Glee: Fact or Fiction

I am attributing this blog directly to Sharon Wheatley's brilliant NYC based blog.  Sharon is a Broadway actress who started a popular blog last winter entitled Smash:  Fact or Fiction that went episode by episode explaining what was and wasn't accurate about bringing a show to Broadway.  She blogs a lot about living and raising a family as an actress in NYC. 

I decided as a high school Glee Club director (although I don't think any high school's in Utah have something officially called a "Glee Club".  I call mine MDT- standing for Music, Dance, Theatre) I could comment on the accuracy of Glee (a show I know is meant for entertainment purposes and shouldn't be looked at that closely...but whatever). 
But, since I watch Glee every week- sometimes I love it (the musical numbers mainly- and when it's funny) and sometimes its painful and preachy (especially when they add and drop characters at the drop of a hat) I thought I could comment.
So, since Glee started back up on Sept. 13th, I'll respond to the premiere as a high school musical theatre teacher.
Opening:  In NYC.  Rachel is in a dance class (at a conservatory in NYC).  Her dance teacher is crazy-pants and mean.  I'm going to assume this is both inaccurate and accurate.  I've had crazy pants dance teachers in college- but never one that was blatantly mean just to be mean.  I don't know if I've had one teaching while drunk (I'm assuming no since it was at BYU... but who knows...) but I think at least one student would complain to faculty- even if she can roll around on the floor while singing Jennifer Lopez.
Back in Ohio:  The Glee club is popular at the high school.  They are the coolest team in the school because they won nationals.  I'm going to post this as inaccurate.  I don't think my students are either popular or unpopular- they are normal, good kids.  If we won nationals, it would matter a lot to the kids that performed, but it's not the end all be all.  I think if you give the kids good skills, it definitely helps them with auditions for colleges and shows.
Student Sing-Off to choose the lead of the club-  Not accurate- although it would be awesome if they came to me to tell me they were having one.  All the kids in my MDT class sing 3 solos and the class votes to see who will solo for the show in January.  No sing-offs- esp. accompanied by 42 strings on the stage and very dramatic lighting.  Our lighting board basically blew up during college tour this morning.  We're happy when it turns on let alone wasting it for auditions.
Glee kids hanging out with Jocks at Lunch and making fun of people:  I sure hope that's not accurate (not the sitting with jocks- the making fun of people).  My students all sit with different people- and I hope they don't make fun of anyone- they're usually to busy trying to get homework done for class.  And it's amazing most people eat lunch outside in Ohio.  That does not happen at our school.
Glee Auditions are backed by a full orchestra and an amazing pianist:  Well, I play for their auditions... but no full orchestra.  We also sit closer to the students (because I rarely see mics on Glee- and the backing tracks are loud.  No high school voice could be heard over that music without a mic of some sort).  However, I would do exactly what Will did if a student threw attitude because they got cut off at an audition.  Not cast them (or talk to them right away).
Singing and Dancing during lunch:  Accurate.  Not that good (or choreographed), but the SBO's play loud music that no one can be heard over.  And by dancing, I mean eating.
Students graduating coming back to eat lunch:  Sadly yes.  We call them Superseniors.  I like students coming in to say hi- but I like it usually after school- not in the middle of a class period.
Singing Billy Joel will get you into the club:  Ummm...if you have a voice like Marley did, yes, again and again...but she wouldn't get every solo...

Movie Preview

So the Wednesday before school started I scored 4 free passes from Universal Pictures to see a sneak preview of the film Pitch Perfect opening October 5th.  Free movie?  I'm there.
Turns out, the film was pretty brilliant.  You will like this film if you like any of the following shows (and you will probably like it if you don't watch these shows either)
Glee
Bridesmaids
Best in Show
Bring it On (the original.  Not the many sequels)
Waiting for Guffman
They do their own singing- and it's really funny.   We did not see the final cut (because its still being edited), but, if you trust my opinion in movies (and you should), check this out opening weekend.  (Unless you're at the High School Shakespeare Competition like me).  I'll be seeing it again.

I think you know a movie is funny if you still laugh watching stuff you've already seen.

Newsies Tribute

No matter what your thoughts are on The Addams Famiy Musical (I'm looking at you Jackie), this Newsies tribute from the current touring cast (which we're seeing in Salt Lake City in November) is pretty clever and fun.

NYC 2012 Day #7

So the week has flown by.  We wake up Monday morning and pack up and meet in the lobby to take the subway to 42nd street,  We walk to 10th Ave. to load up on our charter boat tour.
While on the boat, we curved around (getting some interesting information about Hoboken and other buildings on both the NJ and Manhattan sides of the water.

