My ropes. My anchors. My people.

Dear Family and Friends,

     I can’t believe this is the first time I’m writing to you in 2021. Time is truly Jeremy Bearimy. First, I wish to thank you all for the outpouring of support in December. Sadly, my Grandpa Jed passed away from COVID-19 a few days after my last email. But I fully believe that your energy and prayers eased his way, and I know it eased mine. Thank you, thank you. Please, keep washing your hands maniacally, wear your double masks, don’t touch your face, physically distance. All of these precautions have proven extremely effective (especially when combined) to prevent infections and deaths. It may seem like time to let up, but you don’t stop pushing until you actually cross the finish line.

     And here we are, rounding in on a year of this pandemic in the United States. March 12 is the concrete anniversary for me—the day theatre shut down. At that time, a month-long closure felt unfathomable. Two weeks after that, I think we all realized the longer haul and yet couldn't have predicted how this current moment would feel. Truth be told, about a week ago, I hit the proverbial wall. I hear this is common. I’m here to reassure you: Yes, it is common and it is normal. To me, hitting the wall feels more like falling to the bottom of a hole. It feels despairing and isolated and inescapable. But I’m reminded of two things: the song “Clouds” and a scene from The West Wing.

     In “Clouds”, songwriter Zach Sobiech sings about how he fell down into “a dark and lonely hole” and there was his girlfriend on the edge “sitting there, holding a rope” to pull him out. In The West Wing Leo famously tells Josh a parable after Josh suffers a trauma and clearly needs help: “This guy’s walking down the street, when he falls in a hole. The walls are so steep he can’t get out. A doctor passes by and the guy shouts up, ‘Hey you can you help me out?’ The doctor writes a prescription, throws it down in the hole and moves on. Then a priest comes along and the guy shouts up, ‘Father, I’m down in this hole can you help me out?’ The priest writes out a prayer, throws it down in the hole and moves on. Then a friend walks by. ‘Hey Joe, it’s me can you help me out?’ And the friend jumps in the hole. Our guy says, ‘Are you stupid? Now we’re both down here.’ The friend says, ‘Yeah, but I’ve been down here before and I know the way out.’”

     We’ve all been to the bottom of the hole and we also all know the way out. We have to lean on each other and accept each other’s help. We have to offer help when we feel strong and ask for it when we feel weak. No surprise, when I felt that despair creeping in—feeling overwhelmed, missing my friends and human interaction, craving theatre, reaching for the phone to call Grandpa remembering he’s not there—my girlfriends rescued me. They lowered the rope, they jumped in and showed me the way out. I am so deeply grateful to them; especially because I know that’s not the last time in my life I’ll be there and need their guidance. Moral: Hold tight to your people and let them be your people.

     With their support—and yours—I’ve actually had the strength to line up exciting projects in my post-Playbill life. Season 2 of Why We Theater is in planning mode; listen to Season 1 if you haven’t yet! The CT Jewish Ledger featured me last month and the Hartford Courant will soon publish a piece, as well, as I spread the word about the podcast. If you’ve listened, I’d love to hear your thoughts about it (tweet me, DM me, email me) and please tell your friends. Word of mouth is powerful, necessary, and deeply appreciated. I’m also working with 92Y on a new event series (more info to come soon). Follow my socials for real-time updates! In the writing arena, I’m working on a piece for Parents, my old stomping ground, and one for a think tank known as Food Tank. I’ve also been collaborating with the theatre department at Stockton University, chronicling this semester’s artistic residency with playwright Charly Evon Simpson and the development of her play While We Wait. This week, I also participated in a panel by Barnard Women in Entertainment (details below) that you can watch beginning Saturday.

     I know it’s a tough time. Give yourself permission to fall into the hole if you need to, and be sure to accept help climbing out when you’re ready. Give yourself a Day of Joy (see below). Get your vaccine when it’s your turn; this will protect you and everyone else. Know I’m here with you in all the ups and downs. Hopefully this month’s event calendar and Ruthie’s recommendations will keep you in the ups. Until next time. Love and all that jazz, Ruthie

My 92Y Talk with the five Tony-nominated performers of the smash hit musical.

