33 To Nothing

Photo/Jaisen Crockett

Good news? 33 To Nothing is a solid, live show. Bad news? There's a play that comes with it, and much as that play fuels the music, it doesn't do much for what increasingly becomes dead time between the musical's eight numbers. It's also almost too realistic for the stage: without any theatricality, musicals often get a little odd: at least this one, which takes place in a rehearsal space, during a rehearsal, can get away with spontaneously bursting into song. Here, it's a way for the alcoholic front man to deal with his emotions: when pressed to talk about them, he sags back behind the safety of his keyboard and starts to play. If only the rest of the band had as much to do as he did, and if only they were all as good theatrically as they are musically. If I only I could just forget the "if" and just rock.

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