THE ULTIMATE 80’S KARAOKE TOP TEN… The Songs… The Artists… The hushed sense of wonder…

It occurred to me the other week that I quickly judge people by their proverbial “mix tape” and that perhaps its time I put my money where my mouth is and release a sampling of my own…

So – dear readers, I present to you “Mix tape 1 – The Ultimate 80’s Karaoke Top Ten.”

Now – please note, these are in no particular order and the driving force behind these choices is their KARAOKE potential and not the greatness of the song itself (although at times the two go hand in hand)


1. HAZY SHADE OF WINTER – THE BANGLES.

Ooooh yeah... The Bangles are an essential component of an 80’s karaoke play list, however I purposefully choose to stay away from the usual Eternal Flame/Walk Like an Egyptian choices. This song is GOLD I tell you! This is a good choice for the novice - clocking in at under three minutes it’s short and sweet – but don’t let it fool you. Hazy Shade gives you no choice but to rock it out. The rule here is go hard or go home. Bare in mind the intro is deceiving, a little gentle and quiet – you can lull your audience into a false sense of security… but once that glorious cowbell kicks in… you have to nail it! Get your crowd clapping… hands in the air; take the message of the song… “It’s the spring time of my life…” Don’t waste a moment of this foot stompin’ track… you won’t regret it.

2. TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE HEART – BONNIE TYLER.

Ok - this is an anthem – so if you feel up to tackling it then you really have to go there. Channel that pain… picture the face of everyone who has ever done you wrong! This song is a slow build, you cannot peak to early otherwise your vocal chords will be torn to shreds and you will be relegated to singing Macy Gray for the rest of your life. No one wants that – not even Macy… so hold out for the big finish. Now – Instrumental Break Warning: There is a massive instrum break in this track and to get through and still hold your audience’s attention you are going to have to turn on the 80’s film clip wind machine of your imagination and let it be said now that a fall to the knees is mandatory. As the songs says… you have to live that powder keg and give off sparks… just ask your self “what would Bonnie do?”


3. LIVING ON A PRAYER – BON JOVI.

Oh god how can you not? Seriously! Tight jeans and big hair? The story of Tommy working on the docks? It’s tough… so tough… it’s an inspirational story! This is a good crowd warmer as EVERYONE loves the Jovi and the song is essentially about building a sense community. “We’ve got each other… take my hand we’ll make it...” If you do it right, they’ll join in. Just rock it out and enjoy.

4. RUN TO PARADISE – THE CHOIRBOYS.

Ok – so not everyone will know this one. It is an iconic Aussie track and isn’t on every karaoke list but if by some stroke of heavenly bliss you find it… GO FOR IT. You won’t be sorry. Things to know: air guitar is mandatory and other physical exertion a must. You are basically singing the same chorus over and over again so mix up a medley of jumping, head nodding and air punching… love it and rock it… if you are feel so inclined, go for some audience participation but ONLY IN AUSTRALIA. Trust me – no one anywhere else knows this track and you will be faced with nothing but dreaded tumbleweed. A good starter for this song is a dedication- for me I would have to go with “This one’s going out to Andy, Pete and Phil… HOLD YOUR HEADS UP BOYS!


5. I DROVE ALL NIGHT – CYNDI LAUPER.

I am sure most people will agree there MUST be some Cyndi on the list. After much deliberation I think this is the best karaoke show off moment her 80’s catalogue provides (Ash/Jenni – correct me if you think I’m wrong). Ease your way in on this one, it starts nice and low… catch their attention with the first verse; “I was dreaming when I drove the long straight road ahead…” but be ready to hit it when you get to the signature “burning me up inssssiiiiiiiiiide” You need to be channelling a personal film clip of orange hair and pink backdrop with this one. Be totally committed to those big notes or no one will care (Whether you can actually sing them or not… just give into the power of the Lauper and you will be a true hero for 4.5 minutes) Very importantly – this song comes with a FADE OUT WARNING. You know what I mean… the days when no one could work out how to end a song so they just faded it down to nothing? Here you have two choices – fade down with it or push though til you are on your own… the choice is yours – but do it with style. Its up to you to finish this one well.


