Musical Words of Wisdom

The cast recording of Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown is once again responsible for some serious thought.  If you are reading this, I'll assume that you have more than a passing interest in musical theatre.  If you are at all like me, you find the lyrics of Broadway shows to be a treasure trove of clever turns of phrase, witty witticisms, and poignant words to live by.

If you have listened to the score of WOTV at all, you know it is full of the aforementioned wit and poignancy.  It was one time when I was enjoying the ever so catchy "On the Verge" that I got my Broadway Vocabulary Quiz blog idea (the word was "ululating") and the idea for this blog came to  mind as I laughed out loud at a certain line in the song that struck me as funny, true, and as a clever turn of phrase.  (See below)  And I asked all of you to send me your favorite lines from Broadway musical numbers.  

Please note that there were several repeats, so I might not attribute the line to you.  Understand that appreciate all of your contributions!  And so, here are some of my favorites along with some of yours.

• "It's murder on a hairdo when your head is underwater." - "On the Verge" from Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown
• "You've got pain in your stomach like a long-neglected tooth, dilated pupils that refuse to see the truth..." - "Lovesick" from Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown

• "The price of love is loss, but still we pay.  We love anyway." - "Light" from next to normal

• "Because happy is what happens when all your dreams come true." - "Thank Goodness" from Wicked (GalindaU89 from NYC)

• "Christmas bells, ringing out goodwill to men, and peace on Earth; Ev'rything they taught you when you were a child - the things a child once taught the world." - "Christmas Day" from Promises, Promises (Sherilyn F. from Newark, NJ)

• "Life is what you do 'til the moment you die." - "Life Is" from Zorba (Barb P. from Manhattan)

• "I'd walk through the quad, and think, 'Oh My God!  These kids are so much younger than me!'" - "I Wish I Could Go Back to College" from Avenue Q (Tim Z from Geneva, NY)

I could probably do a whole blog just from the entries sent in from AChorusLineFREEK from Long island, NY!  Thanks! (He or she didn't leave a name, but DID leave words of wisdom and clever wording from almost every song in that show's score!

From A Chorus Line:

• "Who am I anyway?  Am I my resume?  That is a picture of a person I don't know." - "I Hope I Get It"
• "All thanks to Sis (Now married and fat)" - "I Can Do That!"
• "'Diff'rent' is nice, but it sure isn't pretty.  'Pretty' is what it's about.  I never met anyone who was 'diff'rent'.  Who couldn't figure that out?" - "At the Ballet"
• "Too young to take over, too old to ignore." - "Hello Twelve, Hello Thirteen"
• "Six months later I heard that Karp had died.  And I dug right down to the bottom of my soul... and cried.  'Cause I felt... nothing." - "Nothing"
• "Tits and ass won't get you jobs, unless they're yours.  Didn't cost a fortune, neither.  Didn't hurt my sex life, either." - "Dance: Ten; Looks: Three"
• "Give me a job and you instantly get me involved.  If you give me a job, then the rest of the crap will get solved." - "The Music and the Mirror"
• "Kiss today goodbye, and point me t'ward tomorrow.  We did what we had to do.  Won't forget, can't regret what I did for love." - "What I Did For Love"
• "One smile and suddenly nobody else will do." - "One"

Next week, I'll do another blog entirely made up of quotes from the musicals of Stephen Sondheim - thanks to contributions from Tyler, Catherine and SteFANSondheim13!

And keep sending in your favorite lyrics and vocabulary words for future blogs!  Lloyd Webber fans - send me your quotes, too!  I'll do a whole blog on those if I get enough!

Rate this blog below, and leave your comments here, by email at jkstheatrescene@yahoo.com, or Tweet me!

Jeff

2.336

Rod and Ricky's Wedding Album

Sunday, July 24 was the first day same-sex couples could be legally married in the state of New York.  Broadway's first couple to take full advantage of the new law was Avenue Q's Rod and Ricky.  They were married just prior to last Sunday's matinee.  Here, courtesy of Playbill Online and photographer Peter James Zielinski is a "wedding album" to commemorate the historic, joyous occasion.

