For your reading pleasure

If you haven’t already planned on it, come out to see Defending the Caveman this weekend. It’s going to be a fun show, especially for the guys out there.

For this week’s blog, I thought I’d look to the web for inspiration. I have a few Broadway related websites that I frequent for my personal pleasure (and some business too). Here are a few of them, with some commentary. Feel free to leave suggestions for other sites in the comments! I could use a shake-up to my routine.

1) Broadway.com

Whenever I start a Broadway web binge, I usually start at Broadway.com. I like the layout and aesthetics of the main page. You can usually find the big Broadway news in their news feed. I’m a huge fan of their Word Of Mouth campaign. For those unfamiliar with it, Broadway.com has a posse of regular folk who give their honest opinions on currently Broadway shows. They provide an interesting cross section of theatre goers, so you can usually hear the opinion of someone with similar tastes. I usually only stay on Broadway.com for 5-10 minutes as I just glance through everything. Then I move onto…

2) BroadwayWorld.com

BroadwayWorld.com causes me anxiety, haha. Their site is chock full of information; it’s a bit intimidating to look at their main page. I typically use BroadwayWorld.com to check in with what’s going on in Baltimore theatre news and to find more stories to supplement what I found at Broadway.com. Their Baltimore theatre page contains reviews, show news, audition information, and other random theatre tidbits about the Baltimore theatre landscape. It’s a great place to read about many of the smaller, community theatres. I use the BW.com forums to get information out about contests, discounts, and programs at the Hippodrome as well.

3) TitleofShow.com/blog

[title of show] may no longer be on Broadway, but I still follow the blog on its website. My friend Sam got me into the show as he was writing his first musical. I still remember sitting in his dorm room in College Park, listening to the soundtrack and thinking “This is hilarious!” The creators of [title of show] harnessed the power of the internet to take their show with 4 chairs and a keyboard to Broadway. I feel like I’ve become friends with Jeff, Hunter, Susan, and Heidi through the blog and their [title of show] show on Youtube. I was lucky enough to see the show on Broadway, and it was one of my favorite theatrical experiences in my life. This blog, and their story, is really inspirational if you are a theatre professional, or hope to be one someday.

4) jasonrobertbrown.com

I mentioned in my first blog entry that my favorite Broadway composer is Jason Robert Brown. I’ve seen him in concert 3 times, in addition to 2 performances of his shows in which he played piano/conducted/performed (Songs for a New World at Strathmore and The Last 5 Years at Birdland with Lauren Kennedy). I never get sick of his work or seeing him live. What I love about his website is the access you get to the man himself. He writes a blog about what’s going on in his life professionally. In the past, he often provided rare or previously unheard versions of his songs. He keeps a running list of all the music he’s posted on his site. He’s very honest about what’s going on, and genuinely cares about keeping people aware of his work and what it’s like to work in the business. It’s not all rainbows and butterflies, but I like it better that way.

Those are the sites I frequent the most. I do check up on Playbill.com and tdf.org when the mood strikes me, or when I’m planning to head up to New York City. Let me know of any other sites I should add to my routine. I am a sucker for a good Broadway website.

Looking to the future

Happy July, readers! We are half way through the year, yet I feel like I’m experiencing new beginnings. Broadway Across America has experienced a few shake-ups over the past few weeks. Locally in Baltimore, we welcomed our new executive director, Jeff Daniel. It’s been pretty inspiring seeing how he jumped in head first around here and successfully shaking things up. He was interviewed for WJZ yesterday, and you can see the man himself and what he envisions for the Hippodrome.

We’re hoping to expand our reach on entertainment in Baltimore. Hippodrome is the place to go for touring Broadway shows, but we want you to come out and see concerts and comedy shows here too. We want the Hippodrome to be hopping with entertainment. If you are bored and need something to do, you should be able to find something to entertain yourself with at the Hippodrome. I’ll make sure to let you know about all the fun stuff beyond Broadway that we’re going to offer. I have nothing official to announce yet, but I’m excited for several projects in the works.

I’m using this momentum to figure out what I want to do for the Hippodrome over the summer. Rachel and I are slowly shifting our focus from marketing to promotions because of the restructuring. We’re looking to create fun and interactive promotions for each Broadway show, and most likely, for other concerts. We have some good ideas so far, but still waiting for inspiration for other shows.

