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'Shucked' Music and Stagecraft | The BSB Podcast · The BSB Podcast

• 0:00
  Welcome back, fellow theater lovers, to our part two discussion of Shucked the Musical here on the BSB Podcast.
• 0:05
  before we dive into the music and stagecraft of this corn-popping musical, like, follow, and subscribe to us on all social media platforms Spoiler warning, we are talking about
• 0:15
  the North American touring production of Shucked.
• 0:17
  So having seen the corniest show in all of existence, pause this video and return once you've seen this musical.
• 0:22
  On the last podcast, we talked about the story and of the cast, which is just a story, an ensemble story of the music man set to corn.
• 0:33
  That's pretty much it.
• 0:34
  We follow the story of Maizy as she sets out to find out why her corn in the corn of corn cob county or just cob county, as some would call it, is dying and stumbles upon Gordy who
• 0:46
  is
• 0:47
  the con man of conmans who's going to take Cob County for everything they have.
• 0:52
  uh Hilarity ensues.
• 0:55
  There's a good wrap up ending song.
• 0:58
  But today we're going to talk about the music.
• 1:00
  I think what's interesting RJ about this music right off the bat is that it was written by surprise surprise country music singer songwriters.
• 1:09
  So we had Brandy Clark and Shane McAinley who wrote the songs for this.
• 1:15
  And I feel like that's probably appropriate for a show that is about corn.
• 1:19
  Yeah, I mean, you want us to feel authentic, so...
• 1:23
  Do you think that before we jump into the actual music as we break it down.
• 1:27
  Do you like when shows take experimental approaches to how they bring up about their music on stage?
• 1:36
  Cause like this could have easily been a show that was a musical, a straight, like a, like a very musical musical, but they took a chance.
• 1:43
  They tried to be more authentic to the show.
• 1:45
  Do you think that that more often than not works for Broadway?
• 1:50
  I mean, I think it depends on how thick they want to lay it on.
• 1:54
  Like this show specifically makes sense because you're literally in a cornfield.
• 2:00
  So it would feel bizarre unless you're pulling something like Book of Mormon where you're then just, you're like having the scene and then you're stepping out of the scene in this
• 2:10
  extreme musical number and then you're stepping back into the scene.
• 2:15
  But this, because it was set more of a storytelling nature,
• 2:20
  I think that would have felt weird.
• 2:21
  yeah, like to each their own ultimately, but I think you can do it well or you can totally miss the mark.
• 2:41
  But at the end of the day, like somebody's probably gonna like it and somebody's probably gonna not like it.
• 2:46
  So.
• 2:48
  Now as two individuals, one of us grew up in the city, one of us grew up in their own farm, their own farm field, their own corn field.
• 2:56
  One of us grew up on music, not on music, grew up on country music.
• 3:00
  And that wasn't the person that grew up on a farm.
• 3:03
  So how did you like the country feel of Shucked's music?
• 3:10
  I I thought I was fine.
• 3:13
  I, I...
• 3:16
  Just fine.
• 3:17
  Just- But that's thing though, it's it's just fine.
• 3:20
  Yeah, I mean it is exactly what it is.
• 3:22
  There's nothing like spectacular or crazy about the like country genre music vibes.
• 3:32
  Like it's pretty straightforward, which is where I do think they got it right because when you look at country music standard, it's usually all about the same stuff, right?
• 3:45
  Correct.
• 3:45
  It's about the farm or it's about the girl or it's about the beer.
• 3:53
  It very much fits the narrative of, I'm chasing my girl.
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  Our farm is failing.
• 4:01
  I'm chasing my girl.
• 4:05
  Have you ever seen, this is slightly off topic, but have you ever seen the song from Bo Burnham where was like, he's gonna write a country song?
• 4:12
  I don't think so.
• 4:14
  Okay, well, I'm going to show it to you one day, but basically it's about like the, uh do you write a country song?
• 4:19
  Well, you put in the fact that you lose your girl, you lose your house, you get the beer, you know, like, and it's all these different pieces.
• 4:24
  And it's because the country music feels very formulaic because there are certain pieces even to this day.
