School of Rock the Musical

School of Rock the Musical Poster

I admit I was skeptical when I heard School of Rock was being turned into a musical. When in New York I saw this my last night there and it absolutely rocked! Andrew Lloyd Webber knew exactly what he was doing. Seriously, what a fun night.

School of Rock the Musical is based off of the 2003 film of the same name. I have yet to see any of other of Webber's works, but I have definitely heard of them. Of course the man knows how to make a musical out of anything.

This particular musical is playing at the Winter Garden Theatre and now stars Eric Petersen (taking over for Alex Brightman). This musical is pure fun from the moment it begins to the moment it ends.

The story follows a wanna be rock star as he pretends to be a substitute at a prestigious private school. The first half follows him as he realizes the kids can play music and realizing the kids can be the band he desperately needs to compete.

It follows the film well, but of course there are changes that have to be made to accommodate for the stage. We get more of a glimpse into the kids' struggles and it adds a nice touch.

The kids are uptight and act more like adults than their substitute, but he teaches them to have fun and live to the fullest. The cast is comprised of talented young kids who actually play their instruments every single performance.

Of course it's hard to top Jack Black's Dewey Finn, but Eric Petersen takes quite a swing at it. All my respects to this man as he is clearly exhausted at the end of the performance.

I have no idea how they did it, but they made a musical out of the film and it transitioned to the stage wonderfully.

School of Rock the Musical logo

As I mentioned, the musical is faithful to the film, but of course some of the pop culture references were updated for times sake. The kids are of course insanely talented. They are singing, dancing and playing their own instruments. They are memorable. My personal favorite was Rachel Katzke as Katie. The bass was about as big as her, but she killed it. (As a tuba player, there I also have a soft spot for females who play anything with a bass clef).

Of course there is only person who truly carries the show. The one who is in it from the moment curtain rises to the moment the final encore happens.

Of course Jack Black had plenty of time off in between takes. Mr. Petersen has only intermission and as any actor knows, intermission is never nearly long enough. He never overshadows his younger counterparts, instead he balances them out perfectly.

Petersen is incredibly passionate. He lives and breathes for rock music. The children willingly join him mainly because doing otherwise would be boring.

The other adult who stands out is the Principal Mullins (Jenn Gambatese). She is slightly different that the film version, but still provides comedic relief.

This time the romance is between her an Dewey and it works. The children also get more focus and we get a glimpse into their home lives and we understand why they would be so willing to be a part of this band.

School of Rock the Musical is great mainly because is everyone having fun. Every single actor on the stage is having the time of their lives and it is infectious. You want nothing more than to stand up and rock out with them like you would at a real rock show.

Most of the songs are catchy, but the most memorable are "Stick it the Man", "You're in the Man", and of course "School of Rock" which is also in the film. As someone who loves rock music it was cool to see a show based around rock and have all the songs have a rock influence. It is different from Webber's usual stuff.

A cool Easter egg is when one of the students, Summer, sings "Memory" from Cats for her audition into the band. Sure this bit is in the film, but the fact that Webber kept this is fun.

Webber wrote Cats and is his longest running musical. Fun fact, as of this month he will have four shows running consecutively on Broadway. If you want to watch one and you're not sure which one, definitely check out School of Rock the Musical.