Well, well, well...what a fantastic evening!

Tonight at Hurley's was the NYMF 2005 Creative Team Mixer AND I'VE NEVER HAD SO MUCH FUN...

We talked to a MILLION people, and it was very exciting to see how many people want to work on Plane Crazy.

Right now, Plane Crazy is looking for a Director -- here's a quick description:

We are looking for someone who "gets" the mid-'60s time period that we are working in. This will be someone who loves classic musicals like The Pajama Game; who has all the Doris Day-Rock Hudson-Tony Randall movies on DVD *and* VHS; who doesn't understand why people weren't standing in line to see Down With Love; and whose favorite contemporary musicals would include Hairspray and The Producers. The Director will work closely with the Producer to assemble the rest of the creative team.

We are interviewing this week, so if you're interested please let me know asap...send an e-mail to suzy at planecrazythemusical dot com

Technorati tags: Broadway Music Movie Musicals Musicals Blog Blogs Theater Theatre Entertainment

OK, I'll admit that this week might be getting the best of me...

I'm in NY for a party Tuesday night...then back in Toronto for Wednesday...then back to NY for Thursday and the Tonys...and not sure WHEN I'll get back to Toronto.

I'm busy apartment and Director hunting in NY, and trying to explain to my family why I won't see them for he rest of the year...

And you know what? I don't remember the time when I had this much fun...

Technorati tags: Broadway Music Movie Musicals Musicals Blog Blogs Theater Theatre Entertainment

Here's a neat post for all you lyricists and other wordsmiths out there...from this article in Merriam-Webster Online:

What a lovely bunch of vocabularians (persons who make up new words) you are! Lasterday (refers to any day before today) we squinched (action required to fit something into a space that is slightly too small) a schmiglet (a small unit of measurement) of your awesomtastic (so wonderful the words just meld in your mouth) one-of-a-kind entries into this space in preparation for our Top Ten reveal. With so many chizzy (awesome, super, happening) creations to choose from, we admit to becoming a bit flusterpated (a state of being flustered that's so intense, one's actions and words become bound up) and fahoodled (confused, esp. when trying to think of too many things at once). We craughed (to cry and laugh simultaneously), we troddled (to wander around without knowing of doing so), and finally decided to use the schwack (a large amount) of multiple entries received as the basis for the Top Ten -- this is, let's not forget, all about favoritism.

From the thousands of submissions we received, here, then, are the ten words (not in the dictionary) entered the most often:

Top Ten Favorite Words (Not in the Dictionary)

1. ginormous (adj): bigger than gigantic and bigger than enormous

2. confuzzled (adj): confused and puzzled at the same time

3. woot (interj): an exclamation of joy or excitement

4. chillax (v): chill out/relax, hang out with friends

5. cognitive displaysia (n): the feeling you have before you even leave the house that you are going to forget something and not remember it until you're on the highway

6. gription (n): the purchase gained by friction: "My car needs new tires because the old ones have lost their gription."

7. phonecrastinate (v): to put off answering the phone until caller ID displays the incoming name and number

8. slickery (adj): having a surface that is wet and icy

9. snirt (n): snow that is dirty, often seen by the side of roads and parking lots that have been plowed

10. lingweenie (n): a person incapable of producing neologisms

(via BoingBoing)

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From this article in Playbill:

Melissa Errico, the soprano most recently on Broadway in Dracula, will offer a free concert at The Living Room June 6.

Errico will premiere songs from her upcoming solo album, which she will record this summer with composer Michel Legrand. Show time is 8 PM.

Melissa Errico began her professional career portraying Cosette in Les Misérables, and she followed with leading roles in Anna Karenina, My Fair Lady, High Society, Amour, Dracula and the City Center Encores! productions of Call Me Madam and One Touch of Venus. She appeared in a production of Threepenny Opera at the Williamstown Theatre Festival, and Errico's recent Off-Broadway credits include Finian's Rainbow and Aunt Dan and Lemon. She will also star in the Hollywood Bowl presentation of Camelot Aug. 14. Errico's debut solo recording is titled "Blue Like That."

The Living Room is located in Manhattan at 154 Ludlow Street. Although there is no cover, there is a $5 suggested donation as well as a one-drink minimum. Visit www.livingroomny.com for more information.

This show sounds like a blast...and it's free...and I'm in New York...I'm in!

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From this article in Playbill:

Character actor Eddie Albert died May 26 at his home near Pacific Palisades, California, at the age of 99, leaving behind him decades' worth of performances on stage and in film and television.

The likably gruff, square-jawed Mr. Albert was perhaps best known for gentleman farmer Oliver Wendell Douglas he created in the 1960s sitcom "Green Acres," but his accomplishments in the theatre and in movies were equally impressive.

He made his Broadway debut in 1936 in the short-lived comedy O Evening Star. Later that same year, Garson Kanin cast him in a starring role in Brother Rat, which was produced by George Abbott.

Two more big roles follows: Room Service, a comedy produced and directed by Abbott, and The Boys From Syracuse, the classical musical by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, in which he played Antipholus of Syracuse.

Among Eddie Albert's most memorable early film roles were Ali Hakim in Oklahoma!, a recovering alcoholic in Smash Up and a cowardly soldier in Attack. He earned an Academy Award nomination for Roman Holiday, the film that introduced Audrey Hepburn to the world. In it he played reporter Gregory Peck's sidekick, the womanizing beatnik photographer Irving Radovich.

That comic characterization would have been almost unrecognizable to audiences in the late '60s and '70s who were used to Mr. Albert's portrayals of autocratic, easily vexed stuffed shifts. In this mode, he played Cybill Shepherd's frosty father in 1972's The Heartbreak Kid (another Academy Award nomination) and Warren Hazen, the corrupt prison warden in 1974's The Longest Yard. And then there was the stuffed shirt of stuffed shirts, lawyer Holmes in "Green Acres," who did farm work in shirtsleeves and business vest, battled daily with the nonsense of the local yokels, and turned beet red at his wife Eva Gabor's sweet-natured dizziness.

The well-known theme song for the popular sitcom ("Green acres in the place for me/Farm living is the life for me") was sung by Mr. Albert, who by then had had more than his share of experience on the musical stage.

He will be missed.

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I'd been meaning to pick up a CD of Bobby Darin's greatest hits for a long time. The other day I was in a bookstore (which I'm sure the Oxford English Dictionary defines as "a store where they sell knick-knacks and CDs") with 30 minutes to kill while my daughter was at her tap lesson. I was browsing through the CDs and found The Bobby Darin Story -- Mack the Knife. I just thought it was a collection of his hits: You know, "Mack The Knife", "Splish Splash", "Dream Lover", "Beyond The Sea". And it was produced by the music industry giant Ahmet Ertegun, so I figured, how could I lose?

Bobby recorded his first LP That's All which included "Mack The Knife". Taken from the album and issued as single, it became the biggest record of 1959, selling over 2,000,000 copies. As Bobby says on the CD, "...it changed my life forever..."

Musical theater has a way of doing that...

The coolest thing about the CD is Bobby's narration, wherein he chats a bit about his start in the biz. After the first five songs he says "You better hurry up and turn the record over before I crash into the label..." This is followed by crashing sounds and then he says "Somebody bring me some bandaids!" High-lariously cool...sometimes I really miss vinyl!

Another curiosity about the CD is that it contains three songs ("Mack the Knife", "Artifical Flowers", and "Clementine") that are either very sad or gory, set to hot swinging rythms and sung with great hep pep.

Especially odd is "Artificial Flowers" which is a very morose song about a 9-year old orphan girl (whose parents have died) who makes artificial flowers for rich society ladies until her little fingers go numb from the cold. She is eventually found dead, covered in ice, and still grasping her shears. All the while Bobby Darin is swinging his little heart out! Very peculiar, but very entertaining!

So why post this on Blogway Baby? As I'm sure you know, "Mack The Knife", Bobby Darin's biggest hit, is written by and comes from the Threepenny Opera by Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht.

And with the recent movie Beyond the Sea with Kevin Spacey, can a Broadway stage adaptaion (Splish Splash!) be far behind?

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One of my favorite movies of all time is Grace of My Heart, a great faux autobiography with a character that is a combination of Carole King and Carly Simon in the era of the Brill Building.

BTW, if the Big Guy is listening, if I get to come back again, I want to work in the Brill Building in the early '60s.

From Amazon:

This movie is an homage to the Brill Building era (the late 1950s to the early 1970s) of pop-music glory, providing a perfect match between writer-director Allison Anders and her excellent cast. Illeana Douglas plays a singer-songwriter (loosely modeled after Brill recording artist Carole King) whose life runs emotionally parallel to popular music trends. John Turturro is a stand-in for "wall of sound" producer Phil Spector and Matt Dillon is a thinly disguised version of maverick Beach Boy Brian Wilson. It's a bit too schematic in the way the central character is always in the right place at the right time, but as a tale of fame and romantic highs and lows in the '50s and '60s the movie is funny, touching, and sincere. It's a lively and loving tribute to timeless music and the colorful characters who created it.

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So Blue Man Group is now on the offensive. They've published "An open letter to the community from Blue Man Group" on page R5 of today's Globe and Mail.

Methinks they've left out a few important details, which is the answer to the question: "Why they can't use Equity members?"

Here's the text of the ad in the Globe:

An open letter to the community from Blue Man Group

Much has been written about us since we arrived in Toronto, and most of it has been accurate and extremely positive. The theatrical union leadership's attempt to create controvery surrounding our production has certainly taken us by surprise. We offer this letter of introduction so that you may get to know a little more about us.

Over the course of our 17-year history, we have thoughtfully and carefully built an organizational structure that supports our employees as well as our projects. We are a unique organization; our employees are collaborative contributors to our various artistic endeavours, which include theatrical shows, touring concerts, albums, film and TV scores, commercials, short films and more. To our knowledge, there are no other business models that support the kind of creative company that we have developed.

For our Toronto production, we have hired Canadian actors and musicians, a Canadian crew, as well as Canadian management and support staff. Some of these individuals are members of unions, and some are not. We respect their decisions either way. We are an equal opportunity employer and have always been open to all qualified personnel. It is an employee's choice to join a union -- not an employer's place to require it.

Despite assertions to the contrary, we have met with theatrical union leadership in Toronto. In total, 10 meetings or conversations have occurred between our respective representatives from January 21 through May 16. Our goal has been to establish an amicable relationship with the unions. However, this objective was made difficult, if not impossible, by their leadership's threats, questionable rhetoric and coercive tactics.

We disagree with union leadership's assertion that only productions staffed completely by union members are "professional." Blue Man Group has performed for close to 10 million people in 100 cities in five countries with touring concerts and permanent productions. We have a Gold record, a Platinum DVD and a Grammy award nomination. We have won Drama Desk and Obie awards, as well as Audience and Critic's Pick awards, and have appeared in hundreds of national and international television programs. We prefer to let the audience be the judge of our production values and professionalism.

Throughout our history, we have continually valued and supported our artists, crew, management and staff. Without any agreement with a union or association, we have always offered salaries that typically exceed union norms, as well as competitive benefits. We offer superior job security, conflict resolution, employee development, and health and safety committees in each of our theatres, and we do so by choice. Our people, many of whom have been with us for more than 10 years, are the lifeblood of our company. Our long-term success and the high calibre of talent that we have been able to attract are ample evidence that our employees are well-paid and well-treated.

With the exception of the theatrical union leadership, we have felt enthusiastically welcomed by the people of Toronto and Canada, who are excited about a new show and opportunities within their community. They have embraced and show support for what we are bringing to Toronto:

* An internationally acclaimed show specifically retooled to reflect our new Toronto home

* A new, state of the art theatre built by Clear Channel and Panasonic on Yonge Street, adding to the economic health of the surrounding area

* 70 Canadian jobs for performers, musicians, production, management and theatre staff

Blue Man Group chose to develop work in Toronto because of its historically sophisticated and intelligent theatrical audience, and we look forward to becoming active contributors to this vibrant cultural scene. The best and brightest from Canada's vast talent pool have an open invitation to join us in creating an outstanding theatrical production. And we now invite the people of Toronto to experience the most exciting Blue Man Group production to date when we begin previews on June 7th.

Sincerely,

Blue Man Group

Thanks, Blue Man Group, for blinking first...

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On Wednesday night I took the whole fam-damily to see Ain't Misbehavin' at the Bluma Appel Theatre. What a great show! I saw it originally about 20 years ago when it was first making the rounds and became an instant fan of the revue. Back then, I had already been familiar with much of the music, but wasn't familiar with Fats Waller.

The Toronto production stars Jackie Richardson, Kim Richardson, Divine Brown, Starr Dominique, Doug Eskew, and David Lopez. What a great cast!

They all had such great voices and really knew how to use them -- a little thing I like to call "dynamics". The two men were fabulous -- one moved like has was made of rubber (David Lopez) and the other played a great Fats Waller character (Doug Eskew). Great numbers included "Black and Blue", "Honeysuckle Rose", "The Joint is Jumpin'", "Ain't Misbehavin'" and "Lounging at the Waldorf".

The band was great too. The kids loved every minute of the show (even if they didn't quite get the "Viper" song, which was a real highlight of the show...) and joined in heartily during "Fat and Greasy"!

I know it was a Wednesday night, but the house wasn't very full. In fact the four of us snuck into one of the boxes for Act 2. Did I mention how much I LOVE boxes? I saw Urinetown in a box and it feels like they are putting on the show just for you.

Parents: Go out and buy tickets to this show and bring the whole gang. It's a great night of great music and great performances.

And don't forget: Get some cash for your trash!

Technorati tags: Broadway Music Movie Musicals Musicals Blog Blogs Theater Theatre Entertainment

As the Toronto opening of Blue Man Group draws ever closer, the unions are laying down the law!

Equity (check out their billboard), the Toronto Musicians Union and IATSE have started a ticket boycott campaign of Blue Man Group, opening in June at the Panasonic Theatre. This is because, according to ACTRA:

Blue Man Group still refuses to negotiate union agreements or hire union performers, musicians and crew.

In an e-mail I received today from ACTRA, it said:

ACTRA Toronto supports the boycott and will be joining our sister unions in rallies and other events to pressure Blue Man Group to come to the table.

