Penny Dreadfuls and other things most dark

The month of August was full of Joe Iconis love at the Laurie Beechman where Joe and his crew performed almost every Monday night at 9:30 with a few special guests in between. I was lucky enough to get a good seat for his last show in the series where Annie Golden and Lisa Brescia were the guests of honor.

It's been a while since I've enjoyed a Rock and Roll Jamboree, and I know I gush about Iconis often, but this really is one of the best ways to view his work. It's one of the few theater events that even my non-theater going friends get excited for, which makes my heart really swell for a few reasons. First of all, it's nice to have something I can share with them, and the universality of the experience is wholly thanks to Joe's great music and the explosive passion of all the people that join him onstage. Watching the show and listening to some amazing new songs, I rediscovered what a great voice Joe is for our generation, capturing youthful energy and frustration, longing and confusion, and always humor that is never without consequence.

Here are some highlight from the August Jamborees (and if you haven't watched Heidi Blickenstaff kill the song "Ammonia," you better check that out too):

Jason Tam singing "Son of a Gun":

Jeremy Morse singing "Albuquerque Anyway":

Anthony Rapp singing "Lonely Woman":

Annie Golden getting it with "Joey Is A Punk Rocker":

And the beautiful "Starting to Forget," sung by Lisa Brescia (this was followed by a touching story from Joe about how it was written for his grandfather...which was then followed by him scolding the cast for talking through his touching story about kazoos in the background):