BroadwayGirlNYC: Entr'acte
By: BroadwayGirl NYC Oct. 27, 2012
Earlier this week I had my iPod on shuffle as I walked around the theatre district. Somewhere around 47th & Broadway, a beautiful instrumental track came on, which I didn't recognize for the first few bars. Then I heard a snippet of a song I knew... and then another... and I realized with a smile that it was the Entr'acte from Merrily We Roll Along. I enjoyed it so much I started scanning through my vast collection of songs for other Entr'actes -- tracks I must admit I had often skipped over, especially when listening on shuffle. After listening to fifteen or twenty back-to-back, I'll probably never skip over one again!
Literally the word Entr'acte is French for "between acts," and historically referred to entertainment provided during intermission -- a dance number performed between the acts of an opera, for example. The word is also technically a synonym for intermission itself; though in current American theatre I've never heard it used that way. The modern definition of Entr'acte is, simply, the overture for the second act: the instrumental piece of music used to ease us back into the world of the play, after we've stretched our legs or picked up a cocktail, emptied our bladders or stepped outside for a breath of fresh air. Like the overture, the Entr'acte weaves together elements of the score from multiple numbers. For me, it creates a special kind of anticipation, reminding me: "Here you are on Broadway! Let's see what the have for you next!"
As I am wont to do, I grabbed my phone and quickly tweeted:
What's your favorite Entr'acte? #QuestionsBwayNerdsAsk
- Broadway Girl NYC (@BroadwayGirlNYC) October 25, 2012
i was thrilled when the responses started coming in; not only was I reminded of Entr'actes I hadn't thought of, but it was yet another reminder that I'm not (by far) the only nerd thinking about such questions as this one! My favorite response came from @kevinddaly, who added, "I have a playlist". Why hadn't I thought of that? As soon as I got home, I too made a iTunes playlist of my favorite Broadway Entr'actes.
Here is a list of my favorites along with some of those tweeted to me:
Gypsy
Sweet Charity
Camelot
Scarlet Pimpernel
Cabaret
Mary Poppins
Beauty & the Beast
Annie
Chicago
The Phantom of the Opera
Mamma Mia
Cabaret
Catch Me if you Can
The Color Purple
It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Superman
Anything Goes
Carousel
My Fair Lady
Guys & Dolls
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
They're Playing Our Song
Merrily We Roll Along
What's missing from this list? What are YOUR favorite Entr'actes from Broadway shows?
Videos