GrooveLily » Toy Story

Val & Bren to play Kennedy Center “Broadway: Today & Tomorrow” Series Feb 13, Millennium Stage

Valerie — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 20:08:12 +0000

Michael Kerker and the fine folks at ASCAP are presenting a week-long series of free performances at Washington, DC’s Kennedy Center Millennium Stage, and have given Val and Brendan the final one-hour concert slot: Saturday, February 13 at 6 PM. The two of us will be playing a bunch of songs from a bunch of projects, including some not usually featured in GrooveLily shows (like TOY STORY and LONG STORY SHORT). We’ll be fresh off a one-week workshop/reading of SLEEPING BEAUTY WAKES at McCarter Theatre in Princeton, NJ – so we’ll definitely be playing some of that music as well. Come join us! Free, no tickets or reservations required. The Grand Foyer will be transformed into a cabaret as tables and chairs are arranged in front of the stage and drinks from the Foyer bars are available.

The Kennedy Center

The series is called “Broadway: Today & Tomorrow” and runs Feb 8-13. It features some terrific emerging writers and performers: Peter Mills (Feb 8), Ryan Scott Oliver/Jay Armstrong Johnson/Alex Brightman/Lindsay Mendez (Feb 9), Steven Lutvak (Feb 10), Alan Schmuckler/Michael Mahler (Feb 11), Jordan Beck/Oliver May (Feb 12). We finish out the series on Feb 13.

The resemblance is astounding

brendan — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 19:31:59 +0000

One of the great byproducts of Striking 12 getting licensed here and there, is that occasionally we get to meet people who played us.

Two men who've had enough. The resemblance is astounding.

Val and I are trading off for two weeks, with one of us working on Toy Story The Musical on site in Anaheim while the other stays home and takes the kid to and from school–and today it’s my turn to be on site. And who do I run into but Brent Shindell, the guy who played “The Man Who’s Had Enough,” in other words, my character in Striking 12. He was in one of the very very few productions where they did it with THREE PEOPLE, just like me and Val and Gene.

I don’t know if you’ve seen the youtube videos–but Brent totally stepped up to the plate and played and sang all of my parts with great aplomb in Santa Barbara in 2008.

What a trip this life is turning out to be.

Too Many Tales From The Road

brendan — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 06:45:45 +0000

I begin this blog entry from a seated position on the floor of the commissary here at Disney Toon Studios. They keep the animators happy here by providing cereal and snacks in nifty dispensers with large turning cranks that drop a portion of tasty comestibles into your waiting bowl. Very nice.

There’s also a nifty coffee machine that grinds the beans and brews you a cappucino at the touch of a button–Val and I are each enjoying a nice Americano as we sit and catch up on some computer work.

It’s been a whirlwind–since the opening of Long Story Short in Pittsburgh, we dashed home for a week, cranked out four more Sleeping Beauty Wakes mixes with Ben Wisch, and then flew to Los Angeles to work on the revision of Toy Story: the Musical for Disney. Three days at the Disneyland Grand Californian Hotel, where Mose ran rampant in loops around the vast lobby, pretending to be a fast-moving train engine with very important connecting rods. He rode the monorail, we rewrote Toy Story. He drove the cars at Autopia, we worked at the Disneyland Corporate Headquarters in a conference room, and on the stage of a rather magnificent, 2,000-seat acoustically-dead, incredibly high-tech bigger-than-Broadway theatre.

Following those three days in Anaheim, we moved back to the Oakwood corporate apartments in Marina Del Rey, where we had stayed with my Mom and our son Mose for about three and a half months in early 2007 during the run of Sleeping Beauty Wakes. For the NEXT three days, we worked on songs for the Disney Toon Studios Tinkerbell movies.

Those of you with female children below the age of 16 may or may not have become aware of the new Tinkerbell phenomemon. Essentially, Tinkerbell has been subtly re-envisioned, in this series of Peter-Pan prequels or reboots, as a super-cool tomboy with a talent for mechanical engineering. We got the chance to visit Pixie Hollow at Disneyland – and families were willing to wait up to 45 minutes (or more) for a chance for their daughter(s) to have some one-on-one time with the fairies. Val and I got to watch a 7-year-old girl light up with delight and awe and wonder at the opportunity to play animal charades with Silvermist and Fawn, and to talk to Tinkerbell herself. It sounds cheesy, but the look on that girl’s face reminded us of why we’re working our butts off crafting these songs for these movies–we are feeding the dreams and aspirations of literally millions of girls. Wow.

