Falco Goes Fa La La La La

Here it is, a rainy autumn day in October and I can't stop listening to Christmas carols. But not those cheery, dreary, been-there-done-that recordings that Macy's will start piping out of their speakers any day now. No, no no--I'm grooving to a CD of 10 jazzy, funky, heartfelt holiday classics both old and new courtesy of Broadway star and all-around hep cat Brian d'Arcy James, last seen on the boards as Sidney Falco in Sweet Smell of Success. Called From Christmas Eve to Christmas Morn, it's a must-have for that time of year or any time of year, as a matter of fact!

Releasing a holiday recording is a smart business move for stage fave James, who's set to spread a little cheer in the stage version of the 1954 film classic White Christmas, playing at San Francisco's Curran Theatre starting on Tuesday, November 3 (Click for tickets!). Currently in rehearsals at 890 Broadway, James plays Bob Wallace (Bing Crosby on screen), a WWII soldier turned showman who, along with his onstage partner Phil Davis (Jeffry Denman), follows a pair of singing sisters (Anastasia Barzee and that fabulous former Peggy Sawyer Meredith Patterson) to a Vermont lodge where the foursome puts on a big Christmas show for a former commander. And yes, he does get to croon the famous titular Irving Berlin song that we all know and love (Want a sneak peek? He sings it on the CD as well!)

“I'm blown away by it,” James said when he called me during a break in rehearsals. “People are going to come expecting a holiday show, but it's so much more than that. It's a big old meat-and-potatoes Broadway musical!” With direction by Walter Bobbie (Chicago, next year's Sweet Charity), a new book by David Ives and choreography by 42nd Street's Randy Skinner, White Christmas certainly seems to have the makings of a winner. “The movie was so personality-driven,” James explained. “It wasn't a musical musical. It was more a movie with musical scenes.” The likable star, who got his start on Broadway in Blood Brothers and Carousel and made everyone sit up and take notice in Titanic and Sweet Smell of Success, didn't mince words about his new gig: “This is one of the best musicals I've ever been in!”

Since I haven't seen James dance much in the past, I inquired about the level of hoofing taskmaster Skinner is asking of him. "I'm dancing a little bit here and there," he said. "Enough to hold up my end of the bargain as one-half of a song-and-dance team!" Still, he was quick to turn the spotlight on co-star Denman, best known for the book he wrote about his experience in the ensemble of one of Broadway's hottest shows (A Year With the Producers): "Jeffry Denman is the star of the show. He and Meredith do these dances that are just unbelievable--they go on and on. I've never been in a musical where the dancing is so integral to the show. Of course, I play only a little part of that. I emphasize that strongly!"

The idea for a holiday CD came after the grassroots success of "Michigan Christmas," a song that James wrote as a salute to his home state, one of the original songs the budding songwriter contributed to the album. He first wrote the heartwarming ballad for a 2003 benefit in his hometown of Saginaw. At the urging of a Michigan radio DJ, James recorded the tune when he got back home to New York City. "We got it on the air and it wound up getting a lot of radio play," he said proudly. "I sold a few thousand copies of it." A full Christmas-themed CD seemed like a natural next step, and an obvious one once James found out he landed the lead in White Christmas.

In addition to "Michigan Christmas," From Christmas Eve to Christmas Morn features two other songs by James: the title track and "Santa Claus Is Coming Tonight," about an encounter with the famous fat man in the red suit (who also appears on the CD's striking cover). There are also holiday favorites like "Deck the Halls," "Joy to the World," "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" and "Silent Night"--but these are not your mama's holiday carols. "We tried to make new sounds of familiar songs," James explained. "The idea was to make an album of songs that you could hear if you walked into a club, from Christmas eve to Christmas morn. We wanted it to have that retro feel."

James will be celebrating his holidays in San Francisco, which he first visited in the early '90s when the Curran was a stop on the Les Miserables tour (he played Babet). However, he won't be alone on Christmas Eve or Christmas morn--wife Jennifer Prescott is in the White Christmas ensemble, so the family (including daughter Grace, who turns three on November 12) will be subletting a place in Nob Hill for a few months. Even supportive mom Mary is planning a visit for the holidays. But so much for James' musical dreams of a Michigan Christmas! "I know, I know!" he laughs. "But at least I'll have my song!"

You can get James' CD online at CD Baby (Click here!) or at the souvenir stand of the current tour of music icon Barry Manilow, who wrote the music and lyrics for Harmony, the on-again, off-again musical in which James will star. "It was incredibly gracious and extraordinarily generous of him to offer to sell my CD," he said. "I can't say enough about him. People will be blown away by his Harmony score." James recently found himself in the gossip columns after appearing with his co-stars from the show in Manilow's sold-out October 7 concert at Madison Square Garden. Asking James to sing the show's love duet "Every Single Day" with him, Manilow told his fans, "We're not going to sing it to each other--because that would be creepy." While I'm sure Manilow meant no harm, I had to ask James: Would he have a problem singing a love song to Manilow? "Anytime he asks," he laughed. "I'll do whatever he wants!"

IT'S NEVER TOO EARLY TO START CHRISTMAS SHOPPING
On the subject of perfect holiday gifts for the theater fans on your shopping list, I turn your attention to Broadway.com photographer Bruce Glikas' 2005 calendar, now available for purchase on eBay. Chances are if you're reading my column, you already know and love the one-of-a-kind Broadway images that Glikas captures for the site. For the second year in a row, some of the best images of the past year have been compiled for this $20 wall calendar. Included are some of my favorites like Avenue Q's Trekkie Monster with Bill Clinton, Liza Minnelli with the Wonderful Town gals, Daphne Rubin-Vega and a bevy of Mimi clones, the siblings Foster and a rare in-costume backstage shot of Wicked witches Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel. There are only a limited number of these calendars left, so act quickly if you want one for yourself. And don't forget--a portion of all proceeds goes to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, so you're helping out a good cause and making your cubicle (office? kitchen? bedroom? bathroom?!) look cute!

IN BOX
I received a bunch of letters from Rent-heads in response to my recent column on the Adam Pascal/Daphne Rubin-Vega concert at Kean University last week ("Mimi & Roger: Another Time, Another Place"). Here are two such e-mails:

Dear Paul:
I just wanted to comment on your article on Adam Pascal and Daphne Rubin-Vega's recent concert. Out of all of the Broadway websites that I read daily, yours was the only that covered it. To me, it was such a HUGE deal because I had never gotten to see the original cast in Rent, and I was surprised that a bigger deal wasn't made out of it. When they sang together, I was just overcome with emotion. I never thought I would get to see that! It was by far one of the most amazing things I have ever seen--thanks so much for writing about it!
----Katie Hughes
----Danbury, CT

Dear Paul:
Hearing Adam and Daphne sing together after listening to the recording so many times (I was just 14 years old when I started listening to it six years ago) was just surreal and thrilling. I felt a gasp caught in my throat and thought my chest was going to burst when Adam started singing "One Song Glory" so beautifully! And even better was when Adam charged out on stage to start up "Another Day" with Daphne. And I'll always admire Daphne for dancing and bopping around in those shoes nine months pregnant and not seeming the slightest bit worn out. I've heard many different people singing the Rent songs, and after hearing Daphne and Adam live together I see how they're, to quote you, "unbeatable."
----Ursula D.
----New Jersey

That's it for now. Talk to you next time. Please e-mail me any of your questions, comments or critiques!

Paul Wontorek
Editor-in-Chief

For an archive of old Stage Note columns, click here.