Infinite Joy
Encyclopedia
Infinite Joy is a musical revue
consisting of songs by Broadway
composer William Finn
. The songs are mostly material cut from Finn's earlier shows and material from works Finn was then working on. Several of the songs were included in the composer's song cycle
Elegies
.
The revue was performed on various dates from September 2000 and January 2000 at Joe's Pub
, a nightclub within The Public Theater in New York City
. Finn played the piano and sang several songs. Other performers included: Liz Callaway
, Carolee Carmello
, Lewis Cleale
, Stephen DeRosa
, Wanda Houston, Norm Lewis, Mary Testa
, Farah Alvin, James Sasser, and Kristin Woodbury.
A live recording was made at the January 2001 performance and released on RCA Victor. William Ruhlmann, reviewing the recording for Allmusic wrote: "Finn's songs often have an "inside baseball" quality to them, revolving around the gay, Jewish world of musical theater. But they are often so witty, moving, and accomplished that they become universal despite themselves."
On March 29, 2004, another concert of Finn's songs was performed at the Merkin Concert Hall
as part of The Kaufman Center's annual Broadway Close Up series, called More Infinite Joy: The Music of William Finn. Performers included Betty Buckley
, Stephen DeRosa
, Raúl Esparza
, Jesse Tyler Ferguson
and Janet Metz. The songs were from Finn's The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
, Elegies, Falsettos
, and A New Brain
.
A third installment, Even More Infinite Joy was presented by The Kaufman Center at Merkin Concert Hall on October 31, 2005, featuring Finn.
Revue
A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century American popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own during its golden years from 1916 to 1932...
consisting of songs by Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
composer William Finn
William Finn
William Alan Finn is an American composer and lyricist of musicals. His musical Falsettos received the 1992 Tony Awards for Best Music and Lyrics and for Best Book.-Biography:...
. The songs are mostly material cut from Finn's earlier shows and material from works Finn was then working on. Several of the songs were included in the composer's song cycle
Song cycle
A song cycle is a group of songs designed to be performed in a sequence as a single entity. As a rule, all of the songs are by the same composer and often use words from the same poet or lyricist. Unification can be achieved by a narrative or a persona common to the songs, or even, as in Schumann's...
Elegies
Elegies (William Finn)
Elegies is a song cycle by William Finn about the loss of friends and family and is a response to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Most of the songs were composed in memory of Finn's friends, several of whom died of AIDS. Three songs deal specifically with the passing of his mother,...
.
The revue was performed on various dates from September 2000 and January 2000 at Joe's Pub
Joe's Pub
Joe's Pub at Public Theater is a nightclub that hosts live performances regularly. The venue, which is a non-profit operation, is located at 425 Lafayette Street near Astor Place in Manhattan, New York City...
, a nightclub within The Public Theater in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Finn played the piano and sang several songs. Other performers included: Liz Callaway
Liz Callaway
Liz Callaway is an American actress and singer, famous for providing the singing voices of many female characters in films, such as Anya in Anastasia, Odette in The Swan Princess, and Kiara in The Lion King II:Simba's Pride....
, Carolee Carmello
Carolee Carmello
Carolee Carmello is an American actress best known for her performances in Broadway musicals.She made her Broadway debut in a small role in City of Angels...
, Lewis Cleale
Lewis Cleale
Lewis Cleale is an American theatre actor and singer. He is originally from Houlton, Maine.A graduate of the University of Miami's Frost School of Music and of the Burt Reynolds Dinner Theatre, Cleale's big break came when he was cast in a European tour of Oklahoma!, in which he was noticed by...
, Stephen DeRosa
Stephen DeRosa
Stephen DeRosa is an American television and theatre actor.-Education:He attended Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., as an undergraduate, and graduated from the Yale School of Drama in New Haven, Connecticut, with an Master of Fine Arts in 1995.-Career:Although DeRosa's career has...
, Wanda Houston, Norm Lewis, Mary Testa
Mary Testa
Mary Testa is an American stage actress. She is a two-time Tony Award nominee, for performances in revivals of Leonard Bernstein's On the Town and 42nd Street ....
, Farah Alvin, James Sasser, and Kristin Woodbury.
A live recording was made at the January 2001 performance and released on RCA Victor. William Ruhlmann, reviewing the recording for Allmusic wrote: "Finn's songs often have an "inside baseball" quality to them, revolving around the gay, Jewish world of musical theater. But they are often so witty, moving, and accomplished that they become universal despite themselves."
On March 29, 2004, another concert of Finn's songs was performed at the Merkin Concert Hall
Merkin Concert Hall
Merkin Concert Hall is a 449-seat concert hall in Manhattan, New York City. The hall, named in honor of Hermann and Ursula Merkin, is part of the Kaufman Center, a complex that includes the Lucy Moses School, a community arts school, and the Special Music School , a New York City public school for...
as part of The Kaufman Center's annual Broadway Close Up series, called More Infinite Joy: The Music of William Finn. Performers included Betty Buckley
Betty Buckley
Betty Lynn Buckley is an American theater, film and television actress and singer. She is a Tony Award winner and Grammy Award nominee.-Early life:...
, Stephen DeRosa
Stephen DeRosa
Stephen DeRosa is an American television and theatre actor.-Education:He attended Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., as an undergraduate, and graduated from the Yale School of Drama in New Haven, Connecticut, with an Master of Fine Arts in 1995.-Career:Although DeRosa's career has...
, Raúl Esparza
Raúl Esparza
Raúl Eduardo Esparza is an American stage actor, singer, and voice artist noted for his award winning performances in Broadway shows...
, Jesse Tyler Ferguson
Jesse Tyler Ferguson
Jesse Tyler Ferguson is an American actor who portrays Mitchell Pritchett on the ABC sitcom Modern Family. Previously he played the role of Richie Velch in the CBS sitcom The Class. He is openly gay.-Life and career:...
and Janet Metz. The songs were from Finn's The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is a one act musical comedy conceived by Rebecca Feldman with music and lyrics by William Finn, a book by Rachel Sheinkin and additional material by Jay Reiss. The show centers on a fictional spelling bee set in a geographically ambiguous Putnam Valley...
, Elegies, Falsettos
Falsettos
Falsettos is a musical with a book by James Lapine and William Finn and music and lyrics by Finn, comprising March of the Falsettos and Falsettoland, the last two in a trio of one-act off-Broadway plays focusing on Marvin, his ex-wife Trina, his psychiatrist Mendel, his son Jason, and his gay...
, and A New Brain
A New Brain
A New Brain is a musical with music and lyrics by William Finn and book by Finn and James Lapine.The musical was first produced Off-Broadway at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater at Lincoln Center, with previews beginning on May 14, 1998...
.
A third installment, Even More Infinite Joy was presented by The Kaufman Center at Merkin Concert Hall on October 31, 2005, featuring Finn.
Songs
- Mister Make Me a Song
- How Marvin Eats His Breakfast
- The Music Still Plays On
- Republicans
- I'd Rather Be Sailing
- Hitchhiking Across America
- That's Enough For Me
- And They're Off
- Anytime
- Falsettos At the East Milford Community Center (Finn & DeRosa's spoken intro)
- The Baseball Game
- The Bitch and the Madonna (Finn welcomes Mary Testa & Carolee Carmello)
- All Fall Down
- When The Earth Stopped Turning
- Tannis Root (Bill & Mary discuss parenting)
- Set Those Sails
- I Have Found
- Infinite Joy
- Stupid Things I Won't Do
- Infinite Joy (reprise)
- Bows