Tribute: Patrick Lee, theater journalist
Theater journalist Patrick Lee, creator of Just Shows To Go You and Theater Mania contributor, passed away this week at age 47. The news brought great sadness to many in the theater community, myself included. When I think of Patrick, I think of the beginning of my passion for theater writing. Patrick was the first person I met when I set out on this journey.
It was April 2009. I had just created Stage Rush and had been invited by Broadway producer and Producer’s Perspective creator Ken Davenport to attend a theater blogger meet up. It was at the Planet Hollywood in Times Square and I arrived with such a pit in my stomach, I almost turned away at the entrance. Starting this site, this endeavor, felt like a huge risk to me and I didn’t carry myself with much confidence about it. Ken’s invitation to meet up with real, live theater writers who were already established in the field was incredibly intimidating. Who was I to talk to them? Everything out of my mouth was sure to sound stupid. They’d surely laugh when I told them my site was hosted by Blogger.
I sat down at a table with a platter of nachos on it. I picked at it with one hand and dug the nails of my other hand into my leg as the bloggers began to arrive, everyone schmoozing. They all knew each other—damn.
And then Patrick plopped himself in a chair next to me. I turned my head to him with a jolt, as I knew some social interaction was inevitable. He smiled, introduced himself, and I instantly began to feel at ease. It might sound corny, but Patrick seemed so jolly. That’s really the word to describe how he was. He asked me about my blog and as I talked, he continued to ask follow-up questions. He wasn’t looking at me with disgust—he was interested! I told him I was so proud of myself, because I hadn’t even lived in New York for a year yet and I had already seen 40 shows. Patrick looked at me with a big smile and said, “I see over 200 a year!” But he wasn’t mocking me; he was laughing at the hilarity of it. We both had a big laugh. As we talked, we discovered that we both loved Spring Awakening, John Gallagher Jr., and Passing Strange. He told me that he had tickets to a screening of the Passing Strange movie and I pretty much wanted to gouge his eyes out, I was so jealous. I went home that night feeling more confident about my new project, all thanks to Patrick.
That theater blogger meet up lead to the formation of the Independent Theater Bloggers Association (ITBA), for which Patrick served as awards director. When the ITBA was deciding on nominations for this year’s awards, we met at a Hell’s Kitchen pub to discuss candidates. It was a Broadway nerd’s dream—sitting at a table with a group of people with the same interests, discussing who gave the year’s best performances and arguing about them. Patrick was so funny that day. He kept inserting his humorous, sarcastic opinion, then pulling back, because he was moderating the meeting and it was obvious that he was trying to be democratic.
But I am lucky that that was not my last meeting with Patrick. A few weeks ago, Patrick asked me if I would help him film the off-Broadway cast of The Kid reading the winners of this year’s ITBA Awards. We sat there at Theatre Row with Susan Blackwell and Ann Harada and Patrick just got along with them so well. I envied his ease and calming nature. After we filmed, we talked shop for a while outside the theater. He answered a lot of burning questions I had about the theater-writing field. I remember being so grateful to get that time with him. We shared laughs and had a really good time with that errand for the ITBA. We left that night saying we’d meet up for coffee soon, but we didn’t get the chance.
Patrick’s passing is a strong reminder to me that we all have to harness the joys of life while we still have it. Patrick loved theater and was passionate about LGBT rights. In his life, he made quite a mark in both worlds with his own theater site Just Shows To Go You, his bylines for Theater Mania and other sites, and by being a juror for the GLAAD Media Awards. Patrick is an example of following your passion—a lesson we all should learn from him.
On my Facebook homepage, there’s a notification that says “Patrick Lee has poked you. Poke back.” It’s from the night we first met. I never did “poke” him back. But I’m going to keep that message there as a reminder of what Patrick stood for. It just shows to go you the impact theater can have on a person’s life.
Review: Promises, Promises
This revival of Promises, Promises is being force-fed to potential audiences as “Mad Men The Musical.” It’s not, so let’s just get that out of the way. Regardless of being set in the 1960s, it does not embody the darkness that Mad Men does, even when one of its main characters attempts suicide. Instead of trying to appear to be something it’s not, Promises should revel in what it is—a charming musical.
