"MUSICAL THEATRE-PART 1"
Captain Picard's Journal had some wonderful questions about 'Musicals'....Have you ever seen a musical, and if so how many have you seen, and do you like them, and what ones would you like to see that you havent seen? Well, you get the idea.
So I started to answer and I realized I'm not your usual person when it comes to musicals or plays or anything to do with 'live' theatre and films. Why? Because I am 'in the business' as they say, and I have seen so many performances of so many musicals that I could not even venture a guess as to how many musicals performances I might have seen in my lifetime...including shows I've been in, or in one case, a show that though not strictly a musical...there were a lot of songs used, some of which I wrote the original music for and performed in the original Broadway show, as well....(that is definitely another blog for another time, and I have to learn how to place the photo's where I want them, before I write that one!)
I began going to the theatre as a very young child, (I wrote a little bit about this in one of my earlier posts on the old blog...) then, working in summer stock where you see 8 performances of any given musical that plays every week; then there are all the shows I've seen many different productions of...sometimes 5 or 6 different times in different parts of the country with different casts!!! And on and on and on....
So I thought, maybe I should begin talking about Musicals that were so important to me that they are in my memory bank from childhood, because either they changed my life in some way, or, influenced my own growth as an artist in some way, or, I just loved them so very much that they are almost a part of my DNA!
So this may be an on going 'to be continued' type blog, as I go along, or, not! One of the very first musicals that I have some vivid memories of was the Original Broadway Cast of "Pal Joey", the Richard Rodgers/Lorenz Hart show. Vivienne Segal and Gene Kelly were the stars; this was before Kelly became a movie star, and in fact, this was the show that catuplulted him to Hollywood, and the rest 'is history' as they say. I was very very young, but it somehow became etched in my brain and it is one of the many shows that I saw again, the most important production in terms of the roads taken, was ten years later, (when I was an apprentice in Summer Stock), with that young an incredibly talented actor/dancer/choreographer, Bob Fosse, playing the cad, 'Joey'. And this was very much towards the beginning of his career, too.
This is where I would have loved to have put the photo that's up above, but I just cannot figure out how to make this f........ happen!!!! Sooooo frustrating to me. Anyone out there that can explain to me how to do this so that I can put pictures anywhere I want them to go...well, I will be eternally grateful to you!
Okay, now back to wherever......The woman in the photo is Carol Bruce, who was a great Theatre Star, and appeared in the very first Broadway Revival of "Showboat" (another theatrical milestone, by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein), as Julie, (Julie sings two of the greatest songs ever written.."Can't Help Lovin' That Man", and "Bill"..). Of course Miss Bruce played Vera in this summer package of "Pal Joey", and this particular production was totally responsible for the first Broadway Revival of "Pal Joey", not with these two wonderfully talented people, I might add.
Here, I would have liked to put a photo of Vivienne Segal and Harold Lang, who were the stars of that very first Revival. (Too bad, OldOldLady.....maybe another time.)
Have any of you ever seen this great inovative-for-it's-time musical, live, on the stage, anywhere?
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had this to say:
Just a hurried observation. I used to be a bit miffy about musicals preferring strong meaty drama but recently went to see 'My Fair Lady ' with a grand child and was entranced. Is it my age?
- Monday, November 7, 2005 at 3:08:00 AM PST
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had this to say:
I like them a bit better than opera...haven't seen one in a long time.
Just to let you know when I went to your old site the link to the new site took me to a blogger back page that said "not found" but then when I did it for a third time, it worked.
My computer is going to the shop today...I feel a little like my house burned down with losing all my files...but I'm thankful for my laptop which I got this summer for traveling and just finished paying off.- Monday, November 7, 2005 at 6:52:00 AM PST
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am not a total musical fan, but i enjoy a single along movies like sound of music, westside story, my fair lady.... cheers!
- Monday, November 7, 2005 at 6:53:00 AM PST
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I haven't seen a musical other than on TV. I do love live theater though!! I think seeing a live musical would be great too!
- Monday, November 7, 2005 at 8:59:00 AM PST
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I haven't seen very many musical live on stage. I've seen Hello Dolly, Annie, Bye Bye Birdie, Peter Pan, and others. I enjoyed them.