We met with Matt Walker and the Disney people to discuss tweaks to the song we’ve written. Originally, we’d pitched a song as a possible end-credits anthem for Tinker Bell–but instead, the directors of Tinker Bell movies #’s 2 and 3 (Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure and Tinker Bell: A Midsummer Storm, respectively) angled for our song. It’s nice to be fought over. In the end, our song has been brought into movie #2, in the opening and closing sequence, and the lyrics, formerly about the coming of Spring, have been tweaked to sound more Autumnal, in keeping with the “bringing Fall to the world” theme of movie #2.

Joel and his daughter, Claire

We also met with Joel McNeely, the composer of the scores of these films, to re-arrange our song for inclusion within the film. The original assignment was: “Make it sound world-music-y, but possibly hitworthy.” Accordingly, we made an afro-cuban, celtic, Peter-Gabriely song which was all over the map stylistically…and now, to match the rest of the score, it needs to sound Irish. Ish. Irishish. In any case, Joel McNeely is particularly awesome at making things sound Irishish, and we spent two glorious afternoons trying things out with his various pennywhistles and recorders. He hopes to record a killer 12-person chorus and bodhran players and a monster hurdy-gurdy player doing the score and our song. This is going to be quite a recording.

After this time with two very different divisions of Disney, Val and I dashed back to Pittsburgh to catch the last performance of Long Story Short before it closed. We had done some rewrites with the intention of putting them in the following week, but seeing the show reminded us of how much we wanted to change and fix…and how little time we would have to do it. Val flew back to LA that night to take care of our kid, and I stayed in Pittsburgh for the rest of the week to do more rewrites, reorchestrations of the rewrites, and to attend rehearsals and come up with solutions as we went. We had a mere 18 hours of rehearsal time over three days, and that was it…and we didn’t get to everything Val and I had wanted to do.

However, the show is already better than it was in Pittsburgh, and I’m really excited to see how the preview audiences react here in California.

While in Pittsburgh, I had a few moments to listen to a new album by Gabe Kahane. (Joel McNeely gifted me and Val with a copy, and I ferreted it away before she could get her hands on it.) It’s amazing. It’s wonderful, original, and at first blush might seem to be in the vein of Sufjan Stevens, but for some reason I just can’t listen to Mr. Stevens and I think I could listen to Mr. Kahane all day. Must hear this man some more.

I know I’m rambling, but it’s been a while since I’ve been able to blog–and SO MUCH has been going on I am starting to feel like my head will burst. There’s been so much good news, and so much exciting stuff going on that I feel it mitigates the bad news: we’re not going to be able to release the Sleeping Beauty Wakes album in December after all. We decided to include more music than originally planned, and PS Classics was so excited about the disc, they felt the material deserved the kind of lavish packaging that takes a few months to design and manufacture, so we’ve moved the release to early 2009. Gene’s singing the part of the King, and his vocals make me cry.

I end this entry from the conference room at the corporate housing place that Theatreworks is putting us up in–it’s beige, it’s comfortable, and my son likes to run up and down the halls with me pretending to be a steam train. It’s getting late and I need to feed the kid and then get to the band rehearsal in the theatre. It’s a very exciting time. Thanks for reading!

April 2008 Newsletter

Valerie — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 11:52:16 +0000

A Mostly Monthly E-Newsletter by and about GrooveLily

Valerie Vigoda: vocals/violin
Brendan Milburn: keys/vocals
Gene Lewin: drums/vocals

G r o o v e L i l y E – N e w s # 5 5

We are so excited to get out and PLAY again. We haven’t gone this long without a gig since we started the band over a decade ago … so come join us on April 26 in Maplewood, NJ and April 27 at Joe’s Pub in NYC!
Brendan and Val got to attend the official press opening of TOY STORY on April 10, and were thrilled to be mentioned in Jon Lasseter’s curtain speech. Check out photo and video coverage in #2 below.
On the cruise ship, their 2 1/2-year-old son Mose fell in love with Woody and Buzz, whom he had previously known only from the artwork imprinted on his diapers. Full blog coming soon; meanwhile, happy spring, everyone!

1. Nightlife Spotlight: Joe’s Pub April 27
2. Toy Story Opens At Sea! NY Post Coverage, Slideshows, Video
3. April 26 Gig In Maplewood, NJ: All-Request Second Set
4. Just For Fun: The Korean Gene Lewin?
5. Is Your Name Denyse? We’ve Got A Free CD For You
6. Upcoming Shows: Full List

1. Nightlife Spotlight: Joe’s Pub April 27

From Theatermania’s Nightlife Spotlight:

There is a slew of stars over at Joe’s Pub…including Nellie McKay (April 1)…Melissa Errico (April 23-24), GrooveLily (April 27), and Sutton Foster (April 28)

We are honored to be in such distinguished company. Here are the details:

Sunday, April 27, 2008
7:30 PM
Joe’s Pub
425 Lafayette Street
New York, NY
Tickets: $20 General Admission
Web: www.joespub.com
Phone: 212-967-7555
Email: sthake@publictheater.org
Please come join us in one of New York’s best listening rooms.

