20 Great Broadway Songs of the Past 10 Years: “Wheels of a Dream

It’s astonishing to realize that Ragtime opened just ten years ago—January 1998. Its lush, emotional score with stunning to-the-rafters ballads and stirring group numbers feels so distant from the current trends on Broadway that it sounds like something from ages past.

Honestly, the score is so rich and expansive, it is quite difficult to pick only one great song from the spectacular Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens score. How does one choose among that stunning opening number, the beautiful harmony of “Journey On,” the fun of “The Crime of the Century,” Audra McDonald’s moving “Your Daddy’s Son,” the rousing “The Night that Goldman Spoke at Union Square,” and . . . well, you get the idea (and that’s not even finishing the music from the first act!).

In listening to “Wheels of a Dream,” it’s easy to miss the grand scores of the ‘80s and ‘90s. Indeed, there’s something to be said of the delicate, character-specific nuances of a song like Adam Guettel’s “Dividing Day,” but there’s also something to be said for the stirring, character-specific grandness of the songs in Ragtime. In “Wheels of a Dream,” we have two characters facing the journey of family life, the open road of their life together represented by the metaphor of a car. As anyone who has seen the show knows, however, their grand moment of dreaming will actually be only dreams, for the country that will let a man like Coalhouse “own a car, raise a child, build a life with you” will destroy his car, gun down his love, and leave his child in the arms of another man.

The melody is of the stirring anthem type, the grand emotional push that, while lacking the nuance that has unjustly wrought criticism on a number of other moving scores of this ilk, is pinpoint perfect for the hopes and dreams that Coalhouse holds for his family. Having had moments of great hope in my own life, they require larger-than-life musical colors to accurately portray. The fact that his hopes—expressed through the grandness of the melody—will never arrive in tact is even more affecting when remembering the depth of his hope in “Wheels of a Dream.”

If you are a younger musical theatre fan, and you are not familiar with the score to Ragtime, I couldn’t urge you more to check it out. It really is something extra special.

the Broadway Mouth
May 23, 2008

Amazing Broadway Performer: Judy Kaye

The piece de resistance of Sweeney Todd with eight instruments is Judy Kaye. Honestly, when I heard that Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street had been barbered down to eight instruments, I couldn’t have been less interested, no matter how revolutionary a concept.

But how can I resist seeing Judy Kaye on stage for the first time in such a role?

Probably my favorite Judy Kaye performance is as Emma Goldman in Ragtime, which I was able to see through the God-send of the Lincoln Center theatre archive. In the context of the show, I admire that character so much because she speaks so passionately about her convictions and acts upon them without regard for her own personal welfare (I don’t know enough about the real Emma Goldman to comment on her outside the musical). Kaye’s Goldman highlights all of those admirable characteristics, and she gave a dynamic performance. I love hearing her on that CD.

The first of my two other encounters with the great Judy Kaye is as Babe Williams on the Jay records release of the complete recording of The Pajama Game in which she gives a performance that almost seems to have stepped right off of a 1950s stage, which is perfect for this quintessential 1950s show. Because of the brassiness of her voice, Kaye’s Babe is particularly blue collar, while still soft and tender for the romantic moments of the show.

I also love her lusty (think both meanings of the word) Meg Brockie on the studio cast recording of Brigadoon. Her two solos highlighting Meg’s, um, hearty view of life are tops.

So, I hope to someday write about how exciting it was to see Judy Kaye in person. Until then, I’ll be in awe from her recordings.

Website: http://www.judykaye.com/



the Broadway Mouth
September 14, 2007

Amazing Broadway Performer: Brian Stokes Mitchell

I don’t know how a theatre can contain Brian Stokes Mitchell. All these years after getting to see him in Kiss Me, Kate, I still remember how his characterization filled the (then) Martin Beck Theatre. Seeing him perform as Fred Graham was electrifying, particularly to someone like myself who, at the time, was not used to witnessing a performance of that magnitude. Hearing him belt out those magnificent Cole Porter tunes, making me both laugh out loud and feel strongly for his relationship with Lilli, was an unforgettable experience.

It was only when looking at his Playbill credits that I realized I had encountered Mitchell before, singing for Danny Glover the outstanding Stephen Schwartz song “Through Heaven’s Eyes” in The Prince of Egypt. His voice has the grandeur that the character requires but pulls out the warmth and intimacy the song needs. The CD is filled with great Stephen Schwartz music, but Mitchell’s “Through Heaven’s Eyes” is definitely a highlight.

The only other performance of Brian Stokes Mitchel’s that I’ve been fortunate enough to see was in Ragtime through the Lincoln Center theatre archives. What a powerful performance. The OBCR is a fantastic keepsake of that awesome performance, but getting to see the whole performance—wow. It was one thing to hear Coalhouse acquiesce to Booker T. Washington, but to see the character agonizing over the decision, to feel the tension in the air . . . It’s no wonder that his performance in Ragtime propelled Mitchell into Broadway super-stardom.

