Listen...when Stephanie J. Block and Rachel Chavkin finally win their Tonys, you know Pride Month is gonna be OK. And Sunday night's ceremony proved all was right on Broadway, with many Bway vets and capital-I Important productions getting their dues. Let's talk about the highlights, the lowlights and everything in between as the Broadway Babies do their play-by-play of the biggest night on the Great White Way. 

• Billy Porter is the goddess-send we need this Pride, talking about casting double standards and then slaying red carpets left and right, honey.
• Cher is Stephanie's biggest fan, honestly.

Podcast cover art: David Taylor

Twitter: @bwaybabies Facebook: Facebook.com/broadwaybabiespodcast

Get out your hymn books and habits — for this week's musical service, we're dishing on the joyful noise of Broadway's "Sister Act." The Broadway Babies have lots to say about this screen-to-stage adaptation (our second Whoopi movie!), including its original 1992 film, pond-hopping production history, and star-making turn for Patina Miller, who doesn't quite get enough to do in this show. Featuring a scene-stealing Victoria Clark as the holier-than-thou Mother Superior, "Sister Act" is a rollicking time at the theatre that'll take you straight to church! 

Cast recording (West End): Spotify | iTunes

• "Take Me to Heaven," performed by Patina Miller, Debbie Kurup and Amy Booth Steel
• "Fabulous, Baby," by Patina Miller, Debbie Kurup and Amy Booth Steel
• "Raise Your Voice," by Patina Miller and company
• "Bless Our Show," by Patina Miller and company
• "Sister Act," by Patina Miller

Music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Glenn Slater

Distributed by Ghostlight Records.

• This is more an added CXG show note, but this is the season 1 sheet music from the CW website for anyone interested.
• Patina Miller SANGS about being...a "Random Black Girl." 
• Here, she meets Whoopi for the first time.
• We didn't talk much about the sequel movie, "Back in the Habit" (...sigh), but Lauryn Hill, ladies and gents.

Podcast cover art: David Taylor

Twitter: @bwaybabies Facebook: Facebook.com/broadwaybabiespodcast

Welcome to West Covina — only two hours from the beach! With brand new pals and new career, unhappy lawyer Rebecca Bunch makes the biggest move of her life to follow the boy she definitely doesn't love...all with musical numbers! We sit down this week to talk all things crazy on the CW musical-comedy "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend's" first episode, "Josh Just Happens to Live Here!" 

Trigger warning: There is some talk in the beginning about suicide and depression, so please skip ahead to the first musical break if this conversation is too sensitive a topic.

Also, audio warning: Yes, there's some faint music playing in the background of Alex's audio — his headphones were picking up the local Christian music station (perfect timing) because technology is weird, but it's being Olivia Pope-handled!

TV show: Netflix | CW.com | Amazon | iTunes

Season 1, vol. 1 soundtrack: iTunes | Spotify | Amazon

• "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend Theme," performed by Rachel Bloom
• "West Covina," by Rachel Bloom (written by Bloom and Jerome Kurtenbach)
• "The Sexy Getting Ready Song," by Rachel Bloom feat. Nipsey Hussle (written by Bloom, Jack Dolgen and Mike Geier)
• "West Covina (reprise)," by Rachel Bloom and Donna Lynne Champlin (written by Bloom and Jerome Kurtenbach)

Music and Lyrics by Rachel Bloom, Jack Dolgen and Adam Schlesinger

Distributed by Warner Bros. Entertainment.

• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255 and Lifeline chat
• Rachel Bloom, Aline Brosh-McKenna, Adam Schlesinger and Jack Dolgen also recorded a commentary album discussing the writing and filming of each and all the songs of season 1.
• The show's creators (Rachel and Aline) talk about working with the late Nipsey Hussle on filming the "Sexy Getting Ready Song." 
• She's more known for "Fuck Me, Ray Bradbury," but this song is basically Rachel Bloom's chaotic musical energy in a nutshell.
• Actually, here’s just her entire YouTube channel, with most of her old stuff at the bottom

Podcast cover art: David Taylor

Twitter: @bwaybabies Facebook: Facebook.com/broadwaybabiespodcast

Hey, big spenders! Willkommen to another warm take episode, as the Broadway Babies gab about the first episode of FX's dazzling true-Broadway-story miniseries, "Fosse/Verdon." Starring Sam Rockwell and Michelle Williams as the performing legends, the series promises a look behind the red curtain and features a supporting gallery of Broadway icons — and we're here to dish about all of it. Now let us show you fun, laughs and a good time!

