NYCPlaywrights January 28, 2023
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NYCPlaywrights
Jan 28, 2023, 8:09:54 PM1/28/23
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Greetings NYCPlaywrights
*** FREE THEATER IN NYC ***
GO Broadway is a theater program now accredited through Manhattan College founded by Valentina Berger. Over the past decade, she has produced hundreds of theater workshops (in person and online) for 15,000+ students, connecting Broadway’s best teachers and theatermakers to students around the world. In this occasion she will present a selection of songs from Broadway musicals performed by students of the training program.
Wednesday, February 8th at 6pm
Consulate General of Argentina
12 West 56th Street New York, NY 10019
https://www.eventbrite.com/d/ny--new-york/free--events/theater-plays/
*** OPPORTUNITIES FOR PLAYWRIGHTS ***
Gingold Theatrical Group, now in its 18th year, creates theatre and theatre-related programs that promote the humanitarian ideals central to the work of activist playwright George Bernard Shaw.
Speakers’ Corner, Gingold’s primary new-play development program, affords playwrights the opportunity to build on Shaw’s legacy by supporting them as they write new plays that engage with today’s most pressing social/political/economic issues. Scripts written in Speakers’ Corner have gone on to further development with Gingold, as well as at other institutions.
***
Teatro Vivo is pleased to announce the call for entries for the 2023 Austin Latinx New Play Festival. All playwrights are invited to submit original scripts that speak to the diverse Latinx experience. Teatro Vivo is eager to include AfroLatinx or Indigenous characters and/or stories, Theatre for Young Audiences stories, LGBTQ+ characters and/or stories, and Austin voices that would resonate with our Teatro Vivo and Austin, TX audience. Plays can be monolingual, (English or Spanish), bilingual, or multilingual.
***
Each year, a cohort of young playwrights is invited to spend a weekend at the O'Neill with a dedicated creative team—director, dramaturg, and actors—to help them develop their short plays based on the principles and techniques of the O'Neill's renowned National Playwrights Conference. Students receive a rigorous exploration of their work guided by professional artists as well as a script-in-hand public reading of their new play.
*** FOR MORE INFORMATION about these and other opportunities see the web site at https://www.nycplaywrights.org ***
*** TROUBLE IN RIVER CITY ***
Many know Meredith Willson’s 1957 Broadway musical, “The Music Man,” as a light comedy centered on a cheeky scam artist who pretends to be a musician and sells the idea of starting a boys’ band to a small town in Iowa. The show is being revived on Broadway starring Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster, and will begin performances this month.
But several newly recognized drafts of the musical, written between 1954 and 1957, show that originally, the story focused more on the town’s persecution of a boy in a wheelchair — carrying a much more serious message than the final draft. At the time, children with disabilities were routinely institutionalized in horrid conditions and denied an education.
More...
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/15/theater/music-man-disability-meredith-willson.html
***
Robert Preston originated the character of Harold Hill on Broadway and won a Tony for his performance. As Hollywood normally does when adapting stage works, the studio sought a star – Frank Sinatra. However, Meredith Wilson was opposed to the idea and told them it was Robert Preston or nothing. Warner Brothers then offered the part to Cary Grant who echoed Wilson’s sentiment that the part could only be played by Preston.
More...
https://moviestvnetwork.com/lists/cary-grant-in-the-music-man
***
When looking back at some of the most notable musicals in history, we tend to see things from a different perspective. Some of these things have aged well and others haven’t. We’ve also seen how villains may not have been as bad as they were depicted and unsung heroes that deserve more credit.
And then sometimes we see that tragic downfalls are often overlooked or aren’t considered downfalls at all. Such is the case with the latest installment of this series - "The Sad Devolution of Marian the Librarian".
In the past, we’ve taken another look at musicals such as Oklahoma!, The Phantom of the Opera, Grease, The Sound of Music and Carousel. Today, we’re looking at The Music Man.
While many consider Meredith Wilson’s classic one of the greatest musicals of all-time, it’s worth taking a look at because it could also be a cautionary tale.
It’s basically the story of a con-man who cheats people in Iowa with empty promises and gets away with it. Hm, I wonder if the actual people of Iowa are familiar with a situation like this.