In 2014 we're doing this boat tour on the day of our red eye because you will get great shots of the Statue of Liberty and the Brooklyn Bridge. And then I'll never have to step a foot on Ellis Island again.
Since Renae and Ray had bussed up to Washington DC earlier that day, I was without sunscreen.  Thus, as I left the CircleLine Cruise, I was lobster red. 
Our bus was not taking us to the airport for a while so everyone had some last minute free time and shopping.  We ran over to the Drama Bookstore, the Disney Store, a mini-cupcake store and Broadway stores to get stuff for the girls.
We ate at a gourmet hamburger joint (The Counter- which used to be in SLC.  Until it closed) and then headed back to the hotel.
We loaded up without incident and (unlike the bus ride into the city a week ago), got to JFK just fine.
We ate some good food at the airport (the Jetblue terminal is great) and we loaded up on the airplane (and again, thank you Jetblue) I watched tv all the way home.  Until midnight.
Peace out NYC 2012.  You were fun. 
Out of my personal preference:
Peter and the Starcatchers- hardest I laughed on stage (thank you Christian Borle.  And the mermaid song was pretty great too).
One Man Two Guvs- Outstanding performances (James Corden slapping himself, the whole dinner sequence at the end of Act 1 and every word that came out of Stanley Stubbers mouth).
Evita-  Your set was beautiful and stunning.  I liked your choreography too.
Sister Act-  Carolee Carmelo was fantastic as the Mother Superior.  Good comic timing (and that triple costume quick change on stage is pretty sweet).  Oh- the only sholw with a disco Virgin Mary.
Nice Work If You Can Get It-  Great choreography (and costumes-  that wedding veil was great).  Great comic timing and Matthew Broderick was funny.  Kelli O'Hara has a great voice too...
War Horse-  Just overall mise en scene.  Stunning.
Once-  Beautiful set, direction and stunning stage movement.  Steve Kazee- pretty awesome.
Tribes-  great intimate setting and passionate performances.
Newsies-  Just a fun, Disney show- great dancing and Jeremy Jordan was great.
Oh, also, one day over the week we went and walked the Highline (Saturday morning). It's a cool former elevated train track that is now an outdoor park.  It's very nice. 
 It was awesome and I as I ate an organic blueberry pop, Amanda Cox gave us a botany tour of all the plants.  We even got Ray and Renae to go to!
Everyone, save your pennies now for NYC 2014!

NYC 2012 Day #6

Ahh Sunday.  A day of rest and contemplation.  So while Jackie was in the shower, I booked it on the subway down to Donut Plant to bring back an assortment of donuts (my favorite being the creme brulee one...).  Jackie mocked me for getting a dozen assorted (since her parents had left to go get rush tickets for The Best Man with James Earl Jones and Angela Lansbury) so up we went to the Coxes and Kelly DeHaan- but Kelly was full from eating previously mentioned Crack Pie from Momofuku Milk Bar.  So Jackie and I ate 6 donuts each.  Not really...but they were a great treat for later.
Jackie and I then headed over to the TKTS play line (where we made friends with a family in town for Father's Day from Staten Island.  When he found out we were from Utah, I was fully expecting a Book of Mormon musical question but instead he talked to us about Mitt Romney (he didn't like him).
We got tickets to Tribes a play Off-Broadway (in fact, way down in the village) directed and in the same theatre that we saw Our Town in previously.  The director (David Cromer) does great work and this play was highly recommended.
We went down near the theatre to shop for the girls---and eat lunch at Peanut Butter and Company.  Tribes was fantastic.  It's about a deaf boy whose parent's forced him to read lips and never learn sign language.  He falls in love with a girl who is going deaf and teaches him sign.  There were some great performances and it's in a cool small space.
After that we booked it up to the Nederlander Theatre for Newsies- which starts at a weird time on Sunday's.  We wandered around looking for food- but gave up (but we looked at a cool private dinner going on at Wolfgang Puck's Steakhouse...).
Newsies was fantastic.  Jeremy Jordan was awesome and so was all of the dancing.  We had a talk back afterward (but was sad when our friend from Utah, Thayne Jaspersen, didn't come out afterward- we had done 1776 together at Hale). 
After Newsies it was time for our annual dinner at Max Brenners.  It was delicious (but really dark...like- we had to open our phones to read the menu and see our food).
Only one more day left in the Big Apple.