• 4:31
  Um, but especially back in the nineties, like let's just, every song in the nineties was literally about the, my wife cheated on me.
• 4:39
  I cheated on my wife.
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  I am depressed and sad.
• 4:43
  I'm the happiest man in the world because I got a wife in a car.
• 4:46
  Like all the pieces were there.
• 4:48
  And so what stands out about this is that as soon as they started playing, I was like, all of these songs sound like nineties country music in a way put on Broadway, you know, like
• 4:57
  there was still a Broadway feel to them, but they were very much like, this is a country song.
• 5:02
  ah So it's an interesting field because I feel like you have to almost be
• 5:07
  in the mindset to be prepared for the fact that this is going to be country music about a show about corn, you know?
• 5:14
  Yeah, and I think they set the stage pretty well.
• 5:16
  Obviously, the opening number is probably one of the most musical theater-esque songs.
• 5:23
  We've got a little choreo happening, um reminding me of Beauty and the Beast uh and the mugs in Cast On.
• 5:38
  it's unique.
• 5:40
  It's different.
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  Even the staging was a little bit...
• 5:43
  A lot of moving things happening, but nothing was really happening.
• 5:48
  the movement was to have movement, which I understand because the set is pretty simple.
• 5:55
  And when you're singing, I don't know how many times did they sing the chorus, three or four times?
• 6:01
  I was like, all right, only probably could have taken one of these out, but it's, it's fine.
• 6:06
  We get it, you love corn.
• 6:09
  Yeah.
• 6:10
  Yeah.
• 6:11
  know, we understand.
• 6:12
  oh So looking at Act One then, obviously I think that like the most notable song that most people are gonna know is independently owned, which was just a standout of this entire
• 6:24
  show.
• 6:25
  I, again, mad props, we gave flowers to Miki Abraham in the first part, like Lulu is fantastic.
• 6:34
  that, like that is the song of the show.
• 6:40
  two years from now, ask me a song from the show and that's probably the only one I'm going be able to know back to you.
• 6:47
  What was it like for you to see that live?
• 6:48
  Because you had mentioned that you knew the song prior to going to see Shucked.
• 6:52
  Yeah, well, and I think probably most of the people who have seen the show would agree with that being the standout.
• 6:59
  Of course, you know, when you change, it's like a Whitney song, like when you change keys three times um or more, it's pretty impressive.
• 7:11
  And the characterization itself for that specific, for being in the middle of the cornfield where
• 7:19
  The ideal is maybe more focused around men and farmers being men and how they are the ones ruling the roost comparatively to a woman who is independent, she owns her own business
• 7:33
  and she couldn't give two shits as to any other man, at least for Act 1.
• 7:40
  uh It's different.
• 7:45
  Yeah.
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  So...
• 7:47
  And she was celebrated for that, right?
• 7:49
  Like it wasn't just that it was a thing, it was also the fact that nobody had a problem with that being a thing, which when the show opens, it kind of talks about these
• 7:59
  stereotypes or what we perceive as a stereotype about situations such as the story.
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  And so it challenges, this song is a direct challenge to the perception that many might have about
• 8:16
  small country bumpkin town with a couple dozen people in it.
• 8:22
  I loved that it was just the fact.
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  She owned her own business.
• 8:27
  She loved her business.
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  She didn't want to try to change herself to fit into a man's...
• 8:31
  There were so many beautiful aspects.
• 8:34
  And at one point I actually was going to be like, okay.
• 8:37
  In my head was like, are they setting this up for her to be the stereotypical lesbian role?
• 8:43
  Which would still be great.
• 8:45
  But like, oh, I don't need no man kind of thing.
• 8:47
  I was wondering if that's where it was gonna go.
• 8:49
  And then it was literally just like the, I'm just a boss and I just am gonna run, like a man has to come into my life and like compliment that.
• 8:56
  And I was like, that's even more beautiful.
• 8:58
  You know what I mean?
• 8:58
  Like there was a piece of that I was like, are you gonna go for the stereotype?
• 9:01
  And they didn't.
• 9:02
  They were just like, no, this is the story of Lulu and how she is her own person.
