Popular Broadway Songs [Youtbe Clips]

Broadway United

We Are the World - Broadway United ​

“More than ever, people need to know that their voices make a difference and their voices together are incredibly powerful. We Are the World’ spoke to us universally and we wanted to share our united voices with the world.” - Yeal Silver, Producer

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A group of Broadway stars have gathered to remake the Michael Jackson / Lionel Ritchie song from the 80s "We Are the World".

Broadway News

Time to play some catch-up as to what has happened on Broadway during this hot hot hot record-breaking summer.


Hot Tickets

• Moulin Rouge opens tonight in Boston. They had to delay when a huge piece of the theatre's rigging structure tore loose from the ceiling a couple of weeks ago. (No one was hurt.) Several friends are taking the Amtrack up to Boston for this, so we'll see what the initial word is.
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• Bartlett Sher's revival of The King and I opened July 4 at the London Palladium and got the same reverent reception in London that it received in New York three years ago. Kelli O'Hara, Ken Watanabe and Ruthie Ann Miles reprise their roles from Broadway.
  
  
  Here are Kelli O'Hara, Ken Watanabe and Ruthie Ann Miles performing selections from The King & I at the 2016 Tony Awards. However - this video also shows you Kelli's incredible quick change to make this happen and gives you a glimpse at that important profession - the Broadway dresser.​
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• Joel Grey has directed what one critic has called the definitive version of Fiddler on the Roof for the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in Manhattan. And the whole play is done in Yiddish (!), which some of the actors had to learn phonetically. For the non-Yiddish speakers (or those who don't already know Fiddler by heart like me) there are translations projected on the side of the stage.
  
  
  Get a look behind the scenes before Fiddler opens. Note that standing at the piano next to bearded Ben Liebert who is playing Motel, is the original Broadway Motel from 1965 - lauded director Austin Pendleton.​

The Gossip

Last year we had the big to-do over Okieriete "Oak" Onaodowan being fired from The Great Comet. This year the summer gossip is less political and more just tragic.

A couple of weeks ago word came out that veteran Broadway dancer/actor Jeff Loeffelholz of the cast of the Chicago revival died. Days later we learned that it was suicide.

Over the weekend cast members began to say that there was more to the story. They spoke of a rehearsal the day before he died where he was singled out for criticism by director Walter Bobbie. But what Jeff's friends claim is that Bobbie and the producers were trying to bully him into quitting.


The unusual thing about Jeff's situation was that he was an original member of the 1998 revival cast - he had been with the show all 20 years. When he began as a standby he was offered a run-of-the-play contract, which he took. Good business move on his part, considering how long the show has run. Because of his contract, the show can't just fire him. They can only buy out his contract, which is paying the equivalent of 15 weeks of salary. The accusation is that the producers wanted him to quit so they wouldn't have to pay.

Of course, this is just one side of the story - and the ugliest side possible. Investigations are going on. This has to be horrible for his friends and loved ones, and terrible for morale at the show. These kinds of things can split a cast in to various factions. Any way you look at it, this is a sad story.

‘Chicago’ producers call in lawyer after cast member’s suicide

Closing Notices

• Spongebob Squarepants announced that it will be closing mid-September. This was not unexpected since the Palace Theater where it is playing is scheduled to begin a two-year multi-billion dollar renovation in October. (They are going to lift the entire theater up 12 feet and create street-level shops, a bigger lobby, and a bigger backstage area). Had Spongebob been selling better, they might have transferred to another theater, but I am guessing that the moving and running costs just didn't add up. They are planning to tour next year (it should be a big draw on the road) and they are releasing the rights for schools this fall - so if you know a high school with a cutting edge drama program this might be their spring musical.
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• As has been mentioned before, Hello, Dolly! will also close mid-September and start a tour in October. Bette Midler will return to the show at the end of next week to finish the run.
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• Escape to Margaritaville closed at the beginning of July. But they turned up a few days later in Washington DC on the Capitol Fourth celebration on PBS. Here is a link to the whole program, starting when (Jimmy Buffet and cast come on at the 12:50 mark.)
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• A Bronx Tale will close August 5. Writer Chazz Palminteri is back in the lead role of Sonny until it closes. It will start a North American tour in the fall.
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• Angels in America finished their limited engagement this past weekend. I am sure that Andrew Garfield and Nathan Lane and the rest are headed off to some well-deserved holidays.

Jerry Herman


Jerry Herman turned 87 this week. He has a hit musical (Hello, Dolly!) running on Broadway right now, and his shows are always on stages all over the world.


