Best of the Decade: The Best Revivals of Musicals, Part I

Before I get to my top two new musicals, both of which, I think, point toward an exciting future for Broadway, I thought I'd start my final list in this summer long look back at the first ten years of this new century.  And what better way to end things than with a look back at the shows that we looked even further back with - musical revivals.

I have chosen 10 revivals for my "best of" list.  Each in retrospect represents their time in history and many of them, having been re-worked, point out that a classic can be looked at in an entirely new way.  Others represent their time by being recreated with the sensibility that informed them in the first place.  I think it speaks volumes for those revivals of that type that, while being re-created, still have the fresh, urgent feel of a newer work.  And these ten really show the span of the decades from the 40's through the 90's and pretty much anytime in between.  And let me predict now, that ten years from now, there will be many revivals to look back upon that cover the one decade not in my top 10 - the 1980's.

10.  Assassins (101 performances at Studio 54, winner Best Revival of a Musical 2004)  Directed by Joe Mantello, and starring Michael Cerveris, Denis O'Hare, James Barbour, Neil Patrick Harris, Mario Cantone and Alexander Gemignani.

The newest of the revivals isn't really a revival in the strictest sense, as this limited run production was the first time the show played a Broadway house.  But a revival is what they called and so here it is.  Featuring one of Stephen Sondheim's greatest scores, and even with a problematic (themes and pastiches start and stop or go nowhere) book by John Weidman, this show is provocative, challenging and perversely entertaining.  Leave it to Sondheim to make us like a bunch of killers.  Considering our rough and tumble history, I doubt there will ever be a time when Assassins won't feel a little wrong for the time it is being produced.  But it was, and we are all a little better for the effort.

"Everybody's Got the Right"

"Go ahead, Lee.  You'll make history."

9.  Hair (519 performances at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre, winner Best Revival of a Musical 2009)  Directed by Diane Paulus, and starring Gavin Creel, Will Swenson, Bryce Ryness, Sasha Allen, Caissie Levy, Megan Lawrence and Theo Stockman.

I left this show feeling higher than a kite, and no, it wasn't the influence of drugs.  It was the exhilaration of watching a young cast completely in solidarity with the material, the message and with each other.  I'll never forget Will Swenson, the song "Hair" or the beyond moving finale.  Yes, when I left the show I was floating and ready to change the world.  But like a good buzz, I came down eventually, and came to appreciate the effort, but didn't feel the staying power or the freshness the critics raved about.  In its way Hair will always be timeless as every generation seeks to find itself and leave its mark.  But what made the show so relevant in the Park lost some of its steam by the time the show got to Broadway.  We weren't rallying against an unpopular president or having the courage to bring an African-American into the White House.  We weren't fresh off a round of ugly in not one but two wars anymore.  As fast as the sound bites change in CNN, this Hair's much heralded relevance was yesterday's news, as we came quickly to realize that even with sweeping change, things still haven't changed much and just might have gotten worse.  Down goes the economy, record numbers of troops are dying each month, and our new President isn't quite the fast savior he promised to be.  And neither is Hair.  Still, a great production of a decent musical and better than a lot of the stuff that has made it and continues to run.

"Give me a head with hair..."

"This is the dawning..."

8.  A Little Night Music  (241 performances as of August 1.  Still running at the Walter Kerr Theatre, Tony nominee for Best Revival of a Musical 2010)  Directed by Trevor Nunn, and starring Catherine Zeta-Jones, Angela Lansbury, Alexander Hanson, Aaron Lazar, Erin Davie, Leigh Ann Larkin, Hunter Ryan Herdlika and Ramona Mallory.

Realizing fully that I am in the minority, I found this revival to be one of the best of the season.  I loved the spare, Chekovian staging, costumes and set pieces.  It really clarified the piece for me (even if it did expose that the act one book is heavy on plot, less on action), and I loved most of the characterizations.  Also realizing that it has become fashionable to take swipes at Ms. Zeta-Jones after her odd Tony performance, but on stage and in the context of the show, I loved her Desiree.  And with Mr. Hanson, the entire "Send in the Clowns" sequence was revelatory.  A huge Sondheim fan, I've seen this show many times and never felt as satisfied after the show as I did at this revival.  The show that beat it for the Tony is one of my all-time, sentimental favorites, and I enjoyed a lot about it, but as far as artistic achievement goes, this production has it all over the others.

