Towleroad
Bette Midler laments closing of ‘The Music Man,’ ‘one of the best shows I’ve ever seen’
January 11, 2023
NEW YORK — Bette Midler Expresses Deep Regret Over The Closing Of “The Music Man””
“What a shame ‘The Music Man’ at the #WinterGarden in NYC is closing on the 19th,” she tweeted Tuesday. “It’s one of the best shows I’ve ever seen in my life; absolutely beautiful.”
The show’s website indicates “The Music Man” will close Sunday, which the theater confirmed by phone.
Fans of the Divine Miss M rushed to their keyboards to speak about their experiences seeing the Tony-nominated show starring Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster.
Some remarked that “The Music Man” must be something special to get such high praise from Midler, whose Broadway credits include her 1966 debut in “Fidler on the Roof” and a 2017 Tony-winning performance in “Hello, Dolly!”
“The Music Man” first came to Broadway in 1957. Its latest incarnation opened in February 2022 at the Winter Garden Theater at 1634 Broadway. Daily News critic Chris Jones had some kind words for the show in his review in February but thought it came up short in several areas.
“The revival has cut itself off at the knees over worries about how it will go down in today’s less-then-permissive environment,” he wrote.
Bette and I must have seen different productions. Because this one was terrible. It was like a poor knock off of her Dolly without any of the charm.
That’s interesting. Did it close bc nobody was going to see