Overheard online at the TKTS booth:

Gruff older gentleman at the window: “Two for Legally Blind.”
Ticket agent: “I only have partial view.”
Gentleman: “Well that figures, don’t it?”

WARNING: THE FOLLOWING POST IS INTENDED FOR ONLY THE GEEKIEST OF THEATRE GEEKS AND MAY BE VIEWED AS A COMPLETE WASTE OF TIME BY THOSE WHO DO NOT IDENTIFY AS SUCH

I found a URL, part of the Internet Broadway Database, which will tell you which Broadway personalities share your birthday, and another URL which will tell you which Broadway shows opened on your birthday.

Here’s the treasure trove of useless, but interesting info I found out just searching yesterday’s birthdays:

® W.H. Auden, gay poet, also wrote plays, books and lyrics, and adaptations for Broadway.
® I somehow missed that Rue Mclanahan played Madame Morrible in Wicked in 2005.
® David Geffen was a producer for Cats.
® William Peterson (pre-Grisam) played a hot preacher in Night of the Iguana (see photo)
® Kelsey Grammer has done Macbeth twice and Othello once on Broadway.

And if the ibdb’s information is correct, my birthday was host to a flurry of openings at the turn of the century and then NOTHING from Mask and Gown in 1957 (which closed in a month) until Mandy Patinkin in Concert (Oy…) in 2001 which seemed to be a one night deal in honor of my 33rd.

Anyways, have fun fellow geeks.

Whatsonstage.com looks forward at what 2008 will have to offer on the London stage. Among the productions mentioned is the Trevor Nunn-helmed musicalization of Gone with the Wind, starring Jill Paice, of Curtains (”It’s a pas de deaux…for two!”).

The world premiere of Gone With the Wind will open in the West End at the New London Theatre on April 22, following previews that begin April 2. Music and lyrics are by sociologist-turned-composer Margaret Martin. (HT Playbill.com)

The article at What’s On Stage recalls a quote from Noel Coward, which in turn reminded me of a quote from Dorothy Parker, which in turn reminded me of a couple of theatrical urban legend stories of onstage mishaps. Hope at least one of them makes you chuckle.

Of Bonnie Langford’s stage debut (at the tender age of seven) in the 1971 musicalization of Gone with the Wind, Coward is credited to have said “they ought to cut the second act…and the child’s throat.”

Apparently a live horse relieved itself onstage on opening night of the same production, and Coward’s helpful advice was that “If they’d stuffed the child’s head up the horse’s arse, they would have solved two problems at once.”

Of Katherine Hepburn’s acting in the 1934 flop, The Lake, Dorothy Parker quipped that the actress “ran the gamut of emotions from A to B.”

Urban legend #1–A friend saw a production of West Side Story, in which during the end of Act One, Tony accidentally drops the knife, so Action picks it up and kills Bernardo, forcing Anita to later improvise “A boy like that! Who…knew..some…one…who killed your brother.”

Urban legend #2–Two actresses onstage who hated each other (I thought one was Tallulah Bankhead, but Google debunked my theory). In the middle of their big scene together the stage manager cues the phone to ring about ten pages too early. Tallulah (or whoever) answers the phone, says “Yes, yes…uh-huh,” hands it to her rival and says “It’s for you…”

The folks over at After Elton have taken a look at the New York theatre scene through lavender-colored glasses, assembling a “best of gay theatre” list for 2007. Hat tip to Movie Dearest for pointing it “out.”

Highlights include:
® The Gayest Show of the Year: Xanadu (runner up: The Ritz)

® Best Performance by an Openly Gay Actor in a Broadway Musical: tie between Cheyenne Jackson (Xanadu) and David Hyde Pierce (Curtains)

® Lifetime Achievement Award: Edward Albee

® Special Features on Grey Gardens; Die, Mommie, Die; Make Me a Song; Forbidden Broadway; Tea and Sympathy (directed by Jonathan Silverstein); and The Little Dog Laughed

® Most Memorable Male Nude Scene: Ian McKellan in King Lear (runner up: Johnny Galecki in The Little Dog Laughed; honorable mention: Steve Blanchard [photo above] in Frankenstein)

® A Disappointing Gay Scene in an Otherwise Great Musical: Spring Awakening

® General Excellence Award to Off-Broadway Theater for Serious Treatment of Gay Themes and Subject Matter: Speech and Debate; 100 Saints You Should Know; In a Dark, Dark House; Some Men; Dying City; The Jocker; An Octopus Love Story

® Best Gay Musical Presentation in Brooklyn: Yank!