ROD and RICKY's

WEDDING DAY

July 24, 2011

(TOP) Rod and his right-hand man, Howie Michael Smith

(BOTTOM) Ricky and his best man, Jed Resnick

The Wedding Party waits for their turn at City Hall!

Kate Monster and her best friend, Jennifer Barnhart.

Jed Resnick, Groom-to-Be Ricky,

Howie Michael Smith and Groom-to-Be Rod

It's almost time!  All those performances of

Avenue Q together must help the pre-wedding jitters.

They all look so happy and calm!

Best Men Jed Resnick and Howie Michael Smith and

bridesmaids Jennifer Barnhart and Kate Monster

look on as Officiant Amy Hausman performs

Rod and Ricky's marriage ceremony.

As Rod and Ricky move one step closer to wedded bliss,

Kate Monster daydreams that one day

it will be her and Princeton at the altar.

Officiant Hausman presents the newlyweds

with their Certificate of Marriage.

Will Kate Monster catch the bouquet?

Rod must be pleased - a conservative blue sash marks

the special day for NY's very first same-sex puppet

married couple.  Their best men are all smiles, too!

Those AQ boys never turn down a photo op.

Rod, Ricky and Kate Monster discuss

equality for all citizens - be they human,

puppet or monster - live on CNN.

The happy couple poses for one last shot.  Look at those rings!

Rod and Ricky share a quiet moment together

before they start their new lives as husbands.

And what better way to start than a performance

of the show that brought them together -

Avenue Q!

And who doesn't record their wedding these days?  Here is the whole ceremony!

 

Avenue Q continues its record-breaking run at New World Stages.  Congratulations to all of NY's newest married couples!

Rate this blog below, and leave your comments here, by email at jkstheatrescene@yahoo.com or Tweet me!

Jeff

2.333

Broadway Celebrates Same-Sex Marriage

When one considers the vast impact of gay and lesbian people on the theatre community, it should be no surprise to anyone that the community has been and will continue to be a loud and proud voice in the continuing fight for equal rights for all LGBT citizens in this country.  The history of theatre across the globe is full of writers, designers and actors that are homosexuals.  It wasn't all that long ago that people, even people of relative fame and in the relatively safe environment like the theatre community, could publicly declare themselves gay or lesbian.  It has been even more recently that the same people could publicly recognize their partners. 

Thankfully, for members of the theatre family in New York, at least, another barrier to full equality has been torn down, and just yesterday, same-sex marriage became legal in the state.  The Broadway community - as it does with so many national issues of concern like the AIDS epidemic and natural disaster relief  - has taken the lead on the front lines of the issue of gay rights.  One major group, Broadway Impact, had much to do with getting this legislation passed.  And they will continue to fight any and all issues of equality.

Broadway also knows how to celebrate and commemorate.  Four-time Tony-winner Audra McDonald will be singing at the very first ceremony, officiated by Mayor Bloomberg.  Then there is the always irreverent, timely and inspiring Avenue Q.  Rod and his rent boy lover, Ricky, announced their engagement and marriage on July 24.  They wanted to be among the very first to tie the know, and all before the 3PM matinee!

How fitting that Hair is back at the St. James Theatre and what has truly become a summer of love.  The cast, crew and Public Theatre (the producers of the show), along with Jujamcyn Theatres (which runs the St. James, and its leader, Jordan Roth, a gay man himself) will be sponsoring the marriage ceremony several same-sex couples following this evening's performance of Hair.

Here is a partial timeline of events leading up to tonight's celebration:

• 2009: Broadway Impact is formed in celebration of President Obama's inauguration and in response to the defeat of Proposition 8 in California by Broadway's Gavin Creel (Hair), Jenny Kanelos and Rory O'Malley (The Book of Mormon).  Since its inception, it has held many large scale rallies and has been in the forefront on distributing information throughout the theatre community.
• October 11, 2009: The National March for Equality in Washington, D.C. is held.  More than two dozen buses transported over 1,400 Broadway actors, technicians, crew, fans and supporters to the rally.  Producers of the Broadway show Hair cancelled performances to allow the entire production company to attend this historic event.
• May 10, 2011: NY Assemblyman Daniel O'Donnell introduces the same-sex marriage bill.
• June 15, 2011: The NY Assembly passes same-sex marriage bill for the fourth time, voting 80 - 63.
• June 24, 2011: The NY State Senate passes the same-sex marriage bill into law 33 - 29.  Governor Andrew Cuomo immediately signs the law, which will go into effect 30 days later.

