Review Roundup: THE RASCALS: ONCE UPON A DREAM Opens on Broadway

THE RASCALS: ONCE UPON A DREAM will premiere on Broadway tonight, April 16th, running this spring for 15 performances only at the Richard Rodgers Theatre (226 West 46th Street).

Directed by Steven Van Zandt and Marc Brickman, with music by Felix Cavaliere and Eddie Brigati, The Rascals: Once Upon a Dream has stage, video and lighting design by Brickman and has music production and is written by legendary guitarist Van Zandt.

Let's see what the critics had to say...

Mark Kennedy, Associated Press: During a two-hour concert at the Richard Rodgers Theatre, the four - Felix Cavaliere on keyboard and vocals, singer Eddie Brigati, drummer Dino Danelli and guitarist Gene Cornish - seem to have taken musical Viagra. Brigati gleefully smashed two tambourines against his thigh and Cornish playfully threw guitar picks into the crowd. These pioneers of blue-eyed soul were having fun and that became infectious.

Steve Bloom, The Hollywood Reporter: Directed by Van Zandt and Marc Brickman, Once Upon a Dream fails to dig deep into the rise and fall of one of the '60s most popular groups. Using the band members to spin their story prevents an honest telling of it...Van Zandt's book is sloppy, wanders, loses chronology and makes the guys appear less intelligent than they most likely are. As a band, the Rascals sound fine. There's something to be said for not working hard for so many years. With less wear and tear than many others groups from the period, Cavaliere and Brigati preserved their voices; Cavaliere's remains one of the most distinctive in rock. Cornish distinguishes himself with numerous guitar solos and Danelli is a wiry wonder behind the drum kit.

Jim Farber, NY Daily News: For most of the two-hour show, fans can bask in the first full performance by this pioneering, New Jersey-born, blue-eyed-soul band in 40 long years. Better, the years have only heightened the guys' instrumental chops.

Glenn Gamboa, Newsday: Once it gets going, though, the heart of The Rascals' story and, more importantly, their music, starts to win out.

Frank Scheck, NY Post: But any reservations end when the music begins. Cavaliere's voice has lost none of its soul, and Cornish's blistering guitar solos sound ripped from a garage band. Danelli pounds his drums with swinging precision, while Brigati sings and dances like a blissed-out teenager. Why did they break up? They themselves don't really know. But here they are, decades later - virtually the only band of their stature with its membership intact. If you grew up with the Rascals, this is a show you can't miss.

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