Stuff I Love: With a Thousand Sweet Kisses

I spent the summer of 1996, the summer before my senior year in high school, sitting in the theatre office in my high school, planning the upcoming season (I was in my second season as Business Manager), hanging out with my friends, and listening to the original cast recording of RENT on repeat. I'm surprised we didn't wear the CDs out (it's a two CD soundtrack) given the amount of times we listened to it. Something about the musical and the story of its creator, Jonathan Larson, completely captivated me and my friends. What did suburban white girls (mostly) have in common with the hip, cool characters of Larson's East Village? Quite literally nothing. I hadn't even been to New York when we started listening to the soundtrack. I didn't know anyone who was a junkie, although I knew kids in my high school who did drugs. I didn't drink in high school, and I was the mom of my friend group at 17. Which is cool I guess. It usually translated into always having easily accessible snacks for the group and making sure everyone made curfew.

But I knew every word to every song. I could sing the show in my sleep (and still can). Before the days of instant access to everything, I bought every magazine and paper I could find that had any information about the cast and Larson. Larson died the day before the off-Broadway opening of RENT, which only makes the show even more beloved. My parents bought me tickets to see the show on Broadway as a graduation present (we saw most of the original cast), and yes, I did sit next to my mom during the song "Contact." My parents knew what they were getting themselves into when they bought those tickets.

RENT is a lot of things: it's a modern day La Boheme, it's the precursor to many of the modern rock musicals, it's one of the most beloved musicals of all time, it's revolutionary. It makes you laugh and cry, often within the same song. It's about love and community and inclusion. It gave a face to the parallel epidemics of HIV/AIDS and crack and the impact both had on generations of young people. It's about art and politics and being your authentic self and creating.

I might not have had any life experiences in common with the characters in RENT, but I was young and believed that I could do anything. I was at the point in my life where I was about to head off to college and become whoever it was I was supposed to be. I was going to fall in love and create great art. I was going to have my "one song glory" like Roger (although it wouldn't be a song since I don't sing and can't play any instruments, but you get my point). I would find my tribe. Pick a song in the show and there's at least one lyric, maybe more, that speaks to my soul. It's that sort of show.

To say I was surprised that a live version of RENT was going to be on Fox last weekend would be an understatement. I had zero idea this was coming. I'm sure there was an announcement, but since I rarely watch network television anymore, I probably missed it. I'm ambivalent about these live musical broadcasts networks seem to believe we want. On one hand, my musical theatre nerd self gets so excited about a musical. I mean, I used to borrow cast albums (on vinyl) from the library and make up my own dance routines. I love musicals. On the other hand, these experiences almost never go right. The productions The Wiz and Hairspray have been the most successful of the fully staged productions, and Jesus Christ Superstar was an amazing concert/musical production. I've set the bar super low for these productions so I'm not disappointed, just like my Grandma K taught me.

I didn't hate RENT, but I didn't love it either. I DVR-ed it because I can't stay up past 9 pm on a school night. And it wasn't like I was missing an actual live broadcast. Because of a cast member's injury (more on this in a moment), only the last 15 minutes were live. The rest of the broadcast was from the recorded dress rehearsal the night before. The sound was terrible, but it's never good on these shows. The live studio audience was too loud (not a concert, y'all) and the cast, overall, was underwhelming. The set was impressive and cool, appropriate for a live broadcast, but was too overwhelming for this production. I really loved Roger's first pair of pants. No joke, not only do I want to see Brennin Hunt wear them again, I'd like a pair for myself. That's how good these pants are. Brennin Hunt was my favorite of the cast. He's definitely a Roger for 2019. Vanessa Hudgens was pretty good, better in "Take Me or Leave Me" than in "Over the Moon." Valentina was really pretty. I admit to fast forwarding through a lot of the recording. I skipped to my favorite songs, watched the awkwardness that was "Contact" on broadcast tv, and cried during "I'll Cover You - Reprise" because I will always cry during that song.

The lesson we learned from RENT Live! is to have an understudy. Hunt seriously injured his foot during the dress rehearsal. Rather than have a backup option of another actor, the production went forward with the recorded version until the last 15 minutes of the show. The climax of the show is staged in a way that Roger (Hunt) can sit pretty much the whole time, so that's what he did. And it was fine. The show ended, the curtain came back up on the original Broadway cast and "Seasons of Love" played as God and Jonathan Larson intended. Adam Pascal, the original Roger, and Jesse L. Martin, the original Collins, have gotten even hotter with age. I wish Adam had decided to jump in and play Roger; that would have been some amazing live theatre. If not Adam, what about one of the guys in the chorus? Trust me, they've all wanted to be Roger since they were 17. The last 15 minutes of the show, the actual live part, was the best part. It showed what this production could have been.

The next morning, I did what any RENT fan would do and listened to the original cast recording in my car on my drive to and from work. I sang along, because I always sing along, and I listened to the show as adult me, not 17 year old me who was in love with Adam Pascal. I still get chills during the certain songs and I laugh at Anthony Rapp and Idina Menzel. Wilson Jermaine Heredia's Angel will always be the heart of this show. What I was struck by on this listening and the "live" production, was the realization that the thing that Benny wanted, CyberArts, is now a thing that artists and tech people do all the time. Collaborative/multipurpose art spaces are super popular. Co-working spaces are a great example of people from all sorts of career fields working in a shared space, often stumbling into new ideas and creative endeavors. When I was younger, I loved Taye Diggs (I mean, come on), but disliked Benny. He was the villain, he was the living embodiment of Allison's comment from The Breakfast Club "when you grow up your heart dies." I still don't love Benny, but the original idea that Benny and his former roommate had, is now the norm. I have to wonder if Jonathan Larson was writing this show today, what would be the CyberArts of today? What would be the thing that took the heart out of art and creativity and innovation and revolution? I don't know, but I've been thinking about this all week, while humming random songs from the soundtrack.