Desiree and her lovers

The Armfeldt Ladies

7.  Promises, Promises  (113 performances as of August 1.  Still running at the Broadway Theatre)  Directed by Rob Ashford, and starring Kristin Chenoweth, Sean Hayes, Tony Goldwyn, Dick Latessa and Katie Finneran.

This 2010 revival wasn't even nominated for a best Revival Tony, but of the revivals this past season, I found it the most funny, touching and just plain entertaining of them all.  You simply cannot beat the Bacharach-David score, and while some may disagree, adding "A House is Not a Home" and "I Say a Little Prayer" not only gave Ms. Chenoweth more to sing, but it also added some depth to her already challenging character.  Like Ms. Zeta-Jones, it seems fashionable to slam this Broadway favorite.  I for one continue to applaud her bravery to bring audiences another aspect of her talents.  Sure she is cute and perky, but she is a damn fine actress that brings pathos, sadness and heartbreak to life each night.  And you can't beat the charm and wit of a Neil Simon book, especially when the material is delivered by such accomplished comedians as Hayes, Latessa and Finneran.  A slick reminder of a New York that no longer exists, these executives and secretaries danced with abandon, harassed with finesse, and out styled everyone on Broadway in 2009-2010.

"You should be happy!"

"Happy!"

"A Fact Can Be a Beautiful Thing"

6.  A Chorus Line  (759 performances at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre, Tony nominee for Best Revival of a Musical 2007)  Michael Bennett's direction and choreography recreated by Baayork Lee and Bob Avian.  Starring Charlotte d'Amboise, Michael Berresse, Diedre Goodwin, Natalie Cortez, Jessica Goldyn, Jason Tam, Jeffrey Schecter and Tony Yazbeck.

One of those revivals that were 99.9% faithful recreation, the creatives behind this revival were smart.  You don't toy with a classic like this one, where every move, every light, every costume and every lack of scenery is as calculated a part of the show as the script and the intricate dance numbers.  Easily my favorite show of all time, I was transported back to my first time seeing the original.  It was a show that changed my life forever, and the revival solidified both my memories and my opinion of the show.  Quite simply, it is one of the greatest musicals ever written.  Its songs continue to thrill and sound both of then and now.  "At the Ballet" is a triumph of spare, deliberate wording, and equally spare yet evocative staging.  And the finale "One" is still the very best musical finale of all time.  I am reduced to tears throughout and the opening notes still make me catch my breath in anticipation.  So why is it only number 6?  I did not love the entire cast, and some of the offstage drama and re-casting hurt a perfect thing.

The Line

One Singular Sensation

Comments?  You know where to leave 'em:  here, my Yahoo account, on Twitter or on Formspring.  Please feel free to send me questions or comments on any of those forums.  I can take it!  :-)
Jeff

Trends of the Decade: The Internet Takes Centerstage

It was, of all things, a blog which I follow that is the impetus for this entry in my series of articles about the decade just ended.  That blog, "The Broadway Critic," (one of my favorites) and specifically this entry discusses the fallout from a series of Tweets between cast members of American Idiot as well as some announcing its eminent closing.  Both are in the very public AIBway Twitter page.  (Read it; I think you'll find it most interesting.)

Reading that yesterday made me get to really thinking about this topic: the overwhelming influence of computers and the Internet on Broadway shows.  It could very well be the biggest thing to hit Broadway since the advent of microphones. 

"This Must Be the Place":

The Opening Number of Grind

Of course, the use of computers within a Broadway show has been happening for decades, from computerized ticketing, lighting and sound boards to the first completely computerized musical in 1985, Grind.  That show made national news headlines for that very thing, and went on to some infamy as on Opening Night of the try-out in Baltimore, national news cameras rolling, the show started and ground to a halt during the opening number.  (And yes, the headlines read "Broadway Show Grinds to a Halt"!)  What was meant to be a safety feature caused the entire system to crash, and nervous Harold Prince (he directed the show) took to the stage to explain what happened.

But the Internet has really changed the way Broadway and fans of Broadway conduct business.  There is no doubting this influence.  From chat rooms to show websites, to Broadway news websites, shopping sites, to social networking - Twitter, My Space, Facebook, etc. - plays and musicals are more readily accessible and easy to find out about than ever before.  And I can't help but mention blogging!  We wouldn't be here without it!  Gone are the days when you'd have to subscribe to The New York Times to keep up with current Broadway news (even then at least a day or two old), or Playbill Magazine, which was hopelessly out of date by the time it got to your mailbox.  And I've often remarked here about the miraculous changes in ticketing and buying cast recordings, all thanks to Ticketmaster, Telecharge and Amazon.com.

