The Wiz film on DVD

I had seen The Wiz on film a long time ago, possibly when it was released in 1978, but didn't remember how cleverly it used New York City icons and locations to tell its story. That was the most fun part of seeing the film again today.

Some of the music holds up to the test of time, but a lot of performances don't. Diana Ross's Dorothy is rather two-dimensional and doesn't even improve much when she's given some beautiful songs to sing. Michael Jackson seems to have the most fun as the Scarecrow relying on dance ability to keep his performance lively. And it's nice to know that Nipsey Russell should be remembered for something other than Match Game.

Poor Lena Horne is hampered by a very static camera position during her one number; it makes her look like she's been stapled to that starry backdrop with the baby/angels all around her. Ms. Ross suffers the same fate while singing "When I think of Home" at the end of the film.


The Wiz
Music and Lyrics by Charlie Smalls
Book by William F. Brown
Film directed by Sidney Lumet
Released by Universal in 1978
Cast: Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, Nipsey Russell, Ted Ross, Richard Pryor, Mabel King

The Medium television production on DVD

Many Broadway purists will argue the inclusion of a Gian Carlo Menotti opera in my musical thinking, although several of his works were produced on Broadway. Well, if I can delve into the world of cabaret and Stomp, I can certainly include The Medium in my Year.

I am not that familiar with Menotti's works, but if they are anything like this production, done for television in 1978, then I need to check out more of them. I don't have the musicological wherewithal to discuss Menotti's composition, but it reminds me of operas by Benjamin Britten--chamber operas with few characters, delving into the subconscious and spiritual worlds. And the 'spikey' vocal lines and orchestration of The Medium sound similar to Britten's Billy Budd, which I have seen. Also, the theme of the sacrifice of an innocent for the sins of another is common to both operas. The orchestra seems to project the sub-text of the characters, giving voice to their inner turmoil.

The story revolves around Madame Flora, a fake medium who has a real other-worldly experience during one of her staged seances. Originally written in the late 1940s, the opera continues to have a life in smaller opera houses, and Menotti is considered one of the pre-eminent American composers of the 20th Century. He died in early 2007, well into his 90s.

Maureen Forrester (seen above) is particularly winning in her portrayal of Madame Flora. It was a performance she had done on stage in Stratford, Ontario Canada, which was subsequently filmed by the CBC for television. The television staging retains much of its proscenium style with enough close-ups and tracking shots to keep it from feeling two-dimensional.

The Medium
Music, Book and Lyrics by Gian Carlo Menotti
Produced for television in 1978 by the Canadian Broadcasting Company
Released on DVD by VAI in 2004
Cast: Maureen Forrester

Dreamgirls film on DVD

I saw this film when it came out in 2006 and had the same reaction as seeing it again on DVD: Jennifer Hudson is great. The camera loves her and she has some innate ability to hold still and have you not take your eyes off her. And then she lets loose in "And I am Telling You."

Dreamgirls works best as a film when Hudson is on the screen. Not to dis Beyonce who is also extremely watchable, but the soul of the story is not Deena. I never saw the musical on stage, but I can easily imagine the same scenario with Jennifer Holliday and Sheryl Lee Ralph.

I wonder how the men in the stage version fared. They are not the strongest element of the film. Jamie Foxx wisely doesn't try to sing much, and Keith Robinson is no match for the others in "We Are a Family." Kudos to Eddie Murphy for stepping outside what must be his comfort zone to take the role of Jimmy Early. He brings a lot of energy to the role even if it does feel at times as he has put on his character like a costume.

It's been more than 18 months since this film was released and it should probably surprise no one that an appropriate follow-up for Ms. Hudson is hard to find. Yes, she was in the film Sex and the City. But that's a part for any ol' actress, not a role for such someone with as much inner light at Ms. Hudson. Dare I suggest it? A bio-pic on Aretha Franklin? Or am I being sexist, racist, size-ist and pigeon-holing Ms. Hudson?

Dreamgirls
Film on DVD released in 2006
Directed by Bill Condon
Based on the Broadway show from 1981
Music by Harry Krieger
Book and Lyrics by Tom Eyen
Cast: Beyonce Knowles, Jennifer Hudson, Anika Noni Rose, Jamie Foxx, Eddie Murphy, Danny Glover, Keith Robinson

Thinking on Holiday

My musical thinking has taken me to the Canadian wilderness without the means to upload entries for the next 10 days.