But along with stealing money, he breaks down a woman who should be a championed female character in musical theatre history to a standard cliche.
For this piece, I’ll be looking at the 1962 movie adaptation. Let’s break down The Music Man from Marian Paroo’s perspective.
(Disclaimer: I know we’re looking at a piece written over 70 years ago, set decades before that, through a 2020 lense. But this piece is still one of the most popular musicals produced by schools and being revived on Broadway later this year. So it’s relevant and worthy to be talking about these issues. Also, we’re going to overlook the “Wa Tan Ye” sequence and the Mayor’s xenophobia because that’s a whole other set of issues for another column.)
More...
https://www.onstageblog.com/editorials/a-different-perspective-on-the-music-man
***
While preparing to open the new production of The Music Man on Broadway, the producers were sued in New York state court over recasting four singers in the show. The plaintiffs, who are members of an award-winning barbershop quartet named “Category Four,” are claiming that the producers broke their employment agreements, and are seeking over half a million dollars in damages.
“It’s the music men vs. The Music Man,” commented their lawyer.
According to the lawsuit, the producers and the creative team went scouting for Clay Hine, David Calland, Kirk Young, and Tim Reynolds, “because they were seeking an authentic barbershop quartet, not four singers who would simply be cast as a quartet.” They invited the group to audition after watching their online videos, and then had each performer sign a short deal memorandum summarizing the key points of their employment agreement.
More...
https://www.forbes.com/sites/marchershberg/2022/02/09/music-men-sue-the-music-man-after-their-broadway-dreams-are-dashed/?sh=7c7233707fd6
***
But I’d like to comment on a couple of changes that—needlessly and foolishly, in my opinion–have been made for this revival: a revised lyric for “Shipoopi,” and a reworked “My White Knight.” I think there’s food for thought here, for producers considering future revivals of other Broadway classics. There are broader issues worth reflecting on.
First, let me tell you where I’m coming from. The Music Man is one of my all-time favorite shows. In my judgment, it’s about as perfect a musical as any in the canon. The Music Man is—along with just a handful of other musicals—in the very top tier. It is equally strong in book, music and lyrics, which is quite rare. It’s terrifically well put together. Other first-rate, masterfully constructed Broadway musicals include Gypsy, My Fair Lady, Hello, Dolly!, Chicago, Cabaret, and Fiddler on the Roof. I’ve seen different productions of all of these masterworks repeatedly over the years; these musicals never fail to get to me. It is extremely rare—and deserving of celebration—when the creators of musicals get everything right.
More...
http://www.theaterscene.net/features/needless-changes-to-the-music-man/chip-deffaa/
***
But Jackman mostly suppresses his sharky charisma here; this is not a star turn like Dolly Levi or, for that matter, Peter Allen in “The Boy From Oz.” Instead, he seems to see Hill as a character role: a cool manipulator and traveling horndog who in being unprincipled must also be unlovable.
The result is a smart but strangely inward performance. By turning away from the audience, he not only undersells big numbers like “Ya Got Trouble” — in which Hill spellbinds the citizens of River City into believing that the recent arrival of a pool table will cause juvenile delinquency and that a boys’ band is the solution — but also undersells us.
More...
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/10/theater/the-music-man-review.html
***
The most awkward case in point is “Shipoopi,” which was originally written as a catchy full-cast number in praise of slut-shaming. Obviously a song that opens with the lyrics “A woman who’ll kiss on the very first date / Is usually a hussy” and goes on to encourage the men it addresses to “squeeze her once when she isn’t lookin’ ” (“she will never get sore if you beg her pardon”) is ripe for reconsideration. The song begs to be ironized—think of the possibilities of a staging that played against the lyrics, letting the girls get the upper hand. Instead, it’s been lobotomized, turned by rewrite men Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman into a preachy ode to nice boys who respect women. “The girl who’s hard to get” is now “the girl you can’t forget”; there’s stuff about “the boy who’s seen the light” and knows to “treat a woman right.” It’s bland and bloodless, in the way that coverups always are. A few scenes later, the mayor yells at his wife, who has defied him in public, to sit down. Guess no one told him that we’re doing a new “Shipoopi” now.
