Naked Boys Singing!

This film is a taped showing of a musical which features naked men dancing and singing about men and gay related issues.

Maybe it is because I did not even know about this show, I was pleasantly surprised by it. I was entertained throughout. I especially liked "Fight the Urge", "Jack's Song" and "Perky Little Porn Star" which featured very funny lyrics and hilarious performances. I think the lyrics are witty, and they certainly put effort in to make the lyrics rhyme. "Window To Window" is another good song as it captures yearning for intimacy very well. Others have criticised the miming, but I think it's OK, as they have not attempted to hide this fact.

I think "Naked Boys Singing" deserves more praise, as I was entertained by such a good performance. Let's not forget that takes a lot of courage to perform on stage naked.

What surprised me the most about this filmed stage production was the splendid variety in the musical numbers. The dancing is professional. Each dance is well choreographed. The vocals are entertaining, and pleasant to listen to. All numbers are done with heart and humor. This was truly a unique experience. I'm surprised at the arrogant remarks posted in other IMDb reviews. I found Naked Boys Singing highly enjoyable and fresh. Just look at the expression on the audiences faces. These talented guys offer a good sock in the jaw to convention. Intelligence and humor are the threads that hold this production together. Cheers and applause to all involved.

I'm writing this as I watch the DVD. I grabbed for the laptop and went to IMDb during the first song. I didn't know anything about the movie except that a friend said that the show was supposed to be good. It has a decent Netflix rating too, so here I am.

Maybe on the stage this worked. But I have to say that the sight of chorus boys dancing and singing completely naked just seems silly. And the lip syncing to a prerecorded score adds to the strangeness.

Most of the songs and routines are about aspects of male nudity. This is my idea of nothing, sorry. The score, so far, is generic show tune music. Nothing memorable, or particularly melodic. Everything is to serve the lyrics. Which, I have to say, sound like they were written by a committee. Each song is essentially one extended joke. If the jokes were ten seconds, they might work. These single several-minute-long jokes don't.

I'm now watching the movie by chapters--a few minutes until I get the gist. Kind of in the hopes that one of them will be different, or entertaining enough to keep me from going on to the next scene. Nope.

Okay. I'm finished. So here's what I think. If you have any experience or long-standing appreciation of musical theater, avoid this--it's just not quality. If, however, you're a gay twenty-something and have never seen or heard a musical comedy, you might be entertained. Or maybe this would hold your interest if you've never seen a lot of attractive naked men. I have.

This show has been performed live around the country with a wide variety of casts. I saw it first in the Provincetown production the first summer it was in P-town (2001)--before it was, curiously enough, banned in that overwhelmingly gay resort (the codes which resulted in its closing have since been amended). I saw it again later in the off-Broadway, long-running production in New York. Oddly enough, the P-town production was far better than the New York one--fresher, cuter, more spirited and funnier--but that was only in the 2001 showing; subsequent attempts to clone the production ("Bare Naked Lads" in 2007) were definitely third-rate. This filmed production features a Los Angelos production cast, and it is, as other comments have suggested, not the best. I would rate it somewhere in between the top-notch 2001 P-town production and the third-rate "Bare Naked Lads" P-town show from last summer.

I don't understand how a reviewer can complain that a show has show tunes. With a name like "Naked Boys Singing" did he expect a Western? I suppose it could be called "Naked Boys Singing and Dancing". For what it was, which is exactly what it purports to be, I thought it was terrific. Some of the songs and situations were quite moving to me, having experienced some of the situations myself. It was very touching to have a chorus of "I feel so alone" - the fact of the chorus indicates that perhaps we weren't as alone as we felt.

I found the Perky Little Porn Star to be adorable. I suppose I did object the tiniest bit to the ode to "regular guys" who were not so totally buffed out from the gym sung by these totally buffed out guys, but they gave it their best shot. Dancer's bodies, what're you gonna do?

All in all a lot of fun.