And that's what makes watching the "live" production valuable. In addition to having an opportunity to watch a show about love, diversity, inclusion, community, and creativity on broadcast tv during prime time, I revisited one of the formative artistic creations of my youth and am thinking about it in a different way. At 17, I wasn't a fully formed human yet, and I had no idea what I'd be or do in my life. I'm not sure I'm fully formed human at 39, but I do know who I am and what I value. Listening to RENT makes me realize a lot of those things can be found in the songs and characters of this show. And that, is the power of art.

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Your Resident Single Friend: Grease is a terrible musical

In a few weeks, I'll enter the last year of my thirties. I've loved this particular decade of my life the most. I didn't love high school or my twenties, but my thirties have been pretty awesome. I've done a lot of cool things, spent time with the people in my life who are most important, and gotten comfortable with being my weird, quirky self. I've also embraced the fine art of not caring what other people think. It's a refreshing way to live one's life. I mean, I care about people's opinions of things that matter, like politics or whether they eat Twizzlers or Red Vines at the movies (Twizzlers is the correct answer), but I'm less inclined to care about what others think of me. This works fine in most situations, but isn't always helpful in one particular area: dating.

I haven't quite figured out is this dating thing. Regular Island readers may recall those times I signed up for online dating and that one time I went to a speed dating event, neither of which were particularly successful in the "going out on dates" side of things. However, they were very successful in providing me with amusing anecdotes to share here on the Island and strengthening my belief that more people have secret families than not. I've recently gone the online dating route again, this time on a site I like to describe as "online dating for do-gooders" and an app only site that sends me clever emails everyday with my matches, but doesn't seem to help any of these dudes with writing their profiles. During this time, I've gone on one horrible coffee date, chatted online with a very nice dude who was clearly lonely and then vanished, and filtered through lots of guys who seem like nice guys, just not my nice guy. I'm starting to think I'm missing the dating gene OR I missed the day in school where instead of being separated to watch videos about periods and how our bodies are changing, my classmates went to a class and learned how to date. I did miss the class where they taught us how to dress like a woman, so anything is possible.

A couple of trends have emerged during this go-around online:

• I seem to attract, at least online, much younger guys (like 22) or much older guys (like mid-50s into their 60s). I'm sure there are merits to either group, but I'm really not interested in exploring either.
• Dudes seem to believe saying "you're beautiful" is a good opening line. Am I supposed to reply with a comment about his handsomeness? What if he's not handsome? "Thank you" seems like the best route, but then I'm stuck for where to go next. Maybe start with something a little less grand and build up to that one.
• The fine art of understanding proper grammar has died. It's "you're" not "your" (see above comment) and there is not character limit so please leave text speak to actual texting. I'm such an old lady.
• Why include photos of you with other women? Maybe she's your sister or best friend, but with no context, I see one of two things: secret family or you just got divorced and you're not over her yet.
• Married guys - what are you doing on these sites? You have your own sites so go over there and stay there. 
• Kids! Are the children in the photos yours? Be up front about whether or not you're a parent. It's cool if you are, but I have to make a choice if I want to be involved in that life or not so I'd like to know.
• The amount of specificity in descriptions of physical traits is unnerving and a bit much.

I don't look my age, which is something I thank my parents and my skincare regime for every day. (And by skincare regime, I mean I wash my face, moisturize, and wear sunscreen. Occasionally, I use an exfoliating mask. That's it.) Some of the profiles talk about what a person is looking for in a match and often, they describe a woman's physical appearance and that appearance relative to age. I've seen comments about wearing lots of makeup (seen as both a positive and negative), hair length and color (no gray! long hair only!), "takes care of herself", which is open for lots of interpretation, and my favorite, being "fashion forward." Yes, some dude wrote that he wanted a woman who is fashion forward. This would be fine if he was wearing something other than gym clothes in every one of his profile pictures. I've also seen a few profiles that included comments about women not looking their age (a plus) and interest in women who alter their looks (this one mentioned plastic surgery specifically; he was cool with it).

I've brought this up with a few of my friends recently, and it's been fascinating to hear their responses to the idea of aging and how they discuss physical appearance in their profiles. Literally, everything from dressing differently on a first data to Botox in your 30s has come up. My head is still hurting from some of these discussions. Like me, most of my friends don't describe physical appearance when we fill out the exact same questions these guys are filling out. Each of us seems to have a type, but we don't spell it out in the profile questions. My friends also noticed that we're not allowed to age and it would be cool if we changed ourselves physically. Some of them are okay with this; others are not. The message is pretty clear: once we start to "show" our age, we have to stop dating, get a bunch of cats, and wear caftans OR change our physical self somehow. I'm down for the cats and maybe the caftans, but I refuse to believe anything else.

This is why I hate the musical/movie Grease. If you recall the plot, girl next door Sandy meets greaser Danny while on summer vacation. None of their friends are around when this happens, so Sandy doesn't know Danny is the leader of a gang called the T-Birds. She also doesn't know he gets around and is sort of a jerk. Sandy shows up at Rydell High in the fall and it changes everything. During the course of the musical, Sandy tries to fit her girl next door personality/look into Danny's T-Birds/Pink Ladies world and it doesn't work. It works for a little while, but then the dance happens and Sandy is literally pushed out of Danny's life. Danny, meanwhile, doesn't do much to try to fit into Sandy's life except going out for the track team. It isn't until Sandy becomes a Pink Lady (sort of), with skintight pants and big hair, that all is righted in the world of Grease. Sandy had to change physically, while Danny had to change personally (sort of). I would argue his change isn't really that big either; he doesn't leave his friends behind or get rid of his cool car; he letters in track. I was always disappointed in this ending, even when I was younger. The whole thing is so unbalanced.

