Weekend Viewing

Need a soundtrack for your weekend? Missing the charm of live performance? Want to see a group of attractive men singing some killer, evocative folk songs?

You don't even have to answer out loud. I'll just leave this video here of PigPen Theatre Co. doing what they do best in this recording of their full Joe's Pub concert, and you can do with it what you will (watch it!!). Also, if you want to see all of this live, check out their website for details of their upcoming Northeast tour.

Favorite Musical Moments of 2012

I know there's been a little too much radio silence from this blog as of late. Things have just been a little busy with the launch of a new podcast (check out our latest episode where we talk about Michael John LaChiusa and Sybille Pearson's Giant) and some other exciting things that I'm hoping to talk more about in 2013. Still, I am very proud of things that have happened on this blog over the past year, and I am looking forward to continuing to talk new musical theatre with all you guys in the new year.

As a way of looking back and celebrating some great theatre over the past year, I wanted to just highlight some of my favorite live theatre musical moments over the past year. While not all of these moments necessarily happened in musical theatre pieces, they have exemplified the magic of music and live performance, and they've definitely inspired me as a writer and artist.

Here we go:

The final scene in Leslye Headland's Assistance

Assistance was a straight play loosely based on Leslye's experience working as a personal assistant to Harvey Weinstein. If you've ever had a stressful, menial job, this play almost hit too close to home as employees set their hopes and dreams on a faceless boss who they are determined can either make or break their careers. But just when you might be reaching for the Xanax remembering your time getting yelled at for small mistakes or being used as a punching bag, the final scene of this play is a completely unexpected moment of retribution when we enter a fantasy dance sequence that, quite literally, brings the entire house down. It's a stunning theatrical feat-- getting to experience a moment of true catharsis brilliantly carried out through genius set design, music, and a wonderfully executed dance routine.

The Opening number from Natasha, Pierre, and The Great Comet of 1812

Everything about this show was pretty awesome, but the minute the lights went up, the audience was presented with dumplings, and the cast launched into a rousing recap of the story's many characters, we knew we were in for a treat. Creating a spirited environment from the get go, my friend and I were reaching for the vodka and settling in to an exciting night of Dave Malloy's Russian electro pop opera (and who can begrudge that?).

Molly Pope singing a mashup of "We Found Love" and "How to Love" at the final Our Hit Parade

For anyone who didn't have the pure and strange joy of experiencing Our Hit Parade at Joe's Pub, this monthly cabaret mainstay was a fantastic series where a rotating variety of performers from the music and theatre scene each took a top 10 pop song and reinterpreted it. Their final show played Joe's Pub earlier this week, and it was probably one of the most electric events I have ever been to in New York. We talk a lot about artistic homes, but never was it so potent to be in a room of talented artists and to feel the love from the audience, the hosts, and the venue as everyone was just themselves. While there were a lot of laughs, one moment that utterly destroyed me was hearing Molly Pope, an Our Hit Parade mainstay, sing her interpretation of "We Found Love" and "How to Love." The love of performing coupled with a heavy heart that Our Hit Parade was ending made her performance all the more profound-- and I sat with tears streaming down my face, just as she had on hers. What a gift to be able to experience something so intimate and special.

"Just Like the Sea" in PigPen's The Old Man and The Old Moon

Another moment that managed to get some tears out of Grinch-y old me, PigPen Theatre Co.'s latest fable about an old man who traverses the world to find his wife featured a particularly striking moment that demonstrated a man's loss with only a few lights and some well-crafted shadow puppets, creating a montage of memories that was completely cinematic and emotionally affecting. Above is a video of another song from the show, "Bremen," and you can catch the moment live still, since The Old Man and The Old Moon is playing at The Gym at Judson until Jan 6!

Emerging Musical Theatre, the theme song

I couldn't be more thrilled (or slightly embarrassed) to have two wonderful writers sing a song about this little blog. Big thanks to Jeff Luppino-Esposito, Matt Savarese, and Anna McGrady again!

The Hamilton Mixtape at Lincoln Center

Can we all just agree that Lin Manuel Miranda is a genius? Because his American Songbook concert, which primarily featured music from his project The Hamilton Mixtape about the life of Alexander Hamilton, is nothing short of brilliant. With rap battles mixed in with R&B hooks, this project is destined to be a great modern representation of history that makes history.

Giant at The Public Theater

I can't really single out any particular moments from Giant, and I have a good feeling this show is going to go on to a longer life, so I can't say that this production was necessarily definitive. Still, this epic musical that tells a sweeping story as vast as the landscape that it covers is a real winner. With a beautiful score by Michael John LaChiusa and smart book by Sybille Pearson, this restored my faith in the range of musical theatre being made-- and the wonderful people who support it, as well.

In Case You Missed It...

The latest podcast that I've been doing with Erin Salvi on Crazytown, titled Kim & Erin Eat Cheesecake (And Talk About That Show They Just Saw), just posted its third episode about The Old Man and The Old Moon last week. Be sure to check it out here.

Also, check back on Crazytown for our last podcast of the year in a couple of weeks. We'll be covering Giant, which is playing at The Public and has a score by Michael John LaChiusa and a book by Sybille Pearson. Trust me, it's an epic musical and just as interesting episode.

While I'm at it, if you're looking to get in the holiday mood, this week promises lots of musical theatre celebrations. Tonight, there is a free holiday concert at the Walter Bruno Auditorium at Lincoln Center Performing Arts Library as a part of Broadway's Future Songbook Series. This Friday and Saturday will also have performances from Joe Iconis and crew in his yearly Christmas Spectacular, hosted this time at 54 Below. Alas, I will not be there this year, but it has been my tradition for the last four years and has never ceased to get me in the spirit.

The Simplest Things: PigPen Theatre Co.'s THE OLD MAN AND THE OLD MOON

We often walk a fine line on this blog between a musical and a play with music. Hell, throw in opera, musical spoofs, song cycles, etc. and the genre is just too hard to fit in a box. Last night, I had the privilege of seeing The Old Man and The Old Moon, the latest offering from PigPen Theatre Company, a collection of seven young actor/musicians/writers/composers (gahh, again with the blending of the categories) who developed their unique aesthetic and development process while in school together at Carnegie Mellon. They've gained some traction around the city having won top prize at The Fringe twice now, but The Old Man and The Old Moon represents their first full-length production now playing at The Gym at Judson.

I can't go into great detail, since my friend, Erin Salvi, and I will be discussing the show in the next episode of our podcast (which you should all check out on Crazytown-- the new episode will be up next Wednesday). However, I will say this: this show is a magical display of storytelling-- an exemplary work of perhaps the oldest oral traditions while guided by an expert hand that makes them feel new and surprising. Most importantly, I think, in the context of this blog, the musical elements that PigPen adds to their shows is really essential and beautiful. With a folksy score that fits the epic action and fable-like adventure like a glove, this is an example of how play-like a musical can be and musical a play can be. For your viewing pleasure, I'm posting some videos of some songs from the company below. Please go check out their website, see The Old Man and The Old Moon (then we can discuss!), and look out for our podcast.

(The company's first animated short, Bremen, which is also an introduction
to the epic world of The Old Man and The Old Moon.)

(Song "As Lonely As Me" from their debut album, "Bremen")