6. HIT ME WITH YOUR BEST SHOT – PAT BENETAR.

Back to the short and sweet – again less than three minutes… get them from the start… play it cute, punchy and happy go lucky. Think of those timeless lyrics - “pull out your dukes lets get down to it.” Yeah… you know what I’m saying…. Mandatory air guitar in the instrumental – perhaps get a friend to join in for this – I find it easier to share this moment, in preparation of the big “fire awaaaaaaaaayyyy” that is about to hit you after the break. Go in completely peppy and you’ll come back a star.


7. POISON – ALICE COOPER.

Surprised by this choice? Don’t be. Its time to get a little dark… channel you inner Alice… get your leather pants on and your shirt off. This is a tale of forbidden love – I need to see some heavy duty air punching and finger pointing, preferably accompanied by copious amounts of eye make up. Think of those lyrics you are going to deliver. “You mouth… so hot… your web... I’m caught… black lace… on sweat…” The Coops is naught-ay so get your sexy on and go there… own it. Be in the film clip… go to your garden of Eden and touch the forbidden fruit of Alice Cooper! Let it build through that blissful chorus over and over again and do not, under any circumstances, miss the wailing guitar solo to bring it home.


8. JUMP – VAN HALEN.

This one is a no brainer and I refuse to patronise or belittle any one of you by explaining it. But I will say this - sing it to a crowd of 80,000 people (no matter how many are actually in the room) and live every moment of that histrionic keyboard solo… this song also comes with a fade out warning.


9. ALL I WANNA DO IS MAKE LOVE TO YOU – HEART.

Oh my god… what a story you get to tell here. It’s a rainy night, on a road trip, there’s hot anonymous sex… WHAT MORE DO YOU NEED? Go on the journey with this one. Be warned – its 5 mins long so you better have the stamina to get through the emotional roller coaster Heart gave us. “He woke the woman in me so many times easily…” Genious lyric writing! And then… she abandons him leaving only a note!? They then find each other again, only for it to be too late because “she is in love with another man!?” If you can somehow incorporate an interpretive dance into this performance, I would be highly impressed.

And finally -

10. WE BUILT THIS CITY ON ROCK AND ROLL – JEFFERSON STAR SHIP. If you are going to finish with a song – do it with an up-tempo one, some might say an anthem. Dancing is once again a must here, some possible air guitar/drums if the mood takes you. Should the need arise - this song brings with it a possible drinking game. The crowd knocks one back every time they hear the word “city.” Trust me… the drunker they get… the better you sound…

And that brings us to the end. I am sure this conversation will bring with it much debate and if you feel I have made any fatal errors/omissions I want to hear them. Go on… discuss.

To hear the complete play list – click here:

http://www.last.fm/user/amymaiden/library/playlists/2lw7m_ultimate_80%2527s_karaoke_top_ten

2008 - a year in review, inspired by Riley...

My 2008 - reflections on a pretty good year.

- I may have left some things out with no intention. Feel free to do the ol copy past thing and comment back with how your year was.

1) Where were you when 2008 began, and who were you bringing it in with?
Paris - with Julie Stafford... and absolute legend of a woman.

2) Where will you be when 2008 ends, and who will you end it with?
London - everyone in my heart (cheesy... i know...)

3) Was 2008 a good year for you?
Yes... exciting and terrifying.

4) Did you keep your new year's resolutions?
Yup - vowed to make it the year of "Hey that's me!" Moving on from 2007's "Hey, I know that guy!"

5) Do you have any new year's resolutions for 2009?
More exercise, less wine, more time out, less thai food.

6) What did you do in 2008 that you'd never done before?
Worked on Broadway!

7) What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
Turned 28 - drank ALOT of champagne and made too many calls to Australia.

8) What did you get really, really excited about in 2008?
New York.

9) What was your favourite month of 2008?
Mid October - Mid November

10) What date from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
Nov 15th - got on a plane to Orlando.

11) What was your favourite moment of 2008?
Amy this is Neil... Neil this is Amy... (its too big a name to drop on facebook)

12) What was your least favourite moment of 2008?
Mark Priestly - you are missed by many.

