All tagged Jeanine Tesori
On this week’s show, Jamie and Rob celebrate the recent release of the “Soft Power” cast album with the musical within a play’s Tony Award winning composer Jeanine Tesori, best known for writing the scores to “Fun Home”, “Caroline, or Change”, and “Thoroughly Modern Millie”, among others. Together, they talk about the unique inception and development of “Soft Power”. Then, Jeanine offers a master class in musical theatre composition as they dive deep into the album with a discussion and analysis of the intention and craft behind each song—from overture to finale!
With the concept of “winter” an increasing memory, here is overview of all that’s coming to New York stages this spring!
"Sing Street" will transfer to Broadway's Lyceum Theatre; "What to Send Up When it Goes Down" will return off-Broadway; "Trevor: The Musical" will play Stage 42; ABC will present "Young Frankenstein" live; the New York Musical Festival has shut down; Ciara Renée and McKenzie Kurtz will be the next Elsa and Anna in "Frozen"; Ben Cook departs "West Side Story"; Jake Gyllenhaal to produce and star in “Fun Home” movie; Laura Linney to record a "My Name is Lucy Barton" audiobook
As we begin a new decade, I look back at my past decade of theatre-going and pick my top 10 favorite plays and musicals.
By my count, I’ve attended 234 performances of theatre, dance, music, opera, and cabaret during 2019. Out of a field that large, it’s hard to pick just ten, but nevertheless, here are my top ten (ok, eleven) favorite shows I saw in 2019.
“Soft Power”, David Henry Hwang and Jeanine Tesori’s dramaturgically breathtaking new musical-within-a-play, experiments with form while rendering a sort of reverse version of “The King and I”. The resulting satire of American culture and politics brims with an unpretentious intelligence and an unexpectedly penetrating sense of patriotism. If democracy will break your heart, “Soft Power” can mend it.
The city that never sleeps also boasts a theatre scene that never sleeps. With the summer now behind us, this is an overview of all that’s coming to New York stages this fall (spoiler alert: it’s a lot).
Fans of Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori’s “Caroline, or Change” who are eager to see this 2003 musical masterpiece on stage should check out the Astoria Performing Arts Center’s ambitious and well-executed production. While the trimmings are simple and the vocal performances vary in quality, the strength of the story still radiates.
On my recent trip to London, I caught six shows—a mix of musicals, plays, and dance, both new and in revival. Here I offer a roundup “look left” at “Caroline, or Change”, “A Christmas Carol”, “The Inheritance”, Matthew Bourne’s “Swan Lake”, “TINA: The Tina Turner Musical”, and “War Horse”
“Moulin Rouge! The Musical" books the Al Hirschfeld Theatre; BC/EFA awards $225k for fire relief; League of Professional Theatre Women report finds gender equality progress Off-Broadway; "The Ferryman" extends 20 weeks; "The Secret Life of Bees" cast announced; Norbert Leo Butz, Laura Osnes, and Ethan Slater join Fosse/Verdon on FX; "If I Forget" to air on PBS; tickets on sale for Lincoln Center's "American Songbook" series; Astoria Performing Arts Center to present "Caroline, or Change"; producer Jerry Frankel dead at 88; writer William Goldman dead at 87
“Show Time! The First 100 Years of the American Musical”, a one-man presentation of the history of the American Musical, has the feel of a slick TedTalk with the added benefit of songs. Serious musical theatre history buffs and those genuinely seeking a lively academic instruction on the roots and evolution of the art form should definitely not miss this show.
Last night, The New York Pops presented “Women of Notes: In Dedication to Female Composers and Lyricists”, a concert celebrating female composers and lyricists of stage, screen, and the recording studio.
