It was opening night for the Neil Diamond musical, so Gordon and I hustled over to the Pantages Theater for a 7:30 curtain. They’ve started the shows at 7:30 instead of eight these days. Don’t know why. Maybe it’s so when they have children in a production, they can get them home and in bed before 11. I think that’s a new union rule, but I could be wrong. Anyway, we got settled and had a nice talk with a guy who’s sat behind us for 20 years. We all agreed that we loved the production of Parade and the Ahmanson and hated the hipster version of Hamlet.at the Taper. Then the show started. I was dreading it. At these jukebox musicals I usually end up sitting next to someone who sings all the songs—badly. Not a problem. We ALL sang Sweet Caroline along with the cast so I was just as guilty as everyone else. It was fun. The show details Neil Diamond’s life. He started out as a songwriter in the Brill building—along with Neil Sedakis and Carole King. His first two wives sang about their lives with Neil using his own songs. I didn’t realize so many of his songs were autobiographical. The chorus line was terrific. Their song and dance numbers were wonderful. The cast was great all around but special kudos go to Nick Fradiani as Neil and Hannah Jewel Kohn as Marcia, Neil’s second wife. Fradiani channeled Diamond beautifully. I don’t know if he’s a great imitator or if the timbre of his voice is that close, but he sounded so much like Neil Diamond it was uncanny. And he’s cute. He took his shirt off at one point and all the girls, and some of the boys, went nuts. Kohn seemed like she was singing in a bad key but she made it work. And her dance number was great. Good job.
During the curtain call we got an extra treat. Neil Diamond’s third wife, who was sitting two rows in front of us, got on stage and introduced Neil Diamond through Facetime on her phone. I suspect he couldn’t come due to health issues, but he sang Sweet Caroline with the audience. The crowd went nuts. It was a lovely show. Lots of fun. Go see sit.
