Showtunes

Can anyone recommend anything by Kander and Ebb, other than Chicago and Kiss of the Spider Woman?

I've heard that they're one of the themes in our London concert, Night of 1000 Voices next May, and I'm hoping to get a head start. I could probably find the shows by a search or two, but I'm looking for any ideas on possible ensemble songs from any of their shows.

Any clues?

I don't think I'm going to get to see The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling bee this weekend, and it makes me so unbelievably sad. It's so hysterical, and I need to see it.

Cabaret's one of theirs, Esseilte, and it's great.

I just got Spamalot in the mail and I love every snarky moment!

Light In The Piazza is so very, very beautiful.

I always had a soft spot for Kander and Ebb's Steel Pier. Daniel MacDonald, Karen Ziemba, Debra Monk and a very young Kristin Chenoweth.

Also, I would suggest Brent Barrett's Kander and Ebb solo CD. Beautiful and simple, in the best sense of the word.

ETA: Sorry, I missed the "ensemble songs" part the first time through (that'll teach me to read too fast!). I will think on that.

Kander & Ebb don't really have many ensemble pieces outside of Chicago. Maybe "Willkommen" or "Mein Herr" from Cabaret as Dane suggested. Just rent the film.
The title song from the film Stepping Out might work, if you have dancers.
"Ring Them Bells" maybe can be staged as with an ensemble, but you would still probably need a lead singer (it's not from a show, IIRC, but a stand alone--Liza does a fantastic version on Liza with a Z).
Also, although a solo number, I think "A Quiet Thing" from Flora, The Red Menace would make a beautiful choral number. Liza, again, gave my favorite performance of it on her appearance on The Muppet Show.
When in doubt, you could always go for "New York, New York."

Hmm, how did I miss that Caberet was one of theirs?

We don't get to pick the ensemble songs, unfortunately. I'm just trying to work out what we might be asked to sing. Though it's nice to know the kind of stuff that the soloists (for this one, that'll be the professionals) could be doing.

According to the website, we're doing Anthem again. Excellent! We shocked the hell out of Tommy Korberg with that one - at the end of the song where the orchestra usually comes in, it was done with voices as well as the orchestra. He nearly jumped out of his skin because nobody had told him. Classic. Last time we sang that one with Michael Ball, but sadly he had been warned.

This reminds me--Is Chess a lot more famous in Britain and Europe than it is here in the America? I see people mention it online all the time, but I've never been able to mention it in real-life and have anyone have the slightest clue what I'm talking about.

I don't know, to be honest. My ex-boyfriend was American and the only musical he knew anything about (other than Grease) was Chess. Half my choir claim to be musicals fans and couldn't sing anything from Chess other than Anthem and I Know Him So Well.

So. Jealous.

I think Chess is more European -- the composers are European (the guys from ABBA, if I remember correctly ... or do I have my European poperas mixed up again?) and I know a friend of mine who is really into European musicals seemed to be much more familiar with it than anyone else I've ever met. It was not received well on Broadway, I don't think, although I have the OBC and really like it.

Chess is weird, in the sense that some people love it, other people are meh.

There was an awesome concert at Lincoln centre show of it a few years back with Sutton Foster and Adam Pascal, and Whitney Houston's performed songs from it.

The Secret Garden is entirely underrated. It's just...breathtaking. I have fond memories of my sister and I sitting around playing board games and singing (she got to be all the pretty Rebecca Luker parts, but I got some great guy parts). In fact, I think I'll put it on right now and sing my ass off.

ETA: I always had a mad mad crush on Dickon, just based on his voice, and I just learned that it was John Cameron Mitchell. Who knew??

There are some great clips up on YouTube from that Chess concert you're talking about. I happen to loooove Julia Murney (The Wild Party is my crack) so I kind of squee a little bit whenever I watch her doing "Nobody's Side".

I just saw the last preview of High Fidelity last night - the show is pretty good overall, but there are a couple of parts where the entire audience was just absolutely hysterical with laughter. I think my neck is actually sore from laughing, if that makes any sense. Anyway, the songs are fun and catchy, so I'm hoping the show at least does well enough for them to make an OBCR. Although what I'd kill to get my hands on is the demo - it has Norbert Leo Butz singing the main part. The man's voice is pure sex.

I'm going to see this on 12/28! Please tell me it was good! (High Fidelity, that is.)

Thanks to Skyblade, I have "He Had it Coming" from Chicago stuck in my head. For some reason, showtunes get stuck in my head at a much higher rate than other songs. Does this happen to anyone else?

Best showtune to sing along to, really loudly while driving...

"On my Own" from Les Miserables.

I love hiiiiim, but every day I'm learning... All my life, I've only been pretendiiiing...

Oh, I'm such a sucker for showtunes.

I'm partial to "Do You Hear the People Sing", but that's probably because it's in my range.

Every time I get a new OBCR, I play it into the ground, to the exclusion of all else. But when I stop, I don't listen to it again for years. Is this strange?

Oooh, I love "Do You Hear The People Sing?"

A couple of summers ago, my sister and her boyfriend, two of my cousins, and my mom and I drove from Wisconsin to Minneapolis in an obnoxious minivan. We played the Les Mis soundtrack and just...it was such a throwback to the childhood of my sister and I and one of my cousins (we'd spend hours singing it at the cabin back in the day). That afternoon there was lots and lots of loud and dramatic singing and gesturing from the back of the van to the front. Even my mom got into it. My sister's boyfriend and my younger cousin just sort of stared at us, wondering how we'd managed to smoke so much crack without them noticing.

It was sort of like this.

That link will never get old for me.

I love Carol Burnett's version of "I'm Still Here" from Follies.

That is what I aspire for my friendships to be. I need more musical-loving friends, seriously.

You know whats a good song to overdramatically sing to? Make them Hear You from Ragtime.

I so want to be friends with Jason Segal and Neil Patrick Harris, not only do they do dramatic singalongs to musicals, but apparently they want to go on the Amazing Race together.

And after youtubing Chess...yep, I'd still marry Adam Pascal.

OMG Ragtime is PERFECT for dramatic singing. So is The Secret Garden, come to think of it. C'mon - "Lily's Eyes"? "Quartet"? That is some quality drama there.

I love Ragtime. So sad I'll never get a chance to see it.