Random Collected Videos

Not wanting to spend lots of time blogging tonight, but wanted to share a few videos.... 

So I heard this old song for the first time a few weeks ago and fell in love with it.  It's such a sweet, sweet love song. I know it's bluegrass and some people aren't crazy for that, but I think it's absolutely beautiful.


 "I Heard the Bluebirds Sing," by the Browns



This video is ADORABLE. (Thanks, Will!)


So freaking cute.


Speaking of thanks to Will, he's on a roll as he also shared this amazing find tonight....



The 1967 televised Tony's. The first televised Tony Awards.

I haven't watched it yet, I want to be able to sit down and devote time to it. But look at those names. Gower Champion. Zero Mostel. Carol Burnett. David Merrick.

This is AWESOME.

Sunday in the Park with Steam Powered Giraffe.

(or, as subtitled: You had me at 'la da da da da da.....')

It was a really good weekend for music. In all honesty, I sat around and listened to music all weekend. That's what I did. (Okay, I did do a few other things as well, but I was mostly paying attention to the music I was listening to while I was accomplishing them.) While within this past year I've fallen in love with House of Heroes & The Megas (who are both still awesome) other than that it's felt like a really long time since I've found fresh music that I really latch onto. 

Over the weekend I discovered my old recording of Sunday in the Park with George that I have (rather ashamedly) never listened to and instantly fell in love with it. Children & Art? One of the most gorgeous songs I've ever heard. I actually sat down and just listened to it when it came on. And then replayed it. And then played no music after it for awhile because nothing could have come after it. (You're going to go listen to that song now and probably not have the same reaction. Maybe I was just in the perfect mindset for it at the the right moment and maybe that's why it was so overwhelming, but it was incredibly lovely. Or maybe it's because nothing good is coming out on Broadway recently and I'm starving for it.)
And Finishing the Hat? Beautiful. Wow. I was reminded why I was so entranced at Dave's place the one time I watched the DVD. The musical is just a gorgeous piece of art in and of itself. I now have two shows on my "Shows-I'd-Like-To-Dramaturg-Just-For-Kicks" list. (Ragtime, of course, being the other.)
Seriously, I've got to listen to more Sondheim.
Now I wouldn't argue that it's a perfect show or necessarily recommend it to everyone - it's certainly slower at times and based more on character development than plot, and the music is minimalistic - so it really depends on what you're looking for. I haven't actually researched if this is true or not, but I read where: "Just as Seurat used only eleven colors, orchestrator Jonathan Tunickonly used eleven instruments in the pit...." and I've got to admit, that's pretty awesome.

Anyway, I was swooning over my good musical fortune when suddenly I saw this:
Les Mis released five new clips from the upcoming movie.  

"....AND LES MIS RELEASED FIVE NEW CLIPS?"
I have watched them over. And over. And over. And...over....  (Hey, autoplay is on. I can't mess with that.) Oh, Eddie Redmayne.... Oh, Samantha Barks.... I love you both.
I could give you my opinions of every clip, but that really seems unfair to shove my thoughts down your thought before you've seen them. (Even tho I usually do that anyway. :) ) So hey, if you watch them I'd love to know what you think first!

And then just when I was completely content surrounding myself with my musical happiness, I came across these guys:


(Man, that keyboardist is awesome.)

Meet Steam Powered Giraffe.

I had actually heard of them a few months ago via EpBot, but I think I ignored them because I was afraid they were going to be steampunk gimmicky and never looked into them. I think steampunk's really fun, but...in music? I figured it was just guys dressing up as robots and performing music and doing it....badly. Eh.

I was so wrong.
When EpBot posted about them again I decided to give them a chance. It took about three videos to really get a solid grasp on how good they were, but now I'm sold.

I love these guys. Their commitment to character through their movement and voice work is perfection and their music is really fun and so well done. And somehow at the same time they're also very silly and I think that's wonderful (see Captain Albert Alexander.) And they're completely family friendly!

This is a favorite of mine. Totally did not expect that music style to kick in by the title Automatonic Electronic Harmonics. :)


Actually, the first video I watched was Honeybee:



Which was almost a mistake (and why I didn't start off with it.) It starts off so slow that I almost turned it off within the first minute. But now it's one of my favorites. The harmonies kicked in and....seriously.
 The three characters involved are The Spine (silver makeup), Rabbit (glasses on hat) & The Jon (suspender man), although Jon has now been replaced by Hatchworth (not yet featured in their videos.) On their website they include full biographies for each characters as well as their background for their existing world.

"Hello, goodbye, twas nice to know you, how I find myself without you, that I'll never know...."

While they won't be everyone's cup of tea, I think they're absolutely wonderful showmen and musicians. I'm super excited to see what they do next. (And in the meantime, I'll keep replaying their videos on youtube....)

And that, my friends, was my very wonderful, very musical weekend.

Promise me you won't do anything crazy.

"....I promise you I won't do anything, baby."

For awhile now I've been looking for a (new to me) band that had a great sound, had a lot of drive to it, was lots of fun to listen to while still maintaining some meat to it and be musically interesting. Since that's a pretty tall order, I haven't had too much luck finding one that just hit the spot in a couple years now. Really, FIF was pretty perfect. And while they are back to making music again it's still not going to be out for awhile plus I still wanted something fresh and new.

I had actually heard about House of Heroes for several years now and had noticed that the only things I heard were incredibly positive. Buuut I was stupid and assumed no band could really be that good and never paid attention. Then Reese mentioned how good they were which piqued my interest again and suddenly Will is sending me "If" and "Baby's A Red" to listen to.






They were stuck in my head for days.


Not only are they just incredibly catchy, but I loved their lyrics and the funky beats they pulled in.

Then there was "Code Name: Raven" which is still one of my favorites for the way they managed to make it sound so epic and work out that great bridge section. (I'm a sucker for epic. 80's rock ballads for the win.)






And it continued their World War II theme on the album "The End is Not the End" which was brilliant. (I'm also a sucker for themed albums. Musicals for the win.)


But I have this really bad habit of not listening to other songs by bands I like until I get bored with the ones I've latched onto. When I first got Phantom of the Opera in high school I listened to the first act for months and one day suddenly realized I had never listened to the second.

I had no idea how it ended.

Then I listened to the second act for months before remembering how awesome the first was. And finally I put the two together.

So finally tonight I started playing around listening to other House of Heroes songs. I re-listened to "In the Valley of the Dying Sun" which is beautiful, was fascinated by the opening of "Independence Day for a Petty Thief," bounced around to "Love is For the Middle Class" and then found.... "God Save the Foolish Kings."





I'm not sure why I really attached to this song tonight, but it really sold me out on House of Heroes. It's just so FUN. I really love the second verse where they launch back into "Midnight at school, behind the bleachers..." with that great use of claps & background vocals.

Again, epic sounding. Lots of drive. 


Maybe I've finally found that band to fill in that void. 

Why yes, I do think I need to pick up these albums....


"God save us, the foolish kings...."

