If you’re new, welcome! I’m Caitlin and this is my newsletter. I hope it gives you a minute of respite from the news and maybe even a laugh. You deserve it.
Hey fam,
This week’s embedded video, An American Musical, is a very silly sketch I wrote for our Second City Conservatory show back in 2020. My Lin-Manuel Miranda impression is essentially nonexistent, but I hope you like it anyway!
Anyone who knows me knows that I love musicals of all kinds - golden age musicals, rock musicals, book musicals, film musicals, biographical musicals, you name it. And I’m not the only one: the 2018-19 Broadway season saw over 14 million attendees, and that’s not including touring, international, or local productions. It’s true that musicals are more commercialized than other art forms like straight plays or the symphony; just look at Disney’s hold on Broadway. But they’re also more accessible (engagement-wise, not affordability-wise). Between story, music, lyrics, dancing, set design, and effects, the sheer amount of entry points means it’s easy for people to find something they like.
Yesterday G and I were lucky enough to see The Book of Mormon, a musical I’ve loved since I was a teenager. The first time I heard the soundtrack was in high school, on a CD that my friend had burned. Following his directions, I plugged headphones into the stereo so as not to disturb the other members of my house with the impending barrage of obscenities, pressed play, and discovered a genre I didn’t know existed: satirical musicals. Sophomoric humor and gratuitous expletives belie intentionally constructed lyrics and composition that mimic other prominent musicals, making the show not only a parody of religion but of musicals as an art form. For me, it was a revelation that comedy could be both crude and clever, cynical and earnest, dark and joyful. Does it have problematic areas? Definitely. But at its core, The Book of Mormon does what good comedy does: invites us to explore contradictions in ourselves and in our world, and to have sense of humor about it.
🎭 Anyway, let’s get into it.
John Mulaney hosted SNL and it was… a lot of things. The show began with a somber performance by the Ukrainian Chorus Dumka of New York. Starting off on such a serious note felt a little jarring, but the more I thought about, the more it makes sense: attempting a political cold open would have been horribly tone-deaf given the tragedy unfolding, and honoring the people of Ukraine at the very beginning of the show allowed it to maintain its lighthearted tone for the rest of the evening. As anticipated, Mulaney’s monologue addressed his publicly tumultuous past year, but with a set that felt somehow muted. A story about breaking up with his drug dealer had an appropriately fun twist, but the following bit about his newborn son felt more like a cute family story than a stand up joke.
Worth a watch: With Mulaney hosting, we got a fifth installment of his highly-anticipated Broadway parodies (did you notice this newsletter has a ~theme~?) with Subway Churro. Despite being eight minutes long, I was into the whole thing. It’s weird, it’s over-the-top, the practical effects are fun, and the cast is clearly having a blast: another slam dunk. Unfortunately, the rest of the sketches didn’t thrill me the same way. Honorable mentions go to Covid Dinner Party for pushing the envelope of the SNL formula with both its subject and style (closeups AND external clips? In the same sketch? Slow down, guys) and Podcast Set for being short, biting, and topical. The rest of the episode was a mix of cameo carousels, random filler sketches, and some solid-but-ultimately-forgettable content. Weekend Update was fun but not newsworthy, and did not feature any original characters this week.
📖 Recommended Reading
FAQ’s About Life (Arthur Meyer in Two Fifty One)
“We’re glad that you are considering Life. Before you decide if Life is right for you, please check out some of our FAQ’s.”
This piece is the very definition of “short and sweet.” It manages to say a lot in a few words, and is full of surprises that are delightful precisely because they don’t make perfect logical sense but still manage to be very relatable. I can’t figure out if this piece is the embodiment of ennui, optimistic nihilism, or just point-blank practicality, but whatever it is, it’s a vibe.
