2.4 Paint Your Wagon!

2021-11-12

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It's the last installment of our Lerner & Loewe deep dive, and it's kind of a downer. But an interesting one: Paint Your Wagon, the quintessential expression of loneliness and the challenge of connection. ________________________________ We talk about: Changes: The differences between the 1951 Broadway musical and the 1969 film – and how things had changed in the real world from 1951 & 1969 Polyamory: The sexual & gender politics of Ben, Pardner & Elisa's relationship in the f...

It's the last installment of our Lerner & Loewe deep dive, and it's kind of a downer. But an interesting one: Paint Your Wagon, the quintessential expression of loneliness and the challenge of connection.

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We talk about:

Changes: The differences between the 1951 Broadway musical and the 1969 film – and how things had changed in the real world from 1951 & 1969
Polyamory: The sexual & gender politics of Ben, Pardner & Elisa's relationship in the film
Manliness: The vision of American masculinity embodied in the Western myth and the songs "Wandrin’ Star," "Another Autumn," and "I Talk to the Trees"
Dynamics: The theological, economic, and social dynamics of connection & completion given voice in songs like “They Call the Wind Maria,” and the dynamics embodied in the questions they raise.
Wistfulness: Whether shows from another era—like My Fair Lady, Paint Your Wagon, Gigi—help us identify with their creators & original audiences, or whether they romanticize & perpetuate a false narrative about the past
Our Verdict: Our speculative take on the psychology of Lerner & Lowe based on the characters they create

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You’ll hear:

James Barton singing “Wandrin’ Star” from the 1951 Broadway Cast recording
Justin Guarini singing “Another Autumn” and Nathan Hackman singing “They Call the Wind Maria” from the 2015 Encores! Cast recording
Tony Bavaar singing “I Talk to the Trees” from the 1951 Broadway Cast recording

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Continue the conversation with Peter (@pgeinvan) and Nathan (@nathan_lerud) on Twitter, and follow us on Instagram or Twitter @gospelofmt!

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