Hills, that is. Swimming pools, movie stars.

Today, the bluegrass world lost a great legend. Earl Scruggs, banjo extraordinaire.  

Truthfully, I didn't realize quite the extent that Scruggs had had on the country music world until I listened to the memoriums tonight. I always knew he was very, very good and a living legend, but I didn't quite put it together that he really revolutionized the way the banjo was played. Up until Scruggs the banjo was used mostly as a prop for comedy and Scruggs actually brought respect to the instrument. That lack of knowledge immediately shows that I don't listen to enough bluegrass music on my own, but tonight I pulled it out in honor of Scruggs.

(Although I LOVE listening to fast banjo music while driving. It makes me feel like I'm flying. FLYING.)

If you haven't heard of Scruggs on his own, then you've probably heard of him in conjunction with his partner Flatt. In further reading that I did, Flatt & Scruggs eventually parted ways due to an argument over whether they should stay traditional or whether they should experiment with their sound. Scruggs was the one wanting to break ground and push himself. In the articles I read, he said he didn't feel like as satisfied when he only played bluegrass even though he really enjoyed it. He wanted to keep trying new things. I really liked that.
 I'm not always a big of country music (at least not songs like "American Farmer" which is so repetitive it makes me insane. *shudder*) but for some reason bluegrass seems like a class on its own. It's really because of my grandpa that I enjoy it as much as I do. Over the years he's really shown me how incredibly talented bluegrass musicians are and what they can do (and let's face it. those instruments sound awesome.) And we do sit around and pick on mandolins from time to time - well, I plunk around and pray one day I can learn A chord and he really lays out this awesome picking. But we do it together. :)
One day I should find edit the video of his playing and post it. You would enjoy that.

Anyway.

If you think you've never heard Scruggs, you probably have. Ever heard The Beverly Hillbillies theme song, "The Ballad of Jed Clampett"? Then you have. :)

Even if you're not into bluegrass music, this video is really a must-see. This is some of the talent in that genre at its highest, even if you only give it two minutes instead of the full four. And this is truly his classic: "Foggy Mountain Breakdown."



And if you are into bluegrass, it's definitely worth watching. Earl Scruggs, Marty Stuart, Steve Martin? Oh yes.

Schmaltz Never Dies: The Phantom Sequel Review (Edited)

EDITED: "Oh my gosh, you're adding MORE WORDS?"
I am.
I want to establish that this actually isn't the worst thing I've ever seen and reiterate that this review isn't an attempt to just slam the show. If you take it as a stand alone piece without the original then its mediocre, bland and still pretty bad but not to the level it falls in connection with the original story. The whole problem is that it not only ignores the lessons learned at the end of the original, but really seems set out to destroy that they ever happened in the first place. That's what bothers me the most.
No, the worst production I have ever seen actually falls to The 10 Commandments: The Musical which is available on DVD if any of you are as curious as I was. It was filmed in 2006 and stars Val Kilmer. I kid you not.
At least Bad Year for Tomatoes had Piney.

Back to Original Review:

This is a very, very long review. I'm not sure you're actually that interested. Suffice it to say the story was bad, the lyrics were bad, the music was good and the sets were eh except for one amazing Peacock visual. There, I've summed up my entire review in one sentence, but this is Phantom and I like to elaborate. A lot. So here is my very detailed review, if you're so inclined.  


 So....Love Never Dies.


Hm.

If you're unfamiliar with that title then you should know that this is the musical sequel to The Phantom of the Opera. Yes, the musical sequel. Composed by Webber himself. There was a theatrical release of the stage show last Wednesday night in certain AMC theatres and I would've never known about it if Will hadn't asked me one night why I hadn't told him. (I had no idea they were doing this. Why would they be doing this?!) But I was thankful for the opportunity to a) see it and b) not pay as much money as the theatre would require. Since I knew what I was getting into. (Oo, foreshadowing.)

Also, this was my first musical sequel. Yay! Having these opportunities come around so rarely I was thrilled to snatch one up.

First off: technical issues. It didn't help that the show was recorded badly. During the four or five large ensemble numbers, they had failed to record the chorus correctly (at least that's what we were told was wrong.) Therefore you essentially heard the faintest bit of singing of the chorus in the background along with the orchestra and then suddenly out of nowhere you'd hear the lead break in incredibly loudly. It was most amusing in "Bathing Beauty" where Meg takes to yelling out what kind of bathing suit she's wearing. So you'd hear:
"bathing beauty, on the beach, bathing beauty, wave hello---"
"STRIPES!!"
"what a cutie, what a peach, bathing beauty--"
"DOTS!!"

I'm not even joking. I assured Brad he really didn't want to hear that song anyway.
Though, the manager did come out (after Brad went and pointed out the problem) and gave everyone free passes. So they did work to fix it, even though it wasn't really their fault to begin with.

Yes, speaking of my friends, Brad & Regina actually came with me. You know you're loved when you can convince your friends to come see (of all things) Love Never Dies with you when they have - not only zero interest - but interest in the negatives. Thanks for being such good sports, guys. :)

So how does it rate up?
Sigh. Well. I guess it all depends on what context you put it in. Are you really looking at it as a sequel or as its own stand alone piece? Neither is good, but one is slightly better than the other. But since this is set out and marketed as a sequel, that's the context we're going with. (Also, while I can't really attach the two, I still have trouble considering it without the first.)

Look, when they first announced the Phantom sequel for real I laughed hysterically. I've heard for  years that he was working on it, but it seemed so ridiculous - and the book he was originally basing it on was so ridiculous (Phantom of Manhattan, by Fredrick Forsyth) - that this whole thing has felt like a total joke. But I was also upset, because the last thing I wanted them to do was ruin the original. So I saw no good coming out of this.
That being said though, guys - honestly - if they could have pulled this off I would love to be happy for them. If Phantom had been the first show to pull off the musical sequel successfully, I think I would have loved that. So yes, I'm a Phan - and I'm even a Phangirl to a solid extent - but I'm still working to make this is a pretty unbiased review. That's my aim. 

(If you want a track by track review, I recently came across this one at a blog called Musical Cyberspace that's pretty awesome. It refers to the original production. The DVD/Theatrical Release is the new Australian production with a newcomer named Ben Lewis as our Phantom.)

The....er... Better Than Expected?

Look, this show isn't good. But from the original reviews I read that first preview night to what I saw tonight, I can tell you there at least have been some improvements. The biggest one lies with the ending - not that it really changes it that much, I guess - but its something and I won't spoil it.

In the beginning, I remember Webber talking about how few times he wanted to reference the original show musically speaking and I was disappointed in that. When you attempt a musical sequel you can't just abandon the music of the original. I'm kind of biased here, because I LOVE musical references and music attached to characters and plot points, etc. In terms of a musical, it can add so much more depth to the show and not necessarily feel like a "oh, I had to see the first one to get this" moment. So whether they were originally placed there or not, there are a lot of them now and they do add a lot to the show. They're not all great, but the majority of them are, and I was glad to see them there.
Speaking of the music, Webber can still create great melodies (ooh! but he steals! Puccini! blah blah, okay, whatever....). I actually really love the instrumentals of "Beneath the Moonless Sky" but the lyrics, oy. Never mind. We'll get there. For the most part, the music is what it should be when it should be: pretty, lush, or vaudeville.