2. Toy Story Opens At Sea! NY Post Coverage, Slideshows, Video

It’s the most ambitious show ever presented on the high seas, and we are incredibly delighted and proud. Check out the New York Post article, slideshows of great production photos, and video coverage including short excerpts of some of our songs, plus Jon Lasseter’s curtain speech and interviews/Q&A with the entire creative team!

ARTICLE from New York Post:
http://www.nypost.com/seven/04012008/entertainment/travel/it_s_a_toy__104458.htm

SLIDESHOW from Webshots:
http://good-times.webshots.com/slideshow/562946521NBbyvk;jsessionid=abctKAyZRDNqO5KvkOuLr

VIDEO from Central Florida News 13:
http://www.cfnews13.com/Entertainment/HeyJohn/2008/4/11/toy_story_becomes_a_musical.html

VIDEO from Orlando Sentinel:
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/orl-toystory1108apr11,0,2846860.story

VIDEO/PIX from Laughing Place:
http://www.laughingplace.com/Lotion-View-631.asp

3. April 26 Gig In Maplewood, NJ: All-Request Second Set

The Petal Pushers have made their song requests – and we will honor as many as humanly possible at our April 26 show, at our all-request second set.

At this very special show, which could very well become an annual tradition, all Petal Pushers get in for FREE (a pair of tickets for each PP) – and absolutely everyone is invited. We hope to see you in Maplewood on April 26.

Saturday, April 26, 2008
UNDERGROUND CONCERT SERIES
Maplewood Middle School Auditorium
7 Burnet Street
Maplewood, NJ
8:00 PM, $22 General Admission (FREE for Petal Pushers)
973.762.0119
www.undergroundconcerts.com
jamie@undergroundconcerts.com

4. Just For Fun: The Korean Gene Lewin?

Our friends Paul and Storm, who never fail to find the best stuff on YouTube, sent us this link. We think you’ll find yourself mesmerized by this truly Gene-esque drummer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPWjNX4PBlI

5. Is Your Name Denyse? We’ve Got A Free CD For You

Going through stuff in the basement, we ran across an original “Little Light” CD autographed “To Denyse.” (Apparently we misheard someone’s name at the merch table after a gig sometime in 2001…)
If this happens to be your name, or if you’d simply like to own this pre-personalized copy of one of our older albums, let us know and we’ll hook you up.

6. Upcoming Shows: Full List

Check out the gigs page.

email: us@groovelily.com
web site: www.groovelily.com

March 2008 Newsletter

Valerie — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 11:49:13 +0000

A Mostly Monthly E-Newsletter by and about GrooveLily

Valerie Vigoda: vocals/violin
Brendan Milburn: keys/vocals
Gene Lewin: drums/vocals

G r o o v e L i l y E – N e w s # 5 4

Almost out of hibernation, people…

1. April 26 Show In Maplewood, NJ: “Petal Pusher” Gig
2. April 27 Show at Joe’s Pub, NYC
3. Gene With Audra McDonald: More Gigs Added
4. “Long Story Short”/”Sleeping Beauty Wakes” Workshop Wrapup
5. More LA Accolades For “Sleeping Beauty Wakes”: Garland Awards
6. More Press About “Long Story Short” & “Toy Story: The Musical”
7. Far-Flung Friends Performing In NYC: Britt Swenson, Christopher Fuelling
8. We Also Recommend: Fugitive Songs (Chris Miller & Nathan Tysen)

1. April 26 Show In Maplewood, NJ: “Petal Pusher” Gig

We miss you! And so it is with great pleasure that we will dust off our instruments and return to Maplewood, NJ for the Underground Concert Series, this time at a lovely middle school auditorium.

Our Petal Pushers (GrooveLily street team) have been wonderful and indispensable to us over the years, and we want to give something back. At this first-ever Petal Pusher gig, all PPs will get in for free, AND…we’d like them to help write the set list.

Please mark your calendars (and just to be clear, EVERYONE is cordially invited, not just Petal Pushers) for Saturday evening, April 26 – and any PPs with song requests should email us at us@groovelily.com — we will compile the requests and write the set accordingly. Please make your requests by March 21, and we look forward to seeing you at this very special show (which could very well become an annual tradition).