13) What was your proudest moment of 2008?
"Amy - are you free to go to New York tomorrow?"

14) What was your most embarrassing moment of 2008?
Too many to list.

15) What was your biggest achievement of 2008?
Surviving it.

16) What was your biggest failure of 2008?
Not seeing as many friends as I would have liked.

17) What did you want and got?
Next step in a career

18) What did you want and not get?
My own apartment.

19) What do you wish you'd done more of?
Writing.

20) What do you wish you'd done less of?
Wine consumption.

21) If you could go back in time to any moment in 2008 and change it, what would it be?
ll those mornings i was too lazy to get out of bed and go to the gym.

22) Did you fall in love in 2008?
I fall in love everyday.

23) Did you travel overseas in 2008?
Yes. Europe and America

24) Did you travel outside of Victoria in 2008?
Um... I don't live there.

25) Did you suffer illness or injury in 2008?
several lapses in sanity.

26) What political issue stirred you the most?
SARAH PALIN

27) What kept you sane in 2008?
My amazing friends. you know who you are.

28) How many one-night stands?
um... err.... next question.

29) What was the best thing you bought in 2008?
A new passport.

30) How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008?
Casual scruffy. no where near as business like as perhaps i should be.

31) What was the best book you read?
Time Travellers Wife. Broke my heart.

32) What was your favourite movie that you saw at the cinema in 2008?
No County for Old Men? Dark Knight? Iron Man? I don't know.

33) What song will always remind you of 2008
"Who loves You" but Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons.

34) What was your greatest musical discovery?
Jeff Blumenkrantz.

35) What were your favourite songs of 2008?
My heart was set on you - Jeff Blumenkrantz and Single Ladies - Beyonce. Yes I am a gay man.

36) What albums did you buy in 2008?
Beyonce, Legally Blonde, Nina Ferrow - yup. Again i am a gay man.

21) What concerts did you go to see in 2008?
Did i see any? do shows count as concerts?

37) What was your favourite Tv program?
Californication, Studio 60, 30 Rock, The Family Guy, Top Gear.

38) Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
The same one since 1995. Hugh Jackman. Yesterday, today and forever.

39) Whose behaviour left you feeling happy or inspired?
OBAMA

40) Whose behaviour left you feeling angry, appalled or depressed?
Apart from Palin and Prop 8.....? Nothing I can remember.

41) Who was the best new person you met?
Too many to mention.

42) Compared to this time last year, are you?

i: happier or sadder? happier

ii: richer or poorer? financially poorer but definitely richer overall

iii: thinner or fatter? fatter

43) What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked most in 2008?
Balance.

44) Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008
No one else is going to do it - you have to.

45) Quote a line of a song lyric from 2008 that sums up your year?
um.... err.... "never hide your light under a bushel... no matter how big the bushel"

Applaud the shattered glass, but be wary of the woman doing it...

Ok – so a week ago Friday, I choked on my Pret a Manger breakfast, when Senator John McCain appeared to have screwed up spectacularly announcing that a woman nobody had heard of was his running mate. I looked up Alaska in the atlas for the first time since I left school: it took up two pages and I couldn't find the capital. (Juneau, not Anchorage.)

So I spent the week reading "Who the hell is Sarah Palin?" stories and looking up more about Alaska (population 657,000 - a smaller number than in Birmingham or Belfast.). By Thursday she was a national joke because of her Beverly Hillbillies family and their wacky names and teen pregnancies. So I sat down to watch her speech with my heart in my mouth. Poor woman! Shoved into the Republican machine by cunning Karl Rove, Bush's Svengali, so as to get the Hillaryite Democrats to vote Republican. (Not to mention the Dems who won't vote for Obama for lower, more visceral reasons.)

And then she strode out on stage and made that speech.

Suited and coiffed like the beauty queen she was, Palin strode onto that stage like the “pit bull in heels” she claims to be waving and smiling to a screaming republican crowd. Well groomed and primed by the party’s aids after two days of in depth prepping holed up in a hotel room. She was there for specific reasons… to win over the disillusioned Hillary voters and give John Mccain’s campaign the needed youth and exuberance it so obviously lacks.