📺 Recommended Viewing
Ali Wong’s third special, Don Wong, came out on Netflix last week to mostly positive reviews. She’s still brutally honest, very graphic, and unrivaled in her ability to come up with delightfully unexpected analogies for whatever phenomenon she’s describing. Fame and fortune, however, have made Wong’s personal life less relatable, so she now turns her attention to the gendered double standards of success. While regaling us with fantasies about cheating on her husband may feel like revolutionary feminism to some, many of her brilliantly specific descriptions are used in service of generalized “men are like this, women are like that” premises that feel like they’re below her skill level. Despite these weaknesses, Wong is still charismatic, straightforward, and clever enough to pull off a third special without needing to change the formula. If you liked her first two, you’ll enjoy this high-energy hour of “angry, horny mom jokes.”
🗞️ What Happened This Week
The U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team has reached a $24 million equal pay settlement with the U.S. Soccer Federation. The Federation only backed down after the women’s team threatened to kick all their balls.
Bird flu has been detected in a non-commercial flock in Michigan, but the CDC says it does not present an immediate health concern for humans. It reminds me of middle school when a friend asked me if I’d heard about the bird flu, to which I asked “What bird? It flew where?” She just stared at me. I wasn’t a very informed kid.
🆘 3-Minute Actions
The Russian invasion of Ukraine is causing a large-scale humanitarian crisis as people attempt to flee and find safety.
Texas’ Governor and Attorney General have teamed up to try and get gender-affirming care for Texas kids classified as “child abuse.”
🌐 Things From The Internet
“(January 1972) Say this to your partner in bed: “How can something so good be so nonfattening?””
98% of Twitter may be a seething cesspool of the meanest, basest human impulses, but the other 2% is delightful and hilarious. This particular thread, about ridiculous sex tips from Cosmo magazines, is definitely worth reading, laughing at, and sending to your friends. Then check out “Sex Tips,” the satirical sketch from Inside Amy Schumer.
“Each of us has something like a “Happiness 401(k)” that we invest in when we are young, and that we get to enjoy when we are old.”
In this Atlantic article, a Harvard professor breaks down seven habits that can help ensure happiness well into your 70s. Apparently strong friendships are one of the biggest factors, so…who wants to be my friend?
“A lot of people have vivid and flexible ideas of what they could be that live inside them when they're young, and then we’re supposed to cast these notions off, and just become practical and more appropriate…”
The very end of this interview with Heather Havrilseky about her book Foreverland: On the Divine Tedium of Marriage, is especially poignant. With brutal honesty, she explores what it means to be committed to someone when you, they, and the world are constantly changing.
💰 Jobs, Auditions, & Opportunities:
I have no affiliation with any opportunities posted here! If you’d like to list something, reply to this email and let me know.
Chicago
[Improvisers/Artists/Small Businesses] Sara Holcomb says: “I am starting a show called Tea TV on Chicago Public Broadcast channel 19 where I will be featuring artists and small businesses in Chicago. If you would like to be featured or know a fellow artist/small business that should be featured, please fill out the form!”
[Employment] Chicago Super Sitters is currently looking for new sitters to join the roster for part-time gigs of all types/times.
[Employment] The reopening IO theater is is filling positions including directors, producers, technician/SMs, hosts, bartenders, servers, diversity coordinators, etc.
[Improv] Corn Productions is bringing back The Original Improv Gladiators! Teams compete in classic games against our house team as well as perform a long-form 8 minute judged set. The winning team gets a 4 week run at our theatre. Teams are required to perform either Friday from March 18th to April 1st or Saturdays March 19th-April 2nd. The top two teams of each night compete in the Semi-Finals on Friday, April 8th and the top two of that night compete in the Finals April 9th. All shows are at 8PM, teams must arrive at 7:15PM. Caitlin’s note: One of my teams did this competition back in 2020. It was a fun way to get comfortable with short form!
Anywhere
[Festival Submission] The Elgin Fringe Festival is an uncurated, multi-disciplinary arts festival, featuring dance, theater, music, visual art, and the undefined at venues in downtown Elgin (IL), September 2-11, 2022, with most performances taking place the second weekend. EFF selects artists via lottery and is not curated. 100% of ticket sales go back to the artists! Applications close Feb 28th.
… I really like sushi. 🍣
Stay classy and stay alive!
Love,
Caitlin and Frank 💁🏻♀️🐈
P.S. Time are tough. Please send cat pics.
A Momentary Musical Distraction