I thought the score was pretty good also. There is reason behind U2's success all these years.
The biggest issue for me, though, was wishing that there were better material for the score to support and for the talented performers to work with. I have now watched the Nightline report and would say that the new director accomplished a significant part of the retuning goal in making a more coherent storyline. But I have to cringe to think of what it was before retooling. Because at the end of the day, the plot and the manner of presenting it rises to no more than the level of a Saturday morning cartoon. Okay, I know this is likely to be the nature of something that is derived from a comic strip and includes youngsters as part of the target audience. But there are better interpretations than this.
I also was not real thrilled with the sets and choreography, particularly in the first act. The thought that came to mind during that time was that if this production had been a motion picture, it would be a straight-to-video release. To call it a B movie would be generous. It was a good thing, though, that I did not walk out at intermission; the second half was considerably better. Best line of the show occurred then when (as best I remember) the Green Goblin, in the context of havoc that would be wrought upon New York City, included a reference to "a 65 million dollar disaster, no 75 million"; humorous self-deprecation is a plus in my book.
It's also a fair possibility that I just may be a wet blanket. Much of the audience responded positively and gave a standing ovation at the end. For me, this was much more of a reminder of just how great a show BETM is, that it works on just about any and every level, angle and dimension. We don't have to apologize for a glaring and what I would say is overwhelming weakness such as what Spider-Man has imho. Not intending to be glib, but I really do conclude that seeing BETM a 10th, 25th or 50th time most likely is better than seeing many other shows. (Acknowledging that I have to extrapolate there since I only have the credentials at this point to talk about the 15th viewing).