Podcast cover art: David Taylor

Twitter: @bwaybabies Facebook: Facebook.com/broadwaybabiespodcast

Oh my goodness, oh my goodness, listeners! It's Daisha's turn to pick one of her favorite musicals, and leapin' lizards, she picked the original "Annie" movie musical from 1982! Let's take a trip down Easy Street to Miss Hannigan's Orphanage for Girls and Oliver Warbucks' amazing mansion as we talk shop on the history of the movie, its theatre and comic strip source material and the odd changes made from stage to screen. 

Amazon Prime | iTunes 

• "Tomorrow," performed by Aileen Quinn
• "Hard Knock Life," by Aileen Quinn and orphan girls
• "Maybe," by Aileen Quinn
• "I Think I'm Gonna Like It Here," by Ann Reinking, Aileen Quinn and servants
• "Little Girls," by Carol Burnett
• "Let's Go to the Movies," by Ann Reinking, Albert Finney and ensemble
• "Easy Street," by Tim Curry, Carol Burnett and Bernadette Peters

Soundtrack available on Amazon Prime. 

Released by Sony Legacy.

Music by Charles Strouse; lyrics by Martin Charnin

Like we said, there are only two important show notes this week:

• Carol Burnett giving an iconic master class on playing drunk
• Bernadette Peters being iconic on the Playboy cover

Podcast cover art: David Taylor

Twitter: @bwaybabies Facebook: Facebook.com/broadwaybabiespodcast

Welcome back listeners, as we take a troika ride to the past to 19th century Russia, where everyone's got nine different names in Dave Malloy's take on the Russian literary paperweight "War & Peace." His electropop opera, "Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812," follows the young Natasha fumbling her way into Moscow high society, while there's a war going on out there somewhere ... and what about Pierre? Join us as we try to unpack the story of this ambitious stage adaptation, its incredible diversity of music and casting, and its own meteoric rise to Broadway — and how it burned out so quickly. Raz, dva, tri! 

Broadway cast recording: iTunes | Spotify | Amazon Prime

Original cast recording: iTunes | Spotify | Amazon

• "Prologue," performed by Josh Groban and cast
• "No One Else," by Denee Benton
• "Charming," by Amber Gray 
• "Letters," by Lucas Steele and cast
• "Sonya Alone," by Brittain Ashford
• "Dust and Ashes," by Josh Groban and cast

Music, Lyrics, and Book by Dave Malloy 

Distributed by Release Records.

• Dave Malloy left super interesting verified notes on the Genius lyrics for both the original and Broadway cast recordings.
• Both Sonyas, Ingrid Michaelson and Brittain Ashford, harmonizing “Sonya Alone”
• Cabaret night at Green Room 42 of a bunch of the cast doing songs from different musicals that inspired Dave for the show — Lucas Steele even steals THIS SHOW with his Hedwig number
• Dave Malloy and “Great Comet” cast perform his song “Squeeze of the Hand” from his version of “Moby Dick”
• Dave’s website, which talks about his plans for “Moby Dick”

Podcast cover art: David Taylor

Twitter: @bwaybabies Facebook: Facebook.com/broadwaybabiespodcast

What's new, pussycats? This week we're taking a break from our regularly scheduled programming to talk about "Documentary Now's" episode about the recording of a musical cast album, "Co-op: The Musical." Written by John Mulaney and Seth Meyers, the episode is a loving yet biting sendup of the making of Stephen Sondheim's "Company" cast album in 1970 and shows us the ups and downs of one grueling overnight recording session, with Mulaney as silently demanding genius-savant composer Simon Sawyer (ring any bells?). 

Episode: Amazon Video 

Cast recording: YouTube

• More about Stephen Sondheim's iconic take on "Co-op" and its music.
• Here's him master-classing and also shading students doing "Getting Married Today."  
• Probably the crown jewel of John Mulaney's standup repertoire, which is saying something: The Salt and Pepper Diner.
• OK, fine, here's another one: The One Thing You Can't Replace.
• John Mulaney also wrote all the sketches of Stefon, the gay, Ed Hardy-wearing event correspondent who's in love with Seth Meyers.

