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Review: ‘Rock of Ages’ Returns, Scaled Down but Big Hair Intact

In a limited run Off Broadway, the jukebox musical about love and rocking out in the 1980s now includes songs by Def Leppard.

rock of ages tour reviews

By Elisabeth Vincentelli

Are you ready to down Jell-O shots, headbang and play air drums, New York? Because “Rock of Ages” is back in town for a 10th-anniversary run, and it’s time to get happily stoopid.

That last part is not easy to pull off for a show, mind you; you don’t score five Tony Award nominations and spend almost six years on Broadway by being inept. There are brains under all the big hair in this jukebox musical about love and rocking out on the Sunset Strip of the 1980s.

“Rock of Ages” has returned for a scaled-down production Off Broadway at New World Stages , where it had its New York premiere in 2008, before relocating to Broadway the next year. The show somehow plays fairly well despite an environment that’s generally a lot less tolerant of men pushing around women in the name of rock ’n’ roll — or in the name of anything, really. Its saving grace is a certain good-natured goofiness that somehow tampers the deep-rooted sexism of the L.A. metal scene. It helps that the director and choreographer are, now as then, two women: Kristin Hanggi and Kelly Devine.

Also returning is the original cast member Mitchell Jarvis, who is back overplaying the narrator, Lonny — a puckish employee of the Bourbon Room, the rock club where most of the action takes place.

As revered as the venue is among fans of the type of music that requires perms and codpieces — remember, we are in 1987 — its existence is threatened by a rising tax bill and the pressure of German developers (Tom Galantich and Dane Biren) trying to clean up the Strip. To raise money, the Bourbon Room’s owner, Dennis (Matt Ban), gets the megastar band Arsenal to play there before its singer, the preening Stacee Jaxx ( PJ Griffith), takes off for a solo career.

Against this high-stakes background, Drew ( CJ Eldred), a bar back and aspiring singer, and Sherrie (Kirsten Scott), a waitress and aspiring actress, work on their one-step-forward-two-steps-back romance. Both are remarkably sweet and innocent, maybe because they work in the most wholesome den of iniquity you can imagine — this is definitely not a stage adaptation of the infamous Mötley Crüe memoir “The Dirt.”

Onto this story — which grinds to an unfunny halt whenever the Germans appear — Chris D’Arienzo’s book grafts as many 1980s hits, often in shortened form, as possible. While “Rock of Ages” is often referred to as a hair-metal musical, its song list expands to earworms by such contemporaries as Pat Benatar, Foreigner and Journey, whose “Don’t Stop Believin’” has become the de facto anthem of waving phones and upbeat catharsis.

And now “Rock of Ages” also includes music by Def Leppard , which belatedly agreed to be licensed by a show named after one of its songs. That hit and “Pour Some Sugar on Me” propel a number at the Venus Club, the strip joint where Sherrie ends up after being fired from the Bourbon Room on Stacee’s orders.

In the 2012 film adaptation, the role of Stacee — played there by Tom Cruise — was beefed up and so bad that it now gets a mocking shout-out toward the end of this show: “Tom Cruise had a monkey,” Lonny says, “which is … fun .”

Stacee doesn’t actually appear all that much in the stage version, which is a problem because he’s the most fun character; Mr. Griffith cleverly plays him like a manipulative, aging Jeff Spicoli, the stoned surfer dude from “Fast Times at Ridgemont High.”

Perhaps it’s time for him to get his own spinoff musical. If classic-rock acts can go on forever, why can’t he?

Rock of Ages

Through Oct. 6 at New World Stages, Manhattan; 212-239-6200, rockofagesmusical.com . Running time: 2 hours 20 minutes.

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Rock of Ages Visitors Center & Quarry Tours - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)

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rock of ages tour reviews

The 10th anniversary tour of Rock of Ages launched October 13 at the Clemens Performing Arts Center in Elmira, New York. The non-Equity tour, directed by Martha Banta and choreographed by Janet Rothermel, stars Anthony Nuccio as Drew Boley, Katie LaMark as Sherrie Christian, John-Michael Breen as Lonny, and Sam Harvey as Stacee Jaxx.

READ: Current and Upcoming National Tours

A First Look at Rock Of Ages 10th Anniversary Tour

rock of ages tour reviews

A blend of 1980s nostalgia and rock music, Rock of Ages incorporates a parade of ’80s hits, including “Every Rose Has Its Thorn,” “I Wanna Know What Love Is,” “Here I Go Again,” and “Don’t Stop Believin’.” The show’s book is by Chris D’Arienzo.

Rock of Ages opened Off-Broadway at New World Stages in the fall of 2008 before transferring to Broadway the following spring, picking up five 2009 Tony Award nominations including Best Musical. Rock of Ages ran for 2,328 performances before closing in January 2015. A screen adaptation was released in 2012.

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rock of ages tour reviews

rock of ages tour reviews

Musical Review: Rock of Ages

In our first combined writer review, Digital Editor Tamzin Meyer and Culture Writer Charley Davies rave about the musical Rock of Ages and recommend it as the ultimate show for kickstarting theatre re-openings

rock of ages tour reviews

Rock of Ages is the perfect musical to kickstart the return to live theatre and is one for everyone, combining a romantic storyline with the best 80s rock hits (including Starship’s ‘We Built this City’, Europe’s ‘The Final Countdown and Journey’s ‘Don’t Stop Believing’) in true jukebox style, being accompanied with sensational vocals. If that does not rock your boat enough, the cast is studded with Strictly’s winning professional dancer, Kevin Clifton, who proves that he is indeed a triple threat. Who knew he could act, sing and dance so convincingly?

