Podcasts by So Much Stuff to Sing
A podcast about the American Musical.
Hosted by Shannon in New York and Erik in Prague; twice monthly.
Further podcasts by Shannon Dohar and Erik Stadnik
Podcast on the topic Darstellende Kunst
All episodes
Episode 86 - Beautiful from 2023-11-17T10:58
To round out our off-Broadway miniseries, Shannon and Erik take a look at "Beautiful" from the online hit Heathers: The Musical, and don't always like what they see. Are they just the w...
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Episode 85 - The Origin of Love from 2023-11-01T10:00
From one queer, cult, off-Broadway hit to the next, it's time for Stephen Trask and John Cameron Mitchell's Hedwig and the Angry Inch and what is arguably its thesis song: "The Origin o...
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Episode 84 - Science Fiction Double Feature from 2023-10-15T13:13
Happy Halloween, everyone! By sheer coicidence, our Off-Broadway miniseries timed up with spooky seaon, creating a wonderful synchronicity whereby our episde about "Science Fiction Double Featur...
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Episode 83 - Try to Remember from 2023-10-05T16:35
We're back -- a little late -- but we come bearing a new miniseries! This time, we're heading off-Broadway to explore the wide range of shows and songs that fall under that collective banner.
Episode 82 - She Used to Be Mine from 2023-09-15T10:00
We finish our miniseries on 11 o'clock numbers with one of the defining shows and numbers of Broadway's current era: "She Used to Be Mine" from Waitress. The discussion gievs us a chanc...
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Episode 81 - Lot's Wife from 2023-09-01T10:00
And now for something truly and genuinely completely different. Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori's Caroline, or Change first premiered on Broadway in 2004, and while the show wasn't a su...
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Episode 80 - Sit Down, You're Rocking the Boat from 2023-08-16T11:46
Another 11 o'clock number, please! This time, we're talking 1950's Guys & Dolls, Frank Loesser, and Nicely-Nicely Johnson -- yes, it's time for everyone's favorite gangster revival numb...
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Episode 79 - Fifty Percent from 2023-08-01T10:00
We're back and starting a brand new miniseries. This time, we're looking at the so-called "eleven o'clock number" in a vairety of its permutations. First up, we have an archetypal example of the...
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Episode 78 - A Strange Loop from 2023-07-15T17:10
Our final title song is also our most recent. We're back to Michael R. Jackson's A Strange Loop, which has opened -- and closed -- on Broadway since we last discussed it, but not withou...
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Episode 77 - In the Heights from 2023-07-01T10:00
Another title song, and this time it's a title song that opens the show and sets up the rest of the show. We're talking about In the Heights again, exploring how Lin-Manuel Miranda uses...
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Episode 76 - Kiss of the Spider Woman from 2023-06-15T11:55
We're continuing with our title songs miniseries, and we're back with Kander and Ebb for the first time in a while. This time, we're talking about "Kiss of the Spider Woman," and Shannon makes a...
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Episode 75 - Oklahoma! from 2023-06-05T11:55
We're back with a new miniseries! We're tackling title songs over the course of the next four episodes, and we're starting with the one that you're probably thinking of already. We're back to Ro...
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Episode 74 - The Ballad of Guiteau from 2023-05-15T10:00
It's the end of our annual Sondheim birthday celebration, and our last murder ballad. This episode, we're back with Assassins looking at "The Ballad of Guiteau." Charles Guiteau is a th...
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Episode 73 - The Ballad of Booth from 2023-05-01T11:12
We're continuing our Sondheim birthday miniseries, this time focusing on his murder ballads, and we're moving on to a show that is dominated by murder ballads -- 1991's Assassins. Join ...
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Episode 72 - My Friends from 2023-04-15T10:00
To quote Shannon, "Murder! Murder! Murder!"
Yes, we're carrying on with this year's Sondheim theme of murder ballads, and we're carrying on with Sweeney Todd. This episode...
Episode 71 - The Ballad of Sweeney Todd from 2023-04-01T14:53
It's Sondheim time again -- the most wonderful time of the year here at SMSTS. This year, Shannon got her pick of themes, and she chose Sondheim's murder ballads. So, y'know, buckle up.
W...
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Episode 70 - I Know Where I've Been from 2023-03-15T13:34
We conclude our look at inspirational songs with "I Know Where I've Been" from Hairspray, the 2002 Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman musical based on the John Waters film of the same name....
