Well, dear readers, I’m not quite sure how it happened, but this is the final day of September. This month has flown by, like a gazelle wearing a girdle. Does anyone still wear a girdle? When I was five or six, I enjoyed wearing my mother’s girdle because I found it a most amusing contraption. In any case, tomorrow will be a brand new month called October and it is my fervent hope and prayer that October will be a month filled with health, wealth, happiness, creativity, and all things bright and beautiful.
Our first Kritzerland rehearsal was fun, if a little rough, but we got everything smoothed out and that’s what first rehearsals are for. The songs are really fun, with some stuff we’ve done before and some stuff that’s new, which is what I wanted our 50th show to be. First to arrive was Brent Schindele – he’s new to the Kritzerland family and I liked him very much. He ran his three songs – How Can I Change My Luck, an Irving Berlin rarity I found for Unsung Irving Berlin, Born Too Late, a song I wrote for What If and that’s on the second Guy Haines album, and finally Mama, a Rainbow from Minnie’s Boys, on which Brent not only sings but plays the piano, since he’s an excellent pianist. After him, Heather Lee arrived. First she ran Diary of a Homecoming Queen. She’d recommended it and I was okay, but I listened to it on the cast album and really didn’t care for it, but had an open mind to see what she was going to do with it. But even halfway through we both knew it just wasn’t going to work for this show and I suggested she reprise her show-stopping version of I’ve Gotta Crow, which we did in our female lyricist show. She was very happy with that idea. Then she ran the Adryan Russ/Doug Haverty song from Inside Out called I Don’t Say Anything. Sandy Bainum arrived and they did their duet, The Grass Is Always Greener from Woman of the Year. They have to get their harmonies down, but it’s already very funny and will only get funnier as they run it.
Then Sandy ran her two solos, both from our new album – The Lights and the Smiles from Nudie Musical and Two Roads, my song with Richard M. Sherman. Then our young ladies arrived – Jenna Lea Rosen and Sami and Sarah Staitman. First we ran Jenna’s solos – The Wizard and I and the title song from Carrie, both perfect for her. Then we ran Sami’s two solos, Lion Tamer and Annie, my song from What If. Then Sarah sang her solo, the Joe Raposo song Blue, which I absolutely adore. Finally, John Sloman came and ran his three songs – the first we’ve done before, a put-together of How Can You Describe a Face and Comes Once in a Lifetime both from Subways Are for Sleeping. Then he did his second song, Suddenly There’s You a cut song from Ballroom, which I recorded on the fourth Lost in Boston album. Then he ran his third song, Don’t Look Now from Sweet Smell of Success – he just played the lead in the Musical Theatre Guild staged reading of it. Then Guy Haines never showed up so I ran through his little number, the gorgeous Staying Young from Take Me Along. Still to come on Thursday, Andrea Marcovicci having her way with Frank Loesser’s wacky Hamlet. Musical director Tom Griep is with us on this show.
Prior to that, I’d gotten a little over eight hours of sleep. I answered e-mails and we shipped And the World Goes Round CDs. Then I went and had some bacon and eggs, after which I came right back home. I listened to the Sandy album in two more configurations – that made about six or seven so far. There was still something that didn’t feel quite right so I made yet another two orders to listen to after rehearsal.
After rehearsal, I went to Gelson’s and got a couple of small snacks for the evening, then came back home. I spent the rest of the evening listening to the two new Sandy orders – I think the last one is probably going to be it. I’ll give it another spin today and see if I still feel it’s the best of them.
Today, I have a lunch meeting at eleven-thirty, then I’ll hopefully pick up some packages, do some banking, and then in the early evening we’ll be taping our radio show.
Tomorrow I have a lunch and then errands and whatnot, Thursday is our second Kritzerland rehearsal, Friday I may or may not have a lunch and I may or may not have a dinner, Saturday is our stumble-through and I’m sure some of us will go out to eat, and then Sunday is sound check and show.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, have a lunch meeting, hopefully pick up packages, do some banking, then tape a radio show. Today’s topic of discussion: We had favorite movie year the other day – today let’s make it favorite year for musicals. Mine is probably 1964, the year of Hello, Dolly! Funny Girl and Fiddler on the Roof, not to mention High Spirits, Bajour, I Had a Ball and others. Your turn. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, hoping I’ve finally got the Sandy sequencing right.