A Visit To Spamalot, Pre-Clay Show

Have you ever wondered what Spamalot was like from the time Clay left until now? Well, now we can get an idea about this. The Clayboard's imsnoqueen went to see the show Thursday night, sans Clay. Here is her review. I think you'll enjoy it very much. I've bolded a few parts that I especially found interesting.

I went to see Spamalot last night, to evaluate the show pre-Clay Return.

The new king, who recently joined the cast, plays the role as a more goofy character. The comedic timing on a few of the jokes was a bit off, as he didn't give the audience time to laugh. In addition, he talks a bit fast, so some of the lines were not discernible. But, overall, he gave a good performance. I liked his "I'm All Alone" performance very much.

David is back as Patsy...I love him!

The outgoing Sir Robin did a nice job, particularly on "You Won't Succeed on Broadway." The actor who played Sir Robin did not flip up the back of his tunic, when he sat down at the piano. He played the piano quite well, and included a section from the song "I will Survive." He enunciates very clearly and talks slower than Clay. He's smaller and more "bouncy" than Clay. I feel Clay plays the role with a stronger English accent, more comical, and as more of a "chicken."

The Knights Who Say Ni joke was that he was the father of Sarah Palin's daughter's baby. His exit line was, "I have to go now and check on my AIG stock."

Sir Galahad did a great job, particularly in the role of Prince Herbert's father, and his presence seemed to outshine Sir Robin, as a starring character.

The Lady of the Lake was a smash with the Diva song. She doesn't have the operatic voice, like Hannah's, but added her own spin. There was a line in the song, where she said they were going to replace her with Britney Spears, rather than Posh Spice. During the part, where they are searching for the Grail, she somehow incorporates part of Rihanna's umbrella song...ella...ella...ella.

The peasant seat was B101 last night. There are a lot more lines from the cast, speculating on what the meaning of B101 is. The peasant brought onstage was an older man, who was completely surprised.

As has been mentioned before, the "Idol of My Age" and "Spam Spam Wonderful Spam" singing parts were not in the show. I expect that those will return tonight.

During the "Run Away" song, the girls in the chorus seemed to be grabbing Sir Robin's butt more, so we (and Clay) should be looking forward to that.

I think Prince Herbert got a new wig.

Overall, the show was excellent, and the audience was enthusiastic, although there were no standing ovations, even at the end. The cast is so good, and the show is so colorful and energetic. It's almost exhausting to watch. The orchestra was full. I'd put the mezzanine at 25% full. I couldn't see the balcony, other than to see that here were people up there.

There were 5 people at the stage door. The King signed autographs, and Tom Deckman and Bradley Dean came out while I was there.

We spoke with one of the cast members, who said that the cast was very happy about Clay's return. He said they'd been at about 60% in sales, since Labor Day, and that the expectation is that Clay's return will increase sales. He said that tonight is close to being sold out, and that sales are good for the first weekend and next week.

That's all folks!