Unless Nelson Eddie rides up in his Canadian Mountie uniform, I should have my next musical thought sometime around July 28.

Best until then.

Marianne Faithfull Sings Kurt Weill concert performance on DVD

In the 1990s an icon of the 60s recasts herself as an icon of Weimar Germany. When Marianne Faithfull Sings Kurt Weill she channels Weill-muse Lotte Lenya. Ms. Faithfull with her pianist Paul Trueblood includes 11 songs, 8 of which are from the Weill European catalogue in this hour-long cabaret act which was filmed in 1997 for the Montreal International Jazz Festival.

Among the "usual" Weill fare (Alabama Song, Pirate Jenny, Surabaya Johnny) is the haunting anti-war song "What was Sent to the Soldier's Wife" and three non-Weill songs, including a Noel Coward piece. Ms. Faithfull provides a bit of narrative to introduce the songs and string the Weill/Brecht pieces into their history, but for the most part this is a straight-forward cabaret recital, and the fans clearly love her.

In a video-taped press conference included as a DVD extra, Ms. Faithfull says she has lived with these songs her whole life, as her mother was an Austrian ballet dancer who had 78s of Weill's music when she emigrated to Britain after World War II. She sings them as if she's lived with them, as well as having lived with the emotions behind the songs. And while Faithfull might not live up to ghost of Lenya, she keeps the tradition of the whiskey-voice chanteuse (is there a German version of that word?) alive for a new generation.

Also in the press conference, Faithfull credits the translations of the German to an Irish writer friend of hers, whose name I didn't catch. The translation that srtuck me was for "Pirate Jenny" from The Three Penny Opera; it was unlike any version I had heard before and didn't flow with the music like I expected.

Another entry that's not really a Broadway musical. Points for exploring, but maybe points taken off for not very aptly managing the order of discs I watch.

Marianne Faithfull Sings Kurt Weill
Music by Kurt Weill, Noel Coward and others
Text by Bertold Brecht and others
Filmed at the 1997 Montreal International Jazz Festival
Released on DVD
Cast: Marianne Faithfull, Paul Trueblood

Stomp Out Loud television production on DVD

In an effort to be as inclusive as possible during my Year and to expose myself to less traditional theatrical events, I included the 1997 HBO special Stomp Out Loud on my Netflix queue.
The stage versions of Stomp have travelled all over the world and it continues to play in New York after more than 10 years, although it's not included in the Broadway lists or (I believe) Broadway income reports in Variety. If I'm wrong on that count, please correct me.

In any case, I may have to put my foot down about going this far outside the traditional musical. While I find the rhythm-making creative and interesting for a time, I really wanted it to be used in the service of some story--or at least within the context of a story.

It brought to mind the two recent films I've seen with Donald O'Connor. Mr. O'Connor's playroom tap number in Anything Goes and Beer Garden tap number in Call Me Madam also creatively use "found" objects to create some of their rhythmic interest. Gene Kelly's choreography and some works of Fred Astaire also do this. While I don't know if you can say that any tap dance can be "in service" of some story, at least it could be for more than just the sake of itself.

I did like how Stomp Out Loud included both outdoor and indoor numbers and tried to link them together. The athleticism of the performers was impressive. I assume the dances performed in front of an audience are from their tour or on-going live performances, while the site-specific dances were probably done for this television special.

Stomp Out Loud
Created for HBO
Released in 1997

Oliver! film on DVD

Somehow in 43 years I've managed never to see Oliver! on stage or on screen. I had heard most of the music before, but only excerpted. Well, my second "!" musical didn't live up to it's punctuation. I'm sorry Mr. Bart but your adaptation of Charles Dickens didn't make me kick up my heels. I blame the beautiful Chicago weather right now, making me wish to be outside rather than DVD-side.

