Popular Broadway Songs [Youtbe Clips]

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Movies

New York, New York
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Great performances, great songs, and a strong directorial style should have made Martin Scorsese's 1977 film musical New York, New York a hit - or at least a critical success. It begins as a meet-cute post-war romantic comedy and then develops into a backstage musical with a familiar rags-to-riches / price-of-fame arc.

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But for all it's abundant talent and craft the film sinks with a protagonist so abusive, insecure, and selfish that audiences preferred to flee the theater than spend two and a half hours in the presence of jazz sax player Jimmy Doyle (Robert DiNiro). Think of his Travis Bickle character from Taxi Driver in a musical and you won't be far off track.

But with that rather big negative out of the way, the film has so much to offer. The film looks beautiful, and the sets are a Hollywood version of New York - similar to what you would see in MGM and Warner Brothers musicals of the time. It's ambitious, audacious, misguided, muddled, searing, exhilarating, dull, and fascinating.

What Scorsese is trying to do is place characters conceived in 70's realism into an early 1950's musical world of big sets on soundstages.

"New York, New York" - You have heard the song dozens of times, probably, but this is the original version.
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And then there is Liza Minnelli. This is a great performance that justifies all the acclaim she received after Cabaret. But there was so little call for a great musical film star in the 1970's. This was one of the few pictures that required her talents. The tragedy is that hardly anyone saw it, so the work did little to boost her reputation, which left Minnelli as a star without a portfolio.

"Happy Endings" - This was a comprehensive ten minute production number originally. It was modeled after the "Born in a Trunk" sequence in A Star is Born - a film within the film that Jimmy is watching years after their breakup. After the film opened, it was cut down to this abbreviated version.​

You can't watch this without getting the sense that Scorsese is using Minnelli to conjure her mother, Judy Garland. This is Judy's era, and there are echo's of A Star is Born in the story. The wigs and costuming, especially towards the end when Francine is a movie star, at times seem to be presenting a Garland biopic.

What you have here is a huge deliberate clash of styles. I say deliberate because I think that is exactly what interests Martin Scorsese and why he bothered to make the movie. But its also the same thing that frustrates audiences. Liza Minnelli seems to be there to make a backstage musical love story, but she is saddled with a dark, cruel partner that nullifies all the song and romance. It's always interesting to see them struggle against each other, but it's not very satisfying.

If this was just a bold experiment, and then Martin Scorsese came back with another musical the next year having learned the lessons of NYNY, then it would have been worthwhile. But this was his only musical - he never returned to the form. It's as if Bob Fosse made Sweet Charity (another noble failure), and then nothing else.

There is a great Blu-Ray version available that was issued in 2011 for the film's 35th Anniversary. It includes the full "Happy Endings" sequence.

 

[topdog]

Sondheim: Company

Company was Stephen Sondheim and Hal Prince's 1970 breakthrough concept musical. Steve hadn't had a hit since A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum way back in 1963. Company threw people for a loop - it was about contemporary marriage, but there wasn't really a plot. It is a series of scenes between Robert and his married friends. But the ulative effect is powerful.

Robert is a single thirtysomething with lots of married friends. He doesn't think he's resisting marriage himself, but the women he is dating disagree. He spends time with five married couples. He envies their bond, but also sees the lies. They admire his freedom - especially since it allows him to be their own part time companion, shrink and baby sitter.

The musical opened to very mixed reviews. Some hailed it as a breakthrough. Some thought it was interesting, but cold. A few hated it - unfortunately one of those few was Clive Barnes of the New York Times. Clive was British and had just been promoted from music to theater critic at the Times. He never "got" Sondheim and went on to trash Follies and faintly praise A Little Night Music.

Side by Side from Concert version with Neil Patrick Harris performed on the Tony Awards. When original choreographer Michael Bennett conceived this number he wanted it to look like the New Rochelle PTA performing a number.​

Company is also the first Broadway show I ever saw. It was not what I was expecting (or what my parents were expecting - I think they were a little shocked). I was used to Rodgers & Hammerstein, The Music Man, and Hello Dolly. This wasn't anything like that - but it was built on top of that vocabulary so I understood it. When the show took a bit of a vaudeville turn in "Side by Side", I got it.

But for me it wasn't cold at all. It had a beating heart in its central character, Robert, played only for a short time by Dean Jones.

Dean Jones records "Being Alive" for the original cast album.
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Dean Jones was known for silly Disney movies like The Love Bug. Nobody could have expected this performance. There is something about his lost puppy dog look, combined with a real pain inside that set a standard for this role that few other actors have matched. Dean loved the show, but was miserable doing it for his own marriage was ending at the same time. He wanted out, but made a deal with Steve and Hal that he would open the show if they would replace him as soon as possible. Six weeks after opening Larry Kert (the original Tony in West Side Story) took over for the rest of the run.


See the Show!

There are actually several professionally shot full versions of Company that you can watch. Check Amazon, Netflix or other streaming options to see what's available. Some are linked below - although the quality on YouTube might not be quite as good.

Recommendations: The DA Pennebaker film of the original cast in the recording studio is required viewing. Period. If you've never seen the show before the 2011 Neil Patrick Harris version is entertaining and punchy. If you want depth, the 2006 John Doyle production with Raul Esparza will tear at your soul, as long as actors playing instruments doesn't bother you. The Sam Mendes London cast from 1996 I like a lot as well, and some may like that one as much or more. It's a personal choice.

• Company - Making Of Original Cast Recording - This is the famous DA Pennebaker doentary that took people into a recording studio for the recording of a cast album. There is no video of the orginal production. But this gets you close. Pennebaker was asked to do this as the first of several filmings of Broadway musical cast albums. Alas, nothing else was ever filmed, but that only makes Company stand out in this fascinating behind-the-scenes look. The real drama amps up as the session stretches into the wee hours of the morning. Last to record is Elaine Stritch doing "The Ladies Who Lunch". It's after four in the morning (the session started at 10am the previous day), and she just deteriorates as they try take after take. Though it ends happily it is a painful process to watch. Highly recommended. Every Sondheim fan must see this film.
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• Company 1996 London Revival - Sam Mendes did this production at the Donmar Warehouse casting Adrian Lester as Robert, the first black actor to play the part. Mendes, Sondheim, and Furth made some changes to the show. They beefed up Robert's part and gave him an extra song ("Marry Me a Little") to end the first act. For the first time Robert admits to having dabbled in the odd homosexual affair. Lester's sexy, comic, and powerful presence gives the show a real center. Most of these changes were passed on to subsequent revivals.
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• Company 2006 Revival - The John Doyle production starring Raul Esparza - probably the best Bobby ever and this is my favorite production. These actors dig down into the meat of these roles. While they don't have the breezy dazzle of the concert TV cast, you will learn things here that you never suspected. Small moments like Kathy leaving Robert in the park to get married are so full of life and nuance. Note that this was shot for PBS, and the actors play all the instruments. Wierd, I know, but it works. Also stars Elizabeth Stanley and Barbara Walsh.
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• Company in Concert (2011) - Lonny Price's concert version starring Neil Patrick Harris, Stephen Colbert, Martha Plimpton, Jon Cryer and Patti LaPone. This is was done with the New York Philharmonic and is probably the brightest, and easiest to watch version of the show. If you've never seen it before this is a good version to start with. Everyone shines - including a surprising good Stephen Colbert. LaPone kills "The Ladies Who Lunch".