I'm not interested in altering my looks for anyone but me. Look, I color my hair, mostly because I like experimenting with different degrees of red over my normally strawberry blonde red, and a little bit because I have some grays that I'm not quite ready to deal with. I will be, at some point, and then I will stop coloring my hair. But you'll notice this statement is all about me. Cosmetic surgery (on any level) is not for me either. I'm not judging anyone who does it as long as you do it for you. I don't wear a lot of makeup so I'm not going to start now. I love fashion, but always dress like me. Maybe Sandy did want to look that way at the end of Grease, but I think that's bullshit. Does anyone really want to wear pants like that? How did she sit down in those pants without them splitting? I refuse to believe that outfit was comfortable and made her feel like she was herself.

It took me a long time to be comfortable and confident in who I am. I know this is true for many of my friends too. Society as a whole is getting better at realizing there isn't one life timeline that works for everyone, but that doesn't stop the questions and the judgement about being single or dressing a certain way or having really short hair. I can embrace not caring about what others think, but that doesn't mean it doesn't sometimes place a little doubt in my head, making me think about all of this and wonder if I'm wrong in my choices or beliefs. In these moments, I turn on Grease 2, which is the better movie, and all is right in the world.


Coming soon to the Island: a Lazy Movie Weekend post about pie, some baking/cooking stuff, and I volunteer for the MLB All-Star game. It's going to be a super fun summer!

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We got Annie

When I was a little girl, my favorite movie was the musical Annie. I could watch the movie everyday and not tire of it...just ask my parents, my brother, and my Aunt Pat. They all hate this movie with a passion and it is entirely my fault. As an adult, I still have an affection for the movie but it's mostly due to my love of national treasures Ann Reinking, Bernadette Peters, and Carol Burnett, and adopted national treasure, Tim Curry. The movie is worth it simply to watch these four performers have so much fun.

My family has teased me about my love of Annie forever. This is probably a better things to be teased about than say most of the clothes I wore between 1987 and 1995 or my love of New Kids on the Block. I hated the teasing over the years, but it led me to the discovery of the cat we all know and love as Pumpkin.

I moved to Hawaii after graduating from college. My dad was stationed at Ft. Shafter and I had zero idea of what to do with my life, so I took my parents up on the offer to live at home while I figured it out. I enrolled in a graduate program at the University of Hawaii Manoa (not a great idea) and found a job working at Diamondhead Theatre. The only downside was that I had to leave my cat, Molly, behind in New Orleans. Mainland pets have to be quarantined for several weeks and it's expensive. Molly was adopted by a friend of mine and lived a wonderful life in New Orleans. My parents knew I was disappointed about leaving Molly behind so they decided to "get me" a cat for Christmas (they paid the adoption fees at the SPCA). We decided to go to the shelter while my brother was visiting for the holidays so the whole family could be involved in finding the cat.

Right before we went to the find my cat, my dad saw an ad in the paper featuring an orange cat named Annie. He joked that he had found "my cat" and we had a nice laugh over. I don't remember if I called to see if she was still there or not; I don't think I did. I feel like we decided to see if she was still there when we got there. Cats are particular about people so I didn't want to get my heart set on her and then she didn't like me. In my heart, though, I really wanted that particular cat. I wanted to be her human.

The experience of going to an animal shelter is overwhelming. There are so many animals that need love and a good home. Unfortunately, many of them don't find that home and it's sad to think about what happens to them. The areas for cats are often the most full parts of shelters; people abandon cats with a frequency that has always alarmed me. At the SPCA we went to, the older cats were in the first room and were mostly allowed to roam and laze about as cats do. Since I was interested in adopting a younger cat, our SPCA lady walked us quickly through the open room to a smaller side room where younger cats were kept. I walked in behind the SPCA lady and moved forward so everyone else could come in. My dad stopped by the first set of cages while I started looking around. Not even a minute into the room I heard him say, "I think I found your cat." In the cage right next to him was Annie. She had stuck her little paw through the cage and tapped my dad on the shoulder as if to say "Hey buddy, I'm over here!" I walked over, she meowed, the lady let her out, she jumped into my arms, and the rest is history. This also explains why my father is her second favorite person. We renamed her Pumpkin, after a series of votes (where the popular vote actually mattered), and she came home on January 3, 2002. She spent her first few days soaking up the sun on the lanai and terrorizing geckos. Eventually, she would "patrol" the lanai to keep us safe from the wild pigs that roamed Ft. Shafter. She was always looking out for our safety...or something.

Pumpkin lived a great life. She got to live in Hawaii and California, two states many people covet as homes. She caught mice in my apartment in New Orleans to show me what a killer she was. She enjoyed torturing bugs who dared to come into our home. She made the sassiest faces, perfecting the side-eye shade like a freaking boss. She made me laugh, annoyed me, and comforted me when I needed it. I, in turn, fulfilled my role as her devoted human (with hundreds of photos to prove it). What I didn't realize was how much joy she brought other people, many of whom never met her. They only experienced her through social media posts and stories on the Island. It's amazing to me to see how much joy she brought people and how many commented on her "personality" and how they looked forward to following her adventures. She have ignored most of them in person, but what can I say? Cats are jerks. Tiny, fluffy, adorable jerks.

