Some 15 years ago an unassuming little show premiered on Broadway with a cast of talented unknowns and a director/creator who had a dream and a vision. Today EUPH!!! has become something of an institution. It's been performed in over 75 countries and translated into dozens of languages including Esperanto for a UN Day celebration in The Hague.
The show's beginnings were inauspicious to say the least. After a pre-opening run in Boston one critic wrote "Am I wrong or was there an actual physical smell emanating from the Beacon Theatre last night at the premiere of EUPH!!!?"
Dialogue was tightened, two songs cut, a rousing finale added and the rest is history. Now it's not uncommon to walk down the street and hear someone whistling "You're a Blowhard, Mr. McFarlane" or "October in Dusseldorf"
The play itself is actually a series of vignettes that spans several generations and locales. The stories, whether tragic, poignant or comedic all deal with love and other aspects of the human condition with the humble euphonium acting as the common, unifying thread.
"We took a largely under-appreciated instrument and built the show from the ground up" noted producer Burt Sheissman. After all, the euphonium doesn't have the caché of the violin or piano....there were a lot of doubters needless to say. There was also a major geek factor to consider but after that 1st night though, when the audience was doubled over laughing at "The Spit Valve Song"(sure your instrument is hollow, but couldn't ya just swallow?) or stood as one after "EU.S.A. Hooray" well.....we knew we had something special on our hands.
The Blob congratulates EUPH!!! and all those who have collaborated over these many years on a job well done!
12 comments:
A great big thank you to the Blob for recognizing the magnificent achievement that is Euph!!! Our mutual friends know that Blobbie and I first met and worked together in the touring production of Euph!!! in the late eighties.It made my career!! To the extent that I'm a public figure today is all because of Euph!!! As I was saying to Blob just last week,kids come up to me on the street (usually after a late-night screening of the movie version of the show--((I never agreed with the casting of Bob Redford to play me; but the big lug made it work in some crazy way!!)))and want to know what it's like to make literally hundreds of dollars a year playing euphonium--as I said to Blobbie over a plate of knishes,I would say to the young wanna-be's,"Ya, the dough's great,but come on!!! it's all about the chicks,right???" They love it!!! I tell them to get their asses on home, and practice! (But if any of those little schmucks start stealing my gigs,they're next weeks smoked meat!!!) Blobele, thanks for the memories!!! God willing, may there be 5000 more!!!
I want to add my kudos, and if I could, I would send all concerned a grilled cheese sandwich to go along with that stirring and well-deserved tribute!
It's people like you, going nuts over some stupid Broadway hit that nobody's ever heard of (Hello, EUPH?)that has driven my Davy to buying yet another valved instrument (allegedly, yes, a euphonium, but only time will tell) on e-bay while in a martini-misted state of EUPHoria. On top of it probably bidding far more than it's worth, all the while humming bits of that horrible ditty you quoted(at least it was the Dusseldorf one, not that inane Blowhard, Mr. McFarlane!)and dreaming of three-digit paycheques to come. I can't tell you how grateful I am to you, Blobby! (for an explanation of the concept of irony, I suggest you check that recent comment provided so thoughtfully by my lovely daughter, Maria Callous). Sheesh!
Oh, Blob!! Where does Guess Who's bitter, deep-seated anger come from? She needs to relax; she needs to listen to some soothing euphonium music; maybe something from one of my favourite albums,Euphonikka; a ballad perhaps--one of my faves is "Euph lost that lovin' feelin'"; if that can't calm her down (somehow, I know it's a she) Ephonie Valentine works EVERY time!!!! By the way,Guess Who,treat me right and I just might come up with some tickets for the upcoming Euph!!! show at the Bell Centre!!! Later!!!
I think Euph got something there Mikexxster! A little conical entertainment might loosen the gal up and lead to some Burkle-inspired in and out!
Someone put on that Euphonium musical 5 fucking thousand times?? I know I'm supposed to be ashamed of my parents (and consequently their friends) but really, broadway?? euphonium??? This is all a joke right? Are there hidden cameras in my room right now? I'm ready for my closeup Mr. Kutcher!
What an unexpected flurry of activity this post has generated!
That an old euphonium has found a new home is a good thing as are the grilled cheese sandwiches.
Mikey, thanks for the trip down memory lane....those were heady times, good times, and at the end of the week I felt like pleading "Take me with you!!" as the EUPH!!! tour bus headed off for another city, another run of shows. I'll admit now that as I drove home that night I shed a silent tear as the haunting strains of "October in Dusseldorf" filled my mind.....I can still hear the words:
A darkened sky
the rain soaked streets
Our old cafe
with empty seats
Yet the man with his euphonium played on.
His tattered hat
upon the floor
I tossed a mark,
I had no more
he smiled as he played a simple song.
And as I stood
I was sorrounded
By something
that resounded
The sound of buttered velvet
warmed my soul.
I hear he died
a paupers death
But as he took
his final breath
He played a note
that made the angels start to cry.
Geez, there I go again...must find kleenex...more later.
Sob...sniffle....Ahhh...
My how the world has changed. Knowing the mikexxxster for as long as I have, who would have thought he would hang up his quill and India ink and jump into the 21st century with both feet as a most prolific blogger.....from a euphonium player, at that. Will wonders never cease?
And here I was thinking he was stuck forever in the 70's....... the 1870's. Careful mikexxxster, it's a slippery slope. Before you know it you'll be signing up for cable TV.
Goes to show you that you can teach an old dog new tricks. Especially when you dangle snippets about lowly (lowly? I think I mean "low"....) brass players along with a young beauty on your blog as bait.
Blobby - keep up the good work. I always get a good laugh reading The Blob. I just have to be careful to shut my office door when I indulge during office hours......
Thanks for the Simpson's Avatar link.....had some fun with it.....check it out.....the likeness is striking, I think.
http://www.simpsonsmovie.com/sendfriend/MavisMikexxxster_276200701451.jpg
My dear Blob!!! Truly, I must take umbrage!!!! What is to be done with this harridan, this hell-cat, this STRUMPET who calls herself Torontomave? How is it she can spread such calumny, spread such a farrago of lies? I assure you, dear Blob- I have never met this generously-breasted, handsome woman in my life!!! Yet she claims to know(!!!) me(mercifully,not in the Biblical sense!)!!! Why do you not screen the various contributors who insist on sullying this otherwise outstanding forum? Rest content in the fact that I have never used "quill and india-ink"; as far as being "stuck in the 1870s", well; I say! Dash it all!!! A low blow, wouldn't you say, chaps? It seems to me the little mynx needs a good spanking on her lovely bottom!!! I may just send a stiff letter to The Times!!! In closing, let me add; NO to universal sufferage!!! The wogs start at Calais!!! God save the Queen!!!!!
Thanks TO Mave,
I believe you've hit the nail on the head with your comments and no amount of stodgy, anglophilic, complaining will dissuade me. Gotta run...hip hip, cheerio, and all that sort of thing.
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