No Matter What, We WILL Prevail!

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One of the most beautiful songs ever written.
Composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber for the musical Whistle Down The Wind  and performed by Boyzone as part of a Lloyd Webber tribute concert.
We hope this performance inspires you and gives you some comfort at this time.

Sondheim At 90: An Enduring Gift To Humanity!

Today we will be concentrating mostly on the 90th birthday of Stephen Sondheim, the celebrated Broadway composer who has given us everything from West Side Story to his most recent production, Road Show which we saw as part of the City Center Encores series in New York not too long ago.

Between those two shows we've had a galaxy of stellar Broadway productions including (among those we've seen and enjoyed) Follies, Sweeney Todd, Company, Sunday In The Park With George, Merrily We Roll Along, Pacific Overtures, Assassins, A Little Night Music and Into The Woods.

The sheer output of this musical genius is staggering and gives us a picture of a true American Original.

When we think of Sondheim we think of the bittersweet nostalgia of Follies, the social commentary of Company, the historical daring of Pacific Overtures, the psychological pull of Into The Woods, the sheer terror of Sweeney Todd, the irresistible froth of A Little Night Music, the chilling reality of Assassins, the inventiveness of Merrily We Roll Along and the inventive dazzle of Sunday In The Park With George.

These shows not only span decades but they run through the full range of human emotions and the scope of the American experience from the tedium of married life to the polarization of competing communities to the torment of the criminal mind, to the role of artists in our society to our deepest fears, most haunting regrets and most enduring hopes.

And, make no mistake about it, the shows speak of love -- love in all of its manifestations and with all of its ongoing consequences. In Sondheim shows you will find unrequited love, parental and fraternal love, imagined love, longed for love, unconditional love, twisted love, remembered love and unabashedly romantic love.

One of the things we take from Sondheim is a boundless work ethic. His production level is nothing less than staggering and is a testament to hard work. Sondheim's success belies the notion that artists have some kind of magic wand that creates their art. He'd be the first to tell you that productive creativity is a lonely business -- a solitary world of daily toil.

The joy comes from the work itself. It's the process -- the journey, not the destination -- that brings fulfillment. And then, the knowledge that you've created something where there was once nothing. Still, we remain observers and always part of a larger whole that we can only begin to imagine.

From Sondheim himself, first via Pacific Overtures and then Sunday In he Park With George:

It's the fragment, not the day
It's the pebble, not the stream
It's the ripple, not the sea
That is happening
Not the building but the beam
Not the garden but the stone
Only cups of tea
And history
And someone in a tree

There's a part of you always standing by
Mapping out the sky, finishing a hat
Starting on a hat, finishing a hat
Look, I made a hat
Where there never was a hat

No Shows: BROADWAY GOES DARK!

Under the direction of Governor Andrew Cuomo, Broadway shows in New York City will suspend all performances immediately, through April 12, 2020, in support of the health and well-being of the theatergoing public. 

Performances will commence the week of April 13, 2020.

Another Look At Dolly: National Company

Let's just begin by saying that something grand and wonderful is happening at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia as part of the Broadway at the Academy series. It's the current revival of Hello Dolly! with Carolee Carmello in the title role and damned if it isn't one of the best productions of Dolly we've ever seen -- and we've seen this show with the legendary original, Carol Channing and with Bette Midler on Broadway.

The story of Dolly Gallagher Levi takes place at the turn of the turn of the century in 1890s New York. But its origins date all the way back to an Austrian play written in 1835 which eventually morphed into the 1938 Thornton Wilder play, The Matchmaker and then later in this 1964 musical. The emergence of Dolly is a story in itself, inasmuch as Dolly was only a minor character in the 1835 play. It was Thornton Wilder who moved the story to New York and eventually built the whole play around Dolly.

And therein lies the magic of this perennial favorite. Because Dolly herself is timeless. The heart and soul of this inimitable character is also ageless and universal. So, she's right at home here in Philly because she's genuine -- totally without pretense.