With all the sincerity of a dish rag she spoke of a war with victory in sight. WHAT VICTORY??? It’s been six years since “mission accomplished” and I don’t know anyone who knows of any near victory. She preached her beautiful family’s virtues – yes… teen pregnancy, high school drop outs shipped off to Iraq… shotgun husbands-to-be. (The Republican machine had wiped his Facebook page, with its remarks: "I'm a f------ redneck" and "Don't want no kids". They also cut his hair before they flew him to the convention.) Sarah Palin is already being touted (by pro-Republicans) as a cross between Thatcher and the Great Communicator Ronald Reagan.

She's neither.

When she got to the meat of her speech, it was Dubya's Axis of Evil again. As I am not actually a citizen of the united stas it's their foreign policy that is my primary interest. Sarah Palin is a true believer in the warfare state: ready to fight as many "dangerous foreign powers" as Bush and Cheney think are out there: never mind Iraq, let's tool up for Iran! And Eastern Europe! She said: "With Russia wanting to control a vital pipeline in the Caucasus, and to divide and intimidate our European allies by using energy as a weapon, we cannot leave ourselves at the mercy of foreign suppliers." Oh, yes? If Russia invaded Georgia to control a vital pipeline, they need better maps. And if energy is "a weapon", I'm feeling nostalgic for WMDs.

Her jibes at Obama were well crafted. She said: "Terrorist states are seeking nuclear weapons... he wants to meet them without preconditions. Al Qaeda still plot to inflict harm on America... he's worried that someone won't read them their rights?" and then went on to compare her position of Govoner of an area smaller than Belfast to having more “actual responsibilities” than his “community organsing….”

Hmmmm….. This coming from the gun toting mother of five who is against abortion even in cases of rape and incest and thinks creation should be mandatorially taught over evolution…. this woman is denying the facts of SCIENCE!!! But then again… she is an ex-beauty queen from Alaska who has published pictures of herself kneeling by a dead moose she shotand others wearing t-shirts saying "I may be flat broke, but I'm not flat busted."

She is quoted as being openly racist… insulting Obama, and regularly refering to Alaska’s Aboriginal people as “Arctic Arabs” – lumping two apparently undesirable groups into one ugly description – as well as the more colorful “mukluks” along with the totally unimaginative “f**king Eskimos,” according to a number of Alaskans and Wasillians.

Now… don’t get me wrong… she is no totally evil. She has no horns, has not appeared (as far as we know) in a porn flick and has no sex tape, although she may have had an extramarital affair. But a couple of things are true -- and troubling -- about Alaska’s governor, and they go beyond irresponsible parenting that led her unwed, teen daughter to become pregnant.

Palin’s religious extremism is assault on her beloved First Amendment. She justified the Iraq War and the construction of a $30 billion gas pipeline through Alaska as “all part of God's plan.” Her religious fundamentalism is rooted in the Wasilla Assembly of God where the pastor is a fiery apocalyptic extremist, who believes the world is clearly divided between good and evil.

He’s preached that critics of President Bush will be banished to hell; questioned whether people who voted for Sen. John Kerry in 2004 would be accepted to heaven; charged that the 9/11 terrorist attacks and war in Iraq were part of a war "contending for your faith;" and said that Jesus "operated from that position of war mode." More than once, he has denounced criticism of President Bush, and said those who did so were going to go to hell… literally.

As for Palin, he said her election as governor was the result of a "prophetic call" by another pastor at the church who prayed for her victory. "[He made] a prophetic declaration and then unfolds the kingdom of God, you know."
One of Palin’s new preachers at the church she now attends in the state capital said during a sermon last month (Aug. 17) that Jews' "unbelief" in Jesus was the reason for the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The pastor also described terrorist attacks on Israelis as God's "judgment of unbelief" of Jews who haven't embraced Christianity.

So far, Palin hasn’t said or done anything to distance herself or denounce these hate-filled rants, nor has she explained her views on supporting and upholding the Constitution.

