Each day, the Bbox team trolls YouTube for the hot clip—sometimes it's a brand-new moment and sometimes it's a throwback to an oldie but goodie. No matter what praise hands are shot up, pearls are clutched and the repeat button is hit.
"People Like Us" from Michael John LaChiusa's The Wild Party (Caroline Bowman and Gilbert L. Bailey II)
Ulterior Motives: Wild! 21 years ago tonight, Michael John LaChiusa's The Wild Party starring Toni Collette, Eartha Kitt, Mandy Patinkin and Tonya Pinkins opened on Broadway. And so began musical theatre fans never-ending debate - are you a LaChiusa's The Wild Party or a Lippa's The Wild Party, the latter having opened first off-Broadway at Manhattan Theatre Club starring Julia Murney, Brian D'Arcy James, Taye Diggs and Idina Menzel. Both had such phenomenal casts and are honestly so fantastic in each of their own unique ways.
We're focusing on LaChiusa's musical which told the story of Queenie, her husband Burrs and the revelry of their evening's wild party in Manhattan. When searching for a clip to celebrate this production, we found this special gem of two stars at the very beginning of their careers singing one of our favorite numbers from LaChiusa's jazzy score. Penn State University sophomores Caroline Bowman (Broadway's Wicked, Kinky Boots and Elsa in National Tour of Frozen) and Gilbert L. Bailey II (Broadwyay's Beetlejuice, A Bronx Tale The Musical and The Book of Mormon) - yes sophomores - absolutely dazzled with this performance made famous by Toni Collette's Queenie and Yancey Arias' Black.
Ultimate 🙌 🙌 moment: How fabulous to see both performers go from a university studio to Broadway's great stages. We love their performance so much. Our favorite vocal moment is 5:05 - 5:13 where there is such a close harmony. It's gorgeous. That LaChiusa score is so rich.
