I succeeded in getting Pandora to play some Kayak. I had heard previously that their lead writer Ton Scherpenzeel had done some work writing music for Dutch theater so it shouldn’t have been a surprise that the first track I heard from them on this particular quest, Larger than Life, sounded very much like a showtune. From 2014, long after their heyday, I liked it more than I thought I would. After getting a classic from 1975’s Royal bed bouncer, “If This Is Your Welcome,” and another decent latter day track, “Anywhere But Here,” I set my Pandora sights on Head East.
Broadway became a theme for this week of musical discovery as my wife and I ended up in New York city, at our daughter’s behest, to see Hadestown (Wednesday, 2/28/24 matinee). Of special interest to me was watching Ani DiFranco take on the role of Persephone. I believe I was biased by a memory of an exciting performance of hers at the Philadelphia Folk Fest (maybe 2003? Ani DiFranco – Shy (2003 Philly Folk Fest)). Initially I wanted more of her crazy energy – it finally kicked in after intermission with her performance of “Our Lady of the Underground.” I thoroughly enjoyed the show – with all of the instrumentalists on stage, it felt very organic.
My Wife and I attended Hamilton the night before which was really an amazing theatrical experience. It was very moving and the cast was very convincing – of special notice was Tamar Greene in the role of George Washington. I would have been satisfied if it were just he and Jennie Harney-Fleming (Angelica Schuyler) performing a show – both standouts in a very strong cast. I’ve included Tamar Greene’s “Soaring” in the Spotify playlist, but it doesn’t fully do justice to his vocal talent. For Jennie Harney-Fleming, I found a track she appeared on with Carvens Lissaint, “Can We Be Free.”
I’ve ended this week’s playlist with Labrador by Aimee Mann which she performed on episode of 363 of the WTF podcast. She has been a favorite artist of mine since her days in Til Tuesday.
Gasparone- Curious about your take on Hamilton. I thought it was remarkable. And after listening to it for several years before seeing it live, I was impressed at how the staging and choreography added to the effect. That’s a brutal second act though. Hope you had tissues handy. We also saw Hadestown last year. Mostly very good show. Loved the NOLA setting. We did not like the young male lead (not the current one) and were not convinced that his ‘song’ and performance was sufficiently powerful to turn the tide. As a sidebar, the former Hades (Patrick Page) is doing a one-man play arguing that Shakespeare created the ‘villain’. Out friend Aaron said it was fabbo. https://allthedevilsplay.com/?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiA_5WvBhBAEiwAZtCU7xHtZsLZNfP0uFWn4w1rfJzVArxPZVxggJD_2cHP0Igtvbn217_mtxoCZdQQAvD_BwE
For me, Hamilton was an emotional experience and Hadestown was an enjoyable performance.
I got chills several times during Hamilton and you are spot on with your note on the staging & choreography – we were actually a little too close to take in the full effect. The joy of being privileged to experience that performance is immeasurable.
I wanted to swing and clap along at many points during Hadestown. We saw the second understudy for Orpheus, Chibueze Ihouma, with whom we were duly impressed (though his falsetto was an issue for one attendee). The height of transcendence in song may not have been reached at that Wednesday matinee either. Hermes, Lillias White, stole the show.