More...
https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/the-music-man-is-a-nostalgia-machine
*** FREE THEATER IN NYC ***
GO Broadway is a theater program now accredited through Manhattan College founded by Valentina Berger. Over the past decade, she has produced hundreds of theater workshops (in person and online) for 15,000+ students, connecting Broadway’s best teachers and theatermakers to students around the world. In this occasion she will present a selection of songs from Broadway musicals performed by students of the training program.
Wednesday, February 8th at 6pm
Consulate General of Argentina
12 West 56th Street New York, NY 10019
https://www.eventbrite.com/d/ny--new-york/free--events/theater-plays/
*** OPPORTUNITIES FOR PLAYWRIGHTS ***
Gingold Theatrical Group, now in its 18th year, creates theatre and theatre-related programs that promote the humanitarian ideals central to the work of activist playwright George Bernard Shaw.
Speakers’ Corner, Gingold’s primary new-play development program, affords playwrights the opportunity to build on Shaw’s legacy by supporting them as they write new plays that engage with today’s most pressing social/political/economic issues. Scripts written in Speakers’ Corner have gone on to further development with Gingold, as well as at other institutions.
***
Teatro Vivo is pleased to announce the call for entries for the 2023 Austin Latinx New Play Festival. All playwrights are invited to submit original scripts that speak to the diverse Latinx experience. Teatro Vivo is eager to include AfroLatinx or Indigenous characters and/or stories, Theatre for Young Audiences stories, LGBTQ+ characters and/or stories, and Austin voices that would resonate with our Teatro Vivo and Austin, TX audience. Plays can be monolingual, (English or Spanish), bilingual, or multilingual.
***
Each year, a cohort of young playwrights is invited to spend a weekend at the O'Neill with a dedicated creative team—director, dramaturg, and actors—to help them develop their short plays based on the principles and techniques of the O'Neill's renowned National Playwrights Conference. Students receive a rigorous exploration of their work guided by professional artists as well as a script-in-hand public reading of their new play.
*** FOR MORE INFORMATION about these and other opportunities see the web site at https://www.nycplaywrights.org ***
*** TROUBLE IN RIVER CITY ***
Many know Meredith Willson’s 1957 Broadway musical, “The Music Man,” as a light comedy centered on a cheeky scam artist who pretends to be a musician and sells the idea of starting a boys’ band to a small town in Iowa. The show is being revived on Broadway starring Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster, and will begin performances this month.
But several newly recognized drafts of the musical, written between 1954 and 1957, show that originally, the story focused more on the town’s persecution of a boy in a wheelchair — carrying a much more serious message than the final draft. At the time, children with disabilities were routinely institutionalized in horrid conditions and denied an education.
More...
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/15/theater/music-man-disability-meredith-willson.html
***
Robert Preston originated the character of Harold Hill on Broadway and won a Tony for his performance. As Hollywood normally does when adapting stage works, the studio sought a star – Frank Sinatra. However, Meredith Wilson was opposed to the idea and told them it was Robert Preston or nothing. Warner Brothers then offered the part to Cary Grant who echoed Wilson’s sentiment that the part could only be played by Preston.
More...
https://moviestvnetwork.com/lists/cary-grant-in-the-music-man
***
When looking back at some of the most notable musicals in history, we tend to see things from a different perspective. Some of these things have aged well and others haven’t. We’ve also seen how villains may not have been as bad as they were depicted and unsung heroes that deserve more credit.
And then sometimes we see that tragic downfalls are often overlooked or aren’t considered downfalls at all. Such is the case with the latest installment of this series - "The Sad Devolution of Marian the Librarian".
In the past, we’ve taken another look at musicals such as Oklahoma!, The Phantom of the Opera, Grease, The Sound of Music and Carousel. Today, we’re looking at The Music Man.
While many consider Meredith Wilson’s classic one of the greatest musicals of all-time, it’s worth taking a look at because it could also be a cautionary tale.
It’s basically the story of a con-man who cheats people in Iowa with empty promises and gets away with it. Hm, I wonder if the actual people of Iowa are familiar with a situation like this.
But along with stealing money, he breaks down a woman who should be a championed female character in musical theatre history to a standard cliche.
