Pick Yourself Up: Songs For Hard Times @ Nighttown 9/13/09

Bill Rudman is a native Clevelander who fell in love with Broadway at an age when most kids could care less. And aren’t we lucky that he did? With the help of, and to help his The Musical Theater Project, he regularly presents cabarets or other musical theater entertainments featuring the songs of that genre sorted into various themes and performed by talented local singer/actors.

This one was inspired by President Obama’s inaugural address, in which he advised Americans to “pick yourself up and dust yourself off” – lyrics first sung by Ginger Rogers to Fred Astaire in 1936. That was during an earlier ‘great depression.’ The one we’re currently in may be only a ‘recession’, but it still hurts just as much.

Along with pianist/music director Nancy Maier, Rudman selected Adina Bloom and Fabio Polanco to showcase these songs which range from witty to poignant to stirring, and had the audience cheering throughout.

Rudman excelled in It’s the Right Time to Be Rich from 1983’s Doonesbury, which segued into Swing Your Projects from Subways are for Sleeping in 1961! Bloom show-cased her acting ability and huge vocal range to great effect in another double-header: Nickel Under the Foot from The Cradle Will Rock (1937), and Cole Porter’s 1930 composition, Love For Sale, which was banned from the airwaves until the mid-60s. These days, it’s considered tame!

Polanco’s big moment was the near-theme song of that earlier financially troubled era -- Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? from New Americana in 1932. He was also terrific in 1937’s somewhat more comedic It’s Better with a Union Man from Pins and Needles.

Of course, there were many other great topical songs, and some we’ve unfortunately forgotten until being reminded of them, such as rent parties (Raisin’ the Rent from 1933), worn out shoes (Dusty Shoes -1937) and the original fast-food/vending machines--At the Automat from 1932.

The biggest laugh of the evening came from Rudman’s intro for Life Could Be So Beautiful, a 1935 song that lyrically defined the ‘S’ word, in trouble then as today. Not what you think, it’s the dreaded Socialism!

There was optimism then, as now, even if it’s hard to find or believe in. Still, it’s worth a try, don’t you think? After all, Fred and Ginger made 10 movies in a 6 year span during the late 1930s—movies termed courageous by Rudman. We need to look to Tomorrow, as in the Annie of 1977 (‘tomorrow is only a day away’), or Cole Porter’s 1938, in which the sardonic composer wrote: ‘there ain’t gonna be no sorrow, tomorrow!’

Bravos all around to those long ago (and modern-day) composers and song-writers who did (and do) their best to get us through these trouble-some times, and the performers who bring their songs to vivid life!

For more information or to be put on the mailing list, call 216.529.9411 or visit the website: http://www.musicaltheaterproject.org.

From Cool Cleveland contributor Kelly Ferjutz, who writes: My most recently published book is Ardenwycke Unveiled (e-book and trade paper). Cerridwen has another contemporary romance from me, But Not For Love, currently available only as an e-book, but perhaps will be in print next year. I hope to soon get around to completing some of the 30+ incomplete books in my computer!

By the way, Cerridwen has also accepted two of my short stories in their Scintillating Samples (complimentary reads) area: Song of the Swan and Unexpected Comfort. I love photography as well, as you can see here. Occasionally I teach writing workshops and sometimes do editing or ghostwriting on a free-lance basis. But over and above everything else, there's always been the writing. I can't imagine my life without it.

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