For more information

• Stephen Sondheim's COMPANY (CBS This Sunday Morning 22-Oct-95) - Stephen Sondheim and Charles Osgood discuss the 1995 revival of COMPANY, , his relationship with mentors and teachers including Oscar Hammerstein II, anxiety, the modern American musical, concept musicals, and his body of work including Gypsy, West Side Story, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way to the Forum, Company, Sweeney Todd, Into the Woods and Passion on CBS.
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• The Ladies Who Lunch (Elaine Stritch) - At some point, maybe while she was doing the show, Elaine Stritch recorded this for New York Public Television. This is a great version of her classic song, and a master class in singing a theater song.
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• Ladies Who Lunch (Patti LaPone) - LaPone takes a shot at the song at Stephen Sondheim's 80th Birthday bash. The woman has guts singing this song with Elaine Stritch on stage behind her - but she gives La Stritch a nod. And she does a hell of a job. A couple of years later she gets to play the part in the Neil Patrick Harris version of the show.
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• Getting Married Today - Original (Beth Howland) - Beth Howland creates "Getting Married Today" with help from Sondheim in the recording studio. Generations of singers have marveled at how she ever managed it.
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• Getting Married Today (Alice Ripley) (bootleg video) - This is the best version of this torturous song that I have ever seen. In the 2002 Kennedy Center production Alice Ripley kills it at breakneck speed but with each lyric crisp and clear. Unfortunately this is rather poor bootleg video.
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• Getting Married Today (Madeline Kahn) - The late great Madeline Kahn performs at the Sondheim Celebration at Carnegie Hall.
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• Being Alive (Raul Esparza) - Devastating. I don't know how else to describe it. Raul Esparza focuses all of Robert's pain and ferocity and (ultimately) hope into this song. This isn't pretty; the musical equivalent of ugly crying. Great great work.
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• Multitudes of Amys (John Lloyd Young) (bootleg video) - John Lloyd Young (Jersey Boys) performs this song that was cut from the show in his cabaret show. (The song "Someone is Waiting" replaced it in the musical.)
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• Barcelona (Donmar Warehouse 1996) - Adrian Lester directed by Sam Mendes does a wonderful job in this musical scene. (London: February 1996)
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• Barcelona (Bernadette Peters & Richard Chamberlain 1979) - This is absolutely great from Sylvia Fine Kaye's Musical Comedy Tonight TV show in 1979. Bernadette Peters getting dressed under the covers is a hoot. And who knew Richard Chamberlain could sing like that?

 

[topdog]

Mary Poppins

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In 2005 Disney turned their most beloved musical film into a stage musical in London - Mary Poppins. It's got a bit more story than the film, with some new spins on familiar numbers.

Choreographer Matthew Bourne turned the chimney sweeps into mysterious magical beings and built "Step in Time" into huge production number with gravity defying effects that left the audience speechless.

Gavin Lee was afraid of heights when he started rehearsals for the role of Bert. He got over it.
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This week Emily Blunt and Lin-Manuel Miranda go before the cameras at Pinewood Studios outside London for the new Mary Poppins Returns movie to be released in the fall on 2018.

So I thought this would be a good time to go back and remember some of what made the original film special - Julie Andrews in her first film appearance.

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Julie Andrews won a Oscar for Mary Poppins. Probably partly because during the voting period The Sound of Music was released, so there was no question about whether the Disney film would be her only hit.

More from the Musical

• Mary Poppins on the Royal Variety Performance 2015 - The UK touring company does a selection of songs including Mary's spectacular arrival over the audience.
• Who is Mary Poppins? - Who is this character that Pamela Travers created?
• Bringing Mary to Life on Stage - The challenge of adapting the film to the stage with two of the biggest producers in the world.
• The Language of Movement - The work of Matthew Bourne and how he used dance to replace animation.
• Being Jane and Michael Banks - A look at the kids that play Jane and Michael on Broadway and on Tour
• The Magic of Mary - A look at the theatrical magic that dazzles in the show.

More from the Film

• "Feed the Birds" from Mary Poppins - My favorite song from the film.
• Richard Sherman Performs “Feed the Birds” - Composer Richard Sherman performs on the piano the way he did every Friday afternoon for Walt Disney, while Dick Van Dyke and Karen Dotrice from the movie cast look on.
• The Making of Mary Poppins (1/6) - The "Making of" doentary from the DVD. This is the first part, but you can find the rest when you play this on YouTube.
• Why MARY POPPINS is the Best Movie of All Time - An analysis of the film

Extra!

• Mary Poppins Medley - BBC Proms 2014 - Ruthie Henshall performs for the closing night of Proms at the Royal Albert Hall and leads he audience in a sing-a-long on songs from Mary Poppins.

 

[topdog]

Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella

Happy Valentines Day! Is there anything more romantic than Cinderella? The 2013 Broadway version was the first time the television musical was rewritten as a Broadway stage show. It was one of those productions where everyone was the right person in the right place.

Here is the selection from the Tony Awards. (Fast forward to 00:53 to get past the annoying Rock of Ages introduction.) In addition to the cast note the incredible design, particularly the costumes by William Ivey Long.

The dress transformation on Broadway is actually longer and takes two people offstage to pull off, so William Ivey Long had to create a completely new transformation dress just for the Tony Awards that would work in that context.
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Laura Osnes (Grease) is the perfect Cinderella. You believe both her intelligence and kindness - anyone would fall in love with her. Santino Fontana (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend)has smarts, humor, and just enough of an odd duck to make an interesting prince. And the innovation that writer Douglas Carter Beane has brought to the piece is that it now equally the story of both the Cinderella and the Prince - we have a whole back story for him.

This little acoustic version of "Ten Minutes Ago" was created for the New York Times web site to promote the show.
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I grew up with the Leslie Ann Warren version of the Rodgers & Hammerstein television musical, so when I heard it was coming to Broadway I wasn't terribly interested in seeing it - but this won me over.

For more information

• Cinderella 1965 Full Broadcast - This is the Lesley Ann Warren version I first saw as a child.
• Watch Laura Osnes, Santino Fontana and the Stars of "Cinderella" Record Their Cast Album
• "Stepsister's Lament" | Rodgers + Hammerstein's CINDERELLA National Tour - A bit of a favorite song from the score performed by the National Tour cast
• The Princess Diary: Backstage at "Cinderella" with Laura Osnes, Episode 3 - The show has been open for a week and Laura takes us to see the antics that take place just off stage as the cast moves on and off. You're not going to see this anywhere else, folks!
• The Princess Diary: Backstage at "Cinderella" with Laura Osnes: Happily Ever After (Sniff!) - Laura doents the last week and performance of her run in the show before the next cast takes over. You get to see some of the understudies backstage as they are put in the show, and a bit of Carly Rae Jepson rehearsing to replace Laura. One by one the original cast members take their last bows and get a goodbye from the cast.
• CINDERELLA Broadway Presents: "Glass Slippers Are So Back" - In their spare time Santino Fontana wrote and directed this little spoof on the attractions of "Shoes of Glass"

 

[topdog]

Newsies: Part 4 (The last one)

This is it! Newsies plays in movie theaters across the US on February 16, 18, and 22. Many venues are sold out for one or more of those dates! So if you are interested get tickets in advance.

