Hugh Jackman - Back on Broadway

Last Saturday night Michael Marie, Sam, Mr. Adam & I went to go see Hugh. First off, let me tell you. Yes, he's very handsome. But oddly enough, he's very slim. He's not built like "wolverine". He's built more like Tommy Tune. So how was the show Ryan Charisma? Well, it was excellent. I almost fainted at the ticket price, but I do feel we got our money's worth. Yes we sure did. Did Michael Marie get to make out with Hugh? Sadly no. Mr. Jackman presented a very cabaret style show, with Las Vegas overtones (specifically his 6 back up girls). He wore tuxedo pants & shirt, no tie, and he lost the jacket quickly. In act 2 he changed into a gold lame outfit for his "Boy From Oz" set but then right back into the tux outfit. That's all. No sets, just scrims & curtains. And an 18 piece orchestra. When Hugh was bringing it down and sat on the edge of the stage, which he did several times, he sat right in front of us. That was great, being so close to him. I had to hold Michael Marie down. If I had one issue with the show, I got the feeling his "banter" was pre-written. I may even be wrong, but I couldn't shake the feeling that it was very scripted. What a great show, I'd see him again, I mean c'mon - he opened with "One Night Only" from Dreamgirls! Should you see it, if you can - he's only here for 10 weeks and the tickets are expensive! mwah!

Aphrodite Les Follies - Kylie live

Last night Mr. Adam, Michael Marie & me went to see Kylie Minogue in her Aphrodite Les Follies Tour at Hammerstein Ballroom in NYC. WOW! What a great show. What gorgeous dancers. What fabulous D&G costumes. Kylie was outstanding!

Her show was a multi-media spectacle complete with ultra-buff muscle boys hanging from a string. Who could ask for more? The theme was Greek & Roman gods & goddesses and it was phenomenal. She sounded great. Aside from some new arrangements her voice sounded remarkably like her recordings. This was no Britney concert, she sang & she danced. As a matter of fact Kylie did more performing in her first 3 songs than Britney did in all of her last Circus concert.

Kylie did many of her hits and obviously a few new numbers from her new CD. She reworked "slow" into a lovely jazz ballad and surprised the audience with a cover of the Eurythmics' "heaven must be missing an angel". Really a fun time, and really... if you haven't seen her live. Her show is quite spectacular. Did I mention the dancers were HOT? Go, and now!

KYLIE (For Me, For You Tour 09)

Last Tuesday night I took Mr. Adam (for his birthday) to see Kylie Minogue in concert here in NYC. WOW, wow, wow, wow! I can't even begin to describe what a fun time it was. She is a great performer with the sensibilities of a major drag queen. What was there not to like? Catchy dance songs? check. Fabulous costumes? check. Serious choreography? check. Hot dancers? double check!

I loved this show. I will admit that I only knew about 75% of the songs performed. Still, Ms. Minogue and her 5 foot stature was bigger than life and a super entertainer.

I feel so lucky that I got not only to see this show. Her first American tour ever. But we also saw her farewell performance to the USA. "I should be so lucky!"

The B-52's LIVE

Last Saturday night, Sam, Michael & I went to see the B-52's & Hercules & Love Affair at Hammerstein's Ballroom here in NYC. What a great time! I adore Hercules & Love Affair, always have, but sadly Anthony wasn't there to sing with the band. The band kicked ass anyway, I must admit. Then the B-52's went on. They rocked the party! What a great time! The ticket price was cheap and the fun was bountiful.

I must admit, that we drank allot. It's Sam's fault, he makes us drink. After all, I was brought up with proper Christian values. Hooray for the LOVE SHACK BABY!

Sticky & Sweet Tour - MADONNA

I LOVE MADONNA! Last Tuesday I took Mr. Adam to see Madonna's Sticky & Sweet Tour. We joined Evan & Jeffrey before the show for drinkies as Mr. Adam & I were on our stay-cation. We arrived for the 8pm show at 8:30pm and Madonna started promptly at 9:20pm. I've learned she doesn't begin at the ticket time.

