The People Ride In A Hole In The Ground...

In the previous 2 trips I have spent in New York, I haven’t ridden the Subway – much preferred to walk and take in the sights. But today was different… it was time to see the famous Green Lady (Not Elphaba).

ATTENTION QRAIL: It costs $2.75 for a single trip in New York. No matter how far you are going! Once we got out it was onto the FREE Statton Island Ferry (Brisbane City Council take note). It is amazing how much of my American History and knowledge is through TV and Music.

So over to the island and the obligatory photo as the ferry goes past the Statue. It isn’t until you are actually there in person you realise a couple of things:

1) It really is a magnificent statue and what it stands for

2) The picture-ness of the whole experience with downtown in the background is pretty amazing

3) The statue wasn’t destroyed as X-Men movie would have you believe

A quick lunch and a drink in the pub before heading back to New York. When we walked into the pub it was meant to be a quick drink. We didn’t expect to meet a Scottish Man who was born in Perth and had Bob Hawke as a lecturer when he studied Economics… He had been drinking since 8am that day so I am not sure what exactly he learnt from Bob but I am sure it was something useful.

Dinner tonight was actually at our hotel; Yotel. I will save hotel description for later for when there is a less crazy day. (also, I am on the train back from Washington trying to catch up on 6 days worth of stuff so I can leave hotel details till later)

Then it was off to the Broadway Opening Preview Performance of Beautiful: The Carol King Musical. After that it was time to check out another Piano Bar called The Duplex. It is downtown and is actually right next door to the “Stone Wall In”. This gives you an idea of the clientele that were there. This was a fun night though. Once again, Lucy was up to sing. No Piano Playing for me as they are very precious about their pianos…

I have discovered some differences between Australia and America that I feel are worth sharing:

#1 America ACTUALLY has Piano Bars

#2 Americans know ALL the words to American Pie

#3 America keeps places like this open until 4am

#4 In “Sweet Caroline” the ‘bom bom bom’ is secondary to the ‘so good’ echo

#5 Nobody here requests Khe Shan

So, once again it is 4am and we are only just climbing into bed… I am going to need to sleep some time soon.

REVIEW: Motown The Musical

Motown the Musical…

OK, so when you have the score already written for you, you think people would focus on the book… well, they didn’t quite get it right this time.

The Jukebox Musical has come a long way since the world was made to sit through Mamma Mia. Shows like Jersey Boys have really set the standard on how the Jukebox, especially the “non-fiction” shows should be structured and put together. And then when you compare Motown with Memphis, well, there is nothing to really compare. Memphis is a well thought our structure musical and Motown is a lot of Barry Gordy produced hits randomly slapped together with very little structure.

HOWEVER, I don’t want to take anything away from the people performing on the stage or in the pit. WOW… nothing but WOW! Most of this cast have come from In The Heights, Memphis, Lion King, Caroline or Change etc… They know what they are doing and they do it well, they just aren’t supported by a good book.

The two leads Brandon Victor Dixtor (Barry Gordy) and Felicia Boswell (Diana Ross) are great and manage to capture the elements of their character really well. I was fortunate enough to see Ms Boswell absolutely nail the leading role in Memphis and went into this show with similar expectations and she did not disappoint, especially in Act 2 where she had really warmed up. The other stand out performer is someone who I fell in love with during Godspell two years ago, Morgan James… As one the only non African-American female cast members in the cast, she holds her own and makes her mark with a such a small part as Teena Marie

So, if I am being honest, the soundtrack captures the best parts of this show. The vocal harmonies and re-imagination of some of the ‘classic’ Motown tracks are worth a listen to, but if you only have a couple of nights on Broadway, go check out 54 Below!

Concrete Jungle Where Dreams Are Made Of...

As I was sitting in Maccas in Times Square at 2am after not sleeping for 36 hours and consuming a bottle of red wine that night, I realised I was living the dream. Well, I am not sure what kind of dream you call it, but I am sure it was someone’s dream that was being turned into a reality.

So that is how 54 Below ended – and what a great way to end, a walk through Times Square and a cheeky cheeseburger. Well, actually, as I have mentioned before a cheeseburger meal is 2 cheeseburgers… go figure.

Anyway, time to wake up for the first full day in the New York. We headed into Times Square – sober and warmer than we were 8 hours earlier just so the girls could get their bearings. Anyway, overnight I was not named Worlds Sexiest Man and there was a great excitement about it all in Times Square. The girls were all so caught up without me and a male model. Apparently he was in Zoolander… Anyway, after much persuasion from yong excited marketing assistance from People Magazine (I am actually surprised how much effort it took for the two girls to have their photo taken with one of the sexiest men in the world… anyway, I digress…)

As the girls were lining up, fate would have it that a staff member for David Letterman was walking the line offering tickets for the night show… All of a sudden our night plans were sorted! (Well, our afternoon as they start filming at about 5.30pm)

So it is now time to eat, check out some of the general sights and sounds of times square and then back to the hotel, refresh and get ready to watch Dave. Watching a “live” TV show being filmed is really interesting. Guest for the night was Jennifer Lawrence – star of Hunger Games and Blind Side. Apart from the fact that she is beautiful, she is funny… like actually funny, even left ‘Dave’ speechless once or twice.

