Patty & Emily are recording on Beth Leavel’s birthday! They discuss the shows they’ve seen: Songbird, King Charles III, and the book launch for Seth Rudetsky’s “Broadway Diaries Vol. 2.” They also discuss Cher’s bio musical, cast recordings, and the disappointing fact that the Ragtime tour is non-Eq. And a listener’s dreamcast is discussed!
I enjoyed almost all of the music in Songbird. I saw it in early in previews so I don’t know how much things have changed but I feel like there had to be a better way of adapting Chekhov that could have made me see those characters as real people and care about their stories. Or at least not find them so annoying. All the young people, minus Kacie Sheik who didn’t have much to do besides sing really well, were very annoying. Ephie Aardema was painful to watch. Kate Baldwin was incredible but even her part was very underwritten. I thought the diegetic music seemed forced at some points.
I want an album but I don’t think I would really want to see it again unless I heard that they’d made significant improvements. I would see it in concert if I didn’t have to sit through any of the book.