First off I have to say, Madonna's multi-media effects were incredible. They always are. Her theme of sticky & sweet lasted for the first two songs then the show became a free flow of her new and old tunes. I have to say this, and it pains me to to even write it "This was not one of her best tours." There I said it. Her last two tours were superior to this one. First, Madonna rocked out a few too many songs. She's been known to reinterpret her 80's hits before and in this case her new version of Borderline was awesome. But then again, instead of only rocking out 2-3 songs, she did more like 6-7. Her costumes were black. That's all. If she had on any color is was a necklace or a vest/jacket type of thing. Bad costumes.

Madonna, during a sing along to "I love New York" ripped into Sara Palin singing "Palin get off of my street, get off of my street! If Palin makes it to Washington, I'll kick her ass!" God I love Madonna.

Good show, if you've never seen Madonna, you should go you won't be disappointed. If you have seen Madonna, don't go with expectations of her last two tours. It won't compare.

I'm still glad I went, I would have never forgiven myself if I missed the show.

George Michael 25LIVE

Monday night, Mr. Adam took me to see George Michael. Yes, it's true, Mr. Adam is jealous of the love George & I share. But he took me regardless, why? Because in the words of George Michael, I'm 'too funky.'

So let me begin, this show was great. I think George sounded great. His set list was extensive and he played until 11:30pm. There was one 20 minute intermission. His set was astounding. I don't know how else to describe it other than an enormous carpet was hung high and dropped behind the stage and rolled down the stage floor and over onto the Madison Square Garden's floor. Only this rolled carpet was really a television screen. It was phenomenal to look at. The graphics alone must have cost a fortune. George was the only featured person on the stage. He had a big band of approximately 6-9 people, and 6 back-up singers. Mr. Michael rocked the Garden.

His chatter was sincere and he told us about why he didn't push any of his cd's after Faith. Because of his suing the American record labels. He then said that he would play many songs from Faith. After he thanked me personally for being one of the people that followed his career even during his litigation, even after his arrests (which I don't care about one bit). God I love him. Now I know what you're all thinking, "ryan charisma, is he still beautiful?" Well, I have to be honest. Mr. Michael is puffy and aging. His voice sounded great. He danced around and had only a few costume changes. He wore in Act I - black jeans, black belt, black button down & black jacket. I know - safe. Then Act II - black jeans, black belt, black pullover, grey jacket and for his final number (before the encores) he changed into a cop uniform for his song "outside." HOT! Yes he can wear a uniform. God, I love him. As for his songs, his catalogue is so extensive that it could have gone on for another hour. His final encore was Freedom and it was good. Did I mention how much I love George Michael?

VIBRATE

Let me begin with, I know I'm not going to make friends right now. But let's all separate our egos from our art. OK? I'm going to be fair, yet honest. Or at least try to be.

Let's go:

Last night, Michael & I escorted my friend Sam to Vibrate, the New York Gay Men's Chorus' summer show. This was to be my virgin experience to what is a phenomenon to me: A Gay Men's Chorus. I know every city has one...I know.

I found all the middle-aged NYC gays, they're here.

"How was the show ryan charisma, you ask?" Boy you people are dying for me to make enemies. Aren't you? Well, OK - but I won't make it a blood bath just to feed your frenzy. The show opened with yet another version of the overdone "Feelin' Good" - the soloist: Arthur Boston was good. I really appreciated the Music Director's (Charlie Beale) enthusiasm for the evening. Too bad I didn't get that quite as much from the performers. The show continued on with a wide range of sets that consisted of various musical styles. I'll hit some of the highs & lows. Midway, through Act I, there was a version of Satin Doll, the solo was performed by a wonderfully physically fit, yet not quite talented Jeffrey Meyer. He was almost painful to hear, especially for his sustained notes, if it weren't for his hot pecs. Then, immediately following was the overacted rendition of Lush Life solo'd by Michael Morisi. This man can sing, but he tried SO hard to act a song that needs no acting. The words are brilliant and speak volumes alone. Then we moved along to a Rufus Wainwright set which personally, made me want to stab myself in the eardrums. But that's what I bring to the table when we're discussing Ms. Wainwright's music. I can't hear you tell me anything regarding his talent, because all I can hear is whining and moaning. But this, this set of Rufus' music was done by a choir. So it has to be good, right? FALSE. Too bad, I actually liked the soloist for these numbers.