I guess the unknown variable here will be whether the public in general cares about this whole Blue Man Group versus the unions thing. Will they join in the boycott? Or will they buy tickets anyways? Perhaps if Blue Man Group incorporated some ABBA music into their production they could ensure themselves a sold-out crowd...

Technorati tags: Broadway Music Movie Musicals Musicals Blog Blogs Theater Theatre Entertainment

In an article in the Sunday New York Times ("How Do You Spell Smackdown" by Jesse McKinley The New York Times, Sunday, May 22, 2005) the drama for best new musical was described as a David and Goliath showdown.

According to the article:

For a while, it was all so simple: the big-money musical almost always won big at the Tony Awards. Then came "Avenue Q". For those not steeped in Broadway legend, about this time last year, Tony watchers were convinced that "Wicked", a $14 million crowd pleaseer with $1 million a week in sales was going to win best musical. But in a furry little heartbeat, there was a surprise: "Avenue Q", a quirky Off-Broadway puppet musical that had jumped to Broadway, won. It was an upset that thrilled anyone who ever rooted for an underdog, and perhaps more important, it changed the way people look at the Tony game.

Hmm...I thought Avenue Q went straight to Broadway, but maybe I'm wrong...

Anyways, the big brute this year is Spamalot "the brand name with the $27 million advance" and the little guy is another(?) little Off-Broadway musical that made its way to the big time: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. The interesting angle here is that David Stone, one of the leading producers of last year's Goliath, Wicked, is "back in the race with this year's potential David, Spelling Bee.

The article goes on to say:

"A lot of people think David Stone got robbed last year", (BB Editor: Not to mention Stephen Schwartz!) said one major Broadway producer, who has no money in either show but would not allow his name to be used because he doesn't want to offend either camp. "And I think that feeds a Spamalot backlash".

Oh, the intrigue...the s-u-s-p-e-n-s-e!

Technorati tags: Broadway Music Movie Musicals Musicals Blog Blogs Theater Theatre Entertainment

According to this article on Playbill:

Susan Brinkley, who produced the long-running Off-Broadway rock musical Hedwig and the Angry Inch, pleaded guilty May 24 to taking $48,000 from film and television directors Carl and Rob Reiner, and "Seinfeld" producer George Shapiro.

Brinkley accepted the money in 2001 with the understanding that it would be used to produce a play written by Annie Reiner, Carl's daughter. Instead, said Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau, she put the money into Hedwig. When the Reiners and Shapiro filed a complaint, the office of state Attorney General Eliot Spitzer arranged a settlement in which Brinkley was to repay the trio and accept a lifetime ban on optioning new theatre projects. However, argued Morgenthau, Brinkley proceeded to repay the debt by stealing money from the nonprofit Ensemble Studio Theater, where she served as executive director.

Yeesh, what was she thinking? It was supposed to be for his daughter's play, for goodness sake. Did she think that Carl wouldn't notice?

I'm Not Sure I Wanna Be a Producer!

Technorati tags: Broadway Music Movie Musicals Musicals Blog Blogs Theater Theatre Entertainment

I was in New York this weekend and watching the NYC promo channel. They always do a bit on the current Broadway shows and show footage from the shows. It was Sunday and they were featuring Mamma Mia!, and showing shots of all the different productions going on around the world (Korea, Japan, Australia and so on...) and they said there are currently 14 productions of Mamma Mia! going on around the globe. Wow! Then I remembered, they need to revise that and make it 13.

On Sunday May 22 the Toronto production finally met its "Waterloo".

That's right, according to an article in the Toronto Star (O Mamma, Such A Fine Run by Richard Ouzounian, Saturday May 21, 2005) Mamma Mia! is leaving after 5 years, 2,044 performances, and $200 million in box office receipts.

Wow. Considering I was shunned in high school for being a huge ABBA fan, that's amazing.

And Toronto was key to launching the show worldwide. According to Judy Craymer, a producer on the show, "In many ways Toronto has been responsible for Mamma Mia! Its success here gave us the confidence we needed to take the show around the world"

The original Donna, Louise Pitre, went on to open the show, along with her young co-star Tina Maddigan, on Broadway. Louise went on to earn a well-deserved Tony nomination.

Inexplicably, I've never been a fan of the show (which is odd since, like I said, I LOVED ABBA in high school). But maybe I got off on the wrong foot. I saw it in Toronto when it first opened with Louise Pitre. She was great, but I had purchased seats right underneath the speakers. It hadn't even dawned on me that this being more of a rock and roll show than traditional musical, it would be HEAVILY ampliphied. So my husband, daughter and I watched most of the show with our fingers in our ears to keep them from bleeding. Now maybe they adjusted the sound over the years, and maybe if I had been in the front row balcony, I would have been standing and cheering. But that's all water under the bridge now.

Cheers to everyone involved with the Toronto production of Mamma Mia! over the years! As Richard Ouzounian said in his article, "And, best of all, it made a lot of people happy."

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OK, this is my last Plane Crazy post for a while...promise.

Finally, I can stop blowing my own horn. In today's Toronto Star (New Link, New York by Richard Ouzounian, Toronto Star May 25, 2005) Richard Ouzounian talks about Plane Crazy and the New York Musical Theatre Festival. Front page of the Arts & Entertainment section, no less! I must say, it is very, very cool to see your name in print (especially when it's for something good!).

Here's a bit of the article:

Two musicals with Toronto clout behind them have been selected for the "New Links" program of the prestigious New York Musical Theatre Festival, taking place in Manhattan next September. Plane Crazy is a musical by Toronto-based Suzy Conn that will be presented by independent producer Michael (Game Show) Rubinoff. The author describes it as "a fun, upbeat musical about feminism set against the backdrop of glamour and innocent sex appeal of the swinging '60s jet age. A time when Stews Were Sexy and the World Was Sexist.

The New York Musical Theatre Festival is the largest musical theatre event in North American, with 141 events across 26 venues, 46 concerts, 332 performances, 7 seminars, 39 movies, and almost 1,000 performers and musicians.

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus!

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I'm still shaking with excitement now that it's official: And I just wanted to make sure that I had mentioned to everyone that Plane Crazy IS GOING TO BE IN NYMF 2005! YIPPEE KI EH! YEAH! w00h00! ALRIGHT, OUTTA SIGHT!

I'm skin tight and ready to fight: We're going to put on an awesome show!

Most exciting of all, Playbill posted the list of Next Link shows today in this article...and there I am. Wow, my name in Playbill. Finally! Here's a taste:

The New York Musical Theatre Festival has announced the 18 jury-selected musicals that will be part of the Next Link Project of the fest, to be held September 12 to October 2 in midtown Manhattan.

"After reviewing almost 400 scripts -- nearly double last year's submissions -- the NYMF selection committee has chosen a fresh, diverse collection of new musicals to be presented," according to the May 24 announcement.

The Next Link works are production-ready scripts that will receive full stagings for a handful of performances in repertory in the hope that NYMF is "the next link" to a wider regional or commercial life.

The Producer for Plane Crazy at NYMF 2005 is Michael Rubinoff (based in Toronto), and the Associate Producer is Kendra Bator (based in NYC).

Right now, we are looking for a Director. Specifically, we are looking for someone who "gets" the mid-'60s time period that we are working in. This will be someone who loves classic musicals like The Pajama Game; who has all the Doris Day-Rock Hudson-Tony Randall movies on DVD and VHS; who doesn't understand why people weren't standing in line to see Down With Love; and whose favorite contemporary musicals would include Hairspray and The Producers. The Director will work closely with the Producer to assemble the rest of the creative team.

We also need a great Casting Director, with the same "gets it" qualifications.

If you're interested, send me an e-mail at suzy at blogwaybaby dot com

You can order Plane Crazy merchandise off the Plane Crazy Web site. And buy a ticket! Come see a great show!

Technorati tags: Broadway Music Movie Musicals Musicals Blog Blogs Theater Theatre Entertainment

HOLY CRAP!

I haven't been this excited about news since I found out I was pregnant (both times). But this time my baby is Plane Crazy: A true work of love if there ever was one.

Here's the lowdown: Plane Crazy has been accepted into the Next Link Project at the New York Musical Theater Festival. Of 325 submissions, only 18 musicals are chosen to be in the Next Link Project.

As Blogway Baby readers know, Plane Crazy is a fun, upbeat musical about the modern women's movement set against the backdrop of glamour and innocent sex appeal of the swinging '60s jet age. A time When Stews Were Sexy and the World Was Sexist (TM).

This year's Next Link jury included Rob Ashford (Tony winning Choreographer for Thoroughly Modern Millie), Thomas Cott (former Artistic Director of Musical Theater Works), Joanna Gleason (Tony winner for Into the Woods, currently in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels), Kevin McCollum (Producer of Avenue Q and Rent), Susan H. Schulman (Director of Little Women, The Secret Garden and The Sound of Music), and Jack Viertel (Creative Director, Jujamcyn Theaters; Artistic Director, City Center Encores!).

The show will be produced in late September, in New York, as part of the Festival.

NYMF is the largest musical theatre event in the world. The core of the Festival are the eighteen new musicals for NYMF's Next Link Project, but the Festival also includes a staggering 141 events across 26 venues, 46 concerts, 332 performances, 7 seminars, 39 movies and almost 1000 performers and musicians.

NYMF was recently recognized with the prestigious 2004 Jujamcyn Theatres Award, given annually to a "resident theater organization that has made an outstanding contribution to the development of creative talent for the theatre."

At least seven of last year's Next Link shows have been optioned by commercial producers and/or are planning off-Broadway or other runs.

I'm going to enjoy this news for a couple of days, and then I will start "officially freaking out" with production logistics.

Technorati tags: Broadway | Music | Movie Musicals | Musicals | Blog | Blogs | Theater | Theatre | Entertainment

I had the great pleasure of being invited to and attending a special blogger meeting in New York on Sunday. One of the producers of Little Women, Scott Freiman, and Kaliya Hamlin, a blogger who worked on setting up the Little Women cast blog (see my previous post) invited a group of female and theater bloggers to come and see a matinee of Little Women and then have a dinner after. Unlike Blogway Baby, most of the blogs represented were not theater-specific blogs. The attending blogs included:

culturekitchen

Elayne Riggs' Reality-Based Journal

tuaw.com

Identity Woman

Blogway Baby

napsterization

Political Gastronamica

MuniWireless.com

Betsy Devine: Funny Ha-Ha or Funny Peculiar?

The reason for the blog meeting was that Scott Freiman was pioneering a blog advertising strategy for Little Women.

Little Women is not an expensive show (relatively speaking) coming in at about $5.6million. It sounds like a lot but compared to the $14 million of a Wicked or a Spamalot, it is cheap. However, that doesn't leave a lot for traditional forms of advertising. So Scott was hoping to build enough blogging buzz over the summer so that when the kids go back to school in September tickets sales wouldn't completely evaporate.

Unfortunately, the 3pm matinee that we saw was the closing show on Broadway. I guess they just couldn't make it work financially. However, the tour starring Maureen McGovern (but not Sutton Foster) will start in August and the cast blog will turn into a touring blog. The closing came as a bit of a surprise for everyone (so what else is new!) and some of the touring show had already been cast before they knew the Broadway production was kaput, so some of the Broadway cast is left without jobs. Tough business.

I have never been to a closing show before. The atmosphere was electric. The audience could hardly contain themselves as each cast member entered for the first time. I must say the cast was spectacular. Maureen McGovern sounded amazing, as did Sutton Foster. Sutton Foster was great at Jo March -- you could feel her energy desperately trying to get out from under those long weighty dresses of the times. It was like she was trying hard not to break into a tap number from Thoroughly Modern Millie! But every member of the cast was fab -- every voice was beautiful, really. And at the end, there wasn't a dry eye in the house.

After the cast had taken their bows Sutton Foster gave a short speech (Maureen McGovern was already crying her eyes out by this point) thanking everyone involved with the show onstage and behind the scenes. Then she introduced Donny Beck (at least I think that is his name, I had a hard time making it out through Sutton's teary delivery) the House electrician who was retiring in a month and who had spent 46 years in the business with 60 shows. She said what an honor it was for Little Women to be his last show. And then I started crying and I didn't even know this guy.

Then we headed over with Scott Freiman to Angus McIndoe, the restaurant right next door to The St James Theatre where The Producers is playing. Angus McIndoe includes as its investors Nathan Lane, Matthew Broderick, Mel Brooks, Tom Meehan, and Frank McCourt! It was a great evening, talking Little Women and blogs!

Best of luck with the Little Women tour!

In my opinion, every 9-year old girl in America should see this musical...can a tie-in to American Girl be far behind?

Technorati tags: Broadway | Music | Movie Musicals | Musicals | Blog | Blogs | Theater | Theatre | Entertainment

Wow, this is an interesting idea. Product placement in live theatrical productions. It's been happening on movies and TV for a while (with American Dreams Kraft and Campbell's product placement the most egregious examples), but now it's coming to the world of live theater.

I LOVE IT!

Hmm. Let me think: "United Airlines Crazy"? "When You Chase A Dream You'd Walk A Mile For A Camel"? "That Was Then, This Is Now The Time For Johnny Walker Red"? "Hey Baby, You've Come A Long Way"? "Dancing On Air Nikes"? "I Wanna Get Married With A Tiffany Diamond"? "What Do Women Want: Whiter Whites With Clorox"? "I'll Teach You How To Fly The Friendly Skies"?

HELP! Someone stop me before I completely sell out my whole show...

Here's the full article from AdAge.com:

TEQUILA BRAND PLACED IN BROADWAY'S 'SWEET CHARITY'
Neil Simon OKs Script Change to Hype Product
May 23, 2005
By Lisa Sanders

NEW YORK (Adage.com) -- As part of a product placement campaign in Broadway's Sweet Charity, playwright Neil Simon approved a script change to promote Gran Centenario tequila, according to the deal makers.

Jose Cuervo's tequila has been woven into the script, the stage sets and the advertising and promotion for 'Sweet Charity.'

The arrangement was the latest brand integration success by Amy Willstatter, president of New York-based Bridge to Hollywood/Broadway, who specializes in inserting product promotions in and around live theater productions.