Mark Your Calendar

25 Years of RENT: Measured in Love

Available through March 6

$25; New York Theatre Workshop

In honor of the 25th anniversary of the Broadway production of Jonathan Larson’s RENT, New York Theatre Workshop (the rock opera’s birthing ground) produced what is essentially the official RENT documentary. Featuring interviews from director Michael Greif, NYTW artistic director Jim Nicola, Jonathan’s sister Julie Larson, and nearly the full original cast, the 90-minute celebration tells the story of RENT from conception to its impact today. The most magical moments include tape demos by Larson and footage of him from the ’90s. There’s not a lot of new information for the deepest of RENT fans or those who attended the 20th anniversary panel at BroadwayCon, but it is moving to hear it all told linearly and produced to the highest quality. The filmmakers also wove in “machine messages” from NYTW artists and big names of musical theatre and new versions of a few songs. Ben Platt’s “Without You” will leave you in puddle form.

The Comeback Project

Streaming now

Free; Broadway Podcast Network

Director Sammi Cannold (Evita at City Center, Ragtime on Ellis Island) returns from her travels in South Korea, where she worked on productions of Cats and The Phantom of the Opera DURING THE PANDEMIC. In this new conversation series, she gathers professionals from other countries to find out what we can learn from their experiences of re-opening theatre.

Entertainment on Lockdown: How COVID Has Changed the Industry

Premieres March 6; then streaming on demand

Free; RSVP here or watch on YouTube

Barnard Women in Entertainment sponsors this panel discussion as part of the 2021 Athena Film Festival. I’m joined by Kelly McCreary (Maggie on Grey’s Anatomy!) and Kelli Herod (Smithsonian Channel) to talk about the impact of COVID on the different entertainment spheres. I’m your theatre representative and proud to be. To hear our thoughts, watch here.

ALSO: Use the code AFFLISTTIX to get $10 tickets to any film in the Athena Film Festival.

Unremarkable! A Melissa Li & Kit Yan Concert Special

Premieres March 7, 8pm ET

Free; Eventbrite

Melissa and Kit have become friends of mine ever since meeting them at the Dramatists Guild Foundation gala a couple of years ago. I featured their song “Unremarkable” in Playbill’s Pride Spectacular concert and they just recently won the Kleban prize. There are a lot of exciting projects coming up for them, so get to know them NOW. The concert will feature performances by Ruthie Ann Miles (The King and I), Marc delaCruz (Hamilton), Stephanie Hsu (Be More Chill), Gianna Yanelli (Mean Girls), Kuhoo Verma (Octet), and more.

Fierce Thursdays: Benj Pasek

March 11, 7pm ET

Free; 92y.org

Dear Evan Hansen composer-lyricist Benj Pasek joins Rabbi Sandra Lawson for this free conversation and Q&A, as Benj talks about his upbringing and career in this series celebrating the queer Jewish experience.

Women’s Day on Broadway 2021

March 12, 1pm ET

Register at womenofbroadway.com

The fourth annual industry event goes virtual and features two panels this year: Broadway Moms and Broadway’s Second Act. Panelists include Tanya Girl, Laura Benanti, Vanessa Javier, Julia Jones, Karen Olivo, and Maria Manuela Goyanes, Alia Jones-Harvey, Tali Pelman, Eva Price, and Aaliytha Stevens.

Remember Broadway?

March 12, 7pm ET

$40; Buy tickets here

This 90-minute party commemorating the one-year anniversary of the shutdown will feature games, Broadway trivia, and live performances from Krystina Alabado (Mean Girls), Alysha Deslorieux (Once On This Island), Christine Dwyer (Wicked), Ben Fankhauser (Newsies), Gina Claire Mason (Wicked), Stark Sands (Kinky Boots), and Ryan Vasquez (Hamilton, The Wrong Man).

The Bridges of Madison County Reunion Panel

March 15, 8pm ET

Free; YouTube

The Jesse Walker show reunites the cast and creative team members of one of the sexiest musicals ever to hit Broadway. Kelli O’Hara, Steven Pasquale, Hunter Foster, Derek Klena, Caitlin Kinnunen, Marsha Norman, Bartlett Sher, and Jason Robert Brown. The conversation takes place as a benefit for The Actors Fund.

