'The Showtune Mosh Pit' for February 8th, 2012

THE LATEST IN UNAUTHORIZED GOSSIP AND BUZZ

FROM THE HEART OF CHICAGO'S SHOWTUNE VIDEO BARS,

AND MUSICAL THEATER NEWS FROM CHICAGO TO BROADWAY

by Paul W. Thompson

Overheard last weekend under the showtune

video screens at Sidetrack and The Call:

And so, the “Smash” era has begun! The hour-long drama series about the world of the Broadway musical began its broadcast life Monday night on NBC-TV, garnering pretty good ratings and, to my ears, extremely good word of mouth! In fact, I don’t know of a single person who saw it (either on TV or via online media) who didn’t like the pilot/premiere episode. And a few people tremble at how good it was for them. Some folks hope it gets better, and others are afraid it won’t be able to sustain the plots lines or the justification for musical numbers. But everyone in the Mosh Pit and environs is STOKED for the possibilities this show brings. Congratulations to everyone involved.Chicago is on the “Smash” bandwagon--in a big way! The show continues next Monday, February 13, at9:00 pm Central Time. YAAAAAAAY. And will we be seeing video clips in our favorite bars? Stay tuned for that…..

SMASH

One of the most enduringly popular musical comedies from the Golden Age of Broadway is “Gypsy,” and we have a pretty well-received production of it playing now at the Drury Lane Theatre in Oakbrook Terrace (through April 1). The well-known, New York-based interpreter of the songs of Ethel Merman, KLea Blackhurst, is headlining as Rose, with one of Chicago’s newest musical stars, Andrea Prestinario, as Louise. And the production is garnering some national attention, as the bigger Equity shows in Chicago tend to do these days. However, this production has triggered a discussion on a BroadwayWorld discussion thread (the main board, not the Chicago one!), regarding the way that larger Chicago theaters frequently (or always, depending on whom you ask) hire New York talent for the biggest musical roles. Certainly that seems to be the case at the Drury Lane, Chicago Shakespeare, Marriott and Goodman theaters, though it seems to be less so at Theatre At The Center, Court, Writers’ and the Paramount. And of course, Lyric Opera Of Chicago hires almost all its leads from out of town, and is applauded for bringing them here. What do you think? Is this a good or bad thing? And why? It’s an interesting topic.

Thread: KLea Blackhurst in GYPSY

Speaking of TATC, they’ve had a change in the leading lady (half the cast) of the upcoming “Always, Patsy Cline,” and I don’t know why. Michelle Duffy was announced as the show’s Patsy, with Janelle Snow as Louise, her fan and pen pal. However, last week the theater announced that Patsy would be played by Heather Beck, who recently assayed the same role in a Lancaster, Pennsylvania, production of Ted Swindley’s honky-tonk two-hander. Hmm. The show officially opens onFebruary 26, 2012, and runs through April 1.