BWW Album Review: SHE IS RISEN: VOLUME ONE is a Must-Hear Artistic CommunionApril 21, 2020Earlier this month, Hedonist Records released SHE IS RISEN: VOLUME ONE, a concept EP of Andrew Lloyd Webber's JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR performed by an all female cast. The record, inspired by and featuring cast members of a 2017 concert at the Highline Ballroom, takes the cherished rock opera back to its 1970 concept album roots by letting listeners experience magnificent highlights from the score while envisioning an exhilarating new chapter for this triumphant piece of theater.
BWW Album Review: Lena Hall's THE VILLA SATORI is Perfectly Polished Yet Intensely RawApril 15, 2020As of April 14, 2020 data from Spotify indicated that listeners were turning to throwback hits during the era of quarantines and stay-at-home orders. For fans of music looking for something new that is also nostalgic, they need look no further than Lena Hall's lively new album, THE VILLA SATORI: GROWING UP HAIGHT ASHBURY, released by Hall on April 10, 2020.
BWW Album Review: THE PRINCE OF EGYPT (Original Cast Recording) Lacks EmotionApril 10, 2020In 1998 Stephen Schwartz mesmerized audiences with his delightfully cinematic songs for Dreamworks' animated film The Prince of Egypt. Just in time for the 2020 Passover season, Ghostlight Records released THE PRINCE OF EGYPT (Original Cast Recording). Featuring the 2020 London Cast, this lushly recorded but surprisingly forgettable album includes five songs featured in the original film and a slew of new compositions.
BWW Album Review: RAGS PARKLAND SINGS THE SONGS OF THE FUTURE is Poignant, Captivating, and Deeply SatisfyingMarch 31, 2020Forced indoors and relying on our memories of life before quarantine, the cast album for a musical about music recovered from memory data seems oddly apropos and strangely relatable. This is the moment where Broadway Records' RAGS PARKLAND SINGS THE SONGS OF THE FUTURE (Original Cast Recording) meets us. Highly intellectual and with a somewhat obscured concept in the album setting, this record is equal parts poignant and entertaining.
BWW Album Review: Janet Dacal's MY STANDARDS Swings with Vivacious LifeFebruary 21, 2020With her debut solo album, MY STANDARDS, Janet Dacal perfectly marries her Cuban heritage with American standards. Carlos Josè Alvarez, as principal arranger (with additional arrangements by Alexis a?oePututia?? Arce, John Di Martino, Alberto Salas, and Ramón Stagnaro), brings a sublimely jazzy flair to these familiar songs and allows Dacal to breathe wonderous new life into each of them. If MY STANDARDS doesn't have you dancing as you listen to it, check your pulse.
BWW Interview: Joel Perez Talks Swinging New Musical BOB & CAROL & TED & ALICEFebruary 5, 2020The New Group is taking audiences back to the swinging 60's with BOB & CAROL & TED & ALICE. The fascinating new piece has a lot to say about love, relationships, and - of course - sex. Following a recent performance, BroadwayWorld sat down with Joél Pérez, who plays Bob, to unpack the show and discover what's under the covers.
52nd Street Project Celebrates Creativity of NYC Youth with ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM, PLAYS YOU CAN'T IGNOREJanuary 21, 2020Founded in 1981, The 52nd Street Project has been inspiring the creativity in kids from Manhattan's Hell's Kitchen and helping them develop and take part in original pieces of theater with theater professionals that are then offered for free to the general public. Children enter the program around age ten and continue participating in it through their teens. Providing a safe environment for youths to experience accomplishment and collaboration, The Project generates an inclusive environment where their students not only belong, but one where their creative work is the driving force. Beyond the world of theater, the long-term mentoring relationships formed between Project staff and volunteers and their members expose the young minds to diverse art forms, including poetry, photography, theatrical design, dance, stage combat, and filmmaking.