Thankfully, the Phantom is not completely emo. He does actually threaten to kidnap Gustave (Christine's child) if she doesn't sing. Obviously I'm not promoting kidnapping, but that is something the original Phantom would have done. It's the only moment we really see that menace, that control still there instead of this sobbing teenager. Now - again - this moment should never have to happen because he had redemption and learned the lesson of love at the end of the original GAH this sequel is NOT VALID but hey. It's the only moment in the show where he didn't feel like a complete wimp. I wonder if this part was added in to the new production.
Actually, a few scenes after that he and Christine have this great moment where he's all "no, you go now, I understand" and she's all "No, I'll sing for you anyway" and it's actually kind of sweet and you can see an actual friendship there. And it was great! But then IN THE VERY NEXT SCENE HE'S IN he's betting - yes, betting - Raoul that she'll sing and stay with him instead of leaving with Raoul.

Sheesh.
Do you see? Do you see you can't say anything good about this production without an exception tagged along with it?

And last but certainly not least.... The PEACOCK. During Christine's aria she's dressed in this costume that perfectly compliments this gorgeous peacock background that makes such an incredibly beautiful visual. Granted, you have no idea why she's a giant peacock, because there is absolutely NO CONTEXT for it but it's still really, really pretty and you no longer care by this point. 

The Bad

The scene I was actually looking forward to the most was "The Beauty Underneath" which is when the Phantom takes Gustave down to his....apartment/lair. When the first reviews started coming in preview night I heard over and over again about how this scene is essentially like an acid trip. Singing Medusa headed chandeliers, half human, half ape figures pushing around a tray, etc. (Those are the only two particulars I remember.) Well, they've changed that. Instead you now get about six glass pillars filled with "freak" people (mermaids, long fingernails, etc.) and some very random, weird and very disturbing all skeleton human/horse figure prancing around in the middle of it all. (And I do mean disturbing in a bad, bad way.) 

Also, why at the beginning of the show mention that Christine, Raoul & Gustave have two whole weeks to play in America? Why? That never comes into play again. And I can't believe for a second that these events play out over TWO WEEKS. It feels like three days. Suddenly, it's "tomorrow night" you're singing the aria. 

The lack of spectacle. This is Coney Island. Sure, there are a few pops here and there of the acts and the people, but not really. This show could have been set anywhere. Coney Island has no effect on the story or, apparently, the set. Maybe its just because we're spoiled by the lush sets & costumes of the original Phantom, but except for the Peacock scene, something is distinctly lacking here. Especially with the inspiration they could have pulled from Coney Island during that time period.

The names. Phantasma? Mister Y? Really? You don't have anything more clever? Is that nitpicking? I can't tell anymore.

Couldn't we give Gustave some character? Some more lines besides "It's so beautiful, it's so beautiful, so strange & beautiful" and "Daddy, play with me"? It sure didn't feel like it. And why does he have to be prophetic? Why can't he just be a (fairly) normal kid? Why is he obsessed with the strange and dark at ten years old? Kid, have you even seen strange and dark yet? Considering you're in the care of Raoul & Christine, I doubt it.

It is nice to see Raoul raise the question "Why Does She Love Me?" but its only nice because you've been wondering that same thing for the past hour and half. We have no idea why she loves Raoul anymore. They've thrown his character so far from the direction of his original that he has no redeeming qualities left. He yells at his son. He yells at his wife. He gambles and drinks their entire life savings away. And not once (until the end when its way too late) do we ever see any kind of tenderness towards any of them. Indeed, the choice has been made way too easy for Christine.

Also unfortunate is the trend towards younger Phantoms. I suppose you could blame this towards the recent craze of Ramin Karmiloo, but I really think it started back with the movie. The Phantom really, really needs to be so much older than Christine. That is not played with here at all. Yes, at two points his wig is knocked off and he looks older than her. But most of the time....? He looks 20. And indeed, part of that is because its a theatrical release and not the stage and you're seeing it so up close. But it doesn't help the story at all.

The Ugly (Or: What Did Real Harm to the Production)
(Also, Major Spoilers. Well. Probably Ones You Could Guess Anyway, But Still. Spoilers.)

I knew we were in even deeper trouble when they still listed Fredrick Forsyth's name as a credit across the screen as the beginning. I can only assume for the inspirations from his book. Sigh. 

The LYRICS.
Partially, that's an "in general" statement. I had already warned Regina that the music was beautiful, but all that stopped whenever they opened their mouths and words came out. That still holds true.

But its especially true for the title song which was particularly awful. Look. Any time the Phantom's character writes a song it must be fantastic. It must be the best. That's essential to his character, like his singing. And that worked great in the original - "Point of No Return" was a perfect addition. And then here you have.... "Love Never Dies." Musically speaking, it's not that bad (although I'm already cringing at it on the relisten since I know what's coming.) Lyrically speaking?

Bang my head into a wall. It would be less painful at this point.
I mean, this is what you have to listen to:
"Love won't let you go once you've been possessed.
Love never dies, love never falters,
Once it has spoken, love is yours.
Love never fails, love never alters,
Hearts may get broken, love endures.
Hearts may get broken, love endures."


LOVELOVELOVELOVE. LOVE. TRUELOVE. WE GET IT. LOVE.

The STORY. Not only does no one grow and no one really develops, it is essentially the exact same story & formula of Phantom. Phantom wants to hear Christine sing. Manipulates her into coming. Raoul doesn't like this. Phantom takes a character down to his lair for the "Phantom of the Opera" moment. Phantom's face is revealed to a character. Christine & Phantom have a "Music of the Night" scene. No one knows if Christine will sing! WILL SHE SING?! They even PREPARE THE ORCHESTRA. (You can practically hear it in your head: "Door 1 Secure? Secured. Door 2? Secured!" or in Love  "Is the orchestra ready? Ready? Are the lights ready? Ready!) Except this time - ha! - Raoul DOESN'T want her to sing. There's the twist. Christine sings. They have a chase sequence. The Phantom is emotionally ripped to shreds. The end.

Okay, so there's some fine line differences, but the formula is still pretty much the same.

And so is the story! What, we ultimately come down to "Will she sing?" again!? We even include the bulk of "Twisted Every Way" again?! The Phantom is still fighting with Raoul over who she'll go with? The Phantom is still wrapped up in how he looks? This whole thing feels so old! Didn't we do this already? Didn't we already learn these lessons??