NYC 2012 Day #5

Saturday morning was early...really early.  You see, Once had just beaten Newsies for Best Musical.  It was the only musical that Jackie really wanted to see...so I had secretly purchased tickets a month earlier to ensure we could get in.  I thought it would also be a show that Jackie's parents would like- and Brent Cox wanted him and Amanda to see it as well. 
Unfortunately, the only way they were getting in (cause the show was sold out) was to get a Same Day Rush Ticket.  Now normal shows that have been open for a while will do a lottery or you can just wander up the day of the show and try to get a ticket.  Not so with Once.  Since it was super popular (and since we had students try it on Wednesday), we learned that we probably needed to get in line at the box office around 5am to ensure tickets (and the rush tickets were only $32).  So, 4:45am the alarm went off (amazingly, Ray was not off eating his morning oatmeal) and me, Brent and some students were off to sit for five hours (box office opening at 10am) to get tickets.
I had a relatively comfy seat with Brent under an awning- and the weather was nice.  We were not 1st or even 2nd in line (there was a group from Boston in town for a bachelorette party right in front of us- but they weren't competition because they wanted matinee tix and we wanted evening). 
Honestly, I don't remember much of the five hours.  I dozed, hallucinated, chatted, and had my bottom fall completely asleep.  Jackie came by around 9am with delicious croissants from Petrossan Bakery that were amazing- and at 10am, I walked up and bough Ray and Renae a Father's Day gift of two tix to Once for that night.  Oh, and I sat it something disgusting on the concrete.  Brent told me to not wear them again on the trip.  Jackie looked and almost vomited.  I don't know what I sat in but it was disgusting.
I have no recollection of what we did the rest of the morning (I napped...I think...) and we met up with everyone in the lobby of the hotel at 1:00pm to head up to Lincoln Center for Warhorse.
I had seen this show a year before seated in the 2nd Row.  Watching it again from the back row (a better place for this show) I was completely taken in by the beautiful staging (the Beaumont has a huge stage- and is stunning for this show).  Although both Jackie and I were sad that the singer was a guy this time instead of a girl, it was just as beautiful and powerful as ever--and I mean it because Kelly DeHaan was weeping next to me like a child at the end of the show.
That night was Once.  We were so sad that the lead girl was understudied (I normally don't mind, but we REALLY wanted to see her) but Steve Kazee deserved his Tony Award for Best Actor.  He was fantastic (as was the set and ensemble) and it s sweet, sweet story with beautiful music.  We thought there were mic issues with the Girl character (and I would want to see it again with the full cast), but overall, it was great (and I hope it was worth the 5 hours sleep that was given up for Ray and Renae....). 

NYC 2012 Day #4

Charging ahead to Friday, we awoke to the dulcet sounds of Justin Bieber shutting down midtown Manhattan with a performance on the Today show.  Jackie being a fan insisted on waking up early to get within 5 blocks (not joking there- he shut down five blocks for his concert) of the Biebs.  Not. 
Instead, we opted to sleep in a bit and then get everyone over (after minor subway waiting- we were on the wrong platform- thank you kind woman that told us to walk around after waiting for 20 min...) to the Upper East Side to go to the Metropolitan Museum with our guided docent tour (Jim Spann!  The best- not kidding- the best).

Cloud City on the roof of the museum.  Only 12 people at a time allowed in.

After some great time in the museum (and me and Renae being brave and walking through the really cool roof-top sculpture that was made of plexiglass and mirrors- and took you 40 feet on top of the Met), we took a big chunk of the group through Central Park (with the usual stops- Bethesda Fountain, Strawberry Fields) and then it was the Clin Eaton eating tour of the Upper West Side.
We began with Grey's Papaya, followed by Levain Bakery (where we ran into Utah friend Rachel who was in 1776 with me and is now auditioning in NYC for roles).  For those who were extra adventurous (not Jackie), we headed over to Grom for some gelato (or in my case, a refreshing granita) and then, miracle of miracles, Amanda Cox found Beard Papa's- a famous cream puff restaurant and of course we had to fill up.

After that, for those that were more daring, (the Coxes, Kelly DeHaan and Jackie) it was off to Pomme Frites where we had fries with lots of good dips- and then almost watched Kelly vomit into the street.  We figured after that it was time for a foot rub so we zipped around the corner to a foot rub place that Jackie and I discovered in 2011.  The guy was a bit overwhelmed when 5 people all needing 50 minute footrubs walked in, but after a quick phone call, we were all having our calves washed (Amanda, Jackie and Kelly in the back room, Brent and I on the sofa in the front of the store).  I was complemented many times on my feet (she kept slapping them saying "so nice") and we felt great after that.
After a delicious dinner at Eatery (with the Coxes and Renae- I don't know where Jackie's dad was), it was off to Nice Work If You Can Get It. 

Now Matthew Broderick didn't get the best reviews, but I found him hilarious (along with the rest of the cast).  The story was fun and we saw the 2 Tony winners for Best Supporting actor and actress.  Plus, Kelli O'Hara and Matthew Broderick were super nice to my students and even posed for pictures with them. 
Jackie had a headache and went and fell asleep while some of us went to a diner on 9th.  We should have gone back and slept because the food was gross and the service was worse.  I should have slept because Saturday was going to be an early morning for Ray's B-day and Father's Day- it was an early morning to get Once rush tix...