Review: Bullets Over Broadway

Ticket Type: Orchestra Front Row

Viewing Angle: Last seat on stage-right side of the row – missed a few entrances/exits.

Price: $40 – General Rush

Location: St James Theatre 44th Street.

Bullets Over Broadway draws on many of the conventions of the gangster Broadway show where the head of a mafia family funds a show purely so his girlfriend can be a Broadway star – sounds cliché, I know, but this show draws on all the positives of that mold and manages to still be unpredictable.

The characters are so likeable and yet seem to have a little more depth than similar stock roles. Zach Braff is engaging and incredibly likeable, although the show doesn’t seem a whole lot like Woody Allan’s writing Braff oozes narcissistic neuroticism in a perfect dose. Braff also proves to have the pipes to pull of the crowd-pleasing numbers. Helén Yorke (Olive) provides the best take on a mafia bombshell that I’ve seen, she’s ditzy but unforgivingly down to earth. The highlight however is the unique voice of Nick Cordero (Cheech) who performs some of the best songs of the show with a raspy croon.

The set compliments the show brilliantly as every scene is extravagant from the exterior of a train to the interior, to a dining room to the revolving set of the play they’re rehearsing, it’s all very detailed and transitions seamlessly.

Tight blocking producing slapstick laughs and brilliant characterization will have you smiling for the entire show’s duration. Bullets over Broadway won’t change your life, but it is a thoroughly entertaining show that makes a familiar story seem fresh and appropriate. You will enjoy this show; it does everything right and nothing wrong.