spotlight
always can do something at the piano that doesn’t require the orchestra because I
like to mix it up, as they say. This program will be different and I think in some ways
better than the one we did in Pittsburgh.
Rage: Are you performing “Don’t Fence Me In?” That’s not a typical Cole Porter song.
MF: It’s interesting because the scope of what he did is so much more than “Love
For Sale” and “You’re the Top.” Not to say that those are not phenomenal songs,
they are, but people tend to stereotype him. The thing that made him great and
made him lasting is that he could write any kind of song.
Rage: Now, you are also involved in an adaptation for the stage of The Thomas Crown Affair
and also a musical called The Gold Room (about heiress Barbara Hutton). How is that going
so far?
MF: That’s correct. The Gold Room is only two characters. There are only two
people in the cast. It’s something that I’ve worked on for a couple of years. We had
a reading of the work about a month ago with Victoria Clark and Jonathan Groff
who was in Spring Awakening. It went very well. We are doing some changes and
rewriting as inevitably happens with the journey of a musical. I’d say we are about
midway with that project. We’ll have several more readings before we are ready
to put it on its feet.
With The Thomas Crown Affair, we’re still somewhat early in the writing stage. It’s
something that will be a large cast, even though it is primarily about two people.
It’s a very exciting challenge. I’m loving the process and very excited about seeing
the eventuality of hearing people.
Rage: I had no idea that you were also a songwriter. I always associated you performing
songs from the Great American Songbook.
MF: It’s something that I only did very occasionally because I was living in the
shadow of all of these other writers. Of course, they had written so many things
definitively I thought, ‘who needs me to write a song?’ Eventually, I came to the
realization that if there is a desire to express that creative voice, to express it and
not to judge it, then if some people like it… it’s great. You hope for the best but I
had to overcome the intimidation factor.
Now, I’m just doing it and we’ll see how the material is received. I’m not worried
about it; I love the process…that’s what makes it so exciting for me.
Rage: You’ve really had a marvelous career path so far.
MF: I’ve been lucky in that I always sought out the creators of the songs and the
performers connected with them through a passion. It was my passion that made
it possible for me to meet all these people and to have something to talk about
when I met them. It was a love for what I was doing and a love for the songs that
led me on this journey. If I hadn’t had that passion, I wouldn’t be where I am now.
Rage: You also have a PBS series that you are hosting. I don’t know the title, just read that it
was called Michael Feinstein: Man on a Mission. Is that the right title?
MF: I don’t know that we have a definitive title. It’s certainly not called Man on
a Mission. I think that’s a terrible title, unless it’s a 1960s spy series with Patrick
Macnee and a score by Neal Hefti (Laughter). I don’t know what we’ll eventually evolution and in our history—and how essential it is to keep them alive in these
call it. The content of the show is about the Great American Songbook and how it days where culture is dying in one sense. And on the other hand, thanks to the
is the fabric of our whole country. Even though a lot of the music emanated from Internet, there is so much more availability of things that were once so obscure.
New York and Hollywood, the songs are the songs of our nation. How the music The overall arc of the show is to show the influence of this music from generation
came from Indiana with Porter and Carmichael, songwriters came from Detroit to generation and how it’s still so deeply important for all of us.
and Chicago and Madison, Wisconsin along with various other places. How this
music affected people throughout the country. Irving Berlin said, “Music makes Rage: It’s been a great pleasure. I look forward to seeing you in concert.
history and history makes music.” These songs are so intrinsically important in our MF: Thank you, Bill. I’m really looking forward to being there.
52 RAGE monthly | APRIL 2009
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