Quite Satisfactory
In an era of so many Disney feature film crossovers to the stage, we all knew "Mary Poppins" would have to make its way to Broadway eventually. There is a story that the Sherman brothers wrote an ending song for the film that Walt Disney did not like. He said that it was a fine way to end a Broadway show but not his movie. Little did Walt know what was to come!

The original (and beloved) score by the Sherman brothers remains substantially intact among several new songs by the British song-writing team of George Stiles and Anthony Drewe. Their contributions are very much in the style of the originals but never, to my ears, blend seamlessly. Each original song has been re-arranged and re-orchestrated for this show, making them a little more "theatrical" in nature and more connected to the expanded plot of the show. (I enjoy the way "Jolly Holiday" is made into a partner song, for example.) But where are strings? In typical modern West End fashion, the pit is almost totally devoid of stringed instruments, much to the detriment of the production, I feel. Still, the cast is enthusiastic and the score has most of the innocence and charm you would want from a remake of the classic film. There are some very nice moments on this recording that cause me to keep this CD close by, though not at the top of the pile.

This is a much more legitimate and satisfying effort than was the staging of the Sherman brothers "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang." I recommend this CD to people who loved the theatrical version and to Broadway collectors in general. If you simply love the film, this CD, while good, may not be for you.

Practically delightful in every way
I'm a fan of the original movie. Not the obsessive fan that buys all that's Poppins, but a fan nonetheless.

It's surprising that when Disney started producing for Broadway, they didn't see this among the first obvious choices. Of course, considering that Disney didn't have the stage rights to Mary Poppins, it's understandable why it may have taken so long. Fortunately, they were able to do a partnership to finally bring this to the stage.

Unfortunately, I have yet to see this on the stage. I can't wait until the day that I do, though.

The new songs were done in the Sherman Brothers style enough that the old songs flow very nicely, as if they had always been there. "Brimstone and Treacle" is quite possibly the highlight of all the new songs -- a rather cruel song, but you just won't be able to get it out of your head!

I have heard complaints that the musical is a bit too dark due to its reliance on the books a bit more than the movie -- but the original movie wasn't all that bright and cheerful through the entire movie. "Chim Chim Cheree" got downright creepy at points in the song -- some lines still give me some chills running down my spine!

I've yet to read the books... that's next on my list to do before I see it on stage.

London Good, but Broadway Great
I recently saw Mary Poppins on Broadway and was blow away by the show. The songs are still in my head weeks later, which is a good thing. I bought this recording of the musical, but also have XM radio, which has access to a recording of the Broadway cast. I have to say that the Broadway cast is better. While the company is great in both, the stars shine better in the Broadway recording. Ashley Brown interpreted the songs better than her London counterpart. I can only hope that Disney will decide to release the Broadway recording.

Weird.
Disappointing. Some of the Sherman's music is intact--with lyrics mangled and garbled. Some of the new music sounds like they're trying too hard to be "Wicked."

I enjoyed some of the "story adjustment." I really missed the subplot about the bank and the song about investing "tuppence wisely in the bank."

Not nearly as good as the original...
It's too bad that this wasn't better than it turned out to be... It sounds as if the orchestra consists of 4 or 5 musicians. The original Mary Poppins film soundtrack album has a rich, lush and deep sounding orchestration. This London Cast album sounds very, very thin and sparse in comparison. The singers here deliver their lyrics without the emotional exuberance that was so present in the film version. Perhaps seeing this production on stage might be helpful in fleshing out what is non-existent in this recording, like energy and fun.