Well, dear readers, this is it – this, in case you weren’t aware, is the final day of 2013. There are no more days in 2013. After this, 2013 is kaput, whether you like it or not. Don’t even think about 2013 because after today it’s a thing of the past. Yes, tomorrow is not only a new month, namely January, but a New Year, namely 2014. And may I just say that it is my fervent hope and prayer that both January and the entirety of 2014 will be a month and year filled with health, wealth, happiness, creativity, and all things bright and beautiful. And so, on this final day of 2013 let us give thanks for all the bountiful blessings we’ve had during the year, and in my case, they have been many and beautiful indeed, and let us let go of whatever petty annoyances have bothered us, for they are not worth one iota of letting that negativity into our lives. And for any truly bad stuff that’s gone on, let’s face the music and dance, face obstacles with a positive force and pick yourself up, dust yourself off and start all over again. Let’s do everything in our collective power to make 2014 an amazing year. So, farewell 2013, hello 2014!
Yesterday was a very long day, but a very entertaining one. I was up at nine and ready to rehearse at ten-thirty, when our first two performers arrived, our two young men, Carter Thomas, age 13, and Quintan Craig, who I think is 17. We began with Carter, who ran his first number, a put-together of Wilkommen and Shy – he’s really cute and a ton of fun. We found the keys that worked best for him and now he just has to get solid with the spoken parts of Wilkommen, but he’s quite adorable and has great energy. Then he and Quintan ran their duet, Agony. I thought it would be fun to have them do it and so it is. The song sits well in Quintan’s voice, but very low in Carter’s and there’s something very amusing about that contrast. Then Carter left and Quintan ran his two solos, All I Need is the Girl, which he not only sings well, but taps in amazingly well. We got all the tempos and breaks worked out and it’s going to be grand. Then he sang Santa Fe from Newsies. I’d been sent the music from the stage version, but I must say I really didn’t like the lyric changes, so we’re doing the film version, which I DO like. Quintan sings it really well and it’s quite touching – one of my favorite Alan Menken tunes. Then Jenna Lea Rosen, aged 15, Sami Staitman, aged 13 (about to be 14) and Sarah Staitman (turned 16 yesterday) arrived. Sami was up first and did Annie, the song I wrote for What If, and she really does a bang-up jog of it – it’s a very long song and you have to be a really good storyteller to sustain it, and Sami’s right there the entire way. A few lyric fumfers, but she’ll have those fixed by Thursday’s rehearsal. Then she ran the number she does in the Newley/Bricusse revue, Once Upon a Bedtime and This Dream. Then Sarah did her solo, Children Will Listen, which she does very well. We talked about the intention of the lyrics and how to give it an ebb and flow, and it’s just such a great song and more so when done by a young person. Then the Jenna joined in and the three of them did Matchmaker, Matchmaker – they did that number a year ago in our Bock and Harnick show and were great, and they’re even better now. Then Jenna ran her two solos, Disneyland, which she does wonderfully, and Gimme, Gimme which she slams home. I gave her a little bit of staging for the latter.
Then they all left and our final girls came: Hadley Miller, aged 9, Brennley Brown, aged, I think, 12, Paige Befeler, aged 13, and Oliviana Marie, aged 10 or 11, can’t remember. Hadley is doing my arrangement of I Won’t Grow Up from our Peter Pan album – she was just in the show with Cathy Rigby, so it’s really fun for her and she’s cute as a button and does it great. Paige’s solo is Anyone Can Whistle. This is Paige’s second Kritzerland show, but her first one was two-and-a-half years ago, a show that was also Jenna’s first show for us. Paige is Kim Huber’s daughter, a beautiful thirteen-year-old. She’s singing Anyone Can Whistle and she’s doing it simply and heartfelt and boy is it a beauty. Then Olivia did her number, At the Codfish Ball – we had a bit of stuff to work out, as she’s tapping, too, but we got it all done, I gave her some notes, and she’ll be great. I know you dear readers will appreciate all the fish jokes we inserted – turning to her father, Tom Griep, our musical director, she says, “Play it again, Salmon.” After her tapping, she says, “All this tapping is giving me a haddock.” And then her dad plays some sour chords on the piano and she says, “Someone call a piano tuna.” The latter joke was courtesy of mom, Evelyn Halus. Then it was Brennley’s two solos, Part Of Your World and a put-together of Reflection (from Mulan) and The Girl I Mean to Be (from The Secret Garden) – she, like Paige, is so real and simple and honest – just a terrific singer and actress and a pleasure to hear and work with.