2. April 27 Show at Joe’s Pub, NYC

The night after the PP concert in NJ, we’ll be doing a (different) show at Joe’s Pub in Manhattan. It’s our first real gig in this venue, which is one of New York’s best listening rooms, and we are very excited about it. Hope you can join us! We’ll be playing one 60-minute set.

Sunday, April 27, 2008
JOE’S PUB
425 Lafayette Street
New York City
7:30 PM, $20 General Admission
212.967.7555
www.joespub.com
sthake@publictheater.org

3. Gene With Audra McDonald: More Gigs Added

Friday, March 28 at the Lucas Theatre for the Arts in Savannah, GA
Sunday, March 30 at the Ferst Center for the Arts in Atlanta, GA
Tuesday, April 1, Thomasville Cultural Center in Thomasville, GA
Friday May 2, Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts in Storrs, CT
Saturday May 3, Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts in Storrs, CT

4. “Long Story Short”/”Sleeping Beauty Wakes” Workshop Wrapup

We could not be happier with the way both these shows are shaping up. After these relatively frantic weeks of writing and traveling (to Pittsburgh and then to Princeton, NJ), revising pages and making charts before rehearsal each day and then barraging the actors with new material, both “Long Story Short” and “Sleeping Beauty Wakes” are in their best incarnations yet. Thanks so much to everyone at City Theatre, TheatreWorks and McCarter Theatre for all their support as we develop these pieces … and to all the actors who have been incredibly generous with their time and their talent, allowing us to hear where we are with our writing. Wayne Wilcox and Deborah Craig worked with us on “Long Story Short” in Pittsburgh; and the cast of the Princeton “Beauty” reading included Bill Youmans, Kaitlin Hopkins, Whitney Bashor, Charlie Pollock, Patrick Ryan Sullivan, Jimmy Ray Bennett, Sally Wilfert, Todd Buonopane and Kate Chapman.

Each show had a reading with an audience, on a cold soggy night in a small room … and we have emerged even more enthusiastic about both projects, galvanized to finish our work. Val and Bren’s 2 1/2-year-old son Mose has emerged with two new favorite phrases, repeated frequently with vehement happy arm gestures: “US Airways!” and “Holiday Inn Express!”

5. More LA Accolades For “Sleeping Beauty Wakes”: Garland Awards

Once again, we are incredibly honored. We just learned about these awards, and they make us even more excited about the future of the show. Every year, the critics of Back Stage West vote on the best of theatre in Los Angeles and vicinities. “Sleeping Beauty Wakes” won for: Production (Center Theatre Group, Deaf West Theatre), Choreography (Jeff Calhoun), and Sound Design (Eric Snodgrass).

From the Back Stage web page on the 2008 Garland Awards:

PRODUCTION

Sleeping Beauty Wakes
Center Theatre Group and Deaf West Theatre at Kirk Douglas Theatre

SLEEPING BEAUTY WAKES, winner for Production

“Sleeping Beauty sleeps. She of the Charles Perrault fairy tale was born a princess centuries ago to a doting king and queen but was cursed by an evil fairy who was not invited to the princess’ christening. Under the curse, the princess fell into a deep sleep that could be broken only by the kiss of a prince. Or so the traditional fairy tale tells us. Cleverly interweaving that tale into today’s world of sleep clinics, Sleeping Beauty Wakes is modern in music, language, and staging but achingly timeless in sensibility and themes, with book by Rachel Sheinkin and music and lyrics by Brendan Milburn and Valerie Vigoda. Adding to the charm, a sizable portion of the cast is deaf or hard of hearing, communicating with us in American Sign Language. So hearing actors voice and sing those roles in addition to portraying others.”

– Dany Margolies

Full story here:

http://www.backstage.com/bso/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003717668

6. More Press About “Long Story Short” & “Toy Story: The Musical”

We’re a cult band! Drink our Kool-Aid!

“Milburn and Vigoda, a married couple at the heart of the ‘cult band’ GrooveLily, are hot right now, with their ‘Striking 12′ a 2006 off-Broadway hit and their ‘Sleeping Beauty Wakes’, written for Los Angeles’ Deaf West, a record-breaker at the Kirk Douglas Theatre.”