The film adaptation of Oliver! won the Academy Award for Best Picture, and with strong production values, a cast of thousands, choruses of adorable tykes, lively choreography, and interesting and varied camera positions, there are plenty of reasons why. But the performances and songs don't really sing for me. "Where is Love" could be a pretty song if it were given to a more polished singer than Mark Lester as Oliver. Mostly I just wished for more sophisticated music--at least a contrasting B section. The one exception to my complaint may be "As Long as He Needs Me" which is lovely. I do have a problem getting past the very co-dependent nature of the song and the relationship between Nancy and Bill. As played by Oliver Reed, Bill looks like the Wolverine of his day, and manages quite a bit of sex-appeal, just like the Wolverine of my day, Hugh Jackman. Not in the film is Bill's song "My Name" which I need to find a recording of, because I don't know it.

Bart seems to have been a one-hit wonder. The Broadway database lists one other show he wrote, called La Strada, which closed after one night. Included in the cast were Bernadette Peters and Larry Kert. There are so many books on Broadway hits; is there a book on Broadway flops?


Oliver!
Music, Lyrics, and Book by Lionel Bart
Based on Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens
Film directed by Carol Reed
Released in 1968
Cast: Ron Moody, Shani Wallis, Jack Wild, Oliver Reed, Mark Lester, Harry Secombe

Ghost Light Monday--I am not myself these days

Another book review for my "dark" night. I don't want you to think I only spend time alone in my apartment listening to cast albums or watching musicals on DVD. I also spend time alone in my apartment reading.

I am not myself these days is the memoir of a drag queen/alcoholic and his/her seven month relationship with a male hooker/drug addict. Good times. With all those slashes you might not realize that this memoir is humorous.

Author Josh Kilmer-Purcell (oh, god there are hyphens as well as slashes?) takes the stance of 'that which does not kill me makes me apply more glitter lip gloss'. While the relationship between Josh and "Jack" is destructive in many ways, Mr. Kilmer-Purcell seems to have come to the belief that a loving, healthly relationship is possible, if we can just get past all the costumes we wear.

I first encountered Mr. Kilmer-Purcell while reading the daily guest entries on the Powell's Books website. His entries struck me as funny and I thought his books might, too. He has a polished, humorous writing style that helped lighten what could have been a dark, Gus Van Sant-like story.

I've purchased Mr. Kilmer-Purcell's second book, a novel entitled Candy Everybody Wants, which the author describes as a good beach read rife with 80s pop culture references. It awaits another Monday entry, probably after some bad summer burn/peel sessions.

Candide 1989 Concert performance on DVD

There are several versions of Candide available, but I thought I would choose the 1989 concert version, since Bernstein himself chose the cast and conducts the performance.

Candide has got to have one of the best overtures of all time, I assume owing to Bernstein's capable orchestral writing. I believe in usual Broadway scores, the overture is an arrangement of tunes from the show done by someone other than the primary composer. Here, Bernstein uses the entire color palette available within the resources of an orchestra--in this case, the London Symphony Orchestra--not a bad band to be backing you up.

The cast features June Anderson as Cunegonde, Jerry Hadley as Candide, Kurt Ollman as Maximillian, Christa Ludwig as The Old Lady, and Adolph Green as Doctor Pangloss. Kurt Ollman is a name that might not be as familiar as the others; he's a wonderful baritone who has had an interesting "cross-over" career straddling opera, song recitals, and musical theater. The late Jerry Hadley had a bit of the same type of career. Ms. Anderson and Ms. Ludwig are straight out of the opera house, while Mr. Green represents the true Broadway tradition and had had a working relationship as performer and lyricist with Bernstein for more than 40 years by the time this concert was performed in 1989.

The musical aspects of this concert are very good. All the performers are lively, and Ms. Anderson and Mr. Hadley sing particularly well. "Glitter and be Gay" is done just about as well as it can be done by Ms. Anderson, who was still in the youthful bloom of her voice. Mr. Green does admirably with an enormous amount of text, both spoken and sung.

I did get tired a bit of the amount of camera time afforded Mr. Bernstein, though, and while some of his "asides" were interesting, they didn't help the flow of the performance. Owing probably to his musical stature, there is quite a bit of congratulatory hugging and hand-shaking, which only manages to slow down the proceedings even further, but when the music is happening, it is all pretty good.

