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This Week on Broadway for August 31, 2025: Adam Pascal
01:14:05
Peter Filichia, James Marino, and Michael Portantiere talk with Adam Pascal about the upcoming Feels Like the First Time, A Musical Based on the Songs of Foreigner. Reviews include Pen Pals @ DR2, Marilyn Maye @ Provincetown Town Hall,
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Musical Performer/Singer
Come hear the band. Like she said, come know your heart. Stop celebrating Right this way, your table's waiting. What goodness sitting. I'm open your room. Call me at the Music day. You came to this cabaret? Time for a holiday. Life is a cab. Come to the cab. Come teach the wine.
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James Marino
Hello and welcome to Broadway Radios this week on Broadway for Sunday, August 31, 2025. My name is James Marino, and in the broadcast today we have Peter, Felicia and Michael Portentier. Peter is a playwright, journalist and historian with a number of books. Peter's New Day by Day Desk Calendar, A Show tune for today, 366 songs to brighten the year has been released. Peter also has columns at Masterworks, Broadway, Broadway select in many other places. Hello, Peter.
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Peter Felicia
Hi Peter.
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James Marino
Can you Gimme More?
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Peter Felicia
I can tell you that Gimme More is my show tune for today. You'd have to get it on Britney Spears Blackout because there wasn't a cast album for Once Upon a one more time 2023 musical that used some of the songs that made her famous. But yes, in 2007, Gimme More was released. But also this has been a date that has been important to her in not necessarily a pleasant way. For example, in 2017, she made front page news because during her show in Las Vegas, she dealt with a drunk on stage, and that turned out to be an unpleasant situation. And also she had troubles with her daddy and he demanded $2 million from her on this date in 2021 because she stripped him of his role as her conservator. You know, I wish, I wish I could have found the playbill that I had where I had the information of the little slip that was in Ruthless. When she went on in Ruthless, I didn't see her go on as the lead. She had a, she was covering two roles. But nevertheless, I had that slip in a program but I had just moved and my playbills were all askew and not in alphabetical order. So it broke my heart. I couldn't use her playbill bio. But yes, in 1982, as an 11 year old kid, she was in Ruthless at the players theater on McDougal Street. So. So for the next edition of the calendar, I hope to find that little slip of paper.
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James Marino
Okay. Also with this is Michael Portantier. Michael's a theater reviewer and essayist. He's the founder and editor ofcast album reviews dot com. He's also a theatrical photographer whose photos have appeared in the New York Times and other major publications. You could see his photography work@followspotphoto.com. hello, Michael. Hello, Michael. You are back but not home. You were in P town last week we mentioned and we're going to talk about that a little bit later this morning. But now you're on the Jersey shore. Are you looking for some housewives?
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Michael Portentier
I'm sure there's a lot of them around.
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Peter Felicia
You'll have no problem.
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Musical Performer/Singer
Heard one guitar, just blew him away.
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James Marino
With us this morning we have a very special guest. Adam Pascal is with us. Broadway fans know Adam going back to Rent, then Chicago cabaret, Aida. Oh, Adam, we have to ask you about Aida for a second. Then when there was a Chess Concert, Hair, 24 Hour Plays, Memphis Something Rotten Disaster, and then Pretty Woman the musical. Adam, thanks for getting up on a Sunday morning and chatting with us.
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Adam Pascal
You're welcome. Thank you guys for having me. What are you doing?
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Peter Felicia
We're talking to you.
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Adam Pascal
That's right.
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James Marino
We talk theater in our little thing every Sunday morning at 10am Eastern. So you're always welcome to join us if you're up at this ungodly hour for theater people. It's ungodly. You know, that's right.
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Peter Felicia
Feels like the first time. The Foreigner musical Keep talking. Oh, God.
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Adam Pascal
Well, I mean, I, you know, I, I don't. It, it's such an eventful way that this came about, which is that it almost literally fell into my lap.
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Michael Portentier
Good.
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Adam Pascal
So you know, I grew up on Long island and Long Island University reached out to me that they were starting this, you know, resident sort of like, visiting artists initiative thing where they bring in people each year to work with the theater students and, you know, people of that, you know, have achieved success in the industry. So this is their, this was their first year and they came to me and they said, would you like to do this? And I said, yeah, absolutely. I've done, I've done teaching before. I taught a class at UCLA a few years ago. And so I jumped at the ch. And then almost as an afterthought, they were like, oh, and also we're doing the premiere of this new Foreigner musical, and we'd be curious to know if you'd be interested in directing it. I was like, well, you should have led with that. So, yes, I was very interested. And so that's honestly how it came about. I think that they, they had this project and this opportunity to work with Foreigner to develop this musical, and they thought of me, which I was incredibly honored by, and so I jumped at the chance. And so that's how this all sort of came about.
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Peter Felicia
All right, now, you've worked with the only director who has directed two Pulitzer Prize winning musicals, Rent, of course, being the first, Michael Greif. Did you learn a lot from him? Are you applying anything you learned from him in the way you're directing now?
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Adam Pascal
Well, I would say that, yes, absolutely. And, and, and you know, as somebody who's grown up in this business, I've, I've learned from every director I've ever worked with. And, and whether that's good or bad, you know what I mean? You know, because not to do is as important as, so, so, yes, I would definitely say that I, I learned a lot from Michael. He's a, he's a wonderfully talented director. And, and I, I, I, I take so much of my experience with him with me to, to my own direct experience. And so, yes, yes, he was, you know, and continues to be a mentor in that regard and a great friend.
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Peter Felicia
Lonnie Price, who, I'm sorry, go ahead, go ahead. Lonnie Price, who directs, tells me that so many times when he was an actor, there would be situations where he would realize that the director wasn't doing the right thing. And indeed, he would look at another actor and their eyes would meet and they would let each other know that, oh, we're, we're in trouble here. So have you had that experience as well with some director?
- [08:57]
Adam Pascal
Yes, I have. And, and, you know, look, for various reasons, I will say that Me personally, at, certainly at certain points early in my career, I needed a certain type of director, you know, that was comfortable and experienced with working with inexperienced actors, and I didn't always get that. And, and, and to no fault of the director themselves. You know, different directors have different strengths, you know, and so. So I definitely had it. Had. Have had experiences where, like, this isn't the right fit, you know. All right, so what is your greatest.
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Peter Felicia
Strength as a director, do you feel?