Last fall, spirits marketer Jose Cuervo was looking for a unique way to generate buzz in the U.S. for its little-known premium tequila Gran Centenario, but the company only had a modest budget to work with.

Executives at Jose Cuervo's advertising agency, Omnicom Group's Arnell Group of New York, introduced Carlos Arana, Jose Cuervo's managing director, and Onute Miller, Gran Centenario's brand director, to Ms. Willstatter. She brokers agreements between various marketers and Broadway productions and works on retainer with Spotco, a New York agency focused on theatre advertising (clients include Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Avenue Q and Sweet Charity). After hearing about Gran Centenario's goals, she reviewed Spotco clients and came up with Sweet Charity, the Neil Simon revival about a hard-luck dancehall hostess searching for a good man, as the show that best met the tequila's brand attributes. The show opened in April.

"The play is a fun environment," Ms. Willstatter said. What's more, with a new-to-Broadway leading lady, Christina Applegate, best-known for her long-running role on TV's Married with Children, Sweet Charity potentially brings to Broadway a new generation of theatergoers -- just the sort of upscale, experience-oriented consumers Gran Centenario was looking for.

Ms. Willstatter previously signed Pfizer Women's Health, Procter & Gamble Co.'s Olay Regenerist and Anheuser-Busch's Michelob Ultra to sponsor the Broadway and national tour productions of Thoroughly Modern Millie. She also made British Airways the official airline of the National Theater in New York and arranged for Hennessy to be the opening night sponsor of Raisin in the Sun at the Royale Theater.

Marketing competition in the tequila category is increasing as its reputation has evolved from a drink often associated with frat-house bashes to one that's increasingly common at more sophisticated affairs. U.S. sales of high-end and super-premium cases rose 29% to 1.2 million cases in 2004 over the prior year, said David Ozgo, chief economist of the Distilled Spirits Council of the U.S.

With Ms. Willstatter as the go-between, Sweet Charity's producers Barry and Fran Weissler and the Gran Centenario team hammered out a deal. Talks began with the suggestion of putting the tequila logo on Sweet Charity ads. For the marketer, "that wasn't enough," Ms. Miller said. "Ours is a unique brand." She and Mr. Arano concluded they wanted a deal with three components: a product mention in the show, incorporated in a natural, unobtrusive manner; an uncontrived product placement; and promotional and public relations programs to build brand awareness among the marketer's target audience.

To Mr. Weissler, having products placed or mentioned in his shows is not a new concept. "There's nothing different here than in sports or movies where marketers co-promote a film," he said. But he sets limits on what he'll do to marry art and commerce. "We never, ever distress a script." With this Gran Centenario example, the producers and playwright replaced a line, "I'll have a double scotch on the rocks" with a mention of the premium tequila. "We didn't bastardize the script, and [playwright Neil Simon] OKed the change," Mr. Weissler said. "We always pass sponsors by authors."

In addition to having the Gran Centenario mention written into the script, the tequila's logos are integrated into the show's set in one scene, and the product has been the drink of choice at Gran Centenario-sponsored parties thrown during the pre-Broadway shows as well as its New York opening, all attended by the cast, their friends and a select group of invitees. Specialty cocktails featuring Gran Centenario created by well-known bartender Dale deGroff are featured at those fests as well as in the Al Hirschfeld Theatre where Sweet Charity plays and at nearby bars.

A print ad, adapted from the tequila's current print campaign, runs in Sweet Charity Playbills (where, on one of the credits pages, Gran Centenario is thanked for its "generous support"). Gran Centenario promotes the show through ads and events, and the show's ads mention the tequila.

Neither the marketer, Mr. Weissler nor Ms. Willstatter would comment on the financial specifics, other than to describe the arrangement as a flat-rate package structured as a "step deal," in which payments were made in increments. Ms. Willstatter, a proponent of cash deals rather than barter agreements for branded entertainment on Broadway, explains that she's trying to "make Broadway competitive with other forms of media, such as TV and radio."

One major difference, of course, between Broadway and TV or radio, is that measuring the effectiveness of a product mention or a sponsorship is art rather than science. While Mr. Weissler and Ms. Willstatter deliver their marketing partners demographic data like income of their audiences, the definite impact on audiences is not tracked. "We don't poll theatergoers," Mr. Weissler said.

But Gran Centenario's Ms. Miller does monitor Gran Centenario consumption in the theatre as well as in nearby bars. She watches the tequila's distribution in stores and bars where theatergoers shop or frequent for indications that Gran Centenario is gaining popularity.

Asked whether she's concerned about the outcry from some over the inclusion of the tequila in the play's dialogue (one paper wrote, "Sponsorship should not mean authorship, or the license to tweak creative work to make it sell when it should simply sing."), Ms. Miller said no. "We believed it was the correct fit. The press has built brand awareness."

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I got my half-price ticket at TKTS for La Cage Aux Folles. Great seat, third row!

Boy is this show ever full of Jerry Herman-esque numbers! Uh...wait a minute...that's because it's by Jerry Herman (and Harvey Fierstein who wrote the book)! This show is nominated in four categories for the 2005 Tonys including Best Revival and Best Leading Actor in a Musical for Gary Beach (or was that actress...)

Robert Goulet has recently joined the cast as Georges and his voice is in spectacular form. Listening to him sing, it's really hard to believe he is 72. He has a really nice feeling of being totally relaxed and comfortable on stage and he plays the straight man beautifully. Only a bit of stiffness in his movement suggests he's been at this a long time.

I also really wanted to see Gary Beach as Albin, since I missed him in The Producers as Roger Debris. Albin was played by Nathan Lane in the American movie version of La Cage Aux Folles, called The Birdcage which WASN'T a musical, but WAS directed by Mike Nichols who is up for a Tony this year for his direction of Spamalot, which IS a musical...and of course you know Gary and Nathan played together in The Producers.

It was great seeing Gary in a leading role -- his voice is fabulous and he is very funny with great physical humor. I also feel like I got to see a bit of Roger Debris up there on stage last night. (BTW, in Gary's bio in the program it said that the movie version of The Producers is coming out in December: I can't wait!)

However, it was Les Cagelles who stole the show. These are the gender-bending chorus line of male dancers dressed as women who perform in Georges' club.

Holy Transvestite Batman, those guys are amazing!

Kudos to the choreographer, Jerry Mitchell, who is also nominated for a Tony. These guys combined the power and athleticism of male dancers with the flexibility and style and sexiness of female dancers. And they had to do it in heels!

The stage has been extended so the orchestra is exposed in the middle of the stage by two holes (like two nostrils). In one scene the dancers jump over these two holes and land on the other side in splits. You don't hear an audience gasp often, but they did last night. And of course William Ivey Long went to town on the costumes which garnered him a Tony nom as well.

I have to admit it is not my favorite Jerry Herman score. I think "We Are What We Are" is my fav number. In my opinion, it is not as melodically memorable as his most famous works, Mame and Hello Dolly!. And perhaps not as lyrically clever as the subject matter would suggest. And while the book is very funny, the shock factor has gone out of the subject matter and setting (at least for me), so it really has to stand as a typical love story and clash of the in-laws kind of story. Maybe that's where I felt I wanted more from the score.

Having said all that, I had a really good time, and so did the rest of the audience -- so who's complaining? I also get to cross Robert Goulet and Gary Beach off my "must see live" list.

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I went to the most beautiful concert on Thursday night with the whole family.

I was called The Song Is You! The Life and Lyrics of Oscar Hammerstein II, and it was a Benefit for the Daily Bread Food Bank, North York Harvest Food Bank, Ontario Association of Food Banks, and the Canadian Association of Food Banks.

I told you to go a couple of weeks ago in this post, so if you missed it, you've only yourself to blame!

It was held at The Hummingbird Centre for the Performing Arts, and was produced by Milton Zysman and GrandNight Productions.

It starred the amazing vocal talents of Elizabeth Beeler, Fred Love, Charlotte Moore, Marcus Nance (who blew my mind with his rendition of "Old Man River"), and Noel Edison and the Mendelssohn Singers.

The arrangements and musical direction were brilliantly done by David Warrack, and the highlight of the evening was the direction and narration by Richard Ouzounian who took what would have been a special evening and made it truly magical.

As the title promised, the evening was all about Oscar Hammerstein II. Richard Ouzounian narrated the Oscar Hammerstein II story, which was incredibly engrossing. I'm assuming Richard wrote it: It was fantastic. I hope he posts it online somewhere.

One thing I found very interesting is that Oscar Hammerstein II had a "barbell" career. At one end, in 1927, he created Show Boat, the first "book" musical and the source of a number of timeless classics. After a few more line drives, he went through a TEN YEAR DROUGHT of flops. That must have been HARD. It wasn't until 1943, paired with Richard Rodgers, that he created Oklahoma!, generally regarded as one of the most influential musicals of the 20th century. Along with Rodgers, he went on to create some of the greatest classics of musical theater, including Carmen Jones, State Fair, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I, Me and Juliet, Cinderella, Flower Drum Song, and, of course his masterpiece, The Sound of Music, which he didn't live long enough to see succeed.

One particularly stirring moment of the show was Richard's narration of the story of the song "Edelweiss", from The Sound of Music. Apparently, "Edelweiss" was Oscar's final song, before he died of stomach cancer. The combination of the narration and the beauty of the song was haunting, and it had every hair on my body standing, and again now as I write this.

I was particularly intrigued at how an event like this came into being, especially in Toronto. Now, I don't mean to criticize my birthplace, but let's face it: Toronto is a rock 'n' roll town. Our musical theater business, such as it is, primarily caters to tourists. As an aside to any former Torontonian tourists reading this post: Please, please come back. We're sorry about all those mean things we said about you. The people are friendly, the water is safe -- just don't eat the meat...

Well, as is true with most things, it looks like The Song Is You! The Life and Lyrics of Oscar Hammerstein II is the brainchild of one very unique individual named Milton Zysman. Here's a really interesting piece on the genesis of the show from the GrandNight Web site:

A brief note on Milton Zysman, our Producer

"The Song Is You" is the brainchild of Milton Zysman, 68, a Toronto inventor, film producer, author of scholarly papers on catastrophism, manufacturer of mattress handles, and man about town. Visually handicapped since his early 30's, Milton came to the food bank cause by helping a friend, Bob Spencer, former Executive Director of The Ontario Association of Food Banks. Bob needed a plan to raise money for a food-processing kitchen. Milton helped organize a number of dinners, but soon became bored with this shop-worn technique. His brother Simon explains what happened next:

"Milton lives on Mars, actually; he visits Toronto once in a while. While here in the summer of 2003, my brother set himself up as Grand Night Productions, and borrowed $20,000 from the bank. Setting out to raise at least $750,000 for the food banks by touring Canada, he pitched the idea of a gala performance - an original musical revue celebrating the words of Oscar Hammerstein II. It would be presented to capacity audiences paying top dollar in the biggest venues in Canada. Where did he get the idea that it could be done? It's just something Milton thought he'd enjoy attending himself! That's Milton. Where would the development and performance budgets come from? From everywhere! That's Milton again."

He approached the food banks, and The Mendelssohn Singers. They signed on. After sending a draft script to New York in March 2004, Milton found to his delight that The Rodgers and Hammerstein Organization were sympathetic; they have since become his most important backer. Their grand rights licence carries only a token royalty, a benefit worth more than $200,000 to the Canadian tour. With that, a lot of chutzpah, and help from our many other supporters to date, there's going to be a show on May 19th.

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I think every writer, producer, director, and performer should stand on line at TKTS once in while. Today I waited an hour (not bad really given what a beautiful day it was). I enjoy my waiting time as I get to people-watch and people-listen (I guess that's also called eavesdropping!)

The conversations range from the devoted theater fan (discussing the dialogue by Edward Albee in Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf -- do Kathleen Turner and Bill Irwin do it justice?) to the tourist fresh off the bus (Isn't Mamma Mia! that musical with songs by that Australian group ABBA? No silly, it's Danish!)

A lot of people want to see really well-known musicals, like Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King and Chicago. Stand on line for a while and you get a much better appreciation of why producers want well-known stars in their shows, like Christina Applegate.

It seemed as if everyone on line who was waiting for Sweet Charity tickets had never heard of the show, and they just wanted to see the Married With Children TV star.

Given that, I'm really curious as to whether hiring those people who walk up and down the lines handing out flyers really makes a difference. Are people open to seeing something that isn't on their short list? Inquiring minds want to know!

Movin' Out, which I absolutely loved, often gets a bum wrap since it is "just dancing and no talking at all...". Chicago is often criticized by people who have seen the movie first and then were disappointed by the sparseness of simplicity of the stage production ("it was kinda plain...I liked the movie better because it had more chairs and stuff...")

Actually I've heard this comment many times before standing on line at TKTS. Is it because people have forgotten why we go to see live theater or is it because producers have been training people to expect lavish visual spectacle and special effects?

This is the varied nature of a Broadway audience -- sophisticated theater fan to clueless tourist. Not everyone is on the same page. But they all want to see a show and they are all willing to line up and wait an hour to have the chance to pay $50 for a ticket. God bless 'em all!

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According to this article in Playbill, The Donald (not O'Connor, the other one...) sings "I'm gonna wash that contestant right outta my hair and send 'em on his way" instead of saying "you're fired"!

No, this is not a task for the contestants on the TV show The Apprentice wherein they have to produce a Broadway show in one day. They are actually doing The Apprentice on Broadway! Apparently it will be a love story set within the reality show. Interesting idea. I'm curious to see who they get to write it...

Here's my submission for consideration:

How are things on The Apprentice?
(sung to the tune of "How are Things in Glocca Morra?")

How are things on The Apprentice?
Are the guys and gals still fighting there?
Will there be a song about the task,
and need I ask,
applause for Donald's hair?

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I love it when two of my favorite things combine -- TV and musicals, and now Star Wars and musicals!

According to this article in Playbill:

As posters around London feature Ewan McGregor flashing his lightsaber in the recently opened "Star Wars" movie, the actor makes his West End musical debut May 19 when Guys and Dolls begins previews at the Piccadilly Theatre.

