Needless to say my review is much more positive than those in the two newspapers. However, I am not a professional theater critic. The Daily News review states "the songs are so blandly performed they don't make an impression." I must respectfully disagree. Perhaps the reviewer listens only to Lite-FM. Another quote "The story, framed by a deejay/narrator who sets the scenes, is sometimes so cliched you wonder why they didn't just do a concert." Again, I must disagree since I feel that the songs were well integrated into the story line. He also objects to songs by artists other than the Shirelles are in the show. I feel that it places the songs of the Shirelles in the context of other hits of that which which I feel helps the non-oldies enthusiast enjoy the show.
The article in the New York Times seems less negative, but the reviewer states "But mostly they bop around acting like blandly innocent Jersey Girls, generic teenagers getting ready for a sock hop, or even Mouseketeers."
Certainly the show will appeal to my oldies radio friends who grew up during the era when the Shirelles hit the charts. They key to its success will be whether it appeals to enthusiasts of other genres of music. Certainly, the Jersey Boys did that, but it remains to be seen whether Baby Its You can duplicate that feat.
I should also make my readers aware that Dionne Warwick and Shirelles are suing the producers for using their names and likenesses without permission.
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