It plays in UK and Australia theaters on Feburary 19, and in Spain on March 10. Check listings or the web site of other dates.

Disney partnered with Steam to do the live capture. They closed down and spent four days filming closeups and crane shots. Then they brought the audience back for one live performance filmed through.​

Ok, this is probably my final Newsies post, so it is fitting to close out with the spectacular curtain call. Usually a curtain call means just that the actors come out and bow - but for Newsies it is a production number where the audience goes crazy. Each newsboy is an individual and the tricks are their own specialty - so it looks a bit different depending on who is in the show on any particular night.

This clip below is from the final bow on Newsies closing night at the Nederlander Theater in New York - so lots of extra emotion.

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UPDATE Feb 18 2017 - I just saw the film. This is the most extensively filmed and edited stage performance I have ever seen. I think we can safely say that this is the definitive version, especially since you get to see original stars Jeremy Jordan, Kara Lindsay, Ben Fankhauser, and Andrew Keenan-Bolger.

That being said, seeing this in a movie theater has few odd moments when you are suddenly in a close-up on an actor pushing his performance to the back of the massive Pantages Theater in Los Angeles. It's a bit jarring, and you have to remember that this is a filmed stage performance. And there are a few jokes that land in the theater, but not in the movie house - so you are treated to loud guffaws from the on-screen audience when watching this you are thinking "It wasn't that funny." However, that is an adjustment that has to be made for any of the live theater to movie house broadcasts that Fantom Events specialize in - operas, plays, and now musicals.

But the overall allure of the show is undeniable. The choreography looks as spectacular here as it did in the theater. Maybe even more so with overhead and closeup shots. And as good as the leads are - the news boys steal the show and stop it more than once. Twice the shows creators have to build an encore into the show just to let the audience move on to the next scene.

There is one more US performance scheduled this week, and it plays today in the UK, Australia, and several other countries. Go see it - or hope it comes out on DVD soon.

 

[topdog]

Current: Sunset Boulevard

The revival of Sunset Boulevard opened last week with mostly great reviews for Glenn Close and the Lonny Price production. This is billed as a concert version - but it is hard to call a production with a 40 piece orchestra, extravagant costumes by Anthony Powell, and a Rolls Royce on stage a stripped down version. The design concept is that it takes place on a huge empty soundstage with the lights, stairways, and catwalks clearly visible to the audience.

Of course, the main draw is that Glen Close is back after 20 years recreating her role of Norma Desmond.​

All bets are off when Close hits the stage... Her Norma is simultaneously of this world and not, a deeply human alien that is desperate to be wanted and yet all too cognizant of the fact that she's yesterday's news. She wisely resists becoming the grotesque kabuki figure immortalized on-screen by Gloria Swanson. Close simply plays Norma as a person, albeit a larger-than-life one, who has lived so long in the past she's forgotten what reality looks like... Onstage, however, this ivory-tower facade is constructed with the help of Johanson's Max, who is the perfect enabler for Norma.

The highlights of the evening, of course, are Close's renditions of Norma's two big songs, "With One Look" and "As If We Never Said Goodbye." Backed by Blodgette's glorious orchestra playing the sumptuous orchestrations devised by Webber and David Cullen, Close provides a master class in song delivery. It's not cliché to say that we can hear a pin drop during each number as she commands the spotlight in triumph. Through a single glance, Close manages to communicate all we need to know about Norma's emotions, breaking our hearts or reveling in her mania, bringing us to the edge of our seats on every line.
- David Gordon, Theatermania

That is typical of the rave reviews for Close. Critics split on the supporting players. NJ.com called Michael Xavier the best thing about the production. Adam Feldman of Timeout only grudgingly admits that "Xavier has an attractive voice, impressive muscles and appealingly quizzical eyebrows".

Michael Xavier brings the hunk quotient in addition to his leading man skills.​

Of course, not everyone is a fan of Sunset. Some people think the original Billy Wilder screenplay is perfect as it is and the Lord Webber's music doesn't add much to the proceedings. Naysayer in chief was Vulture's Jess Green.

"But Sunset Boulevard, which opened tonight in a train wreck of a revival starring a woeful Glenn Close, also comes with a poison pill for would-be adapters. Its daring mix of film noir and Hollywood satire requires the utmost finesse to carry off, lest it turn into camp, a mere coffin of curiosities. (We are in fact introduced to Norma as she kisses the corpse of her pet chimp.) That it doesn't go rancid - that the film remains beautiful despite its overbite - is attributable to Wilder's worldliness: No extreme of human behavior surprises or discomfits him. It may be impossible to achieve that kind of detachment in theatrical song, which pretty much defies a neutral point of view." - Jesse Green, Vulture

 

[topdog]

Camelot

Camelot is a musical filled with literature, romance, and magic. That is its strength and weakness - sometimes those elements don't quite fit together. Consequently there are many versions of the show - different openings, some with songs that were cut from the Broadway show. Still it was so popular in 1962 that the album stayed at the top of the Billboard chart for 60 weeks.

Julie Andrews and Richard Burton defined the roles of Guinevere and Arthur and both stayed with the show for over a year.​

The show had a rocky route to Broadway. When it opened in Toronto it was nearly four hours long. Getting it on stage left Alan Jay Lerner in the hospital with a bleeding ulcer and director Moss Hart with a heart attack which kept him away from the show until it opened in New York. They managed to cut an hour out before the New York opening, then when Hart came back another half hour was cut (along with two songs) during its first months at the Majestic Theater (current home of Phantom of the Opera).

The Broadway production easily overcame any difficulties on the strength of its cast - Richard Burton as King Arthur, Julie Andrews as Queen Guinevere, Robert Goblet as Lancelot, and Roddy McDowell as Mordred.

Julie Andrews and Richard Burton perform a number on a TV special.
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Camelot was the end of an era. It was the last Broadway musical for Lerner and Lowe as a team. It was also Moss Hart's last show - he died a few moths after the show opened. And of course, after the Kennedy assassination, America learned that the album was one of John F. Kennedy's favorites, particularly the final number in which Arthur knights a young boy and tells him to pass on the story of Camelot to future generations:

Don't let it be forgot
That once there was a spot,
For one brief, shining moment
That was known as Camelot​

The Film

Jack Warner produced Lerner & Lowe's My Fair Lady to much acclaim, and he had the rights to Camelot. He wanted Richard Burton and Julie Andrews. But Burton didn't want to do repeat himself. (He later regretted that decision.) Warner choose Richard Harris instead. Andrews dropped out - she had just finished Hawaii with Harris and swore she would never work with him again.