McGregor plays the gambler Sky Masterson, with Jenna Russell as Sarah, the doll he sets his heart on. Tony Award winner Jane Krakowski plays Miss Adelaide with Douglas Hodge as Nathan Detroit. Also amongst the line-up are Niall Buggy, Gaye Brown, Sevan Stephan and as Nicely Nicely Johnson -- the role which made Clive Rowe's career in the NY staging -- Martyn Ellis.

I'd love to see what Jane Krakowski does with Adelaide's Lament -- I loved her rendition of "Call from The Vatican" in the recent revival of Nine!

"I Got The Force Right Here..."

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The best book EVAR!

My fabulous husband gave me a copy of The Theatermania Guide to Musical Theater Recordings, which on the surface may sound a bit like a phone book.

But it is so much fun!

The back cover says:

Reviews of more than 1,000 recordings of more than 600 shows, including information on composers, lyricists, and principal cast members, plot outlines, notes on outstanding songs, record labels, and individual ratings from five stars (superlative) to zero stars (not recommended).

They include all the cast recordings made for a particular show, usually pointing out which is the best one. From famous shows to not-so-famous shows (i.e. ones I had never heard of before, such as Juno) are listed, including lots of interesting details -- for example, whether there is dialogue recorded, who did the orchestrations, if there were changes versus the production. It's like catnip for a cast recording fan!

Plus scattered through the alphabetical listings are "Top Ten All-time Favorite Lists" -- of playwrights, singers, composers (such as Barbara Cook, John Raitt, Kristin Chenoweth, Fred Ebb, and many more)

For example the book lists playwright/librettist (he wrote the book for Kiss Of The Spider Woman) Terrence McNally's Top Ten choices as follows:

1. The Pajama Game (good choice!)
2. A Funny Thing Happened On the Way To The Forum
3. Gypsy
4. My Fair Lady
5. Show Boat
6. Annie Get Your Gun
7. The King and I
8. Guys and Dolls
9. The Music Man
10. Porgy and Bess

I had bought the cast recording of I Had A Ball, a 1962 musical comedy starring Richard Kiley, Karen Morrow, and Buddy Hackett purely on spec -- it looked intriguing.

Listening to Karen Morrow belt out "Almost" and "I Had A Ball" was amazing so I was wondering if she had done anything recently. A quick glance at my new book and I discovered that Karen Morrow is on the Miss Spectacular cast recording, Jerry Herman's latest piece.

I had seen it in stores but didn't pick it up. After reading, "...there's also a love song, 'No Other Music,' that's one of Herman's finest ballads; happily, it gets a perfect reading by the great Karen Morrow." I decided I’m definitely going to go out and pick it up!

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A composer friend of mine told me he is going to Miami to shoot some video of a dancer he knows there.

"Oh really," I said, "and who would that be?"

"Cuban Pete" he said.

Wow! Cuban Pete! That guy is super famous! I mean, Desi Arnaz gave him the nickname Cuban Pete! Apparently my friend is really good friends with Pete -- he's his personal videographer. So how cool is that!

Here's a great link from the Planet Salsa Web site on the Mambo craze that gripped North America in the 1950s, and the role that Cuban Pete and his dance partner Millie Donay played.

And of course that got me thinking of Mambo Kings, the movie (with Armand Assante and Antonio Banderas, the latter who starred in the Nine revival on Broadway with Jane Krakowski who I mentioned briefly in a previous post!) which showcased Cuban Pete and Millie Donay on the dance floor.

Which got me thinking of Mambo Kings the Musical (produced by Daryl and Jordan Roth) which is coming to the Broadway Theater in NYC this summer.

Which made me think about writing this post.

Mamma love Mambo!

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So very, very sad. According to this article in Playbill:

Frank Gorshin, the actor, comedian and impressionist known for playing the frisky Riddler in the 1960s TV series "Batman," died May 17 after a battle with lung cancer, emphysema and pneumonia, a spokesman said.

Mr. Gorshin, 71, appeared in Broadway's "Say Goodnight, Gracie" in 2002-03, and in a national tour of it, playing the late comedian George Burns -- complete with gravelly voice, cigar, and receding silver hairpiece."

On stage, he made his Broadway debut in 1970 as the star of the musical "Jimmy", based on the life of New York Mayor Jimmy Walker. He also starred in touring or stock and regional companies of "What Makes Sammy Run"; "Promises, Promises"; "Peter Pan"; "Prisoner of Second Avenue"; "Deathtrap"; "Doubles"; "Ah, Wilderness!"; "On the 20th Century"; "Breaking Legs"; "Guys and Dolls"; and most recently "The Sunshine Boys", co-starring with Dick Van Patten. He also appeared in New York City in Gilbert and Sullivan's "Princess Ida."

Not only do I have vivid memories of his Riddler from TV's Batman (I'm sorry but Jim Carrey didn't even get close...) but one of my favorite Star Trek episodes of all time starred Frank Gorshin with his face painted one half white and one half black.

I would have liked to see him perform on stage...

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They're calling it the Canadian MUSIC Hall of Fame.

Not the Canadian ROCK AND ROLL Hall of Fame or the Canadian COUNTRY Music Hall of Fame. And according to an article in today's Toronto Star ("The Envelope, Please: T.O. Wins Music Shrine" by Jordan Heath-Rawlings, Toronto Star Tuesday May 17, 2005) it's scheduled to open in June 2007 in a brand new $38MM building at Yonge and Dundas.

Plans for the physical hall include a three-foot main area, featuring interactive exhibits, administration offices on the top floor and two stores, some featuring the "Oh What A Feeling" brand used to market popular compilations of Canadian music.

The Canadian Music Hall of Fame started inducting artists in 1978 but it existed only as photographs on a wall at the academy's headquarters. Currently it's housed online at the Juno Award site.

So why no mention in the article of any planned Musical Theater exhibits?

After all, the article does say that Bobby Gimby's trumpet (he wrote the 1967 centennial song Ca-na-da) will be there and Glenn Gould's peaked cap, scarf and finger gloves will be there. So it sounds like it will profile more than just that crazy rock and roll that the kids love so much!

I'm willing to grant that the article may not be completely thorough as to the detailed plans, but I have a sinking feeling that musical theater (writers, producers, performers) will be completely overlooked. For crying out loud, we don't even have a category at the Junos, unlike the Grammys...

What about Brent Carver who won a Tony for The Kiss of the Spider Woman? Or Louise Pitre who started this whole Mamma Mia! phenomenon in Toronto? Or Leslie Arden? Or Garth Drabinsky? Or Anne of Green Gables? Billy Bishop Goes To War? Or Galt MacDermot who wrote the music for Hair? Or Plane Crazy?

If you visit Jim Bett's Web site you'll see that Canadian Musical Theater is alive and well! Would it kill them to devote just a teensy weensy corner to it?

The article goes on to say:

I think if we had a different location that wasn't quite as sexy as Yonge and Dundas, it might be more of a challenge.

Now I have many words to describe the corner of Yonge and Dundas but "sexy" isn't one of them...

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I'm so excited that I'm going to the Tonys this year, but here's my big question: Will I recognize her without the green make-up?

Today, Playbill announced that Idina Menzel will be a celebrity presenter at the 2005 Tony Awards.

In this article, they went on to say:

Idina Menzel, who won a Tony Award last season for her performance as Elphaba in Stephen Schwartz's "Wicked", will be among the celebrity presenters at the 2005 Tony Awards.

The actress, who will also appear in the May 18 episode of the UPN series "Kevin Hill," announced the news on her official website. Menzel will also be seen in the upcoming screen adaptation of "Rent", reprising her stage role as Maureen. That film is set to hit theatres in November.

First Hugh, and now Idina! I better bring my binoculars!

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It looks like Billy Crystal's admonishment to theater goers (Billy Crystal to Cellphone Users: "Stick It Up Your Ass") has worked: 700 Sundays has been extended until June 12. Read more in this article from Playbill:

Billy Crystal's 700 Sundays has announced it will extend on Broadway through June 12. The theatre's next tenant, Lennon, will bump its start to July 7 and opening to Aug. 4.

Tickets for the final extension will go on sale May 17 at 10 AM.

"Billy's been delighting audiences with 700 Sundays and we congratulate him on his enormous success," producer Allan McKeown said in a release. "We fully understand his desire to extend a few weeks. We look forward to moving into the Broadhurst Theatre with Lennon after he has completed his successful run."

The musical Lennon recently announced that it would skip its scheduled Boston run following its world premiere at San Francisco's Orpheum Theatre and head right to New York for previews starting June 28 and the original opening night, July 28.

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Here's a companion to my post on Maximum Broadway Radio: There's a UK version. I like this service because it feeds directly into my iTunes application.

I got an email for Nathan Matthews, the producer of TheatreRadio in the UK so I thought I'd share this really cool site with you.

Nathan describes TheatreRadio as follows:

With a range of theatre classics and more contemporary tracks, TheatreRadio provides a unique blend of music and is accessible to everyone wanting to listen to musical theatre. You can now listen to music absolutely free of charge, anywhere, be it at work or at home. Simply visit www.theatreradio.co.uk and click "Listen". As well as providing great music, the website has loads of information on musicals playing in London's West End as well as those on tour across the UK.

TheatreRadio also does a chat show, which sounds really interesting:

TheatreRadio is proud to present Tim McArthur as its inaugural chat show host. Each week on TheatreRadio, Tim is joined by a star of the stage, and discusses their career to date, their current project, and their future plans. During the show, Tim plays tracks from each guest's favourite musicals, as well as giving away fantastic prizes in the weekly competition.

To date, Tim's guests have included Ellen Greene (Little Shop Of Horrors), Lesley Joseph (Thoroughly Modern Millie), Stiles & Drewe (Mary Poppins), Caroline O'Connor (On The Town), Adam Garcia (On The Town), Rosemary Ashe (Mary Poppins), Janie Dee (My One And Only), Josefina Gabrielle (Oklahoma), Rebecca Thornhill (Witches Of Eastwick), Ramin Karimloo (Les Miserables), Robert Irons (Jekyll & Hyde), Mark Hutchinson (Blood Brothers), and Tom Solomon (Voice Of Musical Theatre).

An experienced cabaret artist, Tim has appeared at Don't Tell Mama New York and across London at the Purcell Room, Pizza on the Park (where he was Critics' Choice in The Times), Jermyn Street Theatre, Lauderdale House and the Savoy. He also broadcasts regularly for BBC Radio London with Sadie Nine and LBC Radio with Sandy Toksvig.

Tim McArthur Interviews: Live On TheatreRadio Sundays at 5pm / Repeated daily at 2pm and 10pm.

If you have any questions for Nathan, you can contact him at nathan@theatreradio.co.uk

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Playbill is running a contest: Vote for the greatest Broadway musical of all time, and win a chance to go to the Tony Awards and tickets to the four shows nominated for Best Musical (The Light in the Piazza, Spamalot, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels). Sounds pretty straightforward, right?

Yes, but they give you four "...of the most influential shows to ever grace the stage..." to choose from: Oklahoma!, Guys and Dolls, West Side Story, or A Chorus Line. So tell me, how am I supposed to pick just one from that list?

I know, I know, I should be picking Oklahoma! because that is considered the gold standard of modern musical theater. I like it and everything, but it isn't my absolute favorite. Maybe if I had seen Hugh Jackman in it in London I'd be singing a different tune...

A Chorus Line? Well, as a child of the '70s, I grew up singing "Tits and Ass" and "What I Did For Love" at the piano, and wishing I hadn't given up my tap lessons...

West Side Story? Sondheim and Bernstein and Shakespeare all wrapped into one gorgeous piece that includes singin' and dancin' gang members. What's not to love?

Guys and Dolls? "Adelaide's Lament" (a song even Sondheim wishes he had written) was my staple song for auditions. "Luck Be A Lady"? "Sit Down You're Rockin' the Boat"? "If I Were A Bell"? Saints, sinners, gamblers...

Ahh! How can I choose just one?

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After writing this post on Yip Harburg, I was anxious to do a return viewing of the 1968 movie musical Finian's Rainbow. Directed by Francis Ford Coppola, this was Fred Astaire's last musical lead.

So I went out and spent my $7.99 for the DVD. I'm glad the powers that be don't think much of old musicals, and price them accordingly! Ah, Fred Astaire, ah, Petula Clark, ah, Don Francks...

This musical has a special place in my heart 'cuz I was a peppy chorus member in my high school production. I tried out for the lead, and also for the role of "Susan the Silent" (I thought I was a shoe-in 'cuz I had the same name...but it actually went to someone much more qualified).

I shouldn't complain because the chorus numbers are so fun ("That Great Come and Get It Day", "This Time of the Year"). And they always played the movie version for us before we started rehearsals so we could get a feel for the show.

Keenan Wynn is also in the movie and if you close your eyes and listen to Fred Astaire and Keenan Wynn talk, you think you're watching Kris Kringle and the Winter Warlock in Santa Claus is Coming To Town! All that's missing is Mickey Rooney!

The racial tolerance subtext of Finian's Rainbow must have been considered radical when the show opened in 1947. There is an high-larious scene in the movie where Al Freeman, Jr. (the scientist who is working on getting a new hybrid of menthol tobacco to burn), goes to work for the racist senator (Keennan Wynn) and is instead hired as a butler. When he carries the mint julep "with a shuffle" I split my side laughing.

I love Petula Clark's voice. Always have. It makes me feel good when I hear it. In my opinion her voice seamlessly blends into the musical theatre score without making it sound too poppy. When I went to see Petula Clark not too long ago in concert in Toronto, she sounded amazing.

But the highlight of the evening was when she was told that Don Francks (a Canadian, who is also known by his native name, Iron Buffalo) was in the audience. She invited him onstage and they did an impromptu version of "Old Devil Moon". Don was all in denim and sported a ponytail. They hadn't sung together since the movie, but it was like 1968 all over again. Chills!

I know this movie has been criticized by some over the years, but hey, anything with Fred Astaire dancing in it is worth seeing!

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The other night we went to see the CharActors Senior Elite performance of Bye Bye Birdie at the York Woods Library Theatre.

Not only was my daughter Myrna in the show, playing Randolph McAfee, but I was going to see the building that my dad, Thomas Ibronyi, had designed!

