Chicago Tribune - Somewhat Recommended
"...Shorn of its massive set, its $450 tickets and its overwhelming Broadway hubris, the national touring version of Mel Brooks’ “Young Frankenstein” now plays like a moderately amusing wing-and-drop entertainment with a few choice chunks of red comedic meat for loyal Brooks fans who are willing to indulge a strangely chilly show that’s cheerfully unwilling to uproot itself from down-and-dirty gags rooted in much-admired parts of the human anatomy."
Chicago Sun Times - Highly Recommended
"...Brooks' musical (the "follow-up" to his monumentally successful first show, "The Producers"), opened Wednesday at the Cadillac Palace Theatre in a rip-roaring national touring production that in many ways feels more buoyant, fast-paced and easeful than the Broadway original. And watching it for the second time it became even clearer that this is not just a Brooksian homage and parody of the Mary Shelley classic and the 1931 film it inspired. For while its story unfolds in Romania, this is a huge Valentine to all things Broadway."
Daily Herald - Somewhat Recommended
"...Back in 2000, Chicago went gaga for the Broadway tryout of "The Producers." But local audiences are in for a letdown if they're expecting the same lightning to strike twice with "The New Mel Brooks Musical Young Frankenstein" (its full official title)."
Windy City Times - Somewhat Recommended
"...One of the great joys of the movie is that, in addition to a brilliant concept and script and stellar performances, the filmmaking itself is a loving parody of the 1930s horror film genre. Shot in black and white, it features the expressionistic shadows, sharp camera angles and period art decoration of the 1931 original that inspired it. The entire filmic aspect is, of course, completely missing in a full-color Broadway musical which swaps film style for Broadway song-and-dance. About half the numbers work very well, but the other half just try too hard to force songs into what were brilliant non-musical movie moments."
Chicago Free Press - Somewhat Recommended
"...Cleary, writer-composer Mel Brooks has let success go to his head. Infatuated with the enormous success of his screen-to-stage transfer of “The Producers,” which broke box-office records and snagged a record 12 Tonys in 2001, Brooks dug back into his filmography for another “sure-fire” hit. (So sure was he of his own brand, he subtitled this show, “The New Mel Brooks Musical.”) Memo to Mel: It might be rare these days, but sometimes, audiences actually prefer originality."
EpochTimes - Highly Recommended
"...Each and every one of these lead actors is superb and Brad Oscar who handles two great characters roles to perfection is just a little icing on the cake. His little scene as the Hermit in the second act is another show-stopping moment. But we must always tell it like it is. A production like this, has to have those ensemble members who change characters and costumes and just keep coming back on stage to give a little more. They are in many cases the unsung heroes in a big musical and they deserve credit for the excellence they bring to make a production whole."
Copley News Service - Recommended
"...Young Frankenstein is no “The Producers” (a comparison Brooks must be sick of by now). But a show can be pretty good and not be as good as “The Producers.” “Young Frankenstein” never sinks below the modestly entertaining level and rises above that in much of the second act. That may be faint praise, but so be it."
Talkin Broadway - Somewhat Recommended
"...Given the vitriol hurled at this show around its opening on Broadway two years ago—for charging up to $450.00 a seat, for not reporting weekly grosses and for failing to meet expectations—one goes in to Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein musical with questions. Is it a) as bad as they said, b) as much fun as Brooks' The Producers on stage or Young Frankenstein screen, or c) somewhere in between? The correct answer, to this observer, is most definitely somewhere in between."
Centerstage - Somewhat Recommended
"...Leading actor Roger Bart seems much more relaxed this time around in the role of Victor Frankenstein. While on Broadway he pushed the comedy too hard, here he even comes off as understated, although more frenetic moments follow as the story progresses. Shuler Hensley remains excellent as the Monster, eventually demonstrating his considerable song-and-dance talents. Brad Oscar does a fine job in the dual role of Inspector Kemp and the blind Hermit in Act II. Cory English is a comedic genius in the Marty Feldman role of Igor, with the roving hump on his back, and Joanna Glushak is brilliant in the Cloris Leachman role of Frau Blucher (cue horses whinnying)."
Edge - Recommended
"...Other than these minor exceptions, the show is a delight. I defy even the most vehement hater of musical theater to resist the charms of a chorus of wild-haired mad scientists, werewolf jazz hands, and a giant multi-operator monster marionette. Should you insist on churlishly finding the masterful choreography a yawn, there are over-sized tesla coils, plasma balls, giant gears, and have I mentioned the giant multi-operator monster marionette?"
Chicago Stage Review - Recommended
"...Tony Award Winners, Roger Bart and Shuler Hensley reprise their roles from Broadway. They’re funny, not sidesplitting. Bart’s low-key approach to Dr. Fredrick Frankenstein is so casual at times that it feels almost phoned in. Hensley’s monster is one-dimensionally funny. Cory English, as Igor, sells it like his life depends on it and creates a frenetic wave of silliness that reaches the back row. Anne Horak is charming as Inga."
Time Out Chicago - Somewhat Recommended
"...One of the funniest bits in Brooks’s classic 1974 horror spoof involves a blind hermit, played by Gene Hackman, who welcomes Frankenstein’s creation into his hovel, only to torment the monster inadvertently with hot soup and a badly lit cigar. In this 2007 musical adaptation, now touring after a lackluster Broadway run, the scene, like virtually every memorable moment from the movie, eventually turns up. But the chuckles elicited by the bearded hermit’s (Brad Oscar) appearance dry up as he launches into a song about being lonely. And the reprise about being lonely. Could we get to the soup already?"
ChicagoCritic - Highly Recommended
"...Young Frankenstein is a slick production, rich in vivid costumes, stellar lighting with impressive sets to augment the comic acting, fine vocals and the polished dances that together with Brooks’ irreverent satire combine to offer a large-scale and most satisfying night at the theatre. This is a wacky old-time structured Broadway Musical from a mad genius that is pure escapist fun. We all need some fun and Young Frankenstein delivers boat loads of gags. If you loved the movie–then you'll love the musical even more. Don’t miss this show."
Chicago Stage and Screen - Not Recommended
"...This musical knockoff ungraciously regurgitates on stage one of the funniest films of all time. Brooks and Gene Wilder's 1974 classic had such a masterful sense of style, not to mention a brilliant cast of comedic geniuses that even the idea of reproducing it live on stage seems pointless. The musical substitutes cheap musical comedy schmaltz and a lot of flashing lights for the black and white terror of a horror homage. It belabors the existing jokes and innuendos, stretches them out into groan-inducing tedium and tops them off with a series of utterly forgettable tunes."