Candide
Music by Leonard Bernstein
Book by Lillian Hellman
Lyrics by Richard Wilbur, John La Touche, and Dorothy Parker
Based on the novel by Voltaire
1989 Concert version with the London Symphony Orchestra in the Barbican Center
Released by Deutsche Grammaphon
Cast: Adolph Green, Kurt Ollman, Jerry Hadley, June Anderson, Christa Ludwig

Brigadoon 1992 Studio Cast Recording

I take back everything I've written and thought about the value of studio cast recordings. This 1992 recording of Brigadoon--by the London Sinfonietta and an international cast of theater and opera singers conducted by John McGlinn-- is a treat. It's so nice to hear all the dance music included on the disc. While I love many of the songs from this show, the dance music is wonderful and really captures the character of the show for me (as you might be able to tell from this picture with me as Harry Beaton in 1984).

Broadway performers Brent Barrett and Rebecca Luker star as American Tommy Albright and Brigadoonian Fiona MacLaren. They would have qualified as young performers in 1992, and both continue to have good careers on stage; their singing here tells you why that is. Even if Mr. Barrett's baritone is not exactly as robust as some of my favorite singers, he handles Tommy's rangy songs with aplomb.

British tenor John Mark Ainsley takes the role of Charlie Dalrymple, who sings "I'll go Home with Bonnie Jean" and the beautiful "Come to Me, Bend to Me". His bright and easy tenor sound is exactly right for these songs, and he caresses the high note at the end of "Come to Me" beautifully. It is so nice to hear a true tenor in a musical theater work.

The extensive liner notes include the interesting story of how this show came about and some information on the backgrounds of Lerner and Loewe. I was particularly interested to read about Agnes de Mille's involvement in the creation of the original production. Thanks to her input (and the successes she had choreographing Oklahoma! and Carousel), Brigadoon tells a lot of it's story through dance. And that's where the real flavor of the show comes to me.

Brigadoon
Music by Frederick Loewe
Book and Lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner
1992 Studio Recording with the Ambrosia Chorus and the London Sinfonietta
Conducted by John McGlinn
Released by Broadway Angel Records
Cast: Brent Barrett, Rebecca Luker, Judy Kaye, John Mark Ainsley

Music Man 2003 television production on DVD

If my goal for this Year is to see if I can be re-inspired by musical theater, then Music Man should be the perfect show to set my juices running again. And for the most part this 2003 television production works its magic on me. The production is well-filmed with high production values and manages to retain the presentational style of a stage production without being trapped by static camera positions.

I've never seen this show live and I need to, because I think that a lot of the charm of Harold Hill needs to work its way across the footlights. Matthew Broderick is good, but doesn't quite capture the somewhat slimy side of the character for me. Hill needs a bit of the sexy scoundrel. Or maybe that's just what would work on this sadder by wiser girl.

Kristin Chenoweth makes her third appearance in my Year (which is only six weeks old). Sorry, I'm trying to vary composer and lyricist teams and eras of the productions as much as I can, but am sometimes stymied by what I have, what's available, and what's delivered to me by Netflix.

Anyway, Marian is oddly dressed to me. Is that a dig, that my comment about Ms. Chenoweth's performance refers to her costumes, which she probably had little to do with other than wearing? Marian's costumes are very ornate with lots of dangley things and metal pieces and a large variety of patterns in single garments. Has Marian succeeded so well at holding her dreams at bay, only to let her wild side show in her clothing?

Music Man
Music, lyrics and book by Meredith Willson
2003 Television production by the Walt Disney Company
Cast: Matthew Broderick, Kristin Chenowith, Molly Shannon, Debra Monk, Victor Garber

Damn Yankees film on DVD

My second Adler and Ross show this Year is Damn Yankees. Since George Abbott produced and directed both the stage versions and screen versions, I have to assume that the film is fairly true to the original, although I've never seen it on stage. Ray Walston and Gwen Verdon reprise their stage roles for the film. Jean Stapleton, in a small role, was also in both. Ms. Verdon's husband, Bob Fosse, choreographed both versions and appears in the film.

Ray Walston won the Tony for this role, and I have to say Applegate seems like a fun role, but I don't see Walston really savoring it much. Perhaps the very two-dimensional staging and camera angles are partially to blame. This seems like a role where you should chew the scenery.

