Broadway Binge

Your favorite Bingers are back! And here to stay? The coronavirus pandemic has forcibly removed every excuse Jeremy and Hannah have to delay, so they are back with brand new content for you! How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying premiered in 1961 with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser, and book by Abe Burrows, Jack Weinstock, and Willie Gilbert, based on Shepherd Mead's satirical 1952 book of the same name.

Hannah and Jeremy update their Is It Good scores for Oklahoma, Carousel, and Kiss Me Kate after seeing the recent Broadway revivals.  Oklahoma is famously a huge success, but did the other two, which Jeremy and Hannah previously hated, improve at all for 2018/19? Of course not.

If you're listening to this on the weekend it's being released, enjoy our 2019 Tonys preview! But we spend the vast majority of the episode raving about Hadestown, so you'll enjoy it just as much if you happen upon this episode any time in the future.

Camelot, by My Fair Lady's Lerner and Loewe, plus Moss Hart, came out in 1960 to tepid reviews. But it is now perceived as having been an important American musical culture despite itself.  Find out why in this episode, and get a sneak peek review of Alice By Heart, the new musical by Spring Awakening's Sheik and Sater.

We cover the longest running musical of all time, Off-Broadway's The Fantasticks, with music by Harvey Schmidt and lyrics by Tom Jones, loosely based on the play Les Romanesques by Edmond Rostand (of Cyrano de Bergerac). Jeremy also shares his theory about the "Broadway genre" of music.

Broadway Binge is back for its second season! We kick things off by ranking each of our top five animals played by humans in Broadway History!

We enter the 1960s with Bye Bye Birdie, music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Lee Adams, book by Michael Stewart, and directed and choreographed by Gower Champion. Does it hold up well? What's with all the Ann-Margret hype? Find out here.

This week we go over Flower Drum Song, the 1958 minor hit by Rodgers and Hammerstein, based on a novel by C. Y. Lee, which features an almost entirely Asian cast and takes place in (then) modern day San Francisco. A lot is being written about the 1961 movie version of Flower Drum Song at the time this podcast is being released, as it is one of the only three movies Hollywood has ever made taking place with an all-Asian cast in the modern day, the other two being 1993's Joy Luck Club and 2018's Crazy Rich Asians. Without going into any spoilers about Crazy Rich Asians, Jeremy talks about how Flower Drum Song tried to accomplish what Crazy Rich Asians successfully accomplished over 50 years later, by highlighting the tensions between Chinese Americans and people actually born in China/Singapore.

Rodgers and Hammerstein's only true flop was 1955's Pipe Dream, based on a short novel by John Steinbeck.  Unlike the earlier forgotten R&H shows, Allegro and Me and Juliet, neither of the pair was actually excitied about this one, so it's odd that it was even made. In this episode, you'll hear how some of the songs in pipe Dream sound suspiciously similar to earlier R&H songs. 

We take a look at 1959's The Sound of Music, the final collaboration of Rodgers and Hammerstein. While the 1965 film is universally beloved, it is possible that the original stage musical was...bad??? Hannah and Jeremy investigate.

Gypsy (1959) with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, book by Arthur Laurents, and directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins, is considered by many critics and scholars to be the greatest Broadway musical of all time? Do Hannah and Jeremy agree? Find out on this episode of Broadway Binge.

Today, Jeremy will tell you all you need to know about Rodgers and Hammerstein's forgettable and regrettable musical, Me and Juliet, from 1953, and then you'll never need to think about it again. It is not about Romeo and Juliet, and it is not an early-2000s teen comedy, as much as the title suggests it might be. Rodgers threw Hammerstein a bone by agreeing to do Allegro in 1947, and this show is Hammerstein returning the favor. There is one fun song though, so check this out for that.

Pete the Retailer from the Star Wars Minute, Alphabeatical, and ABCDEVO podcasts joins us to talk about The Music Man, which he acted in as a child. The Music Man has music and lyrics by Meredith Wilson, and is considered to be an American classic. But does it hold up today? And is Robert Preston wearing a toupee in the movie?? Here is a picture of him in The Music Man movie, and here is a picture of him in the movie SOB, in what the LA Times calls a "deep-pile toupee."  If you think he had a toupee in The Music Man tweet with #toupee to @Broadway_Binge, and if you don't think so, tweet with #notatoupee.

We finish off West Side Story with a deep dive into every number, discussing casting, the music, the lyrics, the dancing, the differences between the show and the film, and even conspiracy theories! And at the end, we rank it against all the other shows we've discussed so far.  See how it does! Check out the Broadway Binge Listen-Along Spotify Playlist here, for all the best songs in all the musicals we've discussed!

We finally reach West Side Story! A show so important we're devoting two weeks to it. This week, we discuss how the 1957 show with music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by rookie Stephen Sondheim, book by Arthur Laurents, directed and choreographed by Leonard Bernstein, came together for the stage. We also discuss the changes made for the 1961 movie, and we begin to dive into the show itself! Tweet your thoughts at us at @Broadway_Binge   One correction, we note in the episode that Heaven on Their Minds has a section in 7/4 time, and that When Your Mind's Made Up is in 5/4 time, but upon reflection, those might actually be 7/8 and 10/8. The scores will contain the truth.

