“Wherever it came from, the musical came with its hair mussed and with an innocent, indolent, irreverent look on its bright, bland face.”
It’s a beautiful day in our neighborhood. The sun is brightly shining and glinting sharply here and there between the leaves of the oak trees. Even the horrific tenants next door are quiet enough so I can open my window. The birds are singing, happily I presume, and they’re at the feeders enjoying breakfast. Gracie and the cats are napping. It feels idyllic, perfect to inspire some sort of a poem, a short one like an Emily Dickinson’s.
I’m going off cape today to the Apple store. I probably shouldn’t as it is an occasion for sin as the nuns would say. I think the Apple store entices me to spend and be an electronic glutton, but I’m looking for some technical help. When I bought my Mac, I paid for one on one tutoring, and that’s what I’m getting today. I figured out to copy the Ghana 1969-1971 DVD Tim made but got flummoxed when it appeared as two files so I couldn’t figure out how to copy it. They’ll show me, and by the time I get home, I’ll have forgotten so I’m bringing a pad of paper.
This is a busy week for me with something every day. Most are social events. The play this week on Friday is another musical. My friend, Tony, a musician, gets personally offended because I don’t like musicals. I tell him I love music, but that doesn’t soothe his feelings which I hate to hurt, but I can’t lie. I love drama and mystery and comedies, not a play where someone sings when words could work as well or even better. I appreciate music, but I appreciate even more the turn of a phrase or the cleverness of a playwright. I’ll go this week as I skipped the last musical, but I saw a musical just last week at the other theater so I think I’m being punished.
I figure hell isn’t fire and brimstone. We are stuck for eternity with what drives us crazy. People who don’t like kids will be in a room with thousands of terrible two’s all of whom need their diapers changed. Speed demons will be buckled into cars which go no more than 5 MPH. Beer drinkers, never seen without a bottle in hand, will be a hand’s length away from an ever flowing tap. I will be stuck in a theater watching the same musical over and over. It will be one like Carrie which is on every worst musical list. The devil will chose singers who sing off-key, which, I suppose, doesn’t make them singers at all. I will have to sit there performance after performance listening to lines like,
“All we ever do is park
Then for hours you grope me in the dark”
Tags: Carrie, hell, lovely day, Mac, musicals, perfect weather
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keepthecoffeecoming.blog 
August 9, 2011 at 12:56 pm
Mixed weather here today and now its getting rather cold. I haven´t been upstairs yet but if it feels only slightly chilly up there I´ll start a fire in the stove.
I have always been pretty sure my hell will be cold and when I try to light a fire in the stove I´m out of matches 🙂 🙂 🙂
There are a few musicals I actually like. Singing in the rain is one of them. But those I really love is the really lousy one and there are plenty of those around 🙂 🙂 🙂
Have a great day!
Christer.
August 9, 2011 at 3:03 pm
Christer,
It is still beautiful. I am sitting in the Apple store where they couldn’t solve my problem. It was a long ride for nothing.
I love Singing in the Rain too!
August 9, 2011 at 4:39 pm
Here you go, Christer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1ZYhVpdXbQ
It always surprises me when you say you don’t like musicals, Kathleen. We were introduced to musicals from a very young age (Desert Song, My Fair Lady, Easter Parade, The Wizard of Oz, Roberta, Peter Pan, Brigadoon, Guys and Dolls, The King and I, The Music Man, West Side Story, Damn Yankees, The Pajama Game, Oklahoma, Carousel, The Sound of Music, and, of course, South Pacific – I could go on and on) and Mom always made listening to them on the “hi-fi” fun. I remember her getting the LPs from the library and sitting on the living room floor reading the album stories from cover to cover.
Could you expound on why it is you don’t like them? I’m curious. Didn’t you like The Rocky Horror Picture Show? Cabaret?
Speaking of Carrie, it put me in mind of a musical I saw in ’76 with Yul Brenner called “Home Sweet Homer”. It was based on the story of Odysseus and Penelope. It was Terrible, but every once in a while I find myself singing the first line to the title song … I’m coming home, sweet Homer … thank God that’s all I remember. Now, that would be hell !
