“Tina: The Tina Turner Musical” is a powerful eruption of explosive, energetic and expressive songs and dances, probing the ascent and survival of the queen of rock amid a climate of sex abuse and domestic violence.
In the title role, Jayna Elise is luminous and fiery and delivers most of the tunes in the score.( Meagan Dawson plays Tina in some performances).
The show opened last night (April 22) at Blaisdell Concert Hall and continues its short week’s run through Sunday (April 27).
Act I is a painful history of how Tina – formally named Anna-Mae Bullock — became infatuated with music and stardom, despite a relationship with a dominating and abusive beau/husband, Ike Turner (Sterling Baker McClary), who is perfectly unlikeable. He smacks her repeatedly and it is painful to endure.
Act II is where Tina validates her reign and delivers simply the best of her ditties – with the splendid support of the Ikettes (Mya Bryant, Daniya Jazel, Morgan Lewis and Aiyana Smash, back-uppers who possess pizzazz. ).
Elise/Tina received the loudest support (applause, cheers, hoots) in the moment that she stopped being Ike’s punching bag, and delivered a pivotal return punch (yeah, right where it hurts the most!) in an unexpected response to halt being a victim.
“Tina” has everything you’d expect:
- A parade of juke box hits (“What’s Love Got to Do With It,” “Private Dancer,” “River Deep, Mountain High,” “We Don’t Need Another Hero,””(Simply) The Best”).
- Shimmering gowns, some fringed.
- That one costumed piece that became a Tina trademark: a blue jean jacket worn with a dress.
- Infectious and demanding choreography (by Anthony Van Laast).
- An array of background projections and scenic (by Jeff Sugg).
Because of the adult themes, the show is not suitable for young children; perhaps age 15-16 and up could attend. Further, the dialogue contains some swear words, and the N word is uttered several times.
While the score should rightfully relate to Ike and Tina, the usage is occasionally awkward. So, the overview is like a patchwork blanket with random pieces that suit the eye or color motif.
The 10-member orchestra often is too loud, drowning stage vocals; a bit of toning down might be in order, even though this is a rock/pop act performance. Or the alternative might be considered: those with soft voices might amp up a skosh.
Elise has quickly picked up the local spirit, shouting “Aloha, Hawaii” at the final curtain, before launching a couple of hana hou selections; no, she’s not yet acclimated to the island shout-out for an encore. Surely, she’ll know the terminology and turf by the end of the run.
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“Tina: the Tina Turner Musical”
What: A musical biography of the queen of rock, with book by Katori Hall, with Frank Ketelaar and Kees Prince, with music by various composers
Where: Blaisdell Concert Hall
When: 7:30 p.m. April 23 and 24, 8 p.m. April 25, 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. April 26; and 1 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. April 27
Tickets: Varies, depending on date and seat locations; visit www.Broadway inHawaii.com
Running time: 2 hours 45 minutes.
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Three Broadway shows in $3 million club
And then there were three: “Wicked,” in the No. 2 slot on this week’s roster of Broadway grosses, outpaced “Othello,” which slid to No.3. George Clooney’s “Good Night, and Good Luck” remained No.1.
It was the first time ever that three productions surpassed $3 million in the weekly recaps.
The Top 10:
1—”Good Night, And Good Luck,” $3.882 million
2—” Wicked,” $3.333 million
3—”Othello,” $3.123 million
4—”The Lion King,” $2.940 million
5—”Glengarry Glen Ross,” $2.362 million
6— “Hamilton,” $2.164 million
7—” Aladdin,” $2.027 million
8—”MJ the Musical,” $1.719 million
9—” Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” $1.612 million
10—”The Outsiders,” $1.454 million
The full list, courtesy the Broadway League:
And that’s Show Biz…