For this piece, I’ll be looking at the 1962 movie adaptation. Let’s break down The Music Man from Marian Paroo’s perspective.
(Disclaimer: I know we’re looking at a piece written over 70 years ago, set decades before that, through a 2020 lense. But this piece is still one of the most popular musicals produced by schools and being revived on Broadway later this year. So it’s relevant and worthy to be talking about these issues. Also, we’re going to overlook the “Wa Tan Ye” sequence and the Mayor’s xenophobia because that’s a whole other set of issues for another column.)
More...
https://www.onstageblog.com/editorials/a-different-perspective-on-the-music-man
***
While preparing to open the new production of The Music Man on Broadway, the producers were sued in New York state court over recasting four singers in the show. The plaintiffs, who are members of an award-winning barbershop quartet named “Category Four,” are claiming that the producers broke their employment agreements, and are seeking over half a million dollars in damages.
“It’s the music men vs. The Music Man,” commented their lawyer.
According to the lawsuit, the producers and the creative team went scouting for Clay Hine, David Calland, Kirk Young, and Tim Reynolds, “because they were seeking an authentic barbershop quartet, not four singers who would simply be cast as a quartet.” They invited the group to audition after watching their online videos, and then had each performer sign a short deal memorandum summarizing the key points of their employment agreement.
More...
https://www.forbes.com/sites/marchershberg/2022/02/09/music-men-sue-the-music-man-after-their-broadway-dreams-are-dashed/?sh=7c7233707fd6
***
But I’d like to comment on a couple of changes that—needlessly and foolishly, in my opinion–have been made for this revival: a revised lyric for “Shipoopi,” and a reworked “My White Knight.” I think there’s food for thought here, for producers considering future revivals of other Broadway classics. There are broader issues worth reflecting on.
First, let me tell you where I’m coming from. The Music Man is one of my all-time favorite shows. In my judgment, it’s about as perfect a musical as any in the canon. The Music Man is—along with just a handful of other musicals—in the very top tier. It is equally strong in book, music and lyrics, which is quite rare. It’s terrifically well put together. Other first-rate, masterfully constructed Broadway musicals include Gypsy, My Fair Lady, Hello, Dolly!, Chicago, Cabaret, and Fiddler on the Roof. I’ve seen different productions of all of these masterworks repeatedly over the years; these musicals never fail to get to me. It is extremely rare—and deserving of celebration—when the creators of musicals get everything right.
More...
http://www.theaterscene.net/features/needless-changes-to-the-music-man/chip-deffaa/
***
But Jackman mostly suppresses his sharky charisma here; this is not a star turn like Dolly Levi or, for that matter, Peter Allen in “The Boy From Oz.” Instead, he seems to see Hill as a character role: a cool manipulator and traveling horndog who in being unprincipled must also be unlovable.
The result is a smart but strangely inward performance. By turning away from the audience, he not only undersells big numbers like “Ya Got Trouble” — in which Hill spellbinds the citizens of River City into believing that the recent arrival of a pool table will cause juvenile delinquency and that a boys’ band is the solution — but also undersells us.
More...
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/10/theater/the-music-man-review.html
***
The most awkward case in point is “Shipoopi,” which was originally written as a catchy full-cast number in praise of slut-shaming. Obviously a song that opens with the lyrics “A woman who’ll kiss on the very first date / Is usually a hussy” and goes on to encourage the men it addresses to “squeeze her once when she isn’t lookin’ ” (“she will never get sore if you beg her pardon”) is ripe for reconsideration. The song begs to be ironized—think of the possibilities of a staging that played against the lyrics, letting the girls get the upper hand. Instead, it’s been lobotomized, turned by rewrite men Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman into a preachy ode to nice boys who respect women. “The girl who’s hard to get” is now “the girl you can’t forget”; there’s stuff about “the boy who’s seen the light” and knows to “treat a woman right.” It’s bland and bloodless, in the way that coverups always are. A few scenes later, the mayor yells at his wife, who has defied him in public, to sit down. Guess no one told him that we’re doing a new “Shipoopi” now.
More...
https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/the-music-man-is-a-nostalgia-machine
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