Here is a quick - not all-inclusive - look at the Internet and Broadway, the good the bad and the ugly.

THE GOOD:

Blogs: The really good ones are kept by folks who have a passion for the art form, even when things aren't so great.  It would be easy to blog about one show you love (there are dozens of Wicked only blogs), but it is another thing altogether to share your thoughts on many shows and a variety of aspects of the business.  The best blogs are those by people who attend shows of all kinds regularly and those by people actually in the business.  (I am really picky about the ones I follow, hence my short list to the right...)

Show Websites:  More and more, these sites can really influence whether or not you buy a ticket to that show.  Sure it a fancy advertisement for a production, but that's what it should be.  The best show sites are easy to navigate, have lots of pictures, videos, and cast information.  And the very best ones update with new things to read and look at regularly.  Most have places for fan input, too.

Theatre Websites: Places like Broadway.com, Theatremania.com, and Playbill Online offer up to the minute news, features, pictures and multimedia about all things Broadway.  They have reputable writers, and you can tell they have outstanding reputations because of their content - interviews with the top stars and up and comers, productions send them press releases immediately, and creative and producing teams are as much a part of the site as the Tony winners and movie stars.

Online Ticketing: Now that Ticketmaster allows you to pick your seats like Telecharge does, online ticketing is a breeze and so convenient.  No more waiting for weeks to get tickets; you can print them yourself, and you are sitting where you want to sit!

Ticket Discounts: You no longer have to be in the city itself to enjoy the benefits of services like TKTS.  Now there are multitudes of Broadway discounts at all the big theatre sites, plus places like Broadwaybox.com.  TKTS remains a great venue when you are there, but isn't it nice to live in the sticks and still be able to see a show for less?

Lotteries:  I just saw a show from the front row for cheaper ($25.00) than an orchestra seat in 1983 ($37.50 for Mame and Cats).  I could not see everything, and some things were a little too close, but I am not complaining even a little bit. 

THE BAD:

Blogs:  This could be just a personal preference, and I might even be guilty of this myself from time to time, but... blogs that are full of misinformation or purport to be written by people who go to lots of shows, but really mean to say that they've seen Mamma Mia! 15 times or think they "know" theatre because they've seen Wicked, Jersey Boys and Mamma Mia! make all bloggers, most of whom really put some effort into their work, look really bad.  It adds credence to John Simon's assertion that theatre bloggers are vermin.

Theatre Websites: I love them for all the reasons above, but as each one tries to become all things to all users, they are becoming mind-numbingly complicated and way over crowded.

Show Websites:  When I go to a specific show's site for "More Information," I expect more than a big logo and "Coming Soon" with yet another place to sign up for updates.  If you can't offer more than your show logo, the name of the theatre (sometimes) and a sign-up block, wait to start your site until you have more...

Online Ticketing:  $4.50 for handling?  Are my tickets getting a lap dance from the cast of Sweet Charity?  $2.50 for processing?  Um, excuse me... let me charge you $5.00 for the paper and ink I'm using to print my own ticket to save your staff time and the cost of an envelope and stamp!


THE UGLY:

Social Networking, Message Boards and Chat Rooms:  It is one thing to share news (i.e.: I'm at ComeFlyAway and Twyla's here! or Sad to see Brooks Ashmanskas is out of PP tonight.  I hope his u/s is good!) or a considered opinion (i.e: I really prefer the less-Spanish version of the WSS revival or I can see why people love MM!, but it isn't my thing.).  But completely another to trash performers, performances and shows (i.e: So and So's understudy is a lousy singer and a craptastic dancer!) ESPECIALLY when you offer no explanation as to that opinion.  Still worse, is when people WITHIN a show take the time to call out each other or gossip about their own show.  TACKY. 

And then there is the rumor/scoop mentality.  Watch how fast the influence of Twitter and the like diminishes when a show's producers can positively link poor ticket sales to falsely posted rumors as facts, or someone gets erroneously fired from a show (it happened in our own government, people) over an out of context quote or "edited" YouTube video.  The powers that be will shut the rumor mill down as fast as you can say "widget."  It is because of this type of behavior that I rarely, if ever, mention a certain site or two where message boards are their main stock in trade.

