The Music Man

The Music Man is considered one of the classics in the history of musical theatre. It was a beloved musical when it hit the stage of Broadway in 1958 (yes, before I was born), and the film produced in 1962 solidified its position.

So when I heard a few months ago that a friend had landed a major role in her school production of the show, that settled it. I had to travel to Pennsylvania for the weekend and see it. After all, it was the perfect combination - a perfect storm if you will. First, I got to visit the Swank family, some of my favorite people on earth. Second, I was able to support Rachel as she performed the key role of Mrs. Paroo. And finally, I got to watch a show that I've love for most of my life.

So it was a wonderful weekend all around, and I wrote about that in my last blog post. Here is the whole gang at lunch Sunday, before I went to watch the first act for the second time, before leaving to catch my flight. Yes, it was so good I cut it very close just to watch as much as could for a second time.

Scott, me, Sarah, Rachel, Emily, and Lori

So anyway, back to the show. Which is what this post was supposed to be about, right?

For those who don't know, The Music Man is set in 1912 and is about a conniving traveling salesman (Harold Hill) who rolls into an Iowa town and uses the illusion of a crisis (a new pool table!) to manufacture the need for a boys' band to keep kids out of trouble. He uses this illusion to sell musical instruments and band uniforms even though he "don't know one note from another." A part of his plan  is to romance the local piano teacher (Marian Paroo), both to keep her off balance and, well, because he's a man. Since the show is 57 years old, I'm not going to worry about spoilers: At the end, he gets caught but the people he's befriended - especially Marian - stand up for him because of the joy he brought to the town over the summer.

(Again, it was done extremely well and was very enjoyable. I would have been happy I saw it even if I had not known one of the actors. And by the way, playing Marian's mother Mrs. Paroo, Rachel was awesome.)

So is this a story about just getting away with something? That is what had troubled the director of this production, Jill Panyard, for a long time. In her director's notes, she wrote about how she had resisted this play for years:

It has challenges, like every musical, but my problem was with redemption. With every production I saw, I never believed that Harold would actually stay in River City...How does a director direct Harold to portray true redemption? I think I found the spot. As I read the script several times over, I saw the scene where it can happen. With eyes damp with hope, I thought, 'We can do this. And Harold will be redeemed!' I hope you see it too.

Ah! A challenge!

And I watched with that challenge looming before me. If any of my friends in PA happen to point Ms. Panyard toward this post, maybe she will see whether I got it.

As I saw it, the director had Harold carry a card around the entire play - the ace of spades. (Yes, I had a very good seat.) Every now and then during the long con, when he was laying it on thick, he would pull the card out and look at it. It was symbolic of the fact that he was only there to trick people, to take their money and be on his way. No matter how sincere he might appear, that card was always there.

Then as the play nears its conclusion, he meets Marian at the footbridge. He is there, just like always, to use her and then discard her - taking his "reward" before leaving town. But a funny thing happens. For those who don't know, she is carrying a page with evidence that he is a fraud. When they meet, she gives it to him and discloses that she has know for weeks. But she didn't turn him in.

Grace. Total, unadulterated grace. Despite all his shenanigans, his rotten-to-the-core deceitfulness, she forgives him and hands him the page. "With my whole heart," she says.

And then - in this production - he puts it in his pocket and drops the card in the water, never to be seen again. He drops his sinfulness in the water, replacing it with the grace of the page Marian handed him. And for the rest of the show, he pulls the page out like he had the card, reminding himself of who is is now.

And, no doubt, he stays in River City.

Wow! Well done!

It reminds me what grace is for me. God forgives and loves me despite knowing what a fraud I am. And when he gives me that grace, if I will just let go of the old life, he will change me forever.


Yes, it was a marvelous show. And a marvelous time with friends. Rachel posed with her family right after the performance...

...and then I got a picture with the star. I may need to print one of these and get an autograph one day:

And I will never watch this show, on stage or screen, the same way again. Every Harold Hill I see will be walking around with an unseen ace of spades.

As I was. Thank you, Lord, for replacing it with your grace.

Stealing the glory

I have not seen the new movie Son of God that was released last Friday night. I certainly plan to, because its subject is the focus of my life and anything about him is going to draw my attention. But I have read plenty already. Enough to know that Satan was left out of the story. Not because of some conspiracy by which Hollywood is trying to undermine sound doctrine. no, it's because in the original footage, as aired in the miniseries The Bible, Satan looked like this:

Look familiar? Well, for those of you who don't know, the day after the gospel episode of the miniseries aired, all the talk was about the actor who played Satan…and how much he looked like President Obama.

Many accused the producers of choosing the actor deliberately, to make some non-so-subtle political statement about the President. Many others thought this was ridiculous and oversensitive. But it was all the talk. All the talk.

So, in a massive high-budget production that the makers wanted to point to Jesus, to lift him up as the Savior of the world, everything else about the story got upstaged by Satan. All because he resembled a polarizing public figure.

No wonder they didn't want him to appear in the movie - it would be foolish to make the same mistake twice. This time, they thought, let's make sure the focus is on the Son of God and not the Evil One. Anything that takes away from the glory of the Son, well, it needs to go.
_________________________

I couldn't follow this story without being overcome with a sense of how the situation mirrors real life. Anytime Jesus is proclaimed, anytime the good news of liberation and salvation is proclaimed, you can be sure that the forces of evil are not happy. So they lurk, ready to pounce on the first opportunity to steal the thunder. Satan always wants to upstage Jesus if we let him.

