Musical Theatre Monday – Corey Ann Haydu on The Fantasticks

Happy Musical Theatre Monday, yo. How are you celebrating? All ways are good ways. Today our guest bloggist is the adorable and talented Corey Ann Haydu, whose upcoming book OCD Love Story is one I’m quite, quite excited for. I will let Corey get to it!


COREY ANN HAYDU: I was meant to be a New Yorker.

Not only in the typical ways: I used to be an actress, I felt wildly out of place in Boston, I never wore fleece well enough to be a real New Englander, I have a Jersey father and like tiny spaces and excellent restaurants and have a pretty underdeveloped sense of smell, which comes in handy walking around in New York summers when the garbage heats up and its smell infiltrated the humid air. Evolutionarily speaking, I was built for the city. And I moved to New York for all these reasons, but mostly because of The Fantasticks.

First things first: I started performing when I was nine. To be more accurate, I started performing when I was six and started listening to musical theatre cassette tapes with my father on long drives from our home outside of Boston to our summer retreat in New Hampshire. I was especially enchanted by Annie, as most six year old girls were, but I also was pretty familiar with Evita, Les Miserables, Oliver, Into the Woods, The Music Man, The Sound of Music, Cats, and many other original cast recordings. I was tiny and really good at reading and had that  supposedly charming thing where my enormous belt was in sharp contrast to my insanely tiny frame (when I was nine I was the size of a six year old. Now that I am thirty I am finally the size of an eleven year old). So needless to say I was pretty successful, as far as child actors performing in summer stock productions go.

My parents found that whole tiny-girl-belting thing pretty adorable too, and supported my love of musical theatre. My father used to take me to New York City for a weekend and we would see four shows in the two days we were there. Don’t get me wrong, I liked the big theatre and the sometimes cheesy shows. I had a Cats t-shirt that I tied to the side with a scrunchie like any extremely uncool pre-teen girl in the late eighties and very early nineties was known to do. But I didn’t quite fit in with Those Musical Theatre Girls. I wasn’t outgoing enough, for one. And I didn’t really pull of my side-tied t-shirt with any kind of finesse. And I didn’t really think the sun would come out tomorrow. I had a dark side. The kind of dark side an eleven year old has. You know, the really deep kind.

That’s where The Fantasticks came in. My father had seen it back in his days living in the city with my mother, and knew it was hip. It was edgy. It was exactly the kind of thing his kinda angsty daughter would like.

He was right. I had never been to the village. I had never been to a small black box-ish theatre. I had never seen a show with so few set pieces, so few costumes, such a tiny orchestra. The actors references the audience constantly. I had the belief they were even more interested in me and my adorableness than I was in them. And I was VERY interested in them. I loved that there was a character who played a Wall. I loved that there was something both fairy-tale like and adult to the show. I loved the cheeky tone, the tiny simple moments, the  strange leaps in logic.

More than that, I loved walking my Washington Square Park after the curtain call and seeing something wildly different than the diners and bright lights of Times Square that had been my experience with New York City before.

“I’m going to live in the Village,” I said to my father. We walked by a girl in a cool vest and a boy in a cool hat and I knew I was special enough to be part of this side of the city. I liked that it was called The Village. I liked that the buildings were lower and made of brick. I liked seeing a part of New York that I felt convinced no one else in my town had ever seen.

And I just knew I could be the girl in The Fantasticks. I could have a relationship with a Wall and a Moon and wear my hair long and wavy and put glitter on my face and sing songs that sounded less like musical theatre and more like poetry. I could be bohemian and funny in the sad way. I could live in the Village and work in a teeny tiny theatre instead of a big glitzy one. I could be too cool for Broadway. I could be off-Broadway.

Seven years after I saw The Fantasticks with my father, I moved to the Village. I wore long sweater coats and drank coffee at hole in the wall cafes with mean waiters and walked through the Washington Square arch and maybe even had a relationship with it, maybe even heard it sing to me and tell me what to do with my life, which was stay in New York and live in small spaces with big dreams and romantic hair and serious thoughts.