Lotteries/Student/Online Discounts:  Listening to college students and high school students bitch over lottery policies, where the seats are and how they still can't afford the seats REALLY PLUCKS MY NERVES!  Why?  Well, I was in high school and college once, and I was as poor if not poorer than these people.  No lotteries.  No discounts.  Nothing.  So you know what?  I missed a lot of shows I wanted to see, but I saved my money for big, week long trips to NYC.  And you know what?  I appreciated (but not necessarily loved) every single show I saw that much more.  Instead of being grateful that there are lotteries and discounts and student discounts, these people continue to complain.  If anything, people who aren't students (like me) should complain - these policies assume that if you aren't in school, you can afford a pricier seat. 

Then of course, there is also YouTube (which I love, but can see and can not support its more flawed applications).  But that could be a whole other topic... 

Thank you for indulging my tirade!
Jeff

Best of the Decade: The Best Musicals #3

The show at number three may always be known as the also-ran in the same season as The Producers, but I think that history will eventually paint a much different picture, with this musical have much better staying power.  The fact that it has depth, heart, and meaning in addition to being fun, sometimes silly romp I think will make it a show theatre companies will continue to go to and produce. 

The show I am speaking of is, of course:

3.  The Full Monty
Book by Terrence McNally
Music and Lyrics by David Yazbek
Choreography by Jerry Mitchell
Direction by Jack O'Brien

Statistically Speaking:
First Preview: September 25, 2000
Opening Night: October 26, 2000
Closing Night: September 1, 2002
35 previews, 770 performances at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre.

There were 22 cast members on opening night, including Patrick Wilson (Jerry), John Ellison Conlee (Dave), Andre De Shields (Horse), Marcus Neville (Harold), Jason Danieley (Malcolm), and Romain Fruge (Ethan) as the down on their luck steel workers turned strippers.  Kathleen Freeman played accompanyist Jeanette, and Annie Golden (Georgie), Emily Skinner (Vicki) and Lisa Datz (Pam), played the wives of the strippers.  Jerry's son was played, alternately, by Nicholas Cutro and Thomas Michael Fiss.  Jimmy Smagula and Denis Jones played the club owner, Tony, and professional stripper Buddy "Keno" Walsh, respectively.  The rest of the ensemble was made up of Jay Douglas, Laura Marie Duncan, Angelo Fraboni, Jannie Jones, Liz McConahay, Patti Perkins, C.E. Smith and Todd Weeks.  There were also four swings.

The Replacement Cast

Later in the run:

• Will Chase replaced Patrick Wilson as Jerry
• Daniel Stewart Sherman replaced John Ellison Conlee as Dave
• Larry Marshall replaced Andre De Shields as Horse
• Steven Skybell replaced Marcus Neville as Harold
• Jay Douglas and Danny Gurwin both replaced Jason Danieley as Malcolm
• Chris Diamantopoulos replaced Romain Fruge as Ethan
• Jane Connell replaced Kathleen Freeman as Jeanette

Other notable replacements and national tour stars included: Heidi Blickenstaff, Andrea Burns, Kate Baldwin, Julie Foldesi, James Moye, Christopher J. Hanke, Sally Struthers, Christian Anderson and Robert Westenberg.  The Paper Mill Playhouse run starred none other than Elaine Stritch as Jeanette.

The Original Cast made the cover

of Time Out New York

• The show earned 10 2001 Tony Award Nominations: Best Musical, Best Book (Terrence McNally), Best Score (David Yazbek, music and lyrics), Best Actor (Patrick Wilson), Best Featured Actor (John Ellison Conlee and Andre De Shields), Best Featured Actress (Kathleen Freeman), Best Direction (Jack O'Brien), Best Choreography (Jerry Mitchell) and Best Orchestrations (Harold Wheeler).
• It also earned 12 Drama Desk Nominations for all of the above, including separate nominations for David Yazbek's lyrics and music, as well as Howell Binkley's lighting.  David Yazbek won for Best Music.
• Kathleen Freeman won a Theatre World Award for her performance.