In a presidential election that is focusing on our terrible economy, the threat of terrorism and other weighty issues, such small town politics may seem inconsequential. But Palin could soon be a heartbeat away from becoming leader of the free world. Her disregard for our fundamental freedoms is far more troubling that whether she’s been photographed in a bikini or had extramarital affairs.

And spare a thought of Hillary Clinton... as proud an Obama supported as i am... there is a small part of me that feels for the woman who was so close to the finish line... to have it smashed by the govenor of the middle of nowhere...

An appraisal between Amy and her heart.

heart knocks on the door, enters and sits down at the table. Amy is sitting directly across. She is examining her notes. After a moment of silence she looks up and begins.

Heart. Thanks for coming in. Its good to see you again.

Well, we might as well get started. We are very proud of you here heart. The board of directors... head, soul and myself, are all very pleased with the progress you have made in recent months. In fact, over the past twelve months your recovery and growth has been very impressive and something we all want to commend you on.

We know last year provided you with some challenges... perhaps we pushed you a little harder than you were ready for. Or perhaps we didnt support you in the most proactive way. We have all been very hapy to give you some time to recuperate.

We must say you are in better shape recently heart... not wanting to bring up bad memories, but most of the scars and wounds have healed and you seem to be back to your old self again. In fact... this seems to be a more improved version of you and we commend you for your courage an strength in bouncing back so well.

But now, to the task at hand. We must raise some points we feel you need to address.

You need to be careful hear... you are getting a little carried away. I know that now you are back here with the rest of the team, you want to start leading the way again, but heart your close work along side head has been very good in the past few months and we believe the two of you can make a good team together. That perhaps you should lead as a pair, rather than taking alternate shifts. Heart, it is not that we disregard your ability to lead, but its just that once you get in the drivers seat, you tend to not let go.

Learn from your mistakes heart. Last time we did this, you ended up getting quite injured. Remember this hobby of yours is essentially an extreme sport and to be honest, we are not fully insured for it. HR just cant cover us when you are in charge.

I know I know.... youa re fully recovered from alst time... you have been in training. You did some extra research and have shown a remarkable learning curve... but heart you are currently displaying the early warning signs, the ones we saw last time and failed to address. We, as a team, are learning from past mistakes and mean to include you in that.

Heart, we know your decisions are your own, but you do need to realise that your actions directly affect the board of directors and head, sould and muself hope you bare that in mind.

Thanks for coming in today. We do swish this meeting to be a positive one and for you and for the feedback to focus on your hard work and improvements. But please know that the most important thing for us, as your coworkers... is to learn from past experiences.

Be careful heart. We all care about you very much.

Scenes of Make Believe - life in the entertainment world. (Or... conversations you cant believe you're having...)

Amy is sitting in a Disney office at a meeting table making polite conversation with her co-workers.

AMY: So I was watching “Stand by Me” last night, I love that scene where they are all asking random questions around the camp fire and they ask “Mickey’s a mouse, Donald’s a duck, Pluto’s a dog…. What the hell is Goofy?” Goofy is totally a dog!? What else could he be!? We know him personally.

Silence. Co-worker stare at Amy. There are many uncomfortable stares and shifting in the seats.

DISNEY BOSS: Deadly serious. Amy. Goofy is not a dog. He is a “Man-Dog.” He must never be referred to as just a dog.

AMY: Laughing. Um… what? A man dog? What the hell is a man dog? He’s a dog!

DISNEY BOSS: Deadly. Amy. You have to understand this. Pluto is a dog who is a pet – we refer to him as a dog. Goofy is a dog that exhibits human characteristics - therefore we refer to him as a man-dog.

AMY: So… is Mickey a man-mouse? Is Donald a man-duck? Mickey drives a car, Donald takes showers -

DISNEY BOSS: AMY! Mickey is a mouse, Donald is a duck and GOOFY IS A MAN DOG! That is all the explanation you need.

Disney boss slaps notebook onto the desk, promptly ending the conversation.

AMY: Quietly. Ok… Goofy is a man dog. ‘nuff said.

