Hey y'all. I'm going thursday. Will i see any of you?
Hunter does an entertaining Food Network guest blog
My Oprah submission was too long (didn't know 2000 characters meant INCLUDING spaces) but I tweaked it to send in to Ellen:
Dear Ellen
I'm writing to turn your attention to a show that has truly inspired me and many others and has one of the most amazing messages of hope on Broadway currently. The show is titled [title of show]. It’s an extremely smart, funny and inspiring story of two "nobodies" named Hunter and Jeff who are writing a musical about 2 guys writing a musical (got that?). They are joined by their two lady friends Heidi- the only one of the foursome to have been on Broadway but constantly stuck as Understudy/Ensemble and Susan- a "downtown" actress who, after 9/11, has opted out of the performer's lifestyle of constant auditioning in lieu of a life of climbing the corporate ladder.
The musical uses only 4 chairs, four actors and an accompanist on a keyboard. Hunter and Jeff give themselves 3 weeks to write a musical for the NY Musical Theater Festival. They are accepted and the show was then picked up to workshop and run off-Broadway. After a lull of over a year, they still hadn't made it to Broadway but by virally promoting the show as being on its way to Broadway (without having anything to back that up), they chronicled, they created the hysterical “[title of show] Show” on YouTube.
The show is so amazingly funny but there are such moments of poignancy that left me in a pool of tears when I attended Opening Night. Susan performs a song titled "Die Vampire, Die," which at first sounds like it should be a wacky comical number as that is the nature of Susan's on (and off)-stage persona, but it is actually a song chronicling the pitfalls of creative self-expression. A vampire is the embodiment of anything that tells you that what you are doing is irrelevant, been done before or you are not talented enough to accomplish. Later in the show, when the characters discuss childhood memories Heidi sings an amazing ballad titled "A Way Back to Then" which chronicles her growing up dancing in her backyard all the way to her life at that moment and the search for the innocence and happiness of childhood. One of the final numbers is titled "Nine People's Favorite Thing" which states that they would rather be nine people's favorite thing than 100 people's 9th-favorite thing. You actually get a shout-out in the musical as well in “Two Nobodies in New York:” “Are we writing for art/And is art a springboard for fame/And will fame get us a sitcom/And will a sitcom get us on Ellen/And will Ellen get folks to like us/And if they like us/Will they mike us/Me and You/Two nobodies in New York”
This show is so beloved by the theater community but is struggling to keep full capacity because of their grass roots publicity campaign. The cast is so humble in being proud of just making it thus far, but I think their story is so amazingly applicable to anyone's life that it would be hugely inspirational as a part of your show.
I hope this doesn’t come off as a plea for free publicity because I truly believe in what this show has to offer people. There have been numerous viewers who have gone in with absolutely no Broadway knowledge and unknowing of what it takes to make a Broadway show and have left so inspired regardless of their profession or walk of life that I think it truly is a universal piece. To top that off the cast is incredibly delightful and take the time at the stage door to speak to EVERYONE who is waiting, and not with a simple hello but with a generous offering of time and listening.
Thank You!
www.titleofshow.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Os71u7VB2jc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TswUU7h-cs
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Keep the letters going folks
Updated On: 8/25/08 at 10:19 PM
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/7/06
Great letter logan! I hope it works!
Thanks! I hope everyone else is taking a few words to drop them a message as well :]
Random question. Do you think the theatre will stop me from bringing in a bag? (as in like a gift bag)
I doubt it. They may ask to search it, so for as long as you're down with that, you should be OK.
Plenty of people have shopping bags while seeing shows, so that shouldn't be considered any different.
That's what I was thinking. Thanks Logan!
Thursday!
Have fun! I was there last Thursday and I think they need to make a name up like Funday (for Monday) because the crowd was amazing and the performance was outstanding.
:) Im so excited! How's the lottery lately? Because i'm depending on that and if not going to try a cheap balcony seat.
Understudy Joined: 5/22/07
After reading the Gypsy Robe thread earlier, I started thinking about [tos] and their ceremony. Do any of you know who got the robe?
Eek. I hope they let Courtney and Benjamin share it.
Or gave it to Mindy... or the "ground beef in a cup" lady...
Thanks for the info Kfullerton!
Go say happy birthday to PattiLuPuppy in his birthday thread on the Off Topic Board.
And speaking of birthdays... Jeff's [birthday] is this Saturday!
After reading the Gypsy Robe thread earlier, I started thinking about [tos] and their ceremony. Do any of you know who got the robe?
As there was technically no 'ensemble,' [tos] did not do a Gypsy robe ceremony.
I need to lotto this week. How have Saturday matinees been?
Stand-by Joined: 7/11/08
I need to fly back to NY... The cast album is just not enough!!!
[tos] made it into The Huffington Post!
"the show’s director, Broadway favorite Michael Berresse, who is Bowen’s longtime boyfriend"
Wha wha whattttt?
link
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/7/06
^ Anybody know if that's true?
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/20/04
I didn't think there were people who didn't know hat.
I don't know hat
And I didn't know that
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/7/06
I too didn't know that. But I know ALL about hats.
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/7/06
And that Huffington Post article is awesome.
a. Welcome
b. Heart [tos] love
c. Thanks for getting on a letter! Send one to Ellen & Oprah :]
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