BWW Exclusive Day 5: Preview of Margery & Sheldon Harnick's OUTDOOR MUSEUM- This Alien Race

The Outdoor Museum (not your usual images of New York) is a book of photographs and verse created as a tribute to the iconic city of New York. Presenting it as its own exhibit, the book includes more than 100 stunning images, 11 sage and witty poems (read by Sheldon Harnick on an accompanying CD), and a reverential foreword by renowned director, Mike Nichols.

BroadwayWorld brings you a preview of one of the pieces from the book below, entitled 'This Alien Race.'

As museum enthusiasts, the Harnicks began to construct their own virtual museum while regularly walking the city streets. Looking past the landmarks and cultural icons, they came upon more fascinating and less regarded urban marvels—puddle reflections, subway tiles, sleeping swans, fireworks, public sculpture, store mannequins, and so much more that can be enjoyed without a ticket or a reservation. Margery snapped pictures and Sheldon scribbled verses on a pad. Together, this influential couple brought their abundant talents to The Outdoor Museum as homage to New York. The Outdoor Museum is a singular trophy by two New Yorkers who have contributed to and been deeply touched by the city’s magic.

Margery Gray Harnick and her husband Sheldon Harnick have been fixtures in the New York theater scene for decades—she as an actress-singer-dancer, he as a lyricist for such smash-hit musicals like Fiddler on the Roof. More recently, the couple have turned their eye on the less-documented corners of their beloved metropolis. The result is The Outdoor Museum: Not Your Usual Images of New York (Beaufort Books, $29.95; ISBN 978-0-8253-0675-4), which brings together Margery’s artist’s-eye-view of the city and Sheldon’s knack for narrative verse to produce a uniquely sublime souvenir. To purchase the book, click here.

 

THIS ALIEN RACE

1.

 

When did they land,
this alien race?
We saw no massive ships
from outer space
hovering overhead.
No UFO’s split the upper air
yet all at once
there they were
everywhere:
some in every borough,
with the greatest concentration
in Manhattan.

2.

Incredibly,

despite the widespread scale
of this invasion,
there was no pandemonium,
no panic in the streets.
Far from rousing epic consternation,
these otherworldly visitors
inspired only awe and admiration,
for they were beautiful,
male and female,
utterly desirable.

The women svelte,
long of limb,
slim and all but hipless,
skin unblemished, cheekbones high,
avatars of glamour. 

The men manly,
tall and lean,
perfectly proportioned,
suave, poised,
nonchalant,
models of indifference.

3. 

Since they arrived,

I daresay every one of us
at one time or another
has felt compelled to stop and stare
at these enigmatic creatures,
their cool, unearthly beauty
holding us in thrall;
their faces perfect ovals
with strong, well-chiseled features
or, sometimes, none at all.

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