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Posted: |
Jan 7, 2014 - 3:12 PM
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By: |
Morricone
(Member)
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I never know how relevant these shows would be to a film music board as the film music songs can pop up by surprise. The emphasis is usually on Broadway musicals but those can many times overlap into film music moments as the pieces here from GYPSY, FIDDLER ON THE ROOF or TV's PETER PAN. And this time films had good representation with THE LTTLE MERMAID, NEWSIES, CAPTAIN JANUARY and THE COURT JESTER. But all that didn't matter since the idea of nothing but very young singers for a whole show turned off every regular that I have brought to these shows and, also turned me off. I booked a seat at the bar so I could make a quick and quiet exit at any time. What I didn't consider was that a talented person does know when something is challenging (Bruce Kimmel more than qualifies in that category) he works even harder to make it work. The result was one of the best shows I'd been to, and I have been going over 3 years now. But I'll let Bruce speak for himself from his blog:
We’ve done a lot of great shows but this one really took the cake, as I knew it would, because having a show with nine kids strutting their stuff with such energy and heart simply cannot be beat. I had one friend at the show who told me it was the one show of ours that he’d been dreading the most, just because of what it could have turned out to be, with a bunch of precocious kid “performers” – but he ended up thinking it was one of our best for precisely the reason that I would never allow it to be what he was fearing. All I ever ask of a singer, whether they’re nine or nineteen or ninety is that whatever they’re doing come from a place of truth, whether a hilarious comedy number or a touching ballad. In other words, to really understand the intention of the material and deliver it without being phony. And that’s what I asked of our young performers and I assigned them some material that I knew would challenge them and push them a little out of their comfort zone.
Indeed there was not a dud in the whole show and, more importantly, not a syrupy number the whole night (which is good, I'm diabetic!). On top of that he broke up the evening of high voices twice by doing "The Maladjusted Jester" from THE COURT JESTER (a 4 minute breakneck tongue-twister) himself, and then bringing out Tony-nominated singer Sharon McNight (dressed as a doppleganger for Ursula in LITTLE MERMAID) singing "Little Girls" from ANNIE. This song is really a caustic and dark number which amounted to putting a spider on a birthday cake. I loved it. He gave many kids adult songs (a lot of Sondheim) which brought out new fresh aspects of them you wouldn't get otherwise.
So the night was brilliant and I gave no one a heads-up about it. I was thinking about not bringing up this embarrassment for me at all but there was two reasons to do just that.
1) This is his 41st Kritzerland show so he is already a success. Most sell out so he doesn't need the business but I would like to get as many from this forum to try it ONCE at least.
2) His next show qualifies for this forum like no other. Kritzerland does a Night of Film Music and the Academy Awards. It will be Monday February 3rd and I will give it it's own thread when more info comes out about it.
BTW The "friend" who dreaded coming was me.
http://www.msapr.net/Sterling-s-at-The-Federal.html
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