Then Kay Cole arrived and spent ninety minutes choreographing the four girls in You’re Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile. There are nods to the original choreography, but also Kay’s own stuff and it’s just way too much fun. Sharon McNight will be with us on Thursday – she’s doing – what else – Little Girls from Annie. I think it’s going to be a really fun show. Oh, yeah, and I ran the number I’m doing – something I’ve been doing since I was about seven years old – The Maladjusted Jester from The Court Jester.
After we finished, the girls and their folks and I went to Jerry’s Deli – I hadn’t eaten all day and I was starving. I had a cup of chili and a ham and Swiss on rye and wolfed it all down. Lots of laughs and a good time was had by all, and I also made the decision to have the four girls do You’re Never Fully Dressed in the benefit in January, so that will be fun.
After that, I picked up some packages, then came home. Nick Redman came to visit and we watched a bit of the check discs of two new Twilight Time releases, Zulu and Khartoum. Both look very good. There is a quite good UK all-region Zulu that’s been available for several years, and the color on that is, for me, better than the Twilight Time, in terms of accuracy – the detail on both transfers is very close, but where the Twilight Time becomes a must-have is the sound. The sound on the UK disc is horrible – mono trying to sound like faux stereo with lots of reverb, whereas the Twilight Time is true stereo and it sounds great, especially the John Barry score, which is in true stereo as well. Khartoum looks fine and any epic is always welcome on Blu-ray – and the Frank Cordell score sounds really good.
After that, I decided to check out the new US release of The Big Gundown, a spaghetti western starring Lee Van Cleef. I’d gotten the German Blu-ray from last year and thought it was pretty good. The US version was getting raves, but no one I asked could seem to tell me if it was just the same transfer as the German. Well, at least the US cut of the film isn’t – it’s a 1000 times better than the German transfer (which is the longer version of the film – that’s also included on this US Blu and perhaps that’s the same transfer as the German one) – the color is fantastic as is the clarity, with the exception of three brief added scenes, which are from lesser-quality elements. I was so engrossed by the film and how great it looked that I watched the first seventy minutes of it.
Today, I shall hopefully arise after a good night’s beauty sleep, after which I have a brief work session at noon for the benefit – that should only take thirty minutes or so. Then I’ll eat something light but fun, hopefully pick up packages, maybe jog, and then settle in for our fabulously fabulous annual New Year’s Rockin’ Eve party – our balls will drop at both East and West Coast midnights, I’ll do my usual forty-minute contemplation before the New Year rings in, and then I’ll have my annual one sip of champagne at midnight. I look forward to ringing in the New Year with all of you wonderful dear readers out there in the dark.
Tomorrow, as soon as I arise I will begin writing what will hopefully be my new novel. That is always exciting, scary, daunting, but rewarding and I cannot wait to begin this new adventure down a completely new road, writing-wise. I was thinking about having some people over later in the afternoon, because Barry Pearl, who normally has a New Year’s Day party, isn’t doing it this year. But I haven’t really invited anyone, so I don’t think it will happen – but, we’ll see.
Thursday, writing continues, but we have another long day’s rehearsal and then we’ll go have a bite to eat afterwards. Friday I think we have some rehearsals for the benefit. Saturday is our stumble-through, then Sunday is our sound check and show. The following week is all benefit rehearsals and stuff, writing the book, and also writing the patter for the benefit, getting the final show order and all that entails. We also have a brush-up rehearsal and then we begin performances of the revue. So, I’ve got an incredibly busy two weeks coming up, plus planning the February Kritzerland show.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, have a brief work session, eat, hopefully pick up packages, relax, and then ring in the New Year right here at haineshisway.com. Today’s topic of discussion: What was your most memorable New Year’s Eve? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, after which we shall bid a fond farewell to 2013 and a great big, beautiful hello to 2014.