Passing Through

March 15-April 4

$25; Goodspeed On Demand

I am beyond stoked for this. My dear, dear friend Eric Ulloa wrote this musical with Brett Ryback based on the true story of the man who walked across the United States  from Pennsylvania to California collecting stories from the fabric of our nation. Thanks to Goodspeed’s new streaming service (whaddup home state!), we can watch this archival recording from a fully realized live performance…in a theatre…with an audience.

Amplify 2021

March 29, 8pm ET

Free, donations suggested; Register at maestramusic.org

Kate Baldwin (Hello, Dolly!) directs the spring concert featuring women musicians of Maestra. Hosted by Brooks Ashmanskas (The Prom) and Andrea Burns (In The Heights), the evening will include performances from Ashley Park, Nikki M. James, Brandon Victor Dixon, Tanya Birl, Kenita Miller, Shelley Thomas, Eva Noblezada, and Reeve Carney, along with appearances from Anais Mitchell (Tony Award-winning creator of Hadestown), Kirsten Childs (OBIE Award-winning creator of Bubbly Black Girl), Helen Park (Lortel Award-winning creator of KPOP), Rona Siddiqui (Larson Award-winning creator of Salaam Medina: Tales of a Halfghan), Britt Bonney, Kristy Norter, Dionne McClain-Freeney, Meg Zervoulis, Kat Sherrell, Nicole Rebolledo, Maestra founder Georgia Stitt, and an appearance by Bernadette Peters.

Broadway Backwards

Premieres March 30, 8pm ET

Streaming On Demand through April 3

BroadwayCares.org/Backwards2021

The annual Broadway Cares concert event goes digital. One of the best events on the Broadway calendar, this year’s Backwards stars Jay Armstrong Johnson and Jenn Colella in a show that mixes new virtual performances and numbers from past Backwards shows. Expect performances and appearances by Stephanie J. Block, Deborah Cox and Lea Salonga, plus performances and appearances by Matt Bomer, Darren Criss, Ariana DeBose, Robin De Jesús, Cynthia Erivo, Joshua Henry, Cherry Jones, Kelli O’Hara and Jim Parsons.

Recommendations: 

*If these recommendations inspire you to check out something new, I’d love to know! Tag your post about it with #ruthierecommends.

1. Ted Lasso. This new series from Apple TV+ is delight embodied. I am simply smitten with it and if you haven’t watched the 10 half-hour episodes, get ready to blow through them. From the creator of Scrubs and Jason Sudeikis (who also stars in the titular role), the premise begins with Rebecca, who inherits her cheating ex-husband’s premier football team (the English kind) in their divorce settlement. She is dead set on running it into the ground in order to break her ex’s heart the way he broke hers, since football is all he cares about. So she hires a Southern-bred American college football coach named Ted Lasso to hop across the pond as her ignorant accomplice. The show gets its heart from Ted. It is as sweet as it is endearing. The players are a beautiful mess of personalities. Hannah Waddingham (who plays Rebecca) is a three-time Olivier nominee and brilliantly balances the “villain” and what it even means that the scorned woman is a villain. (Also yes there is eventually singing.) If you don’t love Keeley (Juno Temple), we can’t be friends. I belly-laughed multiple times per episode. I also just want all male friendships to be as earnest as the ones Ted cultivates. But mostly, Ted Lasso is television that feels good right now. You can’t beat that.

2. Ginny & Georgia. This new drama hurts so good. Antonia Gentry and Brianne Howey play the two leads, respectively. Georgia is the 30-year-old mother to 15-year-old Ginny and nine-year-old Austin. As she says, “We’re like the Gilmore Girls, but with bigger boobs.” But this series is a far cry from the cheery innocence of Stars Hollow. Georgia and her two kids move to Wellsbury, Massachusetts, after Georgia’s husband (stepfather of Ginny and Austin) dies in a car crash. As Ginny explains in her opening monologue, the trio has always been on the run and that her mother taught her that sex (and life) are about power. Through flashbacks to her own teenage years, we learn that Georgia ran from an abusive home when she was 15, only to fall into more traps laid by other men. But Georgia is fierce, smart, and always one step ahead. Her daughter, not so much. After growing up in 12 different cities, Ginny has never had friends. But Wellsbury is different. Creator Sarah Lampert is a damn genius in her depiction of the ecstasy and the despair of being a teenager. She made me desperately want to go back to high school and never go near one again. She offers one of the most authentic portrayals of racism in schools—the kind we don’t think of as racism until we’re staring at it on a Netflix screen—as well as the complexities of navigating sex, relationships, town politics, and hierarchical suburban society. But it is twisty. By the end, I wondered: How different are predator and prey? Let’s just say, Netflix recommended Riverdale right after I finished. Buckle up. (Trigger warning: domestic violence, violence against women, self-harm.)

