Last month, I wrote (a lot) about going to back to Northwestern University for a sort of reunion/ fundraiser weekend of the Department of Communications, which ended in a big gala, A Starry Night, hosted by Stephen Colbert, filled with alumni performers from Broadway, movies and TV. (And written by good pal of these pages, the Lady Shellington, Shelly Goldstein.) I also mentioned attending an event of current students, part of the acclaimed American Musical Theatre Project, started a few years back by Dominic Missimi, which has turned out some impressive grads, like Heather Headley, and also presented some world premiere production and workshops for writers to work with students, all of which I wrote about here that describes the program better, and in much more detail.
The hour-long event was terrific, and I was impressed by all the performers who were showcased. And I wouldn't be surprised if at least some of them join the list of illustrious alums from the school's theater department. Unfortunately, there was no video to embed with the article, but I did my best to find alternative clips of some of the songs, as well as a few performers who especially leaped out.
Well, it turns out that there was video of the showcase, and they've just uploaded it onto the Northwestern Commfest site. And I've embedded the full thing below.
The whole event is worth watching, since all of these young performers were truly impressive. But as I said, two of them especially stood out. And rather than find alternative clips and entirely different things (but it was the best I can do), I can now show them to you directly.
What impressed me with all the performers -- but most-especially with these two -- is that they don't just sing the songs, but perform them. (A trait I've noticed with Heather Headley whenever I've seen her. Clearly, this program is where they got it from...)
One person I mentioned in that earlier article was a recent grad, Meghan McCandless. (And no, there is no truth to the rumor that all women in the Northwestern theater department have to be named "Meghan M." It just works out that way. Some get roles in Broadway shows, others get royal weddings...) She actually performs in three songs throughout the video, and it's worth checking them all out. But if you only want to watch these two particular performance, this first one, a song titled, "I Need More," from a show Fly by Night that had its premiere production at Northwestern through the American Musical Theatre Project starts at around the 9:15 mark, and you can jump directly to it.
The other song, is from a workshop world premiere production the AMTP did of a show called, Michael Collins, about the Irish revolutionary. It has book and lyrics by Ryan Cunningham and music by composer Joshua Salzman, both of whom received the Jonathan Larson Award, named after the songwriter of Rent. The number is introduced by Cunningham, and feature the same student who played the title role in that initial production. It's a very good song and a wonderful performance -- and unfortunately, I don't know his name. I didn't catch it at the live event, and Cunningham says it so fast, I can't decipher it. It's something like "Judson Dresner," but as much as I tried to do some research, it was for naught, and that's the best I can do. But here he is and that song, "Live Like You're Going to Die." The sequence begins around 26:45.
As I said, the whole concert is worth watching, there are quite a few gems, introduced by the program's director David Bell. The performances begin around two minutes in or so. Most of the introductions and information before the songs are pretty interesting, though you can always scroll past. But if you don't want to watch the full thing, do at least jump to those two songs.
By the way, this freeze frame below is the other Meghan M., Ms McCandless. So, if you want to scroll through for all her numbers, that's what you should look for...
The hour-long event was terrific, and I was impressed by all the performers who were showcased. And I wouldn't be surprised if at least some of them join the list of illustrious alums from the school's theater department. Unfortunately, there was no video to embed with the article, but I did my best to find alternative clips of some of the songs, as well as a few performers who especially leaped out.
Well, it turns out that there was video of the showcase, and they've just uploaded it onto the Northwestern Commfest site. And I've embedded the full thing below.
The whole event is worth watching, since all of these young performers were truly impressive. But as I said, two of them especially stood out. And rather than find alternative clips and entirely different things (but it was the best I can do), I can now show them to you directly.
What impressed me with all the performers -- but most-especially with these two -- is that they don't just sing the songs, but perform them. (A trait I've noticed with Heather Headley whenever I've seen her. Clearly, this program is where they got it from...)
One person I mentioned in that earlier article was a recent grad, Meghan McCandless. (And no, there is no truth to the rumor that all women in the Northwestern theater department have to be named "Meghan M." It just works out that way. Some get roles in Broadway shows, others get royal weddings...) She actually performs in three songs throughout the video, and it's worth checking them all out. But if you only want to watch these two particular performance, this first one, a song titled, "I Need More," from a show Fly by Night that had its premiere production at Northwestern through the American Musical Theatre Project starts at around the 9:15 mark, and you can jump directly to it.
The other song, is from a workshop world premiere production the AMTP did of a show called, Michael Collins, about the Irish revolutionary. It has book and lyrics by Ryan Cunningham and music by composer Joshua Salzman, both of whom received the Jonathan Larson Award, named after the songwriter of Rent. The number is introduced by Cunningham, and feature the same student who played the title role in that initial production. It's a very good song and a wonderful performance -- and unfortunately, I don't know his name. I didn't catch it at the live event, and Cunningham says it so fast, I can't decipher it. It's something like "Judson Dresner," but as much as I tried to do some research, it was for naught, and that's the best I can do. But here he is and that song, "Live Like You're Going to Die." The sequence begins around 26:45.
As I said, the whole concert is worth watching, there are quite a few gems, introduced by the program's director David Bell. The performances begin around two minutes in or so. Most of the introductions and information before the songs are pretty interesting, though you can always scroll past. But if you don't want to watch the full thing, do at least jump to those two songs.
By the way, this freeze frame below is the other Meghan M., Ms McCandless. So, if you want to scroll through for all her numbers, that's what you should look for...
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