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Adam Pascal
I think I'm really good at working with actors. I think I'm really good at getting a performance out of an actor. You know, I think. I think I know how to talk to actors, and I think I know how to explain what I'm trying to get from them, you know, And. And quite frankly, you know, a lot of actors, there's a lot of, like, you know, sort of traditional no nos, you know, in. In our business and in any business, really. But, like, one of them is, Is. Is, you know, don't. Don't give actors a line reading. Don't, as a director or, you know, don't ever give an actor a line reading because they. They get all upset about it and they go, well, don't tell me how to do it, you know, And I'm always like, no, no, no, give me the line reading and tell me how to do it. Because I don't want to sit here for 10 minutes while you try and, you know, articulate your idea in a way that you think won't offend me.
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Peter Felicia
And I'm like, yeah, guess what's on my mind, Right?
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Adam Pascal
Just. Just show me and then I'll do my version, you know, so that's a very easy way of getting your point across. And so. So, you know, I think. And not that I do that with actors, but I certainly am not averse to doing it, you know, Like, I'm not, you know, I. And every time I've ever done it, it works beautifully. Nobody ever gets offended. No one ever says, don't give me a line reading. They go, oh, of course. Now I get it. And now I'll do my version.
- [11:19]
Peter Felicia
Michael, I'm sorry I interrupted you.
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Michael Portentier
Oh, that's okay. It's interesting that for the Foreigner musical that a director wasn't in place from the beginning, but I guess that, you know, that might happen. I think maybe many of us would agree that for these bio musicals, these jukebox musicals, that a key to the success of them, at least the artistic success is the book. So what can you tell us about that aspect of it.
- [11:45]
Adam Pascal
Well, I can tell you that when the project was brought to me, there was a completely different script than what we're working. Oh, wow. Yeah. And so they had a script that they've been kicking around for a number of years. Apparently they did some sort of reading up in Canada a number of years ago with this particular script. Anyway, when they came to me with this script, I read it and I said, I can't do anything with this. I said, if you go out into the world with this, you're going to lose and I don't want to be the loser attached to it. So I said, I would love to develop a musical with foreigners catalog, but you got to let me come up with some other script because this is not going to work. And I can't, you know, I can't do anything with this. And they said okay. They said, they said okay. So they hired this amazing writer, Stephen Garvey, who had worked on a different iteration of, of, of a script for them. And they, and he, we came up with this concep concept and he wrote a brand new, completely new story and script in like two months. And it's, and it's infinitely better than what they had. And, and so I, so that's about as much as I can tell you. I can tell you that it's set in the 80s. It's definitely, you know, sort of dramedy type material, leaning more to comedy. You know. Look, as you say, the most difficult thing with any musical, whether it's a jukebox or not, is the book. Know, how often do you read a review of a, of a new musical where the music is the thing that's getting blasted? That practically never happens, you know what I mean? Usually people are pretty good by the time they get to Broadway at writing the music part of it, you know, like the composers are very, you know, they've done their job well. And generally the music is not what gets slammed in reviews. It's always the book. And so yes, with a jukebox musical, you've got two options. You've got tell the artist's personal story about them using their music. Right. Or tell another story using, you know, using the music. And when you tell another story, that's when it gets really hard because you're taking lyrics that weren't written for a particular story and you're trying to cram them into, you know, a square peg in a round hole and, and tell a story using lyrics that are, that are not designed to be narrative in that way. So how do you do that? I mean, you know, lots of people have tried to varying degrees of success. And so, you know, I. It's. We're going to do our best version of trying to do that, you know, because it's. When it's done right, it can be a lot of fun, you know, it's just often done wrong. And so, you know, I'm taking. I think I. I've taken a lot of lessons from shows that. From jukebox musicals that I've seen about things not to do. I haven't seen too many things to do, but I've seen a lot of things not to do. And that can be just as helpful, you know, to think pitfalls, classic jukebox musical pitfalls to stay away from, you know, such. Such as saturating the show with too much of the artist's music. That. That's. So I'll tell you that the first version of this original script that I got for this musical had 35 songs in it. And I was like, where's the room for the book? I mean, if you're going to have 35 songs, this is insane. So I think that, you know, using the catalog almost as sparingly as you can, you know, and. And as. And. And you have to be clever. You have to use it in the right way, you know, so. And. And not be. Not feeling married to any particular preconceived idea. So I'll give you another example.
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Michael Portentier
The.
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Adam Pascal
The. So the writer who wrote our version put a song as the opening song for the show, and it's not one of their big hits, and it's. It's a great song, and it opens the show perfectly, but it's not a hit. So at my. My initial reaction was, oh, no, no, we gotta. We gotta. We gotta kick this off with one of their big hits. But then when I read the script, I was like, oh, no, actually, this works so much better. And it doesn't need, like, we. It doesn't need to be one of the big hits. We'll get there every. You know, everyone just relax. So let's. The tell the. The importance of the story is what's important, you know, and. And not Foreigner, like, not cramming Foreigner down everybody's throat every second is that. That's not what's important. What's important is a story that's compelling and fun. And then we'll add Foreigner in after, you know.
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Michael Portentier
Well, let me say, I have. I. Actually, I've known Stephen Garvey for years. He. He did a Brilliant parody of the Brady Bunch called the Barney Bunch, which I think, Peter, I forget if you, you saw that back in the day.
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Peter Felicia
Uh huh, yeah, sure.
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Michael Portentier
Yeah, yeah. So I'm a big fan of his since then. I'm so delighted to hear that he's the one you got.
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Adam Pascal
Yeah, he's terrific. And you know, I think that there's a real opportunity here, you know, of course, because it's an amazing catalog and you know, internationally, you know, loved band for decades. And so, you know, if I think again, you know, there's an opportunity here that I think that I would like to capital capitalize on. And I also think there's an opportunity here to break certain molds. And, and, and what, what I mean by that is that, and I won't say too much other than to say the business model of a successful musical going to Broadway and having Broadway be the pinnacle of its success I think is broken. And I don't think works anymore and I don't think is the only way to success. And I don't see Broadway as necessarily again, the final stop on a journey for music.
- [18:34]
Peter Felicia
Indeed. Yeah.
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Adam Pascal
You know, and I think that other people, people need to start thinking that way as well, you know, if we're going to continue to move the, the art form forward. Because you guys know as well as I do that four out of five musicals fail. And you know, and, and, and the ones that quote, unquote, succeed barely make a cent if, you know, they, you know, and so, so in an industry where that's the reality of the finances, you know, I think other options need to be explored, you know, and there's an entire country and an entire world out there that, where people go see musicals, you know, in, in their own cities and in their own states and they don't come, they don't fly to Broadway, you know, and I think that that is a, a, a model that needs to be further exploited for new musicals, not musicals that have already come and gone on Broadway, you know.
- [19:33]
Peter Felicia
So when did foreign come into your life? When did you first hear this band? Were you buying their records as a kid? What?