I've seen several movie musicals like Sound of Music, which I adore!- Monday, November 7, 2005 at 10:18:00 AM PST
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Visiting from Michele's site where I followed up your "M" with my "N". It's scary but every single week several people screw up the alphabet. It's discouraging! LOL
I've never seen "Joey" on stage though I have seen the other play you mention, "Showboat" on stage in two locations. I've also seen the two movie versions and always get choked up when I see the mother watching her daughter go off up the river. *sniff, sniff*- Monday, November 7, 2005 at 11:25:00 AM PST
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I haven't ever seen a musical play. But West Side Story is one of my favorite movies & it's a musical. :)
- Monday, November 7, 2005 at 4:27:00 PM PST
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had this to say:
If only we could hook up some electrodes to your brain and project those memories you have of all those fantastic musicals on a screen, I'd be a very happy camper. Kendall and I have seen a zillion great musicals (and plenty of not-so-great ones) but I salivate at all the classic ones that you actually got to witness. And I hope you do write about your own Broadway experience with That Play because I'd sure like to hear about it. I did get to see the wonderful revival a few years ago at Theatre West. (Have you outed your identiy on here yet? Can I call you by your real name?)
About the photos, I know how to get photos in individual paragraphs on TypePad, but they have to be in the top left, center, or right corner of the paragraph. But I'm not sure how Blogger works, aren't there any online tutorials or help screens for adding photos? Your photo collection is too good not to share!- Monday, November 7, 2005 at 4:51:00 PM PST
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If someone tells you how to place the photos where you want them - please let me know too. I have gone through hell tonight trying to put together another post about my paper fans, and trying to figure out where Blogger might put the images is very frustrating - as you know.
- Monday, November 7, 2005 at 5:22:00 PM PST
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Danny--You always give me a laugh! I love you asking me if I outed myself yet.,.LOL LOL LOL!
Well, not precisely; having two names complicates things even more...as you can well imagine! But, once I learn how to do the photo's the way I want to and need to, I'll show more stuff, especially about "That Play"...(lol), and I don't mean "The Scottish Play", as you know...
I am going to call you and perhaps you can talk me through this bloody problem...I cannot understand most of the Blogger so called 'Tutorials'....and as JUDY, who commented too...Blogger seems to have it's own mind about this...or, they truly do not explain what I need to do in a "Language" I speak!!! Thank you so very much for all your encouragement....I'm just starting to scan in 5 million photo's....!!! Have to learn how to crop and such...(SO MUCH TO LEARN AT THIS STAGE!!! OY!)
Did you like the photo above of Fosee and Carol Bruce? THE SEA CLIFF SUMMER THEATRE, my dear...
We'll talk! (hopefully)
Judy--I promise you, You Will Know If I Know!!!(lol) Can't wait to see more of your fans!- Monday, November 7, 2005 at 5:54:00 PM PST
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Thanks for visiting my blog.
I adore live theatre but don't get to go nearly enough. My favourite is still Fiddler on the Roof but Heidi is right up there.
As for your pjotos, you may notice blogger only lets you put photos at the top unless you rearrange everything which takes time. You need someone to host your photos then all you need to do is cut and paste the link. I use photovucket.
http://www.photobucket.com/- Monday, November 7, 2005 at 7:30:00 PM PST
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Barbara--Thanks soo much for the help! I will go there ASAP!!! And thanks for coming by my blog, too! I'll let you know what happens, or you may see what happens!!!(I hope-LOL)
- Monday, November 7, 2005 at 9:14:00 PM PST
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In ref. to your question: At an antique show or shop many years ago, I simply saw a fan that appealed to me because of it's subject matter. I don't even remember which one I bought first. Then every time I saw one that piqued my interest, I added it, as long as it didn't cost more than I allowed myself to spend for a fan.
I have turned some down because I thought they were overpriced and the dealers wouldn't budge on the price, and I have always been sorry afterward that I didn't give in.
I have not bought one in about 4-5 years. I am at the age where I need to pare down - not add to - but if I see one that I simply MUST have, I'd probably give in to the urge.- Monday, November 7, 2005 at 9:21:00 PM PST
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Judy--Very interewsting..I have no concept of what any fan might cost, but I sure can relate to not buying something and then having it haunt me forever!!!
Like you, I should be paring down, but....I do not seem to be able to do that! Once a collecter, ALWAYS a collecter!! (lol)- Tuesday, November 8, 2005 at 1:01:00 AM PST
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had this to say:
My favorite thing to do when I was a kid was watch those old black and white movie musicals on television. From there I went on to do a little musical theatre in college, but unfortunately that's as far as I got. I still love them, though, on stage or screen. There's just something about people bursting into song at random times that makes me smile. :)
- Tuesday, November 8, 2005 at 7:40:00 AM PST
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I adore musicals and have seen...many including our recent Family Holiday Fun watching "Wicked" from inside the Kennedy Center Opera House. :)
- Wednesday, January 4, 2006 at 11:30:00 PM PST
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