Rachel Shoshanna: recommendation

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I've been away for a long time. It wasn't intentional, I promise - I was just very busy in a musical theatre intensive for two weeks, and then assistant stage managing a show while in an emotional slump for the week after that ended.

So this is kind of just a life update post, as well as some theatre recommendations. I hope that's okay!

From July 6th thru July 17th, I participated in the American Academy of Dramatic Arts' (AADA for short) Two Week Musical Theatre Intensive. It was easily one of the best, most fun, most exhausting two weeks of my life, and I kind of wish I could do it all over again.

Over the course of those two weeks, the other thirteen students in the class and I took four classes - Vocal Technique, Song Interpretation, Jazz/Tap, and Acting Exercises - in which we worked on one song both vocally and storytelling-wise, learned part of the Ann Reinking choreography for All That Jazz (from Chicago), and focused on our improv skills and audition monologues. It was a lot, and it was hard at times, but I know I learned so much from the things we worked on, and so did my friends.

We all bonded really well, which was unsurprising. What was surprising was just how close we became so quickly, and how much we didn't want to leave each other. I'm fairly certain we're going to be in each others lives for a while, even though some of them live overseas. In fact, I'm going to Schmackary's with three of them tonight!

Look at these gorgeous people!!

Sadly our time together in the program did have to end, and when I left I returned to work assistant stage managing for a beautiful new musical entitled "Rachel: The Musical." No, it's not about me - it's about Rachel Carson, the marine biologist and environmentalist who wrote Silent Spring, a book exposing the dangers of a pesticide used in the mid-1900s called DDT. It was the musical's world premiere at the Fresh Fruit Festival last Monday, and it had it's last performance in the festival on Saturday. But keep your eyes open - there was some low rumbling about a potential transfer, so if you want to see it you might have a chance!

I also have seen quite a bit of theatre in the last few weeks, so I'm just gonna go through what I saw and give a little overview and rating out of 5 stars. I'd definitely recommend seeing all of the shows though, if you can.

Les Misérables - It was actually the fourth time I'd seen this show, and the second time I'd seen this staging. I'm also not sure you really need a summary, so I'll just go ahead and rate it. 5/5 stars!

On The Town - Three sailors - Gabey, Chip, and Ozzie - have 24 hours off their ship to spend in New York City. They have a madcap adventure around town in their search for the beautiful Ivy Smith, Miss Turnstiles for the month of June, after Gabey sees her picture in the subway. Complete with great music and incredible choreography by Jerome Robbins, I'd give this one 5/5 stars as well!

It Shoulda Been You - Jenny is the wedding planner for her younger sister Rebecca's wedding, and she wants it to be absolutely perfect so her mother (played by the inimitable Tyne Daly) will stop picking on her for not having her life together (even though she does, thank you very much). Unfortunately, over the course of the wedding, some unexpected secrets come out and things do not go as Jenny planned. everything turns out fine in the end, it's a comedy! There were a couple songs in the show that probably weren't all that necessary, but I enjoyed this one the most out of everything i saw; I'd give it a 4.5/5 stars! - This closes August 9th, so go see it soon if it sounds like something you'd enjoy.

Avenue Q - The adult - very adult - version of Sesame Street. I don't think you need more than that. I feel like this show was so hyped up that I was expecting way more than I got. I definitely liked the show and had a good time, but I didn't like it as much as I wanted to. I have to give it a 3/5 stars.

The Wild Party - Queenie and Burr run an underground nightclub during the Prohibition era. When Burr rapes Queenie, she stages a party to get back at him, but the arrival of a Mr. Black sends her plans down a path she never intended. This was an Encores! production, which unfortunately means it only played a limited number of performances, but I'm hoping it gets transferred somewhere, because it was pretty incredible. The music is lush with gorgeous instrumentation and harmonies, and the acting and singing was stellar all around. My only problem with this production was that the plot felt a little thin at some points. I give it a 4/5 stars.

Significant Other - Twenty-something Jordan Berman (played by my boy Gideon Glick) slowly watches his friends all find love and get married, while he can't seem to find any guy that wants to love him the way he wants them to. I'd call this a dramedy, and it's only the show on this list that isn't a musical, but it might also be my favorite one. It's funny without being insensitive, serious without hitting you over the head, and heartfelt without being soppy. And for someone in her twenties and starting that part of her life, it definitely hit kind of close to home. 5/5 stars, for sure.

That's it, folks! I hope your summers are going well and you're finding worthwhile things to do with your time. I'll be back tomorrow with a post, I think. Not sure what it's going to be yet though.

Much love,
Rachel Shoshanna

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I'm going to preface this post with the fact that I am a huge fan of genre television, which is not always a popular opinion. But if you are going to watch any type of genre show, I would highly recommend Orphan Black as your introduction into this realm of television. (I'd recommend The 100 next, but that's for another post on another day.)

Orphan Black follows Sarah Manning, a wayward grifter, as she is thrown into the clutches of a cloning conspiracy that holds the secrets of how she even came to exist. She meets and befriends a number of her "sisters" as they attempt to find some kind of self-determination out of the heavily monitored and controlled lives they have been forced to live, without their knowledge. The show deftly explores complex themes of agency, identity, and what it means to be a family, and thoroughly absorbs the viewer into the intrigue and suspense of the world the clones live in.