Gwen Verdon as Lola proves herself the perfect embodiment of Bob Fosse's choreography, especially in the "fan club" dance they perform together toward the end of the film. I wonder if there are other examples of the two of them dancing together.

Tab Hunter is sweet as Joe Hardy and seems appropriately stymied by the more polished performances of Walston and Verdon--perhaps part of the point of casting him.

After enjoying Adler and Ross's Pajama Game so much, I was a bit disappointed in the music in this show. "You Gotta Have Heart" and "Whatever Lola Wants Lola Gets" were the only songs I had heard before. The rest of it didn't really do it for me.

A new production of Damn Yankees opens for a short run at City Center today, coincidentally. It stars Jane Krakowski as Lola, Sean Hayes as Applegate and Cheyenne Jackson as Joe Hardy. Seems like a good cast. I won't be able to get to New York to see it, but if you do, give a report.

Damn Yankees
Music and Lyrics by Jerry Ross and Richard Adler
Book by George Abbott and Douglass Wallop
1958 film directed by George Abbott and Stanley Donen
Cast: Gwen Verdon, Ray Walston, Tab Hunter, Jean Stapleton, Rae Allen, Robert Shafer, Shannon Bolin

Kismet Original Broadway Cast Album

How could I not love a cast album that features two of my favorite Broadway baritones? That happens less often than a good three-way, so I'd better take it slow and savor every moment.

In this case I'm savoring Alfred Drake and Richard Kiley and the rest of the cast of the original Broadway production of Kismet. I've never seen this show on stage, but suspect (from the synopsis provided in the notes to this CD issue) that it's a big, loud, bold, colorful hodge-podge--like a Middle Eastern market full of some stuff you love and more stuff you could do without. Fortunately, the music is most of the stuff I love.

Alfred Drake had already originated the roles of Curly in Oklahoma and Petruchio in Kiss Me Kate, so his mark on Broadway was already indelible. With Kismet, he has probably more of a musical challenge with big songs including "Fate", "Gesticulate" and "The Olive Tree". Each of these three vary in flavor from operetta to vaudeville to folk song, and Mr. Drake changes gears seamlessly, all the while setting the vocal standard for this music.

Mr. Kiley is in the early stages of his career, being 30 or 31, when cast as the Caliph. Twelve years later he will create the title role in Man of La Mancha . He is perhaps a bit miscast as Caliph, as the role calls for some singing in the upper reaches of the baritone range. But I'm forgiving.

Doretta Morrow is new to my Year, and I must check out her credits to see how she can reappear; she has a soubrette soprano voice totally appropriate for the show. Joan Diener is also in the cast and she will reunite with Kiley in La Mancha, too.

The liner notes refer to re-mountings of the show with Drake reprising his role, but the Broadway database don't include them. Is it time for a revival? How about with Brian Stokes Mitchell? Only if he's not tired of following in Mr. Drake's roles.

The notes also say that Alexander Borodin was awarded a posthumous Tony for Best Musical. Borodin died in 1887, the Tony was awarded in 1954; I wonder who gave the acceptance speech.

Kismet
Music by Alexander Borodin
Adapted and with Lyric by Robert Wright and George Forrest
Book by Charles Lederer and Luther Davis
Original Broadway Cast recording
Released in 1954 by Columbia Masterworks
CD reissue 2000
Cast: Alfred Drake, Richard Kiley, Joan Diener, Doretta Morrow, Henry Calvin

Company 2006 Broadway production filmed for television on DVD

RRRRRRauuuuuuuuuuullll!

This entry is for a friend who introduced me to the charms of Raul Esparza. A Sondheim fan, she went to the Kennedy Center and saw Mr. Esparza perform. She came back singing "Marry Me A Little, Raul!" And who can blame her. Mr. Esparza seems the perfect embodiment of Bobby--the guileless bachelor at the center of Company--charming, vulnerable, flirty, and handling all the twists and turns of Sondheim's music.

This stage production was by John Doyle and it uses the actors as the orchestra as well. I imagine the audition process: "You sang 'Not Getting Married Today' very well, I could understand every word. Can you play the trumpet?" It's an interesting form, although I don't know if it really adds anything to my understanding of this work of theater.