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Episode 69 - Tomorrow from 2023-03-01T20:08
We return to Annie, a show we last talked about a few years back with Miss Hanigan's delicious villain song. This time, however, we're taking a look at the show's signature tune --and o...
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Episode 68 - The Impossible Dream from 2023-02-16T12:36
Some great shows have a few mediocre songs, and some great songs come from otherwise mediocre shows. Such is the case with this episode's selection -- or is it? Join us as we continue our journe...
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Episode 67 - Climb Ev'ry Mountain from 2023-02-01T17:00
Welcome to 2023! As we enter a new year, we could all do with some inspiration, so we're starting the year off with a miniseries of inspirational songs. First up, we look at The Sound of Mus...
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Episode 66 - The Muppet Christmas Carol from 2022-12-15T12:14
It's the most wonderful time of the year! For our third annual holiday special, we're being the rules a bit and looking at a festive movie musical -- namely, 1992's The Muppet Chris...
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Episode 65 - Meadowlark from 2022-12-03T19:46
The second and final part of our look at songs that escaped the shows they were written for brings us to arguably one of the greatest songs never to be performed on Broadway -- "Meadowlark" from...
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Episode 64 - You've Got Possibilities from 2022-11-15T14:48
And now for something completely different. We're embarking on a mini-mini-series: a 2-part look at songs that managed to have a life even if they shows they came from didn't. First up, it's "Yo...
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Episode 63 - One Second and a Million Miles from 2022-11-01T11:25
We conclude our tour of musical theater blindspots with Jason Robert Brown's 2014 The Bridges of Madison County and the sweeping love duet "One Second and a Million Miles." Will Shannon...
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Episode 62 - I Believe from 2022-10-15T12:41
We're trying to take care of musical theater blindspots, and this time it's Shannon's turn to introduce Erik to something new. So, how will he respond to "I Believe" from 2011's The Book of ...
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Episode 61 - Don't Cry for Me Argentina from 2022-10-01T15:59
We just couldn't stay away from the Andrew Lloyd Webber/Time Rice songbook as we cover our musical theater blind spots. This time, it's Evita with Patti Lupone singing "Don't Cry for Me...
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Episode 60 - Everything's Coming up Roses from 2022-09-15T10:00:16
We're back after our brief end of summer hiatus, and we've got a new miniseries in store. We all have our blind spots -- shows that we feel as if we should know, but don't. In this miniseries, w...
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Episode 59 - I Still Believe from 2022-08-15T12:43:35
To close out our look at the Broadway megamusical, we turn our attention to one of the most popular -- and controversial -- entries in the subgenre: Miss Saigon. Join us as we dicuss "I...
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Episode 58 - Nobody's Side from 2022-08-01T10:00:27
Not all megamusicals were big hits -- not on Broadway, at least. This episode, we look at one of the most infamous and enduring of the failed London to Broadway transfers: Chess. The sc...
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Episode 57 - The Phantom of the Opera from 2022-07-15T10:00:59
The undisputed king of the megamusical, Andrew Lloyd Webber, is back with his biggest hit, and one of the biggest hits in musical theater history: The Phantom of the Opera.
This ...
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Episode 56 - Jellicle Songs for Jellicle Cats from 2022-07-01T13:12:48
MAKE IT BIGGER! That was the refrain in the 80s on the West End and Broadway, and we're looking at some of the highlights of the megamusical era in our new miniseries.
We begin with...
Episode 55 - Hey, Little Songbird from 2022-06-15T11:52:09
We conclude our series on seduction songs with a trip down to 2019's Hadestown --written by Anaïs Mitchell and developed and directed by Rachel Chavkin -- to discuss "Hey, Little Songbi...
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Episode 54 - Charming from 2022-06-01T10:02:20
Our seduction song cycle moves to Moscow as we revisit a perennial favorite, Dave Malloy's Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812 and one of that show's standout moments -- "Charm...
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Episode 53 - Razzle Dazzle from 2022-05-15T09:03:16
We continue our run of seduction songs with a return to one of the first shows we ever covered: Chicago. This time, we're looking at Billy Flynn's "Razzle Dazzle," a song that's both da...
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Episode 52 - Big Spender from 2022-05-01T12:47:09
Hey, big spender! Spend a little time with Erik & Shannon as they begin a new miniseries, featuring songs of seduction. We begin with one of the most blatant come-ons ever staged for Broadway, "...
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Episode 51 - Moments in the Woods from 2022-04-15T12:35:58
We conclude our journey through Into the Woods with The Baker's Wife's moving and profound exploration of the meaning of life, "Moments in the Woods."
