Anyone going to the 'Dreaming Wide Awake' CD Release Party @ Birdland- Page 2

[theaterdude87]

Posted: 1/8/08 at 1:13am

IT WAS AMAZING! I plan to post more tomorrow because i am exhausted but everyone was phenomenal and Scott has so much to be proud of.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 1/8/08 at 1:16am

I really enjoyed the show. Other than a song or two from Piece, this was the first time I'd heard his music, and I was definitely impressed, especially by the emotionality of the songs -- although I have to say I'd have liked a little bit of context for the songs. Great lineup, too.

Can anyone post a song list?

Updated On: 1/8/08 at 01:16 AM

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 1/8/08 at 1:27am

Not to be a Downer, but I was very disapointed.
The singers, musicians and arranger were incredible but I thought the songs were just not that good.
I wish the composer luck and he should coninue writing but I don't see his talent as a Theatre song writer.
The lyrics were banal and I only caught a few glimpses of melody.
That said, WOW what voices!
The songs just didn't tell stories, they were full of images that didn't go anywhere.
Shosanna can SING but I didn't understand what she was saying half the time.
All that talent, Bean. Brescia, Calloway, Groff. Jackson, Block, and many others I just don't get what they saw in those songs.
I do appreciate that they like Mr. Allen but they all can do better.
Sorry, just my opinion, very cute Drummer.
I prefer Jason Robert Brown anyday.
Updated On: 1/8/08 at 01:27 AM

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 1/8/08 at 9:35am

I was there last night as well. My friend Mike and I got prime seating right in the front center table (I felt like a VIP) and I thought the evening was very exciting and full of energy. My favorites of the night were Stephanie Block, Lisa Brescia and Shoshana Bean. Stephanie's "Never Never Land" was incredible, Lisa's rendition of "Magic" was flawless and Shoshana's "Home" and "If I Own Today" were thrilling. The rest of the performers were fantastic as well, but those were the standouts for me. Unfortunately, Eden Espinosa was ill...I would have loved to hear her sing "I'm A Star" live. Maybe another time! Her replacement was pretty good though, minus a tiny lyric mistake in the second verse.

Congrats to Scott Alan for a wonderful evening...and his musical director Jesse Vargas is so hot.

PS: Great meeting you last night, Popular. Thrilling to see you again, Fallintolight!

[theaterdude87]

Posted: 1/8/08 at 9:52am

I thought last night was simply amazing. The energy from the audience and the performers was fantastic. I noticed when I walked in that a lot of people were waiting outside and Scott said on his blog that around 70 people were turned away. Jesse did a wonderful job arranging everything for last night as well.

Liz Callaway was excellant last night. Her vocals are always top notch and she gives over 100% with every song she sang last night. Jill Zadeah is really good. Where did this girl come from? She has an amazing voice and deserves to be in a show. Lisa Bfdscia was a nice treat to have last night...her version of "Magic" was phenomenal. The two newcomers Natalie Weiss and Sarah Davis are both extremely extremely talented...also for learning the music in just two days I thought they were fantastic.

Danny, Jonathan and Cheyenne were amazing as always. Sounding and looking great. Now comes my two favorite performers...Shoshana Bean and Stephanie J. Block. Both of them are just powerhouse and sing Scott's music perfectly. It was really nice to see how close they really are with him and just how much it meant to be performing at his CD release concert.

Scott did excellant and showed off a new song that he wrote that was great. The CD signing after while hot and crowded was worth it. Better than what you would get it you stage-doored with some of the actors. They were all so willing to talk, take pictures, give hugs etc.

Scott has SO much to be proud of and shows how in only 4.5 years you can get very far in the biz. I look forward to one day seeing "Piece" somewhere.

I had a fantastic evening!! It was well worth the trip from Philadelphia.

Updated On: 1/8/08 at 09:52 AM

[pharmer2000]

Posted: 1/8/08 at 11:12am

Congratulations to Scott Alan for such a successful evening. His CD is incredible, and the concert for the CD signing lived up to and exceeded my expectations. As WAT said, we had incredible seats, and I too felt like a VIP. I was so impressed with not only Scott's fantastic music and performance, but also with the enthusiastic and emotional performances by the incredible cast of well respected Broadway stars. Every peformance on stage was like gold, and I am so glad that I was fortunate to attend this amazing evening. As if the concert were not enough, getting to hang out with Scott and his outstanding group of performers after the show, during the CD signing party, just made the night truly memorable. Congrats again to Scott and Company for a great CD and show!!!