Warner tapped Joshua Logan (South Pacific) as director. Logan was fine with Andrews departure, he didn't think she was right for the modern sex & blood version of the tale he wanted to film. Logan went after Vanessa Redgrave instead. Redgrave agreed, provided she could do her own singing. (She didn't want to go through all the grief Audrey Hepburn just suffered for not singing in My Fair Lady.)

Logan filled out the cast with Italian actor Franco Nero as Lancelot.

Vanessa Redgrave and Richard Harris fall in love in the Warner Brothers 1967 film. ​

The film is beautiful, sounds incredible, and Vanessa Redgrave is perfectly cast as the headstrong young queen. Richard Harris does well with the part, but is at times brought low by director Logan's penchant for extreme close-ups that only seem to bring attention to his make-up. The biggest challenge is Nero. He is so strikingly handsome, one wants to forgive him everything. But he spoke little English, and much of his dialog had to be dubbed in after editing. His singing is also dubbed - beautifully - by Gene Merlino.

The real stars of the film, however, are Lionel Newman (music director) and John Truscott (costume and art director). Newman's scoring of the film matches every piece of drama on screen. You can hear his work in the clip above during the love montage. The DVD has a feature that lets you turn off all the dialog and just see the movie with the background music.

Finally, John Prescott was an young Australian designer that made a name for himself in 1963 when he designed the Sydney production of Camelot. That brought him to the attention of Lerner & Lowe, who had him do the same for the London production - and the success of that got him the gig on the film.

Take a look at the photo above - the fabrics, textures, various objects - and animals! (He put dogs, birds, and an whole menagerie of animals on each set.) Prescott used period fabrics and dyes, and kept the clothes in late Middle Ages silhouettes. But the patterns and combinations were his own. Redgrave at one point has a wedding dress made with lace with individual bleached pumpkin seeds sewn in place like pearls. In another she has a formal gown of interlocking gold plates. At times there are hints of the flower children of 1967 (though note that Truscott designed the clothes a year and a half earlier). He fills each frame with a feast for the eyes. Joshua Logan brought Truscott with him to do Paint Your Wagon the next year - but those are the only two Hollywood films he designed. He returned to Australia where he continued to work in theater, opera and ballet.

With hopes riding high, Camelot premiered in the fall on 1967 as Warner Brothers prestige offering for the holidays - but landed with a thud. It was the first big musical flop of the 1960's, but many more were to follow as audience's tastes changed from The Sound of Music to Bonnie and Clyde and Easy Rider.

For more information

• Camelot - in Concert with the New York Philharmonic (2008) - Here is the full show in a lovely concert production directed by Lonny Price. This has Gabriel Byrne as Arthur, Marin Mazzie as Guienevere, Nathan Gunn as Lancelot, Christopher Lloyd as King Pelinore, Fran Dresher as Morgan LeFey, and Stacy Keach as Merlin.
• What Do The Simple Folk Do ? - Richard Burton & Julie Andrews on the Ed Sullivan Show.
• Camelot (Original Cast Recording)
• Sierra Boggess singing The Lusty Month of May from BBC Proms 2012
• Vanessa Redgrave sings The Lusty Month of May from the film

 

[topdog]

News

Hopefully they aren't "the worst pies in London", but the Barrow Street Theatre's production Sweeny Todd comes with dinner first since the small off-Broadway theater has been temporarily turned into a pie shop for the production.​

Here are just some short news updates.

• The tiny Barrow Street Theatre in Greenwich Village has been turned into a pie shop for the Tooting Theater production of Sweeny Todd transferring from London. Every night 60 people get to chow down on meat pies and ale amidst the environmental staging of the Sondheim musical around them. The London actors will be replaced with an American cast in June, and the show is currently selling tickets through December.
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• Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole begin previews of War Paint tonight, March 7.
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• Lincoln Center will be bringing a revival of My Fair Lady to Broadway next year! It will be directed by Bartlett Sher. No word on casting, but Laura Benanti, Laura Osnes and Sierra Boggess have all tweeted out their availability. Sher may be looking for an unknown, however. Some are also talking about how far the show may be willing to go with non-traditional casting - suggesting The Great Comet's Didi Benton or The Color Purple's Cynthia Erivo. Take a look at this video for a great history of the musical from the perspective of the last good revival in 2001.
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• In Transit is still losing money, but running. Good news for most of the cast, except former Glee actor Telly Leung (also of Allegiance, and the recent revival of Godspell) who has already been named as the next person to step in to the title role of Disney's Aladdin. Original Aladdin Adam Jacobs left the show in February to lead the National Tour.
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• Congrats to fellow Glee alum Amber Riley on her Oliver Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical for the London production of Dreamgirls. The awards will be given out at the Royal Albert Hall on Sunday 9 April. Also, Groundhog Day heading to New York next month got eight nominations.
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• Laura Osnes, Corey Cott preview four numbers from Bandstand -The cast of Bandstand met the press March 7 to discuss bringing the new swing musical to Broadway and give a taste of the high-energy score. The show is directed by Hamilton choreographer Andy Blankenbuehler.
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• Disney's Frozen has finished a workshop and is heading for an opening in Denver this fall, and then arriving on Broadway in the St James theater in April 2018 (which is currently undergoing renovations to accommodate the production).
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• Disney’s The Lion King announces its first international tour - The tour of the long-running musical will launch in the Philippines in March 2018.
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• Classic Stage Company is mounting an off-Broadway production of Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman’s Pacific Overtures, directed and designed by Tony winner John Doyle. George Takei will play Reciter in the Off-Broadway revival that will open May 4.
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• Speaking of Sondheim, he is currently collaborating with David Ives on a new musical, based on two films by Spanish surrealist filmmaker Luis Buñuel: The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie and The Exterminating Angel. The project, titled All Together Now, had a workshop last November, and is expected to play the Public Theater sometime this year. The fall workshop featured Matthew Morrison, Shuler Hensley, Sierra Boggess, Michael Cerveris, and Jennifer Simard.
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• Via Disney and Lin-Manuel Miranda we have our first look at Emily Blunt and Lin as Mary Poppins and Jack the Lamplighter in the upcoming Mary Poppins Returns (scheduled for release Christmas 2018). The film is a sequel to the original Disney movie. Set in 1930s Depression-era London, it tells the story of Mary Poppins’ return to the Banks family now that Michael and Jane are grown up. After Michael experiences a devastating personal loss, Poppins, with the help of her lamplighter friend Jack, uses her sense of whimsy to bring joy back to the family she once cared for.

 

[topdog]

Current: Come From Away

UPDATE March 16 2017 - Justin Trudeau attended the March 15 evening performance of Broadway’s Come From Away, marking the first time the Canadian Prime Minister saw the show about a small Newfoundland community coming together to host thousands of stranded passengers after planes were grounded during the September 11 attacks.

If you're an out-of-town visitor to New York looking for a feel-good night of theater, then Come From Away is surely recommended. This new musical tells the true story of how the residents of Gander, a Newfoundland island community of some 9000 people, responded with unparalleled Canadian hospitality to 7,000 stranded international passengers whose planes were diverted when the U.S. airspace closed on Sept. 11, 2001. In 100 heartwarming minutes, the show sets the best aspects of human nature to infectious Celtic folk and Broadway rock.
- Allison Adato, Entertainment Weekly

The Canadian musical Come From Away opened last night and mostly it charmed the critics; many found it a welcome uplift in this time of constant talk of political division and destruction. The book, music, and lyrics are by the husband and wife team of Irene Sankoff and David Hein.

