Young Frankenstein

We went to see the new Broadway show Young Frankenstein last night. While the reviews have been mixed, I loved it. Of course, I loved the movie too. It’s really just the movie with a bunch of wacky songs thrown in.

Of course the one song from the movie is still there. For those who recall the “Puttin’ on the Ritz” number, Dr. Frankenstein does the singing until the chorus when the monster simply yells “Puttin’ on the Ritz!”. Even knowing it was coming, it was still hilarious.

The reviews generally compare it with The Producers, since it’s Mel Brooks’ next effort. But The Producers won more Tonys than any show ever and broke every box office record. Young Frankenstein definitely isn’t The Producers. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t great fun.

The cast was great. I’m a big Gene Wilder and Marty Feldman fan, so I was wondering how the Broadway cast would compare. They were excellent. As was Frau Blucher (horse neighing in the background – if you don’t get that you didn’t see the movie).

And thankfully it’s one of the few shows that is unaffected by the stagehand strike.

So regardless of what the New York Times theatre reviewer thinks, I give it a big thumbs up.