What would you do? What will you do?

In the election run-up, Peter & Nathan are talking about musicals that deal with political unrest and social change (don't worry, it's still fun!). We begin with the 1966 Broadway classic Cabaret, one of the darkest, kinkiest, and most-enduring musicals of all time.

We talk about:

– Willkommen / Two Ladies / The Money Song: The "decadence" depicted by the emcee and the performers of the Kit Kat Klub (KKK, anyone?) in 1930s Berlin on the eve of Nazism. Does Cabaret hold this very queer decadence as responsible for the rise of fascism, or is there something deeper at work?

– Married / So What / What Would You Do? Bob Fosse’s 1972 film version of Cabaret eliminates most of the traditional musical theatre story exemplified in the romance between Fraulein Schneider & Herr Schultz. But these two characters—and the songs that Kander & Ebb wrote for them—carry much of the show’s political weight – and its emotional heart. Is Fraulein Schneider secretly Cabaret’s protagonist?

– Don’t Tell Mama & Cabaret: We talk about one of Cabaret’s most well-known characters, Sally Bowles. What does she mean when she sings that "life is a cabaret?"

– Tomorrow Belongs to Me: The incredible music of Cabaret – hymns, patriotic anthems, folk songs and music hall ditties – raises provocative questions about entertainment, pleasure, emotional release, and the rise of demonic ideologies. Religion traffics in some of the same territory. Is good music morally neutral... or not?

You’ll hear Joel Grey, Jill Haworth, Lotte Lenya, Jack Gilford and the cast of the 1966 Original Broadway Cast – as well as Mark Lambert on the 1972 film soundtrack singing “Tomorrow Belongs to Me”.

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What better way to celebrate summer than with a frozen cocktail of Disney Princess mania? It’s 2013’s Frozen, beloved by aspiring Elsas and Annas, reviled by parents and caretakers who threaten to lose it if they hear “Let it Go” one more time (trigger warning: you’ll hear it in this episode).

You’ll also hear:

• Love is an Open Door: a catchy romance ballad that sets up deeper questions about true love – both in the Disney tradition and in a contemporary society where women and men are navigating complicated and often contradictory relationship patterns.
• Let It Go: the power ballad to end all power ballads. Winner of the Oscar for Best Song, it’s the film’s great moment of self-actualization and release. How do we read this moment theologically? What does Elsa represent?
• Fixer-Upper, Vuelie and Summer: a strong score that incorporates elements of the Broadway tradition, Sami folk singing, and some beautiful choral writing that establishes an otherworldly, mythical atmosphere for this contemporary parable.

You’ll hear Idina Menzel, Kristen Bell, Santino Fontana, Josh Gad and the rest of the cast from the 2013 soundtrack recording.

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“A bit of madness is key to give us new colors to see.”

Today, we continue our Summer Movie Happy Hour Fizzy Summer Tour... thing... as we talk about 2016’s contemporary take on the classic film musicals of the 1940s, 50s and 60s: LaLa Land.

2016 feels like a La La Land ago. How does this film hold up almost a decade later?

We talk about:

• "Another Day of Sun" – A great opening number that sets up the world of LaLa Land (literally Los Angeles – but in the context of the election that took place in 2016, the year this film was released, what else might LaLa Land mean?)
• "Start a Fire" – John Legend’s one contribution to the soundtrack is (maybe?) the best song in the film – and gives us a different perspective on the Jazz Question, which in this film is really a question of race.
• "The Fools Who Dream" – The moment that wins Emma Stone an Academy Award – her audition song (the eleven o’clock number!) love-letter toast to creatives who refuse to compromise.

You’ll hear Emma Stone, John Legend, and Ryan Gosling singing the Pasek/Patel score from the 2016 film soundtrack.

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Continue the conversation with us on Instagram (@gospelofmt).