And with the story goes the characters. Phantom is now pining after Christine....again. Except I guess the big twist to this story is that he's more human than mysterious figure which is....lame. Okay, it could be cool, but instead of continuing his character arc from the last show it feels like we've just started all over. Reboot. We didn't like the way the last one ended. We must start over.
Brad mentioned he would like to see Gustave not be the Phantom's kid (but still exist as Raoul's & Christine's) and have the Phantom step in as a Godfather/mentor role to Gustave in a way he never could be with Christine. Thus continuing his growth and paving the way for Christine & Raoul to forgive the Phantom. I thought that was interesting.

But I have never ever gotten behind the idea that the Phantom and Christine have a kid. Ever. Not in any iteration has it ever made sense in my brain and even less so in this one.
In the original London production of Love there is at least a lyric that says "Oh Christine, My Christine, in that time when the world thought me dead/ my Christine, on that night just before you were wed/ ah Christine you came and found where I hid....."

That particular lyric about when they came back together is removed from the Australian production. And I don't think I just missed it because Brad and Regina didn't catch it either, and I was waiting for it.

So. Without that lyric your only option for fitting this story together is to believe it happened during "Music of the Night." Which is ridiculous. Look, I've heard several people comment - years before the sequel - that that song symbolizes that they have had sex. But I've never been able to get behind that. For one, it should've been mentioned somewhere. For another, by the time the Phantom actually gets Christine in his hands he seems so bewildered with what to do with her. There's this control during "Music of the Night," but once she passes out from the mannequin its always played as such a tender scene where he picks her up and places her gently on the bed. And then goes back to composing.
Right? Did I forget something?

Not to mention, in the original Phantom "Final Lair" they have this exchange:
Christine: "Am I now to be prey to your lust for flesh?"
Phantom: "That fate which condemns me to wallow in blood has also denied me the joys of the flesh..."

Obviously nothing has happened yet. Otherwise that conversation is void. 

Relistening to the "Final Lair" now makes my head spin in context of the sequel. Phantom, how did you fall so far?

And Christine - who has just escaped with her life and the life of the one she loves - just....goes back to him? They have a kid?
Raoul becomes a drunkard and gambles away all their money?
I don't know what's going on anymore!

The Phantom and Christine have an entire ten minute segment - two songs long back to back - where they just relay exposition about the past? "Once Upon Another Time" should be cut. No questions. 
(There is way too much reliance on exposition in the entire show. Very little feels natural.)

Also, someone dies. And it feels like one of the longest death scenes in musical theatre history. Not only do they attempt to get up and move, but they have TWO reprises. TWO. I can actually remember listening to the cd and thinking "Sheesh, they haven't died yet?"
I've heard this production referred to as "Paint Never Dries" quite often, but during that last death scene all I could think of was "Schmaltz Never Dies." It popped unbidden to my head. It was not a deliberate "I have to come up with a mean parody!" slam. They just wouldn't DIE.

Oy. The whole ending is just out of nowhere. 

Is some of this plausible? Is it plausible at all? Sure, I guess. I guess I could see Mme. Giry & Meg smuggling the Phantom out of London and working for him. I guess I could see Meg trying to gain his affection....? I guess I could see Raoul becoming jealous of Christine's success and letting it go to his head and affect his choices....? I guess? If all that fell into place this story could happen? Even though it goes against almost all their character types?

Which brings me to this: 

The Final Say:
This is where my major problem with this production comes in:

This production should have never happened.

"Oh, Sherri, you just didn't want a sequel...."
That's true. But mostly, I just didn't want THIS sequel.

The end of the original Phantom leaves our characters forever changed we think. The Phantom - for the first time in his life - has had someone accept him despite his looks, despite what he's done to her and those she loves. Christine understands who he is, where he's coming from and still kisses him. And it obviously deeply affects him - despite his obsession he not only sends her away, but sends Raoul with her, provides the boat and then disappears himself. 
Christine - for the first time ever - has developed her own sense of character. For the very first time, no one tells her what to do here. In fact, Raoul is shocked and repulsed she did. Of her own volition though she makes the choice, one no on else here would make, and kisses him. But it's not out of romantic love. It's because she finally sees the "pitiful creature of darkness, what kind of life have you known? God give me courage to show you you are not alone...."
 The obvious changes in both characters are so beautiful! The Phantom has had someone finally get past his looks, past his deeds. Christine has moved past her sense of uncertainty, fear and naivete. He gives her up. And the kiss is one of the great acting moments in the show for the Phantom. I love to watch how each one plays it.

And then.....nothing changes. We go back to the same story. All of this has been null & void. The Phantom goes back to longing for Christine. He still is wrapped up in his physical appearance. He still wants to hear her sing. Christine is back to being a mousy character. Does what people tell her to. Somewhere in there we're supposed to believe she seeks him out and has his kid in total secrecy. Whatever.

This musical doesn't make sense. When you play it back to back with the original the absolute absurdity of the character arcs really blast through. You lose Christine's purity which makes her whole character fall apart. You lose the Phantoms.....well, entire character.

This musical should've never happened because your characters would have never taken this path to begin with. 

Webber made comments on early in Phantom's history that he never understood why the piece was so successful and that he thought it was a "hokum." Those comments have never rang out so loud as they do here where it is obvious he has no idea why the first one succeeded. 

Overall, it's about what I expected, but its still frustrating to hear the creative team discuss how proud they are of this piece and how great they feel to have it forever sealed on film. I'm not saying there's not potential here for a decent show - because there is if you gut it and reconsider it enough - but it's certainly not there yet.

More Side-by-Side Phantoms: When Sherri meets Owens.

The Ultimate in Side-by-Side Phantoming:



Drool.

That is (left to right) Anthony Warlow, John Owen Jones, Colm Wilkinson &....Peter Joback? (I was immediately disturbed I did not know Peter Joback. I thought -somehow- in my Phantom wanderings I had missed a classic Phantom. Say it ain't so! No, he's actually new this past year to the role and picking up the tour this year in London. Relief.)

Okay, so it gets a little creepy when the five Phantoms are surrounding Christine (Sarah Brightman) and demanding she sing for each of them at the end, but eh.

The man who actually comes out in the Phantom mask halfway through is Ramin Karmiloo, who was playing him that evening. Michael Crawford doesn't sing, although he does show up at the beginning and end of the video.

If nothing else, you should at least flip forward to 9:30 in the video to see John Owen Jones sing the choicest note in "Music Of the Night" absolutely perfect. It's just gorgeous. I'm so torn on whether Jones or Warlow really shines best in this video. They're equally lovely in voice. I've always heard beautiful things about Jones' performance, but this is just total knockout. I actually admitted tonight he may be better than Warlow. (Gasp! That's so hard for me to say!) I can't tell if it's because Owens gets the really stellar lines or what. But either way, hearing them duet a few lines - and seeing Colm Wilkinson back onstage as well - is beautiful. This was a really awesome tribute for the fans. Especially since we have NO OFFICIAL RECORDINGS OF THESE TWO. NONE, WEBBER.  Out of ALL the Phantom recordings that exist - and there are a lot - somehow we have managed to miss two of the greatest and most classic Phantoms in its history. Sigh.

We still demand an Australian Cast Recording.

