I'm a new LaChiusa Fan with a question!

I had heard LaChiusa's name bandied about in relation to being a new Sondheim. Withthat said, I am a HUGE Sondheim fan and was naturally interested. In Early November I saw See What I Wanna See. It was my first LaChiusa production. I really enjoyed the score. To get some idea how he wrote, I bought Hello Again( still finding new perspectives,etc)... I just bought Marie Christine today and after listening to the first ten songs, I am hooked. I was curious whether I should buy Wild Party or First Lady Suite next. I have Lippa's wild party ( big idina fan) but I have never felt compelled to listen to most of it... i like the idea of the poem,etc. I was also wondering what the score of The Highest Yellow was like...got a chance to talk to Marc Kudisch about it at SWIWS(big fan of his too). I guess thats a couple questions..THANKS!

The Wild Party is my favorite score of his.

I just finished a huge report on Marie Christine - relating it to Greek Theatre. So many things I discovered in that piece in doing so.

Hello Again is a lot of fun.

welcome to our side!

I must chime in here...

Michael John LaChiusa IS the future of musical theatre. He is unparalleled in the skill, depth and sheer beauty of his music and lyrics (and can put together a pretty snazzy book too, if need be). He is at once a glorious poet and a genius composer. The integration of his music and lyrics into a show is simply astounding. In my oh so humble opinion, LaChiusa is not only the "next" Sondheim; he has surpassed him in the skill, wit and intensity of his scores in only a handful of shows versus Sondheim's quite massive oeuvre. THE WILD PARTY is one of the most important theatre scores of all time and I dare you to not enjoy at least one song in that breathtaking score, if not the entire piece. His music is not easy, but it rewards the listener for paying close attention to every note and word... I simply cannot put into words how profoundly this man's work has affected nearly every facet of my life.

So, yes, I'm a fan. Get THE WILD PARTY. You won't regret it.

A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely,
P genre

P.S. he is also the absolute sweetest human being as well, if any of you have ever had the chance to meet the man behind the music yourselves.

Updated On: 12/17/05 at 11:20 PM

hey this is all really helpful/interesting.exciting...thanks!!...as far as the highest yellow goes, anybody hear any( i dont know if this is even possible), see it..etc?

you don't agree, ms. darkbloom?

He really is all that and more. In person and what he puts on stage.
Tonight I was looking at these lyrics from Little Fish...I think they are so smart.

"There I was on the highest mountain
in all the universe
standing right where an ancient people
had dissapeared, or worse.
Around me were the remnants of the lives they left behind
and all at once this feeling,
no,
this knowledge filled my mind.
If I myself were to somehow someday just up and dissapear
what of me would be left behind to show that I was here?"

And A Petrified Prince has not been recorded. I'd kill to hear that one - for whatever reason.

Little Fish has, technically, been recorded.

I love Marcy Harriell! REMEMBER ME is a great song! And I RAN is a hilarious song...

LITTLE FISH, unfortunately, had a horrible book - a problem that plagues many LaChiusa shows. I hope BERNARDA ALBA will be better - I think it will have a marvellous score.

LITTLE FISH does have the best opening line ever, "I had never known what I was really like until I stopped smoking. By which time, there was hell to pay."

Updated On: 12/18/05 at 12:52 AM

So were there at least some songs from Chronicle of a Death Foretold recorded by anyone? I am so curious about this score being a Garcia Marquez fan.

---

yeah im actually really curious about the opera he is writing for audra...until marie christine, I really hadn't been exposed to audra , but what i had heard didn't really do much for me... marie christine has turned that right around just as sweeney did for my opinion of patti lupone..but i digress..highest yellow, yah i am really curious as im really interested in van gogh's tortured spirit,etc..when i spoke to marc at SWIWS, i made a comment about having seeing everything he has done recently with the exception of highest yellow and i asked if there were any plans for new york and he said not at the time , but anythings possible type but he would love to do it response...but it looks as if that wont happen anytime soon.

speaking of bernarda alba, im making my way through lorca's works right now.. a little aside. wolfe and lachiusa must make for a brilliant match... i have to get that cast recording.

interesting review about little fish..it sounds so simplistic compared to his other works which are steeped in literary references or complicated historical periods. i really want to hear it though.

I actually have the score and Libretto to Little Fish (sssh). I think it's a great piece. It's like Company in many ways. It's a concept musical about a woman trying to quit smoking. I think it's GREAT regional theatre fare because it can be done on a small scale,yet it's sooo interesting. Not your typical musical...but then again it's LaChiusa. I find it interesting that audiences will accept experimentalism in plays but doesn't stand for it when it comes to musicals.