Jerry debuted on Broadway with a legitimate hit - Milk and Honey about the founding of the state of Israel. But his next show made him a legend: Hello, Dolly!. That and Mame made him one of the most popular songwriters on Broadway. But he shot to fame just as Broadway was being cut adrift from American popular culture. His title song from Dolly topped the charts for Louis Armstrong - but it would be the last time that would ever happen for a showtune.

One of my favorite scores in the one Jerry wrote for the Joel Grey musical The Grand Tour in 1979. It only lasted 61 performances, but I just about wore out my copy of the original cast album.


Herman's big comeback show was the popular La Cage aux Folles in 1983. The show won the hearts of audiences with a gay love story, but the timing was terrible because the show coincided with the rise of AIDS. Many speculate that some audiences avoided the show not wanting to come in to contact with gay people. The show itself lost many cast members as the toll rose in the theater community.

After La Cage Herman retired. He said that he had nothing left to prove. But by the end of the run both Herman and his long time partner Martin were diagnosed as HIV+. Herman survives, but he lost Martin in 1989. He left New York for California for 20 years, and now lives in Miami.

News


It's an avalanche of movie musical news! And coming the weekend the first musical of 2018 opens in the US and UK - Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again. Anyone going to see it?

Cats goes before the cameras in the November

Universal Pictures has Andrew Lloyd Webber and T.S. Elliott's Cats in production. Tom Hooper (Les Miserables) directs and Royal Ballet choreographer Wayne McGregor is holding casting calls as I write this. Though some parts are already taken. Ian McKellan will play Old Deuteronomy, Jennifer Hudson will play Grizzabella, James Corden will be Gus the Theater Cat, and Taylor Swift will play... somebody. Or some cat, we don't know yet which one.

Lin-Manuel Miranda to Adapt Tick, Tick… Boom! for Film Directorial Debut

Always busy Lin-Manuel Miranda (he's got a book coming out in the fall) will don another hat - this time as director for a film version of Jonathon Larson's (Rent) only other musical - Tick, Tick... Boom!. Dear Evan Hansen writer Steven Levenson will pen the script and Brian Grazer and Ron Howard will produce the musical, which focuses on a songwriter named Jonathan’s attempt to create the Great American Musical in 1990.

Also, a big screen adaptation of Miranda’s musical In the Heights is also currently in the works with Jon Chu set to direct. That was originally bought by The Weinstein Company, but Miranda was able to extract it from that deal before they went into bankruptcy and could be sold off as an asset. That is in production at Warner Brothers and is set for release in June of 2020.

New Trailer for Bohemian Rhapsody ahead of November Release


Bohemian Rhapsody is still on track for November release and is looking better with each trailer release. Is an Oscar nomination possible for Rami Malek?

RIP


Yesterday the American Musical Theater lost a treasure when Marin Mazzie passed away due to cancer. She was very public about her fight with the disease first diagnosed in 2015 - and had battled it successfully to come back to take over the lead in The King & I at Lincoln Center (where she received a standing ovation the moment she set foot on stage) in 2016.

Marin was a combination of earthy and ethereal, with a voice that knocked you over with its power from the sexy low timbre to the sparkling soprano on the top. Her presence and tone made you stop, listen and take note. Even if the song was familiar, you heard things in a lyric you had never discovered before.

Marin's career ascended in the mid 90s, getting a Tony nomination for her first show - playing the beautiful love-struck Clara in Stephen Sondheim's Passion. For that show she made her Broadway debut naked in bed with Jere Shea singing the lyrical duet "Happiness".

She then went on to another iconic role, Mother in Ragtime playing a women who begins the new century with her life all planned but finds life both richer and more complicated. That earned her another Tony Nomination.


In 2000 she reunited with her Ragtime co-star Brian Stokes Mitchell for a rowdy revival of Kiss Me Kate which brought her third Tony nomination. She and Mitchell joined forces again in 2002 when she went in the cast of Man of LaMancha playing Aldonza to his Cervantes.



Marin is survived by her husband, Jason Danieley, who is currently part of the cast of Pretty Woman on Broadway - though he has taken a leave of absence the last two weeks.

For more information

• Jare Shea and Marin sing "Happiness" (on TV fully clothed) from Passion.
• Marin and Brian Stokes Mitchell perform "So In Love" from Kiss Me Kate on the Today Show.
• "Losing My Mind" from Follies - Marin performs this for Sondheim's 80th Birthday concert.
• Marin's last Broadway role - Miss Anna in The King & I. This is an audio recording of "Hello Young Lovers". I think she would be happy to be remembered by leaving this song.