Finally, I saw Once.

So there's not really a lot to spoil in this movie, but I do give away the ending if you don't want to know. If that's the case, I thought it was a really beautiful, quiet film, the music is gorgeous, but the pace can be sometimes slow so just be aware of that going in. It works well for it, especially in developing their relationship, but yeah... sometimes for the viewer its still slow going. There, now you don't have to read the review I just worked an hour on. ;)




Whaaaaat? You hadn't seen Once yet?

I know, I know.

For those of you who haven't heard of Once, I can assure you that when it came out in 2007 it was HUGE. It was all I heard about. I don't really have a reason for having not seen it until now - it just never happened. But earlier this week I was wandering around our library - to which I have recently reacquainted myself with - and I was surprised to see the title there so I thought Why not? 

Once is a modern-day musical with the songs developing naturally within the storyline (as the two main characters are musicians) and they handle this so well. I can see how people who avoid musicals could fall in love with it since the music intertwines with the plot and characters so perfectly. In fact, the more I go back and think on it and the more I listen to the music afterward (because you will), the lyrics to so many of songs fit all the relationships involved. But not in a way that's generic or bland - the lyrics are just really deft.
Take the lyrics to (certainly) its most popular song "Falling Slowly":

Take this sinking boat & point it home, we've still got time/ raise your hopeful voice, you have a choice/ you've made it known....

This, to me, sums up the entire movie. 

While these lyrics are certainly (and often) attributed to the feelings between the Guy & the Girl - they were written before they met. These lyrics were originally intended for the Guy &, um, Former Girl and they certainly sync with both relationships. It's really beautiful how skillfully (and subtly) the entire movie is handled but how well the lyrics mash up with all three relationships involved. Those lyrics also apply to Girl & Former Guy.
Subtle is a great word here.  Once is a very quiet movie - in tone, in action, in character, in plot etc. With the exception of "Say It To Me Now" (which I loooove) your leads are very quiet characters.

Interesting note: usually whenever stories refuse to give their characters names - especially in movies - it tends to really bother me because it sticks out so much. It always seems obvious, heavy handed, as in 'hey, we're really trying to say something here' and it gets frustrating. Surprisingly here, I didn't even notice until after it was over and I was reading a review that mentioned it. Simply labeled 'Guy' & 'Girl' in this story, it's never over the top, never reaching. It truly manages to come across as a documentary peeking in on these two lives as they happen to intersect at this particular moment in time and it does that dead on.

This movie is just beautiful - not necessarily a lot happens, and it can certainly feel slow - but by the end of it you somehow feel like you just witnessed something precious and tender. Their relationship develops quickly, but doesn't feel forced. (These are fantastic actors for these roles.) The ending really sealed the deal for me, but its probably in how I interpreted it, because you could certainly interpret it in several ways and have evidence to prove your point. For me, this was less about unrequited love and more about healing. I didn't feel like Guy & Girl ended up in loveless relationships, but I guess you never really know that. Partially, I just didn't want them to, but I also feel like the hopeful twinge at the end of the movie implies the idea that they had an incredible week, would forever have an amazing bond, but made their choices elsewise and were still content. I feel like this week was a catharsis for them, finally through each other being able to heal again and move past the hurt and re-evaluate themselves. 
Ultimately, this movie is all about choices. Girl chooses to leave Former Guy. Guy chooses to leave Former Girl. Girl & Guy meet and have to choose how to handle their bond and where it goes from there.

Also, quite frankly, I loved that there were boundaries in this film. There are so many films that explore the sexual nature of relationships, and that's fine, but this one very bluntly said no and that created so much more interest. It also helped to really develop the sweetness & trust between them. It was just really refreshing to actually see them carry that throughout their relationship.
"I'm sorry, I screwed up. I'm lonely, you're gorgeous and I promise it'll never happen again."

Also, I really liked the Broken Hearted Hoover-Fixer Sucker Guy song. :)

Once isn't perfect - again, not a lot really happens. While the songs are gorgeous sometimes they feel a little longer than they should be and that can start to wear on you, especially since there's so little actual action in between. Also, its really hard to understand Girl's Czech, especially at first. Towards the end I started debating if I had actually liked it, but before the credits were rolling I had decided I did. The more I mused on it later the more all of its aspects melded in my mind and its just really well done. I should watch it again because I'd probably love it more knowing more the pace I was getting into.

Just so you know ahead of time, this movie is rated R for really strong language, but that's the only reason. (Also, so that you know in case kiddos are around.)

If you haven't heard "Falling Slowly" you should, so I'm posting it here if you're interested. It did win the Oscar for Best Song, and I'm glad, not only because of how crucial it was to the film but because of gorgeous it is.

Collection of Late Night Thoughts

Sporadic thoughts late at night.

 Do you know I slept over 11 hours last night? It was glorious.

For some reason, I was so ready to be off work this weekend that when I locked the door at 5 I almost did a victory dance. (I withheld until I was safely at home.) I think it was just a long week. Not a bad week. Just one where you're ready to be anywhere but work by the end of it.

We actually had another wedding last weekend that was a setup. If I would ever remember to edit the pictures I might post some of them here, but alas. I do however have a quick shot of the bridal:

Midnight blues & whites.

Holly asked me the other day if I was enjoying the unseasonably warm winter we've had so far. I LOVE it. In fact, we're supposedly going to get up to 70 on Monday. I'm so excited.
It's not that I'm against cold winters entirely - I really do like the change of seasons. Its just that we've had such bitter winters the past two or three years that I'm soaking up whatever warmth comes our way. I would love to scrape by with a mild winter this year.

Seriously, if you haven't listened to the Megas album yet, you're missing out. And once you listen to the original, go listen to this acoustic version. They're both incredible. These guys are awesome. They're on bandcamp, so you can listen to their albums on those links for free.

Okay, so I know I'm really, really late to the game here, but Newsies is awesome.
Wait....we know you've listened to Newsies before now. Right? Right...??
No worries! I have!
This is my history with Newsies: I had never even heard of it until probably high school when my cousin Jeff couldn't believe I had missed it. I was getting into musicals at that time, so I watched it and thought it was good. Really good. But I never really got into it. I never had the nostalgia factor with it and just never really attached to it. However, I've had my iPod on shuffle a lot more than usual recently and "Carrying the Banner" came on. Oh man! What a knockout! So much punch in one song. I've listened to it so many times in the past few days. I definitely plan on rewatching it.

This Wednesday Jeff & I are going to see the Addams Family musical! Yaaay! It's been awhile since I've seen a show.

Sleepy, sleepy.... Good night everyone.

And hope still flies.

Shh.... I'm supposed to be sleeping.

Do you realize how much exciting entertainment news has occurred this week? (Okay, only two pieces, but they're extremely exciting to ME.)

First off, Dark Knight Rises announced a few amazing spoilers that I'm extremely excited about. (They're minor spoilers really, but since I've already spoiled it for one person, you're going to have to click on the link to see if you want to. Ha! :) Also, new photos on that link.) 