As I sat at the vet on Saturday waiting to hear what was wrong with her, another cat owner sat down next to me to wait for his cat. We started chatting as a very sinister looking dog came in to been seen by one of the vets. The man's cat's name is Charlie so I'll refer to him as "Charlie's dad." The ER vet who took care of Pumpkin was also taking care of Charlie. Charlie got into a fight with something and had a nasty scratch on his face that looked like it was infected. Charlie's dad asked me how long I'd been waiting. I told him what was going on with Pumpkin and that I had been there for about three hours at this point. He asked me a bunch of questions about her, our life, and asked for some fun stories about her. I shared all of this as one proud cat parent to another. When I was finished he said to me, "We only need two things in life: beauty and inspiration. Cats provide both. Whatever you decide to do today will be the right thing for Pumpkin. You might not think so now and you can be sad but she was both of those things to you. Remember that." He proceeded to tell me that he may have broken the law by letting his cat out (and then it got in a fight) and recommended I adopt two cats when I adopt my next pet (which he knows I will do) since cats should have friends. Obviously.

Thank you to everyone who has reached out about Pumpkin. Your kinds words mean a lot to me. I'm so glad she provided so much entertainment, sass, and cuteness over the years. Please enjoy some more photos of Pumpkin but before you do, take a listen to my favorite song from the movie version of Annie. This is definitely a song about Pumpkin.

You can't stop the beat

Hairspray is my favorite John Waters movie. I don't recall the first time I saw it but I remember loving every thing about it. It was my John Waters gateway movie; after Hairspray, I went back and watched all the earlier films and have been a fan ever since. Released in 1988, Hairspray told the story of Tracy Turnblad (Ricki Lake) a "pleasantly plump" teen in 1962 Baltimore. She dreams of being on a local dance show, The Corny Collins Show, and going steady with the dreamy Link. Her mother, Edna (played by the divine Divine), is basically an agoraphobic who takes in laundry and scolds Tracy for having ratted hair. Running along side this plot is a focus on segregation in the 1960s; the Corny Collins Show show is segregated and Tracy makes it her mission to integrate it. All sorts of famous faces make appearances (Debbie Harry, Pia Zadora, Rik Ocasek, Sonny Bono, Jerry Stiller, and Ruth Brown) and Waters's regulars Mink Stole and Alan J. Wendl round out the cast. Fun fact: Vitamin C plays Amber, Tracy's rival (she's billed under her real name, Colleen Fitzpatrick).

The original film is campy and charming all at the same time. I'm pretty certain that Divine was the first drag performer I consciously recognized as a drag performer. There is something magical about her as Edna; I don't know if it's the Baltimore accent, her sort of soft gruffness, or the fact that she owned every scene she's in (both in and out of drag). There are certain lines that pop into my head in Divine's voice all the time: "Could you turn that racket down? I'm trying to iron in here." or "It's the times. They are a-changin'." Divine is my favorite part of the movie followed closely by Sonny Bono and Debbie Harry as the von Tussles. I believe I learned how to Madison by watching this movie; this is a skill I no longer have and it would never, ever have been useful since I was not alive in 1962.

I was cautiously optimistic when I heard that Hairspray was being made into a Broadway musical. John Waters had given his blessing so I knew it would be safe from what happens when musicals are made from other source materials. And let me tell you, it's a wonderful show. It's fun and joyful and touching and relatable. The music and songs are some of my favorite from more modern musicals; they fit into the show as well as the time period being portrayed. Every now and then, "You Can't Stop the Beat" pops into my head for no reason and refuses to leave...in a totally good way. The musical was nominated for 12 Tonys, winning 8 awards.

The musical was eventually turned into another film starring Nikki Blonksy as Tracy and John Travolta as Edna. It's not my favorite of the versions of Hairspray but it features some amazing performances by Blonsky, Queen Latifah as Motormouth Mabel, James Marsden as Corny Collins, and Elijah Kelley as Seaweed. James Marsden is probably my favorite part of the movie; he captures the wholesomeness and inappropriateness needed to play Corny Collins. I hoped at some point during this season of Westworld, Teddy would break into "Nicest Kids in Town" with the rest of the hosts. That would have made my life. My biggest complaint with the film was Travolta; I thought he was terrible. Harvey Fierstein, who played Edna on Broadway, should have been cast. Thankfully, the recent broadcast of Hairspray Live! rectified this situation; all of America (or at least the parts that watch live musicals on NBC) got to see Fierstein slay the role of Edna as Divine and God intended. I watched the broadcast earlier this week; Fierstein was one of the highlights along with an adorably awkward Ariana Grande as Penny, Martin Short, and Jennifer Hudson showing us all what it means to really live in a song.

Hairspray is about a lot of things but at its heart it's about diversity and acceptance. Tracy Turnblad was about body positivity before it was a thing. As Tracy exclaims in the original movie, "Now all of Baltimore will know... I'm big, blonde and beautiful!"(which is an amazing song in the musical). She didn't think being "pleasantly plump" as a problem; it made her unique and who she was. It didn't change the fact that she was a bad ass dancer or stood up for her friends and what was right (integrating the dance show). She got to dance with the cute boy. She wore dresses that made her feel special and pretty. She used her voice when others around her could not.

It's also about the message of inclusion and accepting diversity as part of the fabric of life. The 1960s were a tumultuous time in our history and Baltimore, like other cities, was front and center in the Civil Rights movement. When you first start to watch any of the versions of Hairspray, you think you're just getting a fluffy teen dance show movie/musical but it's really social commentary. Waters's movies always focus on outsiders and Hairspray captures that in a way that I don't think I thought much about when I was younger but now seems even more important. Listen to the song "I Know Where I've Been" - yes, Jennifer Hudson killed it on Wednesday but I love Queen Latifah in the movie so much that I'm using her version instead:

The lyrics resonate as much today as they would have in 1962. I couldn't help but think about recent protests as I watched the live broadcast on Wednesday. The signs might look different (maybe not entirely) but the sentiment is the same. As I wrote back in November, we have a lot of work to do in this country. We can sit by and let hate and fear take over or we can be like Tracy and her friends and stand up for what's right. Or maybe you prefer to dance for what's right; that's cool with me. I'll be over here pretending I remember how to Madison and singing along with "You Can't Stop the Beat."

