The Jeff Blumenkrantz Songbook Podcast

Special Episode #1: When I decided I wanted to use "Man in the Moon" for a *special* podcast episode, it came to me in about a millisecond who HAD to sing it: Nancy Anderson. Not only because she's an amazing talent and friend, but also because no one captures the sound of the 20's and 30's like Nancy. Check out her wonderful new solo CD, Ten Cents a Dance, for conclusive proof.
Nancy and I met in 2001, performing together in the Broadway production of A Class Act, where she was my "show girlfriend." Nancy created the role of "Mona" in the Manhattan Theatre Club production and subsequently made her Broadway debut in that role when the show moved to the Ambassador. She had already created a sensation Off-Broadway in Jolson & Company, which earned her her first Drama Desk nomination.
Since then, she has been dazzling audiences with her many stellar performances, most notably as Lois/Bianca in the revival of Kiss Me, Kate, first on the US Tour and then in the West End production, which was later filmed for PBS. (Does she nail the period or what?) Don't forget her wonderful performance in the 2003 revival of Wonderful Town! (Period!!) This past season, at the York Theatre, she won over critics and audiences alike in the title role of Fanny Hill. (She even nailed the 18th Century, as well as a second Drama Desk Nom!)
If you're wondering whether she can pull off a contemporary role (yes!), then you must have missed her hot, hot performance in this year's Off-Broadway play, Burleigh Grime$.
In this episode, Nancy sings "Man in the Moon", an audition spec song I wrote this summer. (What this means is, when producers are considering several different people or teams to write their new show, sometimes they'll ask them all to write songs for that project as part of the audition process.) The project in question takes place around 1930, and that's about as specific as I can be right now. (Recorded 11/3/06.)
Luckily, you'll have some opportunities to see and hear Nancy coming up! Foremost among her many November appearances is her engagement at The Metropolitan Room, two Tuesday night shows, November 14 and November 28, at 9:30 PM. Not to be missed!
And speaking of other things not to miss, I'd also like to remind you about the Jeff Blumenkrantz Songbook Concert at Birdland on Monday, November 20th at 7PM, featuring Liz Callaway, Victoria Clark, Michael McElroy, Mary Testa, and Alysha Umphress! Call 212 581 3080 to reserve, or buy your tickets online.

Bonus Episode #4: I warned you that there'd be a few bonus episodes coming up....
This week it's "He'll Never Get What I Do", written for a musical entitled Hush, which dealt with the relationship between a gay theatre composer and a deaf video artist. This song is sung by the composer and is pretty self-explanatory. Music and lyrics by me. Recorded 5/2/06.
As for Hush, I worked on it for a while with the marvelous playwright, Tina Howe, but we couldn't crack the story to our mutual satisfaction, so it's on the shelf. Writing an original musical is a complicated proposition, to say the least. Makes me REALLY appreciate the ones out there that work...
...like, for instance, my favorite new musical, The Drowsy Chaperone, which opened on Broadway last night. It's directed by a certain Mr. Casey Nicholaw, whom I met doing my first show in NY (The Pajama Game at the Equity Library Theatre - Does that date us or what?). Seeing his spectacular production of The Drowsy Chaperone left me awestruck and in tears (literally, hysterical tears of pride, joy, and awe). The show is heaven - don't miss it!
Meanwhile, some of the fabulous people I got to chat with at the opening night party:
George Lee Andrews, the longest-running actor on Broadway, and star of my favorite teen-years album, Starting Here, Starting Now. George is an admitted listener of this podcast, and I'm honored.
Nellie McKay is the brilliant Polly Peachum in the new Threepenny Opera at the Roundabout. She has no idea who I am or that I have a podcast, but I enjoyed chatting with her, and I love her songwriting and her fancy debut double CD, Get Away From Me.
And last but not least, the kids from [title of show] were all there. They recently ended their initial run at the Vineyard, but they'll be back there this summer for a recently-announced return engagement! Dare I see it a 6th time? I dare! Don't miss this one either.
Check out my recommendations page for more things I like!