The library is a gorgeous building in the middle of a nondescript area. The lobby of the theater is circular with wonderful attention to detail in the theater (every seat is a good one!). Surprisingly, even the women's washroom is roomy! Wonderful job, Dad!

Myrna was her usual brilliant self. She was one of two grade 5 students amongst the grade 7 and 8 students (the other was a boy who played Conrad Birdie). She knew her marks, every move, every line of dialogue. Her voice in "Ed Sullivan" and "What's The Matter With Kids Today (Reprise)" was amazing! Wonderful job Myrna!

A real family affair!

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Disney's Tarzan is coming to Broadway -- I Vote for Hugh Jackman!

Disney will be presenting Tarzan The Musical (based on the 1999 animated film) on Broadway sometime in the 2005/2006 season.

I think Hugh Jackman would be perfect to play Tarzan! I mean, it would be pretty easy to take two hours of Hugh in a loin cloth, don't you think? And that boy can sing!

In this article from Playbill:

Caught between the world of gorillas and the world of humans, he is a human raised by a family of apes in the African jungle. We must identify with him and care about him and his emotional journey. Charming (Ed: Hugh Jackman = YES), sexy, (Ed: Hugh Jackman = YES), vulnerable (Ed: Hugh Jackman = YES), lots of humanity, animal-like. (Ed: Again, Hugh Jackman = WOLVERINE!). Physically lean but toned, a swimmer;s body -- NOT a muscle man. Strong upper body strength, physical, agile, fearless, must be very comfortable with movement. His body must be at one with the environment (OH BABY, OH BABY: This is Hugh to a tee...). Will fly. Needs a terrific pop/rock singing voice.

Well, there goes the G rating...

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I was watching Letterman last night and he had Billy Crystal on as a guest. Billy is wrapping up his fantastically successful run of 700 Sundays on May 22. The show was also nominated for a Tony this week (in the category of "Best Special Theatrical Event"), as I mentioned in this previous post.

Dave asked Billy about a quote in the New York Post, wherein Billy was quoted as saying that his audience should "stick [their cellphones] up their ass."

Billy told a great story, which is in line with my Theatiquette post from January.

Specifically, Billy related a story where, during a particularly poignant part of the show when he was talking about the death of his parents, TWELVE cell phones rang. As a performer, Billy found it difficult to get through, but he soldiered on. At the end of the show, he came out, and made a little speech, saying (I'm paraphrasing here): "When you go to the theater, you should turn off your cellphone, leave it at home, OR STICK IT UP YOUR ASS".

The New York Post promptly pulled it out of context, and simply quoted the "ass" part.

BTW, I agree. There NO EXCUSE for having a phone ring during a show...

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Well, now that I'm rolling on this whole Hungarian heritage and all (see my previous post on Lost Land) I thought I should share another Hungarian theater connection. It's also a nice segue from my Shirley Jones/Partridge Family post!

I'm specifically talking about Carousel, which is from an old Hungarian tale. Which sorta makes sense in a way because, if you've ever seen Carousel, it's an unusually dark and depressing musical for Hollywood in the fifties. Before I knew better, I always wondered: "Where'd this story of woe come from?" Once the Hungarian connection was established, it all fell into place.

Here's a great review on Carousel from Epinions.com:

The story of Carousel began as the play "Liliom", from turn of the century Hungarian author Ferenc Molnar. A silent version from Hungary was directed by future legend Michael Curtiz in 1919. An early talkie was made in 1930. The most famous version was Liliom (1934), starring Charles Boyer and directed by Fritz Lang. This Hollywood film was adapted into a Broadway musical in 1945, with the familiar Rodgers and Hammerstein songs. Some of the songs were removed or truncated for Carousel, but the negative aspects of Billy's character, companion and actions were left intact.

On the surface at least, the film had much in common with Oklahoma!, released the previous year. Besides the widescreen, technicolor format and the Rodgers and Hammerstein songs, both films starred rugged bass singer Gordon MacRae and smiling, angelic young Shirley Jones. Both had period Americana costumes and elaborate choreography.

But Carousel is a much darker film. The male lead, who sees the majority of the screen time, is a troubled loser. He's a surly bum who won't look for work, who hits his girl, and who hangs out with a hardened, cynical criminal. He also begins the film already dead, passing time polishing plastic stars in a drab purgatory corner of heaven.

It's a strange set-up for a 1950s musical, and it must have alienated contemporary audiences. From a commercial point of view, the problem was in the adaptation. The King and I had ruthlessly stripped away all the negative vibes from Anna and the King of Siam in its transition from drama to musical. But Carousel had remained relatively faithful to the original play.

Hmm...that gives me an idea: Tokaj: The Musical

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My husband got the following message from Air Canada today. He's an Elite member, so this is his "special offer" (err, he received the same message three times...NOTE: Get your act together ThinData!):

I am pleased to offer you an exclusive opportunity to be first in line to purchase tickets for the Toronto World Premiere theatrical production of THE LORD OF THE RINGS. Only Air Canada, as a principal sponsor of the first major stage adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's trilogy, can offer our Top Tier members this exceptional opportunity to order tickets before anyone else.

Tickets go on sale to the public on May 15, 2005. However, as an Air Canada Top Tier member, you'll be among the first to experience the biggest, most ambitious theatre production ever staged by ordering your tickets on May 14, 2005 beginning at 9 AM (ET).

Performances for THE LORD OF THE RINGS begin on February 2, 2006 at the Princess of Wales Theatre in Toronto.

J.R.R. Tolkien's book trilogy has sold over 200 million copies. The award winning three-film adaptation broke box office records. And now, an international creative team directed by critically acclaimed Matthew Warchus has combined all three books into one extraordinary stage event.

To order your tickets on May 14 at 9 AM (ET), before they go on sale to the public, call 1-800-461-3333 (in Canada and the Continental U.S.) or (416) 872-1212 (in Toronto), or click here to buy online. Please have your Aeroplan number ready. For more information about this great show, visit www.lotr.com.

With a thrilling score, a spectacular design, and an ensemble of over 65 actors, singers and musicians, THE LORD OF THE RINGS is destined to be the stage event of the year. I truly hope you can take advantage of this exclusive opportunity and enjoy the show.

Sincerely,


George Reeleder
Senior Director, Marketing
Air Canada

Someone needs to explain to the agency that you should only have two spaces after a period with non-proportional fonts (like Courier, and on typewriters). With proportional fonts, only one space is required after a period. Koff, koff, bush league, koff, koff. I have gone to the trouble of correcting the double spaces, at no charge!

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As I was watching the awesome The Partridge Family The Complete First Season DVD set that my fabulous husband bought for me, I kept wondering how I was going to rationalize doing a Partridge Family post.

Yes, I'll admit it -- I was a huge Partridge Family fan (and I have ALL the albums!) back in the bad old '70s. As I was revelling in watching the episodes, chuckling at the silly jokes, and swaying to the rhythms of "I'll Meet You Halfway" and "Come on Get Happy" I was trying to think of a way to sneak it onto Blogway Baby and keep it relevant to theater.

Of course the obvious connection to musicals is Shirley Jones, star of classic movie musicals such as Carousel and Oklahoma!, who played Shirley Partridge. She is the only other star (other than David Cassidy) who actually sang on those darn songs!

Then of course there's David Cassidy who went on to star in Blood Brothers on stage. I was so anxious to see my Tiger Beat idol in the touring production of Blood Brothers that came to Toronto that I went to see it twice! The first time I saw it, there he was in all his glory in the opening scene! But when they carried him off the stage on the stretcher, some stage hand dropped him and he was knocked out cold and we never saw him again that night (although the understudy did a fine job). So I had to go back a second time to get my full dose of Keith Partridge. I'm not proud of that, but I thought y'all should know.

Then of course, there are the guest stars -- the musical theater stars who popped in now and then to liven up an episode. Ray Bolger (the Scarecrow himself!) who played Shirley's dad was a frequent visitor. And I just finished watching an episode that starred John McMartin (he played Oscar Lindquist in the original Broadway production and movie version of Sweet Charity) as an old beau of Shirley's.

See, now that wasn't so hard!

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I was lucky enough to see one of the last performances of Here Lies Jenny starring Bebe Neuwirth last fall at the Zipper Theater in New York.

The Zipper Theatre is a really cool, intimate, converted zipper factory. The seats are all reclaimed bucket car seats, some single, some double.

Directed and conceived by Roger Rees and choreographed by Neuwirth's Chicago colleague Ann Reinking, the show introduces a bedraggled woman who returns to a run-down watering hole populated by two thugs, a pianist, and a barkeep.

In a 90-minute span of time, songs by Kurt Weill are performed -- not telling a particular story but suggesting conflicts within the lost title character, and between her and the men of the joint. My favorite number is the "Saga of Jenny" (which, BTW, Julie Andrews also performs as Gertrude Lawrence in the movie musical Star!).

And I read in this article in Playbill that the show is running in San Francisco at the Post Street Theatre until May 25. I'm not familiar with that theater but I'm hoping it is as intimate a space as the Zipper was, because I'm not sure the show would work in a really large venue. You kind of need to feel like you're a fly on the wall.

Anyway, if you love Bebe and you love Kurt Weill, you'll enjoy this show! In a world where nobody's got no class, Bebe is filthy with it!

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According to this article in Playbill (and my TV) the 2004-2005 Tony Award nominations were announced this morning by Alan Cumming, Lynn Redgrave, Kate Burton and Brian Stokes Mitchell at the Marriott Marquis Hotel.

Not surprisingly, best musical nominations included Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Light in the Piazza, Monty Python's Spamalot, and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. I have been anxious to see The Light In the Piazza ever since I read about it when it was playing at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago.

Although Chitty and Little Women were not nominated in this category, both Erin Dilly and Sutton Foster, respectively, were nominated for best performance for a leading actress in a musical.

Christina Applegate was also nominated for the best performance for a leading actress in a musical (Sweet Charity was nominated as best revival of a musical). Maybe she should have also been nominated for the "Show Must Go On" award, given she is currently performing with a foot brace!

The full list of nominations is:

Best Play
Democracy
Author: Michael Frayn

Doubt
Author: John Patrick Shanley

Gem of the Ocean
Author: August Wilson

The Pillowman
Author: Martin McDonagh

Best Musical
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
The Light in the Piazza
Monty Python's Spamalot
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play
Philip Bosco, Twelve Angry Men
Billy Crudup, The Pillowman
Bill Irwin, Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
James Earl Jones, On Golden Pond
Brían F. O'Byrne, Doubt

Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play
Cherry Jones, Doubt
Laura Linney, Sight Unseen
Mary-Louise Parker, Reckless
Phylicia Rashad, Gem of the Ocean
Kathleen Turner, Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical
Hank Azaria, Monty Python's Spamalot
Gary Beach, La Cage aux Folles
Norbert Leo Butz, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
Tim Curry, Monty Python's Spamalot
John Lithgow, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical
Christina Applegate, Sweet Charity
Victoria Clark, The Light in the Piazza
Erin Dilly, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Sutton Foster, Little Women
Sherie Rene Scott, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play
Alan Alda, Glengarry Glen Ross
Gordon Clapp, Glengarry Glen Ross
David Harbour, Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Liev Schreiber, Glengarry Glen Ross
Michael Stuhlbarg, The Pillowman

Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play
Mireille Enos, Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Heather Goldenhersh, Doubt
Dana Ivey, The Rivals
Adriane Lenox, Doubt
Amy Ryan, A Streetcar Named Desire

Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical
Dan Fogler, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
Marc Kudisch, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Michael McGrath, Monty Python's Spamalot
Matthew Morrison, The Light in the Piazza
Christopher Sieber, Monty Python's Spamalot

Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical
Joanna Gleason, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
Celia Keenan-Bolger, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
Jan Maxwell, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Kelli O'Hara, The Light in the Piazza
Sara Ramirez, Monty Python's Spamalot

Best Direction of a Play
John Crowley, The Pillowman
Scott Ellis, Twelve Angry Men
Doug Hughes, Doubt
Joe Mantello, Glengarry Glen Ross

Best Direction of a Musical
James Lapine, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
Mike Nichols, Monty Python's Spamalot
Jack O’Brien, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
Bartlett Sher, The Light in the Piazza

Best Choreography
Wayne Cilento, Sweet Charity
Jerry Mitchell, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
Jerry Mitchell, La Cage aux Folles
Casey Nicholaw, Monty Python's Spamalot

Best Orchestrations
Larry Hochman, Monty Python's Spamalot
Ted Sperling, Adam Guettel and Bruce Coughlin, The Light in the Piazza
Jonathan Tunick, Pacific Overtures
Harold Wheeler, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
Music & Lyrics: David Yazbek

The Light in the Piazza
Music & Lyrics: Adam Guettel

Monty Python's Spamalot
Music: John Du Prez and Eric Idle; Lyrics: Eric Idle

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
Music & Lyrics: William Finn

Best Book of a Musical
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Jeffrey Lane
The Light in the Piazza, Craig Lucas
Monty Python's Spamalot, Eric Idle
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Rachel Sheinkin

Best Scenic Design of a Play
John Lee Beatty, Doubt
David Gallo, Gem of the Ocean
Santo Loquasto, Glengarry Glen Ross
Scott Pask, The Pillowman

Best Scenic Design of a Musical
Tim Hatley, Monty Python's Spamalot
Rumi Matsui, Pacific Overtures
Anthony Ward, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Michael Yeargan, The Light in the Piazza

Best Costume Design of a Play
Jess Goldstein, The Rivals
Jane Greenwood, Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
William Ivey Long, A Streetcar Named Desire
Constanza Romero, Gem of the Ocean

Best Costume Design of a Musical
Tim Hatley, Monty Python's Spamalot
Junko Koshino, Pacific Overtures
William Ivey Long, La Cage aux Folles
Catherine Zuber, The Light in the Piazza

Best Lighting Design of a Play
Pat Collins, Doubt
Donald Holder, Gem of the Ocean
Donald Holder, A Streetcar Named Desire
Brian MacDevitt, The Pillowman

Best Lighting Design of a Musical
Christopher Akerlind, The Light in the Piazza
Mark Henderson, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Kenneth Posner, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
Hugh Vanstone, Monty Python's Spamalot

Best Special Theatrical Event
Dame Edna: Back with a Vengeance!
Producers: Creative Battery, Harley Medcalf and Boxjellyfish LLC

Laugh Whore
Producer: Showtime Networks

700 Sundays
Producers: Janice Crystal, Larry Magid, Face Productions

Whoopi, the 20th Anniversary Show
Producers: Mike Nichols, Hal Luftig, Leonard Soloway, Steven M. Levy, Tom Leonardis, Eric Falkenstein, Amy Nederlander

Best Revival of a Play
Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Glengarry Glen Ross
On Golden Pond
Twelve Angry Men

Best Revival of a Musical
La Cage aux Folles
Pacific Overtures
Sweet Charity

Regional Theatre Tony Award
Theatre de la Jeune Lune
Minneapolis, Minnesota

Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre
Edward Albee

And from TonyAwards.com:

Productions with Multiple Nominations
14 - Monty Python's Spamalot
11 - Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
11 - The Light in the Piazza
8 - Doubt
6 - Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
6 - Glengarry Glen Ross
6 - The Pillowman
6 - The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
5 - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
5 - Gem of the Ocean
4 - La Cage aux Folles
4 - Pacific Overtures
3 - A Streetcar Named Desire
3 - Sweet Charity
3 - Twelve Angry Men
2 - On Golden Pond
2 - The Rivals

Best of luck to all the nominees - and hey, it's an honor just to be on stage with Hugh Jackman!