Full story here:
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08071/864048-42.stm

***

And, we dress up sometimes.

http://www.playbill.com/news/article/115686.html

7. Far-Flung Friends Performing In NYC: Britt Swenson, Christopher Fuelling

Some of our dear friends are coming to town! If you’d care to join us for some fun comedy or terrific Baroque music, we’d love it:

Britt Swenson
SO MANY LADIES
The Zipper Factory
336 West 37th Street (between 8th and 9th Aves)
New York City
Sunday, April 6
7:00 PM, $15 tickets
212.352.3101
www.thezipperfactory.com

“A Best Bet!” – The Denver Post

Hailed as being “Lily Tomlin-esque” by The Denver Post, So Many Ladies is a one-woman tour de force written by and starring stand-up comic and Groundlings veteran Britt Swenson, who plays a total of 15 characters – everything from a Broadway has-been to Laura Bush. Swenson began her stand-up career in New York, and after a move to LA, became a member of the Groundlings and a regular at The Comedy Store. She now lives in Denver, where So Many Ladies premiered to critical acclaim in 2006. Val, who has known Britt since they went to violin camp together at age 12, is a huge fan and can’t wait to see her show at the Zipper.

For a sneak preview, check Britt out on YouTube:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=AQTlOfbuMgI

***

Christopher Fuelling
ART MONASTERY GALA FUNDRAISER
City University Of New York
Shepherd Hall, Convent Avenue near 137th Street
New York City
Saturday, April 12
Doors 7:00 PM, Baroque Concert 8:00 PM, Donations $20-$60
Silent Auction, Italian hors d’oeuvres
http://artmonastery.org/Art_Monastery/Fundraiser_NYC.html
ben@artmonastery.org

Val’s college friend Christopher (a tenor specializing in Early Baroque music and Gregorian chant, among other pursuits) is founding a beautiful artistic retreat in Italy in an old monastery near Rome, with a group of likeminded musicians and artists. This creative haven is called The Art Monastery Project, and Chris & co. are kicking it off with a fundraising tour next month. They’ll be in LA, Philadelphia, NYC, Bloomington, Kansas City, Seattle and San Francisco…Val and Brendan will be at the Manhattan gala on April 12, listening to glorious Baroque singing and cheering on our expat friends.

From their site:
The purpose of the Art Monastery Project is to produce art that is relevant to the contemporary world yet is informed and inspired by tradition. Our strategy is to apply the disciplined efficiency and contemplative serenity of monastic life to art production. As such, the Art Monastery will support artists and projects that best exploit the unique environment we are generating.

www.artmonastery.org

8. We Also Recommend: Fugitive Songs (Chris Miller & Nathan Tysen)

If you like GrooveLily, we think it’s a pretty sure bet you’ll like these guys too. Theatrical writers with rock/pop/folk sensibilities, they’ve got wit, they’ve got groove, they’ve got heart … and their song cycle, “Fugitive Songs,” features plenty of all three.

From their press materials:
Chris Miller and Nathan Tysen have crafted a series of theatre songs for their restless generation. Fugitive Songs is a 17-song journey across America, spotlighting people on the run: a disgruntled Subway sandwich employee, a jilted ex-cheerleader, a pair of Patty Hearst fanatics, a stoner who robs a convenience store against his will, and many others. Blending traditional folk music with contemporary pop, Fugitive Songs offers a new sound for a changing America.

FUGITIVE SONGS
45th Street Theatre
354 West 45th Street
New York City
March 9 – 30, 2008
Wed-Sat 8 PM, Sat & Sun 2 PM
$20 tickets
800.595.4849
www.dreamlighttheatre.org

Music by Chris Miller
Lyrics by Nathan Tysen
Directed by Joe Calarco

We’ll be in touch again next month…

love,
GrooveLily

email: us@groovelily.com
web site: www.groovelily.com

February 2008 Newsletter

Valerie — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 11:46:39 +0000

A Mostly Monthly E-Newsletter by and about GrooveLily

Valerie Vigoda: vocals/violin
Brendan Milburn: keys/vocals
Gene Lewin: drums/vocals

G r o o v e L i l y E – N e w s # 5 3

Writing, writing, writing, making sheet music, making demos, making plans, making coffee, fending off frostbite, teaching Mose about “please” and “thankyou” (his latest statement on the subject being “hitting is good, please!”) … teaching Elias about the difference between snare drum and tom toms, and not to drum directly on Da-da’s shins (his latest statement on the subject being “bwahbwah!”) … working on the new GL website, and sending you all February love from frozen Brooklyn.