That first paragraph? That's what I'm excited about. I think its unexpected and brilliant. (Oh, it makes that trailer make SO much more sense now! How heartbreaking!) I have to admit: I was getting nervous and skeptical seeing some of the recently released pics and confused by the trailer. But this one piece of news has excited me so much I have to say: BRING ON THE GOGGLES, BABY.

Rumor has it an updated trailer will be released with Sherlock Holmes 2.

And then, my favorite dead band Five Iron Frenzy has been making noise for months now that they'll release huge news on the day of their break-up anniversary. And it's just been building and building hype and so tonight they finally announced it: they're not only getting back together, but they've already been working on a new album and have released one of the songs. (Hear it here.)

They were trying to raise $30,000 by January 21st, 2012 since they're doing all the releasing and recording themselves and avoiding a record label.

They reached their goal in 55 minutes total.

And as of now, four hours after the announcement? They're at $66,744.

I'm so excited for this, their new song sounds wonderful and those instruments are oh so crisp.

I'm supposed to sleep tonight, but that would mean I'd have to stop playing the new song and Batman trailer first.

FIF Freak Out!

Just a few more days and all will be revealed....

So much anticipation you're building! Please, FIF, let all this hype lead up to something awesome. I'm trusting you!

And it goes like this.

So this past Thursday night Regina & I trekked up to the OKC Zoo Amphitheater for the Train & Maroon 5 concert. Originally there were five of us, but Brad, Holly & Sam weren't able to make it for varying reasons. :/ Sad day. Although the concert wasn't until 7:00, we headed up there right after I got off work. Since we walked into the venue right on the dot I was really glad we left when we did.

I've only been to three other concerts at the Zoo Amp, but that's enough to know with the thousands of people in the first-come-first-served outdoor venue you're never going to be able to push your way down to the front that late, and especially not be able to see even if you do. I've spent the other three concerts way off to the side or far in the back. But somehow, we made it closer than I've ever been before and had a fantastic viewing point AND managed not to block anyone else's view. Seriously. It was awesome. I was so excited. 

This concert was so FUN. Giddy. Giddy is a good word for it, because Regina & I were pretty ridiculously giddy the whole time. Partially because they were both bands we were really anticipating, but also because of how nice the crowds were and our clear line of sight to the stage. (Okay, okay, and because both bands have front men with these gorgeous tenor voices.)

Regina's Pic of Train.

Train was up first, opening with the the sounds of a train revving up (I was so stupidly happy, I didn't even get that reference until AFTER THEIR SET, ahaha. We'll blame it on the happiness. And not the obliviousness.) and launching into "Parachute." Which I thought was a strange opening song, but I was still glad to hear it. And after that I have no idea of what order the songs came in. They teased with bits and pieces of "Soul Sister" throughout the concert and finally concluded with it. They did come out for a short encore where they finally played "Drops of Jupiter" and finished out with "This Ain't Goodbye."
Also - and this works really well with all their music homages on Francisco - they did a set of cover songs for about twenty minutes as well. That included a mashup between "Heart of Glass" and "Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" that was brilliant and ended with the entirety of "Dream On" that was pretty fantastic.
(Other songs included: Save Me San Francisco, She's On Fire, Meet Virgina(!), Calling All Angels, If It's Love, Words, Marry Me.)

Maroon 5 threw the gates open from the get go opening with none other than "Moves Like Jagger" and that energy maintained itself throughout the rest of the show by the crowd as well as the band. They were great, with such high energy, excellent instrumentals and very entertaining to watch even though I only knew about three songs. They, of course, also came out for an encore and concluded their whole set with (I have to admit) a beautiful rendition of "She Will Be Loved." I guess enough time has passed now that I apparently am no longer sick of the song. It just had waaay too much airtime when it first came out.
(Other songs included: Stutter, Misery, How, Wake Up Call, Hands All Over, Harder to Breathe, She Said Goodbye, Sunday Morning, Without You, Never Gonna Leave This Bed aaand a lot of others.)

And, as Regina pointed out, the bands were great compliments to each other in concert. Train was a much more relaxed band onstage - not necessarily peppy or trying to overblow their songs, but just enjoying being there and focusing on interacting a lot with the crowd. Maroon 5, on the other hand, were the showmen who talked very little, paced their show very well and blasted through a ton of songs and great instrumentals.  So we enjoyed the different tempos of the two together.

Yeah, it was great. Due to city ordinances, the concert had to end by 10:30 and they landed on that number exactly, but each band still had about an hour and fifteen minutes to play. So still lots of time with both. I'm excited to hear Train's in the middle of working on their next album, and I really hope its as strong as the last one was.

Good times, good times.

With drops of jupiter in her hair.

We're currently in the middle of a wedding at work. It's turning out really nice - all burgandys, purples and golds. Very rich, lush colors. And while we've still got a ways to go, we did manage to finish one of the biggest time consuming aspects of it today - the reception pieces which I believe averaged a design time of 40 minutes each.  What should that tell you? That's essentially the same amount of time we average on casket pieces (and sometimes even those are shorter).  Blah. I felt like I was running in slow motion. But at least they're super pretty.
Part of the reason they required so much time is simply some of them came in the wrong color (this happens frequently). Which means we have to spend time playing with the floral paint to determine the right match and then go back through and individually paint each flower.
Part of the other reason is there were so many different flowers going in the piece (roses, thistles, dahlias, freesia, euc, amanrathus, hypericum berries....) and there were often colors for each flower. So not only were we constantly trying to ensure we had all those flowers in, we had to ensure we had each color of each flower in. And roses and thistles were the only ones in one color.

Are you actually interested in that? I never know. Oh well. I am.

In exciting news: this Thursday is the Train/Maroon 5 concert! I've wanted to see Train ever since I first heard "Drops of Jupiter" in 2001. (That was ten years ago?) Subsequently, I fell in love with the earlier released "Meet Virginia" and then the band dropped entirely off the map after their lesser acclaimed Private Nation album. (According to Wikipedia, they released another album in 2006 and then went off the map. Who knew?) I was really sad about this. I felt like they had such great potential and just hadn't quite completely found their sound yet.

Fact: "Drops of Jupiter" has actually never left my Top 5 Favorite Songs list since that first listen. I love the imagery, I love the whimsiness of the lyrics, I love the melody.

Then one day at work the radio was actually on a pop station (a rarity) and this chorus was so incredibly catchy and happy I immediately starting looking up the song.
And, as you may guess, it was "Hey, Soul Sister" by Train.
I do believe I jumped out of the chair and chanted "They're back! They're back!" but its all a blur now.

While I immediately downloaded this incredibly happy song (that I still love two years later), I was still on the fence about whether to download their whole album. I mean - they've had some successes with radio hits, but not necessarily entire albums. But I risked it and Save Me, San Francisco is certainly one of my best purchases. They do an excellent job of carrying touches of a theme throughout the entire listen, but each song stands on its own. They're back with great melodies, fun lyrics and lots of homages other pieces of music that make me smile. True, I skip "Breakfast in Bed" almost every time (what a bizarre song), but that's the only one.

