Howard Ho’s new Sondheim video is pitch-perfect (today's Weekly Blast)
Insightful YouTuber treads “Into the Woods”
Shalom, Broadway lovers!
In today’s Weekly Blast: a new video about Sondheim by YouTuber extraordinaire Howard Ho and a Last Blast about AIDA.
(Premium subscribers also get a review of the outstanding new Broadway play Appropriate; a Broadway Blast about Bye Bye Birdie; Peter Filichia on The Sound of Music; and a quiz with musical characters named “Miss” or “Mrs.”)
SAVE THE DATES: Just announced: a FREE class on “Jewish Lyricists” on Monday, January 29 at Noon ET. “Sondheim Academy” will be Tuesdays in February and March at Noon ET. Also in February, “Funny Broadway,” Sundays at Noon ET. Registration opens in early January 2024.
For years, YouTuber Howard Ho has helped viewers understand the brilliance of Hamilton and other works by Lin-Manuel Miranda. Now, he’s turned his attention to Sondheim, and I’m pleased to say The Broadway Maven has played a role.
(And if you haven’t seen one of Howard’s videos, they’re a visual treat like candy, a true pleasure to watch.)
Check out his latest video, which involves both lyrical and musical insights into Into the Woods. He riffs (with credit) on some of my ideas as presented at BroadwayCon and takes them to really interesting places, with a promise of more Sondheim videos to come.
Note: links to register for ALL classes are always available at TheBroadwayMaven.com.
• Monday, January 29 from Noon to 1 pm ET: “Jewish Lyricists” (FREE, registration opens soon)
• Sunday, February 4, 2024 from Noon to 1 pm ET: “Funny Broadway” begins with A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (registration opens in January)
• Tuesday, February 6, 2024 from Noon to 1 pm ET: “Sondheim Academy” begins with “Sondheim’s Identities” (registration opens in January)
LAST BLAST: Did you catch this inside joke in AIDA? In perhaps the funniest number in the show, the song “My Strongest Suit,” fashion-fixated Princess Amneris shows off her love of outrageous couture as her retinue parades a series of loud, wild costumes right out of her closet. As she sings in Sir Tim Rice’s lyric, “I would rather wear a barrel than conservative apparel.” The sartorial display underscores the princess’s shallowness and spectacle in contrast to Aida’s noble modesty. But is it really a criticism? In the 1970s, composer Elton John was himself notorious for his outrageous onstage outfits, with their loud colors, headdresses, feathers, sequins, and glitter.
Broadway Maven David Benkof helps students further their appreciation of musical theater through his classes, his YouTube channel, and his Weekly Blast. Contact him at DavidBenkof@gmail.com.