You could not look down for a second without missing a moment encrusted with irony or an innuendo. 
The comically steamy scenes, filled with humour of a sexual nature, made the show a late-night must-see for an adult audience.

Humour was embedded into the writing and performance throughout the musical’s entirety, much to the audience’s delight. The comically steamy scenes, filled with humour of a sexual nature, made the show a late-night must-see for an adult audience. Regina (Gabriella Williams) -pronounced Re-j-ina to give us an added chuckle- had us all in stitches with her cartwheels, in a rainbow leotard, showing an exposed patch of faux pubic hair for comical effect, whilst Lonny ensured that the audience interacted with the comedy of the show, picking upon an audience member who subsequently became the subject of many jokes – even having their name written onto a message board which was carried across the stage. This was a truly entertaining and creative added touch to the show which really encouraged audience participation. Sometimes it was difficult to know whether some of the humour was written into the script or not with moments like this creating a personal spontaneity about the show which placed entertaining the audience at its heart. 

We left The Alexandra Theatre with hands that ached from clapping

As the finale approached, the show certainly went out with a bang (with Regina even setting herself on fire); resolutions were made and clarity was added through the final song ‘Don’t Stop Believing’ that tied everything nicely together (it was as if the song was written for Drew and Sherrie, even referencing Sherrie’s ticket for ‘the midnight train.’)

We left The Alexandra Theatre with hands that ached from clapping, being touched by the sentimental speech Clifton made at the end thanking the audience for allowing the cast to perform once again. After the eighteen months we have just had, Rock of Ages gave us the perfect chance to let loose and gain our freedom back. 

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“Rock of Ages 10th Anniversary Tour” - Review by Carol Moore

rock of ages tour reviews

Lonny (John-Michael Breen) is the lecherous narrator who frequently breaches the fourth wall.  He has a serious love affair going on with the Fog Master 5000.  He has some very funny bits, particularly as he figures out the plot with the aid of Musicals for Dummies.  Lonny works for Dennis (Ryan M. Hunt) who owns the Bourbon Bar on L.A.’s Sunset Strip. 

According to Lonny, a successful musical has to have a ‘love interest’ which is Drew (Anthony Nuccio), a wanna-be rock star working at the Bourbon and a girl named Sherrie (Katie LaMark), who is literally just off the bus from Kansas.  Although he’s very attracted to Sherrie, Drew can’t seem to tell her that – even with prompting from Lonny! 

The Bourbon, and everything else on the Strip will be demolished and a shopping center built, if Hertz (Andrew Tebo) and his son Franz (Chris Renalds) – who’d rather be running his candy shop – get their way.  In an effort to save the Bourbon, Dennis invites rock star, Stacee Jaxx (Sam Harvey) and his band – who all hate him – to perform.  Unfortunately for Sherrie, Stacee gets her fired after they hook up. 

Desperate for a job, Sherrie goes to work as an exotic dancer/stripper in club owned by Justice (Kenya Hamilton).  Meanwhile, a new agent puts Drew into a boy band.  Both of them are miserable.  Meanwhile, Regina (Kristina Walz), which she says is pronounced as re-gi-na (a rhyme with vagina) is organizing the community to save the strip by chaining themselves to the door of the Bourbon.  And that’s just the first act!

The 5 man cover band – Marshall Keating (Conductor/Piano), Zach “AttAkk” Hennig (Guitar1), Maddox (Guitar 2), Chris Moore (Drums) and Oliver Hofer (Bass) – are fabulous as they play hits of the 80’s like “We Built This City”, “Don’t Stop Believin’”, “Wanted Dead or Alive”, “Can’t Fight This Feeling” and more. 

Staging is a little different than the original.  Instead of set pieces, they’ve used a slew of what looks a lot like cases manufactured right here in Munster by Star Case.   At any rate these wheeled cases, which come in a variety of sizes and shapes, open up as rooms or become a car, or a bar, or a light board.     

“Rock of Ages 10th Anniversary Tour” runs through April 28th at the Nederlander Theatre, , Chicago.  Check with Broadway in Chicago for remaining performances.  Tickets range from $18-$85.  FYI (800) 775-2000, all Ticketmaster retail locations and www.BroadwayInChicago.com .

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rock of ages tour reviews

REVIEW Rock of Ages, New Theatre by Barbara Hughes-Moore

rock of ages tour reviews

Rock of Ages started life in a little club on Hollywood Boulevard before hitting the big time, racking up thousands of performances in a dozen countries – meaning that it’s actually living the dream to which its characters can only aspire. The jukebox musical is filled with so many classic rock anthems – Here I Go Again, Don’t Stop Believin’, The Final Countdown, and more – that it’s no wonder it’s become such a global sensation. Direct from the West End, this new UK tour is bigger, better and bawdier than ever – and if you wanna rock, then you’re in for nothin’ but a good time.

rock of ages tour reviews

Rock of Ages is set in the heyday of the mid-to-late 80s, a time that was post-punk and pre-grunge: the era of soft rock and hair metal, where if you had three chords and a perm, you were a god amongst men. LA’s Sunset Strip is the place where such dreams are made – or dashed. Just like the Journey song which closes it, the show is brimming with “people living just to find emotion”: a small town girl and a city boy who fall in love; a washed-up rock star staging his comeback; and a motley crew (not that one) fighting to save the Strip from gentrification.

rock of ages tour reviews

Directed and choreographed by Nick Winston, Rock of Ages is the kind of show that just gets better every time you go again (trust me, this isn’t my first rodeo). The cast brings a tremendous energy to the stage, bolstered by a cracking live band and an ensemble that’s second to none. There’s a new vivacity to the choreography that’s unlike any version I’ve seen before, and Morgan Large’s set, sprinkled with spotlights and stacked with amps, takes you right back to the summer of ’87. And there’s always something amusing happening in the background, which makes every bit of the stage come alive – right down to the two protestors who look ready to break into Brokeback Mountain at any moment.

