Broadway Custom Blog

With each day blurring into the next, it’s challenging to know how to fill your time. I struggle to fit Broadway into my life without staring at a screen all day. Of course, we at Broadway Custom love all the online theatre offerings, but sometimes it’s nice to curl up by the proverbial fire with a good book. And what better than a Broadway book, at that? So here’s a list of some of our favorites with links to purchase at some small bookstores around the country...in case you'd like to support small businesses while you’re getting your Broadway on. 1. Sense of Occasion by Hal Prince: This incredible memoir details the life of the inimitable, acclaimed director and producer. In it, Prince describes his many accomplishments in heralding landmark shows including West Side Story , Cabaret , and Fiddler on the Roof . For an inside scoop on the business of Broadway and a deeper look into some of your favorite shows, pick up Sense of Occasion . 2. Razzle Dazzle by Michael Riedel: Razzle Dazzle is a thrilling history of Broadway and the forces that have kept it running for the past century. Riedel paints the battles among The Shubert Organization, The Nederlander Organization, Jujamcyn Theaters, and the Syndicate over theaters as a beautiful drama. If you want Ryan Murphy-level excitement, try Razzle Dazzle . 3. Something Wonderful by Todd S. Purdum: This is a thorough tale of legendary composer-lyricist duo Rodgers & Hammerstein and their journey to partnership, through the golden age of Broadway and beyond. If you want a taste of nostalgia and a reminder of simpler times, read Something Wonderful . 4. Finishing the Hat and Look, I Made a Hat by Stephen Sondheim: We would be remiss if we didn’t include Sondheim’s masterful collection of lyrics with commentary. He fills each page with witty commentary on his own work as well as shocking insights about his early life and creative process. 5. Secret Life of the American Musical by Jack Viertel: Based on his NYU course, the Senior Vice President of Jujamcyn offers his perspective on the general structure of the Broadway musical from the opening number to curtain call, replete with glimpses into his dramaturgical past. 6. Life is Like a Musical by Tim Federle: This wonderful how-to by one of Broadway’s best Twitter comedians is filled with life lessons and Broadway tidbits to help anyone live their best Broadway life. Did you notice how many books made our list? (Go Six!) Enjoy getting lost in the pages of Broadway!

Though we can’t be together physically, luckily the power of technology will keep us connected so we can continue honing the magical crafts of theatre: acting, singing, dancing and communicating. At first, we admittedly had our doubts about being able to deliver the same top-quality Broadway Custom experience that our students know and love. After all, what’s better than having a Broadway star pop in to your rehearsal room to say hi and share some terrific insider stories? But then, as the world continues to be on intermission, we realized that our community needs the unique connection that only theatre provides. We love nothing more than seeing passionate Broadway Custom students improve their fundamental skills of acting, singing and dancing. And meeting some of their heroes. And talking with the people who sing on their favorite Broadway cast albums. And hearing from Casting Directors about how auditioning is now moving online. (Yup, we will cover the how-tos on creating a killer video audition.) And then we really put our heads together to bring the “Custom” to Broadway. This is not your grandmother’s summer program. We are offering an experience specific to you, your goals, and the things that excite you. So start thinking about who you might like to meet during our Virtual Summer Intensive. We have Skype sessions in advance of our Class Week to learn more about our students so we can make some dreams come true. And you might just have a Swag Box to open (a real one, not a virtual one, delivered right to your door!) before class begins so we are all outfitted for Broadway together. And… well, you’ll just have to join us to find out. Of course, we are disappointed that the lights of Broadway are dimmed, but we are also thrilled to bring the Best of Broadway to you in our own Broadway Custom way: completely individualized, hands-on, and all about you! Register Here: https://www.broadwaycustom.com/summer-intensive-registration

