Friday, March 6, 2015

My Favorite Musicals- Favorite Things March

Good morning!

    Today I'm linking up with Teaching Trio for their Favorite Things Linky Party!


Click the link above to head over there and link up yourself! I decided to talk about one of my true passions- musical theatre. I don't feel that I share this enough with my students, and as I'm writing this, I'm thinking that may need to change, and SOON! In any case, here are my 3 favorite musicals- to narrow it down I've picked the 3 that I have most enjoyed seeing live, though I could add so many more favorites to this list- it was so hard to pick!



1) Wicked- seen it 5 times, some on Broadway, some here in DC. If you haven't heard the music, stop reading right now, search your Spotify, and get on it! This musical is based on a book written as a prequel to The Wizard of Oz, and focuses on the life of Elphaba (aka the Wicked Witch of the West) and Glinda from the beginning of their relationship at boarding school. It is a great story with incredible music by Stephen Schwartz. If you have not seen it, look for a tour nearby and GO!


On a side note, this is also the show where I really fell in love with the original actresses for Elphaba and Glinda- Idina Menzel and Kristen Chenoweth.


You may recognize Idina's voice as Elphaba...


Let me give you a hint...


Yes, she sang Let It Go- she was the voice of Elsa from Frozen:


Okay, let's move to number 2) The Lion King- I have seen this show once on Broadway when I was a child and this past summer for a second time in DC. It is hands down one of the best productions of musical theatre I've ever seen. The music is written by Elton John with lyrics by Tim Rice. The costumes are incredible- and I mean incredible (see below). If you haven't gotten a chance to see it, again, I urge you to try your best to do so!



And last, but certainly not least, number 3) The Last Five Years- This show is one of those "you like it if you like it and you don't if you don't" shows- at least that's what I've found, not much of a middle ground. Written by Jason Robert Brown, the show chronicles the relationship of a couple from the end from Kathy's perspective and from the beginning from Jamie's. They cross paths once in the middle, but then continue their stories in opposite directions. It is a truly brilliant juxtaposition of feelings. The original cast featured Sherie Rene Scott (another of my favorite Broadway performers- first saw her in Aida) as Kathy and Norbert Leo Butz (who also originated the role of Fiyero in Wicked) as Jamie. JRB writes some amazing music and it is captivating (in my opinion. I've seen the show in many local theaters and recommend it to anyone if you can find a performance. 


If you can't find a live performance, however, a movie version of the show was just released with Anna Kendrick (best known for her performance in Pitch Perfect) and Jeremy Jordan (best known for his performance on the TV show Smash). I think they did a great job adapting a complex storyline for the big screen. It is available on Amazon Instant Video and totally worth the $5- it's actually worth more if you ask me.

I hope you listen to some of these shows and enjoy! Happy Friday!
~Ms. Patrician


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