• 9:08
  Yes, and I will say it's interesting.
• 9:12
  I'd love to, as always, sit in the writers' room and wonder what they were thinking when they developed these characters because it also gave a little bit of queer just her
• 9:27
  presentation.
• 9:29
  And so I always wonder how intentional that was.
• 9:32
  If it was intentional, if it was a director choice, if it was an actor choice.
• 9:37
  if it was a script choice.
• 9:39
  uh
• 9:40
  Bye.
• 9:42
  It does make me wonder if it was a little bit of Alex Newell in that role, you know what I mean?
• 9:47
  Like, was there a piece of that?
• 9:48
  the makeup and the costumes and the wig and just the whole presentation.
• 9:55
  was like, OK, like this is intentionally.
• 9:58
  Like, again, when we challenge tropes of, um you know, country bumpkin farmer, like you don't think like hairdos like hers, you don't think of, you know, well dressed kind of.
• 10:15
  like femme but still holding a level of masculinity a little bit that yeah, like you mentioned, like are they leaning into lesbian?
• 10:25
  I don't, they didn't, but the queer was there.
• 10:32
  um Just who know?
• 10:35
  for visibility.
• 10:36
  didn't, there's no like pop point on that really, but it felt intentional.
• 10:43
  If it truly felt like pretty much anybody who was queer could play that role and do it well.
• 10:48
  You know what I mean?
• 10:50
  It's very queer coded.
• 10:52
  And then when they didn't go that way, was like, that's interesting because I felt like that was where it was headed, but it made perfect sense for Lulu.
• 10:57
  But I think when you just see her at the very beginning, you're like, it slightly was queer coded 100%.
• 11:05
  I do have to give a shout out to, um come one of the best songs in the first act goes to one of the most underdeveloped characters?
• 11:13
  Somebody Will, where Bo was singing it, was a solid knockout performance.
• 11:19
  It gave 90s country vibes.
• 11:22
  It warmed my 90s country vibes heart, who, as you know, you've been in the car before when it's come on.
• 11:28
  There's some really good country vibes I have going on.
• 11:31
  He hit that really well.
• 11:33
  And he was still, again, one of the most underdeveloped characters in the entire show, at least for the first act.
• 11:38
  And I was just like, they gave an absolute standout song to this role.
• 11:45
  And that was probably one of my favorites too from act one.
• 11:49
  Yeah, I was shocked that these songs were back to back because they're basically the same song.
• 11:55
  Or writing wise, like they have the same development of, not the same song, but they're written in a way that is power ballad, like moving at a pace that's just a smidge faster
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  um and just like
• 12:18
  belting the shit out of their voices.
• 12:21
  ah Like it's a from your head to your toes kind of performance when you're singing it.
• 12:29
  I'm sure they're exhausted afterwards.
• 12:32
  ah But yeah, weird that, and I had a couple notes.
• 12:41
  I mean, I was just curious.
• 12:45
  if it was a character choice or an acting choice, there was much of Bo's performance uh or Nick's performance when he sang, his eyes were closed a lot.
• 13:01
  And sometimes we see that in like pop entertainment performances.
• 13:07
  uh But when I went to school for music, so often
• 13:15
  your coach to not do that because you're cutting off the audience from whatever the emotion and the care and the acting or whatever it is, you're cutting the audience off
• 13:25
  from that and
• 13:28
  You can do it in variation, right?
• 13:31
  Like if that's a really, really powerful moment where the character's like internalizing whatever's happening, maybe you're closing your eyes for a couple seconds at a time.
• 13:41
  But I want to say like 50 % or maybe even more of the total length of all of his songs, his eyes were either completely closed or just
• 13:58
  so squinted that they looked like they were closed to the audience.
• 14:05
  Yeah, there was a lot of that going on and I know exactly what you're talking about.
• 14:10
  I didn't know that you were trained to have them open.
• 14:11
  Because it feels like in that moment, Bo was trying not to cry.
• 14:18
  The character was trying not to cry.
• 14:19
  So that's how I interpreted it.
• 14:21
  But I get what you're saying.
• 14:22
  Because it does shut off yourself from those in the audience.
