Forward...into the past!

So I went to see the touring edition of Jekyll & Hyde at the Pantages last week.

The first half was all right. Not great, but still live theater. But the sound was really cranked up for some reason.
( musical geekery below cut )

On the bright side, "Daria" is being rerun on some cable channel I've never heard of (Logo?). Still a great show.

Saw Book of Mormon last night at the Pantages. Winner!



Those unfamiliar with the Mormon Church will see a very entertaining musical- songs you can hum (but probably shouldn't), great singing and acting, lots of humor. Those familiar with the Mormon Church will probably just die. Like the Weasels and Hyenas from Roger Rabbit.

For those familiar with the mockery and even-handed ridicule on South Park, BoM is just as skillfully devised. I even think many Mormons would find it amusing because it's so perky and enthusiastic. It's a kind of blasphemous Hope and Crosby buddy piece. I might go to see it again-- I think if I squinch my eyes a bit, I can totally see it as a long episode of South Park.

"I Believe" is a show-stopper (and I can't wait to hear it on Muzak) and "Hasa Diga Eebowai" is just...perfect. Especially these days.

Possibly the most surreal part of the show was in the Playbill:



The Mormon Church put 3 full page ads in the Playbill. Three. My favorite is "You've seen the play...now read the Book". Weird. The only negative to this is with so many extra ads, Playbill bumped the song list from the program. But hey-- I'm happy Playbill got extra ad-revenue. Good organization (check out PlaybillVault.com for an amazing archive!)

Saw Book of Mormon last night at the Pantages. Winner!



Those unfamiliar with the Mormon Church will see a very entertaining musical- songs you can hum (but probably shouldn't), great singing and acting, lots of humor. Those familiar with the Mormon Church will probably just die. Like the Weasels and Hyenas from Roger Rabbit.

For those familiar with the mockery and even-handed ridicule on South Park, BoM is just as skillfully devised. I even think many Mormons would find it amusing because it's so perky and enthusiastic. It's a kind of blasphemous Hope and Crosby buddy piece. I might go to see it again-- I think if I squinch my eyes a bit, I can totally see it as a long episode of South Park.

"I Believe" is a show-stopper (and I can't wait to hear it on Muzak) and "Hasa Diga Eebowai" is just...perfect. Especially these days.

Possibly the most surreal part of the show was in the Playbill:



The Mormon Church put 3 full page ads in the Playbill. Three. My favorite is "You've seen the play...now read the Book". Weird. The only negative to this is with so many extra ads, Playbill bumped the song list from the program. But hey-- I'm happy Playbill got extra ad-revenue. Good organization (check out PlaybillVault.com for an amazing archive!)

Okay...I'm tempted. This was produced by a longtime friend-of-a-friend of mine.

Silence: the Musical!

And it's gotten decent reviews!

Weird start to the day. When a friend posts that she found, ..."A weird new kink I've never seen/heard of before today. Possibly NSFW," and I go and read (it's just weird/adult, not eye-melting) and then follow all of the text-links...amazing.

Then I find a bug at the bottom of my jello bowl. As I've been working with amber rough, this is oddly coincidental-- it's like a foodie-version of real amber-with-encased-bug. But jigglier. Must make new jello.

Last night I finally got to see, "Follies." This musical has been on my Broadway bucketlist for ages both because it's Sondheim and I've heard such intriguing descriptions of the show. The story is simple: a theater is being torn down and they are having a reunion of the Weismann Follies girls (based after the Ziegfeld Follies). Now, in ordinarily talented hands this would have been a sentimental, bordering-on-maudlin show about reunions and old times and etc. As usual, Sondheim manages to mix in madness, a spectacular nervous breakdown and raw emotions in a variety of characters you like even though they only have a single song or piece in the show. All of this takes place in a creepy set that keeps reminding you that whatever the situation or happy tone of a song, death and decay await. The staging was just as stunning, with that same underlying creepiness. And there are ghosts everywhere.

I cannot recommend enough that you should see this show if it comes through your town: it's rarely performed (a cast of over 40, plus a full orchestra and elaborate sets) and you will see what a stand-out creator can do to stretch the boundaries of a medium such as "musical theater". I am SO GLAD I was able to see this!

Weird start to the day. When a friend posts that she found, ..."A weird new kink I've never seen/heard of before today. Possibly NSFW," and I go and read (it's just weird/adult, not eye-melting) and then follow all of the text-links...amazing.

Then I find a bug at the bottom of my jello bowl. As I've been working with amber rough, this is oddly coincidental-- it's like a foodie-version of real amber-with-encased-bug. But jigglier. Must make new jello.

Last night I finally got to see, "Follies." This musical has been on my Broadway bucketlist for ages both because it's Sondheim and I've heard such intriguing descriptions of the show. The story is simple: a theater is being torn down and they are having a reunion of the Weismann Follies girls (based after the Ziegfeld Follies). Now, in ordinarily talented hands this would have been a sentimental, bordering-on-maudlin show about reunions and old times and etc. As usual, Sondheim manages to mix in madness, a spectacular nervous breakdown and raw emotions in a variety of characters you like even though they only have a single song or piece in the show. All of this takes place in a creepy set that keeps reminding you that whatever the situation or happy tone of a song, death and decay await. The staging was just as stunning, with that same underlying creepiness. And there are ghosts everywhere.

I cannot recommend enough that you should see this show if it comes through your town: it's rarely performed (a cast of over 40, plus a full orchestra and elaborate sets) and you will see what a stand-out creator can do to stretch the boundaries of a medium such as "musical theater". I am SO GLAD I was able to see this!