As it was at the overture and shall be at the exit music, bliss without end. Amen.

Theatre Aficionado at Large

Patricia Neway (1919-2012)

Pat Neway

Operatic soprano and Tony-winner Patricia Neway, best known for her associations with Gian Carlo Menotti and Rodgers and Hammerstein, died peacefully in her home in Corinth, Vermont on January 24, 2012 of natural causes. Ms. Neway was 92. Born in Brooklyn, in 1919, Neway studied at the Mannes College of Music, making her professional debut in the Broadway chorus of Offenbach’s La Vie Parisienne in 1942. Her first leading role in an opera came courtesy of a 1942 production of Cosi fan Tutti with the Chautauqua Opera. Neway performed regularly with the NYCO from 1951-1966, making her debut in the world premiere of Tamkin’s The Dybbuk and originating The Mother in Weisgall’s Six Characters in…

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Posted on January 27, 2012 at 4:17 pm.
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“Follies” – The New Broadway Cast Recording

Follies NBCR

Though the acclaimed revival of Follies will end its limited engagement on January 22, the landmark production has produced a staggering cast album, recorded by PS Classics and is without question a must-have and must-hear. The lavish 2-disc set captures is almost complete, capturing most of the score (more on that later) with its original orchestration intact (rare for any musical these days, most especially for a Sondheim show). It also may be the greatest album PS Classics has ever released; regardless of whether you agree with me or not, it is a spectacular achievement. There are already four official recordings of Follies available on the market. There’s the devastatingly truncated…

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Posted on January 18, 2012 at 4:36 am.
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Ethel Merman: The Parts I Played

Ms. Merman performs an extensive medley of the hits she introduced from 1930 to 1959, with Annie Get Your Gun, Call Me Madam, Girl Crazy, Gypsy and others thrown into the mix on the Jack Jones Show in 1982. And as always, a true showstopper.

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Posted on January 11, 2012 at 4:17 am.
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“And Eve Was Weak”

I suppose you can make a case that Carrie is the greatest musical flop in history. I’ll let you decide what I mean by “greatest.” The adaptation of Stephen King’s novel, with a book by Lawrence D. Cohen and score by Michael Gore and Dean Pitchford, was first produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford, England in early 1988. A story of the high school outcast with the crazy religious fanatic mother from hell and telekinetic powers was a popular bestseller and a Oscar-nominated horror film starring Sissy Spacek and Piper Laurie. The musical proved to be far less than successful. Reviews were mixed in England, and the show was…

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Posted on January 6, 2012 at 6:47 pm.
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Bringing Back “Man with a Load of Mischief”

Man with a Load of Mischief - Original Cast Album cover

I first heard of Man with a Load of Mischief a couple years ago while reading a discussion on essential cast albums not available on CD. The small off-Broadway musical, which had been a hit in 1966, starred two favorites: Reid Shelton, the sonorous baritone known mostly as the original Daddy Warbucks in Annie and the lovely Virginia Vestoff (Abigail Adams in the original Broadway company and film adaptation of 1776). I set off on the task of finding a copy of the not-so-easy-to-find album and when I did, I found myself quite enchanted. Man with a Load of Mischief is a chamber musical based on a play by Ashley Dukes with…

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Posted on January 4, 2012 at 8:54 pm.
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The Year of Living Cinematically

Another year, another year of cinematic viewing. Things have gotten a bit fancier and more accessible now that I have blu-ray player and access to Netflix streaming. Incidentally, my viewing of films has gone down this year as I’ve found myself catching up a bit more with various television shows, most notably Pushing Daisies and The Dick Van Dyke Show, to name a couple. The same rules apply: every title was watched in its entirety and an asterisk indicates a film watched for the first time. *The Thin Red Line (1998) 1/1 *True Grit (2010) 1/3 *Modern Times (1936) 1/4 *The Young Victoria (2009) 1/18 *Black Swan (2010) 1/22 *The Kids Are All Right (2010)…

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Posted on December 31, 2011 at 10:45 pm.
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My Favorite Performances, 2011

Matthew Amendt – Hamlet. The Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival celebrated its 25th anniversary with its first-ever presentation of this most famous of plays, with a kinetic, explosive production directed by Terrence O’Brien. Stripped of almost all trappings, this production was among the most compelling I have ever seen, and it was mostly due to Mr. Amendt’s compelling performance as the young Prince of Denmark. Amendt was riveting from start to finish, a towering achievement especially when you consider that he was sharing the stage with some the Festival’s best repertory players. His choices were big and bold, and made Hamlet something he rarely is: sympathetic. I don’t think I have ever…