All clips are from t...
Episode 50 - On the Steps of the Palace from 2022-04-01T10:00:31
After a brief break, we are back with our annual Sondheim series featuring the "I know now" songs from Into the Woods.
This time, we look at one of the most challenging and da...
Episode 49 - Giants in the Sky from 2022-03-01T11:59:26
We continue our annual Stephen Sondheim celebration with a discussion of "Giants in the Sky," as we go deeper Into the Woods and look at what our chracters are learning.
All c...
Episode 48 - I Know Things Now from 2022-02-15T13:32:08
In honor of the upcoming anniversary of his birthday, we are beginning our third annual Stephen Sondheim miniseries. This time, we are focusing on four of the songs from Into the Woods, pe...
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Episode 47 - I'm Here from 2022-02-01T08:05:51
We've come to the end of our quick tour through breakout performances, but we've saved one of the best for last. This episode, we're discussing Cynthia Erivo's truly breathtaking arrival on the ...
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Episode 46 - Gimme Gimme from 2022-01-16T13:43:02
After a brief detour, we've returned to our miniseries on star-making performances. This time, we're talking about Sutton Foster's breakout role in 2002's Thoroughly Modern Millie, and ...
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Episode 45 - Co-op from 2022-01-01T17:00
And now for something competely different! Join us as we discuss the Documentary Now episode "Original Cast Album: Co-op" and talk about the songs, the jokes, and how it compares to
Episode 44 - Miss Marmelstein from 2021-12-01T17:00
It's time...for Barbra. Before she was an icon and a legend, she was a featured performer in 1962's I Can Get It For You Wholesale, stealing the show singing "Miss Marmelstein." We talk...
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Episode 43 - I Got Rhythm from Girl Crazy from 2021-11-15T16:54:49
Join us as we begin our next miniseries, this time talking about unknowns who were turned into megastars, practically overnight, and the songs that made it happen. Our first shooting star is one...
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Episode 42 - Carnaval del Barrio from In the Heights from 2021-11-01T16:00
It's time to alza la bandera as we conclude our dance number miniseries with "Carnaval del Barrio" from In the Heights written, of course, by Lin-Manuel Miranda. Full of of hum...
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Episode 41 - One from A Chorus Line from 2021-10-15T16:00
We're dancing for our jobs and our lives as we enter The Chorus Line and it's powerful finale "One." Another Pulitzer Prize winner, A Chorus Line is one of Broadway's most famo...
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Episode 40 - Brotherhood of Man from How to Suceed in Business without Really Trying from 2021-10-01T16:00
We're dancing as if our jobs depended on it as we continue our jaunt through some iconic production numbers. This time we're talking about Frank Loesser's Pulitzer Prize winner How to Succee...
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Episode 39 - Hello Dolly! from Hello Dolly! from 2021-09-15T15:55
Everybody on stage for the big dance number! Yes, for our next miniseries, we are looking at some of Broadway's most iconic production numbers, starting with 1964's "Hello Dolly!" from...yes, yo...
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Episode 38 - Defying Gravity from Wicked from 2021-09-01T16:00
We conclude our series on vocal damage with the most iconic song of Broadway's past 20 years: "Defying Gravity" from Wicked. We talk about its reception, its influence, and whether it d...
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Episode 37 - I Dreamed a Dream from Les Miserables from 2021-08-15T12:03:23
Wlecome to the 80s megamusical and its child, the power ballad! This episode, we discuss "I Dreamed a Dream" from one of the biggest hits of all time, Les Miserables by Alain Boublil an...
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Episode 36 - And I Am Telling You from Dreamgirls from 2021-08-01T16:00
Enter the Belters. As we continue look at vocal showpieces, we move into the 1980s to look at Dreamgirls and Jennifer Holliday's extraordinary performance of "And I Am Telling You (I'm ...
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Episode 35 - Glitter and Be Gay from Candide from 2021-07-15T16:00
We start off what we are affectionately calling our "Vocal Damage" miniseries with one of the greatest soprano showpieces every written for the Broadway stage: "Glitter and Be Gay" from Leonard ...
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Episode 34 - How Can I Call This Home? from Parade from 2021-07-01T16:00
We conclude our miniseries on soliloquy songs with one of Shannon's favorites: "How Can I Call This Home?" from Jason Robert Brown's 1998 show Parade. Parade is about an especially dark...
