War Horse. Or, please can i go to London!

(Via Jonathan Carroll)

This looks amazing:

Hamlet + Hair: Tickles my funny bone.

Apologies for the cell phone photo but, I love this.

Ira Glass, Taller Than He Sounds

Just back from a live edition of This American Life and I'm walking three feet off the ground. Ira Glass is freakin' amazing. I hate to get all "I was into Ira before grass evolved" but I became addicted to Talk of the Nation when he was the host and I nearly cried when he left. He promised to come back on the air with something exciting and, of course, he did in spades. Odd then, that I haven't seen any of the television show until now (although not having cable might factor into that.) From what he showed tonight, the televised version is every bit as brilliant, poignant, and funny as the radio show. So, it's off to Amazon with me!

David Gallo's A Catered Affair

My local public radio station reminds me that my brother's latest show is up and I haven't bragged about it yet. By "my brother's" show, I mean he was the set designer on it. I've loved any number of his sets (because they are brilliant, of course) but this is one of my favorites. The structure is a plain white exterior of a NY apartment building. Projections transform it into series of interior and exterior environments...layering back and forth and often combining the two.

Sweeny Todd Credits

[Via Cartoon Brew]

The opening credits for Sweeny Todd are animated and viewable on BroadwayWorld.

Kinda cool...and I’ll admit that Alan Rickman is usually worth a $10.00 ticket all on his own. Still, on Fresh Air today, producer Richard Zannuck admitted that Johnny was hired without anyone hearing him sing -- under the impression that he wouldn't want to make a fool of himself so he must be able to handle it. Oy.

I hope I’m wrong, but

...this looks awful.



Johnny Depp is great but he’s no Mr. Todd. And while Tim Burton can make a movie look pretty, he can’t tell a story.

And yet, I saw the show when I was in High School and I saw last year’s brilliant John Doyle production, so I think I’m doomed to see this in two week's time.

The Wolves in the Wall

The stage production of Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean’s The Wolves in the Walls is loads of cute and creepy fun. They did a great job of bringing Mckean’s artwork to life -- lots of layering projections, animations, puppets, forced perspective. Very cool.

Bragging Rights

My brother, David Gallo, has been nominated for a Tony Award for "Best Scenic Design of a Play". The show is August Wilson’s last play, Radio Golf. (Seen here is my blurry snapshot taken opening night.) Last year David won the Tony for designing the musical Drowsy Chaperone.

Good luck, Dave!

(Wow - this makes me realize that The Art Department is coming up on being a year old. That just can't be.)

Evil Dead: The Musical

Yes, Evil Dead...is now...a musical.

My brother, David, did the set designs for the show. The New York Times review includes a slide show of Dave talking about the look of the play. (Click on the zombie photo on the left.) My favorite lines from the review are, "Evil Dead: The Musical wants to be the next Rocky Horror Show, and it just may succeed" and, "Sure, the show is idiotic, but that's the point." Apparently it's all the rage to wear a white t-shirt and be caught in the blood splash zone. I haven't seen it yet but I plan to soon.

For those with more erudite taste, Dave is also working on the revival Stephen Sondheim's of Company. I'm very much looking forward to it. It will be directed by John Doyle who directed last year's haunting revival of Sweeny Todd.