Results tagged “Blogway Baby” from Blogway Baby

Here is a good solid outline of the upcoming fall season of Broadway shows from Playbill! Shout-out to Shrek, currently playing its pre-Broadway tryout right here, in Seattle, at the 5th Ave Theatre. So get your tickets now! Plus, I know there are going to be lots of new and sparkly shows opening on the Great White Way this year, but don't forget to buy your tickets and go see my favorite sparkly show, [title of show]!

I got this great comment from “Diane” on my Braniff post (Braniff Airlines: The World's Greatest Airline?), so I thought I’d share it with y’all:

WHAT A GREAT SURPRISE! I WAS SEARCHING FOR A POSSIBLE "ALUMNI" OF BRANIFF EMPLOYEES BUT FOUND YOUR SITE INSTEAD.

I BECAME A RESERVATIONIST IN KANSAS CITY FOR BRANIFF, TRAINED AT LOVE FIELD IN DALLAS FOR FIVE WEEKS BEGINNING JANUARY, 1967. WHAT A JOURNEY IT WAS. BEFORE COMPUTERS, WE USED A BUNKO-RAMO MACHINE IN AN OFFICE WITH NO WINDOWS NEXT DOOR TO TWA. A YEAR LATER WE MOVE TO A NEW BUILDING WITH IBM AND HAD TO LEARN TO USE THE NEW COMPUTER SYSTEM IN ONE WEEK.

OUR UNIFORMS WERE THE FUSHIA, POLYESTER, WITH A FRONT ZIPPER, MATCHING FUSHIA PANTYHOSE & THE FAMOUS PUCCI SCARF. AND THEY WERE MINIS.

WHEN OUR ROUTE TO HONOLULU WAS APPROVED, I HAD THE UNBELIEVABLE EXPERIENCE OF FLYING FIRST CLASS IN A 747. SHERATON GAVE EMPOYEES A WEEK'S FREE STAY AND I THINK MY FLIGHT PASS WAS $30.00 OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.

MY GIRLFRIEND AND I USE TO TRADE DAYS SO WE COULD GET THE SAME FOUR DAYS OFF AND FLY TO ALCAPULCO WITH MAYBE $40.00 EACH FOR EXPENSES. SOMETIMES WE'D BRING OUR KIDS WITH US. FUN! FUN! FUN!

YOUR ARTICLE HAS REALLY BROUGHT BACK GREAT MEMORIES. IT WAS THE BEST OF TIMES AT THE WORST OF TIMES. THE LAST TRIP I TOOK WAS WITH MY SON, MOTHER AND BROTHER. WE HAD JUST ARRIVED IN DENVER FROM COLORADO SPRINGS WITH 3 DAYS OF ADVENTURES AHEAD OF US. THE NEXT MORNING WE WOKE UP TO THE NEWS THAT BOBBY KENNEDY HAD BEEN SHOT AND KILLED. WE FLEW BACK HOME TO KANSAS CITY THAT DAY.

What a time to fly!

Or, Goodbye Eddie Bauer, Hello Dolly!

On Monday, August 25, I was lucky enough to be invited to the opening celebration for The 5th Avenue Theatre’s new downstairs education and rehearsal space, which has been officially named “The Marilyn Sheldon Rehearsal and Education Center”. Marilyn Sheldon (second bio) is the Managing Director, and the heart and soul of The 5th Avenue Theatre. For those "in the know," it's called DAT5!

From the evening’s keepsake program:

“Because The 5th Avenue Theatre was constructed in the 1920s to be a vaudeville house and was later converted into a motion picture theatre, there weren’t backstage needs and technical space wasn’t required. As a result, backstage at The 5th Avenue lacks virtually all of the trappings of more modern musical theater venues.

The Board of Directors, under the leadership of Norman B. Rice, authorized a plan to consolidate all production-related activities, known as Downstairs at The 5th. This plan includes a full-sized mainstage rehearsal hall, education center, maintenance building and inventory facility.

Downstairs at The 5th makes the overall operation more efficient, produces a substantial yearly cost savings, and provides a more focused work environment, allowing us to fully invest in the artistic product.”


I’ll drink to that! The 5th Avenue has used Theatre Puget Sound (TPS) over at the Seattle Center for rehearsing all their shows. Don’t get me wrong, TPS is great, but there was always the problem of never having a room big enough to match the size of the actual stage, so they always had to reblock everything once they got to the theatre!

And I can speak with some authority that the heating and cooling systems in TPS are due for an overhaul!

When Eddie Bauer moved out of their basement space, The 5th Avenue Theatre suddenly had a viable option to solve their logistical nightmares! After a lead donation by Sheryl and Peter Neupert of $1.22 million, the renovations were underway!

The opening celebration was so much fun! Not only was it so exciting to finally see the space finished (love the big “5th” on the glass doors facing the food court!) but there was yummy nibbles and of course, a wonderful musical performance. Martin Charnin’s great song “Upstairs at O’Neills” was given new lyrics by Rich Grey and became “Downstairs at the 5th”. With Resident Musical Director Ian Eisendrath on piano, Billie Willdrick, Chad Jennings, Carol Swarbrick and Eric Polani Jensen sang up a storm. Then Patti Cohenour sang ‘Take Care of This House” from the show 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

All in all, a wonderful celebration of a great space. I’m looking forward to doing the workshop of THE MERCER GIRLS there in September!

Or, Is this thing on?

BlogwayBaby is back baby! For all of you wondering where heck I've been I apologize. I moved from Toronto to Seattle this summer with the whole fam damily, and it consumed my every waking moment (other than when I saw the pre-Broadway tryouts of YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN and LONE STAR LOVE, but more on those shows later). On top of it all I sprained my ankle the day the truck arrived at our new place. No, I wasn't carrying a sofa upstairs on my own - I stepped off a curb looking up when I should have been looking down. I really have to work on that whole walking-and-chewing-gum-at-the-same-time thing.

So now that the kids are back at school, I've learned all the state capitals, my ankle is healing, and I don't have to travel from Starbucks to Starbucks like a gypsy to get my internet access, Blogwaybaby is back.

I'm blown away by the quantity and quality of theatre out here in the Pacific Northwest. They like it, they really like it! But seriously, theatre (or should I say, theater) is just a regular part of life here. It's amazing! I'm looking forward to seeing and being involved in lots of truly great theatre.

And on top of all of that, I can buy wine and beer at the drugstore!

I'm intrigued!

I got an email from my friend Randall David Cook, who wrote SAKE WITH THE HAIKU GEISHA (see my previous post ), who has written a new play called FATE'S IMAGINATION which is being produced by Gotham Stage Company.

Here is the info from the email:

Hello there!

I'm sending this notice out later than I had intended, but I wanted to let you know about the new play I have opening Off-Broadway. It's a sexual and political drama titled "Fate's Imagination," and previews start this Friday (May 25th) and the show opens officially next Thursday (May 31st). Right now the play is scheduled to run through June 17th (with a possible extension to June 30th).

The cast is great, the director's done a wonderful job, and the designers are first-rate. (The sound designer, in fact, won an Obie two nights ago!)

This play is quite a departure from "Sake with the Haiku Geisha," and I'm very excited to be presenting such different work to the theater-going community. I feel very fortunate to be having my second Off-Broadway show open just a year after the first, and one reason that is happening is because so many of you, my friends and supporters, came to see the show and talked about it with your friends. Word-of-mouth helped sell out the last week of the run of "Haiku Geisha," and once again I am hoping that the play being presented will be worthy of discussion.

Below is all the basic information about the play, but I'd like to specifically invite you to two important performances next week: Tuesday, May 29th and Wednesday, May 30th. Those nights are critics' nights, so it's imperative to have a decent-sized house so reviewers can see and feel how an audience responds to a work. So if you can come next week on one of those two performances, please do so!

At the end of this e-mail I've provided $20 discount codes for all preview performances and $30 for all tickets thereafter. A limited number of $45 tickets are also being sold for opening night, and those tickets include invitations to the opening-night party for cast and crew and friends.

Many, many thanks! Hope to see you at the theater!

