Category: The Psychology of Musicals
Fiddler On The Heights
The film adaptation of In the Heights, based on the 2005 Broadway musical, is an unapologetically Latine story, set in the neighborhood of Washington Heights in uptown Manhattan. This movie and the moment it is claiming belong to all of the Hispanic and Latine Americans […]
Only For Now: Trump, Trauma And Healing From The Last 4 Years
(Photo: AP) The irreverent puppet/human hybrid musical Avenue Q explored how we navigate early adulthood in contemporary times. This loving satire concluded with the song, “For Now”, reminding us that everything is ephemeral and, in that recognition, there is an unburdening. We are currently standing […]
Hamilton and Trauma – Why He Wrote Like He Was Running Out Of Time, Part II
One of the true and few joys of this quarantine time has been the early home release of the pro shot of Hamilton: An American Musical. We received what we have never had before: the opportunity to, at any time, watch this American masterpiece. And […]
Orpheus & The Fates: How Hadestown Musicalizes Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy
Pictured above from L to R: Jewelle Blackman, Yvette Gonzalez-Nacer, Reeve Carney, and Kay Trinidad (Photo: Charles Sykes) A man is walking alone, wondering out loud if he is worthy of the journey. He is leading his lover and the workers out of Hadestown, a stop […]
Oh, Ti Moune – What Show Closings Teach Us About Death, Loss and Saying Goodbye
Alex Newell & Hailey Kilgore in Once on this Island (Photo: Joan Marcus) The recent news of the January 6th twin closing notices of audience darlings Head Over Heels and Once on this Island has left fans of those shows reeling. It is a disheartening […]
#DimForMarin – The Importance of Rituals
Death is among the most challenging of realities that we as humans are ever challenged to process. When someone in our sphere passes away, we are forced to grapple with our own mortality and the ephemeral nature of life. Rituals are a manner of organizing […]
You Oughta Know – 7 Truths About Addiction in Jagged Little Pill
Sean Allan Krill as Steve Healy and Elizabeth Stanley as Mary Jane Healy In Jagged Little Pill at the American Repertory Theater (Photo: Evgenia Eliseeva) Jagged Little Pill, which premiered last year at the American Repertory Theater and opens on Broadway December 5, 2019, is […]
Jagged Little Pill Explores Mental Health
The sounds of an angry beat drive the protestations of a scorned lover, reminding her ex, “I’m here to remind you of the mess you left when you went away. It’s not fair to deny me of the cross I bear that you gave to […]
It’s Quiet Uptown – When Tragedy Strikes
When celebrated lyricist Lin Manuel Miranda wrote the song “It’s Quiet Uptown” for Hamilton: An American Musical about the loss of a child, he acknowledged in the lyrics that sometimes words simply fail. “There are moments that the words don’t reach. There’s a grief too […]
Hello Dolly!: The Case for Joy
We live together in unprecedented times. Politics have sent a fissure through the center of this country, creating a sense of division from our neighbor. Regular gun attacks in our schools are leaving us feeling unsafe and disoriented. Despots challenge each other to nuclear “Who’s […]