Chasing Phantom

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What could be more terrifying than to think you’re going insane? That basic horror makes “Angel Street” the perfect show to talk about during spooky season. Originally produced in London as “Gas Light” and adapted for the screen (twice) as “Gaslight,” this tale of a husband psychologically abusing his wife in order to access hidden riches was a surprise hit on Broadway in the 1940s. It was so popular, it overcame the monumentally bad timing of opening just days before the Pearl Harbor bombing to ultimately run for more than 3 years.

My guest, Lindsey Zelli, made her debut in the Virginia theater scene with her starring role in “Gaslight” and it was a local smash. Both Zelli and her costar, Axle Burtness, ended up winning Richmond Theatre Community Circle awards for their performances. Zelli and I talk about the challenge of building suspense on stage, finding the emotional beats in such an intense work, and making friends through theater. I lay out Vincent Price’s surprisingly robust early stage career also relate a bonkers story about his Broadway costar Judith Evelyn. There are no jump scares, but it’s still a conversation right in line with the horrifying aesthetic of Halloween.

Be sure and check out my website, ChasingPhantom.net, for essential video clips related to this show, a link to the full radio play and other fun facts. For more on Lindsey Zelli, check out her website. She's going to be in a show coming but she wouldn't / couldn't tell me what it is!

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When you want to know about a production, there's no better source than talking to someone who was in it. I never thought that would be possible with the original Broadway run of "Annie Get Your Gun" - I mean, it closed in 1949! But Mary Ellen Ashley, who had a marquee role as the Girl in the Lampshade Hat in the show, is still alive and very much kicking. Though only 8 years old when the show opened, she was already a child star, having been in 2 other major productions and even appearing in a promotional film produced by the Navy, shot in Virginia Beach.

My conversation with Mary Ellen starts with her first public performance at the age of 4 and then quickly moves to her time in "Annie Get Your Gun." It's full of anecdotes and memories, all delivered with a playful attitude that Mary Ellen still maintains at the spry young age of 86.

Please check out my website, ChasingPhantom.net, for previous podcast episodes, links to videos related to the productions I talk about, and additional fun facts and stories. For more on Mary Ellen Ashley, check out her website. 

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"Torch Song Trilogy" was a ground-breaking production and opened many doors for openly gay artists. It launched the career of Harvey Fierstein who would go on to write and perform in some additionally landmark shows on Broadway. In my hometown, it also was a landmark of sorts for one local actor, Keegan Ferrell. The recent college graduate was slated to be the understudy of the lead role, Arnold Beckoff, but ended up performing the opening weekend of the show due to an illness in the cast.

In our fun conversation, Keegan talks about that experience as well as providing some sense of what the "youths" these days might know about this seminal play in theater history.  And man, what a load of interesting theater history this show captures - incubating at La MaMa first as three separate plays before being combined, launching Matthew Broderick as well as Fierstein, gaining the support of the Glines who heroically raised money for the move to Broadway, becoming a sensation just as the AIDS crisis was emerging -- there's just so much!

That's one of many reasons you should pick up the book "In the Long Run" by Jordan Schildcrout that has a chapter all about "TST" and go to my website, ChasingPhantom.net, to see clips and find out more fun facts about the show!

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We all know that sex sells, but is that the only thing that drove thousands of people to see "Equus" back in the mid-1970s? Listen in on my discussion with McLean Fletcher  as we discuss the explosive intersection of sex, religion and psychology that playwright Peter Schaffer squeezes into this sometimes disturbing tale.

McLean starred in the Cadence Theatre production of the play in 2015 as Jill Mason, one of two characters who spend an extended scene naked on stage. McLean argues that the nudity wasn't really the point but also, in many ways, really was the point. She's smart, insightful and absolutely delightful in her analysis of the show, as well as a big fan of the Daniel Radcliffe starring revival in 2008.

And the episode provides a very specific reason to check out the related post on our website, ChasingPhantom.net. The short post is largely devotes to Frances Sternhagen, a Tony Award nominee for "Equus," that we tragically did not get a chance to talk about in the podcast. 

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The chase is back on! Welcome to season 2 of the podcast dedicated to exploring...and sometimes explaining...Broadway's longest running shows!

Today's episode features a true Broadway history whiz: author, dramaturg & professor Jordan Schildcrout has studied long-running plays in more depth than perhaps anyone else on the planet. In his book, "In the Long Run: A Cultural History of Broadway's Hit Plays," Dr. Schildcrout looks at the Broadway landscape over more than 100 years, going deep on the longest running plays in each decade. It's a fascinating and super fun read filled with unexpected facts and interesting context. You can find out more about it at broadwayinthelongrun.com.