We recently interviewed the one and only Sarah McKinley Austin, actress extraordinaire of the Once and Matilda National Tours as well as Pamela’s First Musical. She is an incredibly talented performer and at such a young age has accomplished so much. These are edited excerpts from the interview. Thank you, Sarah! Broadway Custom: Why do you love theatre? S: I love theater because it is fun pretending to be different characters and I love to sing and dance. I never get bored! BC: Tell us about Matilda and Once and what it was like to be on tour. S: The tours were total opposites. In Once, I had a small role that didn't require extra rehearsals. I was able to do my school work at night during the show and did lots of sight-seeing during the day. However, I was the only child on tour so I didn't have friends my age to hang out with between shows. In Matilda, I became friends with all of the kids and we had such a blast traveling and performing together. I didn't get to sight-see as much because I had more rehearsals and I had to do my school work during the day since I had a bigger role in the show. BC: Do you have any dream roles? S: Yes, I would love to be Regina George in Mean Girls on Broadway. I would also love to be Elphaba in Wicked! BC: What have you been up to during this time? S: Aside from doing school work online, I have been taking online voice, dance and acting lessons. I also love to paint! My aunt recently moved here to live near us and I love spending time with her. BC: Who are your role models in theatre? S: I have worked with amazing professionals in Once, Matilda and Pamela's First Musical, as well as my wonderful voice teacher, Jeannine Rowden. They are all great role models for me! Since I'm obsessed with Mean Girls, I admire Taylor Louderman and I saw her perform on Broadway. BC: Have you faced any challenges being so young in the industry? S: I think a huge challenge for me and other kids in the industry are managing school work on top of doing as many as 8 shows a week. It is a big responsibility to get all the school work done and also to stay healthy for your performances. BC:What is your favorite part of what you do? S: I love getting to know other professional actors and performing for live audiences. BC: What’s next up for you? S: This fall, I will be a freshman in high school. I will be continuing to take lessons and auditions for musical theater. BC: Favorite theatre-related memory? S: When I was on the Matilda tour, a group of kids from the show were playing a game called "The Floor is Lava." I sat on a water fountain at the hotel to get off the floor. The fountain fell off the wall and water started pouring out of the pipes. We tried to fix it but it just kept getting worse. We ran to the front desk and informed them that the water fountain randomly fell off the wall and that we had no idea how this happened. Our acting skills came in handy--they totally believed us! (see photo attached of Sarah standing next to the broken water fountain) BC: Do you have any advice for other young people interested in working in theatre? S: Look for performing opportunities in your school or community and just have fun with it!

Are you getting Zoom-barded by too much screen time? Is it astounding to you how much content is suddenly available on your various screens? Well, let me help you whittle down the over-saturated content-sphere and share my favorite Broadway screeners. All free of course. Let’s begin with royalty. Theatre royalty, that is. The National Theatre in London is offering the best dang theatre anyone has seen anywhere, all recorded on top-of-the-line equipment for your up close and personal theatre-at-home experience. A new show is posted each week, and WOW are they good. Back in the day, Frankenstein with Benedict Cumberbatch had patrons lining up at 4am in London to get tickets…but here you had a whole week to watch it. Currently Gillian Anderson is knocking socks off with her portrayal of Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire , and it’s so good I may just have to instruct you to stop reading this blog and go watch it. Three hours will fly by. OK, you back already? Great. Now head to the brand-new BroadwayOnDemand.com so you can watch one of my favorite musicals of all time, Bandstand . It stars Laura Osnes and Corey Cott and Beth Leavel and a killer ensemble that disregard gravity entirely as they leap and throw one another around the stage. I love Bandstand for many reasons, but the fact that it takes place just after World War II when veterans were grappling with a new reality makes it extremely impactful for this very moment. We watched Bandstand as a family, and laughed and cried together. While you’re at Broadway On Demand (and I swear no one paid me to endorse them), you should watch the soaring Broadway musical Allegiance , starring the fierce George Takei and Lea Salonga in a Whole New World—specifically, World War II America. It’s an eye-opening story, beautifully told and again, makes me view our current pandemic circumstances with a lot more gratitude. And finally, Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS is putting out remarkable content from the entire Broadway community, which as usual is rallying to take care of our own. Subscribe to their YouTube channel and get moments of sheer delight by watching clips from all their terrific shows—Broadway Bares, Broadway Backwards, the Mother’s Day tribute, and everything else under the sun. It’s my go-to when I have a few free minutes. Like now. I’m off to sing along with Broadway online, everybody! See you there.

