Mandy Patinkin gets in touch with his inner child Sept. 4 with the release of his sixth solo album of eclectic songs, "Kidults," which offers family-friendly songs from "The Wizard of Oz," Frank Loesser's "Hans Christian Andersen," Broadway and the pop world.
Patinkin is characteristically both delicate and extreme as he charts an emotional path that runs from innocence ("School Days," Maury Yeston's "New Words," "Getting to Know You") to experience (Sondheim's "Everybody Says Don't," "Nothing's Gonna Harm You") to playfulness ("Rhode Island is Famous for You," "'A' You're Adorable," "Singin' in the Bathtub").
His frantic version of "A Tisket A Tasket," a favorite in his stage concerts, is preserved here. It's performed as a crime-scene interrogation.
The album is on the Nonsesuch label. Eric Stern conducts the orchestra. Musical arrangements are by Paul Ford. Guest artist Kristin Chenoweth sings "Soon It's Gonna Rain," the "School Days" medley and "How Could You Believe Me?" (the classic song by Burton Lane and Alan Jay Lerner, with a title that continues, "when I said I love you when you know I've been a liar all my life?"). Tommy Krasker is the album's producer.
The 16 tracks include "Inchworm," "Time in a Bottle," "Minute Waltz," "The Ugly Duckling," "Japanese Sandman," "April in Fairbanks," "Holiday for Strings," "The King's New Clothes," "Cat's in the Cradle," "Singin' in the Rain" and "If I Only Had a Brain." The CD liner notes offer this dedication from Patinkin: "For my grandchildren." A national tour of Patinkin in concert begins Sept. 10 at the Neil Simon Theatre on Broadway. The tour is sponsored by Dodger Theatrical Productions, Inc. and features Paul Ford on the piano.
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A three-time Tony Award nominee (and one-time winner for Best Featured Actor as Che in Evita), Patinkin has starred in the musicals The Wild Party, Sunday in the Park With George, The Secret Garden and Falsettos.
Prior to Party in 1999-2000, his most recent Broadway appearance was in his concert of Yiddish songs titled "Mamaloshen," the title of his previous album. He is also known for TV's "Chicago Hope" and the film comedy, "The Princess Bride" and Barbra Streisand's "Yentl."
Selected tour dates are:
Sept. 22: San Diego Civic Center, San Diego, CA
Oct. 1: Macomb Center, Clinton Township, MI
Oct. 4: Music Hall, Kansas City, MO
Oct. 6: Playhouse Square, Cleveland, OH
Oct. 8: Ohio Theater, Columbus, OH
Oct. 11: Miller Auditorium, Kalamazoo, MI
Oct. 13: Maine Center for the Arts, Orono, ME
Oct.15: Hummingbird Center, Toronto, ON
Oct. 18: Mishler Theatre, Altoona, PA
Oct. 20: Proctor's Theater , Schenectady, NY
Oct. 29 - Nov. 4: Cadillac Palace Theatre, Chicago, IL
Nov. 7: State Theatre, New Brunswick, NJ
Nov. 8: Harms Center, Englewood, NJ
Nov. 10: State Theatre, Easton, PA
Nov. 14: State Theatre, Minneapolis, MN
Nov. 16: Palace Theatre, Stamford, CT
Nov. 18: Congregation Shaare Emeth, St. Louis, MO
Dec. 1: Bushnell Theatre, Hartford, CT
Dec. 4: Clowes Memorial Hall, Indianapolis, IN
Dec. 6: Peace Center, Greenville, SC
Dec. 8: Hershey Theatre, Hershey, PA
Dec. 11-12: Philharmonic Center, Naples, FL
Dec.13: FAU University Center, Boca Raton, FL
Dec. 15: Coral Springs Center, Coral Springs, FL
Dec. 27: San Luis Obispo Center, San Luis Obispo, CA
Dec. 30-31: The Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles, CA
Jan. 2,2002: Marin Auditorium, San Rafael, CA
Jan. 4: Paramount Theatre, Seattle, WA
Jan. 6: Artemus Ham Concert Hall, Las Vegas, NV
Jan. 28: Weidner Center, Green Bay, WI
Jan. 30: Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, Tampa, FL
Jan. 14-20: Colonial Theater, Boston, MA
Feb. 1: Florida Theater, Jacksonville, FL
Feb. 3: Mann Performing Arts Center, Fort Meyers, FL
Feb. 5: Van Wezel Performing Arts Center, Sarasota, FL
Feb. 9-10: Lyric Opera House, Baltimore, MD