I asked Jordan to come on the podcast to talk about a show that has completely fallen off the radar of theater fans but that still stands as a breakthrough in history. "Lightnin'" was the first production to ever run more than 1,000 consecutive performances on Broadway after it opened back in 1918.

Though you may not know the play, you'll still want to listen in on our conversation exploring what the play's success said about the changes in professional theater at the time and what has happened to the long-running play since.

For links to video and some additional info on "Lightnin'," check out this episode's post on ChasingPhantom.net. You can also access previous episodes of the podcast and find more fun facts and information. Be sure to check out ChasingPhantom.net. We'll be back in 2 weeks!

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We're back - better than ever! The second season of "Chasing Phantom" will feature celebrity guests, unexpectedly popular productions, and a cavalcade of trivia, insights and lively conversation about the longest running shows on Broadway. Be sure and check out the first episode where I chat with an author, professor and dramaturg who has written perhaps THE definitive book on long running plays.

That episode drops Sept. 4th and new episodes will follow every other week. Follow on Spotify now so you won't miss a single episode!

And be sure and check out our website, ChasingPhantom.net, for past episodes, additional information, photos and video clips.

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For this very special episode, we welcome Barbra Streisand to "Chasing Phantom" to help us explore a show that was a monster hit in the 1930s. OK, it's more the spirit and definitely the Voice of Babs that highlights this exploration of "Pins and Needles," more than the actual person (though if someone wants to send me a Cease and Desist in such a way that my podcast blows up, I'm not above benefitting from the Streisand Effect!)

"Pins and Needles" foregrounded politics - union politics, no less - in a peppy, funny musical review that had all the powerful libs at the time happy as clams. The show leveraged the progressive humor of composer Harold Rome and a cast of actual union workers to draw consistently full houses for almost 4 years.

After thoroughly investigating the many rabbit holes the history of this production presents, I also give a little summary of the first season of Chasing Phantom and a little preview of the second season that will kick off in the fall.

And I couldn't have done any of it without Babs!

Check out the vintage clips and songs linked to at ChasingPhantom.net and check out the whole first season of conversation about Broadway's longest running shows. Have a question, complaint or suggestion? Please email me at [email protected].

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"The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" is responsible for Mark Zuckerberg. Don't believe me? Listen as accomplished actor, director and video wizard Matt Polson and I wander around in nerd culture for a while, discussing this seminal musical. More than any show before or since, "Spelling Bee" demonstrated the unique attractions of live theater: with intense audience interaction and ad-libs aplenty, every performance was truly unique and you never knew what would unfold on any given night.

In this penultimate episode of season 1 of this podcast, Matt shares behind-the-scenes remembrances of how this show challenged him as an actor and makes the case that, in terms of audience response, this may be one of the best musicals ever.

There is plenty of video of the original cast of "Spelling Bee" that you can see at ChasingPhantom.net. Please drop me a line at [email protected] with comments, questions and suggestions.

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Once again, the joy of this podcast for me is getting schooled on stuff I don't know about. In talking about "Bring in 'da Noise, Bring in 'da Funk," Dr. Julinda Lewis introduces me to a flurry of tap dance masters from the past that were influences on young Savion Glover. Glover first broke into the public consciousness in "The Tap Dance Kid," but with "Bring in 'da Noise," he solidified his standing as one of the most accomplished dancer / choreographers in Broadway's history. And he was only 22!

It's particularly timely to talk about "Bring in 'da Noise" this year because of the most recent Oscars awards. A still-young Jeffrey Wright was one of the stars of "Noise" and the show was developed and directed by George Wolfe. Wright was nominated for an Oscar this year for "American Fiction" and Wolfe was the producer/director of "Rustin" that garnered a nom for Colman Domingo (and that also featured Wright).

You will definitely want to check out my website, ChasingPhantom.net, for video of two of the tap masters that Julinda mentions, Peg Leg Bates and Sandman Sims. And please drop me a line at [email protected] with comments, questions and suggestions.

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Before the iconic picture of Marilyn Monroe with her white dress billowing over a subway grate obliterated any other reference point, "The Seven Year Itch" was a long-running Broadway show. In fact, it was the longest running show of the 1950s and cemented the star power of the actor Tom Ewell who is not regularly remembered today (even though he would later star in the American premiere of "Waiting for Godot").

Just those facts alone make talking about this show interesting. Add in that my guest is psychologist / old movie superfan Jesse Rabinowitz, PhD, who calls "Itch" the "anti-Blue Velvet" and you have all the ingredients for a fascinating -- and occasionally spicy -- conversation about yet another "classic" that perhaps should be relegated to the dust bin of theatrical history.

Please be sure and check out my website, ChasingPhantom.net, for bonus material, links to videos, and additional facts and figures related to Broadway's longest running shows.  And please drop me a line at [email protected] -- I'd love to hear from you!