Adam Chanler-Berat

The Jonathan Larson Project

The Jonathan Larson Project

The Jonathan Larson Project arrives Off-Broadway like a breath of fresh air. Conceived by Jennifer Ashley Tepper and directed by John Simpkins, this musical memorial presents all those unheard pop songs and numbers from unfinished musicals that were left behind when Larson, the beloved creator of Rent, died suddenly at the age of 35 of an aortic dissection.

Click for print friendly PDF version of this blog post

I Can Get It for You Wholesale

I Can Get It for You Wholesale

For decades the Harold Rome–Jerome Weidman musical I Can Get It for You Wholesale has been known primarily for putting Barbra Streisand on the map. In 1962 many critics found protagonist Harry Bogen, a young Jewish hustler in New York City’s garment trade in 1937, too unlikable, even though Pal Joey and its caddish hero had succeeded in various Broadway productions. But timing also played a part. John Chapman in the Daily News noted that “his success, unlike Robert Morse’s genial villainies in How to Succeed [at a nearby theater], leaves a bad taste.” In the New York Times, Howard Taubman complained that the book was not “uplifting.” Now that antiheroes are commonplace, however, Wholesale deserves another look, and the Classic Stage Company’s loving revival (with a book updated by Jerome’s son John Weidman) provides evidence that it’s an overlooked gem.

Click for print friendly PDF version of this blog post