The Bridges of Madison County – Location, Tickets, Reviews
The Bridges of Madison County is a new musical based on the well-known novel by Robert James Waller (it was also adapted into a 1995 movie starring Meryl Streep and Clint Eastwood). Musical theater notables make up the creative team – Marsha Norman (‘Night Mother) adapted the book, Jason Robert Brown (The Last Five Years) composed the music and lyrics and Bartlett Sher (South Pacific and Golden Boy, both at Lincoln Center) directs. Musical theater stars Steven Pasquale, Kelli O’Hara, and Hunter Foster lead the cast.
Maxamoo
The cynical theatergoer in us wanted to roll our eyes at The Bridges of Madison County, a traditional, earnest-as-hell musical about a handsome traveler who changes the life of a Midwest housewife. But damned if we didn’t find this musical to be one of the most beautiful things to hit midtown in quite a while. In the hands of director Bartlett Sher, The Bridges of Madison County isn’t false for a moment. The romantic tension between the two stellar leads is electric throughout, as Jason Robert Brown’s downbeat, elegant score aches honestly over his intelligent lyrics.
It’s not only refreshing to see a traditional new musical that’s this good, it’s downright startling to find one that’s mature and primally heartbreaking. Bridges respects its audience’s intelligence – it explores the complexity of forbidden love without making it feel like heightened schmaltz. When O’Hara and Pasquale stare into each other’s eyes, it makes you realize how pedestrian and cynical most theatrical love stories really are.
We could go on and on. The set is wonderfully understated, the supporting players are well cast (Hunter Foster, y’all) and the directorial choices are poignant (as characters from our lovers’ past and present glide silently around them, invading their affair with bitter memories and better judgement). If we have a favorite reason to see it, it’s definitely Kelli O’Hara who has established herself as the most reliable and versatile actor in musical theater.
The Bridges of Madison County is as simple as it is otherworldly, finding passion in even the most mundane circumstances. It traffics in a kind of love that doesn’t have an easy description, let alone a cheesy musical theater metaphor. It’s the kind that anyone who’s been in love carries inside them forever.
Public Opinion
Twitter has been quite positive about The Bridges of Madison County, including some great reactions from fellow theater stars Sutton Foster and Betty Buckley:
@sfosternyc: “Bridges of Madison County = gorgeous @BridgesBroadway @MrJasonRBrown“
@BettyBuckley: “Loved “Bridges of Madison County”! So beautiful! @Kelli_OHara_ is divine! @StevePasquale is terrific! @MrJasonRBrown‘s music is sumptuous!”
@rlindnerlolong: “Overall conclusion: The Bridges of Madison County is for people who thought The Light in the Piazza had no hummable tunes.”
Have you seen The Bridges of Madison County? What did you think? Comment below or tweet to us at @Maxamoo.
Critics’ Reviews
Like us, many critics were surprised by how much they liked this show. There are some who thought The Bridges of Madison County was just treacle, but on the whole, critical response is positive.
New York Times
Hearts Ache in the Heartland
New York Post
Kelli O’Hara makes the most of ‘Bridges of Madison County’
New York Magazine
New Age on Broadway, in The Bridges of Madison County
Time Out New York
“The musical’s emotion is unapologetically grand, and its love duets have a wide, old-fashioned scope.”
Entertainment Weekly
“It helps that Jason Robert Brown (Parade, The Last Five Years) has written a lush and deeply romantic score, filled with rich and melodic duets that show off its leads’ terrific voices”
Huffington Post
“Although Kelli O’Hara and Steven Pasquale are in glorious voice as this passionate pair, the bombastic orchestrations and Bartlett Sher’s overstated helming inflate the production into some quasi-operatic beast that thinks it’s ‘Aida.'”
TheaterMania
“When O’Hara and Pasquale sing together, they not only elevate The Bridges of Madison County to an even higher emotional plane, but you can see the layers of world weariness disappear as they fall deeper and deeper in love.”
TICKETS
$59.00 – $225.00 (click here for tickets)
DATES
Performances through May 18, 2014
LOCATION
Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre
236 West 45th Street
New York City
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RUNNING TIME
2 hours and 40 minutes, 1 intermission
CAST & CREW
(partial list)
Book by Marsha Norman
Music & Lyrics by Jason Robert Brown
Based on the novel by Robert James Waller
Directed by Bartlett Sher
Featuring Steven Pasquale, Kelli O’Hara, Hunter Foster, Cass Morgan, Michael X. Martin, Caitlin Kinnunen, Derek Klena & Whitney Bashor