In preparation for the upcoming West Side Story episodes, Jeremy takes us through the higlights of Wonderful Town (1953) and Candide (1956), Leonard Bernstein's two Broadway efforts in between On the Town and West Side Story. Wonderful town is basically a discount On the Town, and Candide is Bernstein going full operetta.   

We're finishing off our Broadway song rankings, with Hannah's and Jeremy's top 5 songs.  Plus, a listener sent in her list, so we read that one too. Hear all of our selections at the Broadway Binge Favorite Songs Playlist.

We're pleasantly surprised by Damn Yankees, the second and final musical by Adler and Ross after the disappointing Pajama Game.  Damn Yankees is surprisingly high concept, and surprisingly non-baseball focused.  West Side Story is up next, so if you want to watch the movie in preparation, now is the time.  

Hannah and Jeremy rank their 10th through 6th favorite Broadway songs, plus some honorable mentions.  There are some oddball choices in here, to be sure. Listen to all of our choices on this special Spotify Playlist, which will be updated when we release Part 2 with each of our top 5 songs.  Broadway Binge Favorite Songs Playlist.

Rodgers and Hammerstein had their first flop with Allegro (1947) a pet project of Hammerstein's coming on the heels of their smash successes of Oklahoma and Carousel.  They would never stray so far from their established formula again after the swing and miss of Allegro.  But what made it a flop, and what is the story behind its creation? Find out on our second Minisode.  

The greatest musical of all time? Perfectly constructed? A lot of musical theatre scholars consider My Fair Lady (1956) to be the best of the best, but what do Hannah and Jeremy think? Get ready to learn about Lerner and Loewe's greatest hit, and find out what all the fuss is about.

Welcome to our first Minisode! In weeks when we can't get a full episode to you, Jeremy whisks you through a musical we skipped over as not meriting a full episode, but one you should probably know a bit about if you want to be a complete Broadway faux-expert. First up is Brigadoon (1947), the first hit musical by Lerner and Loewe of My Fair Lady fame, a musical that we originally meant to give its own full episode! This is very much in the Oklahoma mold, just by a different writing team. Enjoy!

This week, we welcome Kate Herzlin to discuss 1954's Peter Pan, directed by Jerome Robbins, and written by Mark "Moose" Charlap, Carolyn Leigh, Jule Styne, and Betty Comden & Adolph Green. Mary Martin played the role for years, followed by Cathy Rigby, and both produced celebrated televised versions. You might also remember the recent televised version with Allison Williams and Christopher Walken. Kate wrote the book of a new musical version of Peter Pan, and she talks with us about the history of the character, and we all discuss what this show did for children's musicals and TV musicals, while also discussing whether or not it's actually a good show. Trigger warning for a discussion of possible pedophilia near the end of the podcast. Once Jeremy begins talking about The Little White Bird, which is the J.M. Barrie story for which he invented the character of Peter Pan, you might want to skip the rest of the episode if you don't want to hear a quotation from the book which does not quite sit right to modern ears. You can read about Kate's version of Peter Pan (which won Best New Work in the 2016 Philadelphia Broadway World awards) here: https://www.broadwayworld.com/philadelphia/article/Media-Theatre-Presents-New-Modern-PETER-PAN-AND-WENDY-Musical-20160117 And if you would like to hear more about this version of Peter Pan for your school or theatre, you can reach Kate here: kateherzlin@gmail.com Here is the link to the NYTimes article about 2014 Peter Pan that we talk about in the show: https://mobile.nytimes.com/2014/12/06/arts/television/nbcs-peter-pan-live-starring-allison-williams-and-christopher-walken.html?referer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F

This week, we welcome Sharell Bryant to talk with us about The Pajama Game (1954) with book by George Abbott and Richard Blissell, music and lyrics by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross, directed by Abbott and Jerome Robbins, choreographed by Bob Fosse, produced by Hal Prince (and others) and several songs were secretly written by Frank Loesser! With the most star studded production team yet, surely this will rank among the best musicals of all time, right? Hahahahahahahahahaha no.

The Threepenny Opera, by Elizabeth Hauptmann, Bertolt Brecht, and Kurt Weill, was originally produced in Berlin in 1928. After a 1933 Broadway production bombed, it was re-translated by Marc Blitzstein for a smash Off-Broadway 1953 production that helped to create Off-Broadway theatre as we know it today.

The King and I (1951) by Rodgers and Hammerstein is a classic, and was Jeremy's first musical! We discuss how well it holds up in the present day, and compare it to South Pacific, with which it has a lot in common.

This week, we talk about South Pacific (1949) by Rodgers and Hammerstein! We discuss the musical's message of racial tolerance, its exploration of discrimination, and whether the show itself is problematic in its approach to dealing with racism. We also play a whole bunch of songs, because this is probably the best score we've talked about so far. Can it dethrone Oklahoma and Guys and Dolls? Listen to find out!

We welcome Todd Buonopane (@toddbuonopane) of the amazing Broadway Stories podcast to talk to us about Guys and Dolls, which he's been in SIX times. Guys and Dolls, with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Abe Burrows, is considered by many to be the greatest American musical comedy of all time. See where we rank it against the other nine musicals we've discussed!

