Rock of Ages (the musical) premiered at a club on Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles in 2005. After a short-stint Off-Broadway, the comedic, 80's classic rock musical landed on Broadway in 2009 and has been rockin' strong ever since. In 2012, the wildly popular Rock of Ages (the movie) was released, staring A-list actors like Tom Cruise and Alec Baldwin, launching Rock of Ages popularity even further.
As luck would have it, the National Tour traveled right on over to our little river city and blew up the stage with their stellar performance opening night at the Florida Times-Union Theater. With the help of finally being allowed to drink cocktails in the theater, the vocal, excited and fun-loving crowd drank in every minute of the performance.
To compare this show to the movie is performing an injustice. After seeing Chicago both on stage and on the big screen, I just assumed Rock of Ages would play out the same way, being extremely similar - it's not. The movie is much more complex, only basing a fragment of the storyline on the original musical and embellishing, twisting and putting the "Hollywood" spin on it. Additionally, the soundtracks are mostly similar, with a few variations (see below):
Both Soundtracks:
We Built This City
We're Not Gonna Take It
Just Like Paradise
Nothin' But A Good Time
Sister Christian
Heaven
More Than Words
Waiting For A Girl Like You
Wanted Dead Or Alive
I Want To Know What Love Is
Harden My Heart
Shadows Of The Night
Here I Go Again
Any Way You Want It
I Wanna Rock Reprise
Hit Me With Your Best Shot
Can't Fight This Feeling
Every Rose Has Its Thorn
Don't Stop Believin'
Only Rock of Ages (the Musical) Soundtrack:
Too Much Time On My Hands
Cum On Feel The Noize
To Be With You
The Final Countdown
High Enough
I Hate Myself For Loving You
Heat Of The Moment
Oh Sherrie
The Search Is Over
Only Rock of Ages (the Movie) Soundtrack:
Paradise City
Juke Box Hero
I Love Rock 'n' Roll
Pour Some Sugar On Me
Undercover Love
Rock You Like A Hurricane
To truly appreciate Rock of Ages (the musical), you have to take it for what it's worth - A light-hearted, vulgar, laugh-out-loud Broadway show with awesome actors, dancers and musicians transporting the audience to a dive-rock bar in the 80's, where the hair is big and dreams were even bigger! In a word, Rock of Ages (the musical) is Really RAD! I will definitely see this show again - maybe in Las Vegas next time, as the musical has landed a home at The Venetian Casino and Hotel beginning December 2012.
Kudos to The Artist Series for taking a chance with their 2012/2013 show line-up this year, as each show has kept up with the trend of pushing the usual boundaries of theater goers expectations. I am sure next weeks show Spank (a Fifty Shades musical parody) will continue this theme and not be disappointing.
