By Seth Rudetsky
04 May 2009

As for my second guest on the Sirius/XM show, I'm still in a state of shock that she showed up. 9 to 5 had two shows Wednesday (both were performances that critics were coming to), and the next day was opening night. Yet, Stephanie J. Block not only was my main guest, but she sang two songs…and one had sustained E flats!! I've never seen anyone less nervous about resting before critics' performances and less "I must protect my instrument" than Stephanie. Unfortunately, she blew her voice out and wound up missing both shows Wednesday and her opening night…just kidding! I saw her Wednesday night and she was great. After the show I ran up to Stephen Oremus to find out the high notes in her second act big number, and she had the nerve to be belting F sharps! Stephanie has a new CD coming out, and she literally does a duet with Dolly Parton on "I Will Always Love You." Beautiful (and available on iTunes now!).

Before I write about 9 to 5, let me first tell you that a few months ago, Philip Birsh, the President and Publisher of Playbill Magazine, and Blake Ross, the magazine's new editor, told me that I'd have my own column in the magazine. I remember seeing those magazines in bookstores when I went to Oberlin. I was pretty excited…until they told me that it wasn't the Playbill that's mailed around the country, it's the actual Playbills in Broadway theatres! [Editor's note: The column will actually run in both the theatre and subscription issue.] When I was a kid I always dreamed of having my own bio in a Playbill and now I have a column!! My first one debuted May 1, and it's about some devastating moments that have happened to me in various Broadway pit orchestras. So, I went to see 9 to 5 not only with James but also with Juli and Henry Gold (son of the hilarious Judy Gold) because next month I'm also writing a column about what shows to take your kids to if you can't get into one of the signature Broadway musicals geared towards children. I watched 9 to 5 with my eyes half on the stage and half on the kids. Turns out, they loved it! But they were blank-faced when I excitedly told them that Stephanie was belting F sharps. Hmm…maybe they thought I meant the F sharp above middle C. I should have made it clear it was an octave above that. Then I surely would have gotten the reaction I wanted. What? I was the only nine-year-old kid who would listen to a Broadway record and immediately run to the piano to test what notes were being belted, what notes were mixed and what notes were in head voice? That's why I had those 18 years of loneliness? Thanks for telling me after the fact.

James is obsessed with Dolly Parton because while he was growing up, his grandfather and Mom listened to her all the time. He really wanted to meet her after the show, but my friends in the show told me that once she gives them a brava in the wings after the show (see last week's column), she always leaves. Cut to: We got backstage and she was still there! Dave Solomon, who assisted Joe Mantello on the show and on The Ritz, asked her if she'd take a picture with us and she agreed. And, yes, people…as per Paul Castree and Kelli Ripa, Dolly smelled delicious!

Thursday I interviewed my comedy partner and one of my best friends, Jack Plotnick. We told the devastating story of being hired to do an event in Las Vegas for a Hollywood Video convention. We rehearsed the night before the event, and every skit we did was met with blank-facedness and/or fear. The next morning we woke up to discover we were fired! The good news was we had a free three-day-vacation in Vegas, and we were able to see our friends in Mamma Mia! and Avenue Q. At my Chatterbox, we got to debut the opening number we wrote for Vegas but never got to perform. Here's a sample: It starts out very innocently (sung to the tune of "That's Entertainment")

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And then the lyrics keep getting more and more bizarre
That golf that we played at the club…
And that joint where we ate lots of grub…
And that corpse we cut up in the tub!
That stays in Vegas!

I put the video up on my website. Watch it and then you can decide to fire us, too (http://sethrudetsky.com/blog)!

And finally, I made it to the big time. I was busted by Little Sally and Officer Lockstock in their Easter Bonnet sketch. If you don't know, Jen Cody and Don Richard come out every Easter Bonnet and hilariously insult various Broadway shows and performers. This year they said:

LITTLE SALLY: Officer Lockstock, we've been doing this every year. Do you think we run the risk being of overexposed?
OFFICER LOCKSTOCK: Well, Little Sally, on a scale of one… to Seth Rudetsky…I think we're fine.

I don't know why they'd say I'm overexposed! Just because I have a column now in all Broadway Playbills and this week I'm hosting the National Touring Awards on Monday and I have my Sirius/XM Live show on Wednesday and my Thursday Chatterbox and I'm playing and performing in next week's "Leading Men" concert and I'm on Sirius radio every day from 2-8 PM, and I just finished doing "30 Deconstructions in 30 Days" on my website, and I'm getting ready to host Nothin' Like a Dame, and I'm doing a benefit next Wednesday for PS 87 at Caroline's? How rude. On that note, I gotta go. I have to meet with Norm Lewis about playing his act at Feinstein's!

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(Seth Rudetsky is the host of "Seth's Big Fat Broadway" on SIRIUS Satellite Radio and the author of "The Q Guide to Broadway" and the novel "Broadway Nights." He has played piano in the orchestras of 15 Broadway musicals and hosts the BC/EFA benefit weekly interview show Seth's Broadway Chatterbox at Don't Tell Mama every Thursday at 6 PM. He can be contacted by visiting www.sethrudetsky.com.)

Dave Soloman, Paul Castree, Dolly Parton, Seth and James; front row: Juli and Henry Gold

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