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I think Broadway has evolved a new sub-genre I am going to call "Pub Musicals" that seem to spring out of stories told in a pub and are based in folk music. Once was the first. It was followed by The Last Ship, and now the Sankoff/Hein show fills out the list.

This show was a hit in Toronto (they have already announced that a tour will set up residence in Toronto later this year), and did well where I saw it in Washington DC. But the question has always been will it play in sophisticated, cynical New York? I think the answer is a qualified "yes". It is selling well. And I think in these anxious times, it's dramatization of the basic goodness of people will be a tonic many will welcome.

But not all - a couple of critics found a 9/11 musical that has no real relationship to the story of New York a bit jarring, and declared it very well put together and nice, but not really moving. But they were the exceptions.

Before the cast started their official out-of-town preview in Toronto, they took the show to Gander Newfoundland to perform for the people who's lives and actions were being portrayed on stage. The appreciation seems to be enormous. I like the comment that "They didn't go back to Oklahoma when they made the musical Oklahoma! and say, 'Here is a story about you.'"
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Jenn Colella who plays an American Airlines captain - the first female captain in the US, as a matter of fact - is getting great notices as a standout in the ensemble cast. Also note, two of the passengers are a gay couple that debate just how "out" they should be on the island. The joke is that while they are trying to be cautious and discreet, everyone they meet takes them as a gay couple and are fine with it.

Also, critics were enamored with Christopher Ashley's direction and his use of the cast - everyone plays multiple roles and scenes switch instantaneously between planes and the ground, but you always know where you are and who you are seeing.

This is the third of this season's new musicals to open with strong reviews. Some years the Tony voters can't find a single new musical to nominate - this year Dear Evan Hansen, The Great Comet of 1812, and now Come From Away already have claims on those prizes - and there are more on the way, including two of last year's big hits in London.

For more information

• Falling in Love in Gander - A Texas woman and an Englishman meet and fall in love in Gander. Here the story from the couple, and see some of it presented in the musical. (Video)
• Review from Ben Brantley, The New York Times
• Come From Away Broadway Video Review by DoubleDReviews (Video)
• Jenn Collela performs Me & the Sky in the recording studio (Video)

 

[topdog]

BC/EFA: Broadway Backwards

Tonight is Broadway Backwards 2017, an annual revue that regularly raises nearly half a million dollars for Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS. This is a night when musical theater stars gather and men sing songs written for women, and vice versa. This is no mere talent show - not only do you get well known performers but top choreographers and costume designers donate their time and work to the show.

Keep an eye on YouTube this week to see if we get any glimpses of the show. But in the meantime here are some highlights from yesteryear.

Josh Young "Bring On The Men" - Broadway Backwards 2013


Josh Young, at the time was pulling in some of the best reviews of the year playing Judas Iscariot in the revival of Jesus Christ Superstar. Here puts his spin on a Frank Wildhorn song from Jeckell & Hyde.




Jenn Colella and Jackie Hoffman "The Game" - Broadway Backwards 2012


Jenn Colella (who just opened in Come From Away) and Jackie Hoffman perform "The Game" from Damn Yankees.




Brian Stokes Mitchell "The Man I Love" - Broadway Backwards 2013


Brian Stokes Mitchell performs an intimate rendition of the Gershwin standard "The Man I Love," originally performed on Broadway in their 1928 musical Strike Up the Band. Basked in soft white spotlights, Mitchell captivated the audience with his take on the classic, adding to the moment by playing an interlude on a melodica.




Jay Armstrong Johnson - "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend" - Broadway Backwards 2016


Jay Armstrong Johnson (On the Town) let his inner Marilyn Monroe fly in a glittery production of “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend” from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.​

 

[topdog]

West Side Story

West Side Story brought together three masters of the theater (director-choreographer Jerome Robbins, composer Leonard Bernstein, writer Arthur Laurents) and one newbie - Stephen Sondheim for the first time abandoning music and writing only lyrics. The idea was to play with Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet in a contemporary story with fresh music. Just as important is that dance is used to tell the story in a way that had never been done before - to have it seamlessly woven into the staging, rather than stop for a dance number.

One only has to review the opening ("Prologue", below from the movie) to see how incredibly Jerome Robbins succeeded in this. The movie especially is filled with his unique visual ideas for camera angles and shots that had never been done before. (Compare this with Gigi or Singing in the Rain which were done just a few years earlier. Those are both great musicals, but there is nothing in them that would help you figure out how to film "Prologue".)

The prologue was filmed mostly on location in Manhattan near Columbus Ave and West 64th Street. The old apartment buildings and tenements there were in the process of being demolished to make way for Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. A lot of buildings just had the facing up on the street with nothing behind them - so they resembled movie sets.
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As strong as Arthur Laurents book is for WSS, Ernest Lehman's script for the movie is better. He swaps the placement of "Officer Krupke" and "Cool". Moving "Cool" to the second act post-rumble, in particular, makes that song a powder keg of emotion ready to blow. (See "Cool" below.) He also ended the first act on the "Quintet" with all the groups singing about what was about to happen, and pushed the actual rumble into the second act. This solves a problem in the play that nothing really happens in the second act until the end.

Directors Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins holds the shots for a long time here, using just minimal edits to keep the number simmering. Also notice how incredibly well he uses the wide screen for his dancers. For years, people who knew this movie only from television had no idea how much was going on from one side of the screen to the other. Of course, the other thing I notice is that no one other than Robbins could get dancers to do knee spins on concrete without wearing kneepads. It sent several dancers, including Russ Tamblyn (Riff) to the hospital.
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One thing that Laurents and Sondheim got mostly right was avoiding current slang which would quickly date. Much of the lingo is made up - especially what might today substituent for four letter words. Sondheim did desperately want to end "Officer Krupke" with "Gee Officer Krupke, fuck you!", but Columbia Records was worried that if he did, they would have to ship the album in a brown paper wrapper. He relented and change the last two words to "Krup you!", which gets by with the play on the name.

Highlights from the 2008 revival. Sondheim brought in Lin-Manuel Miranda to write Spanish lyrics for some of the songs sung by the Sharks to make the language more realistic. This production was the Broadway debut of Jeremy Jordan (Newsies), Ryan Steele (Newsies), and Karen Olivo (In the Heights).
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Because of these careful choices by the writers, as well as Bernstein's timeless music, the show has aged incredibly well. I was in high school fifteen years after the movie opened, and my peers still went crazy for it the first time it was shown on network TV. Doing West Side Story as your high school musical is practically a rite of passage. Kids still relate to the love, violence, prejudice, and alienation of being a teenager.