• July 13, 2011: Rory O'Malley of Broadway Impact, The Public Theater's Oskar Eustis, and Jujamcyn Theatre President Jordan Roth, along with other Broadway dignitaries including Joel Grey, Will Swensen and the current cast of Hair announce that following the performance of the show on July 25, several members of the Broadway community will be married on the stage of the St. James Theatre. (Above)
• July 24, 2011: Same-sex marriage becomes legal in the state of New York.

• July 25, 2011: The Scottsboro Boys' Colman Domingo, an ordained minister with the Universal Life Church, conducts the marriage ceremony of several same-sex couples at the St. James Theatre.  Among the couples: Follies co-star Terri White and jewelry designer Donna Barnett (above), actor Ryan Dietz and playwright Josh Levine, and stage doorman John Raymond Barker and Jujamcyn Theatres usher Jared Pike.

Though the LGBT community has many more hurdles to climb over on the journey towards complete equality, let's all pause for a bit to reflect on how far we've come and to offer thanks and congratulations to everyone married today and in the future.


Jeff
2.331

TheatreScene: July 4 - 10

DON'T FORGET TO VOTE IN THE CURRENT POLL TO YOUR RIGHT!
LIKE WHAT YOU SEE?  BECOME A "FOLLOWER"!
WHAT YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED THIS WEEK:

• July 4: Born on the 4th of July
• July 5: REVIEW: next to normal (National Tour)
• July 6: Drawing Broadway 3: Justin "Squigs" Robertson
• July 7: BROADWAY BLOG: Day By Day: The Godspell Blog
• July 8: Broadway Games: Logic Puzzle #2
• July 9: Eating in NYC: Virgil's BBQ

 

TOPS AND BOTTOMS (June 27 - July 3)

• Top Gross: Wicked ($1.8M)
• Top Attendance: The Book of Mormon (102.4%)
• Bottom Gross: Master Class ($239K)
• Bottom Attendance: RAIN: The Beatles Experience on Broadway (63.2%)
• $1M Club: How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, The Lion King, The Book of Mormon, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, Wicked, Mary Poppins
• SRO Club: War Horse, The Lion King, The Book of Mormon, Anything Goes

NOW PREVIEWING ON BROADWAY:

• Hair: Previews: July 5; Opening: July 13; Closes: September 10

 

COMINGS AND GOINGS:
Shows:

• Hair returned to Broadway for its "Summer of Love" at the St. James Theatre, with the start of previews July 5th. 
• Master Class extended its run at the Manhattan Theatre Club by a week, through August 21.

Casting:

 

Adam Kantor and Nikka Graff Lanzarone with Charlotte d'Amboise

• Will Chase plays his final performance in Billy Elliot today, July 10, at the Imperial Theatre.
• Adam Kantor (Mark in the final cast of Broadway's RENT) joined the cast of off-Broadway's Avenue Q as Princeton/Rod on July 9.  The new revival of RENT begins performances just down the hall at New World Stages later this week.
• Nikki Graff Lanzarone began performances as Velma Kelly in Chicago on July 5th.
• Jane Houdyshell (Well, Wicked) and Mary Beth Peil (TV's The Good Wife, Women on the Verge) will be joining the cast of Follies when it opens this summer at the Marquis Theatre.

Milestones:

• Ghetto Klown closes today at the Lyceum Theatre, following 25 previews and 95 performances.
• The Normal Heart closes this evening at the Golden Theatre, following 10 previews and 85 performances.
• Broadway Barks 13 was held in Shubert Alley on July 9, featuring a who's who of Broadway stars, including founders Bernadette Peters and Mary Tyler Moore.

• How to Succed in Business Without Really Trying took a small break this week, cancelling the July 7, 8 and 9 (matinee only) performances to accomodate Daniel Radcliffe's promotional schedule for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows, Part II.
• Catch Me If You Can had its 100th performance on July 5.
• Anything Goes had its 100th performance on July 6.

