The Broadway Ferret

Image from www.applause-tickets.com

Rating: 4 out of 5 masks

What a way to make a living…yes, I went there.

9 to 5 tells the story of 3 female office workers (Violet, Judy and Doralee) who take revenge on their “sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical” male boss by holding him hostage, unbeknownst to the rest of the company.  They then decide to enact changes to the office using his name.

Image from cityguideny.com

The sets are pretty basic: the boss’ office, the general office pool, the boss’ house, etc.  There’s nothing flashy about them, which is kinda good for a musical set in the 70s.  There’s an LED backdrop, much like Guys and Dolls, except 9 to 5 uses it more for atmosphere than part of the actual set.

I thought Megan Hilty and Stephanie J. Block were amazing.  It was a little entertaining seeing former cast members of Wicked together again.  I thought Megan was really playing up her character’s “assets” and showing a side of her character the audience wouldn’t expect.  I liked that you could see Stephanie’s character’s growth from a meek new employee to a woman with confidence.

I was surprised when I first heard that Allison Janney was going to be in a musical, especially this one.  I was impressed at how she managed to keep up with her costars.  I thought her character’s storyline, getting frustrated at watching people she trained get promoted above her, was just as realistic as everyone else’s.  However, while I’ll admit she can sing, there were times when I couldn’t hear her as sometimes the ensemble and/or the orchestra would overwhelm her voice.  It was almost like she opened her mouth and no sound came out of it.  Needless to say, I was completely surprised that she got nominated and not Megan Hilty or Stephanie J. Block.

I thought Marc Kudisch was perfect as the boss.  He exuded just the right amount of creepy as his character tried to look up Doralee’s skirt.  He had great comedic timing and you have to admire someone who spends part of the show hanging in midair.

I think the biggest surprise regarding this show is how almost all the songs didn’t sound country.  It really goes to show how talented Dolly Parton is.  I thought the songs that she wrote for each scene were really good, especially Doralee’s song “Backwoods Barbie”.

Overall, I thought this show was really good.  I would recommend this show for older teens and up because of some suggestive content.  It would be perfect for those who are fans of the movie or know what it’s like to work in an office environment and/or for a boss that they would like to exact revenge on.

Running time: 2 hours 30 mins w/intermission