King Kong

Although it did not get many good reviews when it opened last week, I thought people might be curious about the King Kong musical.


Most reviewers hated the music, some liked what they did with the story, but everyone was unanimous about the amazing puppetry that brings Kong to life with so much personality.

Mary Poppins Returns

The Disney marketing machine is chugging along at full throttle now that Mary Poppins Returns which we have been following for the last two years is nearing release. Here is the first full song (audio only) released into the wild.


I have to admit this sounds wonderful with especially great work from Lin-Manuel Miranda. By the way, Miranda steps back into his Hamilton shoes after the new year when he opens a new touring company in Puerto Rico. The profits from the Puerto Rico gig will go to arts education funds for the island. (Not hurricane relief, as I originally posted.) After those dates, the company will tour the US - the third national company (the first is still in Chicago and the second is going from city to city).

topdog
I am so glad to see you are posting in this thread again. I really enjoy these posts.

My Fair Lady

My Fair Lady is still going strong at Lincoln Center, and it actually got a new Eliza Doolittle. When original star Lauren Ambrose left in October the producers called on the person many thought (well, I thought) should have been their star to begin with - Laura Benanti.

Here is Laura featured doing "Wouldn't It Be Loverly" at last weeks Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade broadcast.

Hamilton

Something old, now something new - very new. Like, never-been-heard-before new.

During 2018 Lin-Manuel Miranda has done a series of Hamildrops - releasing new studio cuts of material based on Hamilton inspired by last year's Hamilton Mixtape. "Cheering For Me Now" is a new song that, if incorporated in the show, would be in the traditional "11 o'clock Number" slot when New York becomes the last state to ratify the Constitution.

No, it's not going in the show - this is just a "what if" - as in "What if Broadway legend Johh Kander wrote the music to Hamilton?" Yes, the music is by Kander (Cabaret, Chicago, New York New York) with the lyric by Miranda. This is what Hamilton would sound like as a traditional Broadway musical, and I have to say, I would buy that album.


There will be one more Hamildrop in December, and then that will be the end of the series. Back in March I posted about the mashup Miranda and Ben Platt did of their respective Hamilton and Dear Even Hansen songs - so check that one out too.

Anastasia

Once Upon a December

Here is something appropriate for the season. It teams Christy Altomare and Cody Simpson. Christy has been playing the title role on Broadway since March of 2017. Cody just went in to the show this past week. But the ballad sounds lovely just with Cody playing on guitar.


Anastasia is still running at the Broadhurst Theatre.

Best Albums

Maybe you need something for a Broadway fan this holiday? Or maybe something for yourself. Here are some of the best Broadway albums from the past year.


Sondheim Sublime by Melissa Errico - Melissa is one of those Broadway performers who is well known in the business, but has just not yet had that breakout role. But here she delivers a set of Sondheim tunes that have a bittersweet quality and are not heard as often - such as "Goodbye for Now" from the Warren Beatty movie Reds. Simple arrangements and maximum effect.

Lerner & Loewe's Brigadoon New York City Center 2017 Cast Recording - Before My Fair Lady and Camelot there was Brigadoon. City Center brought back this classic musical out of the Highlands mist for its 70th anniversary in a star-studded concert production. Although only seen for a limited run of four performances, this was brilliantly cast with Kelly O'Hara, Patrick Wilson, and Stephanie J. Block. A live performance was preserved and it really does justice to the Lerner & Lowe score.


The Band's Visit Original Broadway Cast Recording - This swept the Tony Awards in June, including one for David Yazbek's score tinged with the flavor and sounds of the Middle East. While there are no showstoppers, it's the kind of album that grows on you the more you hear it - great for long drives when you can pop it in and listen to the whole thing.

Once On This Island New Broadway Cast Recording - This is another album that will transport you to a far away land - this time in the Caribbean where a fearless peasant girl falls in love with a wealthy boy from the other side of the island. Newcomer Hailey Kilgore joins vets Lea Solonga and Phillip Boykin and the Tony Award-winning team Lynn Ahrens (Book and Lyrics) and Stephen Flaherty (Music) in this revival of the 90s musical.

Rodgers & Hammerstein's Carousel 2018 Cast Recording - Many consider this R&H's greatest score, here sung by a top-notch cast with new orchestrations by Jonathon Tunick. While some had reservations about the production, no one could fault the voices of Tony nominees Joshua Henry, Jesse Mueller and Rene Fleming. This is a great introduction to the score for newcomers.