The National Tour

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My Favorite "Monty Moments":

• "The Strip"/"Scrap":  What a great way to get the elephant in the room taken care of by showing us straight off a male stripper (Denis Jones) and a "professional" at that.  It sets us up for the hilarity of watching the non-pros, and the fact that the strip will, ultimately, include what the opening does not - The Full Monty.  The strip goes right into the real opening number, "Scrap," which introduces us to the main characters, their desperate situation, and the reality of the show, versus the fantasy.

It may be a "woman's world", but Dave and Jerry

are stuck hiding in the men's room, anyway!

• "It's a Woman's World":  One of the catchiest numbers in the show, it helps set up the relationships between the men and the women, and coming on the heels of "Scrap," it offers a musical and thematic counterpoint.
• "Man": Not to be out done, this ode to testosterone balances, riotously, the male ego and its insecurities.

Dave and Jerry contemplate grisly ways to off themselves

while their buddy, Malcolm, tries to off himself in the car.

• "Big Ass Rock": Establishes an important character, Ethan, as well as the deep friendship between Jerry and Dave.  It also establishes David Yazbek as one witty lyricist.
• "Michael Jordan's Ball":  One of the greatest montage/time passage scenes of all time.  Jerry Mitchell's clever and ultimately satisfying choreography makes this turning point/act closer into a show stopper.

Jerry and Nathan share a father-son moment

• "Breeze Off the River":  A wonderful father-son moment so often not depicted in Broadway shows.  Sure, it makes little sense given that the breeze would come off a Great Lake and not a river (it is Buffalo), but the sentiment and the surrounding scene more than make up for it.

The Ladies are pretty sure

their men don't have "the goods."

And the guys aren't so sure, either!

• "The Goods": An absolutely hysterical "duet" between the men and the women as the guys struggle with their manhood and lack (or in Ethan's case, too much) of.  the guys imagine what their gals would say about what they are doing, and it ain't pretty.

"You Walk with Me"

• "You Walk with Me": The other tender moment in the show, at Malcolm's mother's funeral.  IT proves to be both an eye-opening experience for the manly men (Malcolm and Ethan become lovers) and it serves as the male-bonding moment that makes the group click.

HOT METAL!

• "Let It Go": The cleverest, cutest, and naughtiest finale on Broadway this century.  The song stays with you forever, and you really root for the guys.  And, yes, they do go THE FULL MONTY!

 

I loved this show, and still do, because it portrays men's relationships with each other so honestly and with a lot of emotion.  To the outside world, most men are "buddies" who watch football, eat, fart and talk dirty.  Well, we do a lot more than that.  There is nothing that comes close to male-bonding and best friendships between guys.  Nothing.  And this show portrays that so well.  It also puts marriage in a positive light, as well as father-son relationships.  It even shows that divorce doesn't have to be a nightmare. It is positive without being schmaltzy.  And it is everything a live stage show should be: entertaining from start to finish.  What makes this a successful movie to stage adaptation for me is that it does everything on stage that a move simply can not do, and therefore, makes it an original piece.
 

Since It Opened:

• The Full Monty actually did the full monty on national television, and it was so well done, it wasn't censored by the network. 
• There was a very successful National Tour of the show, as well as several high-profile regional mountings.

• Sadly, two cast members passed away, one during the run of the show, and one shortly after it closed: Kathleen Freeman, who was found dead in her apartment by alarmed company members concerned when she did not show up for call.  And swing/understudy Jason Opsahl died of brain cancer a month after the show closed.  He might also be recognized as Kenickie in the 1994 revival of Grease! and he was one of the follies boys in The Will Rogers Follies.

 
 
Comments? Leave one here or email me at jkstheatrescene@yahoo.com. Or send me a question at http://www.formspring.me/ and look me up as "jkstheatrescene" or "Jeff Kyler." Go ahead! Follow me!
Jeff

POLL RESULTS: All-American!

The American Flag in lights:

the US Army Recruiting Station in Times Square

In celebration of our nation's birth, both of July's polls dealt with Broadway and its depiction of all things "American."

POLL #1:  Which show best captures the "American Spirit"?

3.  0% - The Civil War
For one of the first times since I started posting polls, one choice went completely unchosen.  Normally, I wouldn't even mention it.  But I got a few emails questioning why I would include the show as one that captures the "American Spirit."  After all, a few of you wrote, doesn't The Civil War represent ideals and situations that today we recognize as truly un-American?  One of you went so far as to suggest a "subversive racism" on my part.  Perhaps an explanation as to why I chose it for the poll will clear it up.

