And here's a sneak peak at a review that will appear on Broadwayworld.com at some point today. This is fascinating because the show was already "reviewed" there poorly - I didn't mind that that person didn't care for the show, but I did mind the accusation of note-for-note song plagerism (later retracted when he was shown there wasn't even a similarity) and this guy's smarmy little cross-outs alluding that we just took stuff from other musicals like The Rocky Horror Show - since I really don't like the latter and would never take anything from it even in homage, I asked him to point out the allusions to that show - nothing was pointed out needless to say.
In any case, this review is by another fellow, a little older, and who, more importantly, saw the show on Friday night, when everything was working (save for the sound) exactly as it should.
From Michael Dale:
The Brain From Planet X
Bruce Kimmel (book, score and direction) and David Wechter's (book) musical may be a spoof of 1950's low-budget sci-fi flicks, but its roots are solidly embedded in musical comedy. From the borscht belt jokes to the wildly comic performances to the spiffy show-biz score, pretty tap-dancing showgirls and buff showboys, The Brain From Planet X struts its considerable assets in an unapologetic quest to entertain. And entertain it does. I laughed, I tapped my toes, I laughed some more and had a swell time.
Looking a little like Phil Silvers in a straightjacket, the hilariously diabolical Barry Pearl wears an enormous brain headdress and big black glasses as the title character, determined to conquer earth by sapping us of our emotions and love for the American suburban way. Alet Taylor, as fellow alien Yoni (decked out like an intergalactic Ann-Margret), stops the show dead with her vamp number "I Need An Earthman." Her Planet X associate, Zubrick (Cason Murphy) is a bit of a tight-ass, but once he discovers Earth's greatest cultural achievement, musical theatre, he becomes a dancing fool and exuberantly leads the chorus in a smashing number called "The Brain Tap." (The night I attended there were some difficulties with the microphones, but Murphy was loud and clearly heard singing over a multitude of tapping feet.)
Back on Earth, General Mills of the United States Army (a bellowing Richard Pruitt), assisted by Private Partz (Chad Harlow, who has no lines but whose subtle reactions are a scream) recruit part-time inventor Fred Bunson (a nicely earnest Rob Evans) to help save the planet. But it may be too late to save Fred's wife, Joyce ( Amy Bodnar, who continually flashes an eerily toothy smile). Meanwhile, Merrill Grant is a comical whirlwind as libido-charged teenager Donna Bunson, who can belt out the catchy "Good Girl/Bad Girl" while athletically flinging herself all over her beat poet boyfriend (Paul Downs Colaizzo).
Kimmel's direction is in the classic George Abbott style of faster, louder, funnier, with jokes ranging from sly and satirical (one of Fred's inventions is a device to help 1950's teenagers develop a taste for tobacco) to the lowest of wordplay ("You wouldn't know the Earth from Uranus."). Adam Cates' flashy choreography and Jessa-Raye Court's colorful costumes add to the fun, making The Brain From Planet X a terrific time for tired businessmen, matinee ladies and over-caffeinated kids alike.