Be More Chill (Original Cast Recording) - Joe Iconis may be the best theater composer you haven't heard of - yet. His cast recording of his 2015 millennial musical Be More Chill has been a darling of the twentysomething theater crowd. This past summer it got an Off-Broadway production that sold out in hours and was toasted by the critics. It will be on Broadway in February, but if you want to hear what all the fuss is about you can preview the original cast. And if getting a Broadway transfer wasn't enough, the film rights have been sold with Greg Berlanti set to direct. You are going to be hearing a lot of this score in the future.


Honorable Mentions

• The new My Fair Lady is beautiful and a bright new recording of the classic show - especially if like me you have the movie and original cast albums embedded in your brain and appreciate a new take.
• Spongebob Squarepants is pop confection and a lot of fun. Not for the musical theater traditionalist, but these are really good tunes from top pop artists.
• Audra McDonald has a new live album Sing Happy with songs from her current concert tour such as “I Am What I Am” from La Cage aux Folles, “Vanilla Ice Cream” from She Loves Me, and “Children Will Listen” from Into The Woods.

In January it starts all over again - several new musicals running now on Broadway will release albums.

RIP


Galt MacDermot, the composer of the musical Hair, died yesterday. MacDermot wrote the first successful rock score for a Broadway show. By the end of 1969 Hair had produced three number one hits: "Aquarius", "Let the Sunshine In", and "Good Morning Starshine".


MacDermot composed a number of other scores, with various success. Dude is one of Broadway's most infamous flops, but Two Gentleman of Verona won a Tony Award.



NBC is planning a live television broadcast of Hair in March of 2019.

Last night James Corden was joined by Mary Poppins Returns stars Emily Blunt and Lin-Manuel Miranda to perform a medley of songs from 22 movie musicals.

topdog said:

Maybe you need something for a Broadway fan this holiday? Or maybe something for yourself. Here are some of the best Broadway albums from the past year.

In Sondheim Sublime Melissa Errico shows us a heartfelt and hungering side of Stephen Sondheim’s music.​

Sondheim Sublime by Melissa Errico - Melissa is one of those Broadway performers who is well known in the business, but has just not yet had that breakout role. But here she delivers a set of Sondheim tunes that have a bittersweet quality and are not heard as often - such as "Goodbye for Now" from the Warren Beatty movie Reds. Simple arrangements and maximum effect.

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This one is definitely for me and a handful of friends who share my fondness for Stephen Sondheim. A big thank you to Topdog.

Speaking of whom, let me tell you of a casual acquaintance who was not into
Sondheim at all. A few years ago, he was hired as a personal cook for Stephen Sondheim obviously for his qualifications as a cook but I suspect, above all, for not having known who SS was at the time he was hired.

Thanks for that story, Trencherman. Yes, some of us would be awestruck in his presence, which I imagine would get hard to deal with everyday.

White Christmas

One of my favorite holiday films is White Christmas (1954) filled with Irving Berlin songs. Most of them are standards he wrote years before, but this is one of the original songs he wrote specifically for the film. Rosemary Clooney said years later that when preparing the songs they discovered the she and Bing Crosby could sing in the same key, which made doing the arrangements and mixing them with dialog very easy.


I hope your blessings are many during the holiday season.

Meet Me in St Louis

Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas written by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane

There is nothing quite as heart-tugging as the original version of this song, from the MGM film Meet Me In St. Louis (1944). Director Vincent Minnelli truly made Judy more beautiful than anyone had before in this memorable scene where Esther comforts Tootie (Margaret O'Brian) about moving to New York and leaving all their friends in St. Louis.

topdog, thank you so much for this video. The holidays in our home is not complete without the movie White Christmas and listening to Judy's Christmas album and watching her Christmas holiday show.

Christmas Bells Are Ringing by Jonathon Larson from Rent


A little holiday cheer from the final (2007) cast of Rent which starred a large number of actors who have gone on to bigger careers.

• Roger - Will Chase (Smash, Edwin Drood, upcoming in Kiss Me, Kate)
• Mark - Adam Kantor (Fiddler 2015, The Band's Visit)
• Benjamin - Rodney Hicks (Come From Away)
• Joanne - Tracy Thoms (Rent movie, Falsettos 2016)
• Mimi - Renee Elise Goldsberry (The Color Purple, Hamilton)
• Maureen - Eden Espinosa (Elphaba in Wicked)
• Squeege Man ("Honest living") - Telly Leung (In Transit, Godspell 2011, and currently the title role in Aladdin)