1. Larson Award, Again!
2. “Long Story Short” World Premiere Announced: Pittsburgh & Palo Alto 2008
3. “Long Story Short” Workshop Feb 29, City Theatre Of Pittsburgh
4. What’s Gene Up To? Laurie Krauz, Broadway Boys, Audra McDonald Gigs
5. Photo From First High School Production Of “Striking 12″ (Tampa, FL)
6. “Sleeping Beauty Wakes”: Working On The Show/Concert Version Underway
7. “Toy Story: The Musical” Disney Cruise Info, In Case You’d Like To Join Us
8. Since You Asked: Mark Wood’s New Electric Violin Starter Kit
9. Upcoming Gigs: Coming Soon. Keep Resting.

1. Larson Award, Again!

Val and Brendan had the great honor of accepting a *second* Jonathan Larson Performing Arts Foundation award this week (the first was 2 years ago). City Theatre of Pittsburgh will utilize the grant specifically for the development of our new 2-person musical “Long Story Short” (adapted from the David Schulner play “An Infinite Ache”). The awards luncheon was at the “21″ Club in NYC on February 14, where we hobnobbed in our dressy clothes and got to hear amazing performances by the likes of Neil Patrick Harris, Anthony Rapp and Mary Testa. The whole Larson family was there, and we were incredibly happy to be part of this warm, supportive, wonderful group once again.

From the Larson website: Jonathan Larson’s dream was to infuse musical theatre with a contemporary, joyful urban vitality. After 12 years of struggle as a classic “starving artist,” his dream came true with the phenomenal success of RENT. To celebrate his creative spirit and honor his memory, Jonathan’s family and friends created the Jonathan Larson Performing Arts Foundation. The mission of the Foundation is to provide financial support and encouragement to a new generation of musical theatre composers, lyricists and bookwriters.

www.jlpaf.org

2. “Long Story Short” World Premiere Announced: Pittsburgh & Palo Alto 2008

It’s officially happening this year! Val and Brendan are hard at work on the musical adaptation of “An Infinite Ache,” a 2-person musical now officially titled “Long Story Short.” Originally commissioned by City Theatre of Pittsburgh, the world premiere of the show will be presented by both City Theatre of Pittsburgh and TheatreWorks Palo Alto. Tracy Brigden, Artistic Director of City Theatre, will direct.
(Val and Brendan will NOT be performing the show. They will be gleefully spectating and taking notes.)

Pittsburgh: October 23 – November 15, 2008

Palo Alto: December 3 – December 28, 2008

“Long Story Short,” based on a David Schulner play about a “roller-coaster romance, examines the life-cycle of a relationship from first date through old age. It retraces a brief encounter between two 20-somethings which develops into a love affair that lasts a lifetime.”

Full stories here:

http://www.playbill.com/news/article/114882.html
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/living/events/s_550760.html
http://www.mercurynews.com/opinion/ci_8172187

3. “Long Story Short” Workshop Feb 29, City Theatre Of Pittsburgh

If you are in or near Pittsburgh this month and would like to check out a sneak preview of “Long Story Short,” we’d love for you to join us.
This is a workshop (informal reading, with scripts in hand and a pianist) of our first draft of the show – so who knows what may change between now and opening night. We are thrilled to be working with wonderful actors Deborah Craig (original Marcy Park in “Spelling Bee” on Broadway) and Wayne Wilcox (star of “Coram Boy” on Broadway).

Friday, February 29, 2008
Hamburg Theatre, City Theatre of Pittsburgh
7:00 PM, FREE but *extremely* limited tickets
Reservations required: (412) 431-CITY [2489]

4. What’s Gene Up To? Laurie Krauz, Broadway Boys, Audra McDonald Gigs

While “Long Story Short” and “Toy Story” are going up, Gene is playing lots of great music. He writes:

I’m rehearsing with singer Laurie Krauz, musical director Daryl Kojak, and bassist Sean Conly in preparation for Laurie’s new CD “Tapestry Rewoven,” a re-imagining of Carole King’s classic recording. Laurie is a good friend, great singer, and incredibly dedicated artist…this record is going to be really cool. For more info, check out:
www.lauriekrauz.com

I’m also playing with “The Broadway Boys” (a fantastic vocal group led by the fabulous Jesse Nager, our friend and co-conspirator on “A Little Midsummer Night’s Music” – you may remember his glorious singing on “All Shall Be Well”). The Broadway Boys play Birdland on March 9th. Come check it out if you’re in NYC!
www.myspace.com/thebroadwayboys

And I’m going out on the road again with the wonderful Audra McDonald:

Friday, March 28th at the Lucas Theatre for the Arts in Savannah, GA
Sunday, March 30th at the Ferst Center for the Arts in Atlanta, GA

5. Photo From First High School Production Of “Striking 12″ (Tampa, FL)

The largest cast to do “Striking 12″ so far is Wharton High School in Tampa, Florida. The Wharton Thespians performed the adapted version of the show this past December…and we were delighted to see this fun photo from their production. Go Wharton!

http://pics.tampabay.com/?method=view.image¶m=27458¶m=188

6. “Sleeping Beauty Wakes”: Working On The Show/Concert Version Underway

Thank you for all your inquiries about what’s next for “Sleeping Beauty Wakes,” and for your many messages asking about recordings of the songs! Rest assured, we have very high hopes for the future of the show, and will keep you posted along the way.