INTERMISSION

More? Is there actually more? YES! Now sit back down and read this. The highlight of the night came with the Youth Pride Chorus did a set of their own. They were inspirational. "Were they good singers ryan charisma?" No, not really. But I forgave them. 1) because they're young and haven't developed a savvy stage craft. 2) because they were out, loud and proud of who they were. It was actually touching to see them onstage. My heart leaped for them. I only wish that when I was a 15 yo stuck in the closet, living in farmland MA, that there was some sort of safe gay performance space for me. I salute this troop and the wonderful people who gave these kids the opportunity.

Now back to the show. The remainder of the show consisted of one show tune quartet which one of the quartet kind of sucked with his timing. A tribute to Africa that went on and on, and on, and on, and on...you get the picture. They brought in what appeared to be a transgendered pianist/soloist: Our Lady J. Eh. She was OK, not stellar. But for some bizarre reason she got her own set. That's fine, but way too much Africa songs. The show ended with Wind It Up which I'm sure the chorus thought was a fabulous number. It really was only mediocre. Really, and not for lack of trying mind you. But, let's face it. You can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig. Some of these guys just shouldn't be on stage. Or shouldn't be singing,

Or both.

GOT THEM!

I have tickets!
YES I DO!

Dina Martina

"Check it out!"

Scott, Dr. John, Evan, Jefferey, Mr. Adam & I went to go see Dina Martina last Saturday night. I do believe it was the best show I've seen Dina do. I laughed so hard I thought I would bust a stitch, and for those of you that know me. You know, all I do is have stitches these days.

Dina was in rare form doing what appeared to be a "greatest hits" tour. Her spaghetti version of "You Gotta Be," was just as fun the second time I saw it. "And a very special friend of mine requested that I sing this next song for you, and it's going to be difficult because,... I don't know it, but..." were the edgy drag comedy that she brought to the show. I'm a fan.

I'm pretty sure this NYC run has ended (but she's in NYC 1-2 X a year) , but if you're vacation in Provincetown, MA or ever in Seattle where Ms. Martina resides, you should most definitely have a drink and "Check HER out!".

Ennio Marchetto

JERRY SPRINGER the opera

Last night I took Mr. Adam to go see Jerry Springer the opera in concert at Carnegie Hall. I just want to go on record as saying it was OK. I didn't hate it, but it wasn't wonderful either.

First off, as I stated, this was a concert version of the opera. The main characters were in costume, but there was no set and the orchestra sat on the stage with the actors. That's all well and good. Act I started with an operatic version of the Jerry Springer show, trailor trash & all. Then Act II continues the show with Jerry Springer dying and going to hell in order to host a show with God & Satan sparring. Satan wanted an apology from God. This in a nutshell is the structure of the story. It doesn't really get much deeper than that. But I didn't really expect much more from this extravaganza. Sadly, I must tell you that Mr. Adam slept through ACT II entirely. Did he miss anything? No, not really. Now let's dish:

The cast was hugely talented. I can't even begin to tell you how excited I was that Emily Skinner was in the show. I love her. You will know her as one of the twins in the ill-fated, critically acclaimed "Side Show" on Broadway. Love her. Anyway, the whole cast was really good. Except, and here I go, the chorus. Yes they did a lovely Ku Klux Klan tap number, but I would have prefered they work on their diction so I could understand what they were singing. MOST of the time, their words were lost. Seriously, in an opera, the chorus, as a whole, is one main charecter. Totally lost. Now that's not to say it wasn't chock full of talent, it was. They just weren't in unison vocally. As for the least valuable performer I'm going to have to cast my vote on Laura Shoop who played Baby Jane. She had the worst diction singing on that stage. Seriously, if were the director, Jason Moore, I would have re-cast her. I still can't tell you about her story line. I had no idea what she was singing about.