In a discussion on the extras of the DVD, Raul Esparza talks about how much he tried to strip away the theatricalities of Bobby to be a true observer in the play, and that seems the right approach, where Bobby reacts to so much, but isn't an active participant until the finale (when for the first time, not coincidentally, he plays an instrument).

This production is well-filmed for television, with lots of camera angles and camera movement. I wonder if that runs counter to the feeling when one saw the play live on stage. Except for a couple of very choreographed songs, with instrumentalists/singers bounding all over the stage, a lot of Company seems like it would be purposefully visually static.

Musically the show is very satisfying, with each song well-performed. Barbara Walsh seems to channel (or should I say Chanel) Elaine Stritch in the "Ladies Who Lunch" song.

Company
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Book by George Furth
2006 Broadway production
Directed by John Doyle
Produced for WNET Channel Thirteen New York
Released on DVD by Image Entertainment
Cast: Raul Esparza, Kelly Jeanne Grant, Angel Desai, Elizabeth Stanley, Matt Castle, Amy Justman, Fred Rose, Leenya Rideout, Keith Buterbaugh, Kristin Huffman, Robert Cunningham, Heather Laws, Bruce Sabath, Barbara Walsh

Ghost Light Monday -- August: Osage County

With all the Tony and Pulitzer hoopla surrounding the Broadway production of August: Osage County coming out of Chicago's Steppenwolf Theater Company, I took myself over to my favorite book emporium to buy a copy of the script, which has been published by the Theater Communications Group.

It brought me back to my theater days in college, reading scripts for study. It also brought me back to my college days because I had a course looking at the plays of Sam Shepard. Tracy Letts's Osage County falls in line with some of Shepard's later works, particularly Buried Child. I'm certainly not the first to point out this similarity.

Perhaps it is the differences from Shepard that kept Osage interesting. Letts's characters are more verbose than Shepard's, and while they are equally venomous, the slurs in Osage are more distilled--not necessarily less potent, but boiled down to their essence, usually to humorous effect. Letts's Weston family is also smarter and more well-read (or at least well-quoted). I was also reminded of some of Lanford Wilson's family dramas; while less sentimental then Wilson, the quirkiness of some of the Weston family may be descended from Fifth of July.

For those not familiar with the work of Steppenwolf, they are an ensemble company with a long history of success in plays by both Wilson and Shepard. Early company productions of Hot l Baltimore, True West and Buried Child received wide notice, and Buried Child was transferred to New York. Acclaim for Gary Sinise, John Malkovich, Laurie Metcalf, and Joan Allen (all early Steppenwolf ensemble members) brought these actors to the national forefront.

With Letts, the company has found a Chicago-based playwright, whose knowledge of the Steppenwolf style and strengths of the ensemble members can focus a new generation of the company and help shepherd Steppenwolf through its third decade.

Babes in Arms film on DVD

This was not the show that Rodgers and Hart wrote, but rather a hodge-podge of songs by many different writers put together into a show-with-in-a-show. It may be called Babes in Arms, but it clearly went through a lot of different hands, too. This film does not stand the test of time, even with Mickey Rooney, Judy Garland and that "Gosh, kids, let's put on a musical" spunk.

I saw the stage version in concert with orchestra, a la City Center Encores several years ago. The big numbers in the show are "My Funny Valentine" and "Johnny One-Note"; both are excised from the film. Included in the film is a strange version of the title song, during which the young cast wields torches and builds a big fire in the street--like they are villagers calling out the monster (which in this case is their parents). There is also an extended minstral show number with Rooney and Garland--along with the afore-mentioned young cast--in blackface.

One fun casting note--Margaret Hamilton (who played the Wicked Witch of the West) is the villian in Babes, too, although doesn't have a scene directly with Judy Garland.

Some nice numbers have been inserted, including "Good Morning" most well-known as sung by Gene Kelly and Debbie Reynolds in Singin' in the Rain. There is a fun duet for Garland and "legit" singer Betty Jaynes called "I like Opera/I Like Swing" that is a rip-off of the duet Garland did with Deanna Durbin in a short film earlier in her career. Babe's "legit" baritone is Douglas MacPhail, who sings "Where or When" which is from the original Broadway show.