Much affection,

Randall David Cook

PS. The play contains strong sexual situations and nudity, so better not to bring any child who hasn't at least reached puberty!

Gotham Stage Company presents
The World Premiere of

FATE'S IMAGINATION

A limited engagement running May 25-June 17

*****

LILAH: I'm old enough to be your mother.


BROCK: I know.



LILAH: Does that turn you on?

*****


A Presidential candidate on the verge of making history…
 A young reporter on a path of discovery…
 And a teacher desperate to escape from self-imposed isolation


Three unique individuals, three different paths, one point of intersection


Last year Gotham Stage Company teamed up with playwright Randall David Cook for its inaugural production, "Sake with the Haiku Geisha," resulting in a bold production embraced by audiences and critics alike. 

Now Gotham is back Off-Broadway with another daring play by Cook. A searing sexual and political drama, "Fate's Imagination" is directed by Hayley Finn. 

The talented cast includes: Donna Mitchell ("Mona Lisa Smile", "Syriana", "Pollock", "The Ice Storm"), Elizabeth Norment ("A Touch of the Poet" and "Plenty" on Broadway, last year's Off-Broadway critical darling "Dead City") and Jed Orlemann (Jack O'Brien's Tony-winning "Henry IV" at Lincoln Center and "The Normal Heart" at the Public).


--Please note: This play contain strong sexual situations and nudity.--

Where: 
The Players Theatre
115 MacDougal Street
New York, NY 10012
(West side of MacDougal Street, between West 3rd Street and Minetta Lane)


By subway:
Closest subway: A, B, C, D, E, F, Q to West 4th Street. Walk south on 6th
Avenue to West 3rd Street, then east to MacDougal Street, then south to the
theatre.


Showtimes:
Tuesday-Saturday at 8:00 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday matinees at 3:00 p.m.



Running time:
90 minutes, no intermission



To purchase tickets:
Please call 212-352-3101 or visit www.gothamstage.org



Discount codes and specials:
Preview week (May 25-May 30): use GSC1 for $20 tickets
Opening night (May 31): $45, includes invitation to opening night party
June 1-June 17: use RDC01 for $30 tickets to any show

Congrats Randolph and Break a leg!

Unlike the New York Musical Theatre Festival, the Toronto Fringe Festival is not jury selected. It is done by chance, by lottery. There's always tons of variety, some great, some not so great. But hey, for $10, who's complaining? The Toronto Fringe Festival runs July 6-17, 2005.

Unfortunately, lady luck didn't smile upon me and I didn't get picked for a spot in the Fringe, but two of my musical theatre associates did...

Brock Simpson, a fellow member of the ACLCL is producing his show at the Fringe this year. Here's the info he sent to me:

Brockspeare Productions Presents
LUST'S LABOUR'S LOST: A ROCK MUSICAL
World Premiere at Toronto Fringe!

TARRAGON THEATRE MAINSPACE, 30 Bridgman Avenue, Toronto

Thurs, July 7 at 8:15pm
Fri, July 8 at 1:30pm
Sun, July 10 at 5:45pm
Mon, July 11 at 6:15pm
Tues, July 12 at 9:45pm
Fri, July 15 at 10:30pm
Sun, July 17 at 3:15pm

Ticket Prices: $10. For More Info Call the Fringe Hotline at 416.966.1062
or www.fringetoronto.com

I also got the following message from Michael Coady who played Sam Crenshaw in the 2004 workshop of Plane Crazy at the Poor Alex. He is appearing in a musical in the Fringe:

OZ RECALLED: A Musical Comedy about a Middle-aged Dorothy

directed by Timothy French
written by Jesse Stewart
choreography by Marc Kimelman
assistant directed by Elenna Mosoff

featuring Sharron Matthews

Also featuring: James Quigley, Michael Coady, Jesse Stewart, Lena Palermo, Peter Windrem, Sedina Fiati, Labe Kagan, Julia Harper, Laura Azahar, Catherine Braund, Patty Burchell, Julia Feldman, Allan Gillespie, Lindsay Kramer, Robert Laughton, Rob Sutherland

VENUE: The Walmer Centre Theatre
in the Walmer Road Church, 188 Lowther Ave.

Visit Website for map, etc. www.OzRecalled.com

SHOW SCHEDULE: (90 minute runtime)
Wednesday July 6 @ 8:00pm
Thursday July 7 @ 8:00pm
Friday July 8 @ 8:00pm
Saturday July 9 @ 4:00pm
Wednesday July 13 @ 8:00pm
Thursday July 14 @ 8:00pm
Friday July 15 @ 8:00pm
Saturday July 16 @ 4:00pm
Tickets: $10

Whatever happened to Dorothy after her first turn through Oz? What became of her friends in the sometimes merry -- sometimes scary Land of Oz? Would a mid-life crisis, combined with being electrocuted on a 'B' movie-set, be a good time for Dorothy to check-in with Oz again? And what's a big Broadway style dance-musical, with live band, doing in the Fringe Festival anyway?

"A funny, raucous, exuberant romp with clever dance numbers and catchy melodies." -- Kingston Whig Standard

Break a leg guys!

Suzy Conn turns 29...yet again!

To quote the infamous Holly Banks"...and that's why I'll stay 29 'til I die..."

Here I am in New York City, working on my musical...is there a better way to spend your birthday? Well, I guess if my family were here it would be better, but it's pretty darn good! And my friend (and New York producer on Plane Crazy) just treated me to a lovely continental breakfast (which included two much-needed Americanos). Now it's off to Midtown for more meetings...

OK: It's OFFICIAL. Here are the dates forPlane Crazy's fabulous New York debut at theNew York Musical Theatre Festival.

We'll be appearing atThe Beckett, which is located in Midtown as part of the Theatre Row complex on 42nd Street. It's a great theater, and it will be a great venue for Plane Crazy. The new Beckett Theater is located on the lower level of the Theatre Row complex. Housing 99 seats, this intimate space features fixed, plush seating as well as heat and air conditoning. Although it has the same name, this is not the same old Beckett Theater. This brand new, state-of-the-art theater has a wide stage and great sightlines in every part of the house.

Here are the details:

The Beckett
410 West 42nd Street
South side of West 42nd Street, between 9th & Dyer Avenues.

Directions: Closest subway: A, C, E to 42nd Street. Walk west on 42nd Street to the theatre.

Performance times are:

Thursday, September 15 at 8:00 pm
Saturday, September 17 at 4:30 pm and 8:00 pm
Wednesday, September 21 at 1:00 pm
Friday, September 23 at 4:30 pm
Sunday, September 25 at 1:00 pm

Tickets will go fast. Many of last year's shows sold out within days of the Festival's opening. In fact, Festival-wide, 85% of all tickets were sold! Since we expect Plane Crazy to sell out quickly, you might want to consider becoming a member of NYMF to guarantee a seat at Plane Crazy and all of your favorite shows.

When you become a member you will be the first to have access to NYMF '05 passes and tickets.

Passes will go on sale to members only on August 1st before being made available to the public on August 15th.

Individual tickets will go on sale September 1st.

Only members can take advantage of this opportunity so click here to join!

To read more about tickets to NYMF 2005, you can click here.

A loyal Blogway Baby reader asked me to suggest some books on writing and producing musicals. There are a million books out there and lots of ways of going about writing new musicals, but I thought I'd give a sampler of some of the books I've read along the way.

First off, listen to as many cast recordings, read as many librettos, and see as many shows on stage as you possibly can. I am a firm believer in learning through osmosis. Learn what you like and what you don't like and why. That will help guide you when start writing.

Secondly, if possible, find someone with whom you can collaborate. I know I wrote the book/music/lyrics to Plane Crazy, but every book you pick up will tell you to avoid that at all costs. I agree. Musicals are collaborative by nature so you can't avoid it, so get a good relationship going early. Even if its just someone to give you pep talks now and then and talk you down off the ledge!

Thirdly, find a topic/story/idea (preferably original or in the public domain!) that you really care about and have a great depth of interest in. This is a long, long process and you can't afford to get sick of your own material early on!