I’m sure there are other reasons I moved here. But not really. Mostly it was the vision of being an artist—the dirty (but still safe! Still beautiful! Still romantic and scripted and glittery!) kind, that brought me here. The Village is still dazzling, off-Broadway is still the tiniest bit dangerous and lovely, and The Fantasticks still brings me to tears.

Corey Ann Haydu is a young adult author living in Brooklyn. Her first novel, OCD Love Story comes out on July 23, 2013, and her second, Life By Committee will be hitting shelves Summer 2014. She has an MFA from the Writing for Children program at The New School, and a BFA from Tisch School of the Arts at NYU where she studied acting and fell in love with NYC. Corey transcribes and discusses her humiliating childhood diaries at formerselfproject.blogspot.com. These days, you can find her at her local cafe where she writes books, drinks mochas and eavesdrops on stranger’s fascinating conversations.


Musical Theatre Monday – Interview with Jason Graae

GUYS. MUSICAL THEATRE MONDAY IS BACK! YEAHHH it is. It is back with a bang, because in today’s thrilling installment, we have an interview with one of my favorite performers, Jason Graae. YEAH WE DO. Let’s get to it!



Jason Graae has been featured on Broadway in A Grand Night For Singing, Falsettos, Stardust, Snoopy!!! and of course, Do Black Patent Leather Shoes..? His many Off-Broadway shows include Forever Plaid (Original Sparky), Hello, Muddah, Hello, Fadduh (Drama Desk Award nomination-Best Actor), Olympus on My Mind, All in the Timing, etc. He made his Metropolitan Opera House debut as vocal soloist in Twyla Tharp’s Everlast with ABT. A Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award winner, he hung upside down for a year as Houdini in the L.A. company of Ragtime, was featured in Forbidden Broadway Y2KLA! (Ovation Award), and at the Hollywood Bowl he played Benny in Guys and Dolls and Marcellus in The Music Man. Numerous TV shows include 6 Feet Under, Friends, Frasier, Rude Awakening and for five years he was the voice of “Lucky” for Lucky Charms Cereal. He has recorded over 45 CDs, including three solo albums. His show with Faith Prince, “The Prince and the Showboy” recently won the New York Nightlife Award for best duo.

AMY SPALDING: Hi, Jason, welcome to the blog for the Musical Theatre Mondays series!
JASON GRAAE: Thank you, Amy. I’m thrilled to be here. (On my couch.)

AS: What was the first musical theatre production/performance/song/etc. that you really admired?
JG: I saw my mom dance in a community theatre outside Chicago in a production of Wonderful Town. The first song I ever remember was “Why O Why O Why O Why Did I Ever leave Ohio?”. And “The Conga”. I was stagestruck immediately at five.

AS: When did you first know you wanted to be involved in musical theatre?
JG: In Tulsa, Oklahoma – when I auditioned for one of the kids in Oliver! at Tulsa Little Theatre. I didn’t get it and the rejection was exhilarating.

AS: Were you involved in school productions in high school?
JG: Yes, when I was in high school we did Sweeney Todd – the original melodrama. I played Dr. Lupin, a Reverend who lusts after Mrs. Lovett and gets turned into a pie. I was a sophomore and I got huge laughs, and the cute class president invited me to all the cool parties after that. And by cool parties at my high school in Tulsa – I mean, Bible groups.

AS: What was the most exciting thing about your first productions?
JG: I remember the smell of the rehearsal studios and the dressing rooms. Magical. I was so stagestruck. And yet really shy. I eavesdropped a lot.

That sounds weird.

I was a newsboy in Gyspy at the aforementioned Theatre Tulsa – Sam Harris was one too. My mom played Tessie Tura which I thought was terribly exciting, that my mom was a stripper. Sam Harris’ mom didn’t strip.

Onstage.