He can't win, he won't win. But maybe, just maybe, if he can dazzle us with lights and distractions, we'll miss the truth. He is there, wanting to steal the glory. There, like Billy Flynn in Chicago, ready to give us the old razzle dazzle.



After all, how can we hear the truth above the roar?
_________________________

So yeah, I'm looking forward to seeing the movie. I can do without Satan being included…or any other detail for that matter. Anything that threatens to steal his spotlight needs to be left behind. As long as it's about Jesus.

Because it's all - all - about Jesus.

Pippin 2013

Pippin is back on Broadway.

Check out this video promo:



I could not possibly be more excited about this!

I was introduced to this powerful show in 1984, when I was a student teacher at Lee High School. (That's right - a student teacher. I've got layers, people.) Buddy Murphy directed the school's performance of this 1972 musical, and I was privileged to work with him and his students on it. I fell in love with the music, the script, and the powerful message of a young man searching for meaning in his life. How far will he go?

Here is a clip of Ben Vereen performing the opening number in the original production:



And now it's on Broadway, for the first time since I've even known it existed. Before you ask - oh yeah. That's gonna happen, God willing. Gotta find my corner of the sky.

One of a kind...Ted Cheek

The year was 1986. I was so excited when I found out that my uncle wanted to take me on a trip. A trip to a place I'd never been before. Hello, New York City!

Just Uncle Ted and me, exploring the Big Apple. The Empire State Building. Rockefeller Plaza. The Statue of Liberty. But most of all, Broadway. That was the summer I fell in love with the the Great White Way, and in particular the best theatre anywhere in the United States.

Our first priority was Ted's favorite, Big River. I was spellbound. Then we saw a revival of Sweet Charity, which I wanted to see because I had been involved in a production of it at Lee High School. Finally, I went to see Cats; Uncle Ted had no interest in that so I went alone. Three shows, great food, and the lights of Broadway. I've been hooked ever since.

After an amazing life, Uncle Ted went to his eternal reward Tuesday. He will be missed by so many people. He was a man with an amazing heart for everyone - his family, his friends, and anyone else who needed his help. You could see the love and compassion of Jesus in the way he loved and cared. He always took care of my mother (his sister) in ways that I could see, and I am sure in ways that I will never know. He was the president of a business that they owned together (along with their other brothers) and his leadership was legendary. Their business gave me my first job as a teenager, where over the course of six years I learned my work ethic. Whether through his business, his church, or time with his family, his life touched so many people.

My roles in my own family fall into three categories: son, brother, and uncle. While I did not get to observe much about his life as a son, I watched and watched and watched him be a brother to my mom. And I experienced firsthand his love as an uncle. I sit here tonight and say with all the conviction I can muster: I am better at all of these because of how it was modeled for me by Uncle Ted.

I am going to miss my uncle so much. Tomorrow we will say goodbye and celebrate his life here on earth. It will extremely difficult.

And one week from tomorrow, I will be on a plane to New York for a couple of days. I will see a couple of shows, eat some great food, and marvel at the world Uncle Ted introduced me to almost 30 years ago. While my trip was planned weeks ago, I don't think this is a coincidence. I get to celebrate this great man by revisiting the place where we had such a great time. He will be in my heart with every step.

Thank you, Uncle Ted. I miss you.

Late to the party

As I sit down to write this post, I have to wonder: how did I miss it?

I am a huge fan of musical theatre - it's my favorite thing about New York and even London. (Although right now the Olympics are a pretty cool London thing.) And I've loved Elton John's music since middle school. So how did I go until last night without seeing Aida, or even knowing much about it?

For those as clueless as I was, Aida is a musical with music and lyrics by Elton John and Tim Rice. It's a story of love and war, fate and choices, life and death, set in ancient Egypt. The short synopsis from broadwaymusicalhome.com goes like this:

Egypt has enslaved Nubia and the great power's prince, Radames, is engaged to the fashionable Amneris. However, when Aida, the princess of Nubia, comes to the palace as a slave, love turns everything upside down and leads everyone down paths they never could have imagined.

A complete synopsis can be found here.

So last night, I went to see a local production at Tallahassee Little Theatre. It was extremely well done with some talented actors and singers, and I was spellbound. In fact, I've been humming the tunes from it all day long. But it was not just fun - it was a compelling story in so many ways. I want to briefly write about just one. To set it up, watch this video of the one song from the show that made it into popular music:



This song takes place as the Egyptian prince Radames and the slave (and Nubian princess) Aida realize that their love is doomed by the hatred and war between their two nations. It is born of frustration, and causes them to wonder about whether they had any choice at all, or was their love some cruel twist of fate.

We all wonder things like this sometimes, don't we? Things go wrong, tragedy strikes us, or even we have a bad day, and we think, "why me?" Is it, as the play asks, just some god's experiment in which we have no say? Is this stretch of mortal time all that we are good for? Or is there something more?

These are excellent questions! I love when culture asks all the right questions. and this is a question for which the gospel has an answer. There is a greater purpose. When we go through suffering, it is just the birth pangs for something much greater, the coming of God's Kingdom. Yes, for each of us some day. but even more important, for the world. The Scriptures make clear that we are to welcome the chance to be like him in suffering, because it gives us the chance to effect change in the world.

Aida portrays a model of that. Because although the lovers are doomed to die for their treason (come on - you didn't see that coming?), their deaths inspire Princess Amneris (Radames' fiancé) to bring about peace between their two kingdoms, and so they didn't die in vain. Yet another redemption story that provides a reflection (albeit dim) of the redemption that Jesus' death brings to us.

Another great story, giving a glimpse of the Great Story. I'm glad I saw it. Even if I was about twelve years late to the party.