I need to find a recording of the real Babes in Arms to remind myself that Rodgers and Hart created good shows.

Babes In Arms
Based on the musical by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart
With additional music by Roger Edens and Arthur Freed
Directed by Busby Berkeley
Released by MGM in 1939
Cast: Mickey Rooney, Judy Garland, Douglas MacPhail, Betty Jaynes, Charles Winniger, Margaret Hamilton

Ain't Misbehaving Live Performance

This is the second "jukebox" musical in my Year so far, and this one is far superior in my opinion to the previous one. Although perhaps this one should rightly be called a "jukejoint" musical.

A cast of five and a band of eight took the stage at the Goodman Theatre for today's matinee of Ain't Misbehavin' The Fats Waller Musical Show. I had heard bits of Waller's music before and recognized several of the song titles, but didn't know much about the man or his music. Fortunately, both his story and his music are interesting--varied in style, and well arranged in this revue that was created in 1978.

Here was what I was missing in Smokey Joe's Cafe: a good variety of songs and performance styles in musical arrangements that offered everything from intimate accompaniment to "blow the roof off" numbers. As staged in this production by Goodman Theatre Associate Producer Chuck Smith, the show uses the stage well. And there was a set and costumes that said something about the era of this music. All things that Smokey didn't have.

The standout in the cast has to be E. Faye Butler (pictured) . Ms. Butler is a singer and actress of accomplishment in Chicago, and that experience shone in her performance. The other four performers were each good in their way and made the most of their moment in the spotlight. I may be turning into my father, but I did have a lot of trouble understanding a lot of the lyrics, and most of the jokes were lost on me because I couldn't understand the words. But the music shone through and the incredibly racially diverse audience ate it up--myself included.

Ain't Misbehavin' The Fats Waller Musical Show
Music by Thomas "Fats" Waller and others
Lyrics by Andy Razaf, Richard Maltby, Jr., Billy Rose and a whole bunch of others
Show conceived by Richard Maltby, Jr. and Murray Horwitz
Live Performance at the Goodman Theatre, Chicago
Directed by Chuck Smith
Cast: E. Faye Butler, Parrish Collier, John Steven Crowley, Lina Kernan, Alexis Rogers

Spring Awakening Broadway Cast Album

I probably should have lined up some uber-patriotic show for Independence Day, but instead I'm looking at the first musical by an independent rocker adapting a 19th century German play.

The original Spring Awakening was written by Frank Wedekind in 1891 or so. It has a long history of being banned, censored, reviled and protested over. I don't believe I've ever read the original drama, but Wedekind does make it into theatre history studies for his blending of naturalistic and expressionistic styles and, more so, for writing plays on topics that caused them to be banned, censored, reviled and protested over.

Spring is Wedekind's response to a society which is not honest in its discussion of sexuality. I assume composer Duncan Sheik and librettist Steven Slater are trying to speak to the same type of society in their 2006 adaptation. The musical aspects of the show are somewhat notorious for their explicit language and for being sung into hand-held microphones, both of which are anacronistic for a 19th Century German drama.

I don't care a hoot about that. The presentational style of the songs is a Brechtian devise that works well in this setting, where the songs act as the inner monologues of the characters more than they do as traditional plot-moving devices. The songs break the fourth wall convention to speak directly to the audience. Brecht said that Wedekind was one of his influences in developing his so-called Epic Theatre. So, either Mr. Sater and Mr. Sheik knew that and adapted accordingly, or they dipped unknowingly into some Epic Theater zeitgeist. Either way, bravo for them.

The music takes a little getting used to, and I believe that is because it uses so much guitar in the accompaniment. I'm so used to piano-based music coming from the pit. But there are beautiful tunes and powerful anthems just the same. And the cast performs them admirably.

Theater history lesson over.

Spring Awakening
Music by Duncan Sheik
Book and Lyrics by Steven Sater
Based on the play by Frank Wedekind
Original Broadway Cast Album
Released in 2006 by Decca Broadway
Cast: Lea Michele, John Gallagher, Jr., Jonathan Groff

Nine 2003 Broadway Cast recording

Some days you have something to say. Some days you just have to say something.