This production has been widely panned by the critics. It’s not the high point of the Broadway season, but I found myself wrapped up in the earnestness of the musical. If you’re someone who identifies with the nice-guys-finish-last school of thought, and rally for that good guy who never seems to catch a break, you should find yourself captivated, as I was, by Sean Hayes. Playing Chuck Baxter, Hayes is an office underling eager to climb the corporate ladder. But he’s the type that people walk all over, so he let’s his lecherous bosses use his apartment for their trysts, in hopes that his loyalty will manifest into a promotion. Meanwhile, the downtrodden Chuck fancies the company cafeteria cutie Fran Kubelik (normally played by Kristin Chenoweth, but at my performance, understudied by Sarah Jane Everman). As you can imagine, things become really sticky for Chuck when he discovers Fran is “the other woman” to his top boss.
It’s Hayes’ show, as he appeals to the audience, constantly addressing us, and we throw our support behind him. Instead of making Chuck a twerp, Hayes turns him into a truly likeable guy, smiling through all his misfortunes, recognizing the ridiculous humor of his bad luck. But it’s not his pursuit of the corporate high life that we’re rooting for; it’s his potential relationship with Fran, the girl of his dreams. It’s important for Hayes to convey that he’s more than just an unfortunate chump, but that that romance and desire lives in him. For me, Hayes’ highlighting moment is the ridiculously sweet song “She Likes Basketball,” in which he realizes that his hopes of romancing Fran aren’t so far flung, that they actually share common ground. Hayes makes you remember what it was like to be a kid, reveling in every hopeful notion that you and your crush were destined to be together. Read more
2010 Tony Awards: Winner Picks & Predictions
The Tony Awards are just five days away, and as you prepare for the big night, check out Stage Rush’s predictions of who will win and who should. Don’t forget to tune into Stage Rush’s live blog of the Tony Awards during the telecast this Sunday, where I’ll be reporting LIVE from the Tony press room on all the excitement!
Best Play
In The Next Room (or the vibrator play) by Sarah Ruhl
Next Fall by Geoffrey Nauffts
Red by John Logan (WILL WIN)
Time Stands Still by Donald Margulies
This race is a close one between Red and Time Stands Still. Don’t know what will tip the scales here—both have critical and box office success. Some might say Time has lost momentum, since it’s been closed since late March, yet it’s reopening in October. Due to far more nominations, Red is most likely to take it.
Best Musical
American Idiot (SHOULD WIN)
Fela!
Memphis (WILL WIN)
Million Dollar Quartet
With such few nominations and lowered buzz, American Idiot won’t have enough strength to take the prize from Memphis, which has gotten an intense media push since the nominations.
Best Revival of a Play
Fences by August Wilson (WILL WIN)
Lend Me A Tenor by Ken Ludwig
The Royal Family by George S. Kaufman and Edna Ferber
A View From The Bridge by Arthur Miller
Everyone’s a strong contender here, but the star power of Fences (and timeliness, since it’s still running) makes it the shoo-in.
Best Revival of a Musical
Finian’s Rainbow (SHOULD WIN)
La Cage aux Folles (WILL WIN)
A Little Night Music
Ragtime
With so many nominations, La Cage is set up to take this one, easily. I would throw the statue to Finian’s though. It took a lot of risk to revive a strange, little-known musical, and the cast was so powerful. La Cage was revived less than six years ago—it’s time to retire this show for while. Read more
Analysis: Peters and Stritch to replace Zeta-Jones and Lansbury in ‘Night Music’
In an anticipated announcement Monday, it was revealed that Bernadette Peters and Elaine Stritch will replace Catherine Zeta-Jones and Angela Lansbury in A Little Night Music, effective July 13. Zeta-Jones and Lansbury will depart the show June 20, and the production will take a three-week hiatus, during which the actresses will rehearse.
This casting news effectively saves this production from shuttering, as it had already marked June 20 as its closing day. Until this point, the show’s producers had wooed numerous A-list actresses to assume the roles (Gwyneth Paltrow and mother Blythe Danner, Debbie Reynolds), but with no talks coming to fruition. Yet Peters and Stritch’s commitments to the show are a well-deserved saving grace for a high quality production.