So, you are herded into the theatre after a warm up / excitement from some junior staffers. Then there is the warm up guy who mainly made jokes about the Toronto Mayor… actually, the whole show was about that… Anyway, after Mr Stand Up, we then are entertained to a 15-20minute set by Paul Shafer and the CBS Orchestra before Dave comes out for a quick chat prior to the recording.

Show happens… Show finishes… Get out… So, we did this on Wednesday afternoon and our show was being shown on Wednesday night. But before we went in, they had filmed Friday night’s show. It is all too confusing for me…

OK, so we have just fluked amazing Letterman tickets (4^th Row, centre) and needed to see our first Broadway Musical for this trip. Well, for the girls it was there first Broadway Musical Ever! We even did the whole TKTS experience to get our Motown Ticket. Turns out although our tickets are out on the end of the row… they were in about the 9^th row… so was still pretty good.

Now, pre show drinks are always required! And on this occasion I know A LOT of people who are visiting New York so it was off to meet up with one of them. Then Motown.

After Motown, it was straight to the Laurie Beechman Theatre. I found this place last time after a Godspell performance Christmas Cabaret was here. Tonight was another one of those variety / open mic nights. Performers included the male lead from Pippen and the lady who took over from Alice Ripley in Next To Normal.

We were chatting with the host after the show and his connection with Australia was David Campbell and Judi Connelli – so we chatted about Ms Connelli and he gave us some advise on some more late night club options… Tonight’s recommendation – Don’t Tell Mamma’s.

I had been looking at the schedule for actual acts at Don’t Tell Mamma’s and there was nothing too exciting so we hadn’t planned on seeing a show there, but a late night piano bar seemed like fun. I can’t even begin to describe this place, it is probably actually like the Kit Kat Klub. Actually, when I was ordering a wine and they didn’t have anything by the bottle because it all came out of a cask, the waitress did say – “welcome to the dive that is Don’t Tell Mamma’s”. On a side note there were some wonderful performances from the lovely Lucy and Louise – oh and one of the leads from Kinky Boots popped in for a drink and a song of 4!

By the time they closed down at 3am – it was time for bed. I think it was a successful Full Day 1 in NYC!

54 Below... The Venue not the Temperature..

It is no secret that I love a good showtune and a Broadway Musical! However, this trip is a bit different as I want to explore the Cabaret world a little it more. Find the piano bars and cabaret clubs and see how the real kids do it… and they do it really well!

Night 1 in New York and it is straight to 54 Below, the new cool funky place for jazz and cabaret. Located under the famous Studio 54, this intimate showroom / cabaret venue is amazing. Everything about it is amazing. It starts with a big bald door man who opens the big old school door that in days gone by, you would need a secret knock and a password to get through. When you get downstairs and inside, the décor is straight out of the 40’s. The menu is great (a little bit expensive but the quality of the food and the experience matches the price).

Anyway, tonight is “Once Upon A Time In New York” – a showcase of new songs about New York by emerging Musical Theatre writers and performers. I know Lloyd Webber hasn’t written a good thing since Phantom and all Sondheim does now is re-write his stuff for a different context but have no fear, there are some great new writers coming through who will save us from the onslaught of Jukebox Musicals and might provide “an original musical” again… one day… if we are lucky…

So that was the first part and then we stayed for the second session which was a late night Broadway Open Mic type of thing

There was no program provided and I hadn’t slept in a long time so I can’t remember exactly who sang what by who and which concert it was in, but the basic highlights:

• Jeremy Jordan
• Celise Henderson (saw her in Godspell 2 years ago)
• Two kids from Matilda who sang a new song written by the [title of show] team that lists all the theatres on Broadway (think about the song you learnt your times tables to… now imagine it with Broadway Theatres)
• A song about the music being the heart of New York.

What I took away from this night was a couple of things:

1 – 54 Below is a really cool venue and everyone should visit it

2 – Australians can see songs about New York, but they don’t get it. Watching New Yorkers sing songs about New York when you are in the heart of New York makes sense

3 – Argentina are starting to produce some really nice wine!

First Flight

I had forgotten how long that flight actually is… I have done it 3 times now but this was definitely the best.

First time: limited toilets, so limited drinking… and was next to two guys who were set on breaking the David Boon record – refer to earlier posts about that trip…

Second time: epic hangover… enough said…

Third time: all toilets working, no hangover, and two lovely travelling companions! #Winning

I love the long international flights, they allow me a chance to catch up on movies I haven’t seen…

Movie One: The Saphires. WOW, Australian cinema has come a long way

Movie Two: Monsters Inc. One of those Pixar ones I never got around to seeing

Movie Three: The Lone Ranger. This movie is the reason I don’t see movies all that often… I know it was late in the flight and I had already consumed a couple of Vodka’s and moved onto the mini bottles of Red Wine, but I could not stay awake in this movie… Long and Boring…

That was when I changed to Modern Family and Big Bang Theory. Safe and predictable options.

