May 19th,2017- Barnes and Noble on 86thStreet
and Lexington Avenue hosted an afternoon appearance with the cast of “Groundhog
Day: The Musical”. The cast of the Tony Award-nominated Broadway show was there to perform
a few songs and sign the cast recording.
On hand for this event were: Andy Karl (Phil Connors), Barrett Doss
(Rita Hanson), Andrew Call
(Gus/understudy for Andy Karl), Raymond J. Lee (Ralph), Rebecca Faulkenberry
(Nancy Taylor), and Danny Rubin (created the book for the show).
By 8:41 am, a small crowd had assembled outside the Barnes
and Noble on a balmy Friday morning-ahead of the store’s 9 am opening. Once admitted they went down the escalator, and it was off to find the Audio and Video section located towards the back. They
purchased the CD and picked up their wristband.
Cashiers rung up the sales and instructed the customers to return in time for the signing.
I was one of the first to purchase the CDs that day,and walked around a bit (making a side trip to the MET) before getting on the line at 1:30pm. The 86th street
and Lexington Avenue Barnes and Noble has an events room set aside for
appearances. Located a level below the main floor, it had a stage that could be
seen through the glass doors. On both sides of the stage, there was a
poster-sized picture of the CD booklet cover for “Groundhog Day: The
Musical”. You could hear the tech crew
testing the microphones around the room as well as on the stage before placing
them in the stands, which were off the side. While the tech crew worked the
sound, the store assistants were setting up the chairs for the press and
wristband holders.
The preliminaries to this event were something to see. Besides
the mics being tested, the people at the soundboard were testing the audio
tracks that would accompany the show’s performers that afternoon. Once soundboard work was complete, it was
time for the lighting crew to illuminate the stage as well as the posters that
rested on it; In the darkness, you could see the minimal shadow of the 4 rows
of seats that made up the center section of the room.
By 3:30pm, store event procedures were now taking place on
both sides of the glass doors. As the guards re-organized the line and were
checking in the press, the cast walked on stage to do soundcheck for the four
numbers they were going to do that afternoon.
Stools were arranged and removed. Mic stands were brought in,
adjusted. Some of the cast asked the
sound board about adjusting the track under them.
A half-hour or so later, the press and crowd were let in via
the two sets of glass doors. A representative from the store led those with wristbands
in 5 or so at a time. The crowd filed in along the 1st central row
until it was full; the side rows would be filled afterward. There were some
reserved rows on one side for the cast and press.
When it was time for the event to start, a representative
from Barnes and Noble laid down the rules for the performance/CD signing. Steven Sorrentino, the event supervisor, was
called up to the stage next to thank the “Groundhog Day: the Musical” cast for
being there that day and provide his opinion on Broadway cast recordings. His
prologue done, he introduced Danny Rubin to the stage.
Danny Rubin, screenwriter of the 1993 movie version and who
also wrote the show’s book, came on stage to introduce the musical numbers. He
was very witty and amusing to listen to as he provided some background
information regarding the show’s creation itself. Rubin explained how an odd
melody came to him that helped create the song
“Nobody Cares”. He mentioned the” meta-moment” that he wanted to create
in this show that became the song “Playing Nancy”. In introducing the song “If
I Had My Time Again”, Rubin related the timeline of the song’s inception from
“dreaming “it up to the final draft of the song. For the final number of the event, “Seeing
You”, he really brought home to the crowd the message the song was trying to
convey.
The performances were amazing to watch from the first row.
“Nobody Cares” was sung by Andrew Call, Raymond J. Lee, and Andy Karl, complete
with some small gestures that showed how
the scene plays out in the show. “Playing Nancy” was wonderfully performed by
Rebecca Faulkenberry. “If I Had My Time
Again” was a duet for Andy Karl and Barrett Doss, in which Andy Karl added the
original line from the song for Danny Rubin’s enjoyment. Andy Karl really
showed the emotional journey of the character through his performance of “Seeing
You”.
After the songs were done, the press took photos of the
cast, and watched them settle in for the CD signing. The crowd formed a line in row order. They
were told to have their CD booklets in hand and not to lose their CD cases in
the process. The line had the guests
seated with a paper nameplate in front of them.
The table was aligned as follows: Danny Rubin, Rebecca Faulkenberry,
Raymond J. Lee, Andrew Call, Barrett Dos, and Andy Karl. Each were courteous and very approachable to
everyone they met.
When all the autographs were signed, the “Groundhog Day: the
Musical” cast were sent off in cars to head back to Times Square for their
evening performance. Their graciousness
extended outside of the signing: Danny Rubin and Andrew Call even took time out
to take photos with people outside while waiting for their ride to arrive. Overall, the event went very well, and all those
who attended went home with a CD they could listen to over…and over…and over…
