All tagged Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
The 2005 Tony Awards represented a season where all four Best Musical nominees could have easily walked away with the Best Musical prize, each show offering something very different and special. It will make for a great debate. The nominees that season were Monty Python’s Spamalot, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Light in the Piazza, and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, so you can see how this would be a contentious season. I’m also going to say in advance of discussion that I definitely have my favorite amongst these shows and I will try to remain unbiased.
It is always an honor to sit down and chat with Broadway’s finest talent, but it is especially exciting when the opportunity to interview the performer you have most admired over the years, presents itself. Last week, I had the career-high of spending some time with Joanna Gleason, Tony winner for her turn as The Baker’s Wife in the original Broadway production of Stephen Sondheim’s and James Lapine’s Into the Woods. I have always admired Ms. Gleason’s ability to mine her roles for humor and heart, bringing unexpected surprises to each character she develops.
With The Band’s Visit readying itself for its Broadway opening on November 9, I am reminded by how much I love a David Yazbek score. For me, Yazbek comes the closest to bringing the old-fashioned Broadway musical comedy sound into the contemporary musical. His work is tuneful, character-driven, brimming with emotion, and always laced with fun. Distinctly working in his own style, it is also clear that he is influenced by the likes of Cy Coleman, Jule Styne, and Frank Loesser. Today, I want to celebrate Yazbek’s work and revel in how it makes me feel. I am certain we will be adding some songs from The Band’s Visit to this list very soon, but for now, here are ten songs by Yazbek that we already love.
If you are like me, a bitter, sarcastic Muppet-like creature, Valentine’s Day isn’t exactly your cup of tea. We of this ilk condemn the holiday as a commercially created reason to spend money on cards, flowers, sweets, and for the most entrenched of us, jewelry. We bemoan the coming of old February 14 and pray to God that Cupid’s arrow misfires and lands squarely between his own cherubic eyes.
