3.5 Follies!

The Gospel of Musical Theatre

It's camp o'clock! Peter & Nathan turn to Sondheim’s 1971 iconic Follies, a show that takes a loving—but brutal—look at nostalgia, camp, the power of memory, and the danger of looking back.

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We talk about:

• Nostalgia. The role of nostalgia and the warning articulated in Follies: "never look back"
• Camp. The nature of camp, Susan Sontag’s essay "Notes on Camp" and how Follies explores campiness, drag culture, and the excesses of the 20th century
• Women. Follies as a show about women and women’s bodies
• Spirits. Ghosts, the communion of saints, and the past's impact on the present
• Aging. The spirituality of aging, what it means to be fully alive, and the power of endurance

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You’ll hear:

• The Prologue, "Beautiful Girls," "Broadway Baby," and "In Buddy’s Eyes" as performed by Bernadette Peters, Jayne Houdyshell, Michael Haynes and the company of the 2012 Broadway Revival production
• The late, great Barbara Cook singing "Losing My Mind" from the 1985 Concert Recording
• The legendary Elaine Stritch performing "I’m Still Here"—which you have to watch on YouTube and then find all the other women in red singing their Sondheim tributes: https://youtu.be/3Xz1TUgdG6A

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Check out some of our all-time favorites!

• Phantom of the Opera
• Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
• Jesus Christ Superstar!
• Schmigadoon! (Season 1 / Season 2)
• West Side Story!
• Yentl!
• Frozen!
• Barbie!

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Continue the conversation with us on Instagram (@gospelofmt).