August 9, 2011 at 8:01 pm
You might check this:
http://www.kenstone.net/fcp_homepage/making_dvd_copies.html
Cheers
August 9, 2011 at 1:35 pm
Hi Kat,
How do you feel about opera? Because I think the level of dialogue in many operas is about the same as the musical you quoted. The good part about opera is that unless you read the libretto or are fluent in several European languages, you don’t really know how bad the dialogue is. 🙂
It started out sunny up here but is now beginning to cloud up. We’re supposed to have some T storms this afternoon. I should go out and see if the basil has survived the weed whacker man. He gets a bit enthusiastic and the basil is not in a logical place. Hope your one-on-one class is fun and instructive.
August 9, 2011 at 3:07 pm
Hi Caryn,
I am not an opera fan though I did give it a try. I like operettas such as Gilbert and Sullivan-love the Micado. Because I don’t understand the opera, i don’t like it.
The weather has stayed lovely, but I am stuck here in the Apple store string out the window at the weather. i will console myself by going to Barnes and Nobel.
August 9, 2011 at 4:28 pm
I could see West Side Story again on Broadway, our first High School trip. Recently Chicago, a B cast in Orlando was richly improved over the movie but I love both. So I guess there are some musicals I can’t leave off my dance card. But your prediction is correct. Now let’s see if we can think of some others. People prone to “road rage” will be stuck in a traffic jam with people who can’t hear them.
August 9, 2011 at 5:14 pm
Sheila,
I love Rocky Horror but somehow in my head I don’t think of it as a musical. I think that I’m bored sometimes with the music. You named many I do like but most of those have a good story behind them. Maybe that’s the difference. I just saw Dames at Sea, and I thought it really boring. Peter Pan, The Sound of Music, South Pacific have great plots to go with the music. The dialogue just isn’t a throw in to lead to the music. Look at West Side Story-that’s a perfect example of a plot with wonderful music. Those sorts of musicals I like.
I came to love Camelot and many other musicals mom brought home, but Roberta wasn’t one of them (flip side of The Desert Song). It was just too much music.
I hope I made sense.
August 9, 2011 at 5:18 pm
Z&Me,
I just mentioned in the comment to Sheila that West Side Story is the perfect musical for me: one with great music and an amazing plot. I just watched it again a few weeks ago on TV and still loved it.
I love the punishment awaiting those with road rage-it’s perfect.
August 9, 2011 at 7:18 pm
I also have a love hate relationship with the local Apple store. I love to visit, but once inside it calls to me to open my wallet and pull out a credit card. It’s a shame that they couldn’t help you with your issue. You might want to go Apple’s free discussion forums and post a question. I have always had another user answer my question faster and easier than at the Apple store. Here is the link:
https://discussions.apple.com/index.jspa
The American musical theater is one of only two naive American musical genres. The other is Jazz and Blues. As a teenager in NYC my father would take us to see a musical at least once a year. There is nothing like live musical theater. Here in the hinterlands of North Texas we have to settle for summer ‘Schlock’ (stock) performances of last year’s broadway hits. I love to listen to the original cast recordings of West Side Story, South Pacific and My Fair Lady. These are my favorites among the many discs that my father left me in his record collection. Today the weather was clear and 105 degrees. If this holds up we will tie the all time record for consecutive 100 degree or hotter days.
August 9, 2011 at 8:01 pm
Bob,
I couldn’t believe they didn’t know how to do what I needed. I knew the original DVD had been done on a Mac so when they told me they didn’t recognize the format I was astonished. My friend, Tim, who made the DVD just sent me step by step directions so I’ll give it a try tomorrow. Thanks for the link. I’ve bookmarked it.
I love live theater and the cape has plenty of choices. I go to at least 6 plays a month every summer.
That’s not a record I’d much want!
August 9, 2011 at 8:55 pm
Thanks, Minicapt, I’m going to give it a try tomorrow!
August 10, 2011 at 3:46 am
The one thing that makes Musical theatre worse than some of the dumb lyrics, is the totally non melodic music. I accept there are notable exceptions (just ask Andrew Lloyd Weber’s bank manager) but to most of your readers horror, I am proud to say I have never seen “The Sound Of Music”
Pete Philistine
August 10, 2011 at 6:17 pm
“The Sound Of Music” … “totally non melodic music” You must be an aficionado of hip-hop/rap and other forms of low-Q entertainment. And DOS 3.3.
Cheers
August 10, 2011 at 8:46 pm
Didn’t actually say that minicapt.
Cheers
Pete
1APC
August 10, 2011 at 11:37 pm
Pete,
I agree about the dumb lyrics of some songs which is the main reason I have trouble with musicals.