- [19:38]
Adam Pascal
Oh, God, yeah. I mean, you know, some, some of my earliest memories of, of, of being a singer trying to sing and singing along with guys, you know, that, that I loved was Foreigner. And, and ironically enough, you know, this, the actual song feels like the first time. I have vivid memories of being up in my bedroom as a kid and singing along with that song, you know, as, as part of like, you know, my vocal practice, because that's how I, you know, that was me when I was a kid. I didn't take singing lessons. I just sang along with, you know, Foreigner and Iron Maiden and Journey and Queen and all these, you know. And so yes, I was a huge fan. I'm a huge fan of Lou Graham and his singing and his singing style. And he was definitely a big influence on my singing.
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Peter Felicia
In fact, were you an influence on them in any way? My point is, did they come and see Rent? Any of them? Did they ever come backstage and say you were terrific, anything like that?
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Adam Pascal
No, they did not. Now that doesn't mean they didn't think that. Okay. They didn't come back and say it. So I actually have. So here's a little interesting fact about, about Foreigner. The, the current lineup of Foreigner. There's no original guys in the band. The band is, is, has over the years evolved into what it is now, which is again, as I say, no no original members. So it's an interesting.
- [21:01]
James Marino
They have a replacement cast.
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Adam Pascal
They do.
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Peter Felicia
And it's still.
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Adam Pascal
Yeah, it's still foreign. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean it's still Foreigner and, and so, you know, but, but it's, but again, not the original guys. But, but you know, I've been to their concerts. I've seen the audience's reaction. They love it. They, you know, they just want to hear this music and they want to, you know, and, and if you're telling them it's Foreigner, well, hey, it sounds like Foreigner to me. You know, like, and, and look, Lou Graham certainly is, is missed. Mick Jones is missed. This, these guys are certainly missed. But the, the guys that they have in the, in the band now, it's top notch musicians and players and singers and like the band sounds better than they ever did. And that's really what, you know, that's what the hear. I think an audience would rather hear that and go and hear the music played, you know, expertly and, and, and, and have it sound like they remember than go and see, you know, guys who maybe, you know, they, maybe they're the original guys, but they just don't have it anymore. And so, you know, I, I think, and I'm not speaking specifically about foreign, I'm saying anybody.
- [22:10]
Peter Felicia
No, no.
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Adam Pascal
Of that genre of that age group, you know, if, you know, I think an audience would, is, is, is more inclined to enjoy a show like that then again than to see guys who are maybe still doing it but don't really have it.
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Michael Portentier
That's interesting you say that because I've read recently that there Are bands still touring that are. That are called Chicago and the Little Rascals, but I actually haven't researched to see if any of them. Right.
- [22:43]
Adam Pascal
Are the originals. Right, right.
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Michael Portentier
Yeah, exactly.
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Peter Felicia
The most fascinating word to me in the whole press release is Unplugged. So is this a decision? We hear a lot about sound design and that so many people have trouble hearing and all that, but here you are. Unplugged. Is that a decision that was yours or somebody else's?
- [23:08]
Adam Pascal
Well, that is. The Unplugged that you're speaking of is the actual Foreigner concert that they're doing at the Tillis Center, September 5th. Right, yeah, that was their decision. And I think that that's something that they do, you know, as they're out on tour in various cities. They, you know, they have their regular show and then they have this unplugged version that they do. And so I don't know why this particular concert was. Well, actually, I do know why. I'll tell you partially anyways, because when you do an unplugged show, it's much cheaper. And what they're doing, and they have so incredibly graciously donated their proceeds from this concert to our production.
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Peter Felicia
That's nice.
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Adam Pascal
Of their musical. So the budget for our production that we're doing in the spring for our actual staged version that we're gonna put up is. Is. Is coming from them and coming from this concert, that's how we're paying for it.
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Peter Felicia
Uh huh.
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James Marino
Wow, that's great.
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Peter Felicia
Now there's a local high school choir that's gonna be involved. Whose idea was that?
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Adam Pascal
That was the school's idea. You know, at this stage of the development, as much as it's part of developing the actual musical itself, it's also being done as, you know, an educational experience for the students in the theater department at Long Island University. And so this is an incredibly ra for these kids to develop a new musical into something that hopefully will go on to become very successful. And these kids are at the inception of it. And so again, as much as it's a developmental process for the show, it's an educational process.
- [25:02]
James Marino
I wouldn't expect Michael and Peter to know the Foreigner catalog, but some of foreigners songs require a large chorus background. I want to know what love is. Things like that were traditionally performed with large choirs behind them. Adam, I wanted to ask you if you can put on your thinking hat and go back to 1988 in Woodbury, New York. Okay, 1988, Woodbury, New York. It's just in a couple of years. All of a sudden you're going to be starring on Broadway. But you were sing in bands back then. Did you do any Foreigner covers?
- [25:46]
Adam Pascal
I. Yes, we definitely did Jukebox Hero. And I'm going to sidetrack for a second and, and, and, and, and tell you that when I the original version of the show, the original script that I told you that I did not think was viable was called Jukebox Hero, and which is an awesome title. And I think what happened was they came up with the title and then decided they needed to write a musical around that title. And so the original story was about a guy who wanted to be a rock star. And I hate those stories. And I said I don't want to see that, I don't want to direct that. Nobody cares. I don't, you know, I don't want to. Everyone, we've all seen that so many times. It's such a tired story about, you know, the, you know, the working class town in, you know. Well, first of all, I mean, I can go on for four days about this original script, but it took place in a world that didn't exist anymore. It took place in like, you know, a steel mill town in, you know, small town America. Like it took it just, everything about it just was, was a world that just doesn't exist. And, and so, and again about this got this, you know, a young kid, super, you know, brilliant guy who's working there but trying to get out and be a rock star. And I was like, I can't do this. I was like, first of all, I just saw this in, in Heart of Rock and Roll with that stupid Huey Lou thing. And I was like, I, I, I, I, that was horrible. I can't do that again. That was the same, you know, like that was the same story. So, so anyway, I digress with that. But yes, we, we played Jukebox Hero in my band at some point in some one of my bands that had many different names.
- [27:38]
James Marino
And then. So you' 18, 19 years old and on Long island, you know, heading down to Robert Moses, listening to everybody playing Jukebox Hero on their big boom boxes on the beach.
- [27:56]
Adam Pascal
Yeah.
- [27:57]
James Marino
When did you. I'm sure that you've talked about this many times before, but with a little perspective now, when did you get that theater bug and had, were your parents taking you to local theaters or to Broadway or things like that? And how did that transition go? So tell us.