Late Night Phone Calls

So I had a conversation with an old friend last night. It was one of those phone calls that comes out of nowhere and lasts for hours. I live for conversations like these. Hashing out ideas, talking about life, solving the problems of the world… a good old fashioned heart to heart and meeting of minds.

At one point in this conversation, my friend said to me “Amy… don’t you dare give a F**k about what other people think. You go and do what you want to do. Follow your instincts and go get what you want.”

This is, ironically, why I love this friend.

Why not have everything you want? Why not settle for nothing other than spectacular? Why not announce your dreams to the universe and have no fear of failure because you are filled with your drive and desires? Why not fill your life with things that make your heart sing?

And so, dear friends, I make a challenge and commitment to you all. Live your best life and go get what you want. Life is yours for the taking.

Watch this space.

It seemed such a simple question...

Someone asked me the other day what my favourite musical was.

This is a ridiculous question.

There is no way I could, would or will ever be able to chose just one. This is something I am damn sure of. But this question did get me thinking. I let it sit with me for a little while and my mind wondered to a selection of musicals, plays and even an opera that are not, perhaps, my favourites but are so very important to me, that hold truly special places in my heart and more often than not pinpoint turning points or moments of growth in my life… Now, the list I am about to propose to you, are not shows that I have necessarily been in – hell, most of them aren’t. That is not what this is about. It’s about how theatre has and will always shape my life. Consciously and un-consciously.

I think the best way to do this would be in chronological order… so travel with me, if you will, dear readers… back to the early 1980’s.

A young girl of 7(ish) is sitting on a bank of seats in a rehearsal hall, watching her father direct a show. At this stage in her life, she simply assumed that this is what everyone’s fathers did on a Sunday afternoon. There is cast of young people scattered around a stage running the opening number. They all seemed so wonderful, so talented and alive. They were singing about magic – about making it… To be exact they were singing: “We’ve got magic to do, just for you…” Yup. Pippin.

I fell in love with that show as a little girl and to this day adore it. The story of a young man finding himself… although back then I just liked the fact I got to play with the duck and the puppy when they weren’t on stage. I watched the Ben Vareen video over and over again and listened to my John Farnham recording until I knew every word. Other shows had come before this one… Iolanthe, Sound of Music, Oh what lovely war…but there was something about Pippin that captured my seven year old imagination. It was my first experience of truly falling in love with a story.

Next up… The first play to win my heart was also a family induced affair. My mother and brother were aptly cast playing mother and son in Neil Simon’s “Brighton Beach Memoirs”

This is, quite simply, the first part of a BRILLIANT trilogy. If you have not read these plays or seen these movies… I urge you to do so. They are the most endearing tales of family life you can ever come across. These plays are like home to me. I can still see my brother throwing a baseball against a piece of corrugated iron as Eugene replying to my mother’s line as Blanche of “What would you tell your father if I was lying dead on the kitchen floor” with “I’d say don’t go in the kitchen Pa!” There was a part of a younger sister in this show and it broke my heart at the auditions when the director explained to me that, although yes I was tall, I was still 8 years too young to play the role. I so desperately wanted to be a part of this. I still to this day use the line “You can’t love your cousin… you’ll have babies with nine heads.” (Admittedly… I don’t get to use it very much)

This then leads us to the one and only “Little Shop of Horrors.” Watching my Dad bring this show to life was quite simply spectacular to a now 10 year old. Now you must understand that I considered myself quite the veteran of the theatre by this stage… but nothing could prepare me for a man eating plant that so controversially shouted “No shit Sherlock” Not only could it talk… but it swore! This was the greatest thing ever put on stage! Three women sang fantastic motown harmonies; Audrey and Seymour fell in love only to be eaten by a giant alien hybrid of a Venus flytrap. I felt so privileged to know the secrets of this amazing plant… of how it all worked. It was like I was had been admitted to the magic circle. I had stepped through the looking glass to see how it was made – it was this process of creation that I had fallen in love with. The ability to bring something to life that had lain on page. Yes I loved music, yes I loved to sing, but it was the running lines with mum in our 1980’s pink kitchen, watching her highlight page after page in orange in green, scribbling notes all over the text – bringing the piece to life. It was watching my Dad pour over set designs, working out how to take words on a page and turn them into something three-dimensional. Taking a group of people and turning them into soldiers, magicians, clowns… it all seemed to natural to me and it was a very rude awakening when I realised not everybody lived like this.