Fourthly (fourthly?) get into a musical theater writing program. BMI holds one in New York, Theatre Building Chicago holds one in Chicago, and more and more colleges and universities are offering workshop writing programs. Educate yourself.

Finally, be prepared to write, write, and rewrite. 'Nuff said.

Here are some of my fav books (inspiring and educational) that I've read (and re-read) along the way:

The Making of Series: The Great Broadway Musicals (My Fair Lady, Gypsy,West Side Story, Cabaret, Guys and Dolls). These books by Keith Garebian are golden. Not only are they full of great insider anecdotes and hilarious stories, they also show you firsthand that musicals are an evolutionary art and "classics" don't happen overnight. As they say, plays with music go into rehearsal and musicals come out of rehearsal.

Everything Was Possible: The Birth of the Musical Follies by Ted Chain. This is about the making of Sondheim's Follies and is considered a must-read.

Making Musicals: An Informal Introduction to the World of Musical Theatreby Tom Jones. This is by the lyricist/librettist of The Fantasticks, and is charming, funny, and very accessible for a beginner.

Also, Lehman Engel has a few on both writing and producing. Browse bookstores (Theatrebooks in Toronto is fab!), go online and just start reading! I always like to read as many as I can so I can start to see the similarities and universalities and weed out the personal biases or angles.

Most of all, enjoy what you are doing! Remember, "there ain't nothin' like a musical...nothin' in the world!"

Hey this sounds like fun! A union party! From an e-mail I received today:

Come out and support the Blue Man Boycott! Sunday, June 19, 5 pm, Panasonic Theatre on Yonge Street (south of Bloor at St. Mary)

Canadian Actors Equity, Toronto Musicians and IATSE need our help. The New York based Blue Man Group refuses to operate under the collective agreements of our sisters and brothers in the theatre community. Please come out to the opening night information picket and support the fight for fair wages and decent working conditions. The event will feature live entertainment and special guests. For more information on the Blue Man boycott go to www.bluemanboycott.com

Seriously, this is completely out-of-control. How could Blue Man Group let this get so out-of-hand? Check out the now quite amusing Blue Man Boycott site...I'm especially amused by the "Anti-Blue Man Experience" show that is going to happen Sunday, June 19 at 5:00 pm OPPOSITE THE PANASONIC THEATRE and featuring live entertainment and special guests. And Blue Man Group actually tried to quash this, which is so unbelievably naive it makes my teeth hurt. Check out this press release from the Blue Man Boycott site:

Sunday on Yonge Street: "Anti-Blue Man Experience" opening night rally to go ahead despite legal challenges by Blue Man Group

A major Yonge Street rally sponsored by the Blue Man Boycott Coalition will go ahead this Sunday, June 19, at 5:00 p.m. despite efforts by Blue Man Productions Inc. to legally quash it. A permit to hold the event on Yonge St. near the Panasonic Theatre has been issued by Toronto police.

"The Anti-Blue Man Experience" will coincide with the official premiere performance of the Toronto production of Blue Man Group being held at the Panasonic Theatre. The event will feature live musical entertainment headlined by the all-female all-star band, Blue(s) Woman Group, along with several special guests from the Canadian performing arts and political communities.

Last Thursday, Blue Man Productions Inc. applied to the Ontario Labour Relations Board for an injunction against the June 19 event. It asked the board to forbid picketing activity anywhere within two city blocks from the theatre, in all directions. A consultation on the application has been called by OLRB Chair Kevin Whitaker for Friday.

"We have the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms on our side despite Blue Man's efforts to silence us," says Susan Wallace, Executive Director of Canadian Actors' Equity Association (CAEA), one of the Coalition partners. The Toronto Musicians' Association (TMA) and Locals 58 and 822 of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) are the other partners.

"So besides this event being about the growing boycott of this rogue production, it is now also a celebration of the Charter, which turns 23 this year. It's great to be Canadian."

EVENT: The Anti-Blue Man Experience
DATE: Sunday, June 19, 2005
TIME: 5:00 - 7:00 p.m.
PLACE: Yonge & St. Mary (south of Bloor)

For more information or to arrange interviews with spokespersons for the Coalition, contact: Victoria Lord - 416.484.9047 x 224 or 647.519.8577. Additional contact: Bill Reno - 416.223.7366

Honestly, this has been so incompetently handled by Blue Man Group that SOMEONE SHOULD BE FIRED...and a sacrificial lamb may not be a bad strategy at this point...

From this article in Playbill, four of the season's 11 new Broadway musicals were scored by songwriters making their Broadway debuts. It is so great to see new writers being welcomed on Broadway. As a writer myself (Plane Crazy) it holds out great hope that there is room for new voices and new styles.

My favorite line comes from Eric Idle, co-author of Spamalot, who describes the musical's success as follows: "It was a process, not a miracle," Idle says of the show's evolution. "Every day you move a little pebble."

How true that is...

"The Song That Goes Like This" may be delighting Spamalot audiences, but its songwriters, Eric Idle and John DuPrez, are actually part of something which, for champions of the musical theatre, is even more joyous. Four of the season's 11 new Broadway musicals were scored by songwriters making their Broadway debuts; seven songwriters in all. Joining Idle and DuPrez are Jason Howland and Mindi Dickstein of the recently closed Little Women, Barri McPherson and Mark Schoenfeld of Brooklyn, and 2005 Tony Award winner Adam Guettel of The Light in the Piazza.

Two other shows are second efforts, and a further two are musicals compiled from pop songbooks, also representing a kind of Broadway debut.

Here are the stories of the first-timers' creative collaborations, and their first taste of being produced on Broadway.

==

LITTLE WOMEN
Music by Jason Howland
Lyrics by Mindi Dickstein

Akin to his Broadway debut, Jason Howland's first musical score was adapting a classic. "In the eighth grade," he said, smiling. "Jack & the Beanstalk." The first song? "Jackie Can You Hear Me?," Howland says, laughing, "...in the key of F."

And while Mindi Dickstein wouldn't begin writing lyrics until adulthood, "I wrote my first play in the fourth grade," she proudly declares, "The Case of the Missing Jewels."

Joking aside, Howland and Dickstein's early works actually illustrate a dramaturgical instinct each brought to their five years composing Little Women -- a dedication to character and narrative drive. "It's all about telling a great story," Howland insists, "while fully integrating it with music. That's at the heart of the experience which I gained as a music director on Broadway for ten years."

In fact, Howland says his role as conductor and/or musical director of Jekyll & Hyde, Les Misérables and Taboo, among others, was invaluable to understanding how to make Louisa May Alcott's novel sing. For Dickstein, who received her MFA from NYU's Musical Theater Writing Program, collaborating with Howland was "a joyous journey." Further finessing Dickstein's abilities as a lyricist was the show's exceptional cast. "Having people like Maureen McGovern and Sutton Foster -- with these incredible voices -- didn't change the nature of what we were writing, but it certainly made it more specific."

Speaking of specific, Dickstein admits one of her favorite moments of the Little Women experience occurred on opening night. "I was sitting in the fifth row center, and Sutton is singing 'Astonishing.' And suddenly I hear my mother's voice -- who'd first heard the song at a reading and told me afterwards, 'it's you at 16!' -- and I just started bawling. Cause here was this wonderful actress singing this song I wrote that expressed the essence of who I was at that age. And I thought, here I am now, a grown-up person -- realizing that dream."

==

BROOKLYN, THE MUSICAL
Music and Lyrics by Mark Schoenfeld & Barri McPherson

After years of pitching a film concept of "Brooklyn to Hollywood," creators Mark Schoenfeld and Barri McPherson found themselves broke, bitter and back on the streets of New York. Soothing their Tinseltown wounds, the duo sat in Central Park, boom box in tow, singing Brooklyn's songs to passersby. Like a showbiz fairy tale, one of those who stopped was an aspiring theatre producer. "Scott Prisand heard us there," recalls McPherson, referring to the man who'd eventually become one of Brooklyn's lead producers. "He said, this is a Broadway musical!"