• 14:31
  That's why I typically don't like to nitpick, but that's why I'm like, okay, if it was intentional, then I get it.
• 14:40
  Do I think it could have been lessened?
• 14:42
  100%.
• 14:42
  Based on the rest of his performance, I could tell how emotional the character was.
• 14:49
  I didn't need him to look like he was crying or on the verge of crying to know the pain that was happening.
• 14:59
  Also, that's just like an acting, it could entirely be an acting choice, uh much like when you go to concerts and performers do it all the time.
• 15:08
  And they do, it's just, it's really a preference thing for me.
• 15:15
  ah And also just the way that I interact with music or understand it is by like watching the face of the person who's performing.
• 15:24
  if, like I said, the moment you close those eyes,
• 15:28
  I no longer am connected to you.
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  Like, you are within yourself.
• 15:34
  I am not connected to whatever's happening.
• 15:38
  So.
• 15:39
  I do wonder if it's that, because I'm looking at his playbill right now.
• 15:42
  He's only been in two shows before, one back in 2014 and then recently in Tammy Faye.
• 15:47
  So I'm wondering if he just doesn't have a lot of experience, which again is just, I applaud him for giving his all on that stage.
• 15:55
  I mean, there was spit everywhere.
• 15:56
  You saw his neck vein like, about to bust open from those things.
• 16:00
  He was hitting those great notes.
• 16:02
  But like, maybe that was one of the things that he hasn't quite found that piece of the puzzle about keeping his eyes open.
• 16:08
  Well, and it reminded me of the performance we just saw in Hell's Kitchen.
• 16:11
  uh And I'm blanking on the name of the actress, but she did something similar where you're throwing your whole body into a performance, but that doesn't always mean that you're just
• 16:24
  closing your eyes.
• 16:25
  So he, I think maybe there just wasn't enough choreography for him to feel secure or maybe for the character to feel secure.
• 16:36
  And so...
• 16:38
  Whereas she was kind of wandering, had more movement, had more hand motions, was more fully bodied expression.
• 16:48
  Whereas he was, yeah, I mean, you could see the tension, which also as a vocalist, I'm like, are you in pain?
• 16:56
  Because uh sometimes you're just obviously so into something that you're doing and so passionate about it that, yeah, every...
• 17:07
  I think we saw every vein in his neck.
• 17:09
  um
• 17:10
  Everyone.
• 17:13
  It was give it was giving the mom from Hell's Kitchen, but about a lovesick man, you know.
• 17:19
  Yeah, it literally was.
• 17:21
  I would just, yeah, when you put those performances next to each other, it's like...
• 17:25
  These could have the same effect, but Hell's Kitchen had more because I felt like I could see her.
• 17:33
  Obviously I physically see him, but I wasn't seeing what he was seeing because...
• 17:41
  Yeah.
• 17:42
  So anyway, that's my soapbox for the day.
• 17:45
  And I think that we can just jump into act two then right there There's not a song from act two that I could that I could sing back to you Which I think is interesting about this
• 17:52
  music is that overall?
• 17:55
  Again listeners my opinion this might be your favorite show and I totally love that for you.
• 18:00
  The music was almost Forgettable for me besides the one or two songs that stood out which I'm sure it can be said about any show
• 18:08
  But there was nothing about Shuck that's like, I can't wait to listen to that on my Apple music.
• 18:14
  You know what I mean?
• 18:15
  Other than the fact of like, somebody will and independently owned.
• 18:18
  might tune those up every once in a while, but I'm not listening to this soundtrack through and through.
• 18:23
  So to me, this is almost a forgettable album.
• 18:26
  again, listeners, I am so sorry.
• 18:28
  And I am also going to apologize in case this is the same feeling that RJ has.
• 18:32
  We're not going to speak for him.
• 18:34
  RJ, did this music have
• 18:37
  Like, it have it for you?
• 18:39
  Like, did it touch your soul?
• 18:40
  Did it go down to your bones?
• 18:42
  Or is this also a forgettable album for you?
• 18:45
  Yeah, no.
• 18:46
  um I previously tried, when I heard that Shucked was coming, I tried to listen to the album because I was like, I have no idea what's happening.