Sierra Boggess and Julian Ovenden perform the Balcony Scene. John Wilson conducts his own orchestra for the BBC Proms broadcast from the Royal Albert Hall in London in 2012.
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The impact of West Side Story on culture has been enormous. Nearly everyone can hum the tunes. (Which isn't easy - this is sophisticated music.) For many it may have been their introduction to musical theater either performing or seeing the show in high school or college. Oddly, the Broadway show, while it was successful was not that big of a hit. It was the film that brought the musical to the masses and at that point it became popular.

For more information

Original Broadway Cast

• Rare West Side Story original Broadway footage "Maria" & "Tonight" Little known film from 1957 West Side Story Broadway original cast - Carol Lawrence and Larry Kert, the first Maria and Tony on stage singing "Maria" and "Tonight"

2008 Revival

• "The Dance in the Gym" on the 2009 Tony Awards - Riff (in the rust colored vest and brown pants) is the ace Broadway dancer Cody Green.
• See Cody Green do "Cool" on Good Morning America. Also note an 18-year-old Ryan Steele as Baby John in the orange long sleeve shirt and blue jeans.

1961 Movie

• WEST SIDE STORY - Behind the Scenes Footage - Silent, colour 8mm home movies shot behind the scenes of the filming of WEST SIDE STORY. Included are many of the songs and also included is a comparison of the film and the behind-the-scenes footage. What the cast can be seen doing at 2:53 is a "rain dance". They would do rain dances in order to stop filming to rest. Eventually they were told to stop because it actually worked!
• West Side Story (1961) - How Russ Tamblyn Became Riff - Actors George Chakiris, Russ Tamblyn, Maria Jimenez Henley and producer Walter Mirisch at the Academy Event “West Side Story (1961)” on July 18, 2016 at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater.
• Rita Moreno and George Chakiris on Their 1961 Oscar Winning Film 'West Side Story' - The two stars on auditioning for Jerome Robbins, learning to dance and practicing their loser face in case they didn't win at the 1962 Academy Awards. "I was truly killing myself but I wanted that part so badly," says Moreno about taking dance lessons in preparation to play Anita.
• ROBERT WISE talks 'West Side Story' - The film had two directors - a situation that proved problematic. Officially, the director was Robert Wise (The Sound of Music) - but Jerome Robbins essentially conceived many of the shots for the huge amount of dance sequences. This is a rare 1963 interview with director Robert Wise on his 1961 classic film.
• Marni Nixon on WEST SIDE STORY dubbing

Other tidbits

• Bernstein: Symphonic Dances from West Side Stories / Dudamel · SBYOV · BBC Proms 2007 - Gustavo Dudamel conducting the Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra of Venezuela, playing the Symphonic Dances from Leonard Bernstein's "West Side Stories" at 2007 BBC Proms.
• The official West Side Story website

 

[topdog]

Birthday

Today is the international holiday - Broadway Composers Day. Why? March 22 is the birthday of both Stephen Sondheim and Andrew Lloyd Webber.

No, you don't often see them together. This was put together for a salute to producer Cameron Macintosh done in London about 10 years ago - Hey, Mr. Producer!.​

What's your favorite song from each composer?

 

[topdog]

Rent

Peter Hollens just released this cover of "Without You" from Rent this morning. It is incredibly produced (remember, the whole thing is made just with his voice) and directed, and the performance very moving.

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A reminder, the 20th Anniversary tour of Rent is performing in cities in the US. You can go here to see the schedule in case they are coming somewhere close to you.

No day but today.​

 

[topdog]

Current: Miss Saigon

Stylistically, "Miss Saigon" is a remnant of the bombastic, spectacle-driven, opera-meets-rock English mega-musicals that conquered Broadway in the '80s and '90s, such as "Les Miz" and Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Cats" and "Phantom." But as a piece of political theater that depicts Americans involved in a disastrous foreign war, cultural misunderstanding, the difficulties of emigrating to the U.S. as a refugee and the pursuit of success through shameless exploitation, "Miss Saigon" is more relevant and heartbreaking today than when it premiered on Broadway in 1991 at the same theater. - Matt Windman, amNY

Miss Saigon is back on Broadway after 20 years and it's as big and ostentatious as ever, though maybe more relevant with corruption, questionable foreign policy, refugees, and sex trafficking in the headlines.

The revival (originally done in London in 2015 with a filmed version shown in movie theaters last year) opened Thursday night. Critics were mostly positive - especially about the performances and the entertainment value of the show. They divide when talking about whether Saigon has something important to say about America and Vietnam. The daily newspaper amNY (above) found new depth in the themes of botched US foreign policy and handling refugees. Others still see more flash and crassness in the script than a coherent theme.

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Miss Saigon tells the story of the last days of the Vietnam War, when Kim (Eva Noblezada) is forced to work in a Saigon bar run by a notorious character known as the Engineer (Jon Jon Briones). There she meets and falls in love with an American GI named Chris (Alistair Brammer) but they are torn apart by the fall of Saigon. For three years Kim goes on an epic journey of survival to find her way back to Chris, who has no idea he has fathered a son.

If you are familiar with the opera Madame Butterfly this plot will seem familiar. Like West Side Story and Rent it modernizes a familiar theatrical story.

Directed by Laurence Connor (School of Rock, and the recent hit revival of Les Miserables), the Broadway return of Miss Saigon features four of its London stars. Conner is well known for stripping shows down to the essentials, but here Saigon is as big and brash as the original, if not more so and at points the script is updated with references to refugee tragedies and acknowledges our increased consciousness of the sex trade.

Producer Cameron Macintosh has spared no expense in the revival which will have a limited run (through January 2018) in New York before it goes on tour, later in 2018.​

The original version was helped with star turns by newcomer Lea Solanga and British actor Jonathon Pryce playing the eurasian character of the Engineer. Lots of controversy back then about a white actor playing an asian character. Later, asian actors were put in as replacements during the long run.

This production has one member of the original Broadway cast. Jon Jon Briones was in the chorus back then; now he's playing the Engineer. All the new leads won solid raves from all the critics.

Eva Noblezada, this production's Kim, makes her Broadway debut and is probably the show's biggest wow (sorry, helicopter). Her voice doesn't falter as she rips through power ballad after power ballad. Her Chris, Alistair Brammer, is solid if a bit out-performed by his costars. In general, this new iteration, under the direction of Laurence Connor (School of Rock), has a more appropriately gritty feel than the show had in the '90s, from the physical set to the portrayal of Americans and the consequences of war. Still, it's a pretty darn schmaltzy show to begin with. - Breanne L. Heldman, Entertainment Weekly

Jon Jon Briones struts on stage as The Engineer, while Eva Noblezada as Kim dreams of a better life for her son.​

There were some naysayers - most prominent was the New York Times that came away less than impressed.

It's not as if such stories don't still have the power to stir suspense and tears. But this eventful, sung-through production out of London, directed by Laurence Connor, feels about as affecting as a historical diorama, albeit a lavishly appointed one... Though it sets off inevitable topical echoes with its tableau of asylum-seeking refugees, the show still mostly comes across as singing scenery. - Ben Brantley, The New York Times

It will be interesting to see if the Times pan can be offset by the many positive comments elsewhere. This past week Miss Saigon was not selling out. Hopefully the good reviews will bring people in, but then again this is a very strong season and there is a lot for the theater fan to see. At least as of its opening night, all of this season's new musicals (except In Transit - still losing money) are outperforming Cameron Macintosh's two big revivals: Miss Saigon and Cats. Strange, but true.