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This is kinda kewl. The musical Little Women has launched Broadway's first cast blog.

They're inviting 10 mainstream women bloggers and 10 Broadway (male or female) bloggers to a special performance of Little Women, The Musical. If you're interested, drop me some mail.

Little Women the Musical brings alive the timeless American classic by Louisa May Alcott. Semi-autobigraophical in nature, it has inspired generations of people and women in particular to follow their dreams, creative passions and the writing life.

Two months after the show launched, and in keeping with these themes, Little Women's producers took a bold leap in to the emerging blogosphere and launched the first official show and cast blog on Broadway. To celebrate this new writing format and medium for self experssion, the producers are hosting a special event inviting 10 leading women bloggers and and 10 broadway bloggers see the show together and discuss it afterwards (at a no-host blogger dinner).

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What a great Mother's Day!

Last night the whole fam-damily went down to the REX to see Swing Rosie at their first "May at the Rex" performance, and the launch of their first CD, named Sing Cool, Swing Hot

It was great to see Swing Rosie in concert again: Composed of Kira Callahan, Shannon Butcher, and Chantelle Wilson.,

Here are some quick bios:

Toronto jazz singer Kira Callahan is the founder of Swing Rosie. As a solo artist, Kira has performed on stages from Toronto to Paris and her CD Kira Callahan Live at Glenn Gould Studio can be heard on CBC Radio, Jazz FM 91.1 and CIUT 89.5. Kira brings passion and a natural soulful swing to the trio. Her warm mezzo tone is the perfect fit for the songs of the Andrews Sisters era. Visit Kira Callahan's website at www.kiracallahan.com.

Shannon Butcher is a graduate from the University of Toronto's Music Faculty, and she is a regualr solo performer in Toronto's jazz scene. Shannon's youthful and energetic persona, along with her versatile soprano voice help bring to life Swing Rosie's playful and intricate harmonies. Visit Shannon Butcher's Website at www.shannonbutcher.com.

Chantelle Wilson can be found performing around the world on cruise ships, and singing, dancing and acting in productions both on screen and on stage. Chantelle brings her rich alto vocals and charismatic stage presence, as well as her talents as a choreographer to the trio.

The new CD is fantastic! We listened to it all the way home...and again the next day. It's a fresh Jazz CD with a live performance sensibility. Plus, it's classic The Andrews Sisters style with fresh arrangements of classic songs. Where else are you going to find that today?

Here's my wishlist for the next CD: "Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree (With Anyone Else But Me)", "Elmer's Tune", and "Pennsylvania 6-5000".

Swing on, girls!

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While I was in TheatreBooks picking up a copy (finally!) of Reading Lyrics by Robert Gottlieb and Robert Kimball (a collection of more than a thousand of the finest lyrics from 1900 to 1975), I picked up a flyer for "The Song Is You": The Life and Lyrics of Oscar Hammerstein II.

On May 19, for one night only at the Hummingbird Centre, Richard Ouzounian will narrate and direct a show dedicated to the memorable classics penned by Hammerstein. With musical direction by David Warrack of the Canada Pops and soloists Elizabeth Beeler, Fred Love, Charlotte Moore (whose CD Friends of Mine I have raved about in a previous post) and Marcus Nance. Also featured will be conductor Noel Edison and the 60 voices of the Toronto Mendelssohn Singers.

Go to www.ticketmaster.ca for tickets.

What a wonderful way to nourish your spirit, while helping to nourish thousands of children and adults struggling with hunger in Toronto!

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Or...don't try this at home kids!

All through high school, when I was stuck in the chorus, my opening night celebrations tended to include rushing home to catch the last 15 minutes of Love Boat or Fantasy Island.

So at university, when I finally landed a major role as Gladys Hotchkiss in Queen's Musical Theatre's production of The Pajama Game (directed by Mike Stotts who now works as Managing Director of the Long Wharf Theatre in Connecticut) I wanted to do opening night a little differently.

We opened at the Grand Theatre in Kingston on a February Friday night in 1984 so of course Kingston was cold and very snowy. (And of course I wore a Laura Ashley shirt with shoulder pads to the opening night party).

I was taking a Commerce degree at Queen's University so when I joined Queen's Musical Theatre, I had finally found a place where I fit in and felt like me (even though I was the only Commerce student in the production!). Mike Stotts had been worried about my performance as Gladys and I had to have some extra rehearsals. I tended to be a performer who (not on purpose) holds back in rehearsal and really comes alive in front of a live audience. So on opening night (according to audience members) I had really done a bang-up job as Gladys and landed my funny lines and created some good onstage business. Needless to say I was flying high, even before the party started.

I don't...umm...remember much of the party...umm...but I do remember walking home through the snowbanks with a couple of cast members, still wearing my character shoes (hey, they were black and went with my party outfit!). I also remember arriving at Chown Hall residence with only one shoe on. I had lost my shoe in a snowbank! Worse than that I had lost one of my dancing character shoes in a snowbank! Part of my costume was gone! And I had a show the next night, which my parents would be attending!

Now, back in the 1980s in Kingston, character shoes were hard to come by. I had bought my size 9s at Malabar in Toronto. I was totally freaked out (as only a hung over university student can be...). How was I going to do "Steam Heat" without my trusty character shoes?

So I screwed up my courage and called my mother first thing Saturday morning. I told her I was missing one shoe, so she just had to rush down to Malabar and get a pair of size 9 black character shoes before she and my father hit the highway to drive to see me that night. "How did you lose your shoe," she asked.

I believe my answer was sufficiently vague and guilty sounding that somehow she understood. She couldn't guarantee anything but she would try. So I waited in agony all day -- would I have shoes to dance in? Would my theatrical career end before it had even started? And worse, how was I going to break it to Mike Stotts? He would be none too pleased...

Well, the theater Gods smiled upon me that day and my parents showed up just in time at the stage door with a brand new shiny pair of size 9 black character shoes and I sang and danced my way to a standing ovation (well, at least my mom and dad were standing!). I even got a smile out of Mike. But I never found the missing shoe.

As for the closing night party...let's just say, I remember it well.

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I've been listening to the movie soundtrack of the 1956 movie version of Cole Porter's Anything Goes. The movie stars Bing Crosby, Donald O'Connor, Mitzi Gaynor, Phil Harris, and Jeanmaire.

I know this movie is not considered one of the better stage-to-screen musicals ever made. However, as a youngster skipping school to watch old movies on TV, it made a huge impression on me. Especially when Donald and Mitzi sing "De-Lovely" and dance. That's why Mitzi was on the short list of names for my youngest daughter Trinity!

In this remake of the 1936 version (with Bing and Ethel Merman) Paramount messed around with the score, commissioning new songs from Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen, and an entirely new plot which retained the essential idea of Cole Porter hits on a ship.

The liner notes go on to say:

Though certainly a bit on the garish and kitschy side, the 1956 Anything Goes is great, colorful fun. It also represents the fullest manifestation of the famous "Crosby Clause" whereby the great singer-actor insisted on sharing his above-the-title billing with a couple of co-stars.

Now, to the point of this post.

In the title song Ms. Gaynor sings:

"Good authors who too once knew better words now only use THREE-letter words writing prose, anything goes..."

But, Cole Porter's ORIGINAL line was:

"Good authors who too once knew better words now only use FOUR-letter words writing prose, anything goes..."

I'm guessing that they did this because four-letter words were considered too risque for the innocent ears of the mid-1950s? Or is there another reason? If it is blatant censorship then shame on them! It's not so much the censoring, but I vehemently object to messing with the Master's lyrics!

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My daughter Myrna's CharActors Senior Elite Musical Theater class (she's part Hungarian so of course her class would be elite!) is performing Bye Bye Birdie at the York Woods Library Theatre at 1785 Finch Avenue West on Thursday, May 12. She is playing Randolph McAfee, her second male role in a month, after Mr. Bumble!

This is interesting in its own right, but what makes it fascinating is that during the course of research for the Lost Land John Malkovich post, I discovered that one of the buildings my father designed was the York Woods Library! Get outta town! How cool is that?

If only he was around to see one of his granddaughters sing and dance in one of his buildings! My father was a brilliant architect whose taste for mid-century modern design I seem to have inherited.

And I say to myself, it's a wonderful world...

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Yes, I now believe in miracles. I've been trying for a couple of months to get tickets to Lost Land (by Stephen Jeffreys, directed by Terry Johnson and featuring ensemble members John Malkovich, Martha Lavey, and Yasen Peyankov) at the Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago. Every show has been completely sold out.

On a lark, I went online to try for tickets to Tuesday May 3's evening performance and lucked into a center front row balcony seat!

Lost Land was worth the wait.

One of the reasons I was so keen to see this show (other than Mr. M, who was also the costume designer and now has his own line of men's clothing) is that it takes place in Hungary at the end of World War I. My father was Hungarian (see page eight of this pdf of The Ubyssey from 1960 for a profile of one of his stainless steel homes, and also check out his architecture for the Victoria Village Library and the York Woods Library), so I'm always interested in Hungarian characters and history.

From Backstage, subtitled "An insider's guide to what's inside Steppenwolf":

In a remote castle in the winegrowing region of northern Hungary, a mysterious delegate arrives to persuade a beloved retired politician to claim the reins of power. Set at the end of WWI, when the nation is on the verge of collapse, Lost Land confronts the ideas of statehood and personal obligation with sharp humor and intrigue.

Kristof, the retired government official of Lost Land is ripped from his serene and secluded life in order to serve Hungary in the final moments of World War I. Playwright Stephen Jeffreys based this fictional character on the historical circumstance of Michael Karolyi, an exiled count so disturbed by the tumult of Hungary that he returned to politics in 1919.

There is a wonderful picture of Michael Karolyi in the magazine -- he's sporting a look I've seen many times -- that wonderful pencil mustache and raised eyebrow that says, "damn I look good!" Ah, Hungarian men. Like no other...

The unique location of Lost Land, a remote vineyard in Northern Hungary, is renowned as the birthplace of Tokaj, the world-famous dessert wine. The survival of Hungary's Tokaj wine through centuries of bloody conflict elevates the wine to near-mythic proportions. In Hungary the wine takes prominence in the national anthem -- nectar flowed, drops of pure gold from Tokaj wine presses. King Louis XIV described the wine as "The King of wines, the wine of Kings."

My dad would have shrugged his shoulders as if to say "What else would you expect from Hungarian wine?"

It is a time-consuming and laborious process to make Tokaj. When the Communists dominated Hungary in the middle of the 20th century, Hungarian farmers were forbidden to produce the wine because its laborious production was considered highly wasteful as well as distinctly elitist. The Communists insisted that the Tokaj grapes be used for basic table wine -- Bull's Blood -- which, trust me, is about as drinkable as the name implies. I have a pretty good idea why my dad despised the Communists so much.

Now back to the play. It beautifully illustrated the time -- a world on the edge of tumultuous change, a region being ravaged and reduced by politics and war, and the "solution" that sets the continent up for WWII.

The playwright captured the Hungarian elitism, the distaste for the surrounding Slovacs and Czechs, and the realization of Hungary's long-term need to be part of a larger world, by selling Tokaj internationally. (Of course, not bothering with the Russians "who are happy drinking Turpentine".)

I also enjoyed the humor derived from the use of the expression "Hungarian gentlemen", used as an oxymoron. However, I know why I was laughing, but why was everyone else in the audience laughing?

According to an article in Where Magazine ("Return of the Native" by Nina Metz, May 2005), the part of Miklos, the manipulative and ill-intentioned visitor, was originally written for John Malkovich to play. During a an early reading, Jeffreys came to the conclusion that Miklos "was the obvious John Malkovich part. He could play that part falling off a log." Malkovich agreed.

"It wouldn't have been, let's just say, for me, a fantastic challenge. To play the other part (Kristof) someone who is dreamy, stunted and ineffectual -- I think perhaps that is more of a surprise for the people watching."

The result was terrific. Malkovich was awesome. And Yasben Peyankov did an amazing job as Miklos. Although it would be neat to see Malkovich play that character, in that wonderful manipulative Malkovich way.

Martha Lavey as Ilona, Kristof's sister, did an incredible job of portraying a woman who really ran the wine production and the castle estate, but was denied ownership because of her gender.

My father would have enjoyed the show immensely!

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I read this article in Playbill today that the Tony Award nominations are being announced May 10, 2005 at the Marquis Theatre in New York.

I got to wondering about where the name of the Tony Award came from. I'm ashamed to say: I had no idea.

Unlike the Academy Awards, a real person inspired the Tony. When actor and director Antoinette Perry died in 1946 at the age of 58, her loss was so deeply felt on Broadway that conventional eulogies seemed inadequate; a permanent memorial would be necessary. And so the following year, the Tony Award was born.

These awards were first presented in the Waldorf=Astoria Hotel (sigh) in 1947.