As for the music, I was impressed by the actual score written for the show as it is literally an opera, NOT musical theater. The arrangements were excellent in most cases. My only beef with the show is the lyrics. In some cases, they were clever and moved the story along. Some genuinely funny jokes. But, on the other hand, some of the humor was base and bathroom. Now anyone who knows me, knows I'm no prude, but the joke of "shitting your calvin kleins" is funny once, no one needs a whole aria reguarding this matter. I couldn't even titter at the joke by the end of the number. It was a tired joke to begin with and didn't get any funnier. Now I know you're thinking, "Ryan Charisma that's British humor" - I know what it is, I've seen Benny Hill.

So was the night fun? Yes, any time I get to spend with Mr. Adam is a good time. Besides, my friends Michael & Larry saw the show too and they're fun. And I had my first blogger spotting, I saw Eric from Confessions of a Southernboy. He doesn't know though, I'm not one to barge in on people especially when their with a group of friends. Hey Eric!

Should you see this show? You can't, it's over already. Buy the CD, at least you'll understand the lyrics.

Annie Lennox live

Last Saturday night Erik, Michael & I went to see the original Diva, Annie Lennox live at the Union Palace here in NYC. What a show! She was outstanding in a category all her own. Was this show a "spectacular, spectacular" like Madonna's Confessions Tour? No. Annie was a rock star. She sang and at some points accompanied herself on the piano.

Her set included equal parts new Annie, old Annie and old Eurithmics. Yes, she did Why and Walking on Broken Glass! She was phenominal and I'd see her again and again.

As for the venue, Union Palace, what a gorgeous old theater! I've never been to this site way up on West 175 street. The outside is a delapidated old theater but the inside is beautiful and guilded. A treasure in the middle of no where. Much like the concert was....'a treasure in the middle of no where', or rather Washington Heights.

True Colors Tour - True 35th Birthday Party

Monday, June 18, 2007 - my birthday. I took off from work and arranged a fabulous pre-concert, birthday cocktail party for 12 of my closest friends here in NYC. Mr. Adam & I made arrangements for everyone to show up precisely at 3:30PM. We had fabulous hors d'oeuvres and I infused a few gallons of vodka with pineapple for delicious pineapple cosmopolitans. I know, I know - you're all thinking "Ryan Charisma, you're SO continental!" Well, yes, yes I am. But regardless. Mr. Adam was so helpful with the planning and execution of this soiree. Thank you Mr. Adam - I love you! I, of course, was the bar tender. I won't go into the gifts I received as that's tacky to do in public. I'll just write "thank you" to all of you who did think of me.

At 7:00PM - we all went to Radio City Music Hall to see the True Colors Tour. This was quite a treat.

First off, I got a fabulous drink in Radio City Music Hall cocktail glass and a birthday tiera. I am a princess after all. Then we checked out Radio City and enjoyed the mini-gay pride that was going on all around. I love the gays - they're so fun. We took our seats and the show began. I mean, our timing was perfect really.

The Dresden Dolls: They were OK, a little "goth" for my tastes, but I did enjoy their rendition of Black Sabbath's "War Pigs" - very classy. Although the pianist was the lead vocalist, I have to say the show was the drummer. He was pure craziness, with costume changes and all. So the big question is "Ryan Charisma - did you like them?" Um, ...Not really.

Margaret Cho: She was funny lady! And of course, as everyone knows - she's lost allot of weight. She looked good. Well, for a girl.

Debbie Harry: America's favorite geriatric rocker. Sadly Ms. Harry gave us nothing from her Blondie days and only one of her solo hits "French Kissing in the USA." The rest of Debbie's set was all new stuff from her forthcoming CD due out in August.

