Mid-Life Crisis

Sooo, where was I?

I haven't been holding out on giving you my review of The Odd Couple for dramatic effect. It's just that I woke up one day and realized that I needed to go back to working on this. That meant all activities vaguely resembling fun had to cease immediately, including this blog.

So I will eventually give you my review, when I have some time. I could sum it up in a few sentences, but you know me, I never say anything in twenty five words or less that I can say in five hundred. So I'll be back. I just hope I still remember if I liked the show or not.

Let's all pause...

...and say a prayer for Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick.

I'm going to see The Odd Couple tonight.

*rolls eyes*

*laughs*

I'm from Joisey...are you from Joisey?*

I received a very special gift recently...

A few weekends ago, my friend treated me to dinner and a show to celebrate my birthday. She and I have known each other since the fifth grade, and have been best of friends since the sixth grade, which is a lot of years. We don't generally exchange birthday gifts, but we both hit a major milestone this year so it called for something extra special. For her birthday, which was earlier in the year, I made her dinner and gave her a 'favorite things' basket. I filled a big basket with DVD's of her favorite movies, television shows, and some of her favorite snacks.

For my birthday, she gave me my favorite thing, tickets to a Broadway show. Bless her heart, she tried like crazy to get me tickets to see Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane in The Odd Couple. That was not to be, so she asked my mom if there was anything else I wanted to see. Under normal circumstances my mom wouldn't have had a clue, but because we had only recently been in NYC to see Spamalot, she had an idea. On the day of that show we were walking down 44th Street on our way to the Shubert Theater, and on the front of the building across the street was this huge billboard standing three or four stories high that looked like this...

...and under the title it said, "The Story of the Four Seasons."

For me, it was love at first sight. For one thing, I have this strange fascination with rock n' roll stories. I also happen to love the Four Seasons. Their music was the soundtrack for a big chunk of my childhood, the part that was happy and carefree, the time before I was yanked from the only home I had ever known and plunked down in a place I hated, the time before Kennedy was shot, before Vietnam, before the world got scary and grey, and the country slid into an ugliness it would take ten years to climb out of.

For a lot of people my age, and a bit older, the music of The Four Seasons conjurs up memories of hula hoops, and capri pants; making out in the back seat of cars at drive-ins; Annette and Frankie; 45 and 33 1/3 RPM; and lemonade that was made with actual lemons. For you youngsters out there, think Dirty Dancing. (And just for the record, I wasn't quite up to making out in the back seat of cars at that point, but I was old enough to think about it.)

Anyway, the producers of Jersey Boys obviously knew who they were marketing to. When I saw that billboard I pointed at it and cried out, I have got to see that! So this is how my mom knew what to tell my friend when she called asking for advice. Sometimes it pays to act like a ten year old let loose in a candy store.

So the week of my birthday, my friend made me dinner and presented me with the tickets. I'm not usually a very animated person so I generally have to force myself to act excited when I recieve a gift, but this time it came pretty naturally. In contrast to my Spamalot experience, this was a show I was genuinely excited to see. I had no idea who was in it, and didn't care.

The night of the show we had a nice dinner, and then walked a few blocks to the theater. When we arrived and entered the lobby we noticed, much to our surprise, we were pretty much the youngest members of the audience. It was kind of a nice extra birthday treat to feel like a younster for the night. And the place was packed. This really surprised me because it was still in previews, and hadn't been reviewed yet. I guess that big billboard affected a few other people besides me.

Sitting and waiting for the show to start seemed like forever. There was no curtain, just a high chain link fence and some fake billboards with ugly cartoonish graphics on the stage. This worried me a bit, because my friend had spent a lot of money on these tickets. I felt she at least deserved a curtain and some scenery that didn't look like my four year old nephew had painted it. At this point I think I started to sweat. I suddenly realized that, other than the songs themselves, I had no idea what I was getting myself into, or should I say, what I had gotten her into. I did a little bit of research about the show beforehand, but didn't find out much. My friend knew less than I did, and I think she was a bit afraid she had spent a lot of money to be bored out of her mind.

Finally the show started, which didn't do much to ease my nervousness that my friend had indeed wasted her money. It started off pretty slow. I missed a lot of the dialog because I was busy worrying how I was going to convince her that I actually enjoyed myself. The beginning of the first act was mostly back story, how the group got together, the seedy joints they played in, and even seedier characters they ran into along the way. There was some good music, mostly covers of old doo wop songs that the group performed when they were still called the "Four Lovers" or one of the other names from the early years, but no Four Seasons songs.