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Episode 33 - Gethsemane (I Only Want to Say) from Jesus Christ Superstar from 2021-06-15T10:00
After 33 episodes, we finally come to the second of the twin pillars of modern musical theater: Andrew Lloyd Webber. Specifcially, we talk about "Gethsemane," Jesus's anguished scream of a song ...
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Episode 32- Cabaret from Cabaret from 2021-06-03T17:55:50
Willlkommen, Bienvenue, Welcome! We continue our exploration of songs that reveal character with the title song from 1966's Kander & Ebb classic Cabaret. Who is Sally Bowles, what does ...
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Episode 31 - Soliloquy from Carousel from 2021-05-15T16:00
We begin a new miniseries, focusing on character songs -- those moments when the spotlight falls on a single character and we get a chance to look inside their heart and soul. Fittingly enough, ...
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Episode 30 - Unworthy of Your Love from Assassins from 2021-05-01T13:57:20
We complete our second annual Sondheim miniseries by looking at "Unworthy of Your Love," the troubling pastiche of 70s love duets from Assassins, one of the most unsettling musicals eve...
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Episode 29 - Please Hello from Pacific Overtures from 2021-04-15T07:11:24
"Please Hello" is from the neglected Sondheim masterpiece Pacific Overtures and is one of the wildest, funniest, and most complicated songs we've ever covered--and maybe one of the best...
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Episode 28 - Losing My Mind from Follies from 2021-04-01T09:55:34
As we continue our annual Sondheim-a-palooza, this time focusing on his pastiche numbers, we come to "Losing My Mind" from Follies. This challening and deeply beautiful show is celebrat...
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Episode 27 - You Could Drive a Person Crazy from Company from 2021-03-15T21:04:39
It's the most Sondheim-ful time of the year! In honor of The Great One's birthday, it's time for another Sondheim mini-series. This time, we'll be tackling a few of our favorite pastiche songs f...
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Episode 26 - Pierre&Natasha from Natasha, Pierre&The Great Comet of 1812 from 2021-03-01T11:39:58
For the first time, we are revisiting a show! Yes, to finish off our mini-series of love duets, we are talking about "Pierre & Natasha" from Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, w...
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Episode 25 - Suddenly Seymour from Little Shop of Horrors from 2021-02-15T11:37:20
We tackle the importance of re-interpretation this episode as we discuss the 2019 Pasadena Playhouse production of Little Shop of Horrors and that show's best known song, "Suddenly Seym...
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Episode 24 - Wheels of a Dream from Ragtime from 2021-02-01T11:00
This episode, we talk about "Wheels of a Dream" from 1997's Ragtime as we continue our miniseries on love duets. Audra McDonald and Brian Stokes Mitchell made this song iconic, and the ...
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Episode 23 - Yours, Yours, Yours from 1776 from 2021-01-15T11:00
Welcome to 2021 and a new miniseries! We're looking at love duets, and we're beginning with "Yours, Yours, Yours" from 1776, the musical about the American Revolution that *isn't* H...
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Episode 22 - Holiday Extravaganza!!! from 2020-12-15T19:19:25
Join us as we take a tour through 4--yes 4--holiday classics that have been in Broadway shows! We get super sappy! Happy Holidays!!!
All clips are used in accordance with the Fair Use Exe...
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Episode 21.5 - Intermission from 2020-12-01T11:08:07
No new episode today, but we'll be back with a holiday extravaganza on December 15th!
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Episode 21 - Popular from Wicked from 2020-11-15T12:06:51
We conclude our mini-arc of classic comic turns with "Popular" from Stephen Schwartz's 2003 mega-blockbuster Wicked. Shannon defends her theatre-going choices, Erik creates a new rule, ...
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Episode 20 - Everybody's Girl from Steel Pier from 2020-11-01T17:00
Some shows become classics. Some vanish without a trace. Some, however, fade with the exception of one stand-out song. Such is the case of "Everybody's Girl" from Kander & Ebb's 1997 show St...
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Episode 19 - Little Girls from Annie from 2020-10-15T10:00
No, we're not talking about that song, but we ARE talking about 1977's Annie--specifically Miss Hannigan's great comic solo "Little Girls." Learn the source of Shannon's complicated rel...
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Episode 18 - Adelaide's Lament from Guys and Dolls from 2020-10-01T10:00
Everything sucks, and the world is on fire, so let's at least have some fun with our show tunes! That's Erik and Shannon's approach, at least, as they begin a miniseries of classic comic turns, ...