Even though Joe and I lived in New York City eleven years between the two of us, I guess we’re still technically tourists when we go (although we’re not the type who stop the pedestrian traffic flow to take pictures of the Naked Cowboy in Times Square).

Given our technically touristic status, I present a few pics and anecdotes from a tourists’ eye view.

Funny things we overheard while we were there:
® On line at TKTS by a sassy brassy know-it-all woman in red: “Well she looked like a size one, and had boobs out to here. I don’t even know how she balanced on those skates.” Lets hope she was talking about Xandu’s Kerry Butler.

® On line at Amy’s Breads, (home of the best sticky buns on the planet) by an older man who was there with his wife, when it came time to decide who was paying, “It doesn’t really matter because what’s mine is hers and what’s hers is…hers.”

® As we were filing out of Pygmalion (review coming soon), further proving the need to continue educating audiences, “Oy! There was so much to listen to. I just couldn’t do it. I needed the music.”

Celebrity sightings:
® Annie Golden–of Hair’s original cast and film, currently understudying in Xanadu, singing to herself in the subway station.

® David Schwimmer–pretending to be inconspicuous making a phone call in the middle of an empty lobby at Young Frankenstein.

® Meryl Streep–looking a little stressed, dashing past a gaggle of pedestrians on W. 44th.

Pics of the windows at Macy’s (cell phone pics don’t do them justice):

A 3-D bird’s eye view of Lincoln Center

Mr. Winter

Courtroom scene from Miracle on 34th Street.

“The Verdict” from Miracle on 34th Street.

Natalie Wood pulling Mr. Kringle’s beard from Miracle on 34th Street.

It seems that Thursday’s link to USA Today’s “insiders guide” to Disney’s new film, Enchanted, has disappeared from the net, so I thought I’d publish it here in an easy to digest post. Hat tip to Susan Wloszczyna for doing the research (or copying the press release) originally.

Here are several of the sources from Disney’s animation history that are referenced in Enchanted. I love this kind of stuff and wish I’d read the article before I’d seen the film.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)
® Prince Edward (James Marsden) and Giselle (Amy Adams) sing of True Love’s Kiss, which is similar to “love’s first kiss” that awakens Snow White (and Sleeping Beauty). The tune also is reminiscent of I’m Wishing/One Song and Some Day My Prince Will Come.

® Giselle tumbles into a well like the one used by Snow White.

® While in Times Square, Giselle bumps into a scowling little person and cries out, “Grumpy,” thinking it’s one of the dwarfs.

® Giselle tidies up Robert’s messy apartment while singing Happy Working Song, which has echoes of Whistle While You Work.

® Susan Sarandon’s evil Narissa disguises herself as an old hag and offers Giselle a poisoned apple, just like Snow White’s Queen.

® A candy apple offered to Giselle by Narissa’s accomplice Nathaniel (Timothy Spall) bears a skull mark like the one seen in Snow White.

® Edward mistakes a television set for the Magic Mirror.

® Giselle falls into a comatose state like Snow White (and Sleeping Beauty)

Cinderella (1950)
® The soap bubbles during Happy Working Song show Giselle’s reflection, just as they do when Cinderella cleans.

® Giselle’s knack for turning curtains into dresses is similar to how mice Jaq and Gus make over an old gown for Cinderella.

® The last name of Robert’s fiancee, Nancy (Idina Menzel), is Tremaine, like Cinderella’s stepmother, Lady Tremaine.

® Giselle must receive true love’s kiss by midnight, which is Cinderella’s deadline at the ball.

® Giselle loses a glasslike slipper.

® Edward stays at The Grand Duke Hotel, named for the royal character.

Sleeping Beauty (1959)
® Giselle builds her dream prince with her animal pals, much like Princess Aurora’s forest friends use Prince Phillip’s clothes to pretend to be her imaginary beau.