3. Red, White & Royal Blue. If you’re looking for steamy without the side of scary, this romance novel is for you. Author Casey McQuiston imagines an epic romance between the First Son of the first woman President of the United States (if only) and the Prince second in line to the British throne. I devoured this book. Though it’s certainly sexy, McQuiston also offers an exploration of sexuality without heavy handed-ness and an interesting reflection on fame culture and identity. And yes, it’s also really fun.

4. Howard. Disney+, what would I do without you? You brought me High School Musical: The Musical: The Series. You unlocked the nostalgia of my childhood with your full catalogue of 2D animated, DCOM, and Pixar films. Then you barreled into my life with Soul, and you brought back Brandy Cinderella (yes, it holds up!). Still, I was not prepared for Howard, the moving documentary about Howard Ashman. The documentary paints the portrait of the man who revived Disney animation through musicals. The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, all him. Interviews from his sister and mother underscore black-and-white photos and shuttering video of his childhood. Stories from his friends describe the founding of the WPA Theatre, where he and Alan Menken birthed Little Shop of Horrors. We go deep into his partnership with Menken—from God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater to Disney Animated Studios. But nothing took my breath away like the footage of Angela Lansbury, Jerry Orbach, and Richard White in the recording studio and Paige O’Hara in the recording booth as Belle asking, “you want provin-chill, right?” Dead.

5. The Social Dilemma. It’s been a documentary kind of time for me. I loved the four-parters on Hillary and Framing Britney Spears on Hulu. I finally braced myself for impact and turned on this Netflix doc about the doom and gloom of social media. The producers did a phenomenal job reaching the top players in this field, the men who invented the platforms (Facebook, Google, Twitter, YouTube), features (the “like” button), and algorithms (next suggested video queues) that run our lives. It wasn’t as terrifying as I thought. Though it's not an upper, there’s something cathartic about naming these things. About knowing where they came from—who they came from—and why these people designed these tools the way they did. For anyone who enjoyed my podcast’s episode on "Octet and Internet Addiction" (Episode 2), this is necessary supplemental consumption, in part, because there is a way to recalibrate and set digital tech and social media on a healthier and more helpful path. See: Center for Humane Technology.

6. Broadway Lullabies. Aaron Lazar (The Light in the Piazza, The Last Ship, A New Brain) released this beautiful album in December. A roster of Broadway stars—each of whom is also a parent—sing soothing arrangements as lullabies to their children. You haven’t lived until you’ve heard Patina Miller’s rendition of “Not While I’m Around.” The record also features original Mary Poppins Ashley Brown singing “Stay Awake/Feed the Birds”, Kelli O’Hara’s “Goodnight My Someone”, and Lazar's take on "Dear Theodosia" with Adam Jacobs. Your baby (or, let’s be real, you) can drift off to the sounds of Tony winners.

Playbill/BPN calendar. Craving theatre? There are galas and conferences and classes and Zoom readings and streams galore. Find ALL of them in this streaming calendar from Playbill and the Broadway Podcast Network.

My Philosophy

I believe in art's power to create change. Art—particularly theatre—can help us reflect, determine, and, sometimes, change our beliefs. I hope that you all continue to engage with the storytelling and art around you—wherever you are and whatever level—and that you entertain different points of view. Advocate for your principles while always leaving room to hear others and evolve. Let's stay engaged, thoughtful, and active. 

As always, if you need show recommendations or if you have theatre questions, please get in touch! I LOVE to answer. Keep tabs on Playbill.com and RuthieFierberg.com, and thank you for your enduring support.