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Episode 17 - Inner White Girl from A Strange Loop from 2020-09-15T16:00
Shannon and Erik conclude their trek through Pulizer Prince winning musicals with a song from the most recent entrant to that club: "Inner White Girl" from Michael R. Jackson's A Strange Loo...
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Episode 16 - Yorktown from Hamilton from 2020-09-01T16:00
Shannon and Erik continue their miniseries on selected Pulitzer Prize-winning musicals with a song called "Yorktown (The World Turned Upside Down)" from something called...Hamilton? May...
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Episode 15 - La Vie Boheme from Rent from 2020-08-15T14:27:41
After a technologically induced hiatus, Shannon and Erik are back talking Pulitzer winners. In this case, the mega-smash Rent and its joyous Act I closer, "La Vie Boheme." Does Benny ge...
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A Quick Programming Announcement from 2020-07-31T09:31:39
No new episode this week, but we'll be back on August 15th!
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Episode 14 - You've Got to Be Carefully Taught from South Pacific from 2020-07-15T10:00
New miniseries time! This time, we're covering a quartet of songs from Pulitzer Prize-winning musicals, starting with one of the few Broadway songs of the 1940s about racism: "You've Go...
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Episode 13 - Ever After from Into the Woods from 2020-07-01T10:00
Erik and Shannon complete their exploration of Sondheim's Act One finales by going...yes...Into the Woods and talking about "Ever After." They occasionally wander from the path, though, because ...
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Episode 12 - Sunday from Sunday in the Park with George from 2020-06-15T10:14:54
After an opening statement about #BlackLivesMatter and some items we encourage you to read, Erik and Shannon move on to discussing "Sunday" from Sunday in the Park with George, the firs...
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Episode 11 - A Little Priest from Sweeney Todd from 2020-06-01T09:25:14
As we continue our journey through Sondheim's Act 1 closers, we come to "A Little Priest," from the Sondheim of Shannon's heart, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. But does...
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Episode 10 - A Weekend in the Country from 2020-05-15T04:01
Get ready for some conflict over, of all things, "A Weekend in the Country" from Stephen Sondheim and Hal Prince's A Little Night Music as we begin out next arc, focusing on Act 1 final...
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Episode 9 - Goodbye Until Tomorrow / I Could Never Rescue You from 2020-05-01T08:19:37
Shannon and Erik conclude their first foray into closing numbers with the final song from Jason Robert Brown's The Last Five Years "Goodbye Until Tomorrow / I Could Never Rescue You." T...
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Episode 8 - The Flesh Failures (Let the Sunshine In) from 2020-04-15T04:01
In this episode we move from the imagined, candy-colored early 60s to the real, tumultuous, "hairy" late 60s.
Shannon and Erik continue their mini-series on closing numbers with "The Fles...
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Episode 7 -You Can't Stop the Beat from 2020-04-01T09:10:07
But, what if I *want* to stop the beat? Turns out, it can't be done! Join Shannon and Erik as they continue their mini-series on closing number and ride the rocket ship that is "You Can't Stop t...
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Episode 6 - Anything Goes from 2020-03-15T14:41:11
Wait...so, are you saying that anything goes? Erik and Shannon find themselves on an ocean liner in the 1930s as they begin their cycle of closing numbers with Cole Porter's "Anything G...
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Episode 5 - Rock Island from 2020-03-01T13:27:04
Next stop, River City, Iowa! Erik and Shannon head to the American Midwest in the the early part of the 20th Century to discuss "Rock Island," the bizarre and wonderful opening number from Mered...
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Episode 4 - Prologue from 2020-02-14T21:15:31
Welcome, welcome to Moscow! Erik and Shannon visit Russia during the Napoleonic Wars for Dave Malloy's Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 and its sly, sarcastic opening number,...
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Episode 3 - Tradition from 2020-02-01T05:00
Erik and Shannon voyage to Anatevka to discuss the opening number to end all opening numbers: "Tradition" from Fiddler on the Roof by Bock & Harnick. There is much love for sad dancing,...
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Episode 2 - All That Jazz from 2020-01-14T20:24:49
Shannon and Erik begin their exploration of opening numbers with a shocking, sexy, and seedy cry of liberation: "All That Jazz," from the Kander & Ebb classic Chicago, touching on Fosse...
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Episode 1 - Our Time from 2019-12-31T14:33:37
Join Erik and Shannon as they embark on a new podcast about the American musical. In their first episode, they discuss "Our Time" from the Stephen Sondheim classic/flop Merrily We Roll Along...
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