Thursday, March 4, 2010

I know it sounds a bit bizarre....

We listened to the original Broadway recording of Camelot today at work: Julie Andrews, Richard Harris, Robert Goulet, etc. I realized that I knew most of the words:

"It's May, it's May, the lusty month of May....
Tra la! It's here!
That shocking time of year
When tons of wicked little thoughts
Merrily appear!

"How to handle a woman?"

"I loved you, once, in silence, and misery was all I knew."

It's a charming little tale about a queen who, to avoid death by burning at the stake seeks refuge in a convent after being rescued by her French lover. Ho hum. Just another day in Merry Old England.

At an early age, I was convinced that this was one of Shakespeare's stories, and when my sister who is ten years my senior purchased a set of Shakespeare volumes (lovely little blue books) from Book-of-the-Month-Club, I was shocked when Camelot was not included in the set. How could a publisher make such a mistake?!

I admitted this embarrassing fact about my childhood
misbelief today for the first time, while we pondered
What Do the Simple Folk Do?
Apparently, the simple folk
from the township Renton, of which I count myself a
former member, had some of the facts wrong. Or maybe
it was just me. This was, of course, long before I claimed
to be an English Major in college.

But back to work. We began by listening to the Woodstock album, but the jangly guitars et al. jangled just a bit too much for our delicate sensibilities. So Camelot it was.

6 comments:

  1. C'est moi, c'est moi!
    I'm forced to admit
    'Tis I, I humbly reply
    C'est moi, c'est moi!
    'Tis I!

    Three days! Three days! We just love you.

    But you must dig that it is not a fashion thing.

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  2. What fun!

    I used to hate musicals but no longer. I love "Pippen."

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  3. Bizarre = good, T. Clear (mostly?!).

    I love your juxtaposition of Camelot and 'delicate sensibilities'.

    Where is Renton, I wonder? (I'll have a look-see on Google maps.).

    Have a great weekend!

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  4. A friend of mine who reads this blog but doesn't comment, sent me this comment in an e'mail:

    The Camelot blog reminded me of a story from our Chicago days. Bob's secretary was telling him how her son was performing in Hamlet at school. Bob was duly impressed. When he asked her a little more about his role she said,
    oh yeah, not Hamlet - Camelot. We continue to use the two interchangeably.

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  5. Once upon a time I loved this musical far more than I do now. Sad.

    Love, C.

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  6. Well, C., just look at it as your taste having improved. Camelot has one truly great song ("If Ever I Would Leave You"), Richard Burton's memorable finale, a very good B'way belter in "C'est Moi," and then a lot tuneful fluff that often comes up short in the lyrics department. Compared to other Lerner & Lowe work, it ain't "My Fair Lady." Nonetheless, IMHO Camelot is still one of the few post-1960 musicals worth hearing.

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