Dolly understands the human condition and that understanding helps her turn events her way. But when she "puts her hand in" matters (as she explains it) she does it not as a cynical manipulator but as a self-appointed benefactor who wants to see people get as much enjoyment as they can out of every moment. And thanks the wonderful cast of this new Dolly, all this is accomplished seamlessly and with no small amount of comic caricature as the show is played broadly, milking every comic line, gesture and pause along the way.

Of course, this classic American musical is richly blessed with good bones.

The book by Michael Stewart moves along solidly with all the right turns and trappings at all the right moments. The music and lyrics by Jerry Herman give us a bounty of show stoppers, ballads and even newly-inserted numbers (like Penny in My Pocket) that demonstrate time and again why this is Broadway gold. The direction by Jerry Zaks manages to be both faithful and inventive and snappy, no small feat when you consider the nature of the project. The choreography by Warren Carlyle pays homage to Gower Champion but is so fresh and alive, it makes you yearn for more and more dancing on Broadway right now. And the scenic and costume design by Santo Loquasto evokes a glorious American era in hues and flourishes that you will never forget.

Dolly has a cast of 37 with a full orchestra and the grandest, most spectacular numbers you'll see anywhere. From the rousing Put on You Sunday Clothes to the breathless Before The Parade Passes By to the catchy Dancing, to the comic Elegance and the lushly romantic Ribbons Down My Back, Dolly never fails to deliver.

But of course, it's the near manic title number that brings down the house. Yes, when Dolly begins to walk down those steps into the Harmonia Gardens, we see once again that you don't need pyrotechnics or special effects to electrify an audience, even in 2020. Coming on the heels of the ingenious Waiters' Gallop (a classic of choreography) the Hello, Dolly! number lasts nearly seven minutes and it's heaven all the way. And when it's over the audience is still literally screaming and crying for more.

If Hello Dolly! isn't Broadway's greatest musical, it's hard to imagine what is.

A Poignant Moment With Jerry Herman

A rarely-heard tune from the master Broadway tunesmith, the late great Jerry Herman.

Sneak Peak At The Longed-For Revival!

We'll be there next week for Broadway's dreamed-for revival of the Jerry Herman musical Mack & Mabel when the show comes to City Center with Douglas Sills and Alexandra Socha in the leads. We've been waiting for the return of this show f-o-r-e-v-e-r!
Tickets: http://bit.ly/3btPmvi
 

Musical: The Human Side Of Three Legends

Get to know the cast of #FlyingOverSunset, the new Broadway musical coming to Lincoln Center Theater this spring. 

Harry Hadden-Paton, Carmen Cusack and Tony Yazbeck take the Vivian Beaumont stage starting March 12! https://flyingoversunset.com It’s 1957. You are at a beautiful beach house overlooking the Pacific. You’re there with Cary Grant, Clare Boothe Luce and Aldous Huxley and they are on an acid trip. Together. That is the bold premise of FLYING OVER SUNSET, a new musical written and directed by Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award® winner James Lapine (Sunday in the Park with George, Into the Woods, Falsettos). 

Join three extraordinary people as they take an exhilarating journey into the most colorful corners of the human psyche – delving into their private desires, hopes and secrets. Carmen Cusack (Bright Star), Harry Hadden-Paton (My Fair Lady) and Tony Yazbeck (On the Town) lead the cast in this brilliantly imagined story of revelation and connection. 

FLYING OVER SUNSET features a gorgeous score written by Pulitzer Prize, Emmy® and Tony Award winner Tom Kitt (Next to Normal) and Tony nominee Michael Korie (Grey Gardens). Michelle Dorrance, the world-renowned dancer and MacArthur grant winner, will make her theatrical debut as the show’s choreographer. Don’t miss the next breathtakingly original musical from James Lapine – coming this spring to Lincoln Center Theater!