PS Classics co-founders (and husbands) Philip Chaffin and Tommy Krasker will share the stage June 26 for the debut of Chaffin鈥榮 new solo show, Will He Like Me?, at Coachella Valley Repertory in Palm Springs.
Drawn and expanded from Chaffin's 2018 Bistro Award-winning album of the same name, the 80-minute, one-act show consists of 29 classics of the Great American Songbook, songs originally performed by women and now reimagined for the marriage equality era.
Krasker, whose first New York job was rehearsal pianist on the original production of Nine, will accompany Chaffin at the piano.
Will He Like Me? charts
a gay man navigating a series of relationships, from first date to
final farewell through song. Chaffin鈥檚 2018 album鈥攚hich
included 鈥淲hen I Marry Mister Snow,鈥� 鈥淗appiness Is a
Thing Called Joe,鈥� 鈥淎n Occasional Man,鈥� and "Man With a Load of Mischief"鈥攈as been augmented with 12 additional theatre songs.
Chaffin says in a statement, 鈥淲e always hoped that the album would become a stage show,
but it called for a whole lot of rethinking. On the album, the storyline
was left to the listener鈥檚 imagination. Here
we see the man go through five distinct relationships鈥攅ach with a
beginning, middle, and end鈥攁nd that took us years to figure out,
because we wanted to stick to songs that men
wouldn鈥檛 or even couldn鈥檛 sing just a decade or two ago. The new songs
include even more classic songwriters: Cole Porter and Frank Loesser and
Jerry Herman
and Burton Lane鈥攑lus two John Bucchino songs I鈥檝e always loved, that
were introduced by Liz Callaway and Andr茅a Burns on albums we ourselves
released.
"It鈥檚 funny: in 2018, the album felt like a celebration of new freedoms," he continues. "Now, when LGBTQ rights seem in danger again, the show gets me very emotional. Getting onstage and telling a gay man鈥檚 love story through classic theatre songs鈥攁nd doing it during Pride Month鈥攊s very moving. I was actually rehearsing 鈥楲ovely, Lonely Man鈥� last week when we heard that Richard Sherman had died. I thought that never in a million years鈥攚hen I was growing up in Louisiana鈥攄id I imagine that someday I鈥檇 be singing that on a stage, and not have to change 鈥榤an鈥� to 鈥榞irl鈥� or something like that. I think Palm Springs is the perfect place to premiere the show鈥攁nd I鈥檓 so thrilled that Coachella Valley Rep invited me to do it. It feels liberating鈥攁nd important at this time鈥攖o sing these songs honestly.鈥�
Chaffin and Krasker plan to have the new songs orchestrated later this summer, then head into the studio, record them, and add them to the original album, so that the new stage version is available on disc. They also hope to perform the show鈥攁 hybrid of a musical and a concert鈥攁t cabaret spaces and stages across the country.
The show is part of Coachella Valley Repertory鈥檚 Summer Cabaret Series, which also includes Melissa Errico, Faith Prince, and Ken Page.
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