THEATRE: LEGALLY BLONDE, THE MUSICAL

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LEGALLY BLONDE, THE MUSICAL

As a life-long goer to musicals, I realized my favorite ones are happy, the way a musical should be. I don’t need to see people splitting up, dying from aids (or anything else), having underage German sex, killing others, etc.

Photo credit: Joan Marcus

Photo credit: Joan Marcus


My all-time faves include Peter Pan, The Drowsy Chaperone, Beauty and the Beast, and for the past couple of years, Legally Blonde, though I had never seen it in person. MTV had shown us a taping of the original Broadway show, with the one-and-only Laura Bell Bundy starring as Elle Woods.

Mr. X and I became so attached to that version that, though we were dying to see the show in person we were afraid that we couldn’t enjoy wit without Ms. Bundy. So, it was with that mix of high anticipation and huge fear of a let-down that we attended the national tour’s opening night at Hollywood’s Pantages Theatre.

I’m happy to report that we still loved it!!! We did start out a tad concerned, however, when the opening number, the ripped-off-from-me “Oh My God, You Guys” was staged very differently, and without the charm of, the Broadway show, but I’m sure it’s to save money and stage-moving hassle.

But it picked-up by the second number and stayed true to itself from there. Though Becky Gulsvig, in the lead, can’t really dance, she fakes it enough to work, and is a good enough actress and singer to make the show enjoyable. (To be fair, I don’t really think that there’s anyone who could have come close to Laura Bell Bundy.)

The big improvement is in the part of Elle’s hair stylist-new best friend, Paulette. The actress on Broadway was brutal and Natalie Joy Johnson is so much better.

An older couple was pretty snide about the music to us on the way out, but for the younger and young-at-heart, this is a must-see. The only problem is that you’ll be talking and singing like a Valley Girl for days afterwards, but you’ll be upbeat and humming as you do.

Legally Blonde running through Sept. 6

Pantages Theatre 6233 Hollywood Blvd. Hollywood 800-982-2787 www.BroadwayLA.org

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