I’m also working on creating the pilot program for a Hippodrome street team. The idea grew from the Guilty Ones program. That program was developed through the show, but implemented locally. We put our program together quickly and roughly. It was extremely successful, but there were a lot of bumps in the road since we’ve never done a program like that before. Right now, I’m in the process of collecting informal surveys from the Guilty Ones and other social media users to get a feel for the amount of participation we can expect. As it stands now, we’ll be targeting our younger audiences to participate in this program, but that doesn’t mean we are going to cap it at college students or with a age requirement. If you have any suggestions, feel free to comment. Or take the survey found here: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=_2f1mCIicjthcz28h7zi8g_2bg_3d_3d

You can win two free tickets to opening night of Defending the Caveman by completing the survey.

That’s all I have for you now. Check back next week for more tales of the Hippodrome.

A glimspe into the press world

I’ve been so excited to write this story for the past week. I’ve been on vacation and out of the office since the end of Wednesday, so I’ve kept it pent up inside me!

Spring Awakening fever has hit Baltimore, for sure. My personal Facebook is buzzing with statuses of people coming out to see the show this week. I had the priviledge of seeing it opening night. It was an unbelievable piece of art. Thought-provoking, rich in emotion, and just a pleasure to watch.

But I’m not here to write to you about that (although, you can check out the post below for professional reviews on the show and other fun items about it). I wanted to give you a snapshot of what my week was last week. And boy, was it a whirlwind of a week.

I was presented with the opportunity to tag along with our director of public relations on Wednesday morning as she escorted cast members to press stops. Of course, I jumped on the opportunity. I thought this cast would be a great one to observe for my first encounters with the press. They’re all about my age and excited and passionate about the show.

We were picked up by our car around 10am outside the theatre. I sat in the very back of the SVU behind a full row of seats that needed to be pulled down to let someone in the back. It found humor in the situation as I had wait to be let out at every stop. I didn’t really mind, though. After the theatre, we stopped by the casts’ hotel to pick up Steffi D and Blake Bashoff, who play Ilse and Moritz, respectively. Even though they performed the night before, they were both friendly and happy that morning. I was impressed, mainly because I probably would not have been so pleasant under those circumstances.

We headed to TV Hill for two stops of the morning. We went to WBAL first to record a radio spot and a TV interview to be aired for the evening news. I was expecting to head into a radio studio, but we ended up in a conference room. Scott Wykoff came in to conduct what turned out to be an energetic and fun interview with the cast. He had a microphone attached to this little gadget, and just recorded the interview right there. It was kind of incredible to watch. Blake and Steffi have great chemistry together. I was blown away by their professionism and ease with the interviews. It wasn’t stuffy or insincere, like you see sometimes when you watch actors push their movies or TV shows. There was a playfulness to it, without ever losing sight of the goal of these press stops, which is to inform people about the show.

After we wrapped it up with Scott downstairs, we headed up to the TV studio on the second floor. We went into another room, where some equipment and chairs were set up. This interview didn’t take very long. It was here when I realized that the cast members have probably been asked these questions hundreds of times over the past year with the tour. You get the same basic premises: “Tell us about the show.” “What would you say to parents about this show?” “You are all so young. Does it make the story more personal? “What’s your favorite song?” “Why do you think this show is such a hit?” All important questions to ask. What I loved about watching Blake and Steffi interview was their ability to take similar questions and answer them with a different twist every time. We had some smart and savvy cast members with us, let me tell you.

After WBAL, we moved up the hill to WJZ. Again, we were whisked into a conference room where we were met by anchor Sally Thorner. She had a classy and sweet energy to her. This interview took a little bit longer, but by the end, it was really fun. I found myself laughing along with the rest of the crowd in the room at some of the responses and stories from both side of the camera. WJZ was the last stop of our light morning. Blake needed to get back to the theatre for rehearsal, so we stopped to pick up some sandwiches, and we were back at the Hippodrome.

