Under Appreciated - The Broadway Musical That Is Taken for Granted

Under Appreciated - The Broadway Musical That Is Taken for Granted

Mark Robinson
Music That Makes Me Dance

There are musicals that are so wonderfully constructed, and that have been done so often, that we take for granted their fine craftsmanship and vibrant musicality. These stalwarts of days gone by, produced by every high school, usually once every generation or so, are often dismissed. It's easy to poo-poo these titles because they have become staples of the stage. They serve their function by introducing young audiences to musical theatre. It is easy to forget that these musicals were once brand new, innovative, sometimes cutting edge, and big audience pleasers. I am talking about the Guys & Dolls, The Music Mans, and the South Pacifics of our Broadway musical heritage. Even among these titles, there is one musical that is seldom given its due for just how musically inspired and carefully constructed it is: Bye, Bye, Birdie.    

Brazen Overtures

Brazen Overtures

Mark Robinson
Music That Makes Me Dance

There is nothing better than settling into your seat for a piece of musical theatre and drifting away into the expertly arranged collage of melodies that will indoctrinate you into the score.  I miss the Broadway overture and often wonder why this technique of familiarizing the audience with the music (BEFORE the story starts) is so underutilized nowadays. So much is said about contemporary scores being unmemorable and that you just don't walk away from the theatre humming the tunes anymore. 

This is nonsense. 

In the "old" days, the overture made the music familiar to you. When you heard a melody later in the show, it was already recognizable. Reprises and scene change music reinforced these melodies so that, by the time you walked out into Times Square, you were humming the melodies. A simple trick that is highly effective. When executed well, the overture becomes a startling piece of music unto itself. Through the efforts of a clever orchestrator, the overture becomes an event, an electrified quasi-symphony that ignites the musical that it precedes.  

In today's installment of "The Music That Makes Me Dance", I will discuss my ten favorite overtures and explore why I find them so mesmerizing and infectious

Exercising My Right to a Showtune

Exercising My Right to a Showtune

Mark Robinson
Music That Makes Me Dance

This time of year it is especially hard to get excited about exercise. It is brutally cold and going for a walk seems like torture. Many are reduced to schlep on a treadmill, while others are quite content to use the "Think System" where exercise is concerned. I tend to be more motivated to walk when showtunes are involved, so I often load up my iPod with peppy melodies from my favorite musicals and make my jaunt around the cubicles in my workplace: 45 minutes each morning and 45 minutes each lunch break. 

Over time, I have found that a certain configuration of Broadway songs works best for me. Placed in the right order, I feel naturally inclined to increase momentum as I go, building toward a twenty-minute cardio workout, and then cooling down to that sensation of prickly flutters in my thighs. I thought that I would share with my readers my playlist for working off the fat. What is astounding is, when I actually do it, I feel great and lose about two pounds a week.

Summer Stock in a Winter Storm

Summer Stock in a Winter Storm

Mark Robinson
Stage To Screen, Cinematters

Before I even knew what a Broadway musical was (and it is hard to believe that there was ever such a time in my life), I spent my childhood waiting for old movie musicals to play on television. We lived in the country, and the odds of getting anything on your television outside of the three major networks, was pretty slim. Still, with my little black and white television, wrapped in aluminum foil, me with coat hanger in-hand and leaning out my bedroom window, I could sometimes pick up PBS and the occasional movie musical. I saw Kiss Me, Kate and Brigadoon this way. 

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