Special Episode #4: I'm so thrilled to add Donna Lynne Champlin to my list of special guest stars, first at my Birdland concert in November, and now on the podcast. After loving her performances in such Broadway shows as By Jeeves, Hollywood Arms, and Sweeney Todd, it's a real treat for me to get to hear her sing my songs.
I do feel the need to mention: As wonderful as Donna Lynne has been in other people's shows, she could never be better than she is in her own one-woman show, Finishing the Hat. It is, hands down, the most spectacular solo show I have ever seen in my life. Donna Lynne tells a series of stories about herself and her life (chosen from a hat by the audience), and she does so with a level of wit and comedy and pathos and musicality and drama that is truly in a league of her own. DO NOT MISS THIS if she ever does it again. (Donna Lynne, do it again.)
In the meantime, you lucky D.C.er's can catch her at the Kennedy Center in Henry (Dreamgirls) Krieger and Bill (Sideshow) Russell's Up in the Air, playing February 7-10.
In this special episode, she sings "I Burn," from the dearly departed, unfinished musical, Hush. (Recorded 1/11/08.) The song is from a show-within-the-show, i.e. the main character, Miles, is writing a musical which deconstructs Great Expectations and centers around the character of Miss Havisham. This song finds Miss H. on the morning of her wedding day, before she discovers that her fiancé has been deceiving her and will not marry her after all. The song would later be reprised as a duet between young Miss H and old Miss H, as the latter dies in a fire, still wearing her wedding dress.
By the way, The BMI Workshop Songbook Podcast is now officially up and running. Tune in to hear me interview the wonderful members and alumni of this acclaimed writers' workshop and to listen to performances of their songs by our too, too talented guest stars! Subscribe here via iTunes.

Bonus Episode #7: 46 years ago this month, Rita Gardner was opening as Luisa in The Fantasticks, a then unknown Off-Broadway musical. Could she ever have imagined at the time that the show would have such an historic run, that she would be rapping on Broadway today, that there would be such a thing as podcasts and that she'd be on one? Lucky for us, it's all true.
I met Rita last year in rehearsals for The Transport Group's production of The Audience, directed by Jack Cummings III. I was fortunate enough to have been one of the songwriters on the show, and my assignment was to write a piece for Rita's character, Rosie, a woman who attends the theatre with her dead husband's ashes. In a private moment, she sings to the urn. Rita stopped the show every night with her sensitive rendition of "I Think." Recorded 5/22/06.
Now, Rita's stopping another show with a very different kind of performance! She's appearing as Rosie, the rapping grandma, in this season's Broadway crowd pleaser, The Wedding Singer, based on the Adam Sandler film of the same name. She sings, she raps, she does gymnastic tricks (well... not really) - she's wonderful!
And next month marks the release of Rita's new CD, Try to Remember: A Look Back at Off-Broadway, a live recording of her show chronicling her career Off-Broadway. It's filled with stories, songs, both classic and unknown, and of course, Rita's glorious voice.
P.S. Rita appeared in a ten-minute Raw Impressions movie musical in RIPFest #6 and was kind (read "game") enough to make a cameo appearance in my RIPFest #6 film, Freefall!

Special Episode #3: After a long break, I'm back! Last month, I finally got to meet Jose Llana at, of all places, Broadway Idol. (He was there as a judge, I was a there as a screaming Alysha Umphress fan.) As we were talking, I realized that I needed him to sing this song, so I pounced. And here he is!
Jose is remembered, most recently, for his portrayal of the adorable Chip Tolentino ("My Unfortunate Erection," anyone?) in the Drama Desk Award-winning original cast of the Off-Broadway/Broadway hit, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. A Broadway "veteran" at 31, he made his debut at the tender age of 19 as Lun Tha in the '96 revival of The King and I, and he's been working non-stop ever since. On Broadway, he's also appeared in Street Corner Symphony, as Angel in Rent, and as Ta, the leading man, in the '02 revival of Flower Drum Song. Add to that his stints in Off Broadway's Saturn Returns (aka Myths and Hymns) and On the Town at the Public, the National Tour of The Return of Martin Guerre, appearances on the HBO series Sex and the City and the feature film Hitch, and an eponymous solo album, Jose, that reached #2 on the charts in Manila, and you'll realize we are talking about an amazingly accomplished young guy!
Jose will be singing a self-contained song I wrote this past year, "Why Can't I Kiss You?" (Recorded 10/24/07.) After having spent the preceding six months writing songs for a project that was set in the 30's, clearly I was still in the mood. As for what inspired the song, I'll never tell....
But if you want to hear this and lots of other never-heard-before songs of mine, then hop on over to Birdland on November 4th at 7PM for a concert where I'll be bringing out the secret goodies, with the help of my amazing guest stars , Adinah Alexander, Donna Lynne Champlin, Laura Patinkin, David Perlman, and Alysha Umphress. Call 212 581-3080 for reservations, or