OK, here's what all the Sarah Brightman talk is about…
The former Mrs. Andrew Lloyd Webber is going to be a guest on one of our 100 channels here at XM Satellite Radio. She will be in the building at the same time as my daily live show. I thought it would be nice if she could take a few moments to pop into the studio and let her musical theater fans know how she's doing, what she's up to and where her career has taken her post-ALW.
I wrote to the fella who will be interviewing her on the other channel and he forwarded my request to her handlers. We got this response…
I'm sorry to say I don't think this is going to work out. And while Broadway Bill probably has an amazing show we are going in a direction that is breaking away from Broadway, for that reason only we will have to pass on Broadway station.
Hmm. Breaking Away From Broadway. Are her memories of the marriage THAT horrible???? Well. Despite the condescending tone of the reply (and yes, my show IS amazing!), I decided to write to the individual myself.
I was just wondering if I might ask you to reconsider. I understand (Sarah) is moving into a totally new direction, but the fact is we have thousands of listeners to our Broadway channel who will always remember her fondly as "The Angel of Music" -- and they would LOVE to hear about her new exploits! We continue to play her music on a daily basis and would love to have 10 to 15 minutes of her time on our daily live show to chat with her if possible.
Well, I sat eagerly by my inbox waiting for a reply. I got one in about 10 minutes.
Hi Bill.
Thank you so much for your note. Unfortunately this matter is out of my hands, the decision to pass came directly from Sarah's record label. I fully understand that Sarah has a diverse group of fans, and in no way would we want to alienate them. In fact, it's because of these lovely people that she is a Global Diva. But, I'm sorry to say that we will not be able to do the show.
Thank you for your support and understanding.
So I wrote back…
Well, that is a shame. Seems somewhat short-sighted and quite difficult to understand since oft-times folks who say they'll never do Broadway again end up treading the boards at a later date, but if it's a final decision then so be it.
I know (the other channel) will do a wonderful interview and perhaps he might even share segments with me at a later date. I will direct my listeners to the interview on his channel, and will share your explanation when they wonder why she wasn't able to spend a few minutes on my show.
Best wishes.
Bill
By the way, Sarah's new album "Harem" is out. I'm told that most of the cuts are pretty good, except for the ones that sound all disco-like. They say she sounds like Kate Bush. I guess she's a Global Diva too!
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Listen to Your Jovial Impresario, Broadway Bill Schmalfeldt, weekdays from 10a-2p Eastern on America's only LIVE, nationwide satellite radio show tune request show – "Demand Performance".
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