A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum @ Broadway Rose

Dan Murphy is usually the "M.C." for Broadway Rose's productions, introducing the show and thanking donors. As far as I know, he has never before graced their stage as an actor. After "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum," I am convinced that it should become a far more common occurrence. His Pseudolus  is hilarious.

The cover of the playbill should have been a reminder that "West Side Story" and "Forum" were presented at Broadway Rose back-to-back, but I just thought of the nice combination of dark Sondheim washed down by light-Sondheim. They really do make unexpectedly nice bookends. Go see Broadway Rose flex their muscles once again, but in an entirely different way.

Gregory Alan Isakov @ The Crystal Ballroom 8-8-16

Gregory Alan Isakov opened for Josh Ritter at the Aladdin Theater years ago, and  he's been on my "remember that name" list ever since. So, I approached his Crystal Ballroom show with great anticipation. I was not disappointed. In fact, from the very first moment, I was treated like a royalty, scoring a wristband for the VIP Area.  Isakov belongs to what I term The Trinity of Literary Folk-Rock, along with Josh Ritter and Joe Pug.

He was accompanied by The Ghost Orchestra, and they performed so well together, I found myself hoping that the show was being recorded. It was sonic-heaven. The show was at once symphonic and rocking.  My one complaint was the remarkably low lighting. They may have been striving for a "mood",  but in reality it was just plain dark.

It is my privilege to highly recommend Mr. Isakov to you,  here is a sampling: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lz2qpnRB5_E