AS: What was the scariest or most stressful part? Has it gotten easier as you’ve performed more or is some of it fresh and scary each time?
JG: My entrance as Houdini in Ragtime. I actually had to go to therapy about it. Entering sixty feet above the stage, hanging upside down from my ankles in a straight jacket in handcuffs. I’ve never done THAT before!

…Sober.

Graciella Danielle said if I was uncomfortable I could walk in from the back but for the amount of stage time Houdini had I figured that entrance was paramount to the character.

AS: Have you ever had a crush on anyone in a production with you? Did it end up dreamy or disastrous?
JG: Yes, in every show. Often started dreamy, often ended disastrous. I’m friends with most of them now.

When I did a certain production of Falsettos, I played Mendel the heterosexual psychiatrist, and it was a TAD weird that there was this sexual tension between Mendel and Whizzer.

AS:What are some of your favorite roles/productions you’ve been involved in?
JG: Falsettos, Ragtime, The Grand Tour, Forever Plaid, and Little Me, which I currently am in rehearsals for with the delightful 42nd Street Moon Theatre Company in San Francisco – runs at the Eureka Theatre May 1-19th!!!!

AS: What’s your favorite thing about being a part of musical theatre?
JG: I truly love the people I work with. We’re a unique breed. I love listening to the girls belt their brains out. I love the variety of roles and shows we get to play in. I have to say I love living in a heightened reality. Music elates me. Every single time we sing “Real Live Girl” I get goosebumps.

AS: What would be your advice to anyone pursuing a career in musical theatre?
JG: Save your dough. No one taught us that in college. I was on Broadway at twenty-three. I thought the $$ would last forever. It doesn’t. Save your dough.

AS: Thanks so much for your time, Jason!!
JG: It was my pleasure, Amy!

Amy, right?

AS: …[awkward silence]


VOYA and SLJ!

I’m thrilled/honored/etc. to have gotten such lovely reviews from VOYA and SLJ:

VOYA:
4Q 4P M J S
Not many people will be in the exact same situation as Devan. As this story begins she is flying, with her mother’s lawyer, to go live with her mother. A high school junior, Devan has never met her mother, Reece Malcolm, but now, three months after her father’s death in an auto accident, Devan is being moved to Los Angeles from St. Louis. Devan’s mom, a best-selling and award-winning author, is a mystery to her, and so she has started a notebook of “Things I know about Reece Malcolm.” So far, there are five.

While few may identify directly with Devan, many readers will identify with the difficulties Devan has communicating with her mother (and her mother’s boyfriend); the challenges of a new school (highly academically, competitive, and known just as well for its arts program); her first kiss; and even her love of musicals and desire to appear on Broadway one day. This particular dream defines Devan and the book almost as much as her interactions with her mother. References to Sondheim and show choir abound, and should easily attract fans of Glee to this debut book. A wider audience who enjoys a good romance, a pleasant coming-of-age story, or even a good tale that is set in the real world will also be happy to discover The Reece Malcolm List. Devan and her world may be highly improbable, but they are very believable. The only problem with this book is that Spalding does not yet have any other books out. —Beth Karpas

School Library Journal:
Gr 8–10
When Devan Mitchell’s dad dies, the 16-year-old goes to live with the woman who gave her up at birth. She discovers that her mother is a young, famous author who dresses like a concert roadie and has a British boyfriend who just moved in. While attempting to get to know her and saying good-bye to her distant father, Devan juggles friendships old and new, budding romances, and the opportunity to leave behind her shy shell and take the lead in her performing-arts school’s spring production. Devan’s emotional kaleidoscope of confusion, excitement, fear, and hope is well handled. Portrayed with humor and vulnerability, the teen is a character readers will identify with, care about, and root for. —Natasha Forrester, Multnomah County Library, OR


A Bunch of Stuff

I went to New York!

