Tuesday, May 10, 2011

PUMBA! NOT IN FRONT OF THE KIDS! I kind of don't want to post this link, because so much of the fun of The Book of Mormon is the shock of recognition. But if you haven't gotten your tickets yet (despite the fact that I'm sure I told you all to hurry up and buy them after the third or fourth preview performance), you might be waiting for a long, long time. And so I give you NPR's posting of the soundtrack of The Book of Mormon, which will be released for real on May 17. Just please, if you're going to see the show anytime soon, skip Hasa Diga Eebowai for now. And Joseph Smith American Moses, and maybe Man Up. But definitely Hasa Diga Eebowai.

For those of you who have seen the show, the comment thread is open to discuss what the heck the cast is going to perform at the Tonys. My vote is a medley of I Believe (for the pure gorgeousness of the song and Andrew Rannells's voice) and Turn it Off (for the tap dancing), but what the heck is Josh Gad gonna sing?

15 comments:

  1. I've deliberately not listened to anything beyond the opening number ("Hello"), but it seems like that could work as a performance, either for the show itself, or with interpolations from other shows and revised lyrics as the Big Opening Number for the actual show.

    And we should note that NPH will return as host, which should be interesting.

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  2. Matt, I love your idea of "Hello" being the opening number for the show.  And if it doesn't happen, I will be sorely disappointed.

    As for The Book of Mormon's big Tony number(s), I would love to see Turn It Off.  However, its tap-dancy goodness could suffer next to the Anything Goes cast, assuming they perform the title song.  The other problem with Turn It Off is that it's only really a showcase for Rory O'Malley.  I Believe would definitely be a terrific showcase for Rannells -- but so would All-American Prophet.  As for Gad... he doesn't really sing a helluva lot in the show anyway, so as long as he gets a chance to be funny, I'll be happy.  (One of his lyrics in I Am Africa is one of my favorites in the show, but I can't see them doing that song.)

    And the other trouble with listening to the soundtrack nonstop for the last three days: I really want to fly back to NYC and see the show again. 

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  3. Stopped by the box office Monday. For a pair of Friday night, non-premium orchestra center, next available was February. Didn't pull the trigger - I'm sure it will be April by the time I get back to midtown.

    That said, the girl behind me got a single, partial-view orchestra for tomorrow night.

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  4. I'm expecting Turn it Off, with a dash of something else in there that features the leads - perhaps a bit of "I Believe" and "Man Up?"  Okay, I have no idea.

    And please excuse the shameless plug, but my theater's online fundraising auction has house seats to Book of Mormon. They're already up to $880 (with a week to go until the auction ends), BUT, the package also includes a backstage visit with actor Michael Potts, and drinks with show co-writer Robert Lopez. You can check it out here:
    http://www.biddingforgood.com/auction/item/Browse.action?categoryId=132897799&auctionId=124629863

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  5. Hmmm... I wonder if I can talk my husband into driving from San Diego to LA to meet up with you guys?  The tricky thing is going to be getting out of work early enough to make it for Happy Hour.

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  6. I love Cat & the Fiddle! And bella, thanks for clearing up your name here and on twitter -- I kept wondering!

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  7. bella wilfer1:20 PM

    Haha - my secret life as a commenter exposed due to my less-secret identity on twitter.  The worlds had to collide at some point, I suppose. :)

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  8. bella wilfer1:21 PM

    BTW, I am hoping that "happy hour" is somewhat of a general term and doesn't actually mean, like, 5pm.  If it does, I'll aim to get out of work as soon as possible, but there's no way I'll make it for actual happy hour hours...

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  9. It's a decidedly more general term, involving the consumption of food and drinks in a communal environment after normal work hours.

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  10. bella wilfer2:33 PM

    Fabulous, that's what I thought. 

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  11. Sharon3:41 PM

    I'm in!  Just let me know where and when.

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  12. D'Arcy4:09 PM

    Didn't we recently do a "what to do in San Francisco" thread? Let's see... Italian dinner in North Beach, Chinese food and gawking in Chinatown (unless you're more cosmopolitan than I am - I grew up in a pretty white bread town so SF was a whole new world to me), chocolate at Ghirardelli's at Ghirardelli Square... walk along the pier, the Presidio... I could probably go on but maybe people who actually live in the area could make better suggestions.

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  13. Maggie4:13 PM

    Bummed that I'm going to miss this by a few days - will be doing work/pleasure trip to LA (work)/Newport Beach (work)/Santa Barbara (pleasure) the following week. 

    Any Santa Barbara suggestions would be much appreciated, especially food-related.

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  14. KarenNM6:29 PM

    I really really really want to get to NYC this summer, mainly to see this show, as well as the McQueen exhibit at the Met.  Now if I only could find a plane tix from Portland for less than ~$500... 

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  15. sloschenkohl2:15 PM

    Thanks for the reminder on that thread; I'll have to go looking for it. I will be in San Francisco for a few days starting this weekend and will have an afternoon to kill on Saturday. I've already done a number of the well-known tourist stops. This time, my only must see is the Exploratorium's Wave Organ Beyond that, I'm hoping to craft a good afternoon photo walk starting at the Ferry Building. Would love suggestions for offbeat/interesting things to see in that part of town!

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