"Bandstand" the New Musical on B'wy Gets a B Flat Major Disappointment

Bandstand missed its mark.  The premise of Bandstand is about a band of brothers just returning home from the battlefields of WWII trying to pick-up their lives & musical careers "just like it was before."  The hero of the play, Donny Nova was a prodigal pianist & songwriter now struggling to find pay to play gigs.  He's been replaced by younger performers while he was serving our country.  Donny (an uninspiring Corey Cott) does not always hit the right notes with his singing voice.  But, he comes up with the idea to form a band of veterans which leads to one guy who knows another guy... and a shared brotherhood of veterans become bandmates.  The cast for the band can all act, sing, dance & play musical instruments.  Unfortunately, they aren't armed with striking musical ammunition.  The songs are either uninspiring "First Steps First" or overly dramatic as in "Welcome Home."  Julia Trojan (Laura Osnes, brings some gusto with her lovely voice) is a Gold Star Widow whose husband Michael was best friends with Donny during the war.  Donny promised Michael he'd check on Julia should he not make it back alive.  When he works up the courage to contact Julia, he discovers Julia can sing & Donny enlists her to join the band.  Julia agrees but continually pleas Donny for details on her husband death.  The vets are dealing with PTS disorder which is poorly underscored and the plot is mired in cliched trenches.  Boy gets girl, boy loses girl (when he tells her of his role in Michael's death) and then boy gets girl.  There's also the ragtag troop determined to put on a show that will win them a trip to NYC to be on TV and on the road to glory.  Dir/choreographer Andy Blankenbuehler is the Tony winning choreographer for Hamilton & In the Heights.  His aim here was far too ambitious in both directing & choreographing.  He missed connecting any emotional impact with the characters or the story.   "Bandstand" was a mildly diverting musical that doesn't make the grade for Broadway musicals.  Though I have a theory, it may be a hit in Cleveland on Lake Erie.