Me with Lindsay Ribar and Tim Federle

Here are some things about New York and me:

  1. Good gravy it was cold. How do you guys do it. Do you know there’s a city on the opposite coast where it’s warm and you get more square footage for your dollar? Just saying.
  2. I went to my first high school event! This is scary because inside my brain somewhere I’m still as scared of being in a high school as I was when I was 17. Luckily the students were super cool and I had a great time.
  3. I got to see lots of people I haven’t seen in years! I got to meet lots of people I have only known on the internet! For some reason the only way to see people is to eat and/or drink with them, so, also I put a lot of croissants in my mouth.
  4. I met someone who was in the original Broadway cast of Merrily We Roll Along and the most accurate way to explain what happened is I FLIPPED MY GODDAMN SHIT.
  5. I walked through Times Square and a friend pointed out, “That’s where Julia Houston said, ‘NAILED IT!’” so that was pretty great because we all know Julia Houston never nailed a damn thing besides Will Chase guys am I right.

For those of you on the Best Coast other coast, I am thrilled to announce I’ll be appearing at the L.A. Times Festival of Books! This is a huge deal to me because it’s one of my favorite events, one that I attended long before my book was a gleam in anyone’s eye. (Well, my own, maybe, but, that’s it. I’m gleamy.) My panel is on the YA Stage on Sunday, April 21 at 1:30pm. I’m appearing with D.C. Pierson, Elizabeth Eulberg, Sean Beaudoin, and moderator Aaron Hartzler. See? That’s amazing. How could you miss it? (Spoiler alert: you couldn’t.)

Did you know I have a book coming out in December? It’s called Ink Is Thicker than Water and it’s about sisters and boys and family and tattoos, and I hope you like it! You can preorder it on Amazon, if that floats your boat! A little birdie also tells me there will probably be a cover to reveal soon. Actually, I never talk to birds. If I wanted to speak to a creepy little dinosaur I’d go to a museum. But the sentiment stands.

NAILED IT!!!!


NYC Events This Week!

New York! I’ll be in you this week! Come see me Saturday and Sunday!!

March 23, 2013
2:40pm | NYC Teen Author Festival | Panel
Under Many Influences: Shaping Identity When You’re a Teen Girl
Description: Being a teen girl is to be under many influences – friends, parents, siblings, teachers, favorite bands, favorite boys, favorite web sites. These authors will talk about the influences that each of their main characters tap into – and then talk about what influences them as writers when they shape these characters.
Jen Calonita
Deborah Heiligman
Hilary Weisman Graham
Kody Keplinger
Amy Spalding
Katie Sise
Kathryn Williams
moderator: Terra Elan McVoy
42nd Street NYPL | Bergen Forum, 2nd Floor
5th Avenue 42nd Street | New York, NY 10036
Click here for more info

March 24, 2013
3:15-4pm* | NYC Teen Author Festival | Book Signing
Books of Wonder
18 West 18th Street | New York, NY 10011
Victoria Schwab (The Archived, Hyperion)
Jeri Smith-Ready (Shine, S&S)
Amy Spalding (The Reece Malcolm List, Entangled)
Stephanie Strohm (Pilgrims Don’t Wear Pink, HMH)
Nova Ren Suma (17 & Gone, Penguin)
Greg Takoudes (When We Wuz Famous, Macmillan)
Mary Thompson (Wuftoom, HMH)
Jess Verdi (My Life After Now, Sourcebooks)
K.M. Walton (Empty, S&S)
Suzanne Weyn (Dr. Frankenstein’s Daughters, Scholastic)
Kathryn Williams (Pizza, Love, and Other Stuff That Made Me Famous, Macmillan)
Click here for more info
*I have a plane to catch after this event, so seeing me toward the beginning would be best. But I’ll be there until 4!



A Few Links!

Here are a few things to check out!

Thanks to Young Adult Anonymous for writing such a great post about The Reece Malcolm List launch party!

I’ve also done lots of updating on the site! The Reece Malcolm PlayList is finally up (yeahhhh there’s lots of Merrily, don’t worry), as is an interactive map of the real locations in the book (it’s mostly food but you can see about where Devan, Reece, and Brad live)!