What’s happening right now:

1) Brendan, Rachel and Val have completed a second draft, and there will be an informal reading of this version in a rehearsal room at McCarter Theatre in Princeton, NJ on March 8, as part of their IN-Festival. (Unfortunately the room is too small to invite you to join us — our apologies!)

2) Gene, Brendan and Val are putting together a concert version of SBW for GrooveLily to perform.* The first one has already been booked, by the Portsmouth Music Hall in Portsmouth, NH for April 2009. We plan to record the album of songs in preparation for these concerts…stay tuned.

*This concert version is entirely separate from any future full productions of the show, which will include American Sign Language and a much larger cast.

7. “Toy Story: The Musical” Disney Cruise Info, In Case You’d Like To Join Us

Val, Brendan and two-year-old son Mose will be cruising to the Bahamas from March 16-20, to help oversee the first public performances of “Toy Story: The Musical” on the cruise ship Disney Wonder. The whole creative team will be there…and we can’t wait to see the full production in action, with the giant puppets and amazing set design on the beautiful Broadway-sized (and watertight) stage!

www.disneycruise.com

8. Since You Asked: Mark Wood’s New Electric Violin Starter Kit

Val is frequently peppered with questions about her Viper violins and violin playing, everything from what the electric instruments feel like to play, how they’re tuned and how heavy they are, to how much they cost and where to get them, to how a person can learn to play non-classical styles…

She would like you all to know that for the first time, Mark Wood (inventor of the Viper) is introducing an extremely affordable electric violin starter kit. Val thinks this is BRILLIANT: it contains everything you need to get going on the electric violin, including your instrument, an amp, a wah-wah pedal, an instruction book, and all the cables you’ll need to plug in and play. Check it out, and enjoy!

http://www.woodviolins.com/html/home.html

9. Upcoming Gigs: Coming Soon. Keep Resting.

We’ll be in touch again next month…

love,
GrooveLily

email: us@groovelily.com
web site: www.groovelily.com

January 2008 Newsletter

Valerie — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 11:33:41 +0000

A Mostly Monthly E-Newsletter by and about GrooveLily

Valerie Vigoda: vocals/violin
Brendan Milburn: keys/vocals
Gene Lewin: drums/vocals

G r o o v e L i l y E – N e w s # 5 2

January in Brooklyn: the Statue of Liberty is easy to spot through leafless branches and over the dark water of the East River, inspiring us with her upraised arm. Brendan and Val’s son Mose and Gene’s son Elias play in shirtsleeves in Prospect Park, enjoying the unexpectedly balmy winter sun. Joggers in shorts dodge discarded Christmas trees.
No matter where you find yourself and what the weather, we hope you enjoy this month’s profusion of videos and photos: check out “Striking 12″ highlights and a prototype hi-res “GrooveLily Channel” on Stage6, as well as the first sneak preview of “Toy Story The Musical”!

1. “Striking 12″ Photos By John Atashian
2. “Striking 12″ Video Highlights By Rob Bond
3. Prototype Hi-Res “GrooveLily Channel” on Stage6, Also By Rob Bond
4. Sneak Preview Of “Toy Story The Musical”: Article & Podcast!
5. NOT GrooveLily: Cincinnati New Stage Collective “Striking 12″ Clips
6. Department Of Gratitude: WXPN, Free For All With Beth And Jules
7. Upcoming Shows: None At The Moment. Stay Home And Rest.

1. “Striking 12″ Photos By John Atashian

Thanks so much to the terrific John Atashian for sharing these photos with us. (Despite the new overture lyrics saying otherwise, we did give him permission to take pictures!)
These are from the December 29 show at the Zipper Factory.

http://www.groovelily.com/index2.html?gallery
(click on “Winter 2007-2008″)

2. “Striking 12″ Video Highlights By Rob Bond

Brought to you by our intrepid Petal Pusher Coordinator Rob Bond.