First, and this might have been the best reason to NOT put it on the list, not a whole lot of people even saw the show. Maybe those of you who wrote in saw it and found it somehow offensive.  I guess I'll never know.  And so maybe, simply based on the topic, one might conclude that the show depicts the ugly side of America (it did) and really can't be an example of the "American Spirit" (I disagree).

But, having seen the show, and having listened to its concept recording many times, I can tell you that just because it addresses slavery, racism and grisly war violence, that is not at all what the show was about.  It was about the struggle for beliefs and the right to express them; it was about the struggle of the oppressed triumphing over the oppressors;  it was about freedom at any cost, even if that cost meant fighting, literally, your own brothers/cousins/uncles/fathers.  Freedom of expression, triumph over oppression, and the ability to live a free life are the very cornerstones of what defines this country.  And so I included it.

2.  28% (a tie) Ragtime and Shenandoah 

Interestingly, both of these shows confront the very same themes as The Civil War, Shenandoah perhaps the most, as it, too is a musical that depicts that North/South conflict.  In its time, the show also offered a bit of controversy, given that we were still coming out of the Vietnam conflict, and the father character was a pacifist.  Still, it was ultimately a feel-good musical that song and danced its way around some of the tougher issues.  Just listen to the song "Freedom" and think about who sings it.

Given the equal treatment all three groups represented are given in Ragtime, it, too, addresses many of this country's ills - commercialism, politicalism, industrial growth, worker's rights, equal rights for people of all genders, races and ethnicites.  And because all three groups have their heroes and the "bad guys" are crystal clear, it is easy to see why this was a popular choice for a musical that shows the true "American Spirit."  That, and it represents some of the very best attributes of that singularly American art form, the Broadway musical.

1.  42% - 1776

As one of you wrote, this was really a "no-brainer" choice.  It is, after all, about the very forming of our country, warts, arguments, pomposity, arrogance, passion, idealism, and all.  It does not depict a completely rosy picture of our awkward birth, either.  And, like Shenandoah, this musical is informed by the time in which it was written - the beginning of the Vietnam conflict.  And there is really nothing more American than a group of disparate individuals trying to create something new and the struggle to create it.

POLL #2: Which is the best show that depicts real Americans?

I got a few emails on this one, too, mostly asking why didn't I include more titles like The Unsinkable Molly Brown or Billy Elliot.  OK, maybe Molly would have been a good choice to include, but Billy is British and fictional.

4.  4% - George M!

Considering that this is a Broadway site, and that a statue to this man is smack dab in the middle of Broadway, and that he is one of the founding fathers of the genre, I thought he'd get more votes.  But the show, not the man, is what you were voting for, and I guess compared to the others, it is hopelessly old-fashioned, even if it did start Wicked's original Wizard, Joel Grey and a young Bernadette Peters before she became the legend she is.

3.  9% - The Will Rogers Follies

One of my personal favorites, and the one I would have voted for, is this gem, a triumph of style and staging, Broadway razzle dazzle, combining an old school sensibility with a modern, in-your-face style.  Lavish and sexy, tuneful and funny, and still the best opening number of the last 25 years, this show had it all, and still managed to depict our hero as a great, but not perfect, guy.  Keith Carradine (and later Mac Davis and Larry Gatlin) donned the cowboy hat, grabbed the lasso and worked his way into our hearts, making one last stop on Broadway before departing for the Great Beyond (via a spectacular laser beam/smoke effect).

2.  19% - Grey Gardens

This is the one I thought would lose.  But it is a great musical.  Hard to sit still at without having definite opinions, true, but it does depict two of this country's most eccentric, both the good and the bad.  And isn't there something inherently American about liking to watch the mighty fall, then taking a step back, and feeling both pity and "they got what the deserved" at the exact same time?  And I have yet to eat the all-American ear of corn with out thinking of Big Edie and Matt Cavanaugh, um, Jerry.

1.  66% - Assassins

Talk about celebrating the uglier side of Americans!  But again, I realize the question was which was the best SHOW, not which had the best Americans in them.  The show, the songs, the storytelling are all brilliant.  And the controversy that surrounds the show, and the fact that a lot of people stay away from it based purely on topic rather than quality really speaks to what makes the average American tick.

Thank goodness we aren't your average Americans, huh?

BE AMERICAN!  VOTE!  (This month's first of two polls is just to your right and up a little!)


