Broadway: A little Broadway

I have seen three shows over the past couple weeks. One I enjoyed, one was ok, and one was...well...not the best.

The first show I saw was Pal Joey. This was the one that was ok. The only real reason I wanted to see it was because of Stockard Channing. I should have known better because Pal Joey is a musical and I don't think Channing has the best voice. It really showed in this show. It didn't help the the other people didn't really have great voices either (especially Matthew Risch, Joey). Maybe it wasn't fair seeing this show right after Billy Elliot. I didn't really care for the musical as a whole. I just couldn't get into it. I hear that Gene Kelly played the original Joey Evans when it first opened on Broadway. Something tells me I would have loved the show then.Second show was Hedda Gabler. While most reviews tore this show up, I really enjoyed it. For some strange reason I really like the store and I thought Marry-Louise Parker (Hedda) did a good job. I really enjoyed her character. I do think some of the other actors were weak. I did not like Ana Reeder (Mrs. Thea Elvsted). This is the second show I have seen her in and I personally don't think she's a good actress. I cringe every time she delivered a line. That didn't ruin the show for me, but I hope I don't see her again anytime soon.The third show was the American Plan. I will confess I liked the first part of the show, but the second act just didn't do it for me. This was a critic's pick for the New York times, and I usually agree with them, but not this time. I really really wanted to like it, but I just couldn't. The shows plot had a weird twist that didn't resonate well with me and I found myself wanting the show to end. I was very disappointed. I felt bad about not liking it, but then remembered that about 20 or so people sitting in front of me walked out during intermission (they didn't have any nice words about the show either). I thought Lily Rabe (Lili) did ok. My "like" of her really followed a roller coaster pattern. She was really good and then not so good. I thought Mercedes Ruehl did a good job as Eva. She added a nice comedic relief to the show.