I was starting to feel like we were either being cheated, or teased. Happily it turned out to be the latter. I realized at some point that the audience was being intentionally dragged along with the group, from dinky bar to bowling alley, so that when the big payoff came, we felt the same relief and elation the group felt, or at least we got a taste of it. The first forty five minutes was the foreplay, so to speak, working up to the big...well, you know.

When the guys broke into "Sherry" the audience nearly exploded. When the song was over there was a thunderous appalause, and when it started to die down, it suddenly whipped up again. I have been to shows where there was a big ovation, but never anything like this. The reaction of the four main actors was priceless. They were looking at each other as if to say, "is this really happening?" It was so cute. I had tears in my eyes, both from happiness for them, and also because of the memories the song conjured up. I felt like I had been transported back in time, and I was once again sitting in the back seat of my dad's car, staring up at the high stone walls of the Interboro Parkway on the way to my grandmother's house in Brooklyn.

The rest of the show was a blast. The story was interesting: funny in some parts, sad in others. And the music was great. They did most of the group's hits, and they did them really well.  My favorites were the real oldies: the aforementioned "Sherry," "Big Girls Don't Cry," "Walk Like a Man," "Rag Doll," and "Dawn." The one song they didn't do, and it brings back the most memories for me, is "Candy Girl." The guys playing the original Four Seasons were excellent. They really did the songs justice, and the actor playing Frankie Valli has an awesome voice, sounding so much like the real thing. I have to give a shout out to the guys, because they really were great. Here's who played the Four:

(Photo: Aubrey Reuben for Playbill.com)

left to right:

J. Robert Spencer as Nick Massi

Daniel Reichard as Bob Gaudio

John Lloyd Young as Frankie Valli

Christian Hoff as Tommy DeVito

[For a cute photo of the real Frankie Valli with the boys, go here.]

After the show we were walking past the theater on the way to the car and we saw a big crowd at the stage door so we stopped for a few minutes to gawk. One by one the four lead guys came out. They all seemed stunned, a little bit happy, and a little bit horrified at the same time. This show was the first big B'way experience for all four of them, so they are presumably all new to the "star" experience. Seeing the looks on their faces was priceless, and worth the price of the tickets alone.

There's one last thing I want to say about this show for those of you who, like myself, have avoided the other "jukebox musicals" like the plague. This show really isn't a jukebox musical. The story wasn't made up as some sad excuse for the music to play. Jersey Boys a real story, and the music is part of the story. I also have to admit it's not for everyone. If you don't enjoy The Four Season's music, definitely don't bother. But if you enjoy oldies, or you are an oldie...go see it if you get the chance. You won't regret it.

Notes:

-My friend loved the show as much as I did, so everyone was happy.

-I just noticed that they added music to the official show site. Don't judge the show by that!

-If you're interested in seeing some rehearsal photos, there's some good ones here.

-To read the review I wish I wrote, go to this page and read the first post titled "Jersey Boys - First Preview. My Review."

-Yes, I am an even bigger dork than you thought I was.

*There's nothing worse than having to explain a joke, but I thought I should mention that subject line of this post is a line from a Billy Crystal skit that he used to do when he was on Saturday Night Live. I'm not actually from New Jersey.

Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Spamalot Redux: What happens in Camelot stays in...

I was in the car last night on my way home from seeing a B'way show, wondering if I felt like blogging about it or not, and it suddenly occurred to me that I never finished my Spamalot story. I don't feel particulary inspired to talk about it anymore, but I can't stand not finishing things, so here goes...

First let me recap parts one and two:

• I was invited to see Spamalot on B'way. I wasn't all that interested, but I was dying to see Hank Azaria and David Hyde Pierce who were two of the stars of the show.
• Neither of them were in the show the day I saw it.

Now for the finale. As I promised, oh so long ago, there is a happy ending to this story. The show was hilarious! I loved it! It was farce personified. It was everything I love about Monty Python, without all the stuff I hate. All my favorite routines were in the show, without the blood squirting all over. It had everything you could want in a B'way musical...catchy tunes, dancing gay men, fart jokes...okay that last one you don't usually find in B'way shows. But if you happen to like that type of humor, this is the show for you.