Confessing that "my dream was to write and sing in any genre I could find," the willowy McPherson says, "where ever it took me, I was willing to go." Via Prisand, it took the team -- who'd been writing partners since 1991 -- to "the best thing in the world that could've happened to us," she says: Jeff Calhoun.

Forever grateful to the director/choreographer's guidance, Schoenfeld describes their segue from street singers to Broadway composers. "Jeff would mold what he saw as the lyric of the song, and John McDaniel was excellent with the arrangements because he knew what was right for Broadway. Now that we're here," Schoenfeld chuckles, "we don't want to leave!" And despite a birth-by-fire reception from critics, the duo agree they'd do it again in a second. "The riches you get out of Broadway," Schoenfeld says, "is when people come over to you at the end of the show. They get its humanity, its spirituality. That's the currency Barri and I go home with. It's the greatest part of the whole process. I can't even imagine why other writers are not in the theatre enjoying that!"

==

THE LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA
Music and Lyrics by Adam Guettel

"I had a love song that had no title," says Adam Guettel of a composition he'd written for his best friend's wedding in the late nineties. "And that music just kept circling around me. I knew I wanted to write more music that could express the sound of being in love -- and of losing love, which is pretty much the same sound. So I started looking for a vessel for a love story, and came upon The Light in the Piazza."

Based on the same-titled 1959 novella by Elizabeth Spencer, the lushly romantic musical still holds the seed of Guettel's original inspiration, as the show's title song is the music from that wedding composition. Five years, three book writers, two workshops and two regional productions later, Piazza opened at Lincoln Center this spring. "And we're very lucky to be here," says the Yale graduate of his show's producing organization. After good reviews at the Goodman, Guettel recalls a slew of New York producers "came flooding into Chicago saying, 'We should take this to Broadway!' And I thought, 'Wow, wouldn't that be wonderful?' Interestingly," he says with a sly laugh, "they all sort of dropped away. But Lincoln Center pulled through."

Like with Guettel's 1996 break-out musical Floyd Collins at Playwrights Horizons, "because of the way you get threaded through the process at a not-for-profit," says the composer of his experience with developing Piazza, "it's so much more wholesome for the storytelling, for the growth of the score -- you're really able to maintain its singularity, its signature, its thumbprint. You're not always being asked to amp everything up, 'Bigger! Faster! Funnier!'"

As for making his Broadway debut, Guettel says, "in the most excited and positive way," he laughs, "I'm freaking out. I guess because, for my entire adult life, it's something I've hoped to achieve. And so I'm not able to forget, in a titular sense, that I have achieved that goal."

Guettel also has family history to help him through. His mother, composer Mary Rodgers, made her Broadway debut with Once Upon a Mattress in 1959, and his grandfather, Richard Rodgers, took his first Broadway bow with Poor Little Ritz Girl in 1920.

==

MONTY PYTHON'S SPAMALOT
Lyrics by Eric Idle
Music by Eric Idle & John Du Prez

"There's no solid set piece," says Eric Idle of his manner of collaboration with John Du Prez. "We've worked together so long we can do just about anything." Indeed, since meeting on the 1978 movie "Monty Python's Life With Brian," their talents have fueled more than two decades worth of Python films, TV programs, LPs and live concert shows. Was Broadway inevitable? "It was a process, not a miracle," Idle says of the show's evolution. "Every day you move a little pebble."

Three years, 12 drafts and 40 songs later, Idle says he believes their ability to straddle the cult material with the musical theatre structure rested in the score. "If you've got a wasp-ish lyric," Idle explains, "and you put a wonderful melody to it, you've got two things happening at once: The sentiment and the sentiment being mocked at the same time." In short, he says, "you get to an emotion, while taking all the laughs en route."

The latter, says Du Prez, is what differentiates their work from the satires of Gerald Alessandrini. "To set the record straight," Du Prez says, "I had never seen or heard of Forbidden Broadway until it appeared in the [pre-Broadway] Chicago reviews in December 2004. I had to ask what it was. Please note that Python has been spoofing songs since at least 1969."

Meanwhile, both Du Prez and Idle are honored to be making their Broadway songwriting debuts. "One of my proudest moments," Du Prez recalls, "was when the doorman of my hotel said, 'Thank you for coming to Broadway, we need good new work to keep us employed!'"

As for writing another show -- or perhaps performing in one, as Idle has done on tour -- "I'd love to," Idle admits. "But since Spamalot kept me on the road the past six months, I can't be absentee-dad any more. There's no total rush," Idle ponders, with a laugh. "'Cause the great thing about Broadway is you can be older on it."

With 11 new musicals having opened on Broadway in the 2004-05 season, it has been a boom year for the art form. Of course, any time new works are offered by Stephen Sondheim, Frank Wildhorn and William Finn there is reason for excitement. Also extremely welcome back are David Yazbek, making a timely return with Dirty Rotten Scoundrels after his Tony-nominated debut four years ago with The Full Monty, alongside the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang brothers, Richard M. and Robert B. Sherman -- whose previous Broadway score premiered in the Tony-nominated 1974 musical, Over Here!. Add to the mix a couple of Top-40 songbook shows featuring tunes made famous by The Beach Boys and "The King," and -- as Fats Waller once said -- this joint is jumpin'.

OK, that's enough on the Tonys...for now...

Back to my latest favorite obsession:My Fur Lady. I now have a couple of albums whisking my way, I can't wait to hear it and give everyone my feedback. I'm also looking forward to re-aquainting myself with my turntable...I hope it still remembers how to turn!

A Blogway Babyreader also sent methis link to more material on My Fur Lady in the McGill Archives. Good for the McGill Archives...it's important to preserve this kind of stuff.

I saw Sweet Charity Thursday night in the Herschfeld Theatre (where I had previously seen and lovedWonderful Town with Donna Murphy).

And, as faithful Blogway Baby readers know, I've been following the epic saga of this revival -- from the excitement to the tragedy to the disappointment back to the excitement in this series of posts:

January 31: Valentines Day...a little late!

March 14: Sweet Charity's Christina Applegate Breaks Her Foot...

March 15: A Bit Worse Than We Thought...

March 23: I'm So Excited for Charlotte d'Amboise

March 26: Oh, For Crying Out Loud, I Really Wanted To See This...

March 30: I'm Officially Confused: Sweet Charity Is Coming to Broadway After All...

April 12: BROADWAY TICKETS: Sweet Charity

May 23: Neil Simon OKs Product Placement in Sweet Charity

I've heard tales of the creative team getting calls as they got off the plane from Chicago that the star had broken her foot and that the show wouldn't make it to Broadway.

I've heard tales of a tenacious and determined Christina Applegate wrestling the infamous Weisslers to the ground ("pinned ya!"). I've also read reviews which says although the score is brilliant, the book doesn't hold up after all this time.

I'm not even involved, and I found just following the tortured journey of this musical to the Great White Way exhausting...

Well I am happy to report that Sweet Charity was worth the wait! I LOVED IT!

Such great energy, such amazing music and I loved the book. I felt that it held up just fine, thank you.

In fact, the book is more believable than the movie. It's funny, touching, and it has tons of heart. Denis O'Hare as Oscar Lindquist is fabulous. His character appears so much more human and flawed, and less cruel than his movie counterpart. And the scene in the elevator is high-liarious!

My favorite numbers are the "Rich Man's Frug" and "The Rhythm of Life". The color, the costumes, the sets, and the dancing have so much energy.

Christina is great. She has a great stage presence and is uniquely compelling to watch. I know this sounds trite, but she really exudes that elusive "star quality".

She has excellent comic timing (but we knew that already). The scene where she is stuck in Vittorio's closet is brilliantly handled by Miss Applegate and Paul Schoeffler. And it's unbelievable that she is dancing up a storm with a broken (but healed?) foot. Now that's a super trouper!

The kids thought it was pretty cool that the voice of Pumba (Ernie Sabella) was singing "I Love To Cry At Weddings"!

Hey, I suddenly got a craving for some Gran Centenario tequila...wonder why?

I totally want to see it again! Hmm...but not tonight, I have to go to the Tonys! I'll be rooting for Sweet Charity in Best Musical Revival, Christina Applegate for Best Actress (Musical), and Wayne Cilento for Best Choreography.