Luckily for me, my day was not yet over. The wonderful folks over at BACVA came over to do a live webcast with Ben Moss and Julie Danielson. Viewers could send in questions for them to answer in real time. It was the first time we’ve done something like that here at the theatre, and it was a blast. We had over 100 viewers at any given time, which was great news. Ben and Julie seemed to have a good time talking with fans and answering some not-often asked questions. I made a quick cameo in the video as I brought water up to the crew. I was able to sit in the room as it was going on, which gives it a different dimension. I did watch part of it back afterwards, and it was weird seeing it from that view.

At this level, I think it’s incredible to have access to a day like that. I learned so much just from observing the process, and helping in whereever I could. It’s pretty unbelievable how much I learn on a daily basis here at the Hippodrome. Even just sitting in on phone calls with Rachel, like I just was before I wrote this. I feel so lucky to have this experience. Days like last Wednesday are days that I’ll never forget.

Spring Awakening on the Web

Over the past week, we’ve been collecting links to reviews, stories, and fun stuff related to Spring Awakening in Baltimore. I’ll be back later to talk about doing press last week. In the mean time, check out these links:

http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/1635528
http://www.whatsupmag.com/news/09-06-10/Spring_Awakening_Review.aspx
http://www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/arts/bal-spring-awakening-0610,0,5851378.story
http://www.wypr.org/MD_MORNING.html#061209C2
http://wbal.com/apps/news/templates/story.aspx?articleid=29122&zoneid=21
http://scottwykoff.wbal.com/2009/06/spring-awakenings-dynamic-duo.html

Live Webcast with the cast of Spring Awakening

Something really cool is happening today. BACVA is hosting a live webcast with the cast of Spring Awakening. Viewers can submit questions to the cast members. Check it out TODAY at 2pm. Here’s the link: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/baltimoremd

Super Cool Party People

(Bonus points if you can guess what TV show the blog title is from!)

My day has been pretty crazy so far. I wanted to write a bigger blog entry today, but that’s not going to happen. Here’s why:

1. Rachel, my beloved boss, is away in Florida today and tomorrow. She better be bringing me some sunshine back with her. I’m holding down the marketing fort as best as I can while she’s baking in the sun. The past two hours has been a crash course in how to be Rachel for me. Nothing seriously daunting has happened, but it’s hectic. Also, I would have written my blog yesterday, as per usual, but I took the day off so I can come in tomorrow.

2. I’m heading upstairs in a few minutes because yours truly will be attending the Theatre Communications Group conference. We’re going to have over 700 arts administrators roaming the halls of the France-Merrick Performing Arts Center and discussing the latest and greatest in marketing, arts development, creativity, funding, and more. Personally, I’m stoked to attend this. I’ll probably be younger than most attendees, but I’m ready to absorb information, and start creating ideas of my own to better the theatre industry.

3. The Guilty Ones street team is quickly wrapping up. Spring Awakening opens on Tuesday, and there is still a ton left to do. If you haven’t gotten your tickets yet, click on the Discounts link above for promotional codes.

So put all that together, and there you have my busy week. I’ll be back next week to update you on the TCG conference and the end of the Guilty Ones.

Fun fact: Baltimore’s favorite son, John Waters is delivering the opening address for the conference. Perhaps I’ll have some video of that for you later!

Fun fact #2: The coaster contest ends tomorrow at midnight! FIND THOSE COASTERS! WOO!

Hippodrome fills music fans with the ‘Essence of R&B’

Having an intense love for live entertainment is a must when you work at the Hippodrome. But we’re not just limited to being theatre lovers; we have some insane music fans, too!

I adore a great musical — Annie (which is playing May 29-31!) totally made me cry when I saw it here last year. The Color Purple, in my humble opinion, was close to the best thing EVER. And who on Earth can resist the return of Mama Mia (this show is coming back November 24-29!)?

But my true love is music.

I am constantly made fun of by some of my co-workers (they will remain nameless!!!) for my fiery desire to attend concerts all over the country. I’ve popped up on shows like the Early Show, Good Morning America, and the Today Show in the front row of their summer concert series enjoying the early morning music. You can even find me on a live DVD or two for some of my favorite artists.

Yes. Music is my thing, so I’m excited to join Kelly on this blog as the concert blogger! I’ll kick-offs my duties by talking about the Essence of R&B concert that took place last Friday.

Nostalgia was the theme for R&B lovers that night. Five of the genre’s most beloved names of the 90’s filled the bill: Jon B., Silk, Kelly Price, Carl Thomas, and headliner SWV.