- [28:19]
Adam Pascal
Yeah, well, so I actually have a very unorthodox path to musical theater in that I never did it growing up. And I grew up playing in rock bands. I was that kid. I was the kid who, you know, that jukebox hero was singing about. You know, that was my. My path, and I just wanted to be Jon Bon Jovi or Bono, you know, like that. That's those. That's what I wanted to be. And that was my path. And that was the path that I was on right up until the mid-90s, 1995, when I got a call from a childhood friend of mine, Ms. Idina Menzel, who grew up down the street from me in Woodbury, Long Island. And so she called me up and said, I'm doing this off Broadway musical, and it's going to run for about four weeks, and they're having trouble casting this particular role of this guy who's a rock singer in a rock band. And I thought of you, and I recommended you, and do you want to go audition? And it was just at a. You know, it was at a sort of a crossroads in my life at the time. I had just left the band that I had been playing with for all of those years, you know, since high school or even junior high school. And I was sort of looking for the next thing, of course, thinking the next thing would be like, okay, I have to form a new band, you know, but. But this was like a new. This was an interesting idea, you know, and I didn't really go see a lot of musicals growing up, but I loved musical movies and Hair and the Rocky Horror Picture show were, you know, transformative for me in my life. And so the concept of that appealed to me of just, you know, sort of the rock musical thing. And so I did. So I just went and auditioned, you know, and that's literally how it started, you know, And. And, but. But that's not to say that things weren't difficult. You know, they, you know, once, you know, Rent. The whole Rent experience happened so quickly. So I went from being this person who always wanted to be in a rock band to a Broadway star. And I didn't even know what that meant. And. And so I struggled for a long time, for years, because I was still trying to get a record deal, you know, like, just because that. The Rent experience happened to me. If anything, I was more empowered to then, at that point, go and get a record deal, because I was like, I know, I'm a Broadway star now. Of course I'm going to get a record deal, you know, And I didn't. It didn't happen. And so now. And of course, in Hindsight, I'm so glad that it didn't and things worked out the way that they. They were supposed to. But at the time, it was incredibly disheartening and frustrating, and I struggled for many years trying to figure out who I was. You know, am I an actor? Am I a Broadway performer? Am I a rock singer in a rock band? Like, you know, and. And, you know, you certainly can be all of that, but. But, you know, at the time, you certainly can be all of that now. But 80s 90s, the entertainment industry was very different, and people very much stayed in their lane, you know, and there wasn't, like, a lot of crossover. You didn't have, you know, rock singers and rock bands going on to Broadway. That didn't happen back then, you know, and you didn't have Broadway actors making, you know, rock records that, that certainly that anybody paid attention to. You know, actors didn't do music. Music musicians didn't make movies. Like, it was. Everything was very, you know, like, you did this, you did this, you did this. Now it's wonderful what the world is like now. Everybody can sort of do everything, you know, and. And that's great. But back then it wasn't like that. So I very much pigeonholed myself, you know, because of that. And so it was. It was a struggle. And. And, you know, and then Aida came along, and of course, it seemed like the right fit because it was an Elton John musical, it was another rock musical. And. And. But then I started to feel concerned that I was going to be pigeonholed as the rock musical guy, you know, and so I was like, okay, well, I can't. That's only going to take me so far. And so. And also, that's boring. And so I, you know, if I'm going to do this, I'd like to explore what it's like to really sink my teeth into musical theater. And so then, you know, Cabaret was running at the time, and I. That it just. It was mesmerizing that. That show and that production. And so I basically spent the entire run of Cabaret trying to get into Cabaret. And it wasn't until they announced they were closing, and then for whatever reason, said, let's stay open for a little longer and ask Adam Pascal if he wants to close it. Because that's really what happened. They announced they were closing, and I was like, oh, I'll never get that opportunity. And then we got that phone call. And so, you know, I've made it a conscious decision in my performing career to try and, you Know, look, embrace the rock musical sort of, you know, thing that I have, which is I'm incredibly grateful for. But, you know, I. To me, it's exciting to explore other stuff. And then once I started doing, like, musical comedy, then I was just. I was hooked on that. And so that really, you know, if I had my druthers, that's where I would continue to spend my musical theater time, is trying to make people laugh.
- [33:43]
James Marino
So, Adam, you have. I think my information's correct here. You have two kids. Is that correct?
- [33:50]
Peter Felicia
Correct.
- [33:50]
Adam Pascal
Two sons. Yeah.
- [33:51]
James Marino
Okay. Are they more impressed that you know Elton John and you're a Broadway star, or are they more impressed that you know Idina Menzel?
- [34:02]
Adam Pascal
Neither. They could care less about either. Honestly. They could care less. I'm trying. I'm trying to think. I'm trying to think of who I know that they are impressed by, and I'm trying to remember some MMA fighters. No, no, My guys are interesting. Gu. They're. They're awesome. But, like, what they're into, like, they're. They're. They're. Well, they're kind of like me. Like, you know, I. I was not. And. And. And still, I'm not into a lot of the things that guys are. You know what I mean? Like, I'm not a. I'm not a guy's guy like, that. I hate sports. I don't play cards. I don't. I'm not into mma. You know, I'm. I don't. You know, I don't like loud engines, you know, like. Like a lot of the things that, again, that are sort of typical guy stuff, like, you know. You know, I just never appealed to me. I was never drawn to that. I often say I'm much more like your typical gay man, just without the sexual orientation part in that. I, you know, I think I lean towards things that are a little bit more artistic and a little bit more thoughtful.
- [35:15]
Peter Felicia
It's.
- [35:16]
Adam Pascal
It's. I don't know, and I don't. And I can't even think of who they would be impressed by. I'm trying to come up with somebody that, like, oh, if I knew that person, they'd think that was really cool. I don't. I can't even think of anybody.
- [35:27]
James Marino
Okay.
- [35:29]
Michael Portentier
Adam, I saw. I saw your concert with Anthony at Clinton Cove.
- [35:34]
Adam Pascal
Oh, yeah.
- [35:35]
Michael Portentier
That was fantastic. Thank you. You guys closed out the series, and they said that that was the biggest audience they had.
- [35:43]
Adam Pascal
Yeah, it was great. It was great. You know, playing outside is. It's. It challenging because, you know, sound Wise is, isn't always, but it's, it's so much fun. And, and I've, you know, he and I have never done anything like that before, and it was just, it was a blast. I really loved it.
- [35:59]
James Marino
Getting back to the beginning of the conversation, you and Anthony ever considered doing Sideshow?
- [36:08]
Adam Pascal
Not, I mean, not that I know of, but there are shows that, Look, I, I think that he and I actually make a really great duo, you know, and, and there are definitely shows that I would love to do. I'll put this out there right now. The Producers. I think Mia's Max and Anthony as Leo is, I think, a combination. So anybody out there who would like to revive that show and bring it back for us?
- [36:39]
Peter Felicia
Okay.
- [36:40]
James Marino
Adam, you and I talked a lifetime ago about Pink Floyd, the Wall.
