Fasten your seat belts, gird your loins, and tuck in that shirt for The Great Comet! Yes, this Sunday we'll be experiencing Natasha (young), Anatole (hot), Mary (plain), Andrey (who's not even there yet!), and Pierre (what about Pierre???). It's been called an electro pop opera, with indie mixing with Russian folk dance, Klezmer clarinet and accordian. Most NY critics are over the moon...tho it takes a real listen. Like fine wine (and me), it may be an acquired taste, that appreciates like your 401k (and me) with time. The first time I inhaled, I exhaled right away. Now...another story.
On the other side of that Broadway coin (remember those subway tokens? I should have my leftovers made into earrings), is the pablum that is A Bronx Tale. Called "a combo of Jersey Boys and Westside Story." I would add to that list: Hercules, Aladdin, Tangled, and Newsies. There is something so Disney about this score that no matter what the mob gangsters SAY in "Bronx", you know it will be fine in 1.75 hours, Sonny will not be wearing cement shoes, and Disneyland will be establishing a new beach head in Hoboken within the decade. This is movie-treacle Broadway, and it should be torched immediately.
BUT I WILL PLAY IT. Because it's what's happening on Broadway today. But keep listening past those Bronx Tales til Comet! Please!
P.S. Did you like Bette's Dolly efforts? I don't know about you, but I found it lackluster. It just lacked ....luster. No pizazz in Bette's voice. NOT a Broadway voice. Perhaps this is due to a lack of direction during the recording process, and that she is better in person ("Explosive", "Earthquake Insurance" read the reviews), but not here on this recording. A disappointment.
Prologue (Ensemble, Natasha, Pierre And The Great Comet Of 1812)
Oh, What A Beautiful Morning (Alfred Drake, Oklahoma!)
Oh, Happy We (Robert Rounseville, Barbara Cook, Candide)
Oh, Sing Sweet Nightingale (Rhoda Williams, Ilene Woods, Cinderella)
Oh Me, Oh My, Oh You (Doris Day, Gene Nelson, Tea For Two)
Upstairs At O'Neals (Ensemble, Upstairs At O'Neals)
Stools (Bebe Neuwirth, Douglas Bernstein, Richard Ryders, Upstairs
At O'Neals)
Something (Douglas Bernstein, Upstairs At O'Neals)
Theatre Party Ladies (John Driver, Jeffrey Haddow, Roger Neil,
Scrambled Feet)
Belmont Avenue (Bobby Conte Thornton, Ensemble, A Bronx Tale)
I Like It (Hudson Loverro, A Bronx Tale)
Out Of Your Head (Bobby Conte Thornton, Ariana DeBose, A Bronx Tale)
The Three B's (Nancy Walker, June Allyson, Gloria DeHaven, Best Foot
Forward)
The Three Of Us (Michael McKean, The Pajama Game)
Three Friends (Lynne Wintersteller, Sally Mayes, Richard Muenz,
Closer Than Ever)
Three Coins In The Fountain (Jason Graae, Ensemble, Forever Plaid)
Three Little Maids (Veronica Hart, Alison Jiear, Paulette Ivory, Hot Mikado)
Oh, How I Hate To Get Up In The Morning (Irving Berlin, Ensemble,
This Is The Army)
Oh, My Goodness (Shirley Temple, Poor Little Rich Girl)
Uh-Oh! (Margery Gray, Byron Mitchell, Tovarich)
I Can Do Better Than That (Sherie Rene Scott, The Last 5 Years)
Shiksa Goddess (Norbert Leo Butz, The Last 5 Years)
Goodbye Until Tomorrow (Sherie Rene Scott, The Last 5 Years)
Ooh! My Feet! (Susan Johnson, The Most Happy Fella)
Ooh, Do You Love You! (Linda Lavin, It's A Bird, It's A Plane, It's Superman)
Ah! Paris (Liliane Montevecchi, Follies)
Ah! Sweet Mystery Of Life/I'm Falling In Love With Someone (Marc Kudisch,
Angela Christian, Thoroughly Modern Millie)
Pierre (Josh Groban, Natasha, Pierre And The Great Comet Of 1812)
The Private And Intimate Life Of The House (Gelsey Bell, Nicholas
Belton, Natasha, Pierre And The Great Comet Of 1812)
Natasha & Anatole ( Denee Benton, Lucas Steele, Natasha, Pierre
And The Great Comet Of 1812)
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