In a recent New York Times article about Mrs. Doubtfire on Broadway, Jake Ryan Flynn, one of the young actors in the musical, expressed anxiety about the many uncertainties in his life. And these are not uncertainties that you and I deal with every day. He is worried about voice changes and growth spurts, events entirely out of his control. These are normal side effects of puberty, and yet Jake is all too aware of the consequence they will have on his career. He shared with writer Michael Paulson,“My parents keep telling me to only worry about what I can control, but right now it feels like I’m in control of nothing in my life. I can’t control if I grow. I can’t control if my voice changes. I can’t control when I will see my cast mates again. I can’t control if the creatives and producers take a look at me in a few months and fire me because I’m too big. It just makes me sad.” With the pandemic halting all Broadway performances until at least September 6, Jake has no idea whether he will be able to go on with the show even at that point, as it is within his contract to be terminated should he grow out of the role. Dealing with this kind of fear—impossible to control—is no easy feat. Here at Broadway Custom, we sympathize. That is why we encourage everyone reading to take Evan Hansen's advice and remember that today, you are you, and that is enough. There are so many parts of life right now that are difficult to swallow, or painful, or nearly unbearable. For a moment, it makes sense to recognize how hard that is, how much it stinks, especially when you feel helpless in addition to it all. And then, take a deep breath and remember what is in your control: how you react to it. The future is unknown, but that doesn't mean we can't do anything about it. We can live every day with purpose. That may seem like an unachievable goal, but it is possible. There are so many writers promoting this period as the perfect time to be creative and if you are not, you are somehow failing. This is not true in any way, shape, or form. Alexandra Silber ( Fiddler on the Roof ) posted on Twitter, no matter what you are doing, "It’s all allowed. Do what you must to endure. Stop beating yourself up." Perhaps instead of conquering the world or creating some incredible masterpiece, set your sights on doing one thing per day that will make you happy. Whether that's jamming to your favorite cast album, baking some Jenna Hunterson pies, or hunkering down with some Smash and cookie dough, do that single thing. And when you are feeling down, as is inevitable in these times, remember what you accomplished. Remember that you are enough, no matter where or who or how old you are. We don't know what tomorrow or tomorrow or tomorrow will bring, but today has the chance to be a good day, and you are why.

We are coming up on Week Ten of self-quarantine. Even the most creative among us may be feeling a bit stifled. What’s an artist to do? I’ve been looking to my trusty computer to stimulate inspiration. I definitely can’t go out to take a class, so I’ve been enjoying Debbie Allen’s DADA classes on Instagram. She is so exuberant that I find myself smiling as I shimmy and shake along. I think, “Here’s where you start paying…in sweat.” (That’s a FAME reference, and if you haven’t seen the original FAME, put it at the top of your queue.) And to boogie along Broadway-style, I love the Get in Shape Grrl Facebook dance classes. (You don’t have to be a girl to qualify for their excellent variety of classes offered by Broadway hoofers.) Altogether completely free of charge, with tons of fun and variety. One perk of watching theatre on TV: I can munch on homemade popcorn all the way through without disturbing any neighbors. There’s almost too much good theatre to catch it all. The National Theatre (which I like to call Great Britain’s equivalent to Lincoln Center) is putting their top-notch past theatre recordings online for limited releases. And you guessed it: they’re completely free. So far the National has posted Jane Eyre and Treasure Island and a decadent version of Frankenstein starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Johnny Lee Miller—alternating roles of doctor and monster. We watched it twice to see the insane acting gymnastics of these men. My favorite Zoom-concert so far has been the breathtaking “Sondheim at 90” cavalcade of stars, singing iconic songs to honor a musical theatre pioneer. If you missed watching along with the nearly 100,000 live viewers (!), you can catch it anytime on YouTube. Have tissues at the ready. These terrific resources and performances have not only kept me busy but also very inspired. I wish the same for you—to use this extended intermission to hone your skills, deepen your theatre library, and feel joy at the magic of theatre—in person or on screen.