Review: 'Jagged Little Pill' leaps from moody album to banging musical at the Orpheum startribune.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from startribune.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
“Jagged Little Pill,” which opened Tuesday at Minneapolis' Orpheum Theatre, takes an unexpected approach in transforming Morissette's songs into Broadway fodder.
The musical is more than a revue of Alanis Morissette's music as Diane Paulus' production, which began life at the American Repertory Theater, tells a soulful story of an American family in psychological crisis. Theater critic Jacquinn Sinclair hails its return to the Boston area.
The musical falters until its second act, when it goes deeper, sharpens focus, gathers force, and generally elevates the stakes. What had been fragmentary, disconnected snapshots coalesce into a fuller portrait of a family in crisis.
When Diane Paulus was first approached about adapting Morissette’s seminal album into a stage musical, she couldn't say yes fast enough. The result was a musical that began its life at the ART in 2018, went on to Broadway, and now returns to the city in a touring production.