- [36:47]
Adam Pascal
Yes.
- [36:51]
James Marino
Do you think that anybody will ever be able to bring that to Broadway or bring it to a stage in a legal way?
- [37:01]
Adam Pascal
Well, that's a good question. I don't think so, because I think ultimately it's. And I love it, and it's one of my favorite albums of all time. But it's so depressing. You know, it's so, and like, there's just, there's no happiness in that record at all. No, there's no brightness. There's no, it's just like, it is heavy, heavy material, you know, and so I don't know if, if, if it really. Because of that reason, you know, it also has a very incoherent story, you know, there. And so I, I, you know, I, I, I think that there is a way to do it maybe, you know, maybe more sort of concert, versiony style. But I also don't know if, again, if the Broadway going audience just wants to hear that music. You know, I think that Pink Floyd fans would love it and, you know, you'd get those fans. But that's exactly what I'm dealing with right now with Foreigner, which is, you know, the Foreigner fans will only take this so far, you know, and same thing with Pink Floyd. It has to appeal to a broader audience. It has to appeal to a musical theater audience. You know, it has to appeal to people who like musical theater. And so I don't know if that music has enough dynamic to appeal to a musical theater audience. There was another concept album that I was working on for a number of years, trying to bring it to the stage, called Operation Mind Crime by a band called Queens Reich, who was one of the. Yeah. Who was one of my biggest influences growing up, you know, as a singer, certainly their Singer Jeff Tate was, you know, one of my heroes. And. And. And it's. And it's a brilliant, brilliant, brilliant album. But, again, super heavy. No, there's no brightness to it. There's no. There's no levity. There's no humor. There's no. It's just like, dark, dark, dark. And. And I. And I haven't figured out how to. You know, I. I was working with them for a while. Well, with Jeff, the singer, composer, and. And. And in trying to bring it to the stage, and he kind of gave me free rein to do what I wanted. And what I thought I needed to do was change a lot of the lyrics to help it. Make it more narrative. And so I. I wrote an entire script, and I ended up changing a lot of the lyrics. And then after I read it wasn't. Because before I even gave it to him, I read it when it was done, and I was like, this is. This isn't what. This isn't what the original thing was. It's. I've taken it too far away, you know, and then one. And exhausted that idea. I was like, well, now I don't have another idea, so I don't know what to. And so it kind of got put on the back burner. I do. I would like to one day. I have sort of, like. I have fantasies about doing, like, a Broadway Cares, you know, benefit concert of that show with, you know, with all of my Broadway pals singing it, you know, and I think that that would be a great way to present that music to a Broadway audience, you know, without asking them to sort of sit through the maudlin and the dark story going on, like, just really. Just present the music, which. Going. Which takes me to Chess, which is. You know, I always thought that our version that we did in London with Idina and Josh was the best version because it didn't rely too much on the book, which, again, going back to the first thing we were talking about, which is the Achilles heel of that. Yeah. And. And, you know, And. And so sometimes concert versions of these things are the best ways to. To. To present them.
- [40:54]
Peter Felicia
You certainly have been asked a million questions about Rent. What's the one that you've been asked the most?
- [41:00]
Adam Pascal
What was Jonathan Larson like? And it's also the. And it's also the one that I have the most disappointing answer to, because people don't realize until I tell them that I only knew Jonathan for probably four weeks.
- [41:15]
Peter Felicia
Yeah, I've heard that a lot. Yeah.
- [41:17]
Adam Pascal
Yeah. You know, so I. I never have a Good answer for that, you know, My answer is I. I wish I knew him better, you know, and. And I, like everybody else, have a big hole in my heart for sure for. For having missed out that. Missed out on that opportunity, you know.
- [41:34]
James Marino
Adam, we want to thank you for joining us on Broadway Radio. Coming up this Friday evening, September 5th, at the Tilly center for the Performing Arts on the Long Island University C.W. post campus in Brookville, there is a concert that's going to feature a special acoustic rendition of the of Foreigner, the rock band's biggest hits. Cold as ice. Jukebox here waiting for a girl like you. I want to know what love is and more with the Uniondale High School choir. This is going to be a benefit to raise money for the show that we were just talking about. Feels like the first time. The Farnham musical, which is going to be directed by Adam. Adam, thank you so much for joining us and we'll speak with you soon.
- [42:25]
Adam Pascal
Thank you guys so much. It was a pleasure.
- [42:28]
Musical Performer/Singer
But if you're so wise Then tell me why do you need smack? Take your needle Take your fancy breath don't forget get the moonlight out of your hair Long ago you might a little my heart but the fire dead ain't never ever going to stop. Another time, another place the words would only rhyme. We be in outer space. It'd be another song we'd sing another way. You wanna prove me wrong?
- [43:00]
Adam Pascal
Come back another day.
- [43:04]
Musical Performer/Singer
Another day.
- [43:08]
James Marino
So, Peter, in our review section, you went a few blocks east over to the Dr. 2 to see a production of Pen Pals. Tell us about this.
- [43:20]
Peter Felicia
I went because I had gone before and it was so terrific, I wanted to see it again. I had seen it in St. Clement's with different actresses, and it's very easy to see with different actresses because every two weeks they change the cast. So you will not see Nancy McKeon and Gail Weiner as I did. I'm hoping that the people you do see are as wonderful as they. They're really terrific pen pals. Yes, I'm sure many of us, if not most of us, have had pen pals in our lives. Mary Ann Crumrine from Utica, New York, where are you now, anyway? But these are two who stayed in touch through their entire lives. And Nancy McKean plays the. And Gail Weiner, the person who's living in London. No, she's not. She used to live in London, but her parents moved and she's not very happy about it. But they write about little things, big things, of course. Love, marriage, Children, health difficulties, so on and so forth. And it's wonderful that they keep it going. And it's very smart, very smart indeed that the playwright really did an expert job, Michael Griffo is his name, an expert job in giving them a moment when they really were mad at each other. And that for a while you think it's not going to happen and that they're not going to continue. And it takes them a long time. It is interesting to hear the dates in which they are giving because at the beginning you see that they're writing all the time. And as the play continues, they don't write nearly as often. But the point is they still.
- [45:00]
James Marino
Right.
- [45:00]
Peter Felicia
They still keep in touch and they're very concerned with each other. And I'm not above admitting that at the end of this show, when they finally do meet in person, the tears come into my eyes. They did the last time. They did this time. And I love to cry at the theater, and this show made me do it. So as a result, I hope that you go. I hope that the actresses are wonderful, and I hope that you cry, too, because after all, crying does not mean weakness. Crying means that you're just so overwhelmed, you just don't have the words. And instead of words coming from your mouth, tears come from your eyes. And I'm proud and happy that I was able to cry this time, too, even though I knew it was going to happen.