BROADWAY VIDEO OF THE WEEK:

 

Broadway in Bryant Park, the annual series of summer concerts put on by the casts of current Broadway and off-Broadway shows, got started July 7th with the casts of Sister Act and Baby It's You! getting things started.  Here is "Take Me to Heaven" lead by Patina Miller's understudy Rashidra Scott and featuring the ensemble of nuns from Sister Act.  She has an AMAZING voice!

 

 

 

 

Comments? Leave one here, email me at jkstheatrescene@yahoo.com, or Tweet me!

Jeff
2.316

TheatreScene: October 25 - 31

WHAT YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED!

• REVIEW: Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson
• Broadway on TV: Channel 7's Broadway Backstage Fall Preview
• Glee: Best Revival of a Musical?
• At This Performance, The President Will Be Played By...
• Broadway Crossword by Blog #3: The New Season: The Answers
• POLL RESULTS: Rock-tober Tricks and Treats

LOOK FOR A NEW POLL TO VOTE ON STARTING TOMORROW!

OCTOBER 25
HISTORY:

• 1995: The "egregiously overlooked" company of Victor/Victoria opened at the Marquis Theatre.  Julie Andrews got the last laugh, though.  It ran just short of 2 years and spawned a popular DVD of the Broadway production.
• 2009: The ill-fated, but critically acclaimed revival of Brighton Beach Memoirs opened at the Nederlander Theatre, where it ran a sad 9 performances.  The repertory play that was supposed to be paired with it, Broadway Bound, never even began previews.

NEWS:

• Driving Miss Daisy makes its Broadway debut tonight at the Golden Theatre.

FAREWELL:

• Librettist Joseph Stein died today at the age of 98.  He won the Tony for Fiddler on the Roof and wrote the books for such musicals as Rags, Plain and Fancy, and Zorba.  His specialty seems to have been writing about the trials and tribulations of the immigrants and small towns.

TOPS AND BOTTOMS:

• Wicked had both the top attendance (99.9%) and gross ($1.57M) for the week (10/18 - 24/2010).
• Colin Quinn: Long Story Short with only 4 previews had the lowest gross at $60K.  Lombardi had the lowest gross for an 8 show week, with $139K.  A life in the Theatre had the lowest attendance for the week at 46.5%.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Adam Pascal, Actor (RENT, AIDA, Cabaret)

OCTOBER 26

HISTORY:

• 1932: Eugene O'Neill's play Mourning Becomes Electra makes a brief Broadway debut (150 performances) at the Guild Theatre.

• 2000: The Full Monty opens at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre, running an impressive 770 performances, though much eclipsed by that season's giant show, The Producers.

NEWS:

• Rain - A Tribute to the Beatles on Broadway opens tonight at the Neil Simon Theatre.
• Priscilla: Queen of the Desert opens tonight in Toronto.  Next stop, Broadway!

BEGINNINGS:

• The Pee Wee Herman Show begins its limited (and already extended) run at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Anthony Rapp, Actor (RENT, You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown)

OCTOBER 27

HISTORY:

• 1934: The Most Curious Opening of the Week:  Is it the title - Ted Shawn and His Male Dancers? or is it that it played for 1 performance at Carnegie Hall and is still considered a Broadway show?
• 1966:  Decades before Avenue Q, an all-puppet revival of, get this, The Threepenny Opera opened on this date at the Billy Rose Theatre, where it lasted 13 whole performances.

NEWS:

• Say goodbye to the GWB!  In the Heights, one of the best shows of the decade will be closing its bodega, hair salon and limo service for good on January 9, 2011.  The final two weeks - December 25 - January 9 - will mark the return of original star and author of the piece, Lin-Manuel Miranda, who will close the show he started and brought to Tony-winning glory.  When it closes, it will have played 1,185 performances.
• The Kennedy Center Follies keeps getting starrier and starrier: joining Bernadette Peters will be Linda Lavin, Jan Maxwell and Florence Lacey.  I can see this one getting bigger and bigger.  But let's keep it in DC, OK?  Ragtime...