I have been to a lot of B'way shows in my day, but I don't think I've ever been to one where the laughter started the minute the curtain went up, and didn't stop until the standing ovation was over. My sister did not stop laughing through the entire first half of the show. I had a big smile plastered on my face, but I wasn't laughing out loud, at least not until the second half of the show, when we switched places. (Not literally...just in the laughter department.) Now it was my turn to annoy the two guys in front of us who were the only two people in the theater NOT laughing. I don't know how anyone could sit through that show without laughing because just listening to everyone else laugh was funny!

My sister said it best when she said what made it all so funny was the looks on the actor's faces as they deliver the lines. Half way through the show people in the audience would start laughing when the actors opened their mouths, before they even said anything. By that time you knew something funny was going to come out.

And speaking of the actors, I must give props to the guys who had the nasty job of replacing those other actors some of us had come to see. Replacing David Hyde Pierce that night was James Ludwig, and Hank Azaria’s replacement is an actor named Alan Tudyk. Both were funny and entertaining, and I give them a lot of credit for stepping in and filling some big shoes. It can’t be easy to stand in front of an audience that is not happy to see you, and totally win them over. (At least I was unhappy to see them, maybe everyone else was more mature than me). In any case, everyone seemed to love both of them, and we all left happy. As the song goes, if you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with.

I was going to end this post by saying that you must make it a point to see Spamalot, if not for any other reason, just to see Sara Ramirez play the part of The Lady of the Lakes. She won the Tony for best featured actress for her performance, and she was just brilliant. She manages to be beautiful and funny, and she steals the show away from the guys. And believe me, that ain’t easy. As I started to say, I was going to advise you to see the show just to see her, but I just found out she is leaving too, in December. If you want to see the show, run out and see it now. Any of the men can be replaced, but she owns that role.

Another interesting note before I leave this topic happily behind. It seems that Hank Azaria is returning to the show in December. He left to film a tv series called Huff. I guess he’s done with that, and so he’s returning to B’way to pick up where he left off.  [I tried watching that show. Didn’t like it. Whatever.] And David Hyde Pierce is extending his contract through April. I guess he’s still committed to the show, he just had something more important to do the day I WENT TO SEE HIM. [Whatever.] Here’s what I say to both of them…

I fart in your general direction!

(You had to be there.)

Spamalot part deux: The role usually played by...

So where was I?

Ah yes, I was giving you some backround on my B'way misfortunes. I was actually intending on posting something about this the night before I went to the show. I was going to say that all the stars of Spamalot had better take their vitamins, because I was blowing into town the next day. Not that I thought that the stars would be reading this blog, but I wanted to say something about it in advance to my readers, so after the fact I could say, See, I told you! But let me get back to the story.

So it's the day of the show, and we were dropped off at the end of the block because the street had been blocked off for the Broadway on Broadway event that had taken place earlier that day in Times Square. As we're walking past the theater heading for the front door we pass the posters that traditionally hang in glass cases in the front of NY theaters. I casually glance at the poster as I'm passing, and as I do I notice a suspicious lack of Hank Azaria in the photos. While everyone heads for the door, I hang back to look again, because I must have missed seeing him. I mean he has to be there somewhere. I stand staring at the poster in disbelief because he is indeed not to be found in any of the photos that make up the poster.

Being the mature sensible individual that I am, I walk over to my family, who are hovering on the sidewalk waiting for the door to open, and say very demurely...HANK AZARIA IS NOT ON THE POSTER! WHY IS HANK AZARIA NOT ON THE POSTER?!! My sister looks at me with this look reserved for communicating with wild animals and people who have escaped from mental institutions, and says, "Oh, I think I remember reading that he was leaving the show." I very rationally responded...WHAT? YOU MUST BE KIDDING ME!!! to which she responded, "well...I could be wrong about that."

So now I'm like some sort of crazed lunatic. I have no idea why, because I most certainly would have taken the free ticket to the show even if I had known this in advance. I guess I just did not like the fact that I had been led there under false pretenses. These B'way people know they can't get us common folk to come to their shows without a big name tv or movie personality, so they dangle one or two under our noses to draw us in. Then just when they think we're not looking they slip some legitimate B'way actor in there hoping we won't notice that  the woman playing the Yente in the revival of Fiddler on the Roof is not Ellen Travolta, who played the always willing to lend an ear 'Lilian' on Charles in Charge. AS IF!

