My Musical Theater Voyage of Discovery; The Sondheim Files - Company

I remember what it was that made me go out and buy the cast album of COMPANY. I was a freshman in college; it was 1982 and I was living in my first bachelor pad. One night there was a special on PBS called Broadway Plays Washington. Elaine Stritch came out and sang The Ladies Who Lunch – and the next day I went to the Sound Warehouse in North East Mall and bought that record album. I was hooked and it was immediate. Enthralled by every note, by every sentence, by every nuance and philosophy, by its’ sexiness and sophistication, I could not get enough of it. Still, when listening to this cast album, it only takes the opening three or four notes of certain tracks to make my breathing shallow and something in the firey pit of my stomach (and other anatomical locations) stir. I have the OBC in my Ipod and I listen to it with affection and elation.

I ALSO have the revival cast album in my Ipod – the Roundabout revival that is so reviled by so many. Tough. I saw that show. I LIKED that show. I like listening to Boyd Gaines and Jane Krakowski. I love Veanne Cox and Danny Burstein. I even like the version of Ladies Who Lunch by Debra Monk that has caused so many people to say to me “well… she’s not Elaine Stritch..” uh YEAH.. she’s DEBRA MONK. She put her OWN damn spin on the number! And, ps, I LOVE Diana Canova and Kate Burton. LOVE them. It’s pretty hard to not be thrilled by La Chanze, too. So, yeah, I have this cd in my Ipod and I listen to it.

I do NOT have the last revival cd in my Ipod. The reasons are academic: I’m poor. I am, now, and always have been a struggling artist. I can’t afford everything – and though the production is much lauded and Raul Esparza has a DIVINE singing voice, I have never been able to cough up the dough to buy the cd. One day I will – and I bet I will love it.

Do you know what I WISH were in my Ipod? A video of Lynn Redgrave doing The Ladies Who Lunch. I have a bootleg dvd of the production and THAT is some wonderful reinvention, my dears. SHE is (what they call ) The Shit.