“Overture 2007″:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbULAnc7M20

“Screwed-Up People Make Great Art”:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHUOK6JSoiQ&feature=related

“The Little Drummer Boy”*:
http://www.stage6.com/user/bigfan007/video/2034693/

*To play this video you will need the DivX Player. You should be able
to download the DivX Player plug-in once you go to the page referenced
above (in Internet Explorer you will get an Active-X installation
prompt for the DivX player. In FireFox you will see a puzzle icon,
prompting you to install the DivX plug-in).

This is a single, hand-held, camera recording from the audience of the
29-Dec 2007 “Striking 12″ performance at The Zipper Factory in lovely
NYC.

3. Prototype Hi-Res “GrooveLily Channel” on Stage6, Also By Rob Bond

This is the beginning of something really terrific. We are delighted that Rob has started this, and we think that Stage6′s whole hi-res premise ROCKS.

http://www.stage6.com/GrooveLily/

Rob writes, “I have prototyped a ‘GrooveLily Channel’ on the video file sharing site ‘Stage6′. The concept of a ‘Channel’ is that it provides a means of collecting video content with a common theme and allows you to build a community of interest around the content. Not only can you comment on the individual videos (like YouTube), but there is also a Discussion Board for the channel, plus a Blog feature for the channel owner (me at the moment).

The channel has a number of ‘Groups’ that I have defined: ‘Striking 12′, ‘Sleeping Beauty Wakes’, ‘Wheelhouse’, ‘TV Appearances’, ‘Covers’ and ‘Concerts’ (for the general GL music catalog). The ‘Group’ concept allows you to collect related content within the channel for ease of access. There is currently no content uploaded for ‘Sleeping Beauty Wakes’ or ‘Wheelhouse’, but the others have some initial content. To see all the videos go to the ‘GrooveLily Channel’ at http://www.stage6.com/GrooveLily/ and select ‘View All’.

Stage6 members (it’s free to be a member) can ‘subscribe’ to a channel, in which case they receive immediate updates when new content is loaded.”

4. Sneak Preview Of “Toy Story The Musical”: Article & Podcast!

Orlando Sentinel, Front Page Story, January 8:

“Disney officials wanted a new stage show, so they thought big. Then they thought small. And then, inflatable. The result, set to be announced today by Disney executives, is a multimillion-dollar musical version of Toy Story, the 1995 Disney-Pixar animated film that shrank moviegoers’ perspective to the size of Mr. Potato Head and company.”

Read The Full Story Here:
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/orl-toystory0808jan08,0,4485262.story

Podcast:
Behind the scenes at rehearsal in Toronto last month, including nice footage of Brendan and Val (and interview with Val). Lots of big big big puppets.

http://www.cdbproductions.com/ToyStoryPodcastREV4.mov
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WWK6vANEmY

5. NOT GrooveLily: Cincinnati New Stage Collective “Striking 12″ Clips

It’s a little bit surreal for us to see other people doing “Striking 12,” but we are thrilled that the show is getting out into the world! This season, the first year of our association with Theatrical Rights Worldwide, it was licensed to theaters in Philadelphia, PA/Cincinnati, OH/Edison, NJ/Tampa, FL/Seoul, Korea. Ever-vigilant Petal Pusher Adam Wolf ran across this TV interview and TV clips from the Cincinnati production.

New Stage Collective in Cincinnati
TV Interview + “Snow Song”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NE3AXYAVqxQ&feature=related

“Can’t Go Home”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcgIPThICrE&feature=related

6. Department Of Gratitude: WXPN, Free For All With Beth And Jules

We could not be more honored that one of our favorite radio stations, Philadelphia’s WXPN, featured “Striking 12″ in its entirety on Christmas Eve.

Also, New Jersey’s own Beth and Jules did the same thing on their Free For All program on January 8. They played the whole “Striking 12″ CD, along with some late Schubert string quartets; we are grateful to be in such illustrious company.

We send out a big THANK YOU to all the independent DJs who continue to make their own decisions about their playlists. Whether or not you include our music specifically, we salute you and celebrate your maverick spirit!

7. Upcoming Shows: None At The Moment. Stay Home And Rest.

Put your feet up. Read a book. (Our current faves: Val – “Heyday” by Kurt Andersen, Brendan – “The Book Of Lost Things” by John Connolly, Gene – “The History Of Love” by Nicole Krauss)
Listen to some other music. (Our current faves: Val – “All In” by Mike Errico, Brendan – “Little Voice” by Sara Bareilles, Gene – “Nearness of You: The Ballad Book” by Michael Brecker, featuring James Taylor singing on 2 tracks)

We’ll be in touch again next month…
love,
GrooveLily

email: us@groovelily.com
web site: www.groovelily.com