As for Maroon 5, well, I know I've heard their songs but I couldn't tell you what exact ones they were except for their most recent. Nonetheless, they'll probably be great showmen and I'm glad to see them.

Bedtime. Bedtime, bedtime, bedtime.

Theatre News: Movie Musicals

WAIT. WAIT. WAIT.
This post was totally going to be about Les Miserables. And it will be eventually. I promise.

BUT I HAVE BIGGER NEWS.

For its 25th anniversary, Phantom of the Opera is going to be released fully staged on the big screen and DVD with Ramin Karmiloo as the Phantom.

Ramin is only underneath Anthony Warlow in my Phantom dreamworld. Sure, he equally shares that title with Earl Carpenter, but that's it.

I mean, just listen:




 That, my friends, is what the Angel of Music should sound like.

He is also currently playing the Phantom in Love Never Dies and yes, he's entirely too young. But if they're going to go for young anyway, pick this guy.

 Oh wait - a FULLY STAGED version?! With 200 cast & orchestra?!

Seriously, I have no words for this. I've waited for this for SO. LONG. In fact, after the movie was made, I just gave up that a staged version would ever be filmed. I figured that was it.

BWAHAHAHA! SO HAPPY!

But, wait! That's not all!

Have you heard? It's official, via Cameron Mackintosh: Les Miserables will be coming to the big screen December 2012.

Um...didn't you just say that was a rumor, all of two days ago?
Yes.

Look, I've been hearing about a Les Mis movie for over 10 years. And I know there was talk of making one after it became big in the 80's. So I had reached the point where I treated all movie talk of it as rumors. But it's official! So let's take a look.

Apparently its being produced by Working Title, directed by Tom Hooper (King's Speech) and the two leads are already cast: Hugh Jackman as Jean Valjean and Russell Crowe as Javert. Of course, acting wise, that's pretty awesome casting. And it's already well established Jackman can sing.

So the big question is: can Russell Crowe sing this role?

Yes, I know he has a band.You can imagine since I first heard the casting I've pretty much just been going back and forth between finding clips of him singing and reminding myself of Javert's role.

Here's a clip:


Russell Crowe has a solid dusky, low voice. But I'm really concerned about that voice with songs like "Stars" and "Javert's Suicide." You can't talk-sing those songs. You just can't. It doesn't work. Will mentioned tonight that you have to have solid singers for this piece "because, really, nothing about this story ought to be glamorous. the only things that are beautiful are the music and the character journeys." And that's dead on.
However, it sounds like he has a good framework for singing, so there's a good chance they can keep developing that and work with him.

Anyway here's "Stars," for reference:


So lots of excitement tonight and things to keep an eye on! Now here's hoping I can sleep tonight.

Ragtime Review: I never heard no music quite like yours...

Tonight I finally had the opportunity to see Ragtime at the Lyric Theatre.

First Impression: It was deeply satisfying to hear some of my favorite melodies being played out on stage.

General Review:
There are so many pretty moments in this show. From tiny little instrumental details to beautiful backdrops. I would love to see it again, especially later in their run. They seemed to be having sound issues tonight that should work themselves out as the show progresses.

The show has an interesting set up - its narrated throughout by the characters themselves, so there is a lot of breaking the fourth wall going on. But I personally never felt like it detracted from the show - there's so many minor characters and instances where it really helps serve to move along the story.

The one thing I really was unsatisfied with was in the character of Sarah, who is the female counterpart to Coalhouse Walker. Coalhouse is incredibly strong willed and therefore Sarah has to be as well - otherwise there's nothing to push against and the relationship falters and feels onesided. Which means that when she runs to the President it feels like you're watching some ditzy dame screaming mindlessly at the President - not that its a desperate woman with the guts to try to reach him since he's her last chance.
And in this production - for some bizarre reason that I can't quite figure out - Sarah was weepy. And whimpy. In fact, she was sobbing a bit too theatrically during "Your Daddy's Son" which, is an incredibly sad and moving song...but not weepy. You could liken it to "Pity the Child" from Chess - sad song, but with such a strength of anger and hurt and fierceness that you don't cry through it. Then you lose the power behind it. Silly.

The music itself, though, is lovely as ever. I soaked it all in, hearing some of my favorite theatrical songs sung live and finally able to put some of the mysterious voices into context. Listening to "Sarah Brown Eyes" sung by two strong voices was wonderful and I have to admit - it's just one of my favorite songs from musical theatre. That's all there is to it.

"Now she is haunting me, just like a melody, the only song I seem to know is Sarah Brown Eyes...."

(Okay, so that's technically from "His Name is Coalhouse Walker" but its the same melody and I love that line.)

And "Back to Before" was just outstanding. I don't remember who was playing Mother, but wow she really sold that song. It was so well done. And the lead up to it was handled beautifully as well. That was a great scene.

The tough part about this show (at least, in terms of watching it) is obvious - its central themes deal heavily with race in the early 1900's and that can be really rough to watch and to listen to. So should you ever see this show be aware of that going in. While there is some cursing, its mostly some of language used at the time that will make you wince.

Speaking of the time period, I'm really curious about it. I assume most of what occured really fell in that time slot, I just simply haven't done the research on it to confirm it. Did I mention I would love to dramaturg this show? It would be insane and overwhelming, but I suspect oh so rewarding at the same time.

Final Thoughts:
Should you go see this show, I recommend you borrowing the cast recording first. You'll be able to follow it without knowing what's going on, but you'll have a much clearer understanding. There is a ton of ensemble music in the show and like tonight if you have a rough sound system then it's going to be even harder to understand some of the lyrics. Also, there's about four storylines going on throughout and you'll have a much better sense of what's going on. Ragtime won't be for everyone (another reason to check out the cast recording first) but if you're looking for more a classically styled musical with some beautiful melodies and harmonies and lots of opportunities for character building then definitely give it a look. Now that I can finally say I've seen it in production, it remains one of my favorites.

I'm so glad you have a one track mind, like me.

I know I've been missing for a few days, but honestly all I can think of to post about is work. At this point, I can only imagine you're pretty tired of that.

My iTunes situation has been partially (hopefully) solved. The newest version of iTunes is now downloaded onto my computer and loading, which it certainly wasn't before. In the process though I had to remove everything, including my music files.

This is okay though because I have everything backed up and it (hopefully) merely means re-ripping the cd's. I haven't reworked my music collection since college, so this is a good opportunity to clean, sort and refresh. As long as everything will sync back up right, I have no problem with this.

In the meantime, I'm back listening to a lot of Rich Mullins and Train. Rich Mullins, simply because he is refreshing & uplifting to the soul and Train because they're last album Save Me, San Francisco represents everything summer, fun and warm. Therefore it makes me smile.

(Also of note, I apparently can never spell Francisco. Thank you spell check.)

Roadtrip One: Denton, TX

I now have a watch that beeps on the hour. I am not pleased.