rock of ages tour reviews

Gabriella Williams and Sam Turrell are sublime as the star-crossed Sherrie and Drew while X-Factor winner Matt Terry owns the stage as the salacious Stacee Jaxx – who, as he sings on Wanted Dead or Alive , really has seen a million faces and rocked them all. There’s also some serious powerhouse support by Jenny Fitzpatrick as the illustrious Justice Charlier (who deserves her own show), Vicki Manser as the rabble-rousing Regina, Vas Constanti as Heinz, and Andrew Carthy as Franz (a German Pee-Wee Herman, don’tcha know?) A special shout-out to Phoebe Samuel-Gray as Waitress No. 1 who sings one chorus and nearly walks off with the whole show.

rock of ages tour reviews

But the show lives and dies on its Lonny – and Joe Gash is one for the ages. Channeling Freddie Mercury and Justin Hawkins, Gash is so effervescent he makes fizz look flat. (Russell Brand wishes he were that whimsical). His partner in business and in life, Dennis Dupree, is played by Coronation Street ’s Kevin Kennedy: imagine if Axl Rose mellowed and started really investing in fringed jackets, and you’re pretty much there. Their romance is a surprisingly sweet little subplot which culminates in a climactic duet to REO Speedwagon’s Can’t Fight This Feeling . It’s funny, but genuinely tender too – and you really feel like Kennedy and Gash (the new Gallagher and Lyle?) are singing to each other, not at each other.

rock of ages tour reviews

The book by Chris D’Arienzo could probably do with updating, but the cast bring sincerity and depth to characters that started life as names scribbled on album sleeves, and they tie it all together into something that’s moving without being mawkish. Rock of Ages isn’t a show that behaves itself: it’s chaotic, it’s crude, and it makes lowbrow look high – but when it rocks, it rolls. Just like in the song, I hope this show goes on and on, because we always need something to believe  in.

Rock of Ages is playing at the New Theatre Cardiff through to Saturday 21 May

rock of ages tour reviews

Review by Barbara Hughes-Moore

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Theatre Review: ‘Rock Of Ages’ (Tour)

rock of ages tour reviews

  • Feb 27, 2019

The promise of Los Angeles in the 80s. Which bands, which singers will realise their dreams in this city of sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll?

rock of ages tour reviews

Photo Credit: Richard Davenport

If you are wanting an evening full of laughter and great eighties music then this is the show for you. The excitement amongst the audience before our performance began was tangible, especially as the auditorium was already misty with dry ice.

The first number, ‘Feel the Noize’, sets the tone for the evening and auditorium seemed to vibrate. The on-stage band had the audience enthralled, the excitement only enhanced by the brilliant lighting effects.

Without doubt, a talent-filled cast – exceptional dancing to intricately choreographed sequences accompanied by some outstanding singing voices. ‘Waiting for a Girl Like You’ and ‘The Search is Over’, are show stoppers, sung by Luke Walsh as Drew, an aspiring rock singer, with Jodie Steel, who plays Sherrie, a reluctant night club hostess. Kevin Clifton, of ‘Strictly’ fame, plays pop star Stacey Jaxx, and received tremendous ovation singing ‘I Want to Know What Love Is’.

So many great songs and the story hangs together readily, but it is really enhanced by the buffoonery, asides, singing, and dancing of Lucas Rush who played Lonny, with Kevin Kennedy a perfect foil, playing Dennis, who had owned most of LA, but because of drugs and alcohol, has sadly lost most of it.

A great show, but not family viewing – lots of sex, drugs and loud rock music, bright lights and lots of scantily dressed dancers – the excess of it all and an evening of fabulous fun and entertainment.

Rock of Ages was reviewed at the New Wimbledon Theatre where it plays until 2nd March before continuing on its tour of the country.

rock of ages tour reviews

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REVIEW: Rock Of Ages, New Wimbledon Theatre (Touring) ✭✭✭✭✭

rock of ages tour reviews

Julian Eaves reviews Nick Winston’s production of Rock of Ages the musical at the New Wimbledon Theatre head of its UK Tour.

Rock Of Ages UK Tour review

Rock of Ages New Wimbledon Theatre(UK Tour) Tuesday 14th September 5 Stars Rock Of Ages Touring Schedule

Opening at the gorgeous New Wimbledon Theatre at the start of yet another national tour, this marks a welcome return to our theatres of Chris D’Arienzo’s witty, slick and camp-as-Christmas 80’s jukebox musical, which will spend the next year bringing smiles and laughter to fans (old and new) up and down the land.  It’s a guarantee of a great night out, never to be forgotten.

Rock Of Ages UK Tour

The Rock Of Ages creative team here, led by director-choreographer Nick Winston, is a smash. Framed by Morgan Large’s rock gantry stage, a dizzying parade of genre stock characters flit around like moths in the limelight. And what limelight!  It is hard to think of Ben Cracknell’s virtuoso light designs as anything other than one of the stars of the show: shining and twinkling, glowing and glaring in kaleidoscopic displays of inextinguishable visual ingenuity. Large also dresses the cast, and pulls off some neatly deft coups with brilliantly executed costume changes.  Meanwhile, music is provided on-stage by the authentically sounding rock combo of MD Liam Holmes, keys, Liam Stevenson, lead guitar, Alex Ward, guitar 2, Elliot Mason, bass, and Vito Guirrieri, drums. But for my money, this outing will surely be remembered most for Winston’s subtle and thoughtfully paced production; despite having all the provocation necessary to turn the gig into a send up, Winston holds fire in many of the script’s deliberately hammy twists and turns, making us take these characters – despite all their follies – seriously, and enabling us to care about them and their world.  Ultimately, this shrewd approach pays off, bringing genuine heart and passion to the event.