The story of her life is well laid out in an article written by Joseph Gustaitis and originally published in American History Magazine in April 1997.

Not only was she an esteemed actor, but director as well -- her biggest hit was her 1944 smash, Harvey. According to the article:

When Perry first read the script of Mary Coyle Chase's comedy about a pacific boozer named Elwood P. Dowd and his chum Harvey, a six-foot-one-inch rabbit that only Elwood could see, Perry feared that staging it would be impossible. But she toiled on the project, helped whip the unpolished script into shape, and mounted a triumph starring Frank Fay that ran for 1,755 performances at the 48th Street Theater in New York.

I also didn't know (shame on me!) that the American Theatre Wing was founded by playwright Rachel Crothers and six other women.

According to the article:

Perry also dedicated herself to the American Theatre Wing, the organization that today oversees the Tony Awards. Established in 1917 by playwright Rachel Crothers and six other women of the theater as the "Stage Women's War Relief," the Wing's self-appointed duties included the collection of food and clothing for war relief, selling Liberty Bonds, and entertaining servicemen. After World War I, the Wing turned to helping civilians, but remained fairly dormant until 1939 and the beginning of World War II in Europe. Once again, Crothers summoned the women of Broadway, and the organization reemerged as a branch of the British War Relief Society. When the United States entered the war in 1941, the organization became independent, with such notables as Gertrude Lawrence, Helen Hayes, Josephine Hull, and Perry, assisting Crothers as officers.

Hey: It's an honor just to have an award named after you!

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Here's something for all you Plane Crazy fans out there.

National Geographic has a mini-photograph gallery of the Airbus A380 SuperJumbo plane. This is a picture of the onboard duty-free shop.

The Airbus A380 "SuperJumbo" is the largest civil aircraft ever built. Designed to carry 555 passengers in a three-class arrangement, it has one-third more seating capacity than a Boeing 747. A planned stretched version would carry 656 passengers, and an all-economy-class configuration would be able to carry more than 800 passengers.

(via BoingBoing)

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Here's a neat bit of follow-up from my childhood, courtesy of BoingBoing.

Apparently, Dolores Erickson, the cover model on the Herb Alpert's Tijuana Brass album Whipped Cream & Other Delights is alive, well, and making impressionist paintings.

She has a really cool site at whippedcreamlady.com for anyone into the '60s, including all her record album covers (she was also on the cover of Guantanamera by the Sandpipers), and a link to the book Hal Lifson's 1966 (subtitled as "A Personal View of the Coolest Year in Pop Culture History"), described by Billboard magazine (February 5, 2003) as a "mind-boggling collection of visual trivia, from Sno Cones and Goofy Grape drink packets to Sting-Ray bikes and Gumby flexes."

She was gorgeous in her younger years, and still looks great today.

As far as I can tell, the album Whipped Cream & Other Delights was issued en masse to all adults in the '60s. My parents had a copy which they played over and over again, and I remember staring at the album cover, wondering how they got all that whipped cream to stay in place...

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I've been listening to the original cast recording of The MAD Show -- A New Musical Revue based on MAD Magazine, which opened Off-Broadway at the New Theatre on January 9, 1966 and ran for 871 performances.

Being a big reader of MAD Magazine since I could read, (I especially loved the "Sung to the Tune of" comedy songs) I was excited to get the CD. The music is by Mary Rodgers, lyrics by Marshall Barer, Larry Siegel and Steven Vinaver, and book by Larry Siegel and Stan Hart. The cast includes Linda Lavin, Macintyre Dixon, Dick Libertini, Paul Sand and Jo Anne Worley (how great is that line up!). Of course, the production was conceived and directed by "Alfred E. Neuman".

There are some wonderful anecdotes in the liner notes (hey, that rhymes!) written by Mary Rodgers in 2004. In 1965 the creators got permission from Bill Gaines, the publisher of MAD, to create a musical revue on the condition that he had the right to toss out any material he didn't like. She goes on to say:

So anyway, two days before rehearsals were to begin, Bill Gaines finally decides to exercise his option. He wants to hear the material. Picture this: A nasty, hot little attic room above the New Theatre. Bill Gaines and his MAD Mag suits, Columbia Records execs (they had, sight unseen or heard, agreed to produce the album) and their suits, Steven Vinaver in his suit (tweedy) Stan, Larry and Mary, nondescriptly attired, huddled in a corner, Sam Pottle the musical director looking like your normal Yalie, which he was, poised to play the out-of-tune upright, and: Marshall wearing pointy boots, jeans, a shirt festooned with yesterday's tuna fish sandwich, and a fringed leather jacket. He is foaming at the mouth from an overdose of Tums, squinting at his coffee-stained, unpaginated bunch of lyrics, putting on his distance glasses, taking off his distance glasses, losing his distance glasses (resting on his head). He stumbles through the entire score at the end of which SILENCE. Bill Gaines rises. Reminds the room of his right to toss out any material he doesn't like. And what doesn't he like? Everything. He doesn't like everything. Couple of tunes, maybe, but otherwise, forget it. This is Friday, remember? And we start rehearsal on Monday. What me worry? You betcha!

Needless to say rewrites were done, presented and approved. The MAD Show opened on time "to some pretty terrific reviews" and ran for over two years.

Listening to the show you get an overwhelming sense of the good-natured, innocent, and joyous parody. Despite the hilarious parody it never feels cynical, or bitter, or self-congratulatory. I loved it. It's definitely comedy first, and music second but it totally works. It also really feels like a musical version of MAD magazine, which stands in comparison to the current late night show MAD TV, which although funny at times doesn't feel like MAD magazine at all. My favorite numbers are "Misery Is" (a charming send up of "Happiness Is" from You're A Good Man Charlie Brown), "The Boy From..." ( the classic parody of "The Girl From Ipanema") and Kiddie TV (Pompus Room is a hilarious send up of Romper Room).

The lyrics to "The Boy From..." are credited to Esteban Ria Nido. Ted Chaplin explains this in a super cool anecdote:

Spanish to English: Esteban = Stephen. Ria = river. Nido = nest. German to English: Sond = sound, or body of water, as in "Long Island Sound." Heim = home, or nest. In the Playbill for The MAD Show the lyricist of "The Boy From..." is listed as Nom De Plume. Here is what this all means: when Mary Rodgers was in the pickle she describes above, she called on her friend Stephen Sondheim to help out. This was the year of "Do I Hear A Waltz?" Sondheim was a determined as ever to make his mark as a composer and lyricist. So instead of telling the world right off that this would be another set of Sondheim lyrics -- brilliant, one might add -- he decided to take a "nom de plume", or pen name, and translate his own name into Spanish, in keeping with the South American nature of the song parodied, "The Girl From Ipanema." (Musical theater buffs take note: turns out "The Girl from Ipanema" was originally intended for a musical comedy entitled "Blimp" which, as far as we know, was never produced.) Once Sondheim's career became established with "Company" and "Follies" and the rest, he removed the puzzle from his own participation in "The Boy From...".

Wow. Sondheim is connected to MAD Magazine. I have a whole new level of respect for him!

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I was wondering whether to see the revival production of Glengarry Glen Ross that just opened on Broadway at the Royal Theatre, playing through August 28.

Well, if this review in the Chicago Tribune is any indication, it's a "Must See".

First of all I'm biased: Liev Schreiber is one of my fav actors. I loved him in A Walk On the Moon and RKO 281 and of course Kate and Leopold with Hugh Jackman (sorry, couldn't resist), although I've never seen him on stage.

Liev stars as hotshot real estate salesman Richard Roma, and Alan Alda stars as Shelly "The Machine" Levene. Tom Wopat also joins the cast, described as "a long and skillfully schlumpy way from The Dukes of Hazzard". I saw him in Annie Get Your Gun, proving that there is life after TV!

The review holds high praise for Schreiber, while slightly less ecstatic about Alda's performance (although he admits having Alda issues. Alda issues? I never knew such a thing existed!). The article goes on to say:

Broadway these days is not a brave new world for drama. Revivals of plays that have been summer-stocked to death, such as "On Golden Pond" and "Steel Magnolias" come back like cheery zombies. Occassionally comes along a play of a higher order, such as "Glengarry". And you don't mind seeing and hearing it again.

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Sorry, sorry, I'm on a bit of a Lionel Bart / Oliver! kick right now. Let me work it out of my system and we'll all get better together, OK? Promise this is my last one for a while...

While watching Oliver! a couple of days ago, I was wracking my brain with the kid who played the "Artful Dodger": He looked so familiar. So I looked up the actor (Jack Wild), and it all came rushing back.

Of course: H.R. PUF 'N' STUF...Get outta town! He's Jack Wild, teen idol from the '70s! This article does a great job of summarizing his career and current status, which follows the usual arc of Early Success followed by Drugs and Debauchery followed by Attempted Comeback. Ah, isn't Hollywood wonderful...

For Jack Wild, success came early and big. Discovered by an agent while playing soccer in a London park with his older brother, Arthur, Jack was enrolled in a actors school and began going on auditions at the age of 11.

As with many other boy-actors in the London area, he was cast in the stage production of Oliver!, and joined with hundreds of other castmates at the audition for the film. Jack won the plum role The Artful Dodger, and was nominated for an Academy Award for his efforts.

At the Hollywood premiere of Oliver!, Jack was introduced to puppeteers Sid and Marty Krofft, who decided that Jack would be the perfect young actor to play the lead in their upcoming saturday-morning kids program, H.R. Puf 'n' Stuf. Jack and his brother left London for the US, and moved in with Marty Krofft and his family while they filmed 17 episodes of the series plus a feature film based on the show.

A true sensation, 15-year-old Jack Wild became the darling of the teen magazines with a profitable recording contract and active career in films, incluing a starring role Alan Parker's first fim, Melody.

After a few years, Jack faded from the limelight, and as with many of his idol cohorts fell in to several years of obscurity, depression and alcohol abuse.

Now clean and sober, Jack is seeking a comeback as an actor. He has appeared in several productions in the past few years, including a role in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and a more recent part in a London stage adaptation of The Wizard of Oz (as the Cowardly Lion). He is currently working on his autobiography and has also been soliciting a script treatment of a sequel to Oliver!

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Yesterday I took in a matinee of Respect: A Musical Journey of Women (written and created by Dorothy Marcic) at the Chicago Center for the Performing Arts where it is currently playing an open run.

From the colorful retro graphic design to the fun trinkets sold in the lobby (boas, '60s sunglasses) you know this is supposed to be fun. Or maybe if you're walking around wearing a stripper boa, you better be wearing dark glasses so no one recognizes you...

The show is a musical revue that traces the progress of women from the days of corsets to today, using music from the various periods (sorry) along the way. The author, Dr. Dorothy Marcic, is played by an actress (Karan Pappas) who uses her female family members' various stories (Aunt Lilly, her mother, etc.) over the years to pull us along.

In the author's note in the program Dr. Dorothy Marcic says:

Respect is a result of five years of research, writing and development. It began when I was asked to do a presentation in 1999 at a Bahai Social and Economics Development since equality of men and women is one of the principles taught by Baha ullah. The world of humanity has two wings. One is women and the other men. Not until both wings are equally developed can the bird fly. Because I was experimenting with music in my leadership programs, I decided to add some music to those presentations. As I did the research to find a few songs, I realized that popular music tells the whole story of women in the 20th century. After the Orlando presentation, an agent got me a book contarct and I recorded some CDs. Thus began my new career in the one-woman show, which I have performed all around the US and the world, and which now has evolved into the four-woman musical theatre production which opened in its first professionally-produced commercial run at the Cuillo Center for the Arts in West Palm Beach FL on July 16 2004, running through October 2004. Now it is playing in Ft. Lauderdale and Chicago.

And based on the audiences reaction yesterday, Chicago women love it. The only men in the place were the band (of course), the house manager, the guy serving drinks, the guy taking tickets, and the four or five husbands along for the ride.

The cast of four is wonderful, with great voices. The strongest and most charismatic of the bunch is Jeanette Fitzpatrick whose rendition of "It Must Be Him" is the comic highlight of the show. The songs (61 in total!) are fabulous hits past and present. They range from the Betty Boop-delivered "I Wanna Be Loved By You" to the disco classic "I Will Survive". (I'd love the see the legal work that went into getting permission to use all these songs.) For the most part they were well arranged and sung with so much joy and energy that I wasn't pining to hear the original version.

Having said that, I felt the whole show really didn't hold together and it felt simplistc and a tad preachy. I didn't get enough of the "stories" to really make the songs meaningful. It felt like I was at the taping of an Oprah show (minus the great door prizes). Given the strong feminist message I assumed was coming in the show, it starts off surprisingly (or not surprisingly...) with Dorothy relating a visit to a cocktail party thrown by an ex-beau who has now taken up with another woman. She proceeds to cattily ("Meow, saucer of milk for Table 2") mock this new girlfriend in the dramatized conversation before launching into the singing and dancing of the show.

I also find it interesting that this "female musical history" is expressed with songs written primarily by men (only 3 of the 61 songs are written solely by women -- "At Seventeen" by Janis Ian, "Wide Open Spaces" by Susan Gibson and "Born a Woman" by Martha Sharp).

In fact, the songs touted as the big feminist anthems (see how far we've come) were written solely by men ("I Will Survive", "These Boots Are Made for Walking", "You Don't Own Me"). Conspicuously absent, at least to me, were songs by Carol King from her history-making Tapestry album.

The other bone I have to pick with the show is the ridicule of some of the older songs: "I Enjoy Being A Girl" by Rodgers and Hammerstein was sung by Barbie dolls doing a robot dance. Grrrrrr.

It said in the program that song was being used by special arrangement: I wonder if the Rodgers and Hammerstein Organization has seen the show...

Or Lionel Bart's "As Long As He Needs Me", which to me is bloody brilliant song because it expresses a very real, true complex emotion, that I'm sure women and men alike still experience today.

And then, to top things off, they mock The Sound of Music's "For Good" and "Sixteen Going On Seventeen". Double Grrrr. And another Rodgers and Hammerstein slur: Does the RHO really know what's going on here?

And what's with ending the show with "This One's for the Girls", a mediocre country pop hit (Martina Mcbride made it a hit). It includes lyrics like "...this one's for all the girls about 42, throwing pennies into the fountain of youth..." What kind of strong feminist message is that? I'm a 42-year old woman, so my one concern should be that I'm getting old?