So now I decide to march into the theater lobby to find some information to prove my sister wrong. I'm not sure what I was hoping to find. Did I think I'd find a sign posted by the theater doors saying "We had you going for a minute there, didn't we? Of course Hank Azaria is in the show silly!" I mean this is Monty Python...anything is possible. But no, that is not what I found. Instead I marched headlong into a sign that said:

"At this performance, the roles usually played by DAVID HYDE PIERCE will be played by JAMES LUDWIG."

I had no idea who this James Ludwig guy was, but I was NOT happy with him at that moment. I stormed out of the lobby, walked up to my family and announced, DAVID HYDE PIERCE IS NOT HERE EITHER! It was at that point that my nephew, (whose birthday gift I was mooching off of), states very sweetly that he didn't care because he doesn't know who either of those guys are, he just wants to see the show. Needless to say, that shut me up. I was still determined not to like either of the replacements, but I kept that fact to myself.

To be continued...and I promise I will have something happy to say...and some photos I stole from other people's sites.

I know you're holding your breath but...

I'm being held hostage this weekend by two very short members of my family who make Tina Turner look like she's going in slow motion, so I'm afraid you will have to wait a bit longer to hear the end of my story.

Feel free to exhale now.

I thought I would entertain you during the intermission with a joke that I just read on Planet Dan. I'll be lying in bed later still giggling over this one. I apologize in advance to my republican readership.

The joke:

Donald Rumsfeld is giving the president his daily briefing. He concludes by saying, "Yesterday, three Brazilian soldiers were killed in an accident."

"OH NO!" the President exclaims. "That's terrible!"

His staff sits stunned at this display of emotion, nervously watching as the president sits, head in hands. Finally, the President looks up and asks...

"How many is a Brazillion??!"

*snort*

And now for something totally different...

I'm a posting fool today, aren't I? You'd think I got nothing else done today, but on the contrary, I accomplished quite a bit more than I usually do. Go figure. Anyway...

Last Sunday, (the day after the infamous 'bee-sting' incident), I went with some of my family members to see Spamalot on B'way. Even though I knew it was nominated for, and won, a lot of Tony Awards, I had no particular desire to see it.  I've had a hot and cold relationship with the Monty Python group. My parents loved the tv show, back when it was a regular on PBS, but I always felt like there was some inside joke I wasn't getting. I had some favorite bits from their movies, but they tended to beat one joke to death until it wasn't funny anymore. At least to me. (I also could have done without the blood spurting all over the place. Bleck!) I'm a huge John Cleese fan, (Fawlty Towers is one of my all-time favorite shows!), but I never particulary enjoyed his work when he was with the Python crew.

So why did I bother going you ask? Well, I went for two reasons:

1. I didn't have to pay for it. Mom was indulging the grandchildren and asked if I wanted to come with.

2. I absolutely LOVE Hank Azaria and David Hyde Pierce, IMO two of the most gifted comedic actors of our generation.

Now let me stop for a moment and give you some backround story. It just happens that I am the Typhoid Mary of B'way. If you ever want to see a show because one of your favorite actors/actresses is in it, DO NOT GO TO SEE IT WITH ME. I mean, it's not like every show I go to see the lead actor doesn't show up. But I've had some bad luck when it comes to actors either getting sick, or just needing a break. One of the first shows I ever saw starred Katherine Hepburn. I was just a kid, but I already idolized her, and I thought my life would be complete if I could see her live on the stage. I don't remember if I found out that she had left the show before I went, or if I found out on the dreaded white piece of paper stuck in the yellow and black Playbill, but I do remember that I was totally devastated. I don't think anything could ever top that disappointment, but there have been some close runners up. (Or is it runner ups? Whatever.) I saw The Producers, after Nathan Lane had returned to the show having taken a long sabatical. Apparently it wasn't long enough, because the day I went to the show he was under the weather. Fortunately Matthew Broderick was not, and that was a very good thing. I love both actors, but I REALLY love Matthew Broderick. But I digress...where was I? Oh yeah...Chicago. Went to see Bebe Neuwirth, saw Mary Lou Henner instead. Not that I have anything against Mary Lou Henner, but still.

So there you have it, just a few highlights of my history with live theater. Now what does that have to do with my Spamalot experience you ask? Well, I'm going to have to hold you in suspense for just a bit because I have been rambling on so long it's now after midnight and I'm too tired to finish the story. I'm sure you can already guess where it's headed.