Rock Of Ages UK Tour

The busy cast of 18 fares equally well in his hands.  Narrator and would-be star of the show is Joe Gash’s tacky Lonny, working the room with relentless accuracy, as he regales us with the all too familiar yarn of Rhiannon Chesterman’s sublimely voiced Sherrie, haplessly love-struck with real-life partner Luke Walsh’s Drew while she simultaneously seduces Kevin Clifton’s crass Stacee Jaxx.  But it is in the secondary characters that this show really comes to life, and the casting here gets the most out of them: headlining surely must be Gabriella Williams’ comic genius in the role of Regina, romancing Andrew Carthy’s up-tight German, Franz, while Jenny Fitzpatrick’s powerhouse-voiced Justice blows the roof off with her numbers, and makes a great counterpart to Ross Dawes’ warmly resonant Dennis.

Rock Of Ages tickets

The theatre was nearly packed to capacity for the opening night of this latest tour, and the ovations at the end were aptly crowned by a speech by Clifton, earnestly thanking us for helping to ‘re-open’ the theatre after such a long and uncertain period of closure and calling out to use to spead the word amongst our friends and social media contacts.  ‘We’re back!’ he concluded.  ‘And so are we!’ the punters might reply.  Yet, after so much damage having been done to the UK’s priceless theatre industry, it is hard to be sure what lies ahead.  You never know, if you miss out on seeing this splendid gig this time around, it might well be rather a long time before you get to see its like again.

Julian Eaves

Writes book, music and lyrics of new musicals. Currently completing, ‘Generation Rent’, a contemporary college-reunion comedy. New project: ‘Kate The Great’, set in the City. Previous productions with: Iris Theatre; LOST Theatre; So-and-So’s Arts Club; Chichester Festival Theatre (National Theatre Connections); Courtyard Theatre; Arc Theatre, Trowbridge; Harlequin Theatre, Redhill. Also for Royal Court Young People’s Theatre, Edinburgh Fringe, National Youth Theatre.

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The Band ‘Rock of Ages’: Their Live Pinnacle?

rock of ages tour reviews

At that point in their career, the Canadian/American quintet found itself on the cusp of creative fatigue after more than a decade together since their scuffling days as the Hawks, backing rockabilly wild man Ronnie Hawkins, and their trial-by-fire backing a plugged-in Bob Dylan on his infamous 1966 tour. That seasoning undergirded the unhurried power of their playing and the thematic maturity of their stunning 1968 debut, Music from Big Pink , and the earthy alchemy of their eponymous successor a year later. Taken together with the rough drafts of Dylan’s “basement tapes,” those two albums changed the course of rock by tracing folk, blues, country and gospel fault lines that would anticipate the roots renaissance of Americana decades later.

rock of ages tour reviews

Bob Dylan with The Band, Dec. 31, 1971, at NY’s Academy of Music (Photo © Ernst Haas via Iconoclast and UMe)

Big Pink and The Band clinched the Band’s headlining status while raising lofty expectations at a time when an emerging rock press and FM radio sought more than seven-inch earworms. Their third studio album, 1970’s Stage Fright , drew mixed reviews and a general sense of disappointment despite its success on the album chart, reaching #5 even as critics lamented the studio polish and slighter material on offer.

The songwriting collective forged during their sojourn with Dylan had withered, leaving guitarist Robbie Robertson to emerge as principal writer, generating friction with his partners, especially erstwhile Hawks leader Levon Helm. Sessions in early 1971 for the next album, Cahoots , found Robertson straining lyrically, his weakest lyrics succumbing to dogmatic musings.

The Cahoots sessions did serve up one song that rekindled a musical dialogue between Robertson, Helm and Rick Danko. In “Life is a Carnival,” the trio devised a slippery, off-centered rhythm track of guitar, bass and drums bubbling with syncopations that pointed south toward New Orleans. The Band’s members were fans of Crescent City R&B, especially the rich catalog of songwriter, arranger and producer Allen Toussaint, whose sophisticated funk reached a pinnacle the previous year with Lee Dorsey’s classic Yes We Can album. Robertson approached Toussaint to arrange horns for the track, to which he responded with intricate brass and reed parts that bypassed conventional block chords, lobbing an antiphonal volley of horn lines that bounced off the rhythm section in a giddy, sonic kaleidoscope that would open the finished album.

With album tracks completed, the Band resumed touring behind Stage Fright , heading for Europe for their first concerts since the ’66 tour that subjected them to abuse from audiences outraged by Dylan’s rock ’n’ roll apostasy.

Related: Our Album Rewind of Stage Fright

Any trepidations about a similar reception were banished from the first show in Hamburg, with the group energized by the ecstatic response: The Band was playing in peak form every night, feeding off the audiences’ energy in 10 cities, including two triumphant nights at London’s Royal Albert Hall, notoriously (if incorrectly) cited as Waterloo for Dylan and the Hawks five years before.

That reception proved restorative as they headed back to America and a string of summer festival dates, followed by a fall tour culminating in four nights at New York City’s venerable Academy of Music. With renewed confidence in their playing, the prospect of a live album offered a chance to cement their onstage stature at a time when remote recording technology and concert sound reinforcement afforded a new level of commercial and critical viability for live albums. Since 1969, the Rolling Stones, the Who, the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, Cream and the Allman Brothers Band had all delivered powerful live sets that only burnished their careers. Now it was the Band’s turn, and they were determined to make their first live album more than a souvenir or a stopgap.