I don't have much to say about Nine. I have no experience with Maury Yeston's music and have never seen one of his shows on stage. I think I need to, so I can understand how they are put together and how the music and the action interact. The cast album alone doesn't give me enough.

The music works best for me when its mimicking another style--such as "Folies Bergeres" or "Be Italian" or the Handelian Casanova sequence. Not to say there aren't other songs that catch my ear. Claudia's "A Very Unusual Way" is a beautiful song (sung here by Laura Benanti, who just won the Tony for portraying Gypsy), and Mary Stuart Masterson is very effective singing "My Husband Makes Movies." But much of the rest of the music doesn't capture me, as I suspect the stage action would.

Chita Rivera, though, is in this cast and how can you not applaud her with a stellar career that started 50 years before this production and continues to this day?

Nine
Music and Lyrics by Maury Yeston
Book by Arthur Kopit
2003 Broadway Cast Recording
Released by PS Classics
Cast: Antonio Banderas, Jane Krakowski, Laura Benanti, Mary Stuart Masterson, Chita Rivera

Gypsy film on DVD

Two days in a row with film versions of shows that starred Ethel Merman, but where the film didn't. At least with Gypsy, the story and music from the show are faithfully preserved in the film.

Despite it's title, the show is not really about Gypsy, but about Mama Rose. Or perhaps its about how Mama Rose created Gypsy--or rather how Gypsy created herself for Mama. Regardless, this is a first rate musical, well done on film, with all the showbiz hokem and human desires to fill a big story against a bigger cyclorama.

Rosalind Russell is very good as Mama and if her singing doesn't quite live up to the demands of Jule Styne's powerhouse music, Ms. Russell's bravura more than makes up for it. Karl Malden is also great as fast-talking Herbie, a very different type of role for him from most of his film and television credits. I may be in the minority (again) but I like Natalie Wood as Gypsy; I think her personal history with a poor background and pushy stage mother helps inform her performance.

A tangent that is truly tangent. A few years ago I read February House by Sherill Tippins. It tells about a house in Brooklyn where in 1940 and 1941 an unusal collection of artists lived. The unlikely group included composer Benjamin Britten, tenor Peter Pears, authors Carson McCullers, W.H. Auden, Jane Bowles, Paul Bowles, Richard Wright, and budding memoirist Gypsy Rose Lee. Do communities like this exist today, where artists of varying disciplines and varying experience come together to foment their ideas?

Well, with all the drinking and Benzadrine-taking that took place in February House, maybe the artists are better off if they don't congregate too much.

Regardless, the musical Gypsy offers a good time at the theater or on the screen.

Gypsy
Music by Jule Styne
Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Book by Arthur Laurents
Film directed by Mervyn LeRoy
Released by Warner Bros. in 1962
Cast: Rosalind Russell, Karl Malden, Natalie Wood

Anything Goes film on DVD

Can you still call this film Anything Goes if the title song has been excised from the score? (See correction in comments below) Well, the film has little to do with the stage version of the show which preceded it by almost 20 years.

Donald O'Connor makes his second appearance in a week of my Year, playing the younger leading man to Bing Crosby's older leading man. Mr. O'Connor impresses again with a tap number in an on-ship children's playroom (don't ask). O'Connor and Ms. Gaynor are well-matched as dance partners, but have to suffer through some mediocre choreography. Perhaps the greatest disappointment is the crooning of "Blow, Gabriel, Blow" by Crosby and O'Connor at the end of the film. It needs a voice as blaring as Gabriel's horn--like Ethel Merman in the original stage cast.

Still, there's one nice addition from the pen of Sammy Cahn, a comedy song for Crosby and O'Connor near the top of the film. And Edith Head gives good costume to the two women.

Anything Goes
Music and Lyrics by Cole Porter
Additional songs by Sammy Cahn
Book for the film by Sidney Sheldon
Based (loosely) on the play by Guy Bolton and PG Wodehouse
Released by Paramount Pictures in 1956
Cast: Bing Crosby, Donald O'Connor, Mitzi Gaynor, Zizi Jeanmaire