All I Want For Christmas

Holiday shopping is always a stressful exercise, but during a time when it's the thought that counts, why not use this as an opportunity to share new music and writers with your friends and family?

Like last year, the go-to gift for any lyricist/composer/librettist in your life was Sondheim's first book, and this year its companion, Look, I Made a Hat, is hitting the shelves again just in time for the holidays. You can even get the "Hat Box" with both books -- if your musical theatre enthusiast hasn't already beaten you to the punch.

When it comes to recordings, there are a few go-tos that are topping my personal wish list and are becoming staples on my gift list for others. For stocking stuffers, look no further than Shaina Taub's EP, What Otters Do, which will be sure to charm any folksy, jazzy fans for only $3.99 a pop. Today also marks the official release of The Burnt Part Boys cast recording, a gorgeous little show that I loved at Playwrights Horizon last year (What are the chances for a recording of The Shaggs come next year? Now that would be a Chrismakkuh miracle). And if you or anyone you know doesn't have a copy of Kooman & Dimond's Out of Our Heads or Georgia Stitt's My Lifelong Love, you should get on that ASAP.

For a more creative gift that also supports new artists, try taking part in some crowd funding projects. Right now, Ryan Scott Oliver and Matthew Murphy are raising money through Kickstarter for a recording and performance of their show 35MM, the project that gave birth to favorite songs like "Hemming and Hawing," "The Ballad of Sara Berry," and, yes, "Crazytown." Depending on your donation level, you can score swag like the finished cast recording, signed posters, and even a limited edition photo print. You can also support the Steampunk musical, Futurity, by band The Lisps as they work to produce a cast recording of their show. Use the Kickstarter campaign to pre-order the album for loved ones, and follow it up with tickets to their Joe's Pub concert on December 16th.

If you would rather treat your friends to some quality time, drinking in the holiday spirit, there are many winter concerts on the horizon. My New York Christmas tradition involves Joe Iconis and family debauchery at Ars Nova for the Joe Iconis Christmas Spectacular. Strapped for cash? Check out free concerts from a ton of new musical theatre writers as a part of the Broadway's Future at Lincoln Center and at the NYTB D-Lounge on December 11 and 12.

As the year winds down, it's nice to remember what the holidays are all about: family, friendship, love, and good will. How can music not make its way into that equation?

Hemming and Hawing

I was all set with an idea of what I wanted to post about today (thrilling revelations, I assure you)… until I came across these videos today from one of my favorite composers on the scene at the moment, Ryan Scott Oliver. I already had him on the brain after receiving an awesome Christmas gift of tickets to Rated RSO at Joes Pub in January, but recently uploaded, incredible videos, teasers for 35 MM, also feel like an unexpected present.

According to the information in these videos, "35MM is a multimedia 'musical exhibition' in which photographic images inspire music and lyrics, and inversely music and lyrics inspire photographs." The photographic inspiration comes from Matthew Murphy, and the songs that result from the collaboration of text/performance/image is absolutely stunning and uniquely twisted and gorgeous in a way that I only seem to find in RSO's work.

This song in particular really struck a chord with me, with its dark, haunting, but gleeful energy that is reminiscent of an Edward Gorey cartoon:



I've heard a few RSO songs that are meant to be stand-alone, but an aspect of his work that I've always been in awe of is the fact that his music is always so theatrical. I don't mean this in a way that implies that his songs are flamboyant or epic, but that they always move a story forward, seamlessly combining emotion and musicality with the practicality and enthusiasm of storytelling. I feel like his work is incredibly generous to book and back story, a truth that is evident in his contributions to musical web series "The Battery's Down" in the way that it defined Jake Wilson's character's story arc in two songs book ending the three seasons of the series, perhaps more than any of the plot twists in any of the episodes. There's poignancy and matter-of-fact wicked humor that runs through any of the works in his song book that implies strong characters and a whole world unto itself, a reason why I can imagine people latched on to "This is Your Life" from TBD's inception or why Cait Doyle's theme song for "Hot Mess in Manhattan" is so endearing.

If I had to describe Ryan Scott Oliver's work in one word, I would have to say: compelling. Not only in the sense that it's moving and encompasses many layered emotions, but also in the most literal sense of the word. His music is a call to action, a moment in motion, and it sweeps through a story as though music is the only way of expression in that instance. My most vivid example of this was when he closed his set at SPF's lounge concert this summer with "Song of the Dead Fairy," and within the first chorus, I felt compelled to clap even though no one else was. I held back, but then Ryan actually looked right over at our table and kind of gestured as if to say, "Why the hell not?" Needless to say, that's all it took to really get into it.



Also, as a last note, can I just comment on how amazing the combination of Ryan Scott Oliver and Alex Brightman is? I've seen Alex in a few readings and performances now, but there's something about the energy and sincerity of the way he approaches the genius twist of a troubled Peter Pan or a love-crazed student that really makes for a stellar performance.