Somewhere in downtown Philadelphia, a down-and-out fighter named Rocky Balboa struggles to stay on his feet. But when the chance of a lifetime comes along, he takes his best shot at becoming a champion... and his last shot at finding first love.
The iconic underdog story Rocky has inspired an innovative new stage production, brought to extraordinary life by a five-time Tony Award-winning creative team, including director Alex Timbers (Peter and the Starcatcher), songwriting team Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty (Ragtime), and book writers Thomas Meehan (The Producers) and Sylvester Stallone (Rocky, the Oscar-winning Best Picture).
Both an adrenaline-infused spectacle and a surprising tale of blossoming romance between two lonely outsiders, Rocky is a visceral and heart-stopping theatrical experience for everyone brave enough to follow their dream.
With the electrifying climax they've come up with for the new musical version of 'Rocky,' director Alex Timbers and his creative team reveal themselves to be true lords of the ring. It gives away nothing to describe the effect, because being in the Winter Garden Theatre...is the only way to appreciate completely its athletic panache and technical artistry...Although the performances by Karl and Margo Seibert, as his wallflower of girlfriend, Adrian, offer authentic moments of tenderness, they are let down by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens's surprisingly tin-eared score, and the frequently movie-parroting book by Thomas Meehan and Sylvester Stallone.
The creators of 'Rocky' the musical - which features a book by Thomas Meehan and Mr. Stallone, and songs by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens, with Alex Timbers as the director - have perhaps gone overboard in capitalizing on this legend. For what they have given us is a show that at first feels like such a flat liner that you can't imagine that it could pull itself into any kind of competitive shape, even in a lackluster season for Broadway musicals. The doubts that plague and paralyze its title character (the appealing, deliberately underwhelming Andy Karl) seem to have informed the show as well. The governing sensibility isn't just underdog; it's hangdog...Every tool at the disposal of the creative team (and probably much of the show's budget) is brought into play now for an all-out, multimedia assault on the senses that forces much of the audience to its feet. And I won't say more, because why should I spoil the one real pleasure this show provides? The fight, for the record, lasts 16 minutes. With front orchestra tickets costing $143 (and you'll want to sit close), that comes to about $9 per heart-racing minute. Such is the price of excitement on Broadway these days. Hey, it's healthier than steroids.
2011 | New York |
Workshop New York |
2014 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2014 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Andy Karl |
2014 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Choreography | Steven Hoggett |
2014 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Choreography | Kelly Devine |
2014 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Director of a Musical | Alex Timbers |
2014 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Lighting Design | Christopher Akerlind |
2014 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Musical | Rocky |
2014 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Set Design | Christopher Barreca |
2014 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Sound Design in a Musical | Peter Hylenski |
2014 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Award | Margo Seibert |
2014 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Award | Andy Karl |
2014 | Drama League Awards | Outstanding Production of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Musical | Rocky |
2014 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Andy Karl |
2014 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Book of a Musical (Broadway of Off-Broadway) | Rocky |
2014 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Choreographer | Steven Hoggett |
2014 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Choreographer | Kelly Devine |
2014 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Director of a Musical | Alex Timbers |
2014 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding New Broadway Musical | Rocky |
2014 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Set Design (Play or Musical) | Christopher Barreca |
2014 | Tony Awards | Best Choreography | Steven Hoggett |
2014 | Tony Awards | Best Choreography | Kelly Devine |
2014 | Tony Awards | Best Lighting Design of a Musical | Christopher Akerlind |
2014 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical | Andy Karl |
2014 | Tony Awards | Best Scenic Design of a Musical | Christopher Barreca |
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