Let's hope The Dreamgirls make it Into the Woods to get to Chicago so they can pay the Rent so we can all be Les(s) Miserables

I listened to the original Broadway cast recording of Rent on repeat from its release in August 1996 until the end of my freshmen year of college in 1998. I had the show memorized by the end of September 1996 and can still quote from it and sing along anytime I hear any of the songs (or they just randomly pop into my head which happens more frequently than you might expect). My parents, being the incredibly amazing and awesome people that they are, got me tickets to see the Rent for my high school graduation. We also saw Miss Saigon (that helicopter landing is legit) and visited all the places one visits when you go to New York for the first time. Most of the original cast was still in Rent at the time so I consider this trip one of the highlights of my life.

I've loved musicals my whole life. I remember seeing my first live musical, Oklahoma. It was the longest musical of all time and one of my least favorite but I do recall the magic of the music and the costumes and the darkened theatre. This moment cemented my love of musicals and theatre (and I did major in theatre in college). I've watched countless hours of musicals on video and PBS and gone to more than I can count. I even met Sebastian Bach from Skid Row because of a musical (no leather pants - shame). Some of my favorites include A Chorus Line, Chicago, Jesus Christ Superstar, Pippin, Cabaret, Once Upon a Mattress, and My Fair Lady. My favorite Stephen Sondheim musical is Assassins and I have a soft spot in my heart for The Sound of Music.

Rent is my absolute favorite musical. Unlike the other musicals I love, Rent was mine. It was about people that lived lives that I think my theatre friends and I imagined we'd live when we all became artists in New York after we graduated (minus a few things I'm sure). The songs were more rock and roll than Rodgers and Hammerstein which I loved most as I was forging ahead in my punk rock/hard rock girl identity. I knew everything about Jonathan Larson, the genius writer of Rent, who left this world before his time. I had and still have a crush on Roger. I wish I could sing "Over the Moon" like Idina Menzel. Like all aspiring theatre artists, I was expecting a life of poverty and cold New York apartments and crappy jobs (or no jobs) until I got my big break. The characters of Rent were living and that's exactly what my seventeen year old self wanted to be doing. Damn suburban Virginia and college! I want the Life Cafe and buying coats on the streets of New York and Evita-like dogs and protests that involved mooing. That is life.

There are songs in that musical that still give me chills when I hear them nineteen years later. My favorite is "I'll Cover You (Reprise)" (audio version here; movie version here). I cry every time I listen to this song; I cannot listen to it in my car because I will get in an accident. Collins and Angel (played originally by Jesse L. Martin and Wilson Jermaine Heredia) are my favorite couple in the play. I think their love story is the purest and most touching of all the love stories; there's no conceit, no expectation of anything but what happens each day. This is the song that plays as Angel dies and when Collins sings "When your heart has expired" I dare you not to become a pile of mush. Part of it is Jesse L. Martin (second crush of the cast) and his delivery; most of it is the raw emotion of the song.

So you can imagine all the feelings I had (and all Rent fans had) when it was announced that a film version of our beloved musical was being made. Many of the original cast members would be reprising their roles; Anthony Rapp, Adam Pascal, Jesse L. Martin, Taye Diggs (and his abs), Idina Menzel, and Wilson Jermaine Heredia were all back for the film. Missing were Daphne Rubin-Vega (the original Mimi) and Fredi Walker (the original Joanne). Rubin-Vega was pregnant at the time and Walker declined the role. I enjoyed Traci Thoms as Joanne; she was somehow quieter than Walker but still seemed to be a match for Maureen. I have a hard time believing the Mark-Maureen-Joanne love triangle in the film but it has nothing to do with Thoms. It just doesn't seem as vibrant as in the stage version. I never warmed to Rosario Dawson as Mimi. Technically, she was the name in the film. She wasn't bad but she wasn't Mimi either. The film version wasn't terrible; it wasn't the musical but it wasn't the worst adaptation of a Broadway musical to grace the silver screen. I cried at all the places I cried when I saw it on Broadway and when I listen to the soundtrack. The changes to the film didn't bother me as they did others but the film lacked the spirit of the stage production. It's a musical that needs an audience and a stage. It just makes more sense that way.

I was thinking about this in the lead up to the release of Into the Woods (I have not yet seen it; I'm going this weekend). I've been dying to see the film version of this musical since the first rumblings that it was coming soon to a theatre near me. Stephen Sondheim was going to be involved and the casting seemed ideal. I will confess something now: I'm not an Into the Woods super fan. Don't get me wrong, I think it's a beautiful, dark musical (my favorite kind of musical). I've heard the original cast recording countless times and have seen both the concert version and a version of the show with the original cast (y'all support your PBS station) but unlike other musicals, I was never "captured" by Into the Woods so I'm less likely to get riled up about the film adaptation. The same thing happened when Les Miserables came out; I understood that there would be things that Broadway fans like myself would not enjoy or agree with. My favorite musical theatre actors would probably not be portraying the characters they created on Broadway because that's not the way it works in Hollywood.

Do I agree with this? Not particularly but it's part of bringing musicals to film audiences now versus the 1940s or 1950s or 1960s when film adaptations of musicals were popular and made studios money (for the most part). Theatre actors could, to some degree, make the transition to the film and still go back to the theatre when they were done. There were exceptions to casting of course, Natalie Wood in West Side Story or Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady; maybe those were the first moves by Hollywood to change the game when it came to movie musicals. Unfortunately, Carol Lawrence (Maria from the original Broadway cast) wasn't going to open a movie and that is an important part of making films in Hollywood (at least from what I can tell). It's also what drives NBC to mount two live productions of musicals on tv with unusual casting choices (or really ridiculous ones). They want people to watch.