BWW Interview: On Site Opera Talks Location Specific DAS BARBECÜJanuary 17, 2020Are you lamenting that you can't get more cornbread and chili while taking in a performance of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein's OKLAHOMA? Well, On Site Opera's site specific production of the family friendly musical DAS BARBECÜ, written by Jim Luigs and featuring music by Scott Warrender, is just for you! The musical is for you if you're looking for a fun date night, a crash course in Wagner's The Ring Cycle performed in roughly two hours (and that includes intermission!), or just want an evening of hearty laughter with a side of delicious barbecue. Following a recent rehearsal, BroadwayWorld sat down with co-directors Eric Einhorn and Katherine M. Carter to get a peek at the funny bones behind the tantalizing, well-seasoned ribs at DAS BARBECÜ
BWW Album Review: JAGGED LITTLE PILL Scratches and BurnsDecember 6, 2019So many of us remember exactly where we were when we first heard Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill. I tapped into the excitement experienced by my ten-year-old self gleefully ripping the shrink wrap off and popping the CD into his portable Aiwa CD Player when downloading my review copy of JAGGED LITTLE PILL (Original Broadway Cast Recording). Sadly, I was met by streams of disappointment and infuriating rage listening to it.
BWW Album Review: Ghostlight Records and The Civilians Kick Off THE MICHAEL FRIEDMAN COLLECTION with Three GemsNovember 20, 2019Prolific theatrical songwriter Micheal Friedman died at age 41 from AIDS related complications in 2017, leaving many bereft as the theater community recognized his vibrant creativity was snuffed out too soon. To preserve his legacy and work, Ghostlight Records is partnering with The Civilians to record nine albums of Friedman's previously unrecorded music for THE MICHAEL FRIEDMAN COLLECTION. This past October, the first trio of albums was released.
BWW Review: Migguel Anggelo Enthralls with LATINXOXO at Joe's PubNovember 12, 2019As an artist that is well established in the New York Cabaret scene, audiences know that a Migguel Anggelo performance is guaranteed to entertain and enthrall. With LATINXOXO, he captivates audiences while sharing his yearning for acceptance and love from his father, who died by electrocution while changing a lightbulb on his Venezuelan cattle ranch.
BWW Interview: Migguel Anggelo Talks LATINXOXO at Joe's PubOctober 2, 2019Migguel Anggelo returns to Joe's Pub with a reworked presentation of LATINXOXO on October 15th, November 6, and November 7. Through the concert experience, Anggelo moves the audience through iconic pop hits, original compositions, and the Spanish boleros of his youth, to remind them that the greatest love of all is right there in the mirror. To get the inside scoop on LATINXOXO, I chatted with Anggelo about the show.
BWW Album Review: TOOTSIE (Original Broadway Cast Recording) Wraps Transphobia in SequinsJuly 26, 2019TOOTSIE, a stage adaptation of the well-know 1982 Dustin Hoffman vehicle, missed its opportunity to engage in poignant conversations on gender, feminism, and trans identities. Instead, David Yazbek's lyrics and music stay stuck in the bygone era of the early 1980s, leaning heavily on the tired and inherently transphobic a?oeman in a dressa?? gag and a rather generic sounding Broadway score rooted firmly in the most rudimentary basics of musical writing.
BWW Album Review: BEETLEJUICE (Original Broadway Cast Recording) is a Rib-Tickling TreatJune 19, 2019BEETLEJUICE is a giddily irreverent musical that has left audiences laughing themselves to death since it began its out-of-town tryouts in Washington, D.C. Currently playing Broadway's Winter Garden Theatre, this rib-tickling treat has recently released BEETLEJUICE (Original Broadway Cast Recording) through Ghostlight Records and Warner Records. The album captures the heart and humor of the production, sharing the giggles and laughs with a worldwide audience.
BWW Interview: Joe Chisholm Talks SAFEWORDJune 5, 2019Exploring the depths of modern relationships is something that S. Asher Gelman is keen on doing in his works. On the heels of Off-Broadway's smash hit AFTERGLOW, which offered a view into the world of open relationships, the playwright's latest work - SAFEWORD - explores concepts of trust in relationships through the lens of BDSM. To get the inside scoop on the play, we sat down with Joe Chisholm.
BWW Album Review: Michelle Vezilj's 'Fire Goes to Die' is an Empowering AnthemMay 17, 2019Michelle Vezilj is making a profound and timely statement with her latest single, 'Fire Goes to Die.' Inspired by the #MeToo movement and being a victim of sexual assault herself, Vezilj's empowering anthem touches on those pressing topics. Yet, in the same week as the governor of Alabama signed our nation's most restrictive anti-abortion bill into law, this tune's broader themes about emboldening oneself to take control of one's body couldn't feel more timely.