Oh, I'm in Sondheim geek heaven. I just picked up some shiny new(ish) copies of Merrily We Roll Along, Marry Me a Little, The Frogs & Evening Primrose, Follies in Concert, Anyone Can Whistle, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, and Hey, Mr. Producer. Okay, that last one isn't really about Sondheim, it's about Cameron Mackintosh, but Sondheim is involved. Oh, and I also got two more recordings of Gypsy- the current revival with Bernadette Peters and the original London cast with Angela Lansbury.
I've barely listened to half of these so far, and I'm already practically slobbering with happiness. The Follies recording was just...ecstatic. Mandy Patinkin's take on "Buddy's Blues" was extraordinary, Barbara Cook broke my heart with "Losing My Mind," and the audience reactions on the recording only made it more exciting. The OBC Follies never really caught my imagination, but this is a whole different story. Elaine Stritch singing "Broadway Baby" alone was priceless.
In other news, I have nothing resembling a life. :) But I do want to scoot over to New York this week and take my chances at the TKTS booth. Maybe I'll watch a golden oldie like Chicago. And my dad got mad at me for even suggesting this, and it's probably sold out, but I wish I could catch the final performance of Gypsy. Opening and closing nights (well, scheduled ones) are so special, and I've never been to one.
Eh, maybe one day. When I'm exceedingly rich. Ha.
What I'm listening to today: Gypsy (2003 Revival), starring Bernadette Peters
I just saw Chicago for the third time. "Cell Block Tango" still rocks my socks. Catherine Zeta-Jones is still insanely beautiful. And Richard Gere...still can't sing. Oy. For heaven's sake, couldn't they find anyone else? His voice makes me want to claw out my eardrums.
***
In not entirely unrelated news, my parents took the car to a friend's house before I went to rent the movie. So I decided to walk to the video store. In flip-flops. Proving conclusively that I am a moron, because not only did that kill my ankles, the walk to the video store involves crossing one of the busiest streets in town. And there's no traffic light. So there I was, running across the street in my flip-flops, hoping against all hope that I wouldn't trip, or lose a shoe, or get hit by a car. And then I had to do it again on the way back.
I am such an idiot. Good night, everybody.
Dude, I didn't know that Lindsey Lohan and Hillary Duff were feuding. And over Aaron Carter, of all things. That's hysterical.
*imagines Lohan and Duff catfighting*
*giggles*
What I'm listening to today: A Little Night Music, by Stephen Sondheim
I went to the dentist to get a filling today. I can't feel the left side of my mouth.
My summer is starting to take shape. I started working today, and finally found out from my college that I can go ahead and take a summer class at Columbia, but they won't necessarily give me credit for it. (Bums.) My dad booked our flight to Israel next month, and I even got part of the way through the massive backlog of old shows in the Tivo that I missed while I was in school.
Now I have only a few things left to do, like getting a copy of Chicago the movie because I have determined that I can't live without its rendition of "Cell Block Tango", waiting for my obscure Sondheim recordings to come in to my local library (Saturday Night, anyone?), and determining just which Broadway shows are going to get all my summer job money. Avenue Q. No, Wonderful Town. Or Assassins. Maybe Caroline, or Change? I Am My Own Wife? How about A Raisin in the Sun? But as Jew, I have a moral obligation to see Fiddler on the Roof, even if it does star Alfred Molina...hmm. Decisions, decisions.
***
I saw Mean Girls with Kate, which was tons of fun. It was so good it almost made me like Lindsey Lohan. Almost. Edit: Thanks Kate!
***
Oh, and one last thing. I cut my hair. Until yesterday I had waist-length locks, but I had them chopped off to my shoulders and donated to Locks of Love. It feels weird, but very easy to brush in the morning.
***
And that's what I've done since I've come home from college. Sleep? Ha! Who needs it?
What I'm listening to today: "Cell Block Tango" in my head
The ever-spectacular Randy Johnson has added another feather to his cap- he just pitched a perfect game against the Braves. It was only the 17th perfect game in major league history. Amazing.
Congratulations to all the homosexual couples getting married in Massachusetts. May you live long, healthy, and happy lives together.
What I'm listening to today: Sunday in the Park With George, by Stephen Sondheim
Well, as long as I'm commenting on all the Tony precursors, I'd better include the Drama Desk Awards. I can't really speak for the quality of Off-Broadway productions, but why bother nominating them if they never, ever win? And in the case of things like Avenue Q, when they finally do make it to Broadway, they're ineligible. So what's the point?
Well, anyway, I have a couple of other things to whine about. Stephen Schwartz for Best Lyrics? Really? Because his lyrics for Wicked somehow manage to suck even more than his music, which I didn't think was possible.
And I know I sound like I'm an anti-Wicked crusade here, but what on Earth motivated the Drama Desks to give Joe Mantello his Best Director award for that show rather than for his great rehaul of Assassins? Wicked is a show with a linear plot, two strong leading ladies, and lots of pyrotechnics. There's challenges to directing that, but Assassins is much more complex, and not just in subject matter. It has no linear plot, it's an ensemble show, it didn't work in the original Off-Broadway production, and oh yes- it's about friggin' Presidential assassins. Even when you have a great Stephen Sondheim score to support you, that's not an easy show to direct. And Mantello, to his eternal credit, made it work. The reviews this time around have been great.