The Academy dates would provide four consecutive shows to get things right technically and musically, in a venue built as a 19th century opera house. A customized remote recording van with 16-track tape machines was booked, with Phil Ramone set to engineer.

With Cahoots about to hit the street and Toussaint’s raucous contribution fresh in their ears, the Band recruited him to craft bespoke arrangements for 11 of the night’s songs, including “Life is a Carnival.”

Toussaint’s impact is spotlighted from the downbeat, juggling the shows’ running order to effectively start with the second set and Robbie Robertson’s introduction of the five “best horn men in New York” joining the Band. An expectant hush gives way to Rick Danko’s elastic fretless bass riff leading into the now 10-piece ensemble’s cover of “Don’t Do It,” a 1964 Marvin Gaye hit energized by a rowdy lead vocal from Helm and Danko’s bounding bass, which surpasses the original part from legendary Motown bassist James Jamerson.

The song sequence then turns toward the strongest songs in the group’s quiver, with “King Harvest (Must Surely Come),” the simmering closer to The Band , paced by Richard Manuel’s clenched vocal and Robertson’s tart Telecaster figures against the elegant backdrop of Toussaint’s horns.

In concert, the Band left little to chance, adhering to fixed song lists and hewing closely to arrangements memorialized in the studio—there were no long jams, impromptu medleys or grandstanding solos save for Garth Hudson’s nightly freak-out on his hot-rodded Lowrey organ, originally gene-spliced from Bach as the intro to “Chest Fever” and now titled “The Genetic Method.” Instead, they played concise songs highlighting their versatility as multi-instrumentalists: Manuel could move from piano bench to drum stool while Helm played mandolin or electric guitar; Danko would unstrap his bass and pick up a fiddle; and Hudson moved freely between keyboards, accordion and saxophones. As for the era’s arms race between bigger, louder P.A. systems, the Band favored quieter, clearer stage mixes revealing their instinctive ensemble interplay.

For the Academy dates, the remote recording console was modified with additional inputs enabling pinpoint coverage of Howard Johnson (tuba, euphonium, baritone sax), Snooky Young (trumpet, flugelhorn), Joe Farrell (tenor/soprano saxes, English horn), Earl McIntyre (trombone) and J. D. Parron (alto sax, clarinet) to reveal Toussaint’s rich, varied arrangements in high relief. The payoff can be heard in the audience response to such showcases as “W.S. Walcott Medicine Show” and “Life is a Carnival.”

Rock of Ages offers two other new songs, including an unreleased Robertson original, “Get Up Jake,” and the closing rave-up of Chuck Willis’ “(I Don’t Want to) Hang Up My Rock ’n’ Roll Shoes),” a 1958 B-side foreshadowing the Band’s affectionate oldies tribute, Moondog Matinee , a year later. Otherwise, the setlist leaned into Big Pink and The Band ’s atmospheric songs to satisfying effect on future classics “The Weight” and “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down,” now linked in a familiar segue to the second album’s opener, “Across the Great Divide.”

The original two-LP collection was released on Aug. 15, 1972. The Band’s stature as a superb live band would ultimately be documented on six albums from the original quintet, plus three expanded editions, including a 2001 two-CD edition of Rock of Ages , a further expansion and remix from the same Academy concerts, and an expanded deluxe edition of The Last Waltz , their 1976 all-star big screen sendoff. Add their live recordings with Dylan (including 1974’s Before the Flood double set and a whopping 36-disc CD box documenting Dylan’s 1966 tour) plus six live sets featuring the regrouped lineups following Robertson’s departure, and the legacy of their live shows is substantial.

Yet there is strong evidence to cite 1971 as the Band’s peak year onstage, with Rock of Ages their formal bid for posterity. A second CD’s worth of material from the 2001 remastering approaches a more complete record of the New Year’s Eve show estimated as source for 80 percent of the material on the album, including three loose-limbed performances with surprise guest Dylan, which fill out the repertoire without improving on the original 19-track version.

What does buttress the case for ’71 as zenith is the Royal Albert Hall concert captured in June at the Band’s request after their triumphs in Germany, Austria and France. EMI (then owner of the Band’s label, Capitol) brought four-track tape machines to the venue with a complete 20-song set captured, if only for posterity. Sonically, the RAH tapes could not approach the pristine mixes Phil Ramone would pull from December’s 16-track coverage.

BONUS AUDIO: Hear “The Shape I’m In” from The Band’s June 1971 concert at the Royal Albert Hall, released with the 50 th anniversary remixed and re-sequenced Stage Fright.

What the Albert Hall show does offer is the core quintet playing with a muscular urgency that often surpasses Rock of Ages , their tougher material taken at a faster pace and the vocals on their more confessional material (especially “The Shape I’m In” and “Stage Fright”) almost feral in projection.

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This ad appeared in the Sept. 9, 1972 issue of Record World

By contrast, the December performances sound deliberate and even cautious, if beautifully rendered, a likely consequence of having had only a day to rehearse the added horn section playing Toussaint’s elegant charts. The original EMI tapes may have been deemed too muddy for commercial release, but Bob Clearmountain’s remix retrieves detail that was likely unattainable with 1971’s gear.

Taken together, the London and New York live recordings afford a last look at the Band as they rang out 1971 and headed into what would later be regarded as the “lost” year of 1972, following Dylan out of Woodstock and across their own great divide to Malibu and a period of dissolution and disillusionment. Four years later, the original incarnation of the Band would disband, following The Last Waltz.