Cole Porter returns in a post-Oklahoma world to deliver what is considered his magmum opus, Kiss Me Kate. We are not impressed. Trigger warning for sexual assault. To listen to the songs we talk about, check out our Spotify Playlist, Broadway Binge Listen-Along, which can be found on our website, broadwaybinge.podbean.com

This week, we cover Annie Get Your Gun, composer and lyricist Irving Berlin's 1946 response to the new Rodgers and Hammerstein formula, with book by Dorothy and Herbert Fields. Unlike R+H's serious musical plays, Annie Get Your Gun is a comedy, and quite a funny one at that! We also go over Irving Berlin's biography and play some of his older songs, as he is probably the greatest songwriter in American history. We talk about how expressive Betty Hutton is in the Annie Get Your Gun movie, so if you'd like to see it in video and not just hear the audio, here is her rendition of You Can't Get a Man with a Gun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hGB7yTZEZE4

Carousel is just the worst. But luckily for you, Hannah and Jeremy come into this one hot, and you'll hear what they really think about Rodgers and Hammerstein's second musical. There is some explicit language in this episode, so keep that in mind.

On the Town marked the very first Broadway musical for Leonard Bernstein (music), Jerome Robbins (choreography), and Betty Comden & Adolph Green (book and lyrics). On the Town was loosely based on a ballet by Robbins and Bernstein called Fancy Free which had opened in April 1944, and they completely made On the Town from scratch by December 1944! Fancy Free itself was inspired by Paul Cadmus' painting "The Fleet's In" from 1934, seen below.  

At last, we talk about the most important musical of all time, Oklahoma! The first Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, Oklahoma! was the start of the golden age of musical theatre, and every musical since then exists in the genre Oklahoma crystalized. We'll talk about why the show was so important, play you some clips, read you some scholarly quotes, and talk about how well it holds up. And we'll rank it alongside the other musicals we've reviewed!

This week we discuss 1940's Pal Joey with music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by Lorenz Hart, book by John O'Hara, based on a series of short stories he published in the New Yorker, directed by George Abbott (the Hal Prince of his day). We discuss the songwriting team of Rodgers and Hart, the most popular hit-writers of the 1930s, in their most well remembered show, and one of their last before Rodgers replaced Hart with Hammerstein. We've got more clips than ever this week, with three from Pal Joey and three others from earlier in Rodgers and Hart's career (including some songs you probably know!). If you ever wondered what Rodgers and Hart sounded like, but not enough to go to the effort yourself, this podcast will be all you need! Next week is Oklahoma! We'll be talking about the movie version, so feel free to watch it before you listen if you don't know the show or want to refresh your memory.

For episode 3, we discuss Porgy and Bess, music by George Gershwin, lyrics by Ira Gershwin and Dubose Heyward, libretto by Dubose Heyward. As usual, no familiarity with the show is required to enjoy the podcast, as we play ample audio clips and the plot isn't unexpected or interesting for you to worry about us spoiling you. Porgy and Bess rides the line between opera and musical, and has been performed as complete opera, complete Broadway musical, and every shade in between. We discuss the show, the Gershwin brothers, and we take a look at how criticism of the show's handling of race has changed in ways you might not expect. Apologies for Jeremy's worse microphone today and Hannah's audio getting wonky in the last ten minutes. Neither of those problems surface again in future episodes.  

For our second episode, we discuss Anything Goes (1934) with music and lyrics by Cole Porter, book by Guy Bolton and P.G. Wodehouse, heavily revised by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. You genuinely don't need to have seen the show to enjoy this episode, as the plot of the musical is entirely irrelevant, and we play a few clips from the songs. If you want to know why the show is good, all you need to do is watch this one four-minute video of the 2011 Tony performance of the title song "Anything Goes," featuring Sutton Foster. Apologies for the very slight echo, that isn't in subsequent episodes.

We begin our quest to discuss and review every important musical from Show Boat to today with Show Boat itself, music by Jerome Kern, book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, produced by Florenz Ziegfeld. This 1927 show is considered by some to be the first modern musical, or at least the single most important step on the way to Oklahoma!, considered by many more to be the first modern musical. Show Boat was a huge step forward for the American musical, considered by Hammerstein to be a musical play instead of the light musical comedies that were popular on Broadway at the time. In this episode, find out what came before Show Boat and why it was such a revolution for the form, and hear what we think of the faithful 1936 movie adaptation. You can enjoy the podcast without knowing the show, but watching some or all of the movie will certainly help. Note that racism is discussed, and Jeremy and Hannah, as two white people, are not the most qualified in the world to address the topic, but they try their best in this premiere episode. If you would like to see the 1936 movie version of Show Boat, finding a copy to rent is nearly impossible, so check this stream out. Trigger warning for blackface in one number midway through: 1936 Movie Part 1: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3miour 1936 Movie Part 2: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3mj7fq_show-boat-1936-2-2_shortfilms  To discuss this episode and more with other fans, check out the Broadway Bingers Facebook Discussion Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2034413620120525/