We (the collective Broadway musical fans of the world) have to remember something: they are not making these films for us. They are making these films for a larger, non-musical loving audience. That larger audience may not have the encyclopedic knowledge of original casts and recordings. They may not obsess over everything Stephen Sondheim has ever written. They may not have an interest in sitting through a three hour movie that involves singing rather than dragons and explosions. But that interest might be piqued if someone famous that they do love (Wolverine or the new Captain Kirk or Superman's dad or the girl that sings the cups song) is in the film. They will come out to see Beyonce be a Dreamgirl or Renee as Roxie. I can have my opinions on all of these things and hate the film version or love it or feel ambivalent about it. That's my prerogative and the prerogative of every musical theatre fan. Get your feelings out; it's healthier that way.

But still go to see the film. Even if you think you're going to hate it (and it's very possible that you will hate it, I'm looking at you Rob Marshall and Chicago). If we don't go to see these films and be vocal, then the next one won't get made. Someone like Stephen Sondheim will say, "Nope. Sorry, I don't want to be involved" the next time someone asks him to adapt one of his musicals for the screen. If that happens, chaos will follow. We'll never see another musical movie again.

My hope every time a musical movie comes out is that in the audience in some theatre somewhere in the world, someone is being inspired by the musical. Maybe that person never had the opportunity to go see a play or musical; that's a reality for a lot of people. Maybe the experience moves this person to find out more about the original musical or go see a live production in their town. Maybe it inspires them to go to Broadway to see a show or two. Maybe they sit down and write their own musical and that musical touches our hearts the way Rent touched mine. Maybe that musical gets made into a movie one day. And maybe that movie inspires someone else.

Remember, "Children Will Listen" or so the Witch tells us at the end of Into the Woods. So let them listen.

Lazy Movie Weekend: I know I'm awesome but I also want to be cool

This past week on Buzzfeed (slowly taking over my life since 2012), I stumbled on a post entitled 26 Reasons "Grease 2" Is Better Than "Grease". My brain immediately went into overload because someone else understands! This movie is magical and wonderful and 100% better than it's predecessor. This movie basically has everything:

• An amazing cast: Michelle Pfeiffer, Lorna Luft, Adrian Zmed, Maureen Teefy, Christopher McDonald, Eve Arden, Sid Caesar, Didi Cohn, Tab Hunter, and Connie Stevens
• The Four Tops sing the opening song. And everyone knows the choreography.
• Pencil skirts - lets' do this fashion.
• There are motorcycles. And multiple epic motorcycle chases and a dream sequence that features an all white motorcycle. It also features a semi-creepy love song but it's still a decent dream sequence.
• The song about bowling (that's really not about bowling) which features nuns and bowling teams who wear matching clothes. You know, wholesome fun.
• The luau is so fantastic and colorful. Calling the crappy school pool "the Pool of Enchantment" makes it so much more like Hawaii.
• Rex Manning is in this movie. Yes, Maxwell Caulfield before he was Rex Manning stars as Michael Carrington, the English exchange student (cousin of Sandy) who falls for Michelle's Stephanie Zinone. 
• The song "Girl for All Seasons". I have never been in a talent show but I would like to be and I would like to sing this song. I would also like to be either March or December.
• Awkward biology class lesson on sex that gets edited out when this movie plays on ABC Family.
• One of the songs is about picking up women at a grocery store. Seems legit.

Grease 2 was not a particularly successful movie (shocking I know) but I've always thought it was better than Grease. It's not that the original isn't entertaining but I've always had a problem with the ending. The message is that you have to change yourself in order for a person to fall in love with you. Specifically, Sandy has to become the bad girl in order for Danny to truly love her. One could argue that Danny also tries to change (joining the track team for example) but he never really stops being himself. In the movie version, the outfit is what kills me the most. There was nothing confident or strong about it. I thought she looked cheap and sad. I never wanted to be Sandy and there was nothing about Danny Zuko that seemed remotely interesting. I was a really critical 12 year old.

However, in Grease 2 there are lots of awesome women who didn't change for anyone and I like that about them. As I consider my leading lady quest, I have decided to look to the ladies of Grease 2 for inspiration:

•  Stephanie Zinone: Leader of the Pink Ladies and our heroine. Michelle Pfeiffer is flawless (always) in this movie. This was her first big screen role and she makes this movie. I wanted to be her so badly when I was 12. She's confident, sassy, bad-ass, but still comes off as nice. And then there is the moment that she flips her Pink Lady jacket inside out and tells Michael Carrington exactly what it is she wants in life. That whole scene just screams cool. I know in my heart of hearts I will never be that cool but it doesn't mean I can't try. She's nobody's trophy and yearns to break out of the Pink Ladies. The best part: Michael has to figure out how to fit into her world not the other way around. Just watch "Cool Rider" and tell me you're not blown away (and I will know if you are lying). I also dare you not to sing along. It's impossible. What I love about Stephanie is that she's trying to figure out how to be her own woman in a world that would prefer her to be either a Jackie or a Marilyn. She really does want both the boy next door and hell on wheels - she just doesn't realize it. Stephanie is probably the mother of us all (and those bangs).  Leading lady lessons: Don't be afraid to be different and make your own path. Also, a motorcycle riding mystery man is a must.

