Reefer Madness question- Page 2

[BSoBW2]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 8:56pm

Ah. Thanks.

Yes, I do love that song!

[MyMeredithMonster]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 8:57pm

Dan,

I do have one question. Since you said you're working on an alternate version of the show, would there be any chance of you guys putting it on? You know, rounding up Christian and any members of the old crew to put in on in LA or NY?

[danstudney]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 9:10pm

Yep. Mary Jane/Mary Lane. It was the only one written for the Showtime version, and therefore the only song eligible for an Emmy Award.

CATSNY..., Dead Old Man is a song dear to my heart as well, but my first mentor taught me that "musical theatre is about killing your babies" -- a sentiment essentially echoed by Stephen Schwarz, who I think is one of the greatest musical theatre dramaturgs in the known universe and whose ASCAP-Disney Musical Theatre Workshops I've had the pleasure of attending on and off since his first year moderating them when they were simply the ASCAP Musical Theatre Workshops. It means that, even if you wrote the greatest damn ballad in the world -- a hit song that will make you millions on the pop charts and be recorded by every major singing star -- but it stops the pace of the show cold in its tracks for any reason... you cut it. It's Spock-Logic: The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, or the one.

So... I don't think Dead Old Man stops the *stage show* in its tracks, but it's a different beast when it comes to a movie. It's a fun song and we kept its spirit alive in the movie in two ways as an homage (brownie points if you can spot them both), but it's a very static number on stage and we didn't think it would work as well on film: "Guy stands over corpse and sings. Makes joke about stupid cardboard cut-out Packard behind him, etc."

We also needed to make a tonal transition back into the Mary story and without the benefit of an act break, including Act One Finale and Jimmy on the Lam, we needed to get from A to B a lot faster. Thus, we wound up with Mary Jane/Mary Lane instead of Dead Old Man, compressing what used to be about twenty or so minutes in the stage show.

Time is always shorter in film and stuff has to go. I really hated losing the Listen to Jesus Reprise, but in the end, you kill your babies for the overall good of the piece. Even in the original LA cast, we cut We Know Best, which is scathingly satirical and which I love to death in and of itself, but it was stopping the momentum of the plot in its tracks and we cut it out during the first few weeks of our initial run. But we loved it enough to include it on the album.

On the plus side to some of this, when people go see the stage version, there'll still be some surprises left!

[BSoBW2]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 9:15pm

That was one hot brownie in the movie.

"musical theatre is about killing your babies"

HAHA - I tease my friend that she always has roles involving killing a baby or destroying something she loves.

Christian, to me, sounds so different on the LA recording.

I love the Listen to Jesus sequence...

[MyMeredithMonster]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 9:17pm

I know that one reference to "Dead Old Man" is right before "Mary Jane/Mary Lane". A few chords of the song are played as Jimmy's knelt down beside the man.

[danstudney]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 9:24pm

MyMeredith...,

Thanx also for your devotion to the show, and sure, anything's possible. It's one of those musicals the actors love doing over and over again. It's like... a... drug?

Some of them have been with it for seven years now. Bob Torti was even in the first informal reading we did of it back in 1997.

And, by the way, B..., Torti's been doing all kinds of things, stage stuff out in LA, film and television -- Andy put both of us in "Who's Your Daddy?" and he's also doing Andy's upcoming Amanda Bynes movie. I think he's also on the Suite Life with Zack and Cody or whatever the title of that relatively new Disney Channel show is.

Anyway, we've always tried to keep the Reefer Family together as much as possible (which wasn't always easy), and the cool part is that it's a play within a play so people like Christian can still play a 16 year old character even though they've long been able to legally drink alcohol in the U.S. The Lecturer casts 'em, so perhaps he doesn't have anyone else to use within his arsenal of bad actors?

[danstudney]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 9:26pm

Wow, Meredith, you're GOOD. The other one's way more obvious.

BSoBW2, we called her "Brownie Boop" in the script. The other one was called "Mae West Macaroon."

[BSoBW2]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 9:31pm

Well, I would have gladly setteld for Mae West...even if she didn't have the kick back Ms. Boop had.

Torti! I just looked him up on imdb...and read the mssg board. I recognize him from THAT THING YOU DO.

He makes a good Jesus. And whether it was intended or not, I always thought of his last note as a mock of JCS...I dunno why.

(Actually, I do. Everything I know about Jesus I learned from JCS. Who new Jesus could sing so high!)

[MyMeredithMonster]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 9:40pm

*Grins*
I can't believe I haven't caught the other reference (especially since you said it's more obvious). I'm going to have to watch the movie again and look for it. :)

Those are great names for the characters. That animation sequence was too funny!

[danstudney]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 9:44pm

You'll only have to watch the first few seconds...

[MyMeredithMonster]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 9:47pm

Oh the company name right?? Dead Old Man Productions or something like that?

Updated On: 12/12/05 at 09:47 PM

[BSoBW2]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 9:48pm

S'that Alan Cumming?

Now I am going to watch the movie again!
Updated On: 12/12/05 at 09:48 PM

[danstudney]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 9:52pm

MMM, yup. Dead Old Man Productions was actually me, Kevin, Andy and our original co-producers.

B..., yeah I was tired of looking at my own face, so I changed it to a recent pic of Alan at Wedrock (though that's me in the b.g. playing the keyboard).

[MyMeredithMonster]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 10:03pm

I'm glad I remembered that. At least the song was kept alive in little ways.

I love that we've got something in common (I play the keyboard/piano as well. I also play the French Horn, but that's a little off topic).

[BSoBW2]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 10:11pm

What was he sining?

Meredith - you also both love Reefer...Madness. Updated On: 12/12/05 at 10:11 PM

[MyMeredithMonster]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 10:14pm

BSo,
Haha, you're right about that!

[BSoBW2]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 10:19pm

Nice myspace, btw.

[MyMeredithMonster]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 10:22pm

Oh thank you! I hope you added me as your friend (or you should if you didn't)!

[BSoBW2]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 10:22pm

Ha, I didn't!

myspace.com/thenardier

I dunno how the damn thing works - and it's only bww people.

[MyMeredithMonster]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 10:25pm

Haha! Well, I'll add you!

[danstudney]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 10:31pm

He was singing the Victoria Wood song "Don't Do It" which is about (not) getting married. Ironically, it was a benefit concert for gay marriage equality. It was a fun concert and a cause I support... John Cameron's band ShortBus also played. More performers/speechifiers included Nina Hagen, The Morning After, Andy Bell from Erasure, Pink, Margaret Cho, Kelly Osbourne. Alan hosted the event.

[MyMeredithMonster]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 10:38pm

Ah, I would have loved to hear Alan singing that!
Sounds like it was a good concert (and definitely a good cause).

[BSoBW2]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 10:42pm

That's hilarious...

[BSoBW2]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 11:22pm

In THE COLOR PURPLE, they say Reefer...and I always hear Alan Cumming singing "Oh so mad!"

[MyMeredithMonster]

Posted: 12/12/05 at 11:38pm

The littlest thing can get me singing Reefer Madness songs during the day. Especially any mentions of Jesus. I just can't help it.