Podcast cover art: David Taylor

Twitter: @bwaybabies Facebook: Facebook.com/broadwaybabiespodcast

Before you roll your eyes, we are reviewing THE MOVIE, OKAY?!?! Dear listeners, if we are doing a season on musicals we love, Daisha has to include Jason Robert Brown’s The Last Five Years or she will explode. Join Alex and Daisha as they compare the movie with the musical and talk about how movie adaptations can add to a story when visual elements are used tastefully. What do you think about film adaptations of musicals? Let us know in the comments, through email, or via our social media accounts!

Film: Amazon Video 

Cast recording: iTunes | Spotify

• "Moving Too Fast," performed by Jeremy Jordan
• "Summer in Ohio," by Anna Kendrick
• "If I Didn’t Believe in You," by Jeremy Jordan
• "Goodbye Until Tomorrow/I Could Never Rescue You," by Anna Kendrick and Jeremy Jordan

Music, Lyrics, and Book by Jason Robert Brown

Film distributed by Radius-TWC 

•  Reunited, and it feels SO GOOD!
• Come and play with us, Jamie
• !!!!!!!
• People (Broadway people) have been freaking out over Jeremy Jordan and Laura Osnes’ mash-up of “Ten Minutes Ago/Next Ten Minutes,” but they did this at a show like five years ago lmao

Podcast cover art: David Taylor

Twitter: @bwaybabies Facebook: Facebook.com/broadwaybabiespodcast

Happy New-ish Year, listeners, and hello, young lovers! After a few weeks away, shall we tell you what we think of one of the most romantic, epic musicals of all time — Rodgers and Hammerstein's "The King and I"? The 2018 West End production starring Queen Kelli O'Hara and Ken Watanabe is something wonderful — and we adore it so much we decided to start a season on musicals we love, to start off 2019 (and Valentine's) with a happy tune. The Broadway Babies will go over the backstage drama that surrounded this musical from the beginning, how iconic Ruthie Ann Miles' Lady Thiang is, the racial tensions both in and out of the show, etc. etc. etc. Now, come...shall we dance?

Film: Amazon Video | BroadwayHD

Cast recording: iTunes | Spotify

• "Getting to Know You," performed by Kelli O'Hara
• "A Puzzlement," by Ken Watanabe
• "Hello, Young Lovers," by Kelli O'Hara
• "Shall I Tell You What I Think of You," by Kelli O'Hara
• "Something Wonderful," by Ruthie Ann Miles
• "Shall We Dance," by Kelli O'Hara, Ken Watanabe, conducted by Ted Sperling
• "Finale Ultimo," conducted by Ted Sperling

Music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II; copyright owned by the Rodgers and Hammerstein Organization.

Album distributed by Universal Music Classics, a division of UMG Recordings Inc.

• A discussion of race in The King and I when it was staged in Australia in 2014, referring to both the movie and the 1991 production that moved to Broadway.
• A portrait of the OG Anna in the OG ballgown, Gertrude MFin' Lawrence
• The King and I animated trailer … with tigers and dragons and Julie Andrews-lite Anna, oh my!
• Lincoln Center Theatre’s LincTix discount program for 21-35-year-olds, where tickets are like half off!
• Get ready for "Disobedience," (2017) starring Anna and Lady Thiang. It's a 'ship.

Podcast cover art: David Taylor

Twitter: @bwaybabies Facebook: Facebook.com/broadwaybabiespodcast

Happy new year, listeners! Christmas bells aren't ringing anymore, but we're here to measure a year in the life of those iconic bohemians, artists and lovers once more with our semi-hot take on last week's "Rent (Not-so-)Live!" We give our thoughts on the backstage drama that affected the production and resulted in the lowest ratings for a live musical yet, reveal what surprising changes we loved, and mispronounce Keala Settle's name repeatedly (yes, we know). 

Watch the broadcast online here.

Podcast cover art: David Taylor

Twitter: @bwaybabies Facebook: Facebook.com/broadwaybabiespodcast