This brings me to the next show that rates a hearty mention… “Barnum”

I’ve actually been involved in this production twice – once watching my Dad and brother put it together, another playing woodwind in the pit. I adore the life story of PT Barnum, his love affair with “humbug and magic” and of course, his relationship with his wife Charity. This show had it all – tightropes, web work, juggling, magic, humour, heartbreak… two times over this incredible piece stole my heart - and I gave it willingly. It was always the highlight of my week to be able to go with Dad to rehearsals and sit in the back quietly watching this show come to life. The second time round, was an equally enjoyable experience.

NB: For anyone who is about to embark on the wood wind track of this show… get your chops ready for the piccolo line in “come follow the band” it will blow your gums off.

It was during my first production of this that I must have been about twelve years old. I distinctly remember asking the cute boy in my class if he was coming to see the show and if he was going to the other musical that happened to be in town. There was a crack in my world when he turned around and said “Amy… I just don’t like theatre. And no one I know does”

UM…. Sorry?

It was as if he were speaking a foreign language. This was not an idea I had even considered. I had spent 12 years assuming everyone lived in the same world I did; sitting in my parents rehearsals, running lines, building sets, learning songs… apparently not. Why anyone would want to do anything else with his or her childhood is still beyond me.

This brings us to adolescence. With my childhood shaped by working class Jewish Americans, man eating plants and tightrope walkers – it seems to make complete sense that my teenage rebellion took its artistic form in something a little darker. These years weren’t so much about seeing something brought to life – but about see how far this art could push it’s voyeurs.

I will never forget a certain afternoon I spent with my Dad. The set was going up for a show - I couldn’t even tell you which one it was… that isn’t the point of this moment. I was “helping” Dad by painting a prop of some kind and my mind had wandered off listening to the new CD that was being played.

I swear to god the lyrics that floated through the air changed my life…

“Hey Pal - Feeling blue? Don’t know what to do? Hey Pal, I mean you. Yeah. You wanna kill a president?”

What the? Hold the phone! These people are singing about assassinating Lincoln. This ain’t no “Paint Your Wagon.” I turned the volume up….

“All you have to do is squeeze your little finger… ease your little finger and – you can change the world”

This was something different… this was something special… this was something that captured this awkward teenager’s imagination. This was “Assassins.”

And so my love affair with all things Sondheim was born.

It would be another eight years until I was involved in a production of “Assassins” (Playing by-stander three with my one spoken line of dialogue being a profound “BEEF”)
This show hi-jacked my imagination. I read the script over and over again, dissecting every line of dialogue, studying every lyric. The repeated analysis of “Another National Anthem” and perpetual reading of the final scene between Booth and Oswald led to a teenage Amy’s discover that musical theatre could be something more than happy endings. Not wanting to sound too melodramatic – but this show shook my theatrical soul! Not that I knew it then, but this was a piece that was truly ahead of its time and I salute it’s creators for their bravery and foresight in bringing it to the stage.

It was literally a week or so after my Dad played me the Assassins soundtrack, on a random Sunday evening that Mother told me there was something on T.V that she wanted to watch. This pissed me off because no doubt I would have been looking forward to the latest episode of Beverly Hills 90210. But – never the less Mum put her foot down because she wanted to tape some show that was going to be on the ABC (the artsy channel in Australia.) After much whining and complaining I was told to stop complaining and give it a go because I might just like it.

The “it” that I might “just like” was a little something called “Into the Woods.”

“Just might like it…” was an understatement. I became completely obsessed with it and the work of Stephen Sondheim. (The true lengths of which you can read in my blog “We could be heroes, just for one day”) Some teenagers obsess about rock stars or movie heroes… I obsessed over the guy who wrote “Send in the Clowns.” I’m surprised I didn’t grow up to be a gay man.

But as we are speaking of particular shows I should flag certain shows that were the highlights of Amy’s “Sondheim’s Years.”