- [45:42]
James Marino
All right, so Pen Pals is at the Dr. 2 through December 21st. They have a schedule of all the folks coming in. So Nancy McKean and Gail Gail. Gail Weiner wrap up today. Starting next week, they have Michelle Clooney and Megan Follows, then Sharna Burgess and Paige Davis. Paige Davis, Yay. So Kathleen Chofont's coming up. Kate Burton's coming up. Maury McCormick is coming up, Sharon Lawrence, Donalyn Champlin, Emily Skinner. So. Wow.
- [46:24]
Michael Portentier
What.
- [46:24]
James Marino
What a great rotating cast that's coming in there. So. So there's more information in the show notes and a link to their website so you can check out the schedule and book your tickets. Michael, just back from your travels into P Town where you saw a number of different things. Not only Marilyn May and Nicholas King, but your friends Vanya, Sonia, Masha and Spike. So tell us about your time trip.
- [46:57]
Michael Portentier
Well, Marilyn's concert on Sunday, August 24, was. Was an absolute triumph. As I think I reported last year, she. For about 12 or 13 years, she had been singing there every. Every summer at a intimate space called the Art House that seats only about 125 people each. So she had become so popular there that she wound up doing two week runs because, you know, just to accommodate the demand. And she loved it because she always says that I think her, her preference, her first preference is more intimate venues as opposed to big halls. So she really loved it. And she was, was quite upset when the, the local politics and, and landlord greed removed that venue. They, they decided, they said they were going to make, make it into something completely different and then that didn't happen. But they cancelled the contract of Mark Cortali who had been producing, presenting all these headliners in P Town, not only Maryland, but you know, Audra McDonald, people like that, Patti LuPone. And so fortunately Mark Cartali was able to kind of pivot and he started to present some of those headliners in the town hall at provincetown, which is 140 years old, magnificent old building that has a seating capacity of about 700 when it's, when it's full. And Marilyn was very trepidatious, I know last year because it was such a big change and she wasn't sure, she didn't know about doing only one night and she was wondering if it would sell out and it was an absolute triumph. So I think she was very, very happy to come back there this year. And, and she also, she even talked about from the stage during her patter, she talked about what a great place it is as far as the acoustics, you know, 140-year-old wooden building, just amazing. And it's very special to see her there for that reason alone. This was a sort of expanded version of the Johnny Carson tribute show that she's done several other places including 54 below and. But it was that plus maybe another half hour's worth of material. She was, I swear she, she was at least an hour and a half, maybe more from the time she came on stage to the time she left. And the audience just absolutely loved, was fabulous with her, her three musicians, Ted Firth, her brilliant musical director pianist, and Mark McLean on drums and some guy they picked up who I don't think had ever worked with them before. I think Bruce Gertz on the bas because none of the regular bass players were available. So anyway, it was just an absolutely fabulous, fabulous night with Marilyn in magnificent voice, even though she is now 97. So just. There's no explanation for it. There's no scientific or physical explanation for, you know, for what she can do at that age. It's just got to be seen and heard to be believed. So then the next night Nicholas King, who's probably 65 years younger than Marilyn or something like that, he gave a, a concert at the, the Intimate Post Office Cabaret. And Marilyn is a big fan of his, so, so she was there for that. And Nicholas is, although he is quite young, he's, I would say he's an old soul when it comes to his um, his music appreciation and, and he, he's often compared to Mel Torme, um, in, in the style of singing that he does and even in his sound somewhat, uh, and that because in the best way possible he, I think he really recalls that, that kind of singing and his concert was great as well. So I, so I started out really, really well on the first two. Well, not the first two nights, but I guess the second two nights of my, my stay in P Town. And then I realized while I was there that there is this production production of Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, the Christopher Durang play that was winding up its run. I believe it closes this weekend. And so I bought a ticket for that. And I don't, I don't want to give a formal review of it because I bought a ticket and David Drake, who directed it is a friend of mine. But I would say this is interesting to me. I would say it was a very good production but not quite perfect enough to mask the flaws of the play which were more evident to me, much more evident to me than when I saw the show on Broadway. I think maybe, maybe some of us didn't fully appreciate the brilliance of not only the direction but also the performances of David Hyde Pierce and Kristi Nielsen and Billy Magnuson in the role of Spike. I think they really elevated the material. There's a lot of wonderful, funny stuff in the play, but there's also a lot that maybe doesn't work so well. And that was more evident in this case. Although I will say the woman that they had playing, playing Masha was better I thought in the role than Sigourney Weaver, who I thought just even despite her decades long association with Christopher Durang, didn't really get style of the comedy in that show. So that's an interesting thing to actually see someone, an unknown actress who's not even a member of Equity Equity, give a better performance than, than Sigourney Weaver. So I, I was glad I saw it and it, it taught me a lot about, you know, how little things can make a difference and how how sometimes really, really great acting and direction can mask writing that's not as perfect as it should be.
- [54:08]
James Marino
Okay, so it sounds like a nice trip.
- [54:13]
Michael Portentier
Yes, it was.
- [54:15]
Peter Felicia
All right.
- [54:19]
James Marino
So next up, Peter, you were over at the Sohow Playhouse to see the Day I Accidentally Went to War. Tell us about this.
- [54:29]
Peter Felicia
The gentleman's name is Bill Posley. And when you start watching the show, you think it's going to be a laugh riot. There are plenty of funny lines and. And certainly he thinks so, too. He's one of those comedians who laughs at his own jokes, and yet he's such an endearing personality that you don't care that he's laughing at his own jokes.
- [54:51]
Adam Pascal
So.
- [54:52]
Peter Felicia
Because we're laughing with him, too, so. But anyway, he talks about growing up there. He was in rural Massachusetts and having trouble here, there and everywhere, and as a result, wound up joining the National Guard. It seemed like a safe thing to do. After all, when do they call up the National Guard? Well, they did call up the National Guard after 9, 11. And he was deployed to Iraq and certainly has some harrowing stories about being in Iraq. And suddenly what had been a funny evening turns into a very serious evening, but a very powerful evening. And I'll tell you, if you don't have sympathy for veterans automatically, and it might be a group that you never give much of a thought to, I think after seeing the show, you will. He really makes a wonderful case. What he had to go through, his friends had to. Yes, they became friends. The people he loved, the people he lost, the people who are still with him, the people who are not still with him for one reason or another. Very, very powerful, very engaging performer. And I do believe this is going to be a stepping stone in his career. I have a feeling he is going to be quarter to do many, many things during the course of his lifetime because he has a natural appeal that you don't see very often. A lot of people are really lauded for their talent because boy, can he sing, boy, can he dance. But this guy's personality is what really puts it over. And even though the show was about an hour and a half, maybe I could have. I could have enjoyed more. So if you get a chance, I know he's going to do it. Other places keep it on your radar. Bill Posley, the Day I Accidentally Went to War. I bet you'll be as charmed by it as I was.
