Caught the first performance of IT'S A BIRD IT'S A PLANE IT'S SUPERMAN! at the York Theatre's Musicals in Mufti series, an Encores-style series using typically only piano and drums and no costumes. And unlike Encores, where the performers only pretend to be reading from a script, here they really do read from the scripts.
SUPERMAN has been on the Encores short list for some time. It was set to be done in 2002, but was cancelled immediately after 9/11 - it's plot involves a terrorist attack on several Metropolis buildings at once (sound eerily familiar? exactly).
Tonight's performance was totally sold out, and I suspect it's due to Cheyenne Jackson, who will be joining the cast of XANADU as of next week, replacing the injured James Carpinello as the painter Sonny.
Needless to say, there was no "flying." It was also devoid of any color, with the performers all wearing black. As such, the real focus was on Charles Strouse and Lee Adams' score. Strouse, in fact, made a cameo in the show and began as its narrator.
Cheyenne was wonderfully campy. Shoshana Bean gave a nice performance of the score's best song, "You've Got Possibilities." Lea Delaria was nicely cast as the villain, but improvised far too much, taking focus away from the show.
Please note that this is not meant to be a review. This was merely the first public performance of a concert with little rehearsal time, though quite a few of the cast members already did the show in the Reprise series. I highly recommend the reading to anyone who's ever been intrigued to see a performance of SUPERMAN.