Hmm, this might be a better expression of what I was ranting about last night regarding Equity membership and this whole Blue Man Group dust-up.

Elisa C weighs in nicely with some examples of why it's offensive to describe unionized actors as "greedy", as Paul Denton at Ravishing Light so ignorantly proposed the other day.

Elisa comes from an honest space, since she was a working actor for a time. She knows what she's talking about!

And just so everyone knows: I don't belong to Equity because I'm not an actor. I hire actors: And I always prefer to hire union because of their higher level of professionalism and training.

Here's a highlight from Elisa C's post:

When I lived in New York there were plenty of actors who I thought of as successful. Actors doing Shakespeare in the Park with Joe Papp. Actors in long-running, stable Off-Broadway shows. Those actors all had "real" jobs too to make ends meet. Why? Because the first tier of Equity contract that actually provides a living wage is probably the Broadway Chorus contract and above. The Off-Broadway contract won't do it. The Special Production contract won't do it. Many regional and summer stock contracts don't really do it. Actors who make a ton of money? They represent the very tip-top <1% crowd. The vast majority of actors make bupkes. But they pay their dues (yes, the actors pay union dues, and pay a percentage of income over a certain threshold too) and take their Equity contracts that make bupkes...why?

Because the non-union contracts are even worse. And they don't pay into even the possibility of a pension or health plan. And they don't have any rules to prevent them from working you 4 straight hours without even a 10 minute break. And they don't put any reserve aside so they're able to give severance (or airfare home if out on tour) if a show closes early. And they have no channel by which a cast member can complain about unsafe conditions and actually have some leverage. [If you don't think it happens, it does. Years ago at AMT SJ a show was delayed because the Equity members got together and expressed their fear for their lives over some unstable set machinery!]

According toRavishing Light:

I don't quite see how this is "blinking" on the part of the Blue Man Group, having taken out a full-page ad in the Globe & Mail this past Saturday, defending the use of non-union labour in their Toronto production.

I've never found the Blue Man Group particularly compelling - their presence in the running gags of Arrested Development aside - but if I was in Toronto and had the opportunity, I'd buy a ticket purely because they're showing some backbone in standing up against union goons, concerned only with their own sinecures and claims of entitlement. If the fact that the cost of union dues isn't necessarily being passed on to the end consumer means tickets might be a few dollars cheaper, that's a bonus.

Suzy Conn of Blogway Baby notes - pretty glibly, I think - "Methinks they've left out a few important details, which is the answer to the question: 'Why they can't use Equity members?'" I would suggest there's a fairly straightforward reason for the BMG's actions spelled out in the third paragraph of their open letter

...

If union members are individually best qualified for a job, great; if not, they'll hire non-union technicians and support staff. Union labour is not sacred; membership is often not to an individual's benefit, nor is the lack of union membership a guarantee of poor treatment. The one union job I've had, I was paid (and treated) worse than when working for Wal-Mart. I can understand precisely where the Blue Man Group is coming from: they're railing against the supposition that there's something inherently immoral or shameful about refusing to submit to the demands of those soak-the-rich socialists who tend to rise to union leadership positions, no matter the trade. Good on 'em.

OK, even though I'm over my eyeballs with stuff this week, I'm compelled to respond.

And if you think that you're the first person to call me glib, you'll have to get in line, honey.

First of all, since you obviously don't know anything about the structure of this business and unions, I can totally understand where you might be misled in your musings.

First of all, employers don't pay union dues. Union members pay union dues. Employers pay salaries. And I'm sure you didn't really mean that getting employers to pass on the savings of cheap labor to the customer (for example, say, our enjoyment of cheap clothes made by 10-year olds in Third World countries) is always inherently a good thing. Convenient, practical, and a reality, perhaps, but certainly nothing I would take a righteous stand on.

But that assumes that Equity scale is a lot of money, which it isn't. I made more right out of college picking my nose as a brand assistant at Procter & Gamble than most Equity performers do after 25 years in the business!

There is an imbalance of power in the entertainment business. What other business can you be equally skilled as another potential employee and lose the job because you're not pretty enough, or if they don't like the sound of your voice, or if you just don't "look right"? And it's perfectly legal! What about the extras in a film who are not union and are treated like cattle and work in horrible conditions?

I understand producers are under time and budget pressures, but checks and balances need to keep the situation from spiralling out of control.

Working conditions are often the issue, not salary, and in the heat of a production it is easy to let standards drop until they become dangerous. For example, during All Shook Up in the Chicago tryouts, the catwalks and bridges the cast had to dance across in high heels were too slanted to be safe. Without a union, the actors have no representation and could break an ankle (or worse) and then they are out of a job, perhaps forever.

I guess you could make the argument that if you don't like the conditions, find another line of work. But performers give their all and love what they do, and if they stopped acting we would all suffer in the long run.

Acting gigs can be few and far between and there isn't any "seniority" system in Equity.

As for the quality issue, it is my experience and the experience of others in the business who work with actors, that generally speaking, you get higher quality with Equity members. These are people who are committed to a career in the business, hone their skills on a regular basis and make the sacrifices necessary to stay in the business their whole careers.

In New York, Equity even makes allowances for struggling writers like myself by allowing me to pay actors showcase rates, which amounts to paying subway fare. Metropass and greed don't really belong in the same sentence. I want to use Equity actors because I know I will learn from them as well as gettting a great performance.

Unions can be a pain in the ass, and management can be a pain in the ass. But shouldn't it at least be a fair fight?

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

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

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

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

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

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

Musical theater has a way of doing that...

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

culturekitchen

Elayne Riggs' Reality-Based Journal

tuaw.com

Identity Woman

Blogway Baby

napsterization

Political Gastronamica

MuniWireless.com

Betsy Devine: Funny Ha-Ha or Funny Peculiar?

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

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

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

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

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

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

Best of luck with the Little Women tour!

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

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

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

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

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

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

See, now that wasn't so hard!

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

I definitely have to check this out when I'm at the Blogher conference in July (and tramping in my old stomping grounds in Palo Alto!).

It's the American Musical Theater San Jose, and they have an impressive season schedule. It's a really aggressive schedule of some of today's best-known musicals. This is what they did in 2004/2005:

CHICAGO
January 11 to 23, 2005

A CHORUS LINE
February 22 to March 6, 2005

LORD OF THE DANCE
March 15 to 20, 2005

TAPESTRY: THE MUSIC OF CAROLE KING
April 12 to April 24, 2005

CATS
May 17 to 22, 2005

MOVIN' OUT
June 14 to 26, 2005

THE PRODUCERS
July 6 to July 25, 2004

RENT
September 21 to 26, 2004

PETER PAN
October 26 to November 7, 2004

I can live without Lord of the Dance, but gosh, Tapestry: The Music of Carole King sounds really cool. From the site:

The Ultimate Theatrical Tribute to the Music of a Generation!

Our production of TAPESTRY: THE MUSIC OF CAROLE KING will be a high energy, dazzling show starring incredible singers and musicians in a two-hour theatrical tribute featuring some of the greatest songs of all time, including I Feel The Earth Move, You've Got a Friend, Natural Woman, Up on the Roof and Locomotion. Carole King's album Tapestry was one of the best selling albums of all time and stayed on the charts for over five years at its release and continues to top charts around the world to this day. You will be astounded at the list of songs Carole King wrote that were performed by some of the top artists from the past four decades including The Shirelles, James Taylor, and even The Beatles. Whether you are a die-hard fan of American Idol or whether you still have a weathered copy of the Carole King LP, Tapestry, you are going to love this show!

And this is what's lined up for 2005:

THE WIZARD OF OZ
September 13 to 25, 2005

LITTLE WOMEN: THE MUSICAL
October 11 to 23, 2005

WEST SIDE STORY
November 1 to 13, 2005

THE LION KING
January 20 to February 26, 2006

GYPSY
March 28 to April 9, 2006

HAIRSPRAY
June 6 to 18, 2006

I'd love to see how they produce this work...