My watch glitches. Despite the fact that I've fixed the date several times over the past few months, it now tells me its actually February 25th. And Sunday. Which corresponds with neither today nor this past February 25th. But I can live with that, which is strange, because I never know what the date is on my own. Nonetheless, a watch that beeps on the hour even after I have turned that particular feature off is not my friend. I don't need to know when the hour has changed, watch. I don't need your irritating, infernal beep in the background to remind me.

Anyway.
I've been MIA because I've been solitary roadtripping, which is awesome. Let me see if I can recall it all.

Part One: Denton, TX

Sometime a few months back I commented that watching Elizabethtown made me want to road trip. I would find it for you, but alas my subject titles don't help me.

Two weekends ago, I drove down to Denton for the weekend to visit with Philip & Kelly which was lots of fun & relaxing. We watched pieces of three new-to-me tv series' (Fringe, Better off Ted & the very curious documentary The Universe. Ever watched someone bowl with Jupiter?).

Kelly introduced me to downtown Denton which was a lovely smorgasbord of shops and restaurants, including one that serves homemade ice cream in chilled glasses. It was very delicious. And there was Pialo's Pizza (probably spelled incorrectly, but also incredibly delicious). And Chick Fil A breakfast. And Kelly's chicken parmigiana. And lots of Dr. Pepper. Chiptole. Wow. We ate really well. :) (Oh, and the gingersnaps! And chocolate/ginger candy bar!)

On Saturday Kelly & I visited the Dallas Zoo, which I had never been to before. What a beautiful zoo! The perfect combination of easy to view areas as well as lots of conservation information. They had recently opened a huge new section of the Zoo up (The Giants of the Savanna) filled with six elephants, impala, ostriches & giraffes to run around in (and Vern, the lone zebra!) All the exhibits were full and we managed to see almost all the park in four hours. Nicely done. Always something to look at.
But the real reason you need to go is because for $5 you can feed the giraffes. Okay, so you only get four splices of the lettuce, but it's totally worth it. I have never been that close to these gorgeous creatures. Had the Zoo lady not been constantly on guard and repeating "Reminder: Do not pet the giraffes. Please! Do not pet the giraffes! Do not pet the giraffes!" you could have hugged their sweet necks. That close. They were so beautiful. The whole thing just made me want to go to the Elephant Sanctuary of TN even more.
Mind you, I say all that as if I was the one who paid. I had no cash. Which means Kelly is my hero! Thank you!!

Hm... and we browsed through World Market and an antique...? shop full of everything from perfectly intact letters and magazines from the 40's to vintage signs to pink violins.

Meanwhile, Borders was having a closing sale and while Kelly browsed books I found over 65 hours worth of B-movie sci fi (and Gamera) in a collection. I now own it (as well as Godzilla: Final Wars), so if anyone's interested in Santa Claus Conquers the Martians or The Wild Women of Wongo please let me know.

The whole weekend was lovely. Thanks guys for such a beautiful weekend!

Stay tuned for....HOUSTON!

Also, we're almost to that 100th post. Hm.... I'm open to suggestions. I'm currently feeling a lack of creativity on the matter. Maybe we'll celebrate 101, so that I can keep my roadtrip posts together. And one more day to think about it. Ha.

Even my henchmen think I'm crazy.

Oh wow. I have discovered Jonathan Coulton. This is wonderful.

The ponies. Oh the ponies.

Watch.

Christmas Eve Eve

I love Christmas Eve Eve.

Mostly because my favorite day of the year is Christmas Eve. By Christmas Day it already feels like its over to me - Christmas Eve sums up all the anticipation and joy of the season. It remains the most magical evening of the year. There's always some sort of family get together on Christmas Eve. The kids are bubbling with excitement. Santa will be here soon. All the decorations are finished, all the wrapping, all the buying. You can just sit down - for often the first time that December - and soak it all in.

Plus, Christmas Eve has more of a ring to it. :)

Though I usually quote Snoopy's Christmas during this time of year (#2 on Top 5 Favorite Secular Christmas Carols, only beat out by Carol of the Bells) I've recently gained a new appreciation for an old standard.

Thus, I give you It Came Upon a Midnight Clear performed by Sixpence None the Richer. I should return before Christmas, but in case I don't, know that this is my hope for you: that all of you have a very merry holiday, that your celebrations be filled with loved ones and that the birth and beauty of Christ be fresh your hearts. Love you all.

For lo! the days are hastening on,
By prophets seen of old.
When with the ever-circling years
Shall come the time foretold.
When the new heaven and earth shall own
The Prince of Peace, their King,
And the whole world send back the song
Which now the angels sing.

Help me out, yeah, you know you gotta help me out...

Confession. I started Christmas shopping last Thursday. Started.
...
This is actually very unlike me. Thankfully, the lovely Holly was willing to go along for the ride and we dashed from store to store. I can now safely say a mere few days later that half of my shopping is done. Yes.

But for most of the people I hadn't bought for I had hit a brick wall on ideas. This was...unfortunate. So tonight began Operation: Beg. Text messages went out. Pleading for ideas. And I'm grateful that all of you responded. :) You should have seen the happy dancing occurring with each message. It was gleeful. I'm sorry I had few ideas for you in the first place. I wish I had a good explanation. Next year I'll try to be more on game.

A summation of everything else:
* More poinsettias arrived in the shop today.
* We only have four grave blankets left and I am super pumped about that.
* A guy came in today just to let us know how thankful he was. Last Friday he bought a bouquet to take to his friend and he had never seen her light up like that. Aw.... that makes me smile.
* I'm about 100 or so pages into Game of Thrones.
* I've recently started listening to the Killers. Any suggestions? "Dustland Fairytale" is my favorite. (But "All The Things That I've Done" is on about its 20th play now.)
* I've attended both beautiful Amy's and snazzy Tate's birthday parties. Tate's party was Dr. Seuss. Look at this cutie. (I'm stealing the pic.)


* I listened to Amy's lovely piano recital in a room at the local library I never even knew existed. She did wonderful.
* I heard all about Carson's Santa visit.
* Phyllis, Amy & I went to see Little Women on at the local community theatre Saturday night. I approve of all of their renovations!
* But before that, Amy & I had a deliiicious dinner at Chilis.
* And at some point I went Christmas shopping.

C'mon Marianne... (Edited)

Man. Most of my friends have had a lousy week this week. Crossing my fingers things lift next week. I'm so sorry guys.

Dropping off a few links:
D'aaaaw.... I love these two. Check out this cake by Charm City Cakes.
Wall-e & Eve Cake

Great Big Sea is offering a free Christmas download from their website for the season. :)

An old classic video I felt the need to reshare for amusement:
My Name is Potato

And of course, Batman 3 interviews (spoilers):
Eckhart Interview on DKR Rumors

Mm... I'm not entirely sure why my blog earlier decided to smash two posts together. But I was rushing anyway and had no chance to fix it. Sorry for any confusion. It apparently was against my posting Batman news.