Welcome to the 320th Edition of my series. Happy New Year everyone. I
hope every had a great 2011 but that you still have a good 2012. I
decided to start this year out with an all-music edition. I do not
usually do themes but I thought I could do pretty good with this and
enjoyed putting it together despite racking my brain more than usual. I
decided to allow live concert videos, live theater films, and movie
musicals both animated and live action and intend to do this about every
quarter of the year. If you're one of those that hate musicals at
least check out my first selection and just wait for next week when
things are a little more normal.
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds:
God is in the House (2001): This is my concert film for the week which
obviously features Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. They are a band pretty
big in the 90s and have a loyal following but never really hit the
mainstream. The most known work of Nick Cave was his music score for
THE ASSASSINATION OF JESSE JAMES BY THE COWARD ROBERT FORD of which he
wrote and amazing score and did the one for the movie THE ROAD which was
also very good. He is an Australian singer and was known to write some
pretty sad and sometimes dark music. His most known song from the band
is probably RED RIGHT HAND which is played in a lot of movies. Some
other really good songs are THE WEEPING SONG, the title song, and many
others. The only thing missing are Kylie Minogue and PJ Harvey who he
has song some good duets with. This is a name that if you do not know
who he is, look him up and I don't think you'll be disappointed.
Camelot (1967): This is the start of my movie musicals which is a
musical on the legend of King Arthur and takes place right after he
becomes king. Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe wrote the music to
this musical. Richard Harris plays the king in this film while Vanessa
Redgrave plays the lovely Guenevere. Arthur has a lot to deal with in
his illegitimate son Mordred, played by David Hemmings, and Guenevere's
attachment to Sir Lancelot, played by Franco Nero. This was a lavish
production and entertains while a bit flawed. Not my favorite Arthur
film though and while Harris played the part well his singing was
flawed. There are some pretty fun musical numbers and is watchable.
Follow the Fleet (1936): I was determined in the blog to include Fred
Astaire, Judy Garland, and Gene Kelly while sticking to my "rules".
This is my entry for Fred and his 5th collaboration with Ginger Rogers.
Astaire plays Bake who is a sailor and a former dancer and dance
partner to Sherry Martin, played by Ginger Rogers. When the fleet lands
in San Francisco, Bake looks to reconnect with Sherry leading into some
song and dance routines. Fellow sailor Bilge, played by Randolph
Scott, forms a love interest with Sherry's sister Connie, played by
Harriet Hilton. Also look for a young Betty Grable and Lucille Ball.
This musical is written by Irving Berlin and fans of classic musicals
will love this one that has some great song and dance numbers.
Les Miserables in Concert: The 25th Anniversary (2010): This is one of
my live musicals for the week and as the title says the 25th
anniversary of this musical adaptation to the Victor Hugo classic.
Alfie Boe stars in this as Jean Valjean who is being paroled from prison
after 19 years for stealing bread to feed his family. He soon breaks
his parole to start a new life while being pursued by officer Javert.
It is very difficult for me to go into detail but this is known as one
of the most beautiful musicals of all time and it made my expectations.
Lea Salonga plays the part of Fantine and she is most known for being
the voice of Jasmine in ALADDIN and Mulan in MULAN where she shows her
vocal talents here. Nick Jonas plays the part of Marius and I really do
not know much about the Jonas Brothers so I did not get pre-judgmental
about him and feel he also did a good job. Stay tuned for the end where
much of the original cast in 1985 comes out to celebrate. This was
also filmed very well to go on the dvd where they have double shots of
people so that we can see reactions. This is something that is being
done more often and hope it continues. Last October I went to the movie
theater to see a live performance of PHANTOM OF THE OPERA on the big
screen and did similar things with previous cast members so this was
likely first done in movie theaters and wish I could have gone.
Claude-Michel Schonberg wrote the music to this show while the lyrics
were written by Alain Boublil.
In the Good Old Summertime (1949): This is my entry for Judy Garland
this week. This is a musical adaptation to a play called PARFUMARIE by
Miklos Laszlo. Other adaptations include the 1940 THE SHOP AROUND THE
CORNER and the 1998 film YOU'VE GOT MAIL. In this version Van Johnson
plays a loyal employee to music story named Andrew who is writing
anonymous letters to another woman that he receives through the post
office. Judy plays Veronica who gets a job in the store and forms quite
the dislike with Andrew but she writes letters to another man so I'm
sure now you can guess where this is going. They do not know they are
the ones who are writing to each other. Buster Keaton has a very
amusing later part as Hickey, the bumbling nephew, to the boss of the
store. Look for Liza Minnelli near the end when she was just a little
girl. The music is written by various people in this movie unlike the previous selections I have used.
Shock Treatment (1981): This was a sequel to the outrageous ROCKY
HORROR PICTURE SHOW in which Richard O'Brien wrote and co-starred.
Cliff De Young and Jessica Harper take the parts of Brad and Janet who
face even more problems in their marriage. In their hometown, it has
become a giant tv show in which everyone is either viewing it or
participating in it. In one program, Brad becomes imprisoned in an
insane asylum while Janet is becoming more of a star and forgetting
about their marriage. This one is by no means for everyone. For one,
if you hate the first film, then you probably will not like this one.