Rosie O'Donnell: She was great. She mentioned her bid to become the new host of "The Price is Right." I kind of hope she gets it, except I do find the show boring. Yes, I said it...."boring." I really enjoyed Rosie's set. I never got the feeling that anything was "off limits" for her to talk about but sadly she never mentioned that festering bitch Elizabeth Hasselbeck. God I hate that faux Republican bitch. I hope on her maternity leave from the View she either dies or gets "let go."

Erasure: AWESOME! I'll say it again: AWESOME! Sadly they didn't do my favorite Erasure song "Alien" but that's OK, I'll survive. Their energy was up and they had a new backup singer. In the zillions of times I've seen Erasure - I've never seen them with a white girl backup singer. But they have one now. They did a lovely mix of their old & new songs. Particularly I loved their live rendition of Sunday Girl & Sucker For Love. So absolutely fun.

Cindy Lauper: This girl can sing! And sing she did. for quite a while. She did old songs, new songs, new arrangements, she had it all and it was good. As usual, Cindy goes directly into the audience to be with the fans. She was absolutely beautiful .... like a rainbow!

The entire evening ended with the whole cast onstage singing "True Colors" - very touching.

Odd, but I still don't think the red states think of me as an equal. Weird right?

Pet Shop Boys - FUNDAMENTAL TOUR

Michael, Julie, Mr. Adam & I went to go see the "sold out" Pet Shop Boys concert last Saturday night. It was a great show. They played for about two hours including a 20 minute intermission here in NYC at Radio City Music Hall.

The whole day began with the four of us going to Michael's parent's home in Red Bank, New Jersey for an early luncheon/dinner. His mother made a sumptuous homemade Italian dinner for everyone. It was delicious and greatly appreciated. Next we NJ Transited it back into New York City to find a Starbuck's (for me mostly) and to head toward Radio City Music Hall for the Pet Shop Boys. We arrived with 20 minutes to spare and Mr. Adam bought me the a concert t-shirt to add to my collection. I do try to get a unique concert to almost every concert I go to. If the t-shirts are typical, I usually won't get one. But the Pet Shop Boys actually had 3 t-shirts I liked, but somehow, I narrowed it down to 1. Then we took our seats, who knew we had such great seats. I've only been to Radio City once before and didn't really recall the audience lay out. The concert began at 8:30pm, one half hour after the ticket start time. Not bad for a concert.

The show was absolutely outstanding. They played songs from their new CD Fundamental as well as many of their classic hits. You could see the rush in the audience (which looked like a mini gay pride) every time they started one of their older, more well know favorites. We all danced and sang, and danced some more. It was a party at Radio City and no one wanted it stopped. I have to admit that they performed a medley of Se Vida E/Domino Dancing that was out of this world toward the end of the evening. Neil's vocals sounded exactly like the recordings as did the music. They had three back-up singers who each on their own had tons of talent and two hot boy dancers. A great time. Nostalgic and new simultaneously. I'm SO glad I went, and with such great company only made it better.

Dina Martina - LIVE

A group of us went to go see Dina Martina last Saturday night to celebrate both Mr. Adam's & Evan's birthdays. What a fun night, I thought my sides would split in half. There were 7-8 of us seated in The Cutting Room of NYC awaiting the show by the infamous Ms. Martina. And she was in rare form that night. Evan, Jeffrey, Mr. Adam & myself had seen Dina perform on Monday night at Showgirls in P-Town and pledged to see her show when she made it to NYC, and finally we were seeing it. And was it ever worth the wait. She's anything but glamorous, but in her mind - she's a star! And when she sings, it's a breath of fresh air. One of my favorite monologues that she performed was her "Soft G" monologue. "It's a personal choice to make." J instead of G. As in "jifts" instead of gifts. So funny and so wrong. Her medley of The Greatest Love of All / You Spin Me 'Round was right on the money. Maybe next time I'll get some of her fabulous prizes and gifts she gives away. Who wouldn't want a pack of New Kids on The Block trading cards?