BONUS VIDEO: Watch the Band perform “Don’t Do It” live at New York’s Academy of Music on December 31, 1971

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2 Comments so far

dgrb

Glad to see you mention the Royal Albert Hall CD. I was at one of those two gigs (IIRC the second) and it was truly spectacular. Although I bought Rock of Ages as soon as it was released (and the CD reissue) I always found it somewhat disappointing. Hearing the Albert Hall recording properly (as opposed to the dimly-recorded Royal Albert Rags boot) simply underlines the reason. Nice though Toussaint’s arrangements were I feel it was a mistake for their first live recording not to be just the five of them – just compare Don’t Do It on the two sets: the RAH rocks so much harder. And Rick Danko’s Loving You (etc) was a highlight that I kept in my mind for decades. For me this CD is THE finest live recording of the Band, period.

Batchman

Appropriate that you should publish this right before New Year’s Eve. Garth’s “Genetic Method” ultimately breaks into “Auld Lang Syne” (before going into “Chest Fever”) and so listening to that performance has become a New Year’s tradition for me.

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Rock of Ages

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ROCK OF AGES: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

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Full cast for Rock of Ages 2023 farewell tour

rock of ages tour reviews

The former Coronation Street favourite who first played the club owner in the 2018 tour and returned to the role for the 2022 tour, will star alongside a number of returning cast members in the production which will open at Peterborough New Theatre on 1 February.

Sam Turrell returns as Drew Boley after playing the role on tour last year and around the world on the NCL Breakaway cruise ship, with Gabriella Williams ( Mamma Mia! Novello Theatre, Eugenius! London Palladium) back as Sherrie Christian, Cameron Sharp ( School of Rock , Gillian Lynne Theatre, Jesus Christ Superstar , Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre) as Stacee Jaxx, Natalie Winsor ( Fame , Shaftesbury Theatre, Dirty Dancing , UK tour) as Justice Charlier, Vas Constanti as Hertz Klinemann, David Breeds ( Dear Evan Hansen , Noel Coward Theatre, The Girls , Leeds Grand/Lowry) as Franz Klinenmann.

Tim Oxbrow (Bat Out of Hell, West End/UK and Canada tour, Mythic, Charing Cross Theatre) will step into the pivotal role of Lonnie with Stephanie Chandos ( 9 to 5 The Musical , Savoy Theatre/UK tour, Hairspray, Royal Caribbean) as Regina.

The cast is completed by Erin Bell, Adam Strong, Scott Hayward, Darius James, Reece Duncan, Tianna Sealy-Jewiss, Janine Somcio, Rhys West and Phoebe Samuel-Gray.

The band is made up of musical director Liam Holmes on keys, Liam Stevenson (guitar 1), Alex Ward (guitar 2), Elliot Mason (bass guitar) and Steve Hynes (drums).

Presented by Dan Looney, Adam Paulden, Jason Haigh-Ellery and Richard Klin for DLAP Entertainment Group, Sue Gilad and Larry Rogowsky, Rock of Ages will follow its Peterborough performances by visiting Bromley, Aberdeen, Blackpool, Truro, Bradford, Manchester, Barnstaple, Llandudno, Crewe, Hull, Wolverhampton, Newcastle and Swansea.

Directed and choreographed by Nick Winston, the production’s set and costume design is by Morgan Large, with lighting design by Ben Cracknell, sound design by Ben Harrison, video and projection design by Duncan McLean and casting by Jim Arnold.

The creative team also includes associate director Victoria Gimby, associate choreographer Ryan-Lee Seager and associate lighting designer Chris Vaughan. Costume supervision is by Lee Tassie and production management is by Phil McCandish.

Celebrating the classic soft rock of the 1980s, the musical features a book by Chris D’Arienzo and orchestrations and arrangements by Ethan Popp. The original Broadway production opened in 2009 and was the 29th longest-running musical in Broadway history when it closed in 2015. The production was nominated for five Tony Awards in 2009 including Best Musical and Best Actor for the original leading man former American Idol finalist Constantine Maroulis.

The show made its West End debut in 2011, the year before the release of the film version and three years before the first UK tour. The sold-out second tour launched in Manchester in 2018 and ran until the summer of 2019 with former pop star Anthony Costa and Six ’s Jodie Steele also among the touring cast.

Angela Thomas

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Cameron Sharp , David Breeds , Gabriella Williams , Kevin Kennedy , Natalie Winsor , Nick Winston , Peterborough New Theatre , Rock of Ages , Sam Turrell , Stephanie Chandos , Tim Oxbrow , Vas Constanti

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Review: ROCK OF AGES: TENTH ANNIVERSARY TOUR at Times Union Performing Arts Center

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Jacksonville was blown away by the Tenth Anniversary Tour of Rock of Ages . The musical that tells the story of a bunch of dreamers on the Sunset strip, that are trying to make it big in the rock-n-roll world. Following the adventures of love, heartbreak, defeat, stardom, and the fight to keep rock-n-roll alive as a father-son team wants to destroy the Boulevard and turn it into multiple shopping centers. The musical showcases hit songs from the late 80's such as "Don't Stop Believin'", "Here I Go Again", "Hit Me with Your Best Shot", and so many more! Rock of Ages captivated every single audience member and connected us all through iconic songs and entertaining stories!

