WOW!! When Ticketmaster invited me to review Follies, I didn’t expect so many reviews for such a small show!! Here's my 2 cents:
My fiancé and I saw Michael Turco in ‘Wonder’ a couple years ago, so decided to see this. We enjoy his magic, and although his ‘showman’ style can be a bit hokey, it certainly matches the overall caliber of this show. We also enjoyed the aerialists… admittedly, not Cirque material, but graceful at times.
The singer? We both agreed with many of the other reviewers here; she has some potential, but seemed very raw and at times to be doing her best Christina Aguilera impersonation, and she was not helped by the choice of musical numbers. As far as that is concerned, the ‘Boardwalk’ number held promise of something different, then bam!! We landed in 2005 for not one but two Pussycat Doll numbers… seen it, and haven’t they grown up by now? And if you must, then the moves should be as original and crisp as theirs… equal hair tossing for all! Ditto the MJ number… yawn…been there. The wedding dress was a puzzle (??), we also saw holes in the dancer’s tights, and what was with the top falling off the girl in the audition number?
We recently returned from Vegas, where we saw a couple of the wonderful Cirque shows, and Peepshow at the Planet Hollywood Hotel and Casino. Peepshow’s burlesque is everything the Follies dancers aspire to be but fail to achieve… sassy, classy and a little tongue in cheek… and their superb dancers wowed from minute one. And… the Director / Choreographer is a Tony award winner from right here in NYC! With Atlantic City’s close proximity to NYC talent like his, I am often left wondering why we get these same old, second rate ‘shows’ instead of exciting, creative and innovative entertainment staged by true, seasoned pros like Mr. Mitchell..
Overall, Follies was about what I expected for under $30… but save your money and go to the excellent buffet at the Borgata instead.