"Since you've gone away, all the things that they all say, all the things they did for you, it's the reason you don't come through." ~the band (covered by cold war kids below)
I know I posted a song by Cold War Kids in my last post; I'm on a kick. This is a new song (well, the song's not new, it's a cover) that will be on their new album coming out soon.

I've seen a couple shows lately, so here are my thoughts.

The Last Five Years
It's difficult to express how much I love this musical. It was last onstage in New York eleven years ago, and unfortunately I didn't get to see it then. Since that production, the show has gained a cult following, and I guess you could say I'm part of the cult. I discovered the show in college (I think my friend Caroline was the one who introduced me to it), and I fell in love. I found a video bootleg, I got the cast recording, and I couldn't get enough. Jason Robert Brown is the brilliant composer, and he also directed this new production. The show has two actors, and it's about a five-year relationship. Jamie tells the story chronologically, whereas Cathy tells the story in reverse chronological order. They meet once in the middle when their stories intersect. There was a talkback after the show with Jason Robert Brown, and he said about half of the people who see the show don't get it, which I believe. I, however, think the structure is brilliant. It adds so much depth to the show. You're constantly rethinking your opinion of the relationship as you see more of the progression of each character's story and put the pieces together in your head. When seeing this production, I started crying during the first song ("Still Hurting," sung by Cathy at the end of the relationship, because she starts at the end and goes in reverse). Then Jamie launched into "Shiksa Goddess" (at the beginning of the relationship, because he starts at the beginning) and it put a huge grin on my face because it's such a fun song. This show is a roller coaster of emotions. Betsy Wolfe and Adam Cantor play Cathy and Jamie, and they're both incredible. Betsy Wolfe's Cathy is charming and endearing and insecure and hilarious; she really, really impressed me. And of course her voice is amazing (and this is an incredibly difficult score to sing). Her "Summer in Ohio" is particularly fabulous. Adam Cantor also has a great emotional range. I can't say enough good things about this show; I loved finally seeing it live onstage. They're making it into a movie starring Anna Kendrick and Jeremy Jordan, and I'm very cautiously optimistic because I adore both performers but I'm just not sure how this will work as a movie. Finally, here's Sherie Rene Scott singing "Still Hurting" from the original production:



Hands on a Hardbody
I saw this show with my good friend Kelly, whom I was so glad to see and spend some time with. I really enjoyed the show. It's based on a documentary about a contest in which ten people had to keep their hands on a truck, and the person who lasted the longest won the truck. The music was written by Trey Anastasio (of Phish fame) and Amanda Green, and I thought the music was great. It melded multiple genres. I do wish there had been more group numbers rather than solos. I can't stop singing "If I had a Truck," and "Joy of the Lord" was a joyful, energizing showstopper. All the actors are very talented. I was excited to see some of my favorites (Hunter Foster! Allison Case!), who were great, but I was especially impressed with newcomer Kealla Settle. I wasn't thrilled with the ending of the play, but I thought Sergio Trujillo did an inspired job with the choreography (especially because he had to deal with the limitation of having all the actors constantly touching the truck in the center of the stage) and I liked the plot. I think this show might have done better in a smaller, off-Broadway setting (I'm afraid it might not last too long on Broadway), but I hope it does well because it's very entertaining.


I'm leaving for China on Saturday and will be gone for eleven days, so I'll return in a couple of weeks with a huge travel post! I've got my Google Nexus tablet loaded with new books. In case you're curious what I'm reading, here are my choices for the trip:

Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk by Ben Fountain: This book won the National Book Critics Circle Award and was a finalist for the National Book Award; it's received tons of accolades and is on basically every list of the best books of 2012, so I figured it was time to check it out.

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green: I've been putting off reading this because I know it's going to be one giant sobfest, but it keeps getting so much praise that I need to just suck it up and read it. The poor people on the plane with me will have to deal with the massive amounts of crying that I'm sure will occur. It was Time Magazine's Best Book of 2012, and it's another one that keeps getting heaped with so much praise that I can't ignore it.

The Middlesteins by Jami Attenberg: This is another one I keep hearing about, and it sounds really interesting to me.