• 18:57
  And I typically like to at least have a general idea so that I'm not so thrown off by needing to pay attention to everything.
• 19:04
  But the only song I could get into was really independently owned.
• 19:11
  Maybe now listening back, I would appreciate a couple of the songs more.
• 19:14
  I did like the friend song um from Act Two, which is really the only one that I can remember.
• 19:22
  um Where, and all I can think of is just the one line, the chorus.
• 19:32
  um But everything else.
• 19:37
  I don't know, it was to move the story along, so I felt like it did its job.
• 19:43
  It just...
• 19:46
  I'm not sure that any of them were really meant to be like, you're gonna leave here and think this is the greatest song in the world.
• 19:54
  uh Because again, you're trying to mix country music with musical theater, and it is still both.
• 20:03
  So if you step up...
• 20:05
  step outside the musical and try to listen to just the song, it's too specific.
• 20:11
  And vice versa.
• 20:13
  Musical theater folk listening to country music.
• 20:17
  Not sure.
• 20:19
  So yeah, not really the strongest on the I think the music still had to be there.
• 20:26
  I just don't know that it moved the plot.
• 20:29
  or really, it didn't move the plot, it just didn't really contribute much.
• 20:37
  What I love about this answer is that you were trying very carefully to not just be like, I don't like this music.
• 20:44
  You were like, and we're gonna stop here and we're gonna stop here.
• 20:47
  m
• 20:49
  I think like, you know, so many shows, are...
• 20:54
  There's such intention behind what's happening.
• 20:58
  And so I don't love to like totally dismiss.
• 21:01
  The music, especially because, you know, in the moment I wasn't enjoying it enough, right?
• 21:08
  But yeah, I'm not going to like go walk, take, I'm not going to go to the gym and like put this album on.
• 21:17
  And yes, I do that with other Broadway musicals because they slap.
• 21:20
  So.
• 21:22
  There's nothing like running on the treadmill to phantom of the opera.
• 21:25
  I'm just saying like ah But this is the one I this is like one of those ones I'm not seeking it out for the music if that makes sense like if I'm gonna go see this I'm seeing
• 21:33
  it and again, I'm gonna say this about and I keep comparing this to To Book of Mormon, but I also don't seek out the music of Book of Mormon You know, I mean like I would like it
• 21:43
  when I'm there I like it for the experience, but I'm not like I can't wait to turn on Book of Mormon and listening to it during my three hour
• 21:50
  run today, you know, like this is one of those albums that do.
• 21:54
  I'm not going to remember these songs other than the few that I've already heard that stuck with me.
• 22:00
  And that's that.
• 22:03
  I don't think we have to talk too much about the costumes.
• 22:04
  Again, this is very country feel, very country-esque.
• 22:07
  You're talking, you know, gingham.
• 22:09
  You're talking jeans.
• 22:10
  You're talking shirts.
• 22:11
  You're talking country abs.
• 22:13
  Like, we have all the pieces of a farm boy, farm gal living their dreams.
• 22:17
  But I do want to talk about the set.
• 22:19
  because I think this is one of those things that I was most excited about, as you could tell when we were in the, before the show began.
• 22:25
  um They had probably the coolest, like you have to admit, they probably had the coolest backdrop that we've seen in the show in a long time.
• 22:34
  That was really cool.
• 22:36
  I appreciate, yeah, like old fashioned backdrops.
• 22:39
  When is the last time we saw one of those?
• 22:42
  Now like a long time.
• 22:43
  It's been a while We've seen and guys like we are just going to say this RJ and I have seen what?
• 22:49
  78 90 shows this year's we it was a really high number of shows this year that we've seen There was not a set like this.
• 22:57
  That was really cool
• 22:58
  The artistry, the intentionality behind pieces that were real, even though there was a backdrop, ah just, I mean, it gave it more depth, which we haven't seen in a long time,
• 23:15
  whether it was a backdrop or uh electronic.
• 23:18
  um The only thing I can really think of was, and that was still a screen, was Beauty and the Beast.
• 23:27
  Correct.
• 23:28
  Yeah.