- [56:39]
James Marino
Okay, so we'll have a link to that in the show notes and to Bill Posley's Instagram. Michael, you saw Play on at Signature. So tell us about this.
- [56:52]
Michael Portentier
Well, this is just an amazing thing. Thing that happened. Play on is a musical that played on Broadway in 1997 for less than two months, despite the fact that the cast included Andre de Shields, Tanya Pinkins and Carl Anderson, among other fabulous people. And it is a musical adaptation of Twelfth Night set in Harlem back in the jazz age, and using entirely music by Duke Ellington, songs by Duke Ellington, his various collaborators. And I remember distinctly, I saw the original production and I thought it was absolutely fantastic and fabulous in every way, except I remember thinking at the time that the jokes just weren't funny enough. And I'm not sure if that's what killed it. I can't say. But as I said, it ran less than two months. I meant to go back and read some of the original reviews. I didn't get a chance to do that. I'm gonna have to do that because I'm curious about that anyway, so. And I was unaware of this show really being done anywhere else.
- [58:16]
Peter Felicia
Me too.
- [58:17]
Michael Portentier
Around in recent years or even in non recent years. And, and then I saw it on the, on the schedule at the Signature in Arlington, which is, you know, is one of my favorite theaters, and I travel there frequently. So I was so happy to see it there and so intrigued to see what they would do with it and how I would react to it. And I have to report it was so, so phenomenal that I would be very, very surprised if this production does not come to Broadway.
- [58:50]
Peter Felicia
Wow.
- [58:51]
Michael Portentier
It was, it was incredible. And I wish I remembered. I mean, I wish I had a clear, clearer memory of those jokes from 1997, because I didn't think they were funny back then, but now I think they are. So I don't know if they're different, if, if it's been rewritten at all or if I just, maybe the, the lines were delivered better or I don't know what. Another thing I, I would like to research a little bit more. At any rate, the book is by Cheryl west, and the whole, the whole musical was conceived originally by Sheldon Epps. This production, music directed by Jermaine Hill, choreographed by Brianne Arzell, and directed by Lily Ann Brown. I went to the opening of the show and she spoke briefly after the, the curtain call, which was, I mean, the audience response was ecstatic. And she herself said from the stage, she goes, maybe you can join me in wondering why nobody ever does this show. And I would absolutely, I absolutely agree with her. I, I, I don't know why. And I'm so happy that they, they found it and unearthed it. And I, I would be amazed if this production does not come to Broadway. That's how great it was. The cast, absolutely fantastic. I have to single out the person who played the. The central role of. It's basically the. The character base on Viola here. She's called V. Y. Sometimes called Vi Man. And she was played by someone named Jaleesa Williams, who first of all had the advantage of being extremely tall. So that helped, I think, in terms of verisimilitude, since almost the entire show dressed as a man and we're supposed to believe that everyone believes that. So that was a really great thing. And aside from her height, you know, her talent was so great that she just did a phenomenal job with all of those songs and all of the acting and everything. Then we had Greg Watkins as the Duke. We had, oh, as Lady Liv, a wonderful woman named AWA Sal Seca, who I've seen perform in shows down at Signature before then. Oh, sorry, Rev. The role of Rev was Chucky Benson. And the only person that. That. The only performance I didn't like was Wesley J. Barnes as Jester, which is really the Festy. You know, based on the. The character Festy the Clown. And it wasn't his performance so much that bothered me. It's just that he was the only one. One whose. Whose hairstyle and makeup and costuming didn't seem accurate to the period. I don't know why that decision was made. I guess maybe they thought because he was supposed to be the clown that that would make him stand out. But I. I didn't think that was a very good decision at all.
- [62:20]
James Marino
But maybe he was just late.
- [62:23]
Michael Portentier
Maybe he was what?
- [62:24]
James Marino
Maybe he was just late.
- [62:25]
Michael Portentier
8. Anyway, I. I was so happy to be there and I. Well, we'll see what happens. But if it does come to Broadway, remember that you heard it here first.
- [62:43]
Peter Felicia
I'll say. And frankly, when I saw they were doing something called Play On, I thought it was a different show entirely. I would have never thought this would have gotten a second chance. And it's such a prestigious theater, so that's wonderful to hear.
- [62:54]
Michael Portentier
I know, right? You know, but I mean, when you. When you. When you hear it. Well, just the idea. Sounds great, doesn't it?
- [63:01]
Peter Felicia
Yeah.
- [63:02]
Michael Portentier
To use Duke Ellington music to. Oh, and it's amazing how songs fit in so well with that story. I let a song go out of my heart Just off the top of my head they, they, they, they. It's almost as if they were written for the script, which I think is really so much better than I. Than I thought of it back in the day. We'll See what happens with that. And then I just wanted to briefly report on. I have a little bit of insider information on the upcoming production of Bam Yankees that's going to be done at the stage, as we've mentioned.
- [63:41]
Adam Pascal
We.
- [63:42]
Michael Portentier
We've read a little bit about it, that it's going to be updated to roughly the year 2000 and that we speculated on the podcast about. Well, what will that mean in terms of, aside from everything else, what team is going to be playing against the Yankees? Because the original Damn Yankees, of course, is set in the mid-1950s, and the team is the Washington Senators, which no longer exists. And my understanding was that the. The Nationals didn't come into being until several years later. So it turns out that I have a. I won't say a mole. I have a friend in the cast, Giuseppe Brasilio, who's been a. I guess, on our podcast. And so I asked him a few things. You know, I said, what can you tell me? Without giving away too much, I said, can you tell me what team is involved? And he said, the team involved is the Baltimore Orioles. So. All right. So that's intriguing, right?
- [64:50]
Peter Felicia
And then currently in last place. Well, they haven't won a world series since 1983.
- [64:59]
Michael Portentier
Well, we'll see how maybe this will spur them on.
- [65:02]
Peter Felicia
How interesting.
- [65:03]
Michael Portentier
Yeah. Yeah. And then I asked him a few other details. I said. I asked him if the song, the Game Name is still in it, because I thought maybe that might possibly be a song they would cut because it might be viewed as, I don't know, too sexist. And.
- [65:18]
Peter Felicia
Yeah, I can appreciate that. Yeah, either.
- [65:22]
Michael Portentier
No, not in the movie. Although in that case, I think it was because they thought it was too risque.
- [65:28]
Peter Felicia
I agree.