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“Bonnie & Clyde”

Odds are if you mention the name Frank Wildhorn to a die-hard theatre fan, you’re going to be met with a rather impassioned opinion. While not a critical darling, the composer of Jekyll & Hyde, continues to bring new shows to Broadway with what appears to be continually diminishing returns. I am familiar with some of Wildhorn’s scores, but have not had the opportunity to see one onstage until his most recent, Bonnie & Clyde,  a spirited re-telling of the infamous duo famous for their murderous string of robberies in the 1930s South, and were also considered something akin to folk heroes as well. While Mr. Wildhorn takes the brunt of…

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Posted on December 15, 2011 at 10:55 pm.
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Hugh Jackman: Back on Broadway

Hugh-Jackman-Back-On-Broadway-300x200

I’m sure there are some people in the world who have watched Hugh Jackman’s movies or have seen Hugh Jackman onstage and haven’t cared for him. I’m sure there are some who might think that he’s overrated or that Wolverine sings too much, or what have you. I personally have yet to meet an individual who meets this criteria, and frankly I hope I never do. In fact, I think Hugh Jackman haters are a myth; until I meet one in the flesh, I refuse to believe otherwise. Everyone I know who has seen Jackman onstage has fallen under the spell: the man is a triple threat who would make…

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Posted on November 20, 2011 at 1:18 am.
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A place where I can rant and rave about theatre,
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director of the Independent Theater Bloggers Association.

Photo by Kari Geltemeyer

Walking Among My Yesterdays - 2011

1/19 - Avenue Q

1/25 - Knickerbocker Holiday (Collegiate Chorale)

1/30 - Chicago (Fan Day)

2/13 - La Cage Aux Folles

3/8 - Kate Baldwin & Sheldon Harnick: She Loves Him (Feinstein's)

3/12 - Kate Baldwin & Sheldon Harnick: She Loves Him (Feinstein's)

3/30 - How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying

4/6 - High

4/20 - Born Yesterday

4/27  - The People in the Picture

5/4 - Sister Act

5/4 - The Normal Heart

5/11 - Lombardi

5/19 - Something Wonderful: An Evening of Broadway (Carnegie Hall)

6/3 - Marilyn Maye: It's Maye in May (Feinstein's)

7/14 - Kate Baldwin & Sheldon Harnick: She Loves Him CD release (Feinstein's)

7/27 - Around the World in 80 Days (HVSF)

8/2 - Hamlet (HVSF)

8/7 - Follies (first preview)

8/20 - Jerusalem

8/27 - Sammy Gets Mugged (Fringe)

9/4 - Master Class (closing)

9/11 - Mary Poppins

9/12 - Follies (opening night)

9/16 - The Life and Death of King John (NY Shakespeare Exchange)

10/10 - Give Our Regards to Broadway (Manhattan School of Music)

10/16 - Broadway Originals (Town Hall)

10/17 - Carole Demas: Summer Nights (Laurie Beechman Theatre)

10/26 - Hugh Jackman: Back on Broadway

10/27 - Follies

10/30 - Chinglish

11/12 - Follies

11/18 - Annie Get Your Gun (Walter Panas Players)

Walking Among My Yesterdays - 2010

  • 1/3 - Ragtime
  • 1/20 - Tyne Daly: The Second Time Around (Feinstein's)
  • 2/6 - Betty Buckley: For the Love of Broadway! (Feinstein's)
  • 2/7 - Fanny (Encores!)
  • 2/27 - Yank!
  • 3/2 - God of Carnage
  • 3/8 - Kate Baldwin at Birdland
  • 4/3 - Lend Me a Tenor
  • 4/11 - Anyone Can Whistle (Encores!)
  • 4/23 - Collected Stories
  • 5/19 - Mitzi Gaynor: The Razzle Dazzle Years (Feinstein's)
  • 5/26 - Next Fall
  • 6/20 - A Little Night Music
  • 6/25 - The Bomb-itty of Errors (HVSF)
  • 7/31 - A Little Night Music
  • 8/21 - I Do! I Do! (Westport Country Playhouse)
  • 8/27 - Our Town (Barrow Street)
  • 9/25 - Brief Encounter
  • 10/7 - The Scottsboro Boys (first preview)
  • 11/6 - Lucky to Be Me: The Music of Leonard Bernstein (City Opera)
  • 11/19 - NY Pops' Stephen Sondheim Birthday Bash (Carnegie Hall)
  • 12/12 - The Scottsboro Boys (closing)

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