And then they gave him the Best Director award for Wicked? Honestly. People complain about stupidity in the Tonys, but they didn't even nominate Mantello for Wicked, which shows a lot more sense on their part than they're usually given credit for. Now if only they hadn't given that show a Choreography nomination...
Anyway, there were some nice musical numbers during the awards ceremony, which had an annoying tendency to get interrupted because I was watching it via a shaky webcast. The performance of "Free at Last", from the long-closed production of Big River, was especially good. Oh, and Donna Murphy gave the longest speech ever. But that's okay, because she's wonderful.
Oh, one last thing- what was up with the weird commentary during the awards? It made it feel like an animal documentary. And though I'm highly amused by the thought of theater people as wildebeests, it still didn't work. Eh, whatever.
Congratulations to all the winners.
Well, it turns out that my stomach pains were due to a fun little gastrointestinal virus. I spent the night in the health center emptying the contents of my stomach and stumbled out in the morning completely drained. Thankfully, I'm feeling better now, because I still have my delightful computer science project to complete. But I still can't eat fruit, dairy, meat, leafy vegetables, chocolate, or anything fried, fatty, oily or spicy. Which leaves me with white food- bread, rice, potatoes, and crackers. Ugh.
I hate being sick.
Well, I'm finally done with my finals. Biology could have gone better, but I aced my musicals exam. Yeah, I know- surprise, surprise. :)
Anyway, all I have left now is my evil computer science project and I'm done for the year. I should be feeling good, but it's 89 degrees in my dorm room, I only slept 4 hours last night, and I've been having mysterious stomach pains for the past three days for no apparent reason. I need to rest.
***
Oh, and congratulations to all the winners of the Theater World awards, which recognize exceptional Broadway debuts. The Boy From Oz had three winners in Hugh Jackman, Isabel Keating, and Mitchel David Federan, and Avenue Q had two in its amazing lead pupeteers John Tartaglia and Stephanie D'Abruzzo. Here's hoping these great performers stick around for years to come.
Van Helsing has made over $100 million and The Boy From Oz just got 5 Tony nominations, including one for Best Actor.
I'd say Hugh Jackman's had a pretty good weekend, wouldn't you?
Anyway, congratulations to all the Tony nominees. Even if they don't deserve it. Which some of them don't. But I can't write about that right now, because ironically I have another final tomorrow. In musicals. I must avoid the musicals in order to study the musicals. Right.
Hey, I'm writing about baseball again. Surprised? Well, you shouldn't be!
Today, my favorite ex-Yankee, Alfonso Soriano, went 6 for 6 with 2 doubles, 4 RBI, and a run scored in an unbelievable slugfest between the Rangers and Tigers. How wild was this game? The Tigers scored eight runs in the top of the fifth to take a 14-4 lead. Then, in the bottom of the inning, the Rangers tied it.
That's right. Eighteen runs scored in one inning. Now that's quality baseball craziness. Anyway, the Rangers eventually won it by a score of 16 to 15, but I don't really care. Eighteen. Runs. In. One. Inning. I like suspenseful pitchers' duels as much as the next girl, but I would have loved to watch that happen.
Oh, by the way, I extend my fullest sympathies to the two teams' pitching staffs- each of them used 7 men in a vain attempt to stem the tide. ERAs were mutilated. Pitchers allowed more runs than outs. Things got downright ugly in that fifth inning- but man, does it sound fun. :)
Was it ony a week ago that the Yankees were doomed and the Red Sox were headed for a championship? Funny how things change. The Yanks have won seven games in a row, and Red Sox have gotten their asses beaten five consecutive times. They're now tied for first place in the division.
And that, my friends, is what you get for making assumptions based on what happens in April. There's a reason they play for six months. Ha!
What I'm reading today: Introduction to Algorithms, by Thomas H. Cormen, Charles R. Leiserson, and Ronald L. Rivest
The school rugby team just came walking through our hall.
Naked.
I did not need to see that. Not at all.
The winners of the Outer Critics Circle awards, the first of the Tony precursors, have been announced. Since I'm an almost complete ignoramus when it comes to straight theater, I'll stick to the subject of musicals.
Best Featured Actor in a Musical: Michael Ceveris, Assassins
Okay, I can get behind that. My only real problem with this category is the fact that Joel Grey even got nominated for Wicked. I mean, Joel Grey is great and all, but his songs in that show absolutely stink. They should have nominated another Assassins man, or maybe Raul Esparza of Taboo.
Best Featured Actress in a Musical: Karen Ziemba, Never Gonna Dance
Wha? Come on. I would place Isabel Keating of The Boy From Oz and maybe even Carole Shelley of Wicked higher than Ziemba. Oh, well. It's not really an atrocious choice, just not one I'd agree with.
