Set List that I can remember (she changed up stuff from that which was printed in the program):
- Broadway Medley-- We were introduced to accompanist Dr. Stephen Cook, whom had an illness recently that led to an ear infection that ruptured his eardrum. OUCH! So he was playing with one ear, and the monitor was set up for him to listen on the side with the ear that worked. Poor thing. SE talked about working with the Arcadia High School theater students in the past couple of weeks, and that they are the future of theater.
- My Lifelong Love -- This song was written by one of SE's favorite composers, Georgia Stitt. SE said that she joined musical theater so that she could meet boys. I love the lyrics of this song, as she goes through joining the band to be near the smartest boy in class, and at the end, she realizes that it's the music that is her lifelong love. I loved it so much that I went home and bought the song, sung by Jesse Tyler Ferguson, from Ms. Stitt's CD.
- Almost There/NYC -- SE talked about going to New York City upon the urging of a teacher. Songs were from "Princess and the Frog" and "Annie".
- Show People -- from AHS' upcoming production of "Curtains", a show which I've never seen, but SE states is hilarious and an uptake on "Oklahoma", sung by Arcadia Stage.
- Maybe This Time -- from "Cabaret". SE states that she was the longest-running Sally Bowles, mainly because the other people whom played the part were big movie stars and had other things to do. She said that this song means a lot to her because at the time she performed it, she was going through the same things as Sally, being young and looking for love.
- Disney Heroine Medley -- SE talked about how she liked that the more recent Disney heroines didn't wait around to be saved by a guy, and did OK doing their own thing and saving the world on her own. She talked about "Frozen" and how her girls won't stop singing it. The medley included Part of Your World, A Whole New World, and Colors of the Wind. As soon as the intro to Ariel's song started, I beamed, and SE did not let me down. It was just gorgeous and I cried Sherry-loves-this-song-too-much tears. I don't think I was the only one who wondered, though, "No Belle song?"
- I Won't Say I'm In Love -- SE said that Disney actresses had their signature part, like Jodi Benson had Ariel, Judy Kuhn had Pocahontas, Paige O'Hara had Belle, and Lea Salonga had Jasmine AND Mulan. "I hate her," she said playfully. At the time that Disney was auditioning for the part of Megara, they were casting someone who could be Barbara Stanwycks' The Lady Eve. Since SE had seen every old movie from the 30s and 40s, she knew exactly the cadence of speech that they were looking for. But since she was playing Belle at the time, they didn't want her to audition. She kept pressing on until they finally let her audition so that she wouldn't annoy them anymore with her pleading. She walked into the studio and all of their heads were down, looking at the drawing of Meg, not looking up, so that they would only hear the voice that they hoped would match the drawing. SE recited the audition line, which was Meg's introduction to Hercules. One by one, each head popped up and they said, "Susan?!" 11 months later, she got the part. Things take so long in animation that Michael Eisner saw SE on the Disney lot 9 months after the audition and told her that he heard her tape and she was great. So here was Megara, and she had a great heroine song, but they realized that this wasn't Meg's personality, so they cut it (ooh, I found it!). Instead, they had her sing a song of being in denial. Some of the girls from Arcadia Stage joined her as they played the Muses.
- You Can't Stop the Beat -- sung by SE with Arcadia Stage. She also calls it "You Can't Stop to Breathe". :)
INTERMISSION
- Wide Open Spaces -- from "Curtains", performed by Arcadia Stage
- Everybody Says Don't -- from "Anyone Can Whistle"
- Secret of Happiness -- very pretty song, from "Daddy Long Legs"
- If I Only Had A Brain / Lion Tamer -- from "The Wizard of Oz" and Stephen Schwartz. I had never heard Lion Tamer before.
- (a song about pretending to like things that a boy likes because she likes him) SE: "Remember when I said that I joined musical theatre to meet boys?" Laughter ensued. She said that she went out with anyone whom would ask her out just so that she could see if she would fall in love, and she did whatever they did so that she could expand her horizons. I wish I knew the title of this song, wherein she pretended to like opera, skiing and sushi. It was funny.
- For Good -- from "Wicked". SE sang with this with Alana Deblase a senior at AHS. Alana was dressed in green (Elphaba!), and she was really, really good. The future of Broadway.
- Baby Mine / Nina Doesn't Care -- the first song from "Dumbo", the second an original by Ms. Egan. SE said that she searched the musical theater library and the Disney library for Mom songs, but all she could find was the mom in Gypsy (not a good role model), and one sung by an elephant. Disney moms either die or are already dead by the time the story starts. So she wrote her own, about her daughter. It's funny and touching, and there I went, crying again. Here's the official video.
- I Dreamed A Dream -- from "Les Miserables". This was Susan's favorite musical, and she was going to be Fantine on tour, but she also got a television role, and they paid more. She was hilarious when talking about the role of Fantine, because you start off all depressing, sing your song, die, sit backstage for 2 hours, then come out for one song to tell Valjean that it's great on the other side, and then you get to be 3rd last at curtain call. I would have loved to hear her sing this in my favorite show. She shared that the musical theater community was amused when the big deal about the movie was that they were all singing LIVE on camera. "We do that EIGHT TIMES A WEEK."
- Seasons of Love -- from "RENT", sung by Arcadia Stage. One of the girls was clearly upset during this song, but she was fine when it was over and her friend hugged her. I wonder what that story was all about.
- Belle -- sung by SE with Arcadia Stage. A video played behind them, which was off-center, then when they finally fixed it and played it again, the song was almost over, and SE talked about the people we were seeing. APPARENTLY, Burke Moses actually WAS Gaston, because on opening night, he gave her flowers with the note, "It's been your pleasure". Ha! This April will mark 20 years since "Beauty and the Beast" premiered, and she will be at the big anniversary in NYC.
ENCORE
- Momsense -- Hilarious, to the tune of the William Tell Overture.
MEET AND GREET
I was in line in front of two theater people, one whom has played Belle and was understandably nervous to meet Susan Egan, and the other whom was just really loud and my ear was still in pain for an hour or two after leaving the theater.
Ms. Egan signed my program (I kicked myself for not bringing my CD or $ to purchase one there), and I told her that my 4-year-old niece sings "Home" at least twice a day. She thought that was awesome and sweet, and then she lamented that her daughters had never even heard the song. I told her that she should really play it for them because it's a great song and she sings it beautifully. She took a selfie with me (I didn't know how to work it on my phone, so she fixed it for me, and now I know!). She's amazing in so many ways! Thanks for such a great show, Susan!!!
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| Sher Dreaming of Susan singing "Home" with her |
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