Barry Manilow · aftercurtain

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Barry Manilow's Copacabana

Book and Music · Musical · 1994

The story follows Stephen, a young aspiring songwriter, as he composes what he hopes will become a hit musical. His imagination takes him back to 1947 as he creates a story surrounding an ambitious young singer Lola la Mar who arrives in New York City from Tulsa hoping to become a star. Meanwhile, Tony Forte, a 1947 incarnation of Stephen, is attempting to make it as a songwriter while tending bar at the famous Copacabana Nightclub. Tony instantly falls for Lola as she wanders into the Copacabana. He, along with former "Copa Girl" Gladys, introduce her to the owner of the club Sam Silver, to get her a job as a new Copa Girl. The two try to make it in New York in their respective fields, but do not find it easy. After Tony helps Lola improve a song written by her former music teacher, Sam gives her a job as a Copa Girl at his club. The two fall in love, as Tony writes a song for Lola as she listens. Stephen's voice can be heard narrating the events as Rico Castelli, an Italian gangster from Cuba, enters the Copacabana with the now-waning star Conchita Alvarez. Sam confronts Rico about the disappearance of Copa Girls each time he comes to the club, and demands he leave. However, Rico, armed with thugs, is able to stay long enough to meet and develop an interest in Lola la Mar. He drugs her and flies her back to Havana, Cuba, to star in his own nightclub -the Tropicana. In Havana, Rico informs Conchita that she will be replaced by a new, younger actress: Lola. Conchita, frustrated and upset, goes to Lola in order to "welcome" her. Back at the Copacabana, Tony, Sam, and Gladys learn that Lola was kidnapped and taken to Cuba. Tony immediately heads to save her, and Sam, after some convincing from Gladys, agrees to help him. Conchita, initially intending to threaten Lola, finds that she is truly a victim, and instead treats her with sympathy. Stephen can be seen again, this time expressing his love for the troubled Lola, while also sharing his lament for she is merely a figment of his imagination. Tony and Sam, now in Cuba, find Conchita and asks her for her help. She agrees, and pretends to guide Lola to become her replacement, while telling her to play along. Near the end of the Tropicana performance of "El Bravo", Tony runs on stage, reunited with Lola once again. However, Rico is close behind, waving a gun, and points the barrel at Tony. A single gunshot is heard, and Rico falls to the floor. Conchita, saving Tony and Lola from the perils she faced for years, shot her love Rico to his death. Tony and Lola are finally reunited and go back happily to the Copacabana. Back in the present, Stephen has finished his song. His wife, Samantha, is urging him to dress for their anniversary dinner. Stephen realizes that Lola was simply an incarnation of his wife, and finds he has a new sense of love for her. Her parents, who were the base for the characters Sam and Gladys, also appear, and he realizes his imagination had simply morphed reality into something a bit more elaborate.