For more information

• From Chorus to Lead in Miss Saigon | The New York Times - profile on Jon Jon Briones and his journey from chorus in the original cast to star of the revival. (video)
• From London's West End To New York City: 'Miss Saigon' Stars Take Broadway | NBC News - Stars Eva Noblezada and Alistair Brammer make the transition from London to Broadway
• Miss Saigon Broadway Review - DoubleD reviews the revival.
• Theater Talk: "Miss Saigon" Revival - Theater Talk welcomes the charming and talented lyricist/co-librettist Alain Boublil and composer/co-librettist Claude-Michel Schönberg whose masterwork of the musical theater “Miss Saigon” returns to Broadway.

 

[topdog]

Broadway Boys - Andrew Rannells

You probably know Andrew Rannells from his Tony nominated role in The Book of Mormon. Or maybe, from HBO's series Girls.

Like most young actors, Andrew came to New York and spent years doing odd jobs and auditioning. He finally got his break in Hairspray going in as a replacement for Link Larkin during the show's long run. Then he landed the National tour of Jersey Boys. That led to an invitation to join the workshop for The Book of Mormon, and the rest is, as they say, history.

He has also become a frequent guest on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. This past week he was with Jimmy to promote the end of the series Girls. Here, he brings a clip where he gets to sing on the show.

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The choice of song from NBC's expensive failure Smash may be Andrew working out some unresolved feelings about NBC's choice to kill his Ryan Murphy series The New Normal after a single season. Andrew also did some musical therapy on that subject at the 2015 Tony Awards

This past fall, Andrew played Christian Borle's lover in Falsettos.

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Andrew seems to be steering his career in the same direction as Aaron Tveit and Jeremy Jordan. All three of them put in regular appearances in New York at Broadway Cares benefits, special performances, and at cabarets like 54 Below in between TV shows and stage work.

For more information

• It Got Better Featuring Andrew Rannells - Growing up gay isn’t easy. Growing up gay in Omaha, Nebraska, in the ’80s is a whole other story. Andrew Rannells shares his story about finding his voice, and himself, in the theater.
• From The New Normal - Bryan goes to confession - for the second time. This starts with a discussion of the death of his dog, but soon becomes about much more than that thanks to great writing and acting.
• Andrew Rannells Keeps Trying to Get on Law & Order - Andrew tells Ice T and Jimmy about his many failed attempts at landing a role on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Jimmy throws out topics for him to respond to. For example, 50 Shades of Grey: "I think we've all signed one of those sex slave contracts. I mean, 'Me too, lady!"

 

[topdog]

The Lion King

What's the highest grossing show on Broadway?

OK, you're right, it's Hamilton - no surprise there. What's the second highest grossing show?

Yup, after nearly 20 years it's The Lion King. The musical from Disney Theatricals has been a hit from the moment it opened, in November 1997. 24 global productions have been seen by more than 90 million people.The Lion King can currently be seen on Broadway, London's West End, Hamburg, Tokyo, Madrid, Mexico City, Shanghai, Scheveningen and on tour across North America, for a total of nine productions running concurrently across the globe.

I am not ashamed to say that I thought doing The Lion King as a stage musical seemed like a singularly dumb idea. I was not a fan of Beauty and the Beast (Disney's first Broadway venture) - I thought it was too theme-parky and too literal.

But the reviews for Lion were great, and I happened to be working in New York a month after it opened, so I finagled a ticket. And every doubt I ever had was pushed away in seconds when "The Circle of Life" - the BEST opening number ever put in a Broadway show - invites us in to the world director / designer Julie Taymor and Disney created for us.

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When those animals came down the aisle I lost it. I was crying like a baby - it was so theatrical, so African, so right. The show sustained that theatrical magic for the whole evening.

Maybe the oddest theatrical coupling ever was The Mouse House joining with avant garde director Julie Taymor. Julie immediately kept them from falling into their theme park roots. She understood the spirituality of the story and knew first hand how theater, ritual, and spirituality have been connected for thousands of years. She drew on those traditions from Africa, Polynesia, and South East Asia - all places she had studied and worked and knew intimately. Taymor was not only the show's director - she also designed the costumes, puppets, and how the masks would be used.

Taymor emphasized the dual experience of the audience being able to see both the actor and the mask and getting story and character information from both at the same time. Its hard to explain, but when you see it works.

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OK, so much for art. Back to the money. Think about it. At about $2 million a week Lion is pulling in more money than new hits like Dear Evan Hansen or fresh new revivals like Cats and Miss Saigon. It's taking in more sales than Bette Midler in Hello Dolly or Book of Mormon.

It wasn't always like this. Sure, The Lion King was the king of the Broadway jungle for a while. Then other hits opened - Hairspray, Wicked, Jersey Boys and Mama Mia. And Lion wasn't the hot ticket anymore so it started to slip. But take a look at this chart:

So things are going along, and what happened in 2008? The economy crashed, right? Not great for Broadway - people are out of work, have to economize, theater tickets are not a high priority. Corporations are struggling, not splurging on clients with hard-to-get house seats.

But look at the grosses for Lion King - they are going through the roof! Within a few months in 2008 the King had passed Wicked and was back on top of the charts - a place it pretty much remained until Hamilton debuted with $650 VIP seats.

How did they do it? Disney magic! And software. Magic software, honed carefully in their worldwide empire that intelligently changes the ticket prices daily to what it figures the market will bear. That way they are always getting the most dollars possible for each seat - similar to the way airlines price their fares. The adjustments are small, but by re-figuring it every day the overall difference adds up quickly.

Other producers would love to get a hold of this, but not even Cameron Mackintosh has deep enough pockets to match The Mouse. But eventually others will crack the code now that they know how much money they are leaving on the table.

For more information

• ABC News: Making of the Highest-Grossing Musical - Interviews with Julie Taymor and the producing team about how The Lion King came together.
• The Lion King - Behind the Scenes Part 1 - a behind the scenes doentary about Disney's The Lion King musical at the Lyceum theatre in London.
• The Lion King: In the Rehearsal Room - Get a glimpse into The Lion King dance rehearsal room and meet some of the new cast.
• Discover the Costumes | Disney Style - Check out how the costumes are created to personify the actor's role on stage.
• Behind the Scenes in The Lion King's Puppet Shop - Adam Savage and the team at Tested go backstage at The Lion King during its run in San Francisco! We visit the musical's puppet shop, where puppet supervisor Michael Reilly walks us through the numerous intricate and varied puppets and masks used in the performance and shows us how they're maintained in his traveling workshop!
• Dance and Movement - Find out how so many global dance traditions come together on stage in Disney's production of THE LION KING. Learn about the cultural roots of the show's choreography, and the meaning behind each character's style of movement. Choreography Garth Fagin's "movement metaphors" are explained, and members of the creative team are interviewed.