The audience really seemed to love the show. Even a late arrival by Thomas didn’t keep the crowd down for too long. Host Ladawn Black of radio station 92Q did a great job filling the time with an impromptu dance-off between audience members picked to go on stage.

My favorite part of the show absolutely was SWV. The group had been broken up for a few years, only reforming a year ago. During their break lead singer Coko released a few gospel albums, Leele focused on being a mom, and Taj became a reality TV star (she last appeared on Survivor: Thailand). But they’re truly at their best with their all together.

Their 1992 debut single, “Weak,” drew the biggest crowd reaction. The whole theatre sang along and erupted in applause when it was over.

It was such a pleasure to see the ladies back together on the Hippodrome stage! I’ll play the moment back in my mind for years to come!

Can’t play the moment in your mind? That sucks! But you can click here to watch the video for “Weak” and try to play along.

Duff Goldman’s Hippodrome Debut!

Duff Goldman, owner of Charm City Cakes and star of Food Network’s Ace of Cakes, will have a walk-on role as (what else?) a baker during Saturday evening’s performance of Annie! He will be joined by Mary Alice Fallon-Yeskey, also from Charm City Cakes and Ace of Cakes.

Want to witness this historic event? Save 20% on tickets by using code SANDY on price levels 2 and 3 at Ticketmaster.com!

The Baltimore Scavenger Hunt is on!

Up for a challenge, Baltimore?

There are 50 bars and restaurants in the greater Baltimore area where we have placed coasters featuring Spring Awakening. I dare you to find the most bars/restaurants in the Baltimore area with Spring Awakening coasters.

You will have until June 5 to email me at baltintern@gmail.com the list of bars/restaurants that you visited and found Spring Awakening coasters. Pictures are a plus! Whoever finds the most, or the first to find them all, wins!

The winner will receive FOUR tickets to the opening night performance of Spring Awakening on June 9.

You have received your mission. Go!

Random musings on life and theatre

It’s been a couple of weeks since I’ve posted some personal thoughts and other insights, so I’m going to touch on stuff that’s been on my mind recently.

• I watched the sneak preview of Glee on FOX after American Idol earlier this week. Lots of my friends have been raving about it. I like it as well, but I’m still reserved about it. I think it still needs to find its groove, then it will truly shine. I did love Lea Michele as Rachel. If you didn’t know already, Michele originated the role of Wendla in Spring Awakening, the show that has been a major focal point of my job.
• I’m kind of sad that Adam Lambert didn’t win American Idol. I loved both men in the final two, so I’m not unhappy with the outcome. I just think that Adam could have made a greater impact as the winner. He was always dynamic, mysterious, and little campy. Not to mention his killer voice. I see Kris as the safe choice. Good voice, pleasant performances, solid artist. Adam was a wild card. From the controversy surrounding his sexuality to his eccentric performances and song choices, Adam would have broken the Idol champ mold. I like pushing boundaries, so he was my favorite to win. I hope they both have a wonderful career. I know I’ll be buying both men’s albums.
• I am dying to just belt out some songs right now in my hallway. It’s difficult to be surrounded by musicals at work and not just belting out my favorite songs. I have a decent voice, but I figure it would be distracting, haha.
• I’m leaving for Orlando tomorrow. Thinking of it makes me even colder in my freezing hallway.
• Rachel and I have come up with a really fun promotion for Spring Awakening. It’s a secret. I’ve let the Guilty Ones know about it. I think they will have tons of fun doing it. Keep an eye out for it.
• I need to create a good mix of music to listen to while I’m working. I’ve forgotten my iPod the past few days, so I’ve downloaded some songs onto iTunes. I need a good balance of upbeat and mellow songs. Preferably showtunes. Any suggestions for good songs/albums will be greatly appreciated.
• Keep an eye out on this blog for our new guest blogger, Tracey! She’s our office manager, and she will be writing about the concerts we have at the Hippodrome. That’s right; we do WAY more here than just musicals. We host concerts of all kinds, weddings, corporate meetings, conferences, you name it.
• On that note, keep an eye out for guest appearances by other staff members! It just keeps getting better on this blog!

Let me know what’s going on with you. Thoughts on Glee, Idol, music, anything! Have a good Memorial Day weekend!