Jane Connell (in red), Bea Arthur and

Angela Lansbury in Mame (1966)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Jane Connell, Actor (Mame, Dear World, Me and My Girl)

OCTOBER 28

HISTORY:

• 2001: The biggest flop (to date) of Andrew Lloyd Webber's on Broadway opened today at the Helen Hayes Theatre.  By Jeeves came and went with little fanfare or advertising.  And it couldn't fill that tiny theatre beyond 73 performances.
• 2004:  One of Roundabout Theatre Company's biggest hits opened today at the then new-ish American Airlines Theatre.  The stage debut of Twelve Angry Men kept extending and extending and even spawned a national tour, starring Richard Thomas and George Wendt.

NEWS:

Andy Mientus, Carrie Manolakos, Zak Resnick

• With Broadway as its goal, one of my favorite musicals of the new millennium, bare, was announced to be having a New York reading soon, directed by Stafford Arima, and starring Carrie Manolakos (Mamma Mia!, Wicked), Andy Mientus ( The First National Tour of Spring Awakening) and Zak Resnick (The Broadway Boys singing group).  This might be one of those show that Ben Brantley talked about today: small and best suited to off-Broadway.  No matter where it is, I will be there!  If you don't know the show, get the 2 CD cast recording (it comes with an awesome DVD about the genesis of the show) which features Jenna Leigh Green, James Snyder and Matt Doyle.
• Lesley Gore finally brought her party to Million Dollar Quartet as promised tonight.
• In tribute to the late Joseph Stein, Broadway marquees will be darkened at 8PM this evening.
• Mark your calendars, Addams Family fans!  March 21st marks the day that Roger Rees replaces Nathan Lane as Gomez.  Bebe Neuwirth has extended her contract.  Looks like the show might stick around a bit longer.  We shall see...

BEGINNINGS... CONTINUED:

• Leap of Faith looks to be opening in the fall of 2011 on Broadway!

ENDINGS:

• The Las Vegas company of Disney's The Lion King will be closing... at the end of December 2011!  A 14 month closing notice is very generous.

FAREWELL:

• The son of theatre legend Helen Hayes and playwright Charles MacArthur, James MacArthur passed away today.  Best known as Danno in the original Hawaii Five-O, he made his Broadway debut opposite Jane Fonda in Invitation to a March, which earned him a Theatre World Award.  He appeared in several Broadway shows including Under the Yum Yum Tree, Murder at the Howard Johnson's, and Barefoot in the Park.  I had the good fortune to see him in the National Tour of Arsenic and Old Lace, in which he played Mortimer opposite Jean Stapleton, Marion Ross, Jonathan Frid and Larry Storch.  (Above, Top Left) Mr. MacArthur was 72 years old.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Cleo Laine, Actor/Singer (The Mystery of Edwin Drood)

OCTOBER 29
HISTORY:

• 1853: The Oldest Opening of the Week: Shylock: A Jerusalem Hearty Joke, a musical based on Shakespeare, opened at Burton's Chambers Street Theatre.  I guess not many people got the joke... it last 4 performances.
• 1946: Noel Coward's Present Laughter opened at the Plymouth Theatre.  Starring Clifton Webb, it ran 158 performances.  The now-classic play has been revived several times.
• 1952: Same theatre, 6 years later, the quintessential suspense-thriller play, Dial "M" for Murder, opened and ran a very impressive - and deadly - 552 performances.

• 2009: A year ago, the critically acclaimed revival of Finian's Rainbow, starring Kate Baldwin and Cheyenne Jackson opened at the St. James Theatre.  Despite its critical approval, the show managed only 92 performances.  A wonderful cast recording was made.