• 23:29
  I mean, just to give you guys an idea, they erected an entire barn on stage with the use of what looked like a painted backdrop and a few side pieces.
• 23:40
  But it gave the illusion that there was actually a barn there, which was by far just the coolest, coolest thing you could see.
• 23:47
  was simple in the fact that there wasn't a lot of going on, but the art itself wasn't vibrant enough that it felt like...
• 23:55
  ah
• 23:56
  Cobb County was really there in front of you.
• 23:59
  And it was really hard to see that was even a back screen until somebody walked by it in the back and it fluttered a little bit.
• 24:04
  Like it was such, that was such a cool shout out to whoever designed that shout out to the, the creators of shucked because that was probably the most impressive piece of the
• 24:13
  show in my opinion was that set.
• 24:15
  Yeah, which is interesting because like really aside from that, there was nothing else going on, right?
• 24:19
  We had a couple barrels.
• 24:20
  We had a couple rocks.
• 24:22
  um But that was pretty much it.
• 24:28
  And it wasn't like.
• 24:29
  anything crazy.
• 24:30
  It was a farm, right?
• 24:32
  Like it's what you expect of a farm, but it was just, yeah, it was very well done, very well developed.
• 24:38
  We had some pretty cool corn too, some corn that moved up and down and looked like it was dying and coming back to life.
• 24:44
  Yes, which if anyone wants to tell us how that works, I have my theories and I'd like to know.
• 24:51
  So please, if you work on the production and you can tell us, we won't spread the secret unless you want us to, but we'd love to know in the comments or hit us up just how did the
• 25:00
  corn work?
• 25:00
  Because RJ had a pretty good idea of how it worked and I'm pretty sure he's right, but I'd love to know for sure just so we can know for ourselves.
• 25:11
  So RJ, we have reached the end, time for our final verdicts.
• 25:15
  This is obviously a show for people who love corny jokes, including that one.
• 25:20
  Um, this is a show that has a lot of humor.
• 25:24
  Is this a show for you?
• 25:25
  Um, if I wanted a good laugh, yes.
• 25:29
  Like if I'm feeling like I need to laugh, because even if I'm not physically laughing, being around people that are laughing, it's just, it's a joy show, right?
• 25:41
  It's a joyful show.
• 25:43
  Um, and for that, I would go, um, I don't know that I would actively seek it out, but if it was coming, um, I would go.
• 25:55
  See you again.
• 25:56
  This is definitely a show I would see again, but with people who wanted to see it.
• 26:01
  Like, if you were just like, okay, Brian, I really want to see this show again, I'd be like, all right, RJ, let's go see Shucked.
• 26:08
  And I would enjoy myself and I would have a good time.
• 26:11
  This isn't one where I like, when it's coming, I'm getting excited because it's going to be here.
• 26:16
  Does that make sense?
• 26:16
  know, like, I'm not like, oh man, six is showing up again.
• 26:20
  I better load up and pay for six different shows to see it.
• 26:23
  You know what I mean?
• 26:24
  or Phantom of the Opera's coming, I better see that 10 times.
• 26:27
  This is definitely, it was enjoyable for what it was.
• 26:32
  It's not something that I'm going to be painting my room, you know, maize yellow to try to like, cause I'm in love with corn now.
• 26:39
  Like there's, it's not that kind of show, you know?
• 26:42
  So that's kind of where I'm
• 26:44
  Yeah, it's not a spectacle piece, it's a comedy.
• 26:46
  It is a...
• 26:48
  I mean, you could translate so many of the jokes to a stand-up set, so...
• 26:54
  which makes you wonder with it being more of a comedy, kind of like a straightforward comedy, and this is not, again, people, this is not a slide against the show, is it worth
• 27:04
  the price tag?
• 27:05
  I think that's something that has to be considered.
• 27:07
  Is it worth hundreds and hundreds of dollars for show ticket?
• 27:12
  something to think about people.
• 27:13
  um And with that being said, we have completed our part two of the Shucked Conversation.
• 27:22
  However, stay tuned for future episodes of the BSB Podcast.
• 27:24
  Thanks again for joining us here in our box seats until next curtain call.