Website: http://www.will-harris.com/stokes.html



the Broadway Mouth
August 28, 2007

Amazing Broadway Performer: Audra McDonald

Unlike many Favorite Broadway Performers I’ve Never Seen (an official classification, by the way) we’re so fortunate that Audra McDonald has a body of work that has been recorded. For me, that has primarily been the television movie of Annie, where she played Grace Farrell with such heart and beauty. She was the main reason I bought the soundtrack despite owning the Broadway cast recording and the original film’s soundtrack. For a child, Grace Farrell is such a magical role because she comes in and saves the day for Annie. Who wouldn’t want to have a Grace Farrell in their life? McDonald’s Grace is beautifully portrayed, given such warmth that you can’t help but adore her.

I have a distinct memory of buying the Marie Christine CD. I knew very little about the show, but I had entered my phase of buying new Broadway CDs to learn everything I could about Broadway performers, Broadway shows, musical styles, and storytelling techniques. I was enraptured. I had been quite familiar with Medea from having to read it in high school and college, and this interpretation, with the inimitable Audra McDonald as the Medea character, grabbed me and wouldn’t let go. When you watch video of actresses playing Medea, often their depiction seems so huge that it doesn’t feel real. Here, McDonald gives Marie Christine the power the role requires, but the depth of her voice gives the character humanity. The giggly happy mamma flashback Marie feels at one with violent, vengeful Marie. You can feel the change and understand how this love-struck woman becomes the vitriolic ex. Despite having heard that CD hundreds of times, there are still moments when McDonald’s performance gives me chills.

Then, of course, there’s Ragtime, which I was very fortunate to have experienced through the magic of the Lincoln Center archives. After hearing McDonald’s commanding performance on the OBCR so many times, I was surprised by how much deeper the performance she gave was when taking into account the staging and her physical expression of the character. Despite knowing what a horrible thing Sarah has attempted to do by killing her child, I was not prepared to feel such pity for the character when McDonald sings “Your Daddy’s Son” with such heart-tearing agony.

Of course, I own several of her solo CDs (I always seem to be about one behind, though), which are wonderful. I also love her performances on the My Favorite Broadway concerts, particularly her take on “Love Changes Everything,” which becomes astounding when performed as part of a trio with Marin Mazzie and Judy Kuhn.

I’m so thrilled that she may have finally gotten a breakthrough on a big television show. I know it’s heart-breaking to even think of McDonald spending time on frothy television love triangles, but I’m elated that it could give her talent the spotlight it demands. McDonald should be starring in movies, winning Oscars, then returning to the stage in a million different roles in musicals and non-musicals. This role in such a high-profile show could be her opportunity.

Getting to Know You Interview: http://www.broadway.com/gen/Buzz_Story.aspx?ci=549004



the Broadway Mouth
August 23, 2007

Amazing Broadway Performer: Marin Mazzie

I think heaven will be full of angels singing like Marin Mazzie. I have a feeling they won’t be singing “I Hate Men” (or I hope they won’t), but they’ll probably sound something like her.

Kiss Me, Kate was my second show on Broadway, and Marin Mazzie blew me away. First of all, let’s just be frank, she looks amazing. She doesn’t even have to sing to take your breath away.

But then when she does sing, she’s so powerful and has such a beautiful quality. I think it’s a testament to the amazing quality in her voice that she can sing “I Am Ashamed That Women Are So Simple,” and you can ignore the sentiment of the lyrics and get swept away by the beauty of the language and the melody.

Plus she’s so versatile. In Kiss Me, Kate, she was a comedic tour de force, coupled with genuine romantic appeal. But then in Ragtime, which I viewed at the Lincoln Center archives, she gave an entirely different type of performance, a moving dramatic portrayal filled with nuance. Her rendition of “Back to Before” is one of my favorite Broadway songs ever. I’ve often been known to skip to that track and blast it in my car, allowing Mazzie’s huge voice and passion to fill me. How I wish I could have seen that performance live!

Fortunately, I’ve also been able to see Marin Mazzie in the DVD of Stephen Sondheim’s Passion, another beautifully sung and brilliantly acted performance we should all be thankful was preserved for repeated viewing.

I can’t mention Marin Mazzie without remembering the performances preserved for the two My Favorite Broadway DVDs. She sings four times on the two DVDs, each an awesome performance, but my particular favorites are getting to see her sing “So In Love” on The Love Songs and “Unexpected Song” from the Lloyd Webber Love Trio on The Leading Ladies, brilliantly performed solo and then with Audra McDonald and Judy Kuhn. You can’t die without hearing that performance.

Website: http://www.marinmazzie.com/



the Broadway Mouth
August 20, 2007