Every single actor in the production is supremely talented. Lonny ( John-Michael Breen ), the show's narrator as well as one of the funniest characters, was amazing. Breen did a phenomenal job at connecting with audiences, pointing and speaking with a few as if they were part of the production. As some audiences cheered and screamed, Breen was able to improv without missing a beat. I was incredibly impressed by his performance. Drew, performed by Anthony Nuccio, had a voice like no other. Every number he performed in presented so much emotion and heart. Nuccio's performance as the want to be rock star blew audiences away and left them cheering for an extended period of time. Sherrie ( Katie LaMark ), the want to be actress who leaves her hometown and sets out for Sunset Boulevard, was greatly entertaining. Not only did she have quick wit and was great in all her choreography, but she had an incredibly beautiful and pure voice. The entire ensemble was absolutely astounding. They represented avid rock-n-roll fans perfectly, but also had incredible voices that were showcased in every number. Each and every one of them performed with so much heart and soul. And a special shout out to Jacksonville native, Mark LaDuke, who performed as Joey Primo and in the ensemble!

The stage design was incredible as well. It began with minimal design, but as the show began it became like a concert. The lights, the smoke, the sound, the entire atmosphere made the audience feel like they were transported to an 80's concert. I was very impressed with the versatility and the flow of the stage, moving from bathroom scenes, to nightclubs, to a bus stop. It all was very cohesive.

The audience felt like part of the production, as well. They were so passionate as if they were the audience members of a rock-n-roll concert. I could hear them singing along to every, song and cheering for their favorites. The nostalgia was felt by each and every audience member, even those who may not have been alive at this time period. There were even audience members dressed as though they could be in the show in their favorite 80's gear. I love that this show brought audiences who may not be accustom to theatre and those that are together to enjoy a night of fun, music, and rock-n-roll!

Rock of Ages is unlike any show I have seen. The cast genuinely looked like they were having the time of their lives on stage and living out the dreams their characters wanted. I believe this may have been Jacksonville audiences' favorite performance this season!

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Rock of Ages announces 2023 farewell tour cast 

Producers for Rock Of Ages have announced the 2023 farewell tour cast headlined by Kevin Kennedy as Dennis Dupree.

Kennedy, best known for his portrayal of ‘Curly Watts’ in Coronation Street, previously appeared in the 2018 UK Tour of Rock of Ages . His numerous theatre credits include Chicago, We Will Rock You , Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, The Rocky Horror Show , The Commitments and Kay Mellor’s Fat Friends .

Kevin is joined by Sam Turrell ( Rock of Ages UK Tour) as ‘Drew Boley’, Gabriella Williams ( Mamma Mia! ) as ‘Sherrie Christian’, Tim Oxbrow ( Bat Out Of Hell ) as ‘Lonny Barnett’, Cameron Sharp ( School of Rock )as ‘Stacee Jaxx’, Natalie Winsor ( Abba Voyage )as ‘Justice Charlier’, Vas Constanti ( The Rocky Horror Show ) as ‘Hertz Klinemann’, David Breeds ( The Girls ) as ‘Franz Klinemann’, Stephanie Chandos ( 9 to 5 The Musical ) as ‘Regina’.

The cast is completed by Erin Bell, Adam Strong, Scott Hayward, Darius James, Reece Duncan, Tianna Sealy-Jewiss, Janine Somcio, Rhys West and Phoebe Samuel-Gray.

Rock of Ages opens at Peterboroguh New Theatre on Wednesday 1 February 2023, the tour will then visit Bromley (7 – 11 February), Aberdeen (14 – 18 February), Blackpool (20 – 25 February), Truro (27 February – 4 March), Bradford (7 – 11 March), Manchester (14 – 18 March) and Barnstaple (21 – 25 March).

From May the tour visits Llandudno, Crewe, Hull, Wolverhampton, Newcastle, and Swansea. New casting will be announced for these dates.

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COMMENTS

  1. ROCK OF AGES Broadway Reviews

    Girls, Girls, Girls. Rock of Ages, which was written by Chris D'Arienzo and directed by Kristin Hanggi, and which played Off Broadway last year, is too full of self-conscious winks, nudges, and ...

  2. Review: ROCK OF AGES 10th Anniversary Tour Headbangs Classic Eighties

    This is a non-equity tour. The Hippodrome is located at 12 North Eutaw Street, Baltimore, MD, 21201 410-837-7400. Mamma Mia! The young, energetic cast of ROCK OF AGES' 10th Anniversary Tour is too ...

  3. Theatre Review: 'Rock Of Ages' (2022 Tour)

    Theatre Review: 'Rock Of Ages'. (2022 Tour) written by Katey Thompson Sep 21, 2022. Rock of Ages has been a Broadway and West End hit and in 2022, is now back on tour. This is a brilliant ...

  4. Review: 'Rock of Ages' Returns, Scaled Down but Big Hair Intact

    Review: 'Rock of Ages' Returns, Scaled Down but Big Hair Intact. In a limited run Off Broadway, the jukebox musical about love and rocking out in the 1980s now includes songs by Def Leppard. 5 ...

  5. Rock of Ages Visitors Center & Quarry Tours

    Factory Tour. Oct 2023 • Solo. Rock of Ages runs one of the few quarries still operating in Vermont. You go into the Visitor's Center and see a short movie on the history and running of the quarries. They have examples of some of the sculptures and types of marble used to see as well.

  6. A First Look at Rock Of Ages 10th Anniversary Tour

    October 26, 2018. Sam Harvey and cast Jeremy Daniel. The 10th anniversary tour of Rock of Ages launched October 13 at the Clemens Performing Arts Center in Elmira, New York. The non-Equity tour ...

  7. Review: ROCK OF AGES 10TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR TOTALLY ROCKS at Straz

    Review: ROCK OF AGES 10TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR TOTALLY ROCKS at Straz Center For The Performing Arts. In 1987, the sleazy Sunset Strip is hopping and Dupree's Bourbon Room, a hair band bar owned by ...