Harmony

Music · Musical · 1997

Act I The show starts with an old Rabbi recounting his days in the Comedian Harmonists. Rabbi recounts that he was in the group and we hear them sing together in "Harmony". We see them holding the auditions and the various members joining the group- Young Rabbi, Bobby, Erich, Lesh, Harry, and Chopin. Mary is a Christian seamstress, dating the Jewish Young Rabbi. She ponders on the future world and how the area around her is changing. ("What Do You See?") Mary wonders to Young Rabbi whether they can make it. Young Rabbi assures her it’s not so bad out there and they are in love and can move forward. Meanwhile the Harmonists have gotten an audition at a nice club, this could potentially be their big break. We also meet Ruth, a Jew who is dating the Christian Chopin. Ruth is a fiery revolutionist with communist ideals- Mary makes her a red coat and the boys go to support her at a rally with Chopin donning a red scarf to support her. (“This is Our Time”) With the Harmonists getting a spot to play at the nice club, Erich is now concerned because his parents are quite wealthy, so it would get back to them that he played at the club from people who saw him. He is a doctor, so him starting to devote his career to singing is a big change. In this song, he practices telling his parents the news with the other boys acting as his parents and coming up with different reactions. (“Your Son is Becoming a Singer”) We go back to Mary and Young Rabbi. Things have gotten worse for Jews around Germany. Mary is concerned that they are setting themselves up for failure. Young Rabbi assures her that they will fight for each other and proposes marriage. (“Every Single Day”) The harmonists go to the club for their big performance. (“How Can I Serve You Madam?”) It turns out someone has broken into their dressing room since the tuxes for their performance are made by a Jewish shop owner. They end up performing a more comedic styled performance without pants in big jackets with water spraying effects. It’s a huge hit, and the Harmonists become the Comedian Harmonists and incorporate comedy and parody into their acts. This quickly takes off and they become hugely popular. We see Young Rabbi and Mary and Ruth and Chopin get married. ("The Wedding") They perform traditional Jewish wedding customs, but at the end, someone runs up the aisle and breaks the glass of the synagogue. The group and Mary go on a European tour and go to America to play Carnegie Hall. ("Home") They are extremely successful and meet tons of celebrities along the way. This tour is contrasted with images on stage of Nazi propaganda depicting the Nazi rise to power in Germany. The group is largely shielded from this as they are away overseas. They run into Albert Einstein (played by the Old Rabbi in a wig). Einstein talks about how bad things have gotten and how he’s never going back. The group gets an offer to stay in the US and host a radio show and do a regular show with the famous Josephine Baker. They debate it, but Bobby is insistent that everybody loves them more at home and they should go back where they have come from. The group eventually gives in to Bobby. Old Rabbi reminisces and wishes they had stayed. Act II In a “what if” scenario, we see the group perform with Josephine Baker in a raucous upbeat number ("We're Goin' Loco!"). Rabbi tells us this is what could have been, but they went back. The group has a big performance, performing an original song that uses some Jewish folk music in it ("Hungarian Rhapsody #20"). At this point, we see a Nazi officer and his wife come and sit in the audience. Some anti-Jewish protesters stand up and yell slurs from the balcony at the performance. The Nazi reprimands them and the group finishes their performance. The Nazi then comes up onstage and compliments them on their performance, getting them to sign his album. All of the men are clearly uncomfortable, and Harry (who is Jewish) is somewhat removed. The boys thank the Nazi for defending them, and the Nazi tells them the party actually is in favor of them because it shows they are friendly to culture and let a band with Jewish members perform. Ruth, who is backstage with the group, suddenly loses her temper and is held back by the boys. Finally, Harry is given the album to sign, and the Nazi wipes the pen with a cloth rather than touch it after Harry. He then inquires about Ruth, but the boys don’t give him her information. Before leaving, the Nazi tells the group not to play that song again since it has Jewish folk music. The group has started performing based on where the Nazis would like them to, with the Nazi party controlling their travel and movement. They do a performance at Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen, which they decide to speak back a little. They perform the whole number as a fake advertisement for Germany, while dressed as puppets on strings, with a rather ominous ending. ("Come to the Fatherland") Jewish passports are destroyed, and the Jews are trapped in Germany. The boys and Mary start plotting an escape. They are going to try to build up some cash from performances so they can get out. Mary tells this to Ruth, who hasn’t heard the plans. Young Rabbi comes to Mary and tells her she doesn’t have to escape if she doesn’t want to, he doesn’t want to force her from her home. Mary emphasizes that wherever Rabbi goes she will follow him. (“Where You Go”) Ruth confronts Chopin about the escape plans. He says he can’t do it, and she will leave alone, essentially ending their marriage. She tells him that she will be with him in spirit, that just because he ends their relationship he can’t ignore the horrors occurring. After Ruth walks away, we hear from a Nazi she was arrested. We also find out Erich is Jewish and has been hiding it from the group, but the Nazis know. The group does a film performance to get the cash for the escape (“In This World”). Chopin is singing, but it is a love song and he is remembering Ruth and getting sad. The film ends up stopping production due to Jewish members. The group discusses how to move forward, they don’t have enough cash for all of them and with Jewish members they are now struggling to work. It is decided that they will split up - Mary, Young Rabbi, Erich, and Harry will escape leaving the other three behind. They are on a train when they determine this, and hear that Hitler is on the train ("Threnody"). Old Rabbi discusses how he should have done something at that moment- Hitler walks right by them and he feels he should have attempted to attack him, and maybe that would have changed their fate. He reflects on all the little moments that could have caused their current pain to be avoided. The group eventually does escape, and those that stay in Germany survive the war, except for presumably Ruth (we never know what happens except that Chopin kept looking for her and could not find her). They were banned from performing before they escaped, and all of their records were destroyed. Rabbi is the last surviving member of the group, and he recounts how each of the members lived out their days and how he is the one cursed with remembering and retelling the tragic tale. ("Stars in the Night")

The Madwoman of Central Park West

Music · Musical · 1978

The Madwoman of Central Park West is a semi-autobiographical one-woman musical with a book by Arthur Laurents and Phyllis Newman and songs by various composers and lyricists. It focuses on the difficulties faced by an older actress who tries to balance her career with her life as a wife and mother. Among those whose songs are included in the production are Peter Allen, Leonard Bernstein, Jerry Bock, Martin Charnin, Betty Comden, Fred Ebb, Adolph Green, Sheldon Harnick, John Kander, Ed Kleban, Barry Manilow, Joe Raposo, Mary Rodgers, Carole Bayer Sager, and Stephen Sondheim.

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