The only thing that happens on a long flight is that you start to question things… don’t get worried – nothing to deep like the meaning of life or how long could I actually hold my breath if this plane was to crash land in the water and who would deactivate my Facebook account – nothing serious like that at all….

The main question I came up with was “Why Do Companies Try To Glamour Travel?”. We all know we are in Economy and it is called Economy for a reason and it is costed like that for a reason. Why don’t they just say: 13 hours in a cramped space with terrible headphones and food that doesn’t look anything like it tastes like which is nothing like what it was described. But instead we get things such as a “menu” prepared by an “executive chef” and the drinks list has some “aperitifs” which are just different mixers with your drink… it is all about making travel more fancy… when it isn’t. Why do seats even recline in economy? It is just a waste of a feature that you can’t use because you will squash the person behind you and it isn’t really that much more comfortable. Recently I watched Catch Me If You Can… Back in the 50’s travel really was glamorous and fun and sexy flight attendance, now well… it is all a little bit Economy… maybe you need to go Business…

We get to LAX… a little early and they don’t let us get off the plane because the airport doesn’t open for another 20 minutes… oh well. Clear Customs, change terminals and Wow… guess which terminal has had a full makeover! The Tom Bradley is now presented by Westfield… Step off a 13 hour flight from Australia and step straight into Carindale – it was like the flight never happened! Slight delay and we are on our way from LAX to JFK (I like to sound like a cool and knowledgeable traveller and use airport codes… I don’t know why).

The next part of the flight is the half empty plane. As soon as that seatbelt light went off, I was in the middle spreading out over 4 seats to try and sleep… emphasis on the try… but then ‘that moment’ when you are flying into New York and you see the glow of the plasma screens (it is not neon lights anymore) and you can’t help but admit that a little bit of pee comes out because you are excited (not because you are about to enter your 26^th hour with no sleep!)

3rd Time Lucky

Ok, So my attempts at "blogging" my holiday have been a bit like the Back To The Future Movies...

First Time - Amazing! Well Done Matthew - something new and different...
Second Time - Started off with promise, but got lost somewhere in the middle and didn't finish.
Third Time - Well, I have nothing to compare with at the moment but if offers great promise!

Anyway, for those of you playing along at home, here is a brief outline of what will be appearing here over the next 10 weeks...

3 weeks until I leave...
Leaving Australia on November 19 for 10 nights in New York
Then head back to Los Angeles for a week
Pop into Phoenix for a couple of days
Then over to Chicago for a week
Up to Toronto for Christmas
Down to New Orleans for a Jazzy New Year
Then back home for work...

There will be special guest stars throughout the WHOLE trip this time!

So, until then...

THEATRE REVIEW: Memphis

There is no pressure or anything, but if you win the Tony award for BEST MUSICAL - you probably should be pretty good.

Memphis, which is still doing pretty good on Broadway (80% of capacity), won the Tony in 2010. It had just opened when I was last in New York and was on my list of "To See" shows but I never got around to it.

Memphis isn't necessarily a 'true' story, but was inspired by events of the time. he characters and story of Memphis is a fictional creation meant to embody the people and the spirit of the times. (Well, that is what the program said anyway!)

Set in Memphis in the 1950's, this original musical (not a Jukebox) tells the story of a White DJ who loves Black music and wants to bring it to mainstream America. Along the way he falls in love with a Black girl and the obvious trouble ensues.

The two leads in this touring production (I saw this in Toronto) were both original understudies for the Broadway production and are fantastic. Especially Felicia Boswell. WHAT A VOICE! I saw this production with friends who are music lovers and semi-regular theatre goers in Brisbane / Toronto / New York and decided that she has one of the best voices ever heard. The problem with these sorts of roles and shows is to over-sing, but Felicia obviously has a good singers brain (and a good musical director) and was able to create some pretty incredible sounds.

There are a couple of other standout performances by Rhett George (doesn't say a word until he sings a beautiful song at the end of Act 2) and Will Mann (great voice and for a larger man, this guy has amazing dance skills!)

The amount of sound cues that were missed was disappointing. For a professional touring production, you would think and hope they have those things sorted out. I know it is a touring production so there is no way to control this, but it would have been really good in a smaller venue. much more intimate.

The show is out on DVD and if you are browsing Amazon.com and looking for something to buy - this is worth it. The vocals and music and band are awesome. The sets are simple but very effective and it tells a really interesting story and doesn't have the ending you might be expecting. And the dancing - so slick and super stylized. There was a lot of joy and fun coming from the stage and as an audience member you can't help but pick up on that.

My way of reviewing and summary is slightly different this time round:
NO WAY = 1
PROBABLY NOT = 2
MAYBE = 3
YES = 4
DEFIANTLY = 5

Would I See It Again? YES
Would I Buy The Soundtrack? YES
Would I Buy The DVD? MAYBE
Would I MD this show? DEFIANTLY (but i don't think i am quite right)