Comments? Leave one here or email me at jkstheatrescene@yahoo.com. Or send me a question at http://www.formspring.me/ and look me up as "jkstheatrescene" or "Jeff Kyler." Go ahead! Follow me!
Jeff

Bits and Pieces for 08.01.10

Be sure to vote in the new poll, to your right!

WHAT YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED!
Click on the following links to read blogs from this past week:

Best of the Decade: The Best Musicals #5
The Public Theater: Off-Broadway to Broadway, Again
Best of the Decade: The Best Musicals #4
Another One Bites the Dust
Blogjack: The Responsibility Project
Broadway Boys: Mr. August 2010 (a whole day early!)

(Answers to last week's Broadway Game: Where on Broadway Am I? are at the very bottom of this blog!)

Jesus Christ GAY Superstar?

As you might have guessed, I am not much of a prude when it comes to the content of plays and musicals (or movie and TV for that matter).  But I am always interested in shows that try to stretch the boundaries of acceptability.  When it works in support of the authors' intent and/or the themes of the work, you will find no one cheering louder than me.  But when I doesn't work, I, like everyone else, scratch my head, then shake my head and ask, "why?"  Earlier this week, I came across an announcement for a "newrevisionist" production of Jesus Christ Superstar.  I was mostly interested in the fact that yet another American Idol contestant was attached to a show and being used as a selling point.  But further reading, and a look at the press photos, really gave me pause.  Modernizing?  No problem.  Associating modern themes to the Biblical?  No problem.  A non-white Jesus (Idol's Jose Candelaria is Hispanic)?  Again, no problem.

But one has to wonder about just far this "revisionist Superstar" is going when you look at the press photos that find Jesus in a sexally suggestive "sandwich" between an erotic Mary (Kate Peet) and a lusty Judas (Joel Bartlett), who is caressing Mary by way of Jesus, while in another, Judas looks ready to whisper sweet nothings - and more- looking into Jesus' ear.  "I Don't Know How to Love Him" might just have a different meaning here.  The show runs this weekend and next as part of the Old Library Theatre's season in Fair Lawn, NJ.

Maybe I am reacting incorrectly to this press announcement and accompanying photos, as I have not seen the production.  But one wonders what kind of reaction they are going for.  Isn't the show edgy and contorversial enough?  I certainly have no issue with gay themes, but am I to believe that Judas, according to these pictures, was at least bisexual, if not gay?  What about Jesus?  Mary?  Controversy for the sake of controversy bothers me.  Again, not having seen the show, let me say I am reacting to the pictures only.  Sex sells, and this certainly grabs the attention.  I noticed.  Now I hope the show makes a decent point.

TWITTER NEWS

According to his latest Tweet, Memphis hunk, Charlie Williams, played his last show today in the Tony-wininng musical.  He is leaving to work on the pre-Broadway production of Leap of Faith, starring Raul Esparza and Brooke Shields.  But if you missed Charlie in Memphis, no worries.  He returns to the show in November.  And who knows? Maybe Faith will be a hit, and Charlie will have his next show all lined up!

Happy Birthday last week to:

07/26: Kevin Spacey (Lost in Yonkers, A Moon for the Misbegotten)

07/27: Maureen McGovern (3Penny Opera, Little Women: The Musical)

07/28: Stephen Lynch (The Wedding Singer)

07/29: Lea Michele (Spring Awakening, Les Miserables)

07/30: Delta Burke (Steel Magnolias, Thoroughly Modern Millie)

07/31: Eve Best (A Moon for the Misbegotten)

ANSWERS TO BROADWAY GAME: Where Am I On Broadway?
To play the game before you look at the answers, click here.

1.  The Times Square Coca-Cola sign
2.  Come Fly Away marquee
3.  American Idiot marquee
4.  Subway tile sign (this one happens to point the way to Madison Square Garden)
5.  The store sign over the entrance to the Broadway Gift Shop (45th Street entrance)
6.  The front of the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, The Addams Family marquee
7.  The Imperial Theatre marquee on 45th Street, showing Billy Elliot
8.  Junior's on 45th Street
9.  The bottom of the Jacobs Theatre sign
10.  Promises, Promises marquee
11.  The famous Music Box Theatre sign
12.  The Memphis awning over the entrance to the Shubert on 44th Street

Bonus:  The Radio City Music Hall mural in the Edison Hotel lobby sitting area.