First it was Lionel Bart, then Mary Poppins and now, Anthony Newley!

While I was re-watching my The Ed Sullivan Show: The Best of Broadway Musicals DVD I was mesmerized by the segment of Anthony Newley singing "Who Can I Turn To". His voice, his movements, are uniquely compelling. But for some reason he, like Bart, doesn't seem to have retained his profile since his death in 1999, at least in North America.

I remember the first time I heard his voice -- listening to the record ofStop The World I Want To Get Off in my parents living room. I was first attracted by the whimsical art of the album cover, but once I listened I became a bona fide Newley fan! I became also became a fan of the score to The Roar of the Greasepaint -- The Smell of the Crowd as well, but I never saw either show on stage nor did I have the pleasure of seeing him perform live.

I also love the 1968 movie Sweet November, starring Anthony Newley and Sandy Dennis (he wrote the title song with Leslie Bricusse, his long-time writing partner). He always seemed to be on the verge of bursting into song which made the film so poignant and charming. I also happen to loathethe remake with Keanu Reeves and Charlize Theron, which is utterly without charm.

There is a great tribute site called "The Anthony Newley Appreciation Society" (also "officially recognized by the family of the late entertainer"), which outlines his impressive career:

ANTHONY GEORGE NEWLEY, who died at age 67, was an actor, singer, songwriter and director of unusual versatility; his career spanned more than 50 years and embraced film, repertory theatre, rock and roll, comedy revues, music hall and television.

He was the original East End boy made good, born illegitimately in Hackney and leaving school at 14. He then found success as a child actor, most notably as the Artful Dodger in David Lean's 1948 film OLIVER TWIST. Propelled by his role in OLIVER TWIST at the age of 17, Newley made his U.S. debut in 1956, appearing in six films that year. In the 1950s and 1960s, Newley was everywhere - on the screen, on television and, seven times, in the top ten.

His singing career came about almost by accident. In 1959, he took the part of rock and roll star Jeep Jackson - a spoof on Elvis Presley - in the film IDLE ON PARADE. A ballad from the film, I've Waited So Long, took Newley to the top of the British charts and started a three year run of hits which included Personality, If She Should Come to You, And The Heavens Cried and the novelty numbers Pop Goes the Weasel and Strawberry Fair. He also had two No 1s, with Why and Lionel Bart's Do You Mind? "So overnight I had this incredible power," he said years later. "I was a rock and roll singer and and it lasted for ten wonderful years."

His film appearances included DOCTOR DOOLITTLE and THE COCKLESHELL HEROES. But he is likely to be best known for co-writing and starring in the hit musicals STOP THE WORLD - I WANT TO GET OFF and THE ROAR OF THE GREASEPAINT - THE SMELL OF THE CROWD, as well as a number of best-selling hit singles, including What Kind Of Fool Am I?, The Candy Man and Goldfinger. In 1987 he and frequent collaborator Leslie Bricusse were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

STOP THE WORLD was a landmark in the history of the British musical, notable for its freedom of form and cynicism of content as it charted the bitter-sweet rise of its central character, played by Newley, from teaboy to millionaire. For Newley, its lasting legacy was its songs. They included Gonna Build a Mountain and What Kind of Fool Am I? which sold more than a million records and became his signature tune.

STOP THE WORLD for which he was the director, star and co-author (with his longtime collaborator, Leslie Bricusse), was his greatest showcase. The show was conceived as "a simple, lighthearted satirical life cycle of the seven ages of man." (Namely, youth-and-adolescence, decision, sophistication, maturity, sagacity, retirement and senility.) In the UK, it played to packed houses for 15 months before transferring to Broadway in 1962, where it ran for 555 performances. An allegory about acquiring fame and power but ending up disillusioned, STOP THE WORLD was a tour de force for the star, who portrayed a symbolic Everyman named Littlechap.

In the States he became one of the very few British crooners to make it big on the US cabaret circuit (In Las Vegas he commanded the same attention as Tony Bennett, Dean Martin or Frank Sinatra) and his Cockney rags-to-riches story made him a chat show favorite. In 1977 he was voted the Male Musical Star of the Year in Las Vegas.

He had a gift for striking an emotional chord with a mass audience. But Anthony Newley was also an influence on David Bowie among later performers, because in all his songs he maintained a distinctively British voice, ending with his right arm extended for effect in his trademark signoff.

In addition to writing the score with Leslie Bricusse for 1971's film WILLY WONKA AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY, Newley wrote the score for the 1975 film MR. QUILP (now broadcast on TV under THE OLD CURIOSITY SHOP) and, with Bricusse, the title song for the 1968 film SWEET NOVEMBER; and, finally with Bricusse, the songs for the 1976 TV version of PETER PAN. He also co-wrote with Stanley Ralph Ross the book, music and lyrics for the 1983 stage show CHAPLIN and created the 1985 revue ONCE UPON A SONG. Newley had been working for many years on a musical version of RICHARD III and sang some of these songs during his last New York cabaret appearance at Rainbow and Stars in 1996. The BMI database lists over 150 songs for which Newley wrote the music or lyrics. His four U.S. hit songs were Why?, If She Should Come to You, Pop Goes the Weasel and What Kind of Fool Am I? By contrast, he had 12 hit singles in three years in the U.K., all included in the 1997 CD, THE VERY BEST OF ANTHONY NEWLEY. Newley went from child star to pop idol, to composer, author, director and leading man and leaves an amazing body of work.

His third wife, Dareth Newley Dunn, described him as "a dear, sweet, loving friend and father ... consummate performer and ultimate composer".

Not bad, not bad at all.

Last night I went to see DECIDE, which defiantly bills itself as "THE Urban Musical".

It is written, directed, and produced by Stuart Knight, a 30-year old motivational speaker.

Stuart also acts in it alongside five other actor/singers. It plays every Saturday night in a loft on Queen Street West. It's a musical revue about deciding to be the master of your own life, making changes, relationships, connectivity, sensitivity, nativity, and hyperactivity (sorry, I can't seem to stop rhyming ever since I walked out of the show...). It combined dialogue scenes with songs and hip hop poetry. Lots of hip hop poetry.

Here is Stuart's explanation of the show's theme, from the Web site:

Why Did I Write This Show?

It's 2am in the morning and I've just been asked to come up with text explaining why I wrote this show. The answer is simple, turn on your TV at 2 am in the morning, channel surf for 5 minutes, and you'll know why.

When people ask me where I want to take this show, I am reminded of interviews of big time television executives. Almost always in those interviews, you'll hear a sentence saying "I want to take this to every household in the country." I'm always bothered by those kinds of lines because it assumes that people want you in their personal space. Does the idea of having my material rooted in every home in the country excite me? Of course it does; but, only if I'm invited. It's like a relationship, there's nothing worse than being with someone that you know does not want to be with you. So, when people ask me, where do I want to take this show? I want to be able to walk down the street and see nothing but open doors.

If you find that confusing, keep reading. If that makes perfect sense to you, stop reading now and go see the show next Saturday by reserving a seat off the Web site at www.decideshow.com.

Here's my quick summary: When the cast was talking I wished they were singing; and when they were singing I wished they were talking. And then I wished it would end.

First of all let me say that I applaud Stuart for doing it. He's out there doing live theater every Saturday and people are paying money ($20) to see it. So kudos for that. And the cast are extremely committed and gave it their all. So kudos for that too.

But overall it was a self-indulgent, preachy, pretentious, cliche-ridden show. Imagine a musical written by Tony Robbins, and you'll get a pretty good idea of last night's experience.

In my opinion the music and lyrics were amateurish. Every song was wailed a la American Idol to signify its emotional importance.

And Stuart likes to talk...a lot. I can't help but think that, as the writer, if he was really worried about the quality of the show he would get off the stage, cast another actor to play his roles and sit in the audience and watch it.

But I think the show has a bigger purpose. It is designed as a show and an after party where you mingle with the other members of the audience. You're invited to wear a Snuggle button if you wish to be approached for conversational purposes (a technique from Stuart's "Art of Conversation" workshop, we are told).

