Latest Craze

My latest obsession is another Broadway musical - never fear, Wicked and The Pirate Queen have NOT left the building - called Jekyll & Hyde, based, unsurprisingly, on the book 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde' by Robert Louis Stevenson. Very intriguing. I think I have to read the book now and see how accurate the show is.
My path of travel for this season's fixation takes a trip across the sea to China and back. My sister, ATL, is completely obsessed with a singer, Kris Philips, or Fei Xiang, who is HUGE in China. We got her his 2-CD Broadway album set for her birthday a couple of years ago. 'This Is The Moment' was one of the songs he sang in English. (I don't get a thrill from the songs sung in Chinese, but ATL does.) 'For Good' was another song but that's a different story. 'This Is The Moment' was such a great song we looked up the musical it came from. We Googled Jekyll & Hyde but it wasn't playing anywhere around us and we thought it was likely pretty depressing based on what little we knew of the book. Wicked took over my brain shortly thereafter and then my love affair with Stephanie J. Block and The Pirate Queen and I didn't think of Jekyll & Hyde until a few months ago when ATL and I discovered we could record snippets of songs on our phones and make them our ring tones. I know - we are SO behind the technology. Whatever. ATL recorded 'This Is The Moment' as her ring tone. So whenever she gets a call "...when all I've done, all of the dreaming, scheming and screaming become one..." blares across the room. So it was in my recent memory when I was ordering CDs in December. I was due some free ones, so I searched for Jekyll & Hyde and the Original Cast Recording was available. I figured, why the heck not? (I also got The Boy From Oz because Ms. Block is in it - but another day, another post.) It finally came and I finally got around to hearing it last week. OMG - so good! I love the rhyme schemes, I'm a sucker for clever rhymes and patterns (dialysis...pal, a sister anyone?), I think all the talent is great and Robert Cuccioli, especially, is awesome. Not as depressing as I thought it might be...it IS a little dark, naturally, but in a self reflective way. Classic Good vs. Evil plot. Am loving the character of Emma. Truly. She's strong, independent, smart, loving, and she doesn't apologize for any of it. Nothing to "get over." She doesn't waffle about her decisions, does not spend a lot of time questioning herself or motives. Does not develop any complexes. She makes up her mind and carries through. I like her a lot. Lucy, the other female lead, gets all the solos but she's the typical prostitute with a heart of gold. Ehn. I see a reason for her but I don't get behind her.
After devouring the CD and committing most of it to memory I looked the show up on YouTube in the hopes someone got all illegal (as they did with Wicked) and loaded the entire show so I could pretend I was seeing it live. Even better, a legit video copy - in 16 parts, but still - is available to see. The sad part; it's not the original Broadway cast. The funny part; it IS David Hasselhoff. I know - sad to say the first thing I think of for him is Baywatch - but he's not that bad. His performance does not blow my mind, but he does not stink. I just don't think of him as a song and dance man. It's interesting to get my mind around this concept. I am totally loving Andrea Rivette. Great performance. Great voice. Great character - I have to admit she is where a lot of my respect for Emma comes from. Just...great! Not to say the original girl, Christiane Noll, is a slouch, she is very talented as well. I am just in love with anything related to the show right now I think. Can't wait to find a live production somewhere, ANYwhere. Is it playing in your town right now?

This is me, happy in my obsessions.