969 stories by "Michael Portantiere"
Original Broadway Cast, 1973 (Bell/January Records) This musical got the worst reviews imaginable but ran five years, thanks to its star, who could not act, sing, or dance but was a magician…
Original Broadway Cast, 1968 (RCA/DRG) Hardly remembered today, this show has had only one small-scale revival. It marked the return of Shirley Jones to Broadway, where she began her career …
New York Concert Cast, 1988 (CBS) This is a musically adventurous, complex, and unruly Colombian stew by Heitor Villa-Lobos. The show was a flop on Broadway in 1948, but an admired one that …
Original Broadway Cast, 1966 (Columbia/DRG) Marshall Barer was an unsung genius lyricist of the musical theater; his output was slight in terms of quantity, but he could write a ballad or co…
Original Broadway Cast, 1974 (ABC/MCA) This beloved flop starred Robert Preston as silent-movie pioneer Mack Sennett and Bernadette Peters as his leading lady/lover, Mabel Normand. In spite …
Original Broadway Cast, 2003 (RCA) What a devilishly clever parody of Sesame Street this Tony Award-winning musical is! Robert Lopez and ]eff Marx's songs are mostly upbeat and catchy ("Ever…
Original Off-Broadway Cast, 1991 (RCA) There's no doubt that Stephen Sondheim's scores are brilliant. His lyrics are innovative; he's the master of intellectual argument in rhyme. His best m…
Original Cast, 1989 (Polydor) Beyond being one of Andrew Lloyd Webber's most inscrutable shows, Aspects of Love is also one of his most ridiculous " more soap opera than pop opera. Though th…
Original Broadway Cast, 1966 (Columbia/Sony) What could Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick do to follow Fiddler on the Roof? The team answered that question with an unconventional evening of thr…
Original Broadway Cast, 1970 (ABC/Decca) When librettists, composers, and lyricists take on a masterpiece, they rarely improve it. Such is the case with this musical version of the classic f…
Original Broadway Cast, 1946 (Decca) When this album was made, cast recordings were still a fairly new concept. It's a major disappointment that the classic Irving Berlin score for Annie Get…
Recordings by Original New York and London Cast Members, 1934 (various labels/Prism) While it wasn't Cole Porter's first success or biggest hit, Anything Goes has always seemed the quintesse…
Original Off-Broadway Cast, 1993 (Angel) Everyone's favorite redheaded orphan sparkles once more in this Off-Broadway sequel to the Broadway mega-smash Annie. After a prolonged gestation per…
Original Broadway Cast, 1977 (Columbia/Sony) Ironically, Charles Strouse's biggest hit is one of his less interesting efforts. Thomas Meehan's book capably adapts the adventures of comic-str…
Original Broadway Cast, 1955 (Decca) 0 Stars; not recommended.This is a four-alarm disgrace, even worse than its title implies. A tip-off is the description of the Guy Bolton-Eddie Davis lib…
Original Off-Broadway Cast, 1991 (RCA) The songs of John Kander and Fred Ebb, never lacking in entertainment value or theatricality, were a natural for the revue showcaseformat. This is a sp…
Original Broadway Cast, 2003 (Ghostlight) The English version of Michel Legrand's French smash hit Le passe-muraille, based on Marcel Ayme's short story about a man who gains the ability to …
Original Broadway Cast, 1962 (Columbia/Sony) How many Joshua Logan flops can a person do in one year? Anita Gillette managed two in 1962, soubretting through Mr. President and this provincia…
Original Broadway Cast, 1947 (RCA) This recording presents only a small fraction of the score of Rodgers and Hammerstein's third collaboration, a show that was both directed and choreographe…
Original Broadway Cast, 1978 (RCA, 2CDs) Manhattan Theatre Club presented Ain't Misbehavin' to rave reviews before its hugely successful transfer to Broadway. What this show had that other c…
Studio Cast, 1999 (PolyGram)Â Before the Broadway launch of Aida, composer Elton John recorded this studio set with a host of pop stars, including Sting, Tina Turner, Janet Jackson, Shani…
Original Broadway Cast, 1978 (DRG) The last word in star vehicles, The Act centers on Liza Minnelli as "Hollywood's own Michelle Craig," performing in Las Vegas. Between the numbers are …
Michael McKean would have an honored place in entertainment history if only as co-creator and co-star of one of the funniest, most creative films ever made: This Is Spinal Tap. (If you haven…
The beloved Bob Merrill/Michael Stewart musical Carnival has opened in a Musicals Tonight! production at Theatre Row. Heading the cast are Ali Ewoldt at Lili, Scott Guthrie as Paul Berthalet…
The Mint Theater Company has gained a stellar reputation for researching, finding, and presenting plays that greatly entertained audiences back in the day but now are shrouded in obscurity -…