Assassins lead to Into the Woods which took me to Company (again see previous Sondheim blog for the details on that one) and then…

Oh then…

“Mapping out a sky… what you feel like, planning a sky…”

“You are complete... You all alone… I am unfinished… I am diminished… with or without you…”

Yes.

Sunday in the Park with George.

As I type this “Sunday” has opened on Broadway and if every single person who reads this blog does not go and see it, I will personally drag each and every one of you to the box office to buy your damn ticket. The first time I ever heard this show I fell truly and deeply in love with it…. And at the time I didn’t have the slightest inkling as to how connected to it I would become on so many… many…different levels. This is my “Onion” show… meaning it’s got so many damn layers and always… always makes me cry when I crack it open. Actually – cry is an understatement. Sunday in the Park with George rips my heart open with the first five notes of its score – by the time we get to “move on” I might as well be in a coma. Lets just say that George and Dot don’t just cut close to my bone – it’s basically a marrow transplant.

I could write 10 pages alone on this piece – so I will have to cut it short here and wait until I get over to New York in june to truly sing it’s never ending praises.

But I digress. If I was artistically “married” to Mr. Sondheim – then as I headed to my senior years of high school I had an affair. I took a lover. Yes… I had several artistic dirty weekends with Sam Shepard.

“Savage/Love” and its non-linear, song cycle style of formation nestled it’s self into my imagination and was my introduction to the poetic sweeping American writing of Sam. The first incarnation of this show I had seen was performed by a class of actors at the college I would one day attend. They were my heroes. They probably could have performed “Trial by Jury” and I would have loved it.

Wait… no… that’s not true. Gilbert and Sullivan does my head in. I could never love it.

But I digress – My obsession with Shepard ran parallel with Sondheim and had a similar journey.

Savage/Love lead to Cowboy Mouth, which took me to Fool For Love

If you have not read any of his work… DO IT! Do it and I dare you not to love it!

This then leads us to our final destination – the University Years.

Now – again a show was brought to my attention that would make my head spin. The idea that musicals could be written with a truly contemporary sound track that didn’t sound cheesy or dated. Again something non-linear, almost as a song cycle… written by some young American guy…

I was standing on the steps of my college entrance and my mate John ran past me, grabbing my wrist and dragging me into the closest dance studio with a working CD player.

“Shut up and listen to this”

He pressed played. Much like the opening notes of Sunday made the hairs on my neck stand on end… so too did Jason Robert Brown’s “Songs for a New World”

I looked up at John – he was smiling at me.

“Don’t even tell me – I know how much you love it.”

And so my never-ending love of contemporary musical theatre was born. This still exists to this day – and is what fuels my life and work.

It pretty much goes without saying that loving “Songs for a New World” led me to “Parade” and in turn “The Last Five Years.” Three shows that bookend a major transitional and progressive section of my life. Again – there are dimensions of these shows (and the subsequent productions thereof) that make my affinity with them insanely multi layered – but to be honest, its late, my fingers ache from all the typing, my tired eyes can hardly see the screen and this blog is already long enough! Any one of my BAPA alumni can vouch that I literally lived and breathed the songs of Jason Robert Brown 24/7 for several years.

So… I guess that brings me to the end… The soundtrack of my young life I guess. This is no indication of what I am listening to today (although if you have not heard Jeff Blumenkrantz’s pod casts – you haven’t lived) but merely a salute to the shows that have lead me to where and who I am.

There are shows that do rate honourable mentions in this journey – Rags, My Favourite Year, Proof, Cloudstreet, Summer Rain, Foreigners From Home, Baz Luhrmann’s La Boheme, The Good Bye Girl, Much Ado About Nothing, Freedom of the City, Porsche Coughlin, Love! Valour! And Compassion! And I urge all of you to discover at east one of these fantastic pieces. They’ll change your life if you let them.

See! Asking me my favourite show is a silly silly question. I’ll never be able to give you just one.

To end this all off – and it’s high time I did – I quote Peter Gallagher –

“No matter what - I always go back to theatre. It's probably where I'll draw my last breath.”