•  Paulette Rebchuck: Y'all this is Judy Garland's daughter, Lorna Luft. She was never as famous as her mother or half-sister, but Lorna kills it as Paulette. Paulette could have just been a dumb blonde, throwaway character but she's not. She's comfortable in her own skin and isn't afraid to flaunt it (which makes Johnny so jealous in a funny, sweet way). She and Johnny have a complicated relationship (since he's still not over Stephanie) and he takes Paulette for granted. She doesn't take it for too long and has one of the best lines in the film. Also, she wears gold pants like a boss. Bold move, Paulette, bold move. Leading lady lessons: Bold fashion choices are a must and don't let anyone walk all over you.
• Dolores Rebchuck: Dolores is Paulette's kid sister, a Pink Lady wannabe who explains the way the world works to Michael. It's from Dolores that we learn that you gotta be a biker or biker's old lady to make it the world (and by world I mean Rydell High and the bowling alley). What's great about Dolores is that she doesn't believe that for a second. She knows she's cooler than them all and in the end she ends up with a T-Bird (little Davey) and you know she would have been the next leader of the Pink Ladies if there had been another sequel. However, in Dolores's world, the Ladies would have had the motorcycles. Leading lady lessons: Wisdom knows no age.
• Sharon Cooper: Maureen Teefy was in the original film version of Fame, probably one of my favorite movie musicals of all time. I realized upon re-watching Grease 2 that I am probably Sharon. She's bossy, a little OCD, and prone to dramatics over silly things. She and Louis are my favorite couple of the group and their song is a great mix of awkwardness, creativity (on Louis's part), and patriotism. I also envy her ability to wear hats. Leading lady lessons: Being bossy totally works especially if you can wear a beret. Also, never go into a nuclear fallout shelter with your boyfriend.
• Frenchy and Principal McGee: These ladies are from the original Grease. Frenchy was always my favorite in that movie. She's back at Rydell to get her chemistry courses so she can make her own skincare line. This seems totally legit as a reason to be in the movie. According to IMDB, she wasn't supposed to make it into the final cut of the movie but did. Frenchy wanted to go her own way in the first movie and keeps at it here. She also sort of encourages Michael while also trying to provide a reality check so she's the perfect female friend for a guy. Principal McGee, the wonderful Eve Arden, is the perfect balance of authority figure and in on the shenanigans. She has a soft spot for the T-Birds that I find endearing (the talent show auditions and her comment "These are my boys" is just so funny). But she doesn't take any crap from the T-Birds (who are really one of the lamest motorcycle gangs to ever exist). Fantastic. Leading lady lessons: Education is important. Always be a supportive friend (or principal).

If we take the ladies of Grease 2 as a collective it's really confidence that unites them all in awesomeness. Sure they have their moments of crazy and uncertainty but ultimately just being themselves makes them both awesome and cool. And that's another lesson to learn on the pathway to being a leading lady - confidence is everything.

For all of you who are going back to school this week (or maybe you started already), The Four Tops wish you well.

Life would be easier if it were a muscial

Every now and then I find myself having a conversation with someone that somehow finds its way to a discussion about theatre, specifically musicals. I love it when the other person is a fan of musicals because then we can discuss our favorite live performances, original cast recordings, and Tony performances. I really luck out when the person also majored in theatre and we can further our discussion by diving into costume design and lighting as a vehicle for theme or something terribly theatre major of us. And of course, envisioning ourselves in our own musical numbers. I like to think that I'd be in some sort of Thoroughly Modern Millie number like "Thoroughly Modern Millie" (Julie Andrews style funny/awkward or Sutton Foster style dance-y/sweet) or maybe something from Pippin (I'm thinking "Kind of Woman") or Rent if I'm feeling artisty and defiant.

Obviously, life is not a musical. If it were, I would have to dance in public for no real reason except that there's a song in my heart and a music cue, sing on key, and wear heels the majority of the time. I'd have the perfect leading lady retort for everything. All would be resolved by the end of the second act with a huge production number including several quick changes. We would also all pretend like the majority of Oscar and Hammerstein musicals are not about horrible people (because they are).

Anyway, I was watching the movie version of Annie this week and realized it was time to check in on my progress with this year's goal. I'm not entirely sure why Annie made me think of this but it did. I'm guessing it's because Annie was the first musical I loved and Annie is the original sassy leading lady of my childhood (although she's like eleven years old). And Ann Reinking always.

My goal for the year, of course, is the be the leading lady of my life. Inspired by Iris from the movie The Holiday and tired of always being the best friend, I decided that this was the year of me. Being me, I also needed ways to quantify progress so I came up with this list as a way to figure out if I was actually doing it:

• Get involved in volunteering again
• Take a dance class (maybe tap or ballroom just because)
• Go to Paris 
• Be the instigator of plans 
• Allow my friends to set me up on blind dates (I mean, why not?)
• Be more spontaneous (I'm not sure how one quantifies this but that may be the point)
• Be more daring in my fashion choices and dress like a leading lady

So what have I actually accomplished?

COMPLETED:

• Volunteering: VEV (Visitor Experience Volunteer) training for the National Museum of Women in the Arts starts on Saturday. I applied and was accepted into the volunteer program in February but we're only now getting to start training. However, unlike every other museum I've ever volunteered for, the training is only a day and a half instead of a month or more. I will be an official volunteer by the end of the day this Sunday. Come visit me and enjoy NMWA!
• Paris: Contrary to some discussions prior to the trip, I did not fall in love with a French guy and decide to move to Paris nor did I get taken and need Liam Neeson to save the day. You can read all about my adventures in Paris if you'd like. Friends have been asking what my favorite part was and I can honestly say it was Père Lachaise. Weird I know, but the truth. Also, pictures of me exist from this trip that I actually like. That never happens.

