael Williams as David felt like a weak casting choice for the lead role
- The plot kept interest despite these performance issues, with good pacing and story-music balance
Q&A
What is Bullets Over Broadway about?
An aspiring playwright named David gets his play produced with help from Nick, a mobster, but Nick's girlfriend Olive must be cast. Nick's henchman Cheech rewrites parts of the play, making it better, but David takes credit.
Who gave a standout performance?
Jeff Brooks, who played Cheech, added charisma and made the henchman role perfect.
Would Don see this production again?
Yes, but he'd sit in the top balcony because of the issues with the main actors, though Cheech's performance and strong technical elements make it worth recommending.
Read Transcript
music Greeney's Empire member indoor members, if you're hearing the sound of my voice it means the following conditions have been met at least once in your life. You have listened to the clubhouse podcast, your one-stop shop for all things sports and entertainment, live every Sunday, night, seventies from four Pacific, but it also means you subscribe on iTunes because it's time for another iPhone just close-up, see? The 200 and 15th one of these things.
My name is Rob Ryan the executive producer of the clubhouse podcast and I will neither confirm nor deny the existence of any form of organized crime. I'm not alone for this particular episode joining me across the desk today is our fact checker and a man who never pushes his nose sideways when talking about anyone. You may know him as fun, don't go, but his mom and even don't want to call him down for it.
You know all those malicious people, Montana, like the Freeman and all that. What they can was organized crime. I will neither confirm nor deny it.
I said a moment. Just wanted, though. Every time we do one of these it is to review something and this is no exception.
I'm going to be kind of a facilitator here because this is one that don't got to go to and Chad got to go with him, but Chad is under the weather as we record this and unable to join us. We hope he gets well soon, but this is a musical that we're reviewing today. It is bullets over Broadway and for we start, we have to thank the man, the myth of legend.
Francis, gooo! Dahlsomer musical, season 76, one more production, musical fair park. Thank you for the invite, we love that man and everybody there.
Yeah, I was, I was out of town. I know you guys went and saw this, so I'm very excited to hear about it. I know it's based on the Woody Allen films, but I'm going to let you take it from here.
Basically it's the story of David, who's an inspiring playwright. He's an aspiring playwright. He's an aspiring playwright.
And he has a little play and he wants to get it produced and put in the theaters and all that. And throughs a little bit mingling, they end up getting it pushed into a theater with a help of Nick, who's the Mopsta. He's the Mopsta.
Oh, legend. Actually, it's pretty blatant in the production. David said, yeah.
All right, so, but there's a string attached, right? Yes. His girlfriend, all of, he has to be in the production, who has, as much guitar, you've said, does she have the talent of all the good oil, perhaps?
Yes, yeah. Fair enough. Yeah, she put this way, just some beavers, as much guitar talent as, you know, all of doesn't sing.
Wow. So yeah, it's, she, she's not the ideal person you want for the role in your production. So there's a lot of coaching going on with her.
So it's the story of them, you know, trying to get the play together, get the sets, get the rehearsals, get the actors. And then all of a sudden, there's a few rewrites because Nick's henchmen, cheat. He, not cheat more in.
Not cheat more in. Just cheat. Just cheat.
He comes up with a lot of ideas and saying, hey, why don't you do this and this and this? And actually starts rewriting some of the stuff in the play. Okay.
And all the rewrites that cheat does actually makes it better, nobody likes even more. Oh, wow. But David's taking all the credit because she goes, I don't want the credit.
Okay. So does that little conflicted story of, you know, do I tell everybody or to take the credit? Even though I didn't do it.
For David, you know. And David's kind of a little spinless nervous guy, you kind of seen in the past. And then there's some other goings on beyond that, but that's all we really want to go into.
All right. Fair enough. Always a solid presentation.
Let's start with that. How was this presented for you? Was it with live orchestra?
Oh, yes. Oh, perfect. The sound was good.
The singing was good. The balance was good. But of course, you know, 90's something presented time.
That's what happens. I've, yeah, for a park there because it's such a great facility. Absolutely.
We love watching. We really have to do. Yeah.
So it's the, I do was great. Everything like that. The sets.
I was really impressed with the lighting was really good. There were some props moving in and out. And so when they went from location to location, you felt like you were going from different locations.
Very smooth transitions. Yes. And there was some really cool props, but they had some cars come out.
And the only thing I'd really hate about that is that the lights were come on. It went to pitch black and they would like blur right into your eyes. That's the only thing I could say bad about.
Okay. Fair enough. The only thing.
That's kind of nitpicky. Beyond that, I mean, the props were good, the cars, the trains, every set location, the props were the locations. Everything was good.
And there was a couple scenes where the backdrop is the, like, you're in the back of the theater. So the backdrop is actually showing the audience of the theater when they're actually doing the show to the people. So it's kind of like, you're getting the point of view of being backstage in watching the audience, even though you're actually an audience member, which you don't see very often, which is kind of a very interesting partake in doing something like that.
But with the mix of the lighting and everything else, I was really impressed. I thought that was really good. But yeah, just seeing the audience, you being backstage and looking at the audience, that kind of view was very interesting to say the least.
But yeah, that's, but overall, impressed with the sets and everything else, you don't believe. Technically sound that. Yes.
Yes. Any gaps in the technique? No, no, not that I really noticed it all.
They're on par this time, totally 100%. So that's a good point. Yes.
There's nothing to complain on that part. How about the story itself? How does the story go for you?
Here's where it gets a little interesting, okay? And Chad kind of put this, that was the character of David really Woody Allen. Did Woody Allen just put him in that play and used a different name?