Best Actor in a Musical: Hugh Jackman, The Boy From Oz
Note my complete and utter lack of surprise. Jackman deserves to - and will - win every acting award he's up for this year. He's phenomenal.
***
I'm waiting for the sarcastic comments, Kate. Come on. Bring it. ;)
Best Actress in a Musical: Donna Murphy, Wonderful Town
Hey, good for Ms. Murphy, but this is absolutely no indicator of whether she'll win a Tony. This category is amazingly crowded this year, and she'll be facing stiff competition from Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel of Wicked, Tonya Pinkins of Caroline, and Change, and Stephanie D'Abruzzo of Avenue Q. I'd give D'Abruzzo the lowest chance of winning, if only because she's a Broadway newcomer.
I really don't know what to think about Chenoweth and Menzel. On the one hand, Chenoweth got stronger overall reviews. On the other hand, she also missed more performances and is leaving the show soon after the Tonys. And she already won a Supporting Actress Tony for You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. On the other hand- or foot, whatever - I think that Menzel has been overhyped by the crazed Rentheads on the theater boards I sometimes go to. So I don't know.
As for Tonya Pinkins- the reviews are finally in, and they're saying that she's doing an amazing job with a slightly thankless role. So who knows? This whole category is crazy.
Best Revival of a Musical: Wonderful Town
As a card-carrying Sondheim cultist, I protest. The reviews for Wonderful Town were pretty good, but most of that was love for Donna Murphy. Assassins is a revival that's timely, smart, and didn't get a proper chance to bloom when it first opened. If you're going to force the show to be a revival even though it's actually never been on Broadway before, at least give it the win.
Best Musical: Wicked
*GAG*
Okay, I'm sure the show isn't that bad, but the cast recording really, really was. And I love Kristin Chenoweth. Avenue Q got much better reviews, and heaven knows the songs are better, but it isn't "tourable" enough. Man, I hate that. Just because Avenue Q uses puppets and is playing in a small theater, it's suddenly not as worthy as Wicked, which sells out a large theater and has one of its characters travel by bubble. Oh yes, much more mature than puppets. Really.
And while Wicked, by all accounts, dumbs down and softens up its source, a novel of the same name, Avenue Q makes its source material, Sesame Street, grow up and wise up. If you look past ticket sales, Avenue Q should win easily. But hey, Broadway is a profit-making venture. And Wicked sure can rake in the money, even if it can't get its elaborate sets to work properly. Ugh.
And yes, Wicked's adoring teeny-bopper fans drive me nuts. People who think musicals didn't exist before Rent make me want to grumblegrumblegrumblegrumblegrumble...
***
Ahem. Give the Tony to Avenue Q!
Well, unless Assassins counts as a new musical. Then give the Tony to Assassins! Because in these troubled times, what we need is a musical about killing the President! Yay!
*marches off to red, white, and blue fireworks, as The Star-Spangled Banner plays*
***
Uh, yeah. Anyway, I'm not going to place too much import on these awards. Of all the precursors, the OCCs seem to be the least indicative of any real merit. They even got two of their nominations mixed up this year. So I'll wait until the Drama Desks to really get worked up.
I feel warm and fuzzy inside.
***
Edit: Make that three.
I feel extra warm and fuzzy inside. :)
I knew things had to get better. Or maybe I didn't want to contemplate how bad they would be if they actually got worse. In any case, the baseball news has gotten better, and my school life has improved at the same time. So overall, things are good.
By beating the Cincinatti Reds, Roger Clemens became the first Astros pitcher to win 5 games in April, keeping his won-lost record perfect and actually lowering his ERA to a tiny 1.95. I can report this without any angst because...
The Yankees have just won their fourth game in a row. After being swept by the Red Sox, they came back to sweep the A's Big Three, and today they beat the Royals by a score of 5-2. They're finally back over .500, Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams, and Alex Rodriguez are all hitting a bit, and the pitching is getting a bit more consistent. I'm not going to predict a monstrous winning streak or anything...but I feel much better about the team now. They're playing like they're alive.
***
Back in real life, today was my last day of classes. Next week will be completely free to allow students to study for finals, and the week after that is the finals themselves. I'm...just so happy. This semester has been borderline hellish for me, and it's been mostly due to my own actions, which only makes it worse. So seeing the end so near is a wonderful thing.
***
Edit: Okay, this is slightly weird. I went on Amazon to get the link for the Falsettos CD (below), and the first recommendation the site made for me was for Riedel wine glasses. Which made me think of today's column by Michael Riedel, the evil theater columnist for the New York Post, which was about how the producers of The Boy From Oz are desperately searching for someone to replace Hugh Jackman when his contract is up. Being an evil man, Riedel predicted they wouldn't find anyone good. But then, he was predicting that Alfred Molina would beat Jackman for the Tony. Fat chance.
Anyway, yeah. That's what I thought of when I went on Amazon. Just further proof that I have reached perviously unheard-of heights of geekiness.
What I'm listening to today: Falsettoland (OOBC), by William Finn