Smash!

In my humble opinion I think one can tell that a movie, TV show or musical is really good when it moves you and gets you emotionally vested. Don't get me wrong I've seen a lot of movies, a lot of musicals and certainly a wide range of TV shows that I have enjoyed but most of them are just that enjoyably good not truly great pieces of work. Only a few fall into that truly great category for me. (Don't worry for all you "Glee" haters this is NOT about "Glee" - well not this time at least.)

The show I am talking about is "Smash" on NBC. It's the story of a musical being made and it's produced by Steven Spielberg so that should be your first clue that of course it's good! I don't want to give too much of the plot away because if anyone hasn't seen it I don't want to spoil it since I want to convince you all to watch it! Let me give you some broad strokes though... There are many characters which I would consider to be main characters... 

You have Tom & Julia who are musical writers (played by Debra Messing and Christian Borle) but you don't just see them as writers. You see how so many pieces of their life are affected by the work they do and they choices they make.

There are Ivy & Karen (played by Megan Hilty and Katharine McPhee) who battle for the lead role in the musical. Again you don't just see them sing and dance you live out many parts of their life with them. Their voices are SPECTACULAR!

Jack Davenport (who I have to admit is incredibly handsome!) plays Derek the Bad-Boy Director and in many ways is the most complex of all the characters. 

Anjelica Huston plays Eileen the Director of the musical who goes through more than a few trials and tribulations along the way.

Many other characters get added but I don't want to give too much away. What I will give away is that the writers of "Smash" do an impeccable job of character development so much so that you can't help but feel raw emotions for and towards the characters. You will feel empathetic for each of them at different times but then frustrated with them at others since this show is so multi-dimensional. 

What's the musical you ask? Well I will give that away (well the first one at least)  - it's called "Bombshell" and it's based on Marilyn Monroe's life. In many ways this musical becomes a character all in and of itself. 

The show is in it's Second Season but you can buy or borrow Season 1 and get caught up!

I know this "review" of sorts is all over the place and not terribly informative but I just don't want to give away anything fantastic from the show for anyone who hasn't seen it. I watch every episode anxiously waiting to see what happens because I am so enraptured by the story. I want you to have the same experience. 

I absolutely would go see these musicals if they were the real deal on Broadway especially if the Broadway show had this amazing cast! 

What made me write this blog today? Well I just finished watching the most recent episode (yes I know I am a few days late but given how hectic our lives our DVR is the only way I can see any shows that I want to be sure to catch!) and all I can say is WOW! This episode pulled together all the feelings and emotions that have been building in the show and put the viewer smack dab in the middle of them all. I don't want to give any major spoilers (in case some of you haven't seen it yet) but I will tell you that I spent most of the episode in a puddle of tears. 

Maybe it's the music in the show that helps people (okay well at least me) connect to the emotions of the show. There are few shows that have ever done this for me but another notable one is "Rent" so perhaps it's apropos that Jesse L. Martin has become a character in Season 2. (He was Tom Collins in the Original Broadway Cast of Rent.) There are also many parallels I could draw between the 2 shows but I'll save that for another blog.

Once you watch the show you will of course want to own the music too! (It's well played on my iPod I can tell you!)

Bottom line - you don't want to miss this show! Check it out - I can pretty much guarantee you will be hooked!

Late Night Reading...

You would think I would have learned by now... I've had this problem since I was a kid but yet I still haven't learned my lesson...

I love to read but for as long as I remember the same thing happens when I try and read in bed before going to sleep - there's no sleep inducing quality for me (which some people claim to experience) - it is actually the exact opposite. Once I start a book it is very hard for me to put it down if I am enjoying it so I end up staying up WAY too late to read more. The last 2 nights are perfect examples.

Two nights ago I went to bed but wasn't tired enough to go to sleep so I went a grabbed a book off the shelf that I have been wanting to read . (Sadly I don't get to read nearly as much as I would like to anymore.) I hopped into bed and Guinness curled up next to me. (He went to sleep right away!)

I'd bought the Book Without You by Anthony Rapp. Rapp was the original co-lead in the Broadway show Rent. You may also remember him as the friend in the movie Adventures in Babysitting from back in the 80's.

I have loved Rent since the first time I saw it about 10 years ago. (I have since seen it about 7 more times... to be honest I am too tired to count and think of the exact number but I think this is close!) I never saw Anthony Rapp but he was also in the movie version of the show and returned to the stage to finish out the show's epic run at the Nederland Theater in New York City.

Rapp's book Without You: A Memoir of Love, Loss and the Musical Rent captivated me from the moment I picked up the book. It's not just about the musical, it's about the journey of life - often rough- that he has been on.

I started the book 2 nights ago and stayed up reading til past 3am. I was excited and interested to read about his friendship with Jonathon Larson (the creator of Rent) and touched to read about his relationship with his mother who raised him pretty much on her own.

Last night I knew I shouldn't start to read because I needed to get to sleep but I couldn't help myself. The second half of the book kept me engaged but also brought me to tears. I started off by just getting out of bed (and disturbing Guinness in the process because of course he was curled up next to me fast asleep - he was not pleased to be woken up!) and then after another chapter or so I gave in and just grabbed the whole darn box! I simply had to finish the book because I was so engaged. Once again I didn't get to bed til past 3am.

I highly recommend reading Without You if you are open-minded. It's a highly evocative book that touches on many taboo topics but it is all written in a heartfelt manner with a unique insight into Rapp's thoughts. He talks about the musical, his mother and her illness, his relationships and in the beginning his struggles with living and working in New York City. He is a bit of an underdog who even if you weren't already a fan you would be rooting for him as you read. The book was a New York Times bestseller and is available in paperback. If you're really nice I'll be happy to loan you my copy.

Hopefully now I have learned that I absolutely can not take a book to bed with me if I want to be able to go to sleep at a decent hour.... of course one might have thought I would have learned that AGES ago!