Songs For a New World Question

[Johnnytoc]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 4:08pm

What are the voice parts required for this? (like how many Sop., etc.)

[jasonf]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 4:20pm

Not an answer to your question - but another question...

Can anybody explain the song King of the World to me? Is it supposed to be about a deposed king?

I saw a production of this a couple of years ago, and that did nothing to help clear it up for me.

[JakeB]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 4:30pm

The production I saw of it was about a man in jail about to hang himself. It differs from production to production I guess.

[Songsstresss]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 4:36pm

To answer Johnny... Woman 1 is the "ingenue" and a strong mixer (you need some soprano notes and some belter strength in different parts.) Woman 2 is a character belter/alto. Man 1 is a CRAZY HIGH gospel tenor. Man 2 is a baritone (maybe baritenor)
Jason... I am in a production of Songs right now and we SWEAR that King of the World is about Jesus. lol But we don't play it that way. It becomes very metaphoric in our production. In ours, it's about Man 1 singing about how he had such a successful life (amazing job, happy family) before and now he's lost all that. The thing about Songs is, each song is suppossed to stand on its own and tell its own story, so maybe JRB did mean it to be about Jesus or another King. But, I doubt you'll ever see it played that way.

[musicnmath]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 4:42pm

Jason -- If you google it, it'll come up with a couple interpretations, like JakeB said. I had the same question...

[jasonf]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 4:44pm

Hmm -- interesting -- since it comes after the two Christmas songs...
But "Let me please see my son" -- how does that fit? (Being Jewish myself....)

Also, from what I know about Jesus, didn't he deny being "King of the Jews?" If so, then this wouldn't make much sense, right?

There's also the line "I thought, JESUS, that's the key."

SO CONFUSED!!!!!!!

[Johnnytoc]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 5:12pm

Thanks so much Songsstresss!

[rKrispyt]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 5:12pm

Johnnytoc - when I directed this production, I used the MTI site to determine ranges I'd need, it gives you a character description including range, top note, and bottom note for each of the 4 singers in the production.

http://www.mtishows.com/show_casting.asp?ID=000191

Hope that helps!

[Johnnytoc]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 5:16pm

Thank you as well rkrispyt!

I'd like a theatre near me to do this next spring so this all really helps a lot!

[roquat]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 11:45pm

I did the show a few years ago--I always thought all of Man 1's (or is it 2. I forget!) songs had a through-line--he starts, in "A New World", being brought to this country with nothing, grows up on the streets in poverty in "The River Won't Flow", Becomes determined to become a pro athlete and conquer the world in "Steam Train" (you don't know me, but you will) is dethroned and jailed in "King of the World", and dies in "Flying Home." Woman 1 and the other man also have a through-line, if you read the words of their songs--they have a romance, break up, and find they can't live without each other.

[apdarcey]

Posted: 7/9/05 at 1:53am

he didn't write it, maybe did the arrangements? i always thought king of the world was about a guy in jail. with the through-lines that roquat stated... i believe that all four have throughlines, but i'm not positive of lady 2's at this moment.

[roquat]

Posted: 7/10/05 at 12:41am

Jason Robert Brown contributed a couple of new songs to "Urban Cowboy", but he was so disillusioned by the show he disowned it--in one of his latest updates, he was naming the various nightclub dates, concerts, etc., that he was playing and what a good year it had been, "but then, on the other hand, there was URBAN COWBOY. Enough said."