 

[topdog]

Curent - AMELIE

A dubious quote plastered outside the Walter Kerr Theatre declares, "It's impossible not to be charmed" by Amelie, A New Musical. While reviewers spend their working lives arguing that all critical opinion is by its very nature subjective, I'd call that fake news. - David Rooney, Hollywood Reporter

It's been an amazing season for new musicals. Even In Transit with so-so reviews was admired for its musical ingenuity, performances, and staging. But I think our luck runs out with Amélie, the adaption of the 2001 french film that opened this week with former Hamilton star Phillipa Soo.

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Amélie tells the story of a shy waitress who decides to change the lives of those around her for the better, while struggling with her own isolation.

Featuring a book by Craig Lucas and music by Daniel Messé, with the lush-voiced Philippa Soo in the title role, it is pleasant to look at, easy to listen to and oddly recessive. It neither offends nor enthralls. Ben Brantley, The New York Times

You want every show to work out, but like The Lion King says, it's the Circle of Life. If every show was a hit and ran for years, then there would be no theaters open for next season's new plays and musicals.

April can be the cruelest month, though I am not sure T.S. Elliott was thinking of the Broadway season when he said that. Everything is opening fast - so watch this space for all the new shows.

 

[topdog]

BC/EFA: Miscast

Norbert Leo Butz killed Monday night at the MCC Miscast gala.

MCC is a non-profit off-Broadway theater company that focuses on presenting new work, and also brings theater training and workshops to New York city school kids. One of their big fund-raisers is the Miscast gala where Broadway stars take on roles and songs they would never get to do on stage.

OK, they stole the idea from Broadway Backwards - though Miscast is usually a simpler affair and less sexually adventurous.

They had a great cast Monday, and several of them joined Norbert in recreating the famous Act 1 curtain scene from Dreamgirls - "I am Telling You I'm Not Going". Kelli O'Hara (King & I, Bridges of Madison County) starts it off, then Stephanie J. Block (Falsettos, Wicked) comes in. Brian D'Arcy James (Shrek, Something's Rotten) plays Deena. But NLB holds center stage.

Pulling off the scene and song is one thing - but doing it with Effie herself, Jennifer Holliday sitting behind you is something else entirely.

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Norbert ends the number with homage (literally) to Holliday. Jennifer then came out and did her number -"I Am What I Am" from La Cage Au Folle.

More Miscast

• Ben Platt sings "The Man That Got Away"
• Carmen Cusack performs "You'll Be Back" From Hamilton
• Mandy Gonzalez performs "Waving Through a Window" from DEAR EVAN HANSEN

 

[topdog]

Current - War Paint

You don't have to go in search of a magnifying glass to discern the active ingredients in the new musical "War Paint," at the Nederlander Theatre, a dual biography of the dueling cosmetics divas Helena Rubinstein and Elizabeth Arden. The magic elixirs are quite plainly the two veteran Broadway stars above the title, Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole, giving performances of such resplendent force, wit and vivacity that the evening gleams like a freshly applied coat of nail polish catching the light. - Charles Isherwood, Broadway News

This morning critics are singing the praises of Patti LuPone (Evita, Anything Goes, Gypsy) and Christine Ebersole (42nd Street, Grey Gardens) as Helena Rubinstein and Elizabeth Arden in the Michael Greif (Rent, Dear Evan Hansen) directed musical War Paint.

When I first saw the announcement for War Paint I had flashbacks to James Kirkwood's 1986 play Legends! - which put Mary Martin and Carol Channing on stage as two aging divas chewing scenery and squabbling with each other. (Mr. Kirkwood's book on that tour called Diary of a Mad Playwright is a must read.)

Good news! Apparently the show is more sophisticated than that (no catfights) with a good score by Scott Frankel and Michael Korie (Grey Gardens).

The most flattering number imagines a meeting between the makeup mavens, which gives LuPone and Ebersole the chance to be face-to-face and claw-to-claw. They wonder: Has their work freed women or shackled them? - Joe Dziemianowicz, NY Daily News

Another area where several critics agree is that the second act pays off more than the first. (Traditionally, it's the other way around.)

So, though my eyes occasionally glazed seeing "War Paint" for the second time, I wouldn't have missed it, if only to hear its leading ladies' climactic ballads. Ms. LuPone has an ardently sung tribute to the preservative powers of narcissism, during which a gallery of Rubinstein's portraits by famous artists materializes behind her. And in the show's most exquisite number, Arden takes inventory of an existence lived in a pale shade of rose. The song is called "Pink," and as Ms. Ebersole delivers that seemingly cheery word, it is weighted with triumph, regret, defiance and anger, all struggling for ascendancy. It's a reminder of how a single ballad, and a lone interpreter, can capture the full, ambivalent spectrum of a lifetime. - Ben Brantley, The New York Times

One reason for this may be that in real life the two ladies never actually met - which certainly presents a challenge for playwright Doug Wright (I Am My Own Wife, Grey Gardens). However, that didn't prevent the two ladies from having strong opinions of each other. (When Helena Rubenstien heard that Elizabeth Arden's horse had bitten the tip of Elizabeth's finger her response was "How's the horse?")

"Christine Ebersole sounds classy and creamy, but cream that bites and stings as well as pleases." - Linda Winer, Newsday​

There is universal praise for the leading ladies. The show takes pains to divide the story and songs evenly between the two.

"As Rubinstein, a Jewish immigrant with a Polish accent and a penchant for gaudy jewels, LuPone owns the stage with the confidence of someone who knows she has earned it; her gloriously rich singing sweeps all else aside." - Adam Feldman Time Out New York​

In the end, maybe the most surprising praise goes to writer Doug Wright and director Michael Greif for making this more than a star vehicle for two aging actresses (going back to the Legends! problem). The show seems never to betray it's two complicated women and the obstacles they face in business compared to men. Funny, how some things seem not to have changed all that much.

This may be a reflection of the essential tragedy of Rubinstein and Arden, neither of whom was big enough to reach out to the other, over their lifelong makeup war; there was no space in their boardroom or their bedroom for anyone but themselves. That “War Paint” takes pains to reveal this parallel emptiness speaks to one of the musical’s worthiest achievements: making room on a stage, to a degree virtually never seen, for star turns by two sublime female veterans of the musical theater. When Rubinstein and Arden were in their 60s, they were nowhere near ready to be ushered into the wings. And neither, thank goodness, are LuPone and Ebersole. - Peter Marks, Washington Post

For more information

• War Paint on Works & Process at the Guggenheim - Go behind the scenes of librettist Doug Wright, composer Scott Frankel, lyricist Michael Korie, and director Michael Greif’s newest musical. Two-time Tony Award winners Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole star as America’s first major female entrepreneurs and relentless and legendary rivals, Helena Rubinstein and Elizabeth Arden.
• Get a behind-the-scenes look at War Paint - It takes more than talent to change the face of a nation—discover the story of two women who not only made it, but made it on their own.

 

[topdog]

Dear Evan Hansen

Here is a bootleg of the best new show on Broadway. If you are interested watch it NOW because it probably won't stay up for 24 hours. If I find new links I will try to keep this updated.

UPDATE April 30 2017 - Links are down, sorry.