CMU School of Drama


Thursday, August 02, 2018

Finding Music in Shakespeare, Suffragists and Mitch McConnell

The New York Times: After the lost were found and the lonely were loved, after the disguises were doffed and the confusions were cleared, after the stanzas and the verses and the boogieing and the bows, Shaina Taub still had one final sentiment to sing.

2 comments:

Mitchell Jacobs said...

This article is really inspiring to me, coming from a small town in New Hampshire. The possibility to have an impact without living in a city is an exciting possibility for the future. I am impressed by the work that Shaina has done, and I am incredibly excited to see what she brings to the world of theater in coming years. A musical version of The Devil Wears Prada is especially interesting to me not only because of the possibilities for a show like that, but also because of what that represents in the future of theater. It is not surprising that theater and movies often cross over now-a-days; many movie stars have performed on Broadway and it isn't uncommon for popular performers to appear on TV or in films. Most of these performers come from the same backgrounds, so they are happy to cross back and forth. However, the divide of content between the two seems to be slipping, and I'm not sure how I feel about it. Though it can be fun to see popular movies reenacted in person with music and dance, there is also something thrilling about the unexplored. I don't think it would ever get to the point where these two fields share all of their content, but it does appear to be leaning in that direction.

Sam Perman said...

My mom sent me this article and I was very excited to read it. I have worked with Shaina before on her production of As You Like it. My high school was the first theater company to produce her show outside of the public theater and it was one of the best experiences of my life. I am lucky enough to now be friends with Shaina and have seen her on multiple occasions for her resident cabaret shows at Joe's Pub. Shaina is one of the most revolutionary composers and I'm looking forward to see more of her work. I am super excited to see this show. I am lucky enough to have tickets to closing and I have been looking forward to seeing some of my friends who are in the cast. Shaina has one of the strongest political opinions in the theater community and she expresses those opinions in very interesting ways. The music that she writes shows her opinions in subtle ways but it always makes an impression. Her most recent album, Die Happy, was written after the election and most of the songs touch on our current political climate. Her song, Huddled Masses, is based on the poem, The New Colossus, and talks about the struggles of immigrants throughout the modern era. This song is just one example of the work that Shaina does. As soon as I met her, I knew that she would change my life and she has.