The third season of OB started airing on BBC America in April, and already it is shaping up to be a very different, but just as engrossing arc for the show. I don't want to give away too many spoilers, but the clone intrigue is doubled and new characters show up at every twist and turn. The suspense is still always building and the writing is as sharp as ever; I am constantly impressed by how each character is paid their due and given a chance grow, even if they are ostensibly the villains for our formidable hero. Nothing is ever as it seems, even for the bad guys (gals?), and, for me, that is the main reason why the show is so successful at what it does.

It highlights the multitudes of women, their good and their bad and everything in between, and sparks a conversation about their right to control over their own bodies and lives. It's politically and socially charged without being heavy-handed, and it's all wrapped up in a an intense, but always fun, sci-fi bow. Helmed by the talent of Tatiana Maslany playing Sarah and her sister clones, Orphan Black is definitely a genre show you don't want to miss.

Happy watching!

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So here's the thing: I love Mumford & Sons with all of my heart. Like, they're easily one of my favorite bands, because of their distinctive neo-folk style. However, even I could recognize that as amazing as their last album (Babel) was, the kind of music they were making was going to get repetitive really quickly.

Which is why I was super excited and not entirely surprised when I heard that Wilder Mind was going to be a more rock influenced album, and I have to say that I'm overall pretty impressed with what they've put together.

The band recorded this third album in Brooklyn under the production of Aaron Dessner, of The National, and James Ford, producer for the Arctic Monkeys. You can hear the influence of both bands in the instrumentation of the songs; the electric guitars and driving percussion beats give the impression of a record designed to fill stadiums, and there is no doubt in my mind of Marcus Mumford and co.'s ability to do so. It is a broad, big indie rock sound that, as different as it is from their previous albums, still retains that Mumford & Sons feel.

Because here's the thing - you can still recognize them as Mumford & Sons, the brand. The new instruments and style don't do anything to mask what I like to think of as the "Mumford & Sons spirit." This collection of songs could easily have been set to their previous acoustic folk instrumentals and worked just as well; lyrically, the songs are still poetic and longing and poignant, and still have the ability to strike a chord within the listener (though I confess I do miss the literary allusions to be heard on Sigh No More and Babel. I love me some Shakespeare). The choruses and the build up to them still maintain the power and emotional truth the songs on those other albums did, able to touch something within that you barely even realized was there.

Frankly, musical elitism and this phenomenon people like to call "selling out" are ridiculous; just because bands evolve doesn't mean they're not making good music, and just because a certain kind of music isn't to your taste doesn't automatically make it bad. Even with their major musical overhaul, Mumford & Sons is still making beautiful music, and people would do well to give this album a chance. I have a feeling its one of those that you have to listen to a few times before it clicks. And when it finally does, you'll find yourself belting along to all of the choruses the way you would if you were blasting down an empty highway on a dusky summer night.

Some tracks to check out in particular:

"Tompkins Square Park," into "Believe" (seamless musical transitions!! It's gorgeous, guys, even though "Believe" itself is a teeny bit underwhelming compared to the rest)
"The Wolf"
"Just Smoke"
"Cold Arms"
"Only Love"
"Hot Gates"

Now that I've named nearly half of the album, you should really just go check it out. Happy listening!

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A Scottish folk band based out of Glasgow, Breabach is comprised of Calum MacCrimmon (pipes, whistles, vocals), Megan Henderson (fiddle, vocals, and step dance. yes, step dance), Ewan Robertson (guitar, vocals), James Duncan Mackenzie (pipes, flute, vocals), and James Lindsay (double bass, vocals).

Since the band's inception in 2005, they have lost one member and gained two, but one thing that hasn't changed is their consistent ability to make music that moves your soul, whether they are performing a lyrical ballad (sometimes in Gaelic) that makes your heart clench or an upbeat, completely instrumental piece that makes you want to get up and dance. The combinations of instrumentation are always interesting, and the way the flutes and pipes (and I do mean bagpipes) blend so well with the guitar, bass, and vocals adds something special to songs that might get lost and buried amidst the folk revivalism of the last five or so years.

Bann, released in March 2012, is an incredibly well crafted album that spans from introductory fiddle-heavy jigs (see: Glasgow of the Big Shops, Mogaisean) to slower, more lullaby-like songs (see: M'eudail, M'eudail). One of the strongest pieces on the album for me is Scotland's Winter - in it, Robertson deftly sets Edwin Muir's poem Scotland 1941 to beautiful harmonies, helped by Henderson, and instrumental, accented particularly by the distinctive bagpipe on a nearly two minute long ending solo by Mackenzie. It would be easy to grow bored and/or annoyed by such a long bagpipe solo, but in Mackenzie's hands (and lungs), it soars.

2013's Urlar is a strong follow up album, motivated by the band's visits to their hometowns; they were prompted by the music cultivated by their communities, and the emotion behind this compilation is potent. Forvie Sands, composed by Lindsay and inspired by the sand dunes of Aberdeenshire, is a standout with its plaintive flute and fiddle duet, as is Orangedale Whistle, inspired by MacCrimmon's cross-cultural upbringing (he was born and raised in Canada and moved with his family to Monifieth, Scotland in 1991). Bha Mise Raoir Air An Airigh, the seventh track on the album, is also a great achievement as a haunting update on a traditional folk song.

If you like Scotland and if you like folk music, and are willing to give bagpipes a shot (which you should be. They don't all sound like the ones at your hometown parades), Breabach is definitely a band you should check out. Though they haven't come out with another album yet, they have been doing a lot of traveling, both on tour and in search of new musical inspiration, and I can't wait to see what they come up with next.

You can buy both albums on their bandcamp. Happy listening!

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