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Generic crime musical lacks outlaw grit

A review of Wanted by Richard Lawson | November 8, 2026

Disappointingly lacking in levels are Chéri and Baum’s songs, almost all of which are pitched as belting showstoppers. Wanted is a musical near entirely built out of pop- and gospel-inflected 11 o’clock numbers; even the romantic ballads and duets whip themselves up into a frenzy after a verse or two. Everyone in the cast has the pipes to pull off all this maximalism, but one craves a softer song here and there. More specifically story-driven numbers might have helped flesh out characters that are otherwise underdeveloped.

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