- [65:28]
Michael Portentier
Yeah. But anyway, he said, yes, the Game is still in it. Now, this. We have read that this production will feature some new lyrics by Lynn Ahrens. So I wonder if that's going to be maybe perhaps a song in which.
- [65:45]
Peter Felicia
That's so funny that she got the job. I wonder if it happened because of what a game in Ragtime where she wrote a number about baseball. However, what I. I've always said to Lyda, she agrees, it's so funny that that number involves spitting because I can't tell you how many times I have been in rooms where watching a baseball game and a woman comes by and say, why do they always sp. Spit, you know, so. So anyway, yeah, Little do a great job. That's great.
- [66:14]
Michael Portentier
Yeah. You know, go on.
- [66:17]
James Marino
Go ahead, Michael. Go ahead.
- [66:18]
Michael Portentier
No, no, I was gonna say, so that's a little bit of info that I hopefully is intriguing about this new production. I, I mean, I, I think the encores production of Damn Yankees proved that it still works like gangbusters in its original form without any revolution writing whatsoever.
- [66:37]
Peter Felicia
I agree.
- [66:38]
Michael Portentier
But you know, people are going to do what they're going to do and at least they have really good people working on this. Sergio Trujillo is doing the choreography and I think that's something to look forward to as well.
- [66:51]
Peter Felicia
I take it back. Actually, you may recall I'm doing this book called Musical Makeovers, Constructive criticism for Broadway's hits and flops. And I do have some suggestions for Damn Yankees because it's always been strange to me. The Shoeless Joe from Hannibal Moe is sung after the guy has hit a couple of home runs in batting practice. I think that number should be in place of who's got the Pain? The mambo, which. The mambo was a big thing in the 50s, and I understand why they had it in those days. But Shoeless Joe should be in that position right there. That's. By that point he's really become a great hero. So that's the one that would need a few lyric rewrites too. But that number should be there. But otherwise, I know what you're talking about, Michael. Indeed. Damian is a damn good show. Show.
- [67:35]
Michael Portentier
Yeah, you mentioned that.
- [67:37]
Peter Felicia
Oh, have I recently.
- [67:38]
Michael Portentier
And, and I, I would agree. I see what you mean. It's certainly the only reason that mambo number is. Is there, as you say, is because every Broadway musical in the 50s had to have a mambo.
- [67:51]
Peter Felicia
Or at least much.
- [67:54]
James Marino
Peter, did you hear what Cal Ripken said when he broke the record for the consecutive games played?
- [68:00]
Peter Felicia
No.
- [68:01]
James Marino
You know, for listeners who are not baseball fan, Cal Ripken is a legend in baseball. He played 2,632 games in a row for the Baltimore Orioles. Started with the Baltimore Orioles, ended with the Baltimore Orioles, which is what reminded me of this. And when he broke that record for the most, he broke Lou Gehrig's streak of 21:30 games played. Cal Ripken said, yeah, it's pretty good, but I'm no Felicia.
- [68:32]
Peter Felicia
You know, the funny thing about that is that I don't know if they've ever changed the monument in center field in Yankee Stadium because the, the monument to Lou Gehrig actually mentioned the streak and said. Which will probably never be broken. So I don't know if they've. They've erased that or what. That's what looking into that was definitely on the on the the Monument.
- [68:55]
James Marino
All right, so Signature Theater continues to hit them out of the park. Playon is playing at the signature in D.C. through October 5, 2025. It's actually Northern Virginia, but Peter, at least the D.C. area with signature Theater gets a good baseball team.
- [69:14]
Peter Felicia
Yeah. Yeah.
- [69:18]
James Marino
All right, so that wraps it up for today. Before we get on to our brain teasing our musical moment, I want to remind everybody that you can subscribe subscribe to these broadcasts by going to the front page of broadwayradio.com there's a subscribe link. That way each and every time we have new episode of this week on Broadway, it'll be automatically downloaded to Apple Podcasts for you. Of course, you don't have to listen to us in Apple Podcasts. There's many ways to get us. One way is Patreon P-A-T-R-E-O-N.com BroadwayRadio is a way that you can support all of Broadway radio's offerings and get a few bonuses. Some extra episodes get us earlier than everybody else, things like that. Contact information for Peter from Michael and for me can be found in the show notes@broadwayradio.com as well as links to some of the things we've talked about today. So, Peter, do you have an answer to last week's brain teaser?
- [70:08]
Peter Felicia
Believe it or not, I do. After intermission, this performer literally had a walk on. And yet the window cards, poster and cast album had this performer listed above the top title. About whom are we talking? Bernadette Peters was in song and dance, about to celebrate his 40th anniversary on Broadway, which had her busy singing songs in the first act and then just had her walk, not even dance, in the second. Just across the stage, Tony Janicky resumed his usual first place perch, followed by Josh Israel, who pointed out that it was true of Betty Buckley too, because Betty Buckley succeeded Bernadette Peters in the role. So Steve Bell, Jeff Walenga, Arthur Robinson, Jeff Hickman, Ingrid Gammerman, Fred Abramowicz and Brigadier Dude. This week's question Anne of a Thousand Days, the Mad woman of Chaillot, Kiss Me Kate. What lyric in the verse of a second act opener of a famous household name musical actually refers to the Broadway debut of each of these productions? Can actually, that's what I should say, can actually refer to the Broadway debut view of each of these productions.
- [71:22]
James Marino
All right, so if you have an answer for this, email us@triviaroadrayradio.com we'll let you know if you're on the right track. So, Michael, what do we have in this week's musical moments?
- [71:35]
Michael Portentier
Well, as I said, Marilyn May was magnificent in Provincetown and have little audio clips of that performance. The opener is the title song from Cabaret, which it still boggles my mind that Marilyn is still with us. To do such a magnificent performance of that song, which she basically introduced, was the first person to record it even before the show opened.
- [72:09]
Adam Pascal
And.
- [72:12]
Michael Portentier
She sang it on the Carson show. This, this show. When P Town opened with the clip of her singing it on the Carson show in, you know, 1966. Or maybe it was 67. Maybe it was a later performance. Anyway, I was. It was almost 60 years ago. And then it segued into a live performance of hers singing the same number.
- [72:38]
Adam Pascal
Number.
- [72:39]
Michael Portentier
I think that's absolutely mind boggling. And then, so that's our opener and then our closer is, I guess, what would be the 11 o' clock number of her show in P Town, which is a section of 50% from the musical Ballroom. Really phenomenal performance that. A song that's become really one of her signature tunes over the decades. So. And please enjoy these two clips, Marilyn.
- [73:14]
James Marino
Okay, so on behalf of Michael Portentier and Peter Felicia, this is James Marino saying thanks so much for listening to Broadway videos this week on Broadway. Bye bye.
- [73:24]
Peter Felicia
Bye.
- [73:27]
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