And last but not least, I’ve updated the events page! I’m excited to announce I will be doing a panel and a signing at the NYC Teen Author Festival in March! I hope to see East Coast people! I will sign your books and I will pet your cats! (Actually you probably can’t bring your cats to events in libraries and bookstores but I wish you could!)

I’m using lots of exclamation points! I just drank some coffee!!


The Internet! I’m on It!

Here’s some stuff you can check out if that suits you and your nature!

The awesome Hypable interviewed me about dangerous writing habits and dreams of Sam Seaborn, among other things.

I wrote a guest post for Nova Ren Suma’s Turning Points blog series about me and quitting. Don’t worry, it’s not all serious. There are references to The Babysitters Club and stuff.

Romance Times asked me to write about Devan, musical theatre, and Pitch Perfect…and I did.

I am keeping a firm eye AVERTED from reviews because they make me crazy. However, a few blogs that were go-to places for smart reviews way before I had a book out reviewed Reece which is really surreal and wonderful.

          

Review at Stacked
Review at Clear Eyes, Full Shelves
Reece Malcolm Is A MILF (Mother I’d Like To Friend) – Review at Forever Young Adult

And THANK YOU to all the other reviewers who’ve blogged/tweeted/emailed nice things! I fear reviews and I stay away from places that belong to readers and not writers (i.e. Goodreads). But I know you guys are out there! You are awesome and I appreciate you ALL.



Blog Hop – The Next Big Thing

The delightful Lilliam Rivera invited me to participate in The Next Big Thing blog hop. And I’m allllll over it.

What is the working title of your book/story/whatever?
Ink Is Thicker than Water. (Coming late 2013!!)

Where did the idea come from for the book?
I’m really interested in exploring family dynamics in fiction. I love reading all of it: dysfunction, divorce, death, long-lost family, etc. And I really believe in writing what you want to read.

What genre does your book fall under?
Young adult. Contemporary.

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
I have lots of thoughts but will never share them publicly because I really want readers to see things the way their own brains decide.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
Sisters, an intense older boy, tattoos. Well, that’s not exactly a sentence, but, there you go.

What is the longer synopsis of your book?
For Kellie Brooks, family has always been a tough word to define. Combine her hippie mom and tattooist stepdad, her adopted overachieving sister, her younger half brother, and her tough-love dad, and average Kellie’s the one stuck in the middle, overlooked and impermanent. When Kellie’s sister finally meets her birth mother and her best friend starts hanging with a cooler crowd, the feeling only grows stronger.

But then she reconnects with Oliver, the sweet and sensitive college guy she had a near hookup with last year. Oliver is intense and attractive, and she’s sure he’s totally out of her league. But as she discovers that maybe intensity isn’t always a good thing, it’s yet another relationship she feels is spiraling out of her control.

It’ll take a new role on the school newspaper and a new job at her mom’s tattoo shop for Kellie to realize that defining herself both outside and within her family is what can finally allow her to feel permanent, just like a tattoo.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
No, it will not be self-published. I have an agent, and my book will be published by Entangled Teen, in the Stacy Cantor Abrams imprint.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
Just a few months–many years ago! But this is one that flew out of me. It was an easy write. (This means it was an effing hellish revision…and I have more to go!)

Who or What inspired you to write this book?
Again, really, just my preoccupation with complicated families. At the time I was also reading a lot of YA with intense romances, and I was interested in exploring what that would really be like for a real teenager. I also really wanted to write something set in St. Louis. I live in L.A. now (and I love L.A.) but it was important to me to set something in my hometown. (Technically, I picked a cooler part of town than I’m from, but, the thought is there.)

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?
AREN’T YOU LISTENING? I SAID IT WAS SET IN ST. LOUIS, THE MOST EXCITING CITY IN THE ENTIRE WORLD!

Be sure to tune in next Wednesday on Lisa Burstein’s blog, as she is the next writer in the blog hop! Also I freaking loved Pretty Amy, and not ONLY because of the title.