Bill Geist's Zeitgeist

With a Little Help From My Friends

It was a song for Ringo.

Lennon and McCartney owned most of the tracks on Beatles albums. George had his tracks. And, Ringo needed one for Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band...so Paul and John wrote this one as Ringo's turn on the LP.

But, when Joe Cocker made it his, that's when the brilliance of the song came home. Rearranged in a slower meter with different chords, Cocker turned the song into a soul anthem...and the rest is history.

Joe's backing band for the studio version that preceded his famous Woodstock performance included Jimmy Page on guitar, B.J. Wilson on drums and  Madeline Ball on backing vocals. Not bad for a first outing, eh? 

Well, as the new administration's budget marches forward with draconian cuts to Arts programs, Artists For The Arts and Americans for the Arts released a music video to, not just protest but, demonstrate what's at stake.

On, this Music Friday, don't just watch and listen to this sensational rendition. Contact your Federal legislators. Tell them, in no uncertain terms, that cutting arts funding doesn't make America Great Again.

It makes America stupid.

 

And, thanks to my friend George Tzougros of the Wisconsin Arts Board for the catch.

 

 

Vote

It goes without saying...

But, maybe it doesn't...as a young street urchin persuasively sang last night on Colbert.

But not as persuasively as Hamilton's Javier Muñoz.

It's an 11 minute epic...but, if you can only spare a couple, jump to the 6:30 mark.

And, then (if you haven't already) Vote.

Because history has its eyes on you.

Do Designers Actually Test Their Designs?

The number of design fails I see in my travels has gotten to the point that I'm surprised when I don't see one. And, it's not just in my travels.

Our community's newest movie theatre boasts big, cushy lounge chairs (the DreamLounger™ eXperience, no less) in which the audience can push back, kick their legs up (click image to enlarge) and enjoy the movie as they might at home.

One slight problem that the designers clearly overlooked: If everyone is in full lounge position and you want to hit the head? There's no room between the footrest and the railing for that to happen unless every single person pulls back from their recline position.

And, in today's self-absorbed world, what are the chances that, if you're in the middle of the row, you'll get everyone to retreat both ways (coming and going).

Yeah, that would be slim and none.

Love the chair...despise the design flaw.

So, we'll not be back.

Sorry, Marcus.

Finding Neverland

That this year's Broadway premier of the musical version of the Johnny Depp-fueled movie "Finding Neverland" didn't receive a single Tony Award nomination is nothing short of a travesty. Especially seeing that the awards show saw fit to feature a number from the production in this year's telecast.

We experienced the musical earlier this week in New York City...and it was every bit as magical as its premise: the story behind how playwright J.M. Barrie concocted the characters and story line for his mesmerizing "Peter Pan."

Michael Morrison ("Glee") was solid as J.M. Barrie. Kelsey Grammer's absence in the role of "Hook" was barely noticed with a stellar rendition by the amazing Terrance Mann, in only his second performance with the company. And, Amy Yakima ("So You Think You Can Dance") simply radiated as the effervescent Pan. The players that make up the ragtag cast set to perform Barrie's grand experiment are often hilarious. And, the choreographry of Mia Michaels was sensational.

If you're in (or are planning to visit) the New York City area over the next few months, treat yourself to a wonderful experience. "Finding Neverland" (like "Notre Dame de Paris") is one of those rare musicals that, I fear, will fall by the wayside when it should have run for years.

Like saying you believe in fairies to save Tink, you need to see this show to prove that this production needs to go on and on.

On this Music Friday, we offer you one of our faves of the night ("What You Mean to Me") as well as a trailer of some of the top scenes, including "Stronger."

I believe.

 

Photo Credit: People

A Sensationally Different Kind of Theatre

Last Spring, we were doing some work in Aurora IL, a community that some might call a western suburb of Chicago, despite it being the second largest city in the State. We went in the night before our presentation, noted that the stunning Paramount Theatre was featuring the classic musical Rent and were lucky enough to score a couple tickets for closing night.

We've both seen Rent a number of times. During the performance, we kept looking at each other, stunned at the calibre of the performance. This cast was so above what we had seen in other iterations that we were shaking our heads in awe.

As the cast came out for their curtain call, several had tears on their cheeks. I remember thinking, "what the hell...they're just going to jump on the bus and take the show to Des Moines. Why the tears?"

Except...this wasn't a traveling company. These performers had been assembled specifically for this show, for this theatre. Closing night was the end of a magnificent coming together of an amazingly creative set of talent.

When Tim Rater took the reigns of The Paramount a few years ago, he could have gone the route of booking traveling shows for his Broadway Series. That would have been easy and expected. Instead, he challenged convention by doing his own shows with the best talent from Chicago...and around the country.

We were so suitable impressed that we couldn't wait to experience his version of Les Miserables...which we did yesterday afternoon.

He and his incredible crew had us the moment we saw the sensationally unique gyrating post-industrial yet oddly 19th Century set (click image to enlarge)...and then thrilled us with actors that could sing instead of singers that tried to act. The Paramount's production of Les Miz is by far our new favorite...and we've collectively seen the show at least 8 times (the movie doesn't count).

The two hour drive from Madison? We'll do it several times for next season as well. If it were a 4 hour trip, we'd think nothing of it. We'd be there.

If you're anywhere near...treat yourself to the most original version of this classic we've ever seen. And, marvel at the artistic risk takers at the simply gorgeous Paramount.

It runs through April. Go.