  8. Musical Review: Rock of Ages

    Rock of Ages is the perfect musical to kickstart the return to live theatre and is one for everyone, combining a romantic storyline with the best 80s rock hits (including Starship's 'We Built this City', Europe's 'The Final Countdown and Journey's 'Don't Stop Believing') in true jukebox style, being accompanied with sensational vocals.

  9. Rock of Ages (Touring) Tickets

    Broadway's Best Party is turning up the volume to ten! The ROCK OF AGES Tenth Anniversary Tour is blazing across North America! Nominated for five Tony Awards®, including Best Musical, ROCK OF AGES captures the iconic era that was the big bad 1980s Hollywood. Know What Love Is, Feel the Noise, and Take Your Best Shot at one of the Sunset ...

  10. "Rock of Ages 10th Anniversary Tour"

    "Rock of Ages 10th Anniversary Tour" runs through April 28th at the Nederlander Theatre, , Chicago. Check with Broadway in Chicago for remaining performances. Tickets range from $18-$85. FYI (800) 775-2000, all Ticketmaster retail locations and www.BroadwayInChicago.com.

  11. REVIEW Rock of Ages, New Theatre by Barbara Hughes-Moore

    Rock of Ages is set in the heyday of the mid-to-late 80s, a time that was post-punk and pre-grunge: the era of soft rock and hair metal, where if you had three chords and a perm, you were a god amongst men. LA's Sunset Strip is the place where such dreams are made - or dashed. Just like the Journey song which closes it, the show is brimming with "people living just to find emotion": a ...

  12. Theatre Review: 'Rock Of Ages' (Tour)

    Rock of Ages was reviewed at the New Wimbledon Theatre where it plays until 2nd March before continuing on its tour of the country. Related Topics rock of ages Barbara Jones

  13. Rock of Ages Tickets, 2024 Concert Tour Dates

    Buy Rock of Ages tickets from the official Ticketmaster.com site. Find Rock of Ages tour schedule, concert details, reviews and photos.

  14. Review: ROCK OF AGES Tenth Anniversary Tour is Ridiculously Rad

    Rock of Ages Tenth Anniversary Tour, with book by Chris D'Arienzo and direction by Martha Banta, plays at the Fox Theatre March 1-3. ... Review: AN EVENING OF ONE ACTS at West End Players Guild.

  15. REVIEW: Rock Of Ages, New Wimbledon Theatre (Touring)

    Rock Of Ages Touring Schedule. Opening at the gorgeous New Wimbledon Theatre at the start of yet another national tour, this marks a welcome return to our theatres of Chris D'Arienzo's witty, slick and camp-as-Christmas 80's jukebox musical, which will spend the next year bringing smiles and laughter to fans (old and new) up and down the ...

  16. The Band 'Rock of Ages': Their Live Pinnacle?

    Big Pink and The Band clinched the Band's headlining status while raising lofty expectations at a time when an emerging rock press and FM radio sought more than seven-inch earworms. Their third studio album, 1970's Stage Fright, drew mixed reviews and a general sense of disappointment despite its success on the album chart, reaching #5 even as critics lamented the studio polish and ...

  17. Rock of Ages

    The ROCK OF AGES Tenth Anniversary Tour is blazing across North America! Nominated for five Tony Awards®, including Best Musical, ROCK OF AGES captures the iconic era that was the big bad 1980s Hollywood. "Know What Love Is," "Feel the Noise," and "Take Your Best Shot" at one of the Sunset Strip's last epic venues, a place where ...

  18. Rock of Ages the Musical Review

    Rock of Ages the Musical Review. ... The UK tour kicked off its run this week at a packed out Palace Theatre in Manchester. The enthusiastic crowd were more than ready to sample the onstage action having already had a taste of the theatre staff getting their 'Rock On in the foyer dressed in costume and belting out rock tunes.

  19. Review: ROCK OF AGES: TENTH ANNIVERSARY TOUR at Orpheum Theater Will

    Omaha Performing Arts has brought a rock and roll favorite to the Orpheum for two nights only. I was able to see ROCK OF AGES, TENTH ANNIVERSARY TOUR last night and spent 2 1/2 happy hours ...

  20. ROCK OF AGES: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

    Rock of Ages Sheffield. Nov 2014 • Friends. Brilliant songs constructed around a very weak story and acting to match. Save some money and download the songs on your I-pod and dance in your living room. Disappointed with the swearing and sexual innuendo, although those things are traditionally linked with rock and roll there was no warning ...

  21. Full cast for Rock of Ages 2023 farewell tour

    Kevin Kennedy (Chicago, Adelphi Theatre, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, UK tour) will reprise his performance as Dennis Dupree when glam rock jukebox musical Rock of Ages embarks on its 2023 farewell tour.The former Coronation Street favourite who first played the club owner in the 2018 tour and returned to the role for the 2022 tour, will star alongside a number of returning cast members in the ...

  22. Review: ROCK OF AGES: TENTH ANNIVERSARY TOUR at Times Union Performing

    By: Jordan Higginbotham Jan. 11, 2019. Jacksonville was blown away by the Tenth Anniversary Tour of Rock of Ages. The musical that tells the story of a bunch of dreamers on the Sunset strip, that ...

  23. Rock of Ages announces 2023 farewell tour cast

    Producers for Rock Of Ages have announced the 2023 farewell tour cast headlined by Kevin Kennedy as Dennis Dupree.. Kennedy, best known for his portrayal of 'Curly Watts' in Coronation Street, previously appeared in the 2018 UK Tour of Rock of Ages.His numerous theatre credits include Chicago, We Will Rock You, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, The Rocky Horror Show, The Commitments and Kay Mellor ...