It's very, very possible. He tends to do that. He puts parts of himself, and it was lead character.
And that's why I could see what that character, with that character, it's kind of the nervous guy, the Woody Allen you would kind of expect. Now the overall basic plot, I found it interesting, it's the little story, and there's some spoilers I'd like to talk about, but I won't, because we want to be a spoiler free. Absolutely.
But just issues with all of us, I'm going to say. But the plot kind of kept interested, the mix of music versus storyline was pretty good. But overall, the plot was good.
Now, this is where I have the issues with this production. Okay. With first off, the guy who played, I want to give a shout out to Cheech, guy Jeff Brooks played Cheech.
All right, he's my shout out role on this one, okay? He made the part he, he added a lot of charisma, he made that, that role, the perfect henchman perfect, he really made the play. Okay.
Okay. I have one great, raving review would be Cheech is that. Sure.
Now my issue is with all of it in the character of David. Now, David was played by Michael Williams. In all of was played by Jenna Jean, Jenna Jean.
I think there was just something lacking with Williams playing David. I don't think he was the perfect guy. I understand the role.
I just think he, there might have been somebody better as long going to say about that. Okay. Sure.
We're talking to the Chad. We were talking to your nearer mission on this. And which I kind of put in my written review at www.clawbosspodcast.com.
That's our website. I put on there that they character of all of, I understand what they're trying to do because she's supposed to be annoying. Right.
Too much way too much. This roomed, she overdid it way too much. And if it's part of the script, she may be perfect enacting the role and that's what she's supposed to do, but if maybe she overdid it or the writing itself, it's either the actress herself or the script.
So you could tell between the way the character was designed versus the way the character was portrayed. I'm coming in and blind on this thing. But Chad said, it's supposed to be an annoying character, but it got too much.
You know how we've talked in the past about that fake jersey accent. Now sometimes people don't get in and really get you. Imagine that worst one when we talked about it, times about five.
That's how it was. Okay, fair enough. It got so annoying about 10 minutes and I'm going, I'm hating this because of her.
So she kind of waited down for. She weighed down the whole thing over all. Was it paste well?
Yes, it was paste well. The pacing was well. Okay.
And I like to plot, but just all of who's in there a lot was just too annoying were just turned you off and it went over the top. And now I don't know. Was it to actress or was it just the script in the role?
I don't know for sure, but it was one of the two or a mix of both. Okay. That was my biggest thing which really just put it down thing into the whole issue.
And I love to be, I'm not going to spoil it. Minor spoiler alert and three, two. Don't say the one.
There was one scene where I clapped, where half the audience clapped, so I'm going to say okay. Fair enough. Put it that way.
Okay. But that kind of put a real damper on everything. But beyond that, the show was good, everything else.
You could say on that, when it comes to the script and everything, it was, it was, it was a good performance, but it just, those two things of the main actors all of a day, but really put a big damper and everything from me on this. Anything else you want to cover for your final analysis? Now, all right.
The way we do the final analysis on this show, we don't give you thumbs up thumbs down. We don't give you stars, letter grades, numbers, anything like that. Our audience whom we affectionately refer to as the empire, we think they want us to take deeper.
So we're going to, I'm going to ask Don up to two questions. Question number one is would he see this production again? If the answer is no, then we're done here.
If the answer is yes, then the follow-up question is going to be, since this is a stage production, I want to know how much he, where he wants to sit, because that would say how much he really wants to go back, depending on the ticket price. So Don, would you see this production again? I would still give a yes, and I'd still recommend it because of the acting with cheats and everything else on that.
Okay. Well, where you want to sit, top balcony. So pretty much just, what do you think of the price?
Yes, it would be price. Just barely enough to be in the room. Yeah, I would say that because that issue with all of just really put a big damper on me.
But on the other hand, cheats did incredible. There was some good lighting, some good sets, some good props and everything. So it's kind of that mixed bag there.
If the all thing was done right with the white actors, right actors or a scripted right, it would be through the roof. Okay. It is bullets over Broadway.
And again, we got to think, Francis, go down some of the musicals, musical. And we also want to say this is the next to the last production of the year. The very last production for season 76 is coming up.
If you're listening to this around the time, it's here. But week after next June, June 30th has been, we're checking out 40 second street. That's going to be fun.
Very last one of season 76 and they're getting ready for season 77. And we don't want to give anything away. But they have an answer.
And they want to record this. They haven't answered. Yeah.
They have some big things coming in season 77 for Dallas, but one of them is a return that we've done, which we loved. That's what we're going to say to you. Yes.
But there's a couple of big ones that are on my bucket list. Yeah. But coming up for season 77.
Again, the next one is going to be 40 second street. And fortunately, because you're a situation of going to be out of state the next day. Yeah.
The next day. We just won't be able to do an audio, but 40 second street. We are so looking forward to that.
Yes, we are. So there will be an audio, but check our website out. Everything.
Everybody keep that in mind. This is the final one. You go out and see it.
So speaking of the website with two the plugs. Visit our website. The aforementioned, www.theclubhousepodcast.com.
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And Jules, well, I'm assuming she enjoyed this as well. Did you get any indication from her? I think being ched, I didn't get this written review though.
I didn't see that. But he didn't enjoy it. He didn't enjoy it.
But, you know, there were some issues we could say. But I think overall, Jules probably enjoyed it, being my best guess. So until I make sure you let's do our live show every Sunday night, 70's from a specific year one stop shop for all things pop culture, or just keep subscribing on iTunes, you get everything.
So until next time, for Dawn, for the Empire, I'm Rob. Clubhouse is closed for a new Palmer, doing the flapper thing, yeah, I'm in.