IN PROGRESS:

• Instigating plans: Well, I'm not going to say that I've been planning parties and going out every night because that would be a lie. But I have expanded my social circle and am doing more with different groups of friends. I'm in album club which is super fun (more on this in a future post). June was a jam-packed social extravaganza kind of month. I can do better in this area and I will continue to do more and hopefully regain some of my planner/hostess ways from when I was living in New Orleans (I used to throw great dinner parties - I don't really have the space anymore. Sad.) Maybe I need to find a friend who has the space and volunteer to plan a dinner party at their house. This could be a great idea.
• Fashion: This is never really going to be done but I feel like I've been more daring and more willing to try new fashion just to do it. I wear the purple skinny jeans frequently, I've been wearing skirts and dresses like a boss, and I bought a neon striped shirt while in Paris that I adore (and I can't stand neon as a fashion trend). I'm trying to mix up my work week wardrobe to include less jeans and tees days and more "I'm a professional, I promise" days. And I shop my closet. I love doing this. I have a lot of great stuff in my closet that I forgot about and it's all coming in handy these days. 
• Spontaneity: I'm not entirely sure how to measure spontaneity but I'm rather proud of myself for not over-planning my trip to Paris. While I wouldn't say that I was particularly spontaneous, it was a pretty dramatic departure for me and I think that's progress. I don't know about this one - any thoughts on how a person can be more spontaneous when they're really more of a planner? Do I have to become like Jim Carrey in Yes Man? I really don't want to learn how to play "Jumper" (even though this scene is pretty great) or get in a bar fight.

NOT STARTED:

• Taking a class: I have done nothing at all to begin this. I was thinking dance classes or yoga but haven't been motivated enough to look for a class that's a right fit for me. I'm also considering taking some cooking classes or language classes. My mom wants to take art classes (like jewelry making) so I'm maybe I'll find something that she and I can do together and that will get me in the class-taking mood.
• Dating: I will go with epic fail on this one (for now). I applaud my friends who are diving into the online dating pool and managing it like champs - just watch out for jerks and wastes of time. I had a miserable experience with online dating the year I turned 30 (one of those things I did that year to enter my thirties in a bold, adventurous way) so I'm very hesitant to try again. Actually, the prospect of it makes me a little hive-y even with the idea that I could make it a regular feature on the Island (Erin's Date of the Week - a suggestion from one on my friends who is contemplating something similar). This one has me stumped. Of the seven items on my list, I think this one is the hardest to make progress on and I'm not really sure why. I'm guessing it's because love and the prospect of love makes us all act like absolute morons. It would be so much better if we were all still in middle school and could rely on the "do you like" me notes and our friends to do the work for us. This is probably the only time I will ever say it would be cool to go back to middle school.

Despite not even starting two of the items on the list, I feel like progress is being made. That's really what's important. I'm open to suggestions for those things that I haven't started or are still in progress. Or volunteers to be my class buddy or someone to write my online dating profile (if I decide to take that leap again - blah).

And the great thing? There's still time - I have until December 31 (about 180 days). What can I accomplish in 180 days?

Cue the musical number.

All videos from youtube.com.

Love, death, and jazz hands

I've recently been rereading some stuff I wrote immediately before and after Hurricane Katrina. This was on of the pieces I thought was interesting (even after 7 years). Enjoy! 

July 5, 2005—West Side Story rehearsal

I’m sitting in a theater waiting for the final run through of West Side Story to begin. I would prefer to be at home waiting for Tropical Storm Cindy to come, hopefully getting me out of work tomorrow. If that happened, I could stay at home reading Chuck Klosterman and being mad at him for beating me to the deconstruction of Lloyd Dobler while I fall more in love with him (Chuck, not Lloyd). I know he will never be Lloyd Dobler and I’m totally okay with that.

Instead I am waiting for West Side Story to begin. And considering how bad the weather will be when I leave the theatre and wonder why rehearsal wasn't canceled. What if a tree falls on my car? I wonder who'll drive me home if that happens.

As I wait, I return to thinking about Chuck and realize that he has it all wrong. It has nothing to do with Lloyd Dobler and everything to do with the musical:

           

            Tony & Maria

            Anita & Bernardo

            Nellie & Emile

            Maria & the Captain

            The Camelot love triangle

            Fanny & Nicky Arnstein

            Mimi & Roger
            Collins & Angel

            Sarah & Sky

            Adelaide & Nathan
            Millie & Jimmy

The list goes on. Love is at its height in a musical. Characters fall in love within minutes and SING about it. Amazing. When I was younger, I dreamt of finding my Tony (not that I wanted him to die) or Emile, the older, wiser Frenchman. One of the first productions I worked on at this theatre was a production of South Pacific. I could listen to Emile sing “Some Enchanted Evening” every day of my life. This love was eventually replaced with a full on love affair with Lou Reed that has never ended. A leap but a worthy one.

          
Musicals give a false sense of security in the notion of true love. Musicals are formulaic. You know that the lovers will be together forever by the end of the first song. Like fairy tales, happily ever after tends to rule in musicals. Even in many tragic musicals there’s still a glimmer of hope before the lights come up. At the end of West Side Story there is a hope that the divide between the gangs will be bridged following Tony’s death and Maria’s emotional exit (did I ruin it for you?). We, as an audience, don’t know what really happens but we can hope.

          
And that, Chuck, is why it’s all about the musical. Lloyd Dobler is a hip man’s Tony (without the whole death thing). Remember he and Diane are from two different worlds. Her father doesn’t think Lloyd is good enough. Lloyd doesn’t want to “buy, sell or process” anything as a career. That has musical potential written all over it.

I guess my point is that no one will ever be Tony or Lloyd or Emile. We can hope for it, but most of the time we settle for Joe and write 67 songs all about him. And that has to happen too. Because when Joe breaks our heart we can always return to Tony and Lloyd and feel better about ourselves. We'll wait in a darkened theatre for the first song to begin and hope that this is the time that love triumphs all.