It is also designed as a springboard for Stuart's motivational workshops and other party venues (we were also invited to head over to the big hip hop party he was throwing on King Street that night). As a former marketer I really like this whole concept of using a show to market other stuff, but as a result I'm not sure the show itself receives top priority.

With all that being said, the audience (an urban, late '20s, early '30s crowd) loved the show, seemed to be having a good time, and they gave the show a standing ovation at the end.

Me, I stood up to leave.

About a month ago I published this post about the musicalLittle Women which told the story of Alison Hubbard and Kim Oler who won the Rogers Award for Little Women, and were then KICKED OFF THE PROJECT when it went to Broadway.

Well, here's a different, more positive spin on the Little Women story.

I got this message from Kaliya Hamlin:

Hey Suzy, I was noticing your Blog about Broadway. Great Material. I am based in California but I have been working with Little Women the Musical to get their Show Blog up and running. We have been live for over a month and the Cast is about to start posting. This may be a first for a broadway show -- cast blogging. The first posts will be up within the next few days. http://littlewomen.typepad.com is the blog address. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions and I would be happy to put you in touch with folks inside the show to talk about this development.

Cast blogging? I LOVE IT! What a great way to get an inside look at the show...but the cast has to be honest. If it's going to be interesting, it's got to be real. Let's hear about those Broadway rats...

Maybe we can get them to do a guest blog on Blogway Baby!

Yikes! I've been struggling with Blogger the last 24 hours, and I think I've finally tussled it to the ground. It looks like Blogger has lost its DNS service, so when I've tried to post to www.blogwaybaby.com it couldn't find the sftp site. I was getting the following message:

005 Unable to connect to SFTP server: java.net.UnknownHostException: www.blogwaybaby.com

I fixed the problem by replacing the post to address from "www.blogwaybaby.com" with the actual IP address, and now I can post again. Sheesh.

I can't say I was blown away by Blogger's customer service. After going through their blogs and seeing no service outage warnings, I sent a Help message and got the following automated message 10 hours later:

Hi there,

Thanks for contacting Blogger Support. Since we cannot always respond personally to every message we get, we encourage you to check Blogger Help, where you can find answers to many common questions. Here are some of the top articles which could help you out:

CHANGES ARE NOT APPEARING ON THE BLOG
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HOW TO WORK WITH BLOGGER'S COMMENTS
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If your question or problem is not addressed anywhere in our documentation, please simply reply to this message and let us know. We will help you out as soon as we can. Thanks for your patience.

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Geez guys, D it up, K?

In all the hubbub of launching the Plane Crazy Web site, I've forgotten that Plane Crazy isn't my first stage show!

About a million years ago, when I worked at Procter & Gamble, a group of us long-haired creative types decided to "Old Spice up" the fall dinner dance with an employee stage show.

What started out as a small talent show quickly blossomed into a full-fledged musical revue called Fiscal Follies (insert groan here). I was one of the writers who took well-known songs and wrote new, P&G relevant lyrics.

I also performed in the show, singing and dancing in the final number (dressed in black tights and a tuxedo jacket -- how incredibly professional!) which was the Michael Jackson song "Man in the Mirror", but rewritten to inspire organizational change.

We even had the president of P&G at the time, Doug Grindstaff, come up on stage to join with me to say "Make That Change!" (insert groan here).

But my two favorite numbers, which I wrote, were "Summer Intern" about summer business school interns sung to the tune of "Summer Lovin'" from Grease, and "Olestra Lightning", about P&G's new fat substitute, sung to the tune of "Greased Lightning", also from Grease (duh).

What made the former special was that I sang it, but what made the latter even more special was that two senior managers, Tim Penner and Mike Kehoe, sang it -- dressed as '50s greasers. Tim Penner has gone on to become the President of P&G Canada (27 years with the company -- Wow!). Mike Kehoe has also gone on to fame and fortune as the leader of the Crest White Strips introduction.

Actually what brought this all back to me was when I saw a big pic of Tim in the business section of the The Globe and Mail last week, costumed up for P&G's Cultural Diversity Day. Yikes...I was soooooooo not right for P&G: I can't believe I lasted four years. And I've been a full-time songwriter ever since I left.

To top it off we videotaped the entire Fiscal Follies and I still have the videotape. I'm prepared to sell the last remaining copy of this incriminating tape to the highest bidder...eBay here I come!

There's a good Plane Crazy discussion thread on MetaFilter. I'm heading over to weigh in on the discussion.

From MetaFilter:

I should probably state for the record that it is likely Ms. Conn is using this 1960's music style ironically, applying it as both a commentary on the era and the world as it was then. I'm sure she'll hear about this post and comment in some way or another (and likely already has).

The problem is, a lot of these "short-cut" aesthetic styles that came out of mass entertainment always do an amazing disservice to the eras they portray, since they cut out a lot of humanity for the ease of using some tried and true "phrases" to lock the "setting" and move on.

Here's the topline on my philosophy: I have two daughters, and I want them to fully achieve their potential. I don't understand a world that would deny them that opportunity, and I don't understand cultures that hold down the potential of 50% of the population.

Why did I choose to base a musical about feminism in the 1960s? Well, in a way, it was an easy choice since the '60s were the decade where the modern feminist movement came to life. As well, the spirit of optimism of the 1960s is important to the hopeful message of Plane Crazy. The 1960s represented an era that embraced change, and had great hope for the future.

So, in fact, I am using the decade as a dramatic device to reinforce the message of the show.

Now, a moment on the message of the show.

Today, the term "Feminist" has become loaded with a lot of negative baggage. Feminism is sometimes typecast as a dour, man-hating, bankrupt philosophy. This makes me very sad.

So I call my philosophy "Fun Feminism".

Fun Feminism embraces the innate female traits of love, joy, and sexuality. Some of us like men. Some of us want to have children. Most of us like sex...but don't tell us what we do or don't want, don't tell us how to think or how to act. If I want to be a Mommy...that's cool. If I want to be a corporate ladder climber...that's cool. If I want to be a musical theater writer...that's cool too (but who would want to do anything that silly!)

Fun Feminism is about choosing who you want to be and what you want to do, and not having your limits set by anyone else -- or by society.

It's no coincidence that by the end of Plane Crazy, one character becomes a mommy, one character becomes a feminist organizer, and one character decides to go and beat the ad men at their own game.

Finally, while I appreciate the seriousness of these issues (which are important to me), I also want to be entertained when I go to the theater.

I'm a huge fan of Tom Lehrer who always managed to wonderfully combine the serious with the silly. I've been heavily influenced by Tom Lehrer, and I believe that you can teach people more when you entertain them, when you engage them, when you make them laugh and when you get them singing!

The Blogway Baby ticket engine is powered by Broadway.com, so you can order your tickets from confidence with the largest ticket reseller in the world.

Today we are featuring Sweet Charity. Click here to get tickets.

From the Broadway.com Ticketing Center:

With a book by Neil Simon, music by Cy Coleman and lyrics by Dorothy Fields, Sweet Charity is a funny, poignant and tender look at the misadventures of Charity Hope Valentine, a dance-hall hostess who always gives her heart -- and her earnings -- to the wrong man.

Headlining this snazzy new production as Charity is Christina Applegate, best known for her hilarious portrayal of Kelly Bundy on ten seasons of the hit Fox series Married...with Children and her Emmy-winning turn on the hit series Friends. Denis O'Hare, who won a Tony Award for the Broadway hit play Take Me Out, will co-star as the lovelorn man who falls for Charity after finding himself trapped with her in a broken-down elevator.

The original Broadway production of Sweet Charity, which was staged by Bob Fosse and starred Gwen Verdon, opened at Broadway's Palace Theatre on January 29, 1966. Sweet Charity subsequently opened at London's Prince of Wales Theatre on October 11, 1967. The film version, with Shirley MacLaine in the title role, premiered in 1969 and received three Academy Award nominations. On April 27, 1986, the first Broadway revival of Sweet Charity opened at the Minskoff Theatre starring Debbie Allen, going on to receive four Tony Awards, including Best Revival.

