A grown-up story about growing up, featuring the only all-teenage cast ever to hit Broadway! With an unforgettable rock score from Tony Award-winning composer Jason Robert Brown (The Last 5 Years, Songs ForA New World), 13 is a hilarious, high-energy musical for all ages about discovering that cool is where you find it, and sometimes where you least expect it.
On paper, this tuner about, and played exclusively by kids (the title refers to their age and the bar mitzvah around which the plot revolves) seemed like an odd fit for Jason Robert Brown. This, after all, is a composer who made his initial splash with the somber Parade and the two-hander The Last Five Years, about the unraveling of a marriage. But surprise! Brown's score, lightweight but very fun pop, is the best thing about the show - okay, along with the swell cast of freakishly gifted children. The book, about a NYC kid adjusting to life in a small Indiana town, is rather cliché--no wonder the characters are identified by one- and two-word descriptions ("outsider," "loser," "drama queen," etc.) on the booklet's back cover. But on their own, the songs work well, and Brown proves adept at coming up with killer hooks ("Hey Kendra" is a really funny take on an R&B seduction number and "It Can't Be True" has an unfortunate way of drilling itself into your head). The show pokes fun at Disney a couple of times, but it actually sounds not unlike a musical-theater take on the High School Musical franchise. -- Elisabeth Vincentelli
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
We all loved the play!:
We took our 10 year old son to see the play, and he LOVED it!!! It is a wonderful coming of age story - bar mitzvah references notwithstanding! So glad to see the CD available here. Big mega-store didn't have it.
Unpretentious Fun:
I'm still waiting for Jason Robert Brown to write a musical as worthwhile as his "Parade," but in the meantime, "13" is a fun diversion. It's not really ambitious, and it's a tad gimmicky (an ALL TEEN cast! WITH an ALL TEEN band!), but I'm thankful it's not pretentious, like his overrated "The Last Five Years." The recording is solid from beginning to end, with no real clunkers-- it's a good score with smart lyrics, adding some freshness to what are really the usual teen cliches-- geek going for the... more info
GREAT SONGS, WONDERFUL PERFORMANCES !!:
Energetic and catchy original songs from composer Jason Robert Brown and the performances by the all teen cast and band are first rate ! So much more enjoyable than the recycled pop hits that make up the score of many new musicals and the lyrics,too are clever and touching.
By the way ,the rhyme mentioned in a previous review is "exotic/ neurotic" not "erotic" and I do believe most 13 olds know those words and many more !
Why are we hating on JRB! This is AMAZING!!!:
Jason Robert Brown outdoes himself with 13. The only work he's done equal to it is Songs For a New World. I wish that more people could see the genius behind this work. I don't think everybody realizes how grown-up 13 year olds are. 8th or 9th graders know WAYY more that people think they do and can speak quite eloquently when they want to BRAVA JASON ROBERT BROWN!!!!!
Tracks:
13 / Becoming A Man
The Lamest Place In The World
Hey Kendra
Get Me What I Need
What It Means To Be A Friend
All Hail The Brain/ Terminal Illness
Getting Ready
Any Minute
Here I Come
Opportunity
Bad Bad News
Tell Her
It Can't Be True
If That's What It Is
A Little More Homework
Brand New You
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