Who ya been lovin' since I been gone?

Good Day Everyone!  I hope that everyone who reads this is doing well.


I realize that it's been a while since I last posted.  Every time I've tried, something has come up.  Therefore, here I am now, and I have a lot to catch ya up on.


We have finished blocking the entire first act as of last night, and let me just say...this show is going to rock and/or roll the entire evening.  Everyone sounds amazing, and seeing the designs for the set has made this whole experience even more real for me.  I'm going to be the second person ever to play the bass Whiffle (he doesn't have a name in the script, but you can call me Brad).  As we block and rehearse each scene, everyone is bringing their own little tweaks and perks to the material.  We are essentially creating a new(ish) work the minute we step out on the stage, and I wish I could just watch it happen.  Happily, though, I am a part of it. :D  


A few of my favorite bits about this show (so far)
     5. Ryan and Taylor killing it every time they do "I'm Infected"
     4. Ari singing "Jukebox Jamboree".  He hits it, rubs some funk on it, then hits it again.  
     3. Singing that awesome doo-wop background to "Girl, Can I Kiss You?"  Still my favorite song to sing in the entire show.
     2. The Teardrops...period.  I honestly think they are going to stop the show several times in the first act alone.
     1. Being a Whiffle.  That's the simplest way to put it.  It's been a long while since I sang some honest-to-goodness 4-part harmonies.  This is what I was raised on; what made me want to join St. Matthias Choir (and be the only boy for the longest time); what made my 4 years at DeSmet worth it: being able to sing barbershop/doo-wop/4-part anything.  It's my destiny, much like Lenora is Cry-Baby's destiny.
     .5. Terrie singing "Screw Loose"/just being Lenora.  She's that good.


As I said before, my Whiffle name is Bradley.  That's not all though.  My prisoner name is Hugh, and my Drape name is Terrence (many thanks to Dupree for the name).  More on this to come.


Along with the blocking rehearsals, Robin has been teaching us some killer choreography.  I know for a fact that it nearly killed me the first time...'ahem'... Bad joke aside, I haven't danced this hard in the longest time.  I would greatly advise everyone to invest in Bayer aspirin til the end of March.  Their stock might be rising some.  After watching myself in the mirror, and some of the dance videos, I don't know how the hell my body is doing some of the things it's doing, fucked up knees and all.  (For those that haven't noticed it before, my natural stance is first/second position.  I like to think I'm a little duck-footed).  Now all that needs to be done is to practice til the cows come home.

Well, I must get going, so I leave you with my new favorite rockabilly song.  Have a great night.

PS: I thought of this earlier last week, but Terrie put this song on her blog earlier, reminding me of it.  One of the all-time great doo-wop songs from the 50's. First, what Terrie posted

This is what the Squares would listen to.  Perfectly acceptable in its own way.  Now the next version, the original version from 1954 by the Chords.  I believe this would be the Drape version.  Your thoughts?

 

Bum Bum Bum Bum...

We finished learning all of the songs this past Tuesday; therefore, it's time for the read-thru.  I have never been more excited for a read-thru than this one.  It's amazing how well the cast envelops the story through the music, but I can't wait to see and hear how we handle the actual text of the show.

Update: After having the read-thru last night, I am so friggin' excited for this show now.  Everyone sounded great, and I know the minute we start blocking, we are going to be in business. 

On the personal side, however, I'm already having some problems, mainly with knowing this music.  There is an awful lot of it, which isn't the problem.  I'm really just not used to having to sing bass.  I mean, I was singing first tenor from 2002 to May 2010.  Evita with New Line was the first time I had ever actually sung Bass/Baritone, and that was difficult enough.  The good thing there was that Eeyan and Aaron were down there with me, so if I couldn't hear it I just had to search for their voices to get back on track.  I still have problems reading bass clef but it's gotten better.  I'm just worried I'm going to eff up the Whiffle stuff.  From what I've been able to tell, I'm anchoring a majority of the chords, so that adds a little more pressure.  The thing is being the only person down on that part.  Oh well, just means that I have to practice more on my own.  Practice makes Permanent, so I just need to know the music even better than I normally do.  

Allison (Elizabeth Stanley) and the Whiffles led by Baldwin Blandish (Christopher J. Hanke)

While I've been working on the music, I've been doing a lot of research into the original movie, production, and just the time period we are depicting.  I thought I knew a lot about the fifties, but there is so much more that I need to look into.  I mean, I can listen to all the oldies and doo-wop I want, but when you start looking at the years some of those songs were coming out, they came out after 1954 (when Cry-Baby takes place).  It's almost like I need to ignore all the fifties music I know and love, and try and come at the show from a different angle.  The Squares are still in the Big Band mentality, almost.  They are the clean cut, probably listening to Glenn Miller, or Count Basie if they are feeling really adventurous.  The Whiffles are almost worse, going back to the barbershop quartet music from the turn of the century.  Meanwhile the Drapes draw inspiration from the rhythm and blues coming down South.  This is the kind of music that would be played underground, in the flop houses and hole-in-the-wall bars found down on Beale Street in Memphis, or at Sam Phillips' Sun Records. 

Well, I gotta get going, so thanks for reading, and don't forget your Anti-Polio shot.