Highlights: watching shows many times, well-rounded side characters, Sara Bareilles, She Used to Be Mine and Now I’m Crying, problematic relationships, movement based choreography, all-female creative team, motherhood.

"Waitress"

Quinn Rose with Jhanelle Benton

Highlights: satire, respect, disrespect, stereotypes, religion, a jumble of all things previously named, the actual Mormon church, Josh Gad, wholesome adult comedy, we’re taking this show so seriously.

"The Book of Mormon"

Quinn Rose with Jessica Morandi

Highlights: your OTP could never, emotionally devastating, everything is changing, it’s a metaphor, subway maps, crying on the podcast, universality through specificity, legacy, you got sad.

"In The Heights"

Quinn Rose with Riley Rose

In lieu of a regular episode, this week we bring you a portion from our latest members only episode, in which Kerri Kearse and I developed high school theater seasons comprised entirely of shows that had to be heavily adapted from their original adult content. If you want to hear more, click on the link in the description to sign up for an Incomparable membership. We’ll be back next week with a regular episode!

"Grease" (for high schools)

Quinn Rose with Kerri Kearse

Highlights: The poor man’s Rogers and Hammerstein, tartan, Oklahoma!, 18th century Scotland, dystopian hellscape, born in the wrong generation before it was cool, horny in the 40s, show tunes as popular music, old men playing bagpipes, happy endings.

Content warnings: murder, people in the 40s being super horny.

"Brigadoon"

Quinn Rose with Emily Denny

Highlights: orphans, Les Mis, bargain prices at Macy’s, choreography awards, fifty children on the stage, Dodger!, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, music notation, mmmbop, children’s musicals and the bizarre plot lines wherein, My Fair Lady.

Content warnings: mention of murder, abuse.

"Oliver!"

Quinn Rose with Colin Commager

Highlights: America’s obsessions with orphans, Charles Dickens, curly hair, universal optimism, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Annie’s girl gang, dog hot takes, borrowing children, scam culture.

"Annie"

Quinn Rose with Abby Erdmann

Highlights: what do you think musicals are, oh that’s morbid, The South, dream casting, celebrities on Broadway, vendetta against the Tony awards, Jake Gyllenhaal’s DMs, as the casting director for all productions of Parade I regret to inform you.

Content warnings: discussion of anti-semitism, lynching, murder; mention of rape.

"Parade"

Quinn Rose with Laura J Brown

Highlights: I don’t know why any of that information was relevant, the movie was better(?), Jeremy Jordan, live action Aladdin, adapting movies into different movies, the original Be More Chill, The Swedish Chef, eight Tony awards for being the best trash, Death Note the musical.

"Newsies"

Quinn Rose with Daniel Balsamo

Highlights: Alice Ripley… is probably tired, the love of my life Aaron Tveit, Spider Man: Turn Off The Dark, angst, Gossip Girl, midwesternize it, Twitter, Dear Evan Hansen, laughing about inappropriate topics.

"Next to Normal"

Quinn Rose with Angela Cotey