Elvis Costello and Broadway converge

<p>My D attended a wonderful event in NYC and got to see many of her favorite Broadway performers all in one spot. It was a benefit for Friends in Deed, which is a group which supports individuals with HIV/AIDS as well as their family and friends. She volunteers with this organization and a friend of hers was performing. Many current and former Broadway stars attended and sang Elvis Costello songs which she said was lots of fun! She thought that the kids here might like to see the photos which were available today and to hear who was there:</p>

<p>Anthony Rapp, Adam Pascal, Daphne Rubin Vega, Marcy Harriell, Molly Ringwald, Norbert Leo Butz, Raul Esparza, Kevin Cahoon, Sherie Rene Scott, Gavin Creel, Patrick Wilson, Eden Espinosa, Mario Cantone, Billy Porter, Will Chase, Matt Morrison. Elvis also sang five or six songs himself. Apparently, the highlights were a number by Raul Esparza, and also a duet by Gavin and Norbert. :) Would love to have been there.</p>

<p><a href="http://www.broadway.com/gen/Buzz_Photo_Op.aspx?ci=520476%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.broadway.com/gen/Buzz_Photo_Op.aspx?ci=520476&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Wow, thanks for sharing. Your daughter must have LOVED it seeing all those people in one place and performing too. It is really great also that she is involved in such an organization. Which friend of hers was performing? Anthony? For some reason I recall your family knowing him. I ought to send you a photo of my daughter with him as she met him this fall and got to talk to him which was a big deal to her as she has loved him for years since she was young! She has tix to the RENT premiere so I guess she'll see him again! </p>

<p>Your daughter must have had quite a night. The pics were neat to see. Thanks!
Susan</p>

<p>AlwaysAMom, if this is not a coincidence....just now my daughter at NYU IM'd me and was excited about a few things but one of them is that she just found out that Anthony Rapp is doing a Master Class in her DORM and he critiques your singing and she is signed up. This is her second encounter with him this semester and even better than the first one which already meant a lot to her (she has made several studies of RENT and Larsen and Anthony was like a theater idol to her when she was in elementary school).</p>

<p>Oh, Susan, your D will have loads of fun with Anthony's master class. He is so great about doing things like this for students. He's a wonderful young man. Did your D happen to see the off-Broadway show Sides: The Fear is Real which closed this past weekend? It's a play about struggling actors. Anthony's partner Rodney was in it and my D said it was such a good show. I think she often prefers the off-B. productions she sees to the larger ones in the city. Would love to see the photo of your D with Anthony. :)</p>

<p>Heard from my D this morning and she forwarded a couple of links to clips from the Rent movie that Anthony told her about. Your D may have already seen them, but thought you, and possibly others here, might be interested.</p>

<p><a href="http://s56.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=02H6IY0GASOJR3SCNW7JVZ5OE2%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://s56.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=02H6IY0GASOJR3SCNW7JVZ5OE2&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p><a href="http://flash.sonypictures.com/movies/rent/blog/movs/joanne_high.mov%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://flash.sonypictures.com/movies/rent/blog/movs/joanne_high.mov&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>I wrote that post last night right after my daughter was excitedly telling me about how she is signed up to do the Master Class with Anthony. Well, right after that, I asked her when it is and when she told me, I was like, don't you have a crew assignment that week? She then realized she does and she was ready to die when she realized it and so that was the end of our IM which came to an abrupt halt, LOL, and I have no idea if there is anything she can do about it and can't tell ya! </p>

<p>Thank you for the clips and I can send them on to her. I may have shared with you in the past how my D has been very interested in RENT and those involved from a young age. We took the girls to see it in Boston when they were in elementary school and from then on in, it was a major infatuation and they've seen it many times, as have I. My younger D as a child would listen to that CD over and over in the car, and bought herself the RENT book in NYC back then and I think memorized the entire script or something. She always admired Anthony and I think when she was young, she even wrote him once (it is funny she now met him all this time later). My daughter always loved in depth research and has done many independent studies in her schooling over the years. In sixth grade, she did a major research paper on Jonathan Larsen. There is just something there about his work that my D really relates to. She also is a creator/writer type. She thinks he was a genious. His story is so sad how he never saw the fruition of his creative work. Anyway, last spring as a project in an American Studies course, my D did a major comparative paper on Sondheim and Jonathan Larsen finding themes between both of their works. She then put on a little "concert" to correlate with her research/analysis and she coupled various Sondheim songs with Larsen songs (several were from RENT) and either she sang or played them (is a pianist) but also got other kids involved to perform solos, duets, and group numbers, with her as accompaniement. She is just very very into the music from RENT and certainly is a big admirer of Anthony. I know when she met him this past Sept. in NYC and he took the time to chat with her and a couple of her friends (also CAP students), it just meant a lot after all this time of admiring him from afar. Seeing that they were students in MT, he really took the extra attention in talking to them, not as mere fans. </p>

<p>No, my daughter did not see Sides this past weekend. She has seen many shows in the time since she arrived in NYC (one thing she has loved about being there...and yes, some were on Broadway but many were not), and I do not know if she knew about that show or not. She had Tisch Scholars Friday night (a requirement for her) and a friend from home visiting as well. </p>

<p>I'm curious when you mention "Rodney" as that is not that common of a name and I am wondering if it is Rodney H.? The same Rodney in The 60's Project? Sorry if I am making a ridiculous jump, though. But THAT Rodney who is in that show who also at one time was in RENT, my daughter has spent some time with recently. He is there to work on 60's Project which was the show I was mentioning the director and writer were interested in casting my D and her male friend, both CAP freshmen in, but could not based on the freshmen policy at Tisch. My D has spent a little bit of time with the cast like they invited her in for cupcakes one day and she was telling me how weird it was to one day be in a room with Chad Kimball and having just seen him in Lennon on Broadway a few days prior, lol. Anyway, my D's male freshman friend (with whom she went to camp with for many years), the one I mentioned in reference to the casting story, had done a musical workshop with Rodney in NYC in the past and knew one another. Rodney spent a few nights in the dorm (my D's dorm too) due to the commute and so she spent a bit of time with him. I guess he could get the kids into the RENT screening about ten days ago but my D had come home that weekend and could not go along (though unrelated to that, has tix to the RENT premiere coming up). So, I am wondering if that is the same Rodney? </p>

<p>I will try to find a way to send you the picture of my daughter and her roomie (also a CAP21 student) with Anthony from following his performance of an excerpt from his recent NYMTF show (I think it was "Feeling Electric", hope I got the title right) in Union Square.</p>

<p>Aww, Susan, hope your D can figure out some way to participate in Anthony's class. </p>

<p>p.s. No, Rodney Hicks is not Anthony's Rodney, but he's a wonderful performer and we've seen in him Rent many times. :)</p>