[landryjames]

Posted: 1/8/08 at 12:28pm

A few years ago, I went to the Duplex to see a showcase of Scott Alan's songs mainly to see Cheyenne Jackson who sang a couple of times. Marty Thomas and Shoshana were also there. Although all three sang with great gusto and were very impressive, I agree with Curtain that I am just not that impressed with the songs themselves. As big of a Jackson fan as I am, I just couldn't go last night. I do wish Scott Alan and all the performers the best of luck of course.

[ashley0139]

Posted: 1/8/08 at 12:40pm

Sounds like an amazing night. I wanted to be there so badly. Julia Murney's Magic is one of my all-time favorite songs; it would have been very interesting to hear Lisa do it.

[broadwayfan7]

Posted: 1/8/08 at 2:40pm

The pictures that are now up on BWW look great! Glad everyone enjoyed themselves!

[hortonhearsasam]

Posted: 1/8/08 at 3:06pm

I'm so jealous of everyone who got to hear Natalie Weiss sing "Say Goodbye" last night. I love that song, and I love that singer!

I would do almost anything to hear that.

Posted: 1/8/08 at 3:39pm

Would you go a$$ to mouth?

[theaterdude87]

Posted: 1/8/08 at 6:04pm

well I made it in the background of one of the pictures hahaha.

[exhalemusic]

Posted: 1/8/08 at 9:12pm

haha that picture is hilarious =)

70 people turned away?! That's crazy. Sounds like a great night, wish I would have gone.

[jeffrey1dog]

Posted: 1/8/08 at 9:29pm

What a great show last night. I must say that even though I was dissappointed Eden Espinosa was out sick I was totally floored by Natalie Weiss. That girl has a powerhouse of a voice. I think she was better than all the other seasoned pros, and I never heard of her.

The other highlights for me were Stephanie J. Block and Shoshana Bean (who was hysterical btw) and Scott himself who sings & plays piano very capably. But he was also quite funny teasing a band member & making fun of himself (just the way he does on his blog.)

On the slightly negative side, I love Jonathan Groff but his song was (is) rather boring. And Cheyenne Jackson has a most spectacular voice & did a great job with his country tune "Surrender" but I don't see where it fits anywhere on this CD.

I did have a great time though. And Birdland is beautiful & a perfect size (and setup) for this type of show. I can't wait to go back there to see something else. Too bad Chita Rivera is sold out. Here's the website ...
http://www.birdlandjazz.com/schedule.html

Theaterdude87 - Hope you're taking something for that cough. You sounded pretty bad. Maybe you got what Eden got?

[theaterdude87]

Posted: 1/8/08 at 10:54pm

cough? i wasn't sick last night... maybe another guy looked like me. I was sitting by the wall with a direct view of Scott From the back of the piano so on the side.

But thanks for caring lol.

[jessemurphyman]

Posted: 1/9/08 at 5:07pm

Don't worry, there's already a video of Natalie Weiss singing "Say Goodbye" on youtube. God, I wish I had gone. Her voice is flawless!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGUpk-jF6HI#GU5U2spHI_4

[Popular]

Posted: 1/10/08 at 3:51am

Congrats to Scott for pulling off such a fantastic night. He had written a blog (and I'm paraphrasing here...) saying how he was worried about how all these amazing performers were going to get thunderous applause and how the crowd was going to hear crickets after he got up there... there were NO crickets heard! So much love from both the performers and the audience for him. You can tell there is a mutual respect and friendship shared between him and his singers. He was so proud to have them there and they were so honored to be there for him.

It was a great evening. Shoshana is hilarious! I'm surprised nobody mentioned her speech introducing Stephanie. LOL
She told a story about how she called Stephanie up before her WICKED audition. She hadn't heard Defying Gravity yet and wanted to ask Steph to hum a little for her so she could learn the song. So she hung up thinking Steph might sing a line or two for her when, with the sounds of the NY traffic behind her, "this b*tch calls me back and sings the WHOOOOLE song!" Too funny!

Great chatting with some of you there!

Happy New Year everyone! I'm now back to just reading about these types of things from CA. Was sure fun to actually be a part of it - it doesn't happen very often!