Well, now I know exactly where I'm going to be July 30th...I'll be in Santa Clara at the BlogHer Conference. WHAT A GREAT IDEA...a conference on female bloggers. I love it.

As Elisa C of 42nd Street Moon Blog andWorker Bees Blog says:

As you might or might not know, I have been consumed the last few weeks with first proposing, then actually planning to launch a new organization and its first conference.

The organization is called BlogHer. The BlogHer Conference '05 has been set for July 30th, 2005 at the Tech Mart in Santa Clara, CA.

And I think it's going to kick ass!

We've got our site and registration up and running as of 2PM this afternoon, so please check out:http://www.blogher.org

In true bloggy fashion we have started blog threads on the agenda and specific sessions we're planning...and we're looking for feedback. We don't plan to finalize the agenda until May 1st to give us time to incorporate the feedback we get. So, comment away.

The Blogway Baby ticket engine is powered by Broadway.com, so you can order your tickets from confidence with the largest ticket reseller in the world.

Today we are featuring Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Click here to get tickets.

From the Broadway.com Ticketing Center:

After delighting scores of West End audiences, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (the most fantasmagorical stage musical in the history of everything!) makes its American premiere at Broadway's Hilton Theatre, beginning previews on Sunday, March 27, 2005 and opening on Thursday, April 28, 2005.
The enthralling story of the adventures of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, the magical car, as it sails the seas and flies through the air will bring back a host of memories for fans of the beloved 1968 film. In Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Chitty's eccentric inventor, Caractacus Potts, and his enchanting children, Jemima and Jeremy, join the truly scrumptious Truly Scrumptious and batty Grandpa Potts to outwit the dastardly Baron and Baroness in this non-stop adventure for all ages.

Based on the film and Ian Fleming's timeless original story, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang features a beloved score, including memorable classics such as "Truly Scrumptious", "Toot Sweets", "Hushabye Mountain" and the Oscar-nominated title song "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang."

OK, this is a plug for a performance featuring my oldest daughter. She is appearing in the City Youth Players 1st Annual Fundraising Cabaret this Wednesday, April 13, 2005.

The fundraiser is described as:

A wonderful evening of entertainment at the City Playhouse Theatre featuring a silent auction and great performances from the talented cast members of Honk! and Footloose. One night only: Wednesday, April 13, 2005.

Myrna is doing a duet from Wicked. It will be fantastic!

Now, I know that there are lots of theater-loving Blogway Baby fans out there...and some of you live in Toronto. This is a great organization that is keeping musical theatre alive for our children: Please buy a ticket and come out for a great eveneing of entertainment, while contributing to a good cause. Mention that you heard about the fundraiser from Blogway Baby, and you will get a free Plane Crazy t-shirt.

Tickets are only $20, and can be ordered at 905.882.7469.

Well, there's been a flurry of Plane Crazy activity since we launched the site. This is my favorite post. Here's a priceless extract:

Many reading this blog are old enough to remember When Stews Were Sexy and the World Was Sexist, which is the subtitle of an off-Broadway play about life as a stewardess in the 1960s.

Visit the show's brand new website and let the opening song play for a while. Then check out the show synopsis.

A great big thank you to Cory Doctorow and Boing Boingwho blogged the launch of the Plane Crazy Web site. Thanks guys: Much appreciated.

Cory had some really nice things to say about the workshop he attended last year:

A year ago, I got to see the musical performed at a workshop at Toronto's Poor Alex Theatre and it was fantastic: funny, catchy, engrossing, with a really authentic sixties-kitsch feel: like Hair at 30,000 feet, with seasonings of Jesus Christ, Superstar and Germaine Greer.

I've been a Boing Boing reader since Cory started working on it in 2000, and it's been amazing to see it grow in reach and popularity. I've also known Cory since Down and Out in the Magic Kingdomwas just a glimmer in his eye, and I listened to my husband describe this cool story that Cory was writing as they took the train to a client in Kingston, ON. Cory is a great example of how to succeed in this brutal creative business, and his focus, discipline, and work ethic is something to which all creators should aspire.

A lot of people don't realize that they can buy their Broadway tickets throughBlogway Baby. Hallelujah! The Blogway Baby ticket engine is powered byBroadway.com, so you can order your tickets from confidence with the largest ticket reseller in the world.

Today we are featuring Wicked. Click here to get tickets.

From the Broadway.com Ticketing Center:

Long before Dorothy drops in, two girls meet in the land of Oz. One, born with emerald-green skin, is smart, fiery and misunderstood. The other is beautiful, ambitious and very popular. Wicked tells the story of their remarkable odyssey and how these two unlikely friends grew to become the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch.

This fantasy-filled musical was the winner of three 2004 Tony Awards including awards for Best Costume Design and Best Scenic Design. From real flying monkeys to a trip to the Emerald City and a soaring, modern score by Stephen Schwartz, Wicked is a true spectacle for the eyes and ears.

The twists and turns in Gregory Maguire's incredibly imaginative back-story to The Wizard of Oz makes audiences literally gasp with delight. But not only that, Wicked is a truly heartfelt story of friendship and love. As Richard Zoglin of Time Magazine put it, "If every musical had a brain, a heart and the courage of Wicked, Broadway really would be a magical place!"

In the words of Burton Cummings, "Planes Are Goin' Up....Planes Are Goin' Down"...with lots of traffic to thenew Plane Crazy Web site!

Now Plane Crazy has a Web site, and it looks FANTASTIC. We have developed the Web site to support an upcoming Actor's Equity Showcase production this summer.

The site includes samples from the whole score, and some killer Flash graphics. It was designed by Michael Karst with Flash by Nathan Fenwick. It was built and is maintained byRich Williams.

It's colorful, fun, and tuneful -- with lots of interesting info about the show. And a great B&W photo of me too!

Since Blogway Baby launched January 2nd, we've had unique visitors from 46 countries. Broadway really is a global language!

Our goal by the end of this year will be at least one unique visitor from the entire global village.

How do you say thank you in 465 languages? Oh my gosh...here it is...

Here are the country visitors we've had so far:

Angola
Argentina
Australia
Austria
Azerbaijan
Belgium
Brazil
Canada
China
Croatia
Denmark
Finland
France
Germany
Guatemala
Hong Kong
India
Indonesia
Ireland
Israel
Italy
Japan
Korea
Kuwait
Lebanon
Malaysia
Maldives
Malta
Mexico
Netherlands
New Zealand
Norway
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Russian Federation
Singapore
South Africa
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan
Thailand
Turkey
United Kingdom
United States

My husband and I finally got to go out for a romantic dinner together last night. Our Saturday night plans were ruined by our eldest daughter's insistence that she seeFootloose at the City Playhouse in Vaughn that same night (she saw it and gave it rave reviews!). So another sacrifice in the name of theater...

Anyway, we decided to go out Sunday night instead (Desperate Housewives was preempted by an Oprah-produced tearjerker movie...so we figured, why stay in?) to our favorite Cajun restaurant:Southern Accent on Markham Street (inMirvish Village, no less).

We drove by the Bathurst Street Theatre where Bat Boy is playing and parked. Inside, Southern Accent was in full Bat Boy mode, having hosted the opening night party. Batbills (Playbills in disguise) decorated the walls and there was even a dish on the menu called "Bat Boy Salad"!

The salad was composed of baby spinach and radicchio with grilled asparagus and avocado, tossed in a lime olive dressing with sesame seed garnish (what else would you expect?) for $12. Add marinated black tiger shrimp pieces and it goes up to $16.

That got me thinking.

I mean, I've been to celebrity restaurants before (the Hog's Breath Inn in Carmel, owned by Clint Eastwood, where you can still get an Dirty Harry burgers and an Eiger-sandwich) but I've never seen a regular restaurant offer a musical-themed item.

What about a "Sloppy Pal Joe"? "Pajama Game" (roasted au jus of course)? "Wonderful Tuna"? "The Sound of Moussaka"? I'm sure you can think of others.

More importantly when Plane Crazy is a hit, what will its food offering be? Think. Think. Think. How about "The Plane Crazy Stew", a chicken dish made with breasts and thighs...

I really need to get out more.