oh hello 1960s! what a phenom decade for broadway firsts: The Fantasticks, by far the longest-running musical in history, opened off-Broadway; Stephen Sondheim unleashed his first show for which he wrote both the music AND lyrics (...Forum) (also a decade with ridiculously long show titles apparently); a decade of rising stars debuting on Broadway stages (don't forget to click the links!!): Bernadette Peters, Barbra Streisand, Angela Lansbury...
ok ok ok. fine. i can't ignore the fact that i haven't posted since the beginning of time. i apologize. here's a recap of what took place in my life:
(1) grad school apps and auditions are DONE. thank. christ. i've been accepted to two phenom programs: Columbia University's Teachers College (Master of Arts in Music Ed) and Rider University's Westminster Choir College (Master of Music in Vocal Pedagogy and Performance). still waiting to hear from Boston Conservatory (overwhelmingly competitive atmosphere...but kind of awesome), and Northwestern (for which i experienced the most awk phone interview ever. fail.). we'll see what happenssss! until then, uncertainty lurks... (cue suspense-building sound effects...dun dun DUNNNN)
(2) see (1). ...that's pretty much been my life. i've been traveling literally every weekend since early January. and this marks my first weekend of de-stressitizing. hence the reincarnation of my broadway blog! (i can just hear the excitement through the waves of the world wide web from my whopping 4 readers. HI MOM! did you like that alliteration? can i borrow $200?)
(3) DJ is a genius. no really. he is. he's been accepted to three incredible psychology PhD programs. so hang onto those embarrassing pictures of drunk DJ so you can blackmail him in a few years when he becomes famous. two of the three programs are on the west coast though, which makes me feel a little queezy, uneasy, lemon-squeezy. but we'll see what happens. maybe we'll both be NYC-bound next year (in which case i will become flat broke from the temptations of Broadway...but it'll be SO worth it. BRING ON THE DEBT.)
ok, enough about me. let's talk broadway, baby. (follies. kennedy center. june 4, 2011. bernadette. elaine paige. second row mezz. EPIC. peeing pants already. ok, continue, brain.) specifically, let's talk HOW TO SUCCEED. ....IN BUSINESS. ....WITHOUT REALLY TRYING. eight-word title. eight Tony noms. coincidence?? i think not. (dun dun DUNNNN). cliffsnotes: the show follows a man (J. Pierrepont Finch) that slowly works his way up from window washer to head of a giant company by fucking over every man that stands in his way. while all of the women prance around and want to screw the successful men so they can start a family with a husband who rakes in the dough. awesome. but really. what a satirical relief. let's write a musical about how fucked up big business can be, and how completely ignorant, incompetent people rise up to the top because they were simply in the right place at the right time. it's a musical where the audience is rewarded with a sense of superiority as they watch a show that bashes huge businesses and the corporate ladder. and yes, the audience indeed embraced its satire and cynicism, eventually leading to the show's seven Tony wins and the Pulitzer. (yes, a show with the song "A Secretary Is Not A Toy" won the Pulitzer. isn't that freaking awesome?!)
believe it or not, yes, there was actually a bestselling book in the 1950s called How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying. playwright buddies Willie Gilbert and Jack Weinstock (Howdy Dooooody!) decided to write a play about it (without really trying, of course), and it remained untouched for years until their agent Abe Burrows stumbled across it and brought it to a few producers, hoping to revamp their play into a smash Broadway hit. the producers gave him the OK and brought in Frank Loesser and the creative team of Guys and Dolls to make this show a reality (talk about a dream come true for these dinky writers for a heinously cheesy kids show). after some drama behind the scenes with the choreographer (who couldn't do jack squat, so they hired Bob Fosse to fix everything...of course. Fosse always saves the day.) and with star Rudy Vallee (who wanted to incorporate some of his hit songs from the 30s into the show...what a dick), the musical opened...and eventually enjoyed 1,417 performances on the Broadway stage. ahhhh.
NOTABLE ACTORS IN THE PRODUCTION (yay Youtube clips!):
Robert Morse ("J. Pierrepont Finch": the window-washer who grabs an entry-level job at World Wide Wicket company ("a company so big that nobody knows exactly what anybody else is doing". bahaha.) and soon finds himself rising up the ranks)
- created the role of Barnaby in The Matchmaker with Ruth Gordon (the other musical in which he reprised his role in a later film adaptation)
- was in a horrible musical sitcom called That's Life (think Glee...but instead of following high schoolers through interesting, ridiculous teenage drama, it follows an absolutely boring couple through life. one-season flop? yyyyup.)
- dresses in drag to play the role of Jerry (or, should i say, Daphne) in the original cast of Sugar
- wait for it...wait for it...yup, here it comes. WIIIIIICKEEEEEEED! ...ok, over-the-top soundclip over. yes, believe it or not, Robert Morse was on the verge of making a comeback as the wizard in Wicked. but quit the show before it went to Broadway....wah-WAAHH.
- BEST ROLE EVER: he was the voice of Howler in Pound Puppies. AWESOME.
Rudy Vallee: ("J.B. Biggeley": the cheap son-of-a-bitch boss of WWW)
- arguably the first "crooner" in American popular music -- the predecessor to Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra. (no wonder he's a tool.)
- featured in the film sequel to Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, appropriately titled Gentlemen Marry Brunettes
- BEST ROLE EVER: he was featured in the 1960s Batman TV show as "Lord Marmaduke Fogg". no joke.
as for the other performers, not very exciting careers.
NOTABLE REVIVALS:
1995 revival with the (apparently terribly miscast) Matthew Broderick alongside Megan Mullally (also known as Karen from Will and Grace. bellybump!). pretty much flopped on Broadway.
2011 revival with HARRY POTTERRRR!! yes, Daniel Radcliffe is reviving the role of Finch as we speak. literally. first preview was last Saturday.
so there it is. the musical with one of the longest titles ever in Broadway history. and deservingly so. speaking of which, i'll be going to see the new revival soon (NEXT WEEKEND!), which sparked the reincarnation of broadwaytimetravel. so for all of the thousands of people who follow this blog, you can thank Dan Radcliffe for this post.
i'm spent.