NEWS:

• Oh, how the vultures descend!  Like chum to a shark, the ugly police sniffed out some trouble when it was revealed that dancer/actor Kevin Aubin (Wicked, Hot Feet) was injured while performing stunts at a group sales event for Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark.  It was reported everywhere like it was a shocking, never-seen-before on Broadway event.  For shame!  Thankfully, the community - who likes hits because it means jobs, and who support friends - rallied to its defense.  God bless the Wicked folks who reported that that little mishap was nothing compared to the near daily list of casualties at the Gershwin.  Seems a raked stage is hell on the skeletal system.  And I remember (showing my age, I know) when the big news back in the day was when a performance of Cats went by WITHOUT a replacement going in at intermission.  And let's not forget that during both lengthy runs of A Chorus Line, Paul gets injured fictionally, but that injuries were so likely with that show that physical therapists were backstage working on cramps and pulls every time an actor exited.  I guess my ultimate question about all of this is: all of these people who revel in these mishaps because they are against this show or that also purport to be die hard fans of Broadway.  If that is the case, why such joy at problems?  Why dismiss a show before a single person has seen it?  How many times to I need to read, "I refuse to see Spider-Man.  It is destroying Broadway!"  How so?  By creating hundreds of jobs?  They said the same thing about all of the Disney shows, none of which has run less than a year and has contributed millions to the Broadway economy, including thousands of jobs.  Yes, they, and everyone associated with Spider-Man, Women on the Verge and any other target de jour are rotten and deserving of our ire, not our praise.  BULLS@#T!
• On a more positive note: Kudos to the producers of The Scottsboro Boys for allowing 1,800 NYC students to see the show for FREE at several special matinees.  This important show has an important message and deserves to be seen by everyone.  How great that these kids will get the experience of a lifetime without spending a dime.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Rufus Sewell, Actor (Rock 'n' Roll)

OCTOBER 30 - WICKED DAY!
HISTORY:

• 2003: The Broadway phenomenon, Wicked, opened at the Gershwin Theatre.  As of today, the 7th Annual Wicked Day, the show has played 2,902 performances.

BEGINNINGS: 

• The Second National Tour of Billy Elliot, starring Tony winner Faith Prince, begins its angry dance today in Durham, North Carolina.

ENDINGS:

• After 4 and a half years, the London production of Avenue Q closes today.  It will begin a UK tour shortly.  Not a bad run for a very American musical.  I guess Internet porn and masturbation are international phenomena.  Small world, isn't it?

Before Glee, Matthew was a

Broadway Bares star!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Matthew Morrison, Actor (Hairspray, Light in the Piazza, South Pacific)

OCTOBER 31 - HAPPY HALLOWEEN
HISTORY:

• 1956: Auntie Mame starring Rosalind Russell opened at the Broadhurst Theatre, and ran 639 performances.  10 years later, the musical version would open at the Winter Garden, but not with Russell.  No, that role went to Angela Lansbury.
• 2002: Hollywood Arms, the autobiographical play based on the life of legendary Carol Burnett opened at the Cort Theatre, starring Linda Lavin and eventual Tony winner for her role, Michelle Pawk.  Written by Burnett's daughter, Carrie Hamilton, Ms. Burnett had to finish the play when her daughter passed away before the show opened.

NEWS:

• The Scottsboro Boys opens tonight at the Lyceum Theatre.

• Trick or Treat!  Kid's Night on Broadway 2010 happens tonight, with free tickets to shows for the kids and trick or treating at various theatre stage doors, plus a tour of Madame Tussauds Wax Museum.  Hosted by Adam Riegler, aka Pugsley in  The Addams Family, proceeds benefit UNICEF.  Does anyone else remember those orange boxes that we used to carry with our trick-or-treat plastic pumpkins, collecting change for sick kids all over the world?

ENDINGS:

• And this is a biggie in the "endings" category.  Almost 18 years ago, the Third National Touring Company of The Phantom of the Opera opened and began criss-crossing the country.  Known as "The Music Box Company," the others were "The Christine" and "The Raoul," it is the last production in the United States with the exception of the Broadway company.  Led by Tim Martin Gleason (who I saw in the tour as the most boring, wooden Raoul years ago), the production will close following tonight's evening performance.  And tonight's performance will be its 7,284th.  Impressive by any measure.  Congratulations to all.

(You didn't think I'd miss a chance to put

Patti LuPone in this week's TheatreScene, did you?)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Brian Stokes Mitchell, Actor (Kiss Me, Kate, Man of La Mancha, Ragtime, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown)

Comments?  Leave one here, email me at jkstheatrescene@yahoo.com, or Tweet me!
Jeff
2.61