It is a bit all over the place when it comes to plot but still very fun
if you don't take it way too seriously. Jessica Harper has a great
singing voice and very good as Janet. Much of the Rocky cast returns
for this one in various roles.
Godspell: A Musical Based on the Gospel According to St. Matthew (1973)
: This is my religious musical for the week and is a pretty popular
musical written by Stephen Schwarz and has had many different ways to do
the musical in terms of setting. In this one, it takes place in New
York where Jesus leads his followers who are a group of hippies. Victor
Garber plays the part of Jesus in this film version and reenacts the
gospel through song and dance in the New York area. This is a more
comedic musical whereas Andrew Lloyd Webber's JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR is
more serious and I do prefer the Webber musical which I used for the six
year anniversary. This was still a pretty decent adaptation with
Garber playing the lead well showing his range of roles in his career
and this is his film debut.
All Dogs Go To Heaven (1989): This is my animated musical selection for
the week. I intended to go with something from 90s Disney but much of
those either did not fit this week due to my rules or I could not obtain
a copy in time so I went with this Don Bluth selection. Burt Reynolds
voices the part of Charlie Barkin who is a gambling dog and is murdered
by his rival Carface. He soon finds himself in heaven but cons his way
back on earth even after the warning that he will go to hell but wants
to get revenge with his killer. He soon meets an orphan girl named
Anne-Marie who can talk to animals so he takes her in for her abilities
but starts to take a liking to her. Dom Deluise, Charles Nelson Reilly,
and Loni Anderson also co-star. I would have preferred to do something
in Disney but Don Bluth did a good job with his script and music and a
pretty good animated film.
Cover Girl (1944): This is my Gene Kelly selection and I had a really
hard time finding something for him that fit this edition on my previous
selections but obtained this one. Jerome Kern and Ira Gershwin wrote
the music to this one. Rita Hayworth stars as Rusty Parker who is a
dancer for Danny McGuire's, played by Kelly, nightclub and wants to be a
Broadway star. She soon wins a contest to be the cover girl for a
magazine which jeopardizes the relationship with Danny who is her mentor
and love interest. Kelly took a lot of control for dance sequences and
did a very good job. Rita Hayworth is also very good in her role.
Gene has had better parts but he still entertains in this one.
Company: A Musical Comedy (2007): I end this week with my second live
theater show and this one comes from Stephen Sondheim. Raul Esparza
stars as Bobby who is celebrating his 35th birthday with ten of his
friends who all happen to be couples which vary on their level of
relationship and their happiness while he examines his life as a
bachelor. Sounds like what may be me someday. There is really not much
of a story on this but the examination of the characters and their
relationships which have some great moments. The actors play their own
instruments which I have heard they do not usually do that and I would
have preferred an orchestra. This is quite different from most of
Sondheim who is my favorite musical playwright or whatever you call his
job. This musical still was very well done and am always glad to see
live theater like this obtainable. This is available on Instant
Netflix.
Well, that is it for this week, I hope you enjoyed my selections for
this week. I racked my brain a lot but enjoyed putting it together and
intend to do it again for my April 1st edition but for now I just want
to go back to normal. Tell me what you like and what you dislike and
stay tuned next week which so far includes Kevin Spacey, and many
others. Continue to read for my next section.
FUN AND USELESS FACTS
This one will mostly include theater peers and possibly some from the movies. If I miss anyone please let me know.
My Facebook friend Rick has directed version of this week's features
CAMELOT and GODSPELL. Neither of which I was able to see
unfortunately. I know Gabe played the part of Lancelot and Rhonda
played the part of Morgana but not sure of my other Facebook friends in
the cast.
My Facebook friends Nic, Justin, Catie, Amber, and Stevie all had parts in a Muncie Civic Theater production of GODSPELL.
Fred Astaire (Follow the Fleet) and Judy Garland (In the Good Old Summertime) star in the 1948 film EASTER PARADE.
Fred Astaire (Follow the Fleet) and Gene Kelly (Cover Girl) danced together in a segment in the 1945 film ZIEGFIELD FOLLIES.
Judy Garland (In the Good Old Summertime) and Gene Kelly (Cover Girl)
star in the 1942 film FOR ME AND MY GAL, the 1948 film THE PIRATE and
the 1950 film SUMMER STOCK.
Judy Garland (In the Good Old Summertime) plays Dorothy in the 1939 film
THE WIZARD OF OZ. My Facebook friend Lindsey played the part in a 2006
version at the Muncie Civic Theater in which I played the Winkie
General.
Cliff De Young and Jessica Harper play Brad and Janet in this week's
feature SHOCK TREATMENT. There have been various productions at Muncie
Civic Studio Theater which have included my facebook friend Stevie as
Brad and Amanda and Tonya as Janet.
Richard O'Brien (Shock Treatment) plays Riff Raff in the the 1975 film
THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW. My Facebook friends Kevin, Cody, and Nic
have played the part in some of the various Muncie Civic Productions.
Victor Garber (Godspell) plays the part of Anthony in the original stage
version of SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET which was
written by Sondheim (Company writer). My Facebook friend Morton played
the part last October in Portland, Indiana of which I had the pleasure
of playing Beadle Bamford.
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