I wonder if Peters felt slighted when she began talks for the role, since she wasn’t the first approached, and the other attempts were well publicized. Peters will fit the role extremely well, which makes me question why the producers hadn’t asked her earlier. Although from their first attempts at a replacement, it is clear they were looking for more Hollywood power, and Peters has more Broadway clout to her name than from film. Regardless, I don’t think her name will perform poorly at the box office, as she’s become one of those Broadway legends that people flock to see. Read more
Stage Rush TV: Episode 16
Talking points:
- Interviewing Promises, Promises music director Phil Reno
- Seeing Duncan Sheik in concert at City Winery
- Stage Rush will be live blogging from the Tony Awards!
- Broadway grosses
What do you think, Rushers? What do you think it would be like to watch over 1,300 performances of the same show, like Phil did with The Producers? Did you catch Duncan Sheik’s concert at City Winery, or are you planning on seeing next week’s show. What do you think of Sheik forgetting lyrics? Leave it all in the comments!
Concert recap: Duncan Sheik at City Winery, week 1
Duncan Sheik was definitely enjoying his quirkiness Thursday night at his concert at City Winery. In his first of two June shows at the SoHo restaurant and concert venue (the second is June 10), Sheik performed an album by the late British singer/songwriter Nick Drake—Pink Moon—in its entirety. Sheik repeatedly highlighted the music’s mellow, and sometimes vague, quality, of which the audience seemed unfamiliar with (as was I). Sheik humorously joked with the audience, thanking them for their cooperation with his indulgence throughout the album’s 11 songs.
Despite the album’s obscurity to most of the audience, Drake’s music shares many similar qualities to Sheik’s, overlapping in somberness, soft tones, and introspective lyrics. Accompanying Sheik was Gerry Leonard on lead guitar. In fact, these two shows at City Winery seem to be a split-up version of Sheik’s March concert at New Jersey’s South Orange Performing Arts Center. Leonard assisted Sheik there as well, as did Whisper House’s Holly Brook, who will be joining him at next week’s show. Sheik also added that during next week’s concert, he will be singing covers of songs from the 1980s from artists such as Tears For Fears and Depeche Mode—some of which he played at the SOPAC show.
Set list: Read more
David Mamet makes Funny Or Die debut
Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright David Mamet (whose latest play, Race, is currently on Broadway) has made his foray into the world of viral online videos. Mamet made his debut Thursday on the comedy video website Funny Or Die, writing and directing “Lost Masterpieces of Pornography.” The video stars Kristen Bell and Ed O’Neill as, what else, a slinky office assistant to a Supreme Court judge (respectively, of course).
What do you think, Rushers? Does this move help make Mamet more relevant to a new generation? What was your favorite line? Mine was, “It is the Dred Scott Decision!” Did you chuckle or did the video fall flat?
Broadway Brain: ‘Promises, Promises’ plays best when music director Phil Reno’s mother is in the audience
While Jonathan Tunick might be a Tony nominee for Best Orchestrations for the revival of Promises, Promises, music director Phil Reno has to implement his work every night while conducting the show. Having previously conducted shows like The Producers (for a whopping 1,383 performances!) and The Drowsy Chaperone, Reno is no stranger to Tony-winning productions. Presiding over an orchestra of 18, as well as stars Kristin Chenoweth and Sean Hayes (this year’s Tony host and nominee), Reno is entrusted with Burt Bacharach and Hal David’s famous score.
Reno sat down with Stage Rush in the house of the Broadway Theatre, where Promises is showing, for a chat about Tonys, career destiny, and conducting for his mother.
Explaining it to me as if I’m a 3 year old, what does a music director/supervisor do?
We’re responsible for teaching all the cast members the music. That all happens way before we ever add the orchestra. We usually rehearse a show like Promises, Promises five or six weeks before we go into tech rehearsal. I supervise and oversee the scene-change music and underscoring and introductions of numbers. I write and make suggestions for those pieces to make the whole musical flow of the evening go as smoothly as it can. As the show progresses, I’m responsible for maintaining the musical integrity of the show. How people sing, interpret their songs, make sure group numbers are still tight, and that the orchestra is still playing well. For those of us that are involved in a long run, it can be very easy for some people to get complacent and casual with it. I consider my job to keep them enthused and energized to do it, making it as good or better than the last performance. I try to inspire energy and emotion from the musicians and the cast. I never wanted to be one of those “Here we go again” kind of conductors.