® Giselle’s ability to sew a dress from curtains is the opposite of the fairies, who fumble about while creating a gown for Aurora.

® Narissa transforms into a fire-breathing dragon, just like the bad fairy Maleficent.

® Prince Edward’s appearance and demeanor are modeled on Prince Phillip.

The Little Mermaid (1989)
® As Giselle studies the fish tank at Robert’s workplace, Part of Your World is heard in the background.

® That’s How You Know features a calypso beat, just like Under the Sea and Kiss the Girl.

Beauty and the Beast (1991)
® A bell jar with a rose sits atop a table in Giselle’s cartoon tree house.

® While Giselle tell the story of Little Red Riding Hood to Robert’s daughter, Morgan, a Belle doll with sunglasses sits in a chair.

® Giselle and Robert waltz at the ball under a chandelier.

® Robert’s ball outfit recalls the Beast.

Rapunzel (2009)
® In a nod to the upcoming computer-animated fairy tale, a group of children in a Central Park band shell perform a stage version of Rapunzel during the song That’s How You Know.

And for the diehard Disney-philes:
® The troll who chases Giselle is modeled on the giant in the 1947 short Mickey and the Beanstalk. His loincloth is patched together with remnants of dresses worn by Snow White, Belle, Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella, and he’s wearing earring made of Ariel’s shells from The Little Mermaid.

® The restaurant where Giselle and Patrick have a “date” is called Bella Notte, after the song during the spaghetti-eating scene at Tony’s restaurant in Lady and the Tramp.

® The divorcing couple’s last name is Banks, like the family in Mary Poppins. The old lady feeing pigeons in the park is another Poppins reference.

® During some TV soap opera dialogue, the characters mentioned–Angela, Jerry and Ogden–refer to voice actors from Beauty and the Beast: Angela Lansbury (Mrs. Potts), Jerry Orbach (Lumiere) and David Ogden Stiers (Cogsworth).

® The journalist who interviews Giselle on TV is Mary Ilene Caselotti, named for the voice actress who did Sleeping Beauty (Mary Costa), Cinderella (Ilene Woods) and Snow While (Adriana Caselotti).

For those suffering from Broadway glitz withdrawal due to the ongoing strike, there is a glimmer of hope on the horizon.

Several Broadway shows and performers will be freezing their butts off to keep you entertained during the 81st Annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade tomorrow from 9am to noon on NBC.

According to Playbill.com, those making an appearance will include:

® Cast members from Legally Blonde performing “What You Want.”

® The Mary Poppins company offering “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.”

® Xanadu performing a medley of tunes including “All Over The World,” “Magic” and “Xanadu.” 

® The cast of Young Frankenstein singing”Transylvania Mania.”

® The Radio City Rockettes…kicking a lot, I would imagine.

® Members of Camp Broadway, the theatre arts education company, performing “Making Magic,” a new tuned penned by Michael Feinstein with lyrics by Bill Schermerhorn.

® Spring Awakening’s Lea Michele and Jonathan Groff belting out “Give My Regards to Broadway” atop the M&M’s Chocolate Candies on Broadway float, featuring M&M’s Green as Elphaba in Wicked, Orange and Yellow as A Chorus Line cast members, Blue as the Phantom in The Phantom of the Opera, and Red as Spamalot’s King Arthur.

® Sarah Brightman, dressed as a Pirate Queen singing “The Journey Home” on the Jolly Polly Pirate Ship.

® Hairspray film star Nikki Blonsky performing “You Can’t Stop the Beat” on the American Classic Malt Shop float.

® The Drowsy Chaperone’s Bob Saget interviewed high above Manhattan in a helicopter tracing the parade route for viewers.

® Feinstein and Tony winner Anika Noni Rose will perform another Feinstein-Schermerhorn song, “Give Me the Key to This Wonderful City,” aboard the History Channel’s New York Tin Toy float.

I do my best to keep up with technology. Pretty much all of my gadgets perform their basic functions: the all-in-one in the office will print and copy, and usually accepts a fax, but I haven’t gotten around to teaching it to scan yet. The DVR records when it’s supposed to, but there is a whole slew of on-screen menus I’ve yet to explore. I’m pretty sure it will make toast and jam for me in the morning if I read enough up on it.