Maybe this the key problem with using pop hits in the musical theater format.

Musical theater songs are exactingly crafted to express the emotion and feelings of a character. Using songs after the fact (pop hits) to demonstrate a point theatrically is a bit like shooting darts blindfolded -- you hit in the vicinity of the target but you rarely hit a bullseye.

However, I do applaud the overall goal of the show, which is to celebrate women. And the audience left with big smiles on their faces. Now I think I'm going to go out and buy the sheet music for "Johnny Get Angry"...

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Hey, this musical theater stuff is getting respectable!

Harvard University's 354th commencement will feature actor John Lithgow (a Harvard graduate himself) who currently stars in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels on Broadway.

An article in the Chicago Tribune ("Let The Speeches Begin" by Bettijane Levine, Chicago Tribune, Monday May 2, 2005), says:

Most Harvard speakers have been world leaders, including UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, who gave last year's address. In fact, Lithgow is the first professional artist to be Harvard's main commencement speaker since novelist Carolos Fuentes in 1984". Reached by phone, the actor says he's "in the process of writing the speech," and a theme is "evolving." But he'll keep it under wraps until the day before commencement, when he must submit it to school authoritities for their perusal.

Gosh, it's going to be hard to rhyme that whole speech! Maybe something from the 2002 musical he starred in, Sweet Smell of Success, would be appropriate for the graduates...

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The coincidences keep on coming: In the last week, I've published a post on Roger Bart, and a post on Lionel Bart.

Bart, Bart...and now I've been reminded of another famous musical theater Bart: Bart Simpson, that is...

There is an episode in Season 4 of The Simpsons called A Streetcar Named Marge wherein they are doing a musical version of A Streetcar Named Desire, called Oh Streetcar!

In the episode they do a big "musical theater" finish as they shout "Streetcar". That has now become the cliche expression I use whenever somebody insists on a traditional big finish. It's also funny because in the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theater Workshop, for many years, they used A Streetcar Named Desire as a songwriting exercise.

I think I'm outta Barts for now...I'll leave with a big finish and the some lyrics from the show Oh Streetcar! (also BTW, a take-off on Oh! Calcutta!)

Long before the Superdome
Where the Saints of football play...
Lived a city that the damned call home
Hear their hellish rondelet...

New Orleans!
Home of pirates, drunks and whores
New Orleans!
Tacky overpriced souvenir stores

If you want to go to hell, you should take a trip
To the Sodom and Gomorrah of the Mississip'

New Orleans!
Stinking, Rotten, vomiting, vile
New Orleans
Putrid, brackish, maggotty, foul

New Orleans!
Crummy, lousy, rancid, and rank
New Orleans!

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Last night was the opening of the three-night run of "Saints and Sinners", an evening of mini-musicals presented at Theatre Building Chicago.

Presented were all seven of the mini-musicals written by the members of my class, as I've discussed in this previous post.

Of course in the program, the title of my group's mini-musical was shortened to The Day Sister Sister Found Out... It closed the first act to roaring applause and a standing ovation (or was everyone just getting up to stretch their legs?)

The Loyola University students (Danielle Diaz, Angie Johnson, Sarah Pretz, Michael Sherman, Mike Wolfe, Sam Buti, Thrisa Hodits, Eric Labanauskas, Anna Nuzzo, Kelly Spohrer), the musical directors (Jeff Bouthiette, Jeremy Famey), and two directors (Allan Chambers, Alex Levy) did a fabulous job with all the material.

It was really rewarding to see our stuff up there performed and not left lingering in a desk drawer. And I must admit, it was pretty cool to see my name printed in a program!

It was so good I'm going back tonight to see it again!

Congratulations! And thanks to everyone who came to see it!

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...But it just occurred to me: In the last week, I've published a post on Roger Bart, and a post on Lionel Bart.

Bart, Bart...coincidence? I think not!

It reminds me of The Canadian Conspiracy: Lorne Greene, the Canadian actor. Green Card, the ticket to U.S. work for Canadian actors.

Greene, Green... coincidence? I think not!

And to top it off, this year I got my Green Card...when does coincidence turn into divine intervention?

Technorati tags: Broadway Music Musicals Blog Blogs Theater Theatre Entertainment

This starts a new series, called: WHATEVER HAPPENED TO...

After last week's Lionel Bart post, I wanted to re-view Oliver!, which was the first movie musical I EVER saw, and still one of my favorite films. Although I still find it difficult to watch the part where Nancy is bludgeoned to death by Bill Sikes. It won 6 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Score, and Choreography.

After it finished, I asked myself: "Whatever happened to Shani Wallis?", who played the part of Nancy is Oliver!

For the record, she was born in 1933, and she's still alive.

And although she was spectacular in Oliver!, she hasn't done much since, outside of some voice work on The Great Mouse Detective and The Pebble and the Penguin.

There is a glowing review of her pre-Oliver! stage career at Musical-Theatre.net, under the heading of Unsung Heroines, which is a very cool collection of great British theatre actresses. It also includes this bit on Shani Wallis' career in the '80s:

From 1985-87 she did service in 42nd Street, and for five years from 1985 went on a world tour with her old mate Liberace. It was ten years later that she came back to Britain to play Aunt Bessie in Always at the Victoria Palace (May 1997). She was third-billed, in rather smaller type, below the show's so-called stars, Jan Hartley (excellent as the Duchess of Windsor) and Clive Carter (embarrassingly awful as that lovable tinker Edward VIII). She endured rehearsals during which her part was trimmed, and by the time the show opened she gave performances that seemed to suggest she had a proper contempt for what was going on around her. She made the most of her one big number, 'The Reason For Life Is To Love', seizing centre-stage and belting out as if, seventeen again, she had just taken the Princes Theatre by storm in a really good American musical. She was an example to anyone who cared to take notice.

What a shame. I'd love to meet her sometime...

Technorati tags: Broadway Music Musicals Blog Blogs Theater Theatre Entertainment

WOW! I just ran across the most amazing resource for Broadway show CDs. I recently ordered the CD for Oh! Calcutta! from Amazon.com, and when it arrived, it had a price tag on it...sometimes Amazon.com will buy old stock from stores and feed it into their system.

When I opened the CD, it contained a flyer saying:

We hope you enjoy this recording and that it will occupy a proud place in your library. Whether this is the first CD you've ordered from DRG, or your twentieth, we want you to know how much we appreciate your support.

Visit our website at www.drgrecords.com / e-mail: drgrecords@aol.com

So I checked out the DRG Records Web site, and I was blown away at some of the stuff they have listed. Here are some of my favorites:

Flahooley: This "tuneful, extraordinarily beautiful and delightfully imaginative musical" premiered in 1951 and was the Broadway debut of the legendary Tony Award-winner Barbara Cook. The songs are by the Oscar-winning composers E.Y. "Yip" Harburg and Sammy Fain. With a touch of Babes in Toyland, a smattering of The Wizard of Oz and a suggestion of Finian's Rainbow, it is a child's show, but never childish. This package features a full color eight-panel color folder with synopsis and liner notes from Barbara Cook.

By the Beautiful Sea: This 1954 classic makes its way to DRG's Broadway Collector Series. This amiable old-fashioned musical is a charming memento Oscar and Emmy-winner Shirley Booth at the peak of her great theatrical career.

Noel Coward at Las Vegas: Noel Coward At Las Vegas was recorded in actual performance at the Desert Inn, Las Vegas on June 27th, 1955. Piano Accompaniment & Arrangements by Peter Matz. Tracks include such classics Coward numbers: "Mad Dogs and Englishmen", "If Love Were All", "Alice is at it Again", "A Room with a View", "Let's Do It", "Uncle Harry", "Loch Lomnd", "A Bar on the Piccola Marina", "World Weary", "Nina", "Matelot", "The Party's Over Now" and a medley of eight others.

Plain and Fancy: This 1955 Broadway hit related the adventures of two sophisticated New Yorkers visiting a farm near Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania. Here they find a charming and picturesque Amish community...with complications both humorous and romantic.

Top Banana: In 1951, Phil Silvers starred in this Broadway musical comedy satirizing the then-champ of TV, Milton Berle -- his ego, his drive, his anything-for-a-laugh desperation. It only ran a year on Broadway, but the show was later filmed at a Los Angeles theater, with audience-reaction shots in and given a limited release.

Oh Captain!: This 1958 musical became one of the biggest hits of the season. The cast was led by Tony Randall, Jacquelyn McKeever & Susan Johnson and featured songs by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans -- the only songwriting team ever to win three Academy Awards ("Buttons and Bows," "Mona Lisa" & "Que Sera, Sera") and music for over 70 other films. Director Jose Ferrer molded a gloriously improbable story (based on the 1953 screenplay The Captain's Paradise starring Alec Guinness & Yvonne DeCarlo) into an enormously entertaining evening -- all captured on this brilliant Cast Album.

Tovarich: Two-time Oscar winning actress Vivien Leigh won a Tony for Best Actress in a Musical in this adaptation of a warm, old-fashioned, sentimental fairy tale. Based on a 1933 play and subsequent 1937 film (starring Claudette Colbert & Charles Boyer), this musical also starred Jean Pierre Aumont and opened on Broadway in March 1963 and features a book by David Shaw (co-librettist of Redhead) and a score by Lee Pockriss & Anne Croswell.

Ben Franklin in Paris: DRG presents the Original Cast Recording of Ben Franklin in Paris -- which premiered at New York's Lunt-Fontanne Theatre in 1964. Starring the incredible Robert Preston (fresh from his groundbreaking run as The Music Man) as Benjamin Franklin, he had the opportunity to portray a bravura character, larger than life, a Renaissance man who could do anything. Written by playwright-lyricist Sidney Michaels (Dylan), with music by Mark Sandrich, Jr., the entire production was staged by the legendary Michael Kidd. The original Capitol album has been digitally remastered.

Roberta: Available for the first time on CD, Roberta is the show that launched Bob Hope on Broadway in 1933 and had Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers leaping for joy on film. Jerome Kern and Otto Harbach's classic score highlights this ultrasophisticated and amusing tale of an American college football player who inherits a Parisian dress salon. Roberta was frequently revived throughout the forties and fifties. This Studio Cast Recording from 1952 features Joan Roberts, Jack Cassidy, Kaye Ballard and Portia Nelson. Highlights from this upbeat and well-known score include "I Won't Dance," "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" and the flirtatious 'challenge' song "Let's Begin."

The Gay Life: Based on Schnitzler's The Loves Of Anatol, this turn-of-the-century musical (from the early '60s) starred Barbara Cook, Walter Chiari & Jules Munshin and features a score by the first rate team of composer Arthur Schwartz and lyricist Howard Dietz ("Dancing in the Dark", "I Guess I'll Have to Change My Plan"). Popular songwriters Schwartz-Dietz' biggest hit, "That's Entertainment" from the film The Band Wagon was awarded the ASCAP Award for Most Performed Feature Film Standard in 1990. This re-issue features an eight-panel color folder with new liner notes from Barbara Cook.

And the list goes on and on...me wantey...ALL OF IT...

Technorati tags: Broadway Music Musicals Blog Blogs Theater Theatre Entertainment

"The Car's the Star" said the New York Post critic Clive Barnes, but it looks like opening night for Chitty was a great "ride". This is one musical that I'll have to see, just for the fun of it. And isn't that the point of Broadway?

By the way...MUCHO IMPROVO Web site...thanks for getting rid of all the crazy Flash graphics!

Here's a nice article from Playbill, with some amazingly coincidental Anthony Newley references given this week's earlier post in Blogway Baby on Anthony Newley...

Three guesses what Dilly's favorite moment in the show is. Still, she hesitated. "Would it be cliche to say 'When we fly?' My second most favorite is singing 'Truly Scrumptious' with the children. It is such a remarkable experience to sing the Sherman songs. In this very jaded world, it's a very rare opportunity. They have such guileless innocence."

Esparza agreed. "Something happened with the show a few weeks ago where we suddenly found, as actors, this innocence -- the idea that it's wonderful and we're discovering it for the first time. This has changed the quality of the show completely." Chitty is more relentlessly G-rated that Esparza's usual run of shows, but he jumped in with both feet and generated a genuine sense of fun. "It's especially necessary," he insisted. "If I'm not having a good time, then you would be bored out of your mind." The other ace up his sleeve is a likeness, visually and vocally, of the late Anthony Newley -- a smart little fillip since, if Van Dyke had not done the movie, Newley would have been the logical second choice. Esparza holds the position that any similarity is unintentional and in the eye and ear of the beholder.

"People keep saying I remind them of him. I was offered Stop the World and Roar of the Greasepaint to do in rep as an idea once, and I think I'd like to try it, but those are big shoes to fill. I have never actually seen him do anything, but I will say that there was a gesture I did in rehearsal and Gillian [Lynne, the choreographer] said, 'Tony, don't do that.' Then she stopped, and she said, 'I can't believe it. I just called you Tony.' I said, 'So let's leave it in.' So, from someone who never saw Anthony Newley, there's an Anthony Newley tribute in the show."

The classy company he keeps on stage, Esparza contended, is another way of taking the curse off the show's sweetness and light, hopefully providing a view beyond that. "First of all, working with Phil Bosco is an absolute honor. I've admired him for years and years. and Erin's a thrill. We have great chemistry together, and it's been lovely to work with her. For all of us to do these kinds of parts is part of the fun of taking it on in the first place. I saw Robbie play Prior in Angels in America, and the first Broadway musical I ever saw was Into the Woods [with Chip Zien] so it's just amazing to be on stage with these guys every night. I think they were very smart to try to take good care of the show because the strike against it is that people will perceive it as a children's show and nothing else, and they brought in a cast that had such quality that maybe regular theatregoers will not be turned off and they won't miss the extraordinary spectacle that it has. It has a lot of good heart, and it's a real throwback to an old-fashioned wonderful kind of writing that the Sherman brothers perfected in the films and what Broadway used to do extraordinarily well. And I think there's room for that. I really do. I think we should have all kinds of shows on Broadway, and I think there's room for this kind of spectacle."

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