Scene to Song

Shoshana Greenberg

Hosted by writer Shoshana Greenberg, Scene to Song brings on a guest to talk about a musical, musical theater writer, or a topic or trend in musical theater. Theme music by Julia Meinwald.

  1. JAN 29

    Texts as They Age: Rent and Falsettos as Period Pieces with Deborah Blumenthal Ep. 131

    "We watch a Holocaust play and we know that all of these people are gonna die. We watch an AIDS play and we know how badly it's gonna turn out." So what does it mean for a musical to be a period piece marked by tragedy? In this Season 9 premiere of Scene to Song, host Shoshana Greenberg sits down with dramaturg Deborah Blumenthal to explore how musicals like Rent and Falsettos have transformed from contemporary stories into historical texts. They examine these iconic Broadway shows through the lens of the AIDS crisis, discussing how audiences experience them differently now than when they first premiered. The conversation also features an analysis of "New York" from the 2024 West End musical Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York). In this episode, you'll hear about: How Rent and Falsettos function as AIDS-era period pieces The evolving audience relationship with tragic historical musicals Deborah's dramaturgical approach to reviving classic shows Her upcoming production of Heartbreak Hotel What makes a musical become a "period piece" You can write to scenetosong@gmail.com with a comment or question about an episode or about musical theater, or if you’d like to be a podcast guest. Follow on Instagram at @‌ScenetoSong and on Facebook at “Scene to Song with Shoshana Greenberg Podcast.” And be sure to sign up for the new monthly e-newsletter at scenetosong.substack.com. Contribute to the Patreon. The theme music is by Julia Meinwald.

    1h 16m
  2. 10/21/2025

    Parody in Musical Theater (Ep. 127)

    BethAnn Freed Cohen joins Scene to Song to discuss parody in musical theater. We discuss “what exactly is a parody?” and what it means in musicals. We dig into what elements make a good parody, using examples such as Gilbert and Sullivan's The Pirates of Penzance and the episode “Original Cast Album: Co-op” from the show Documentary Now! As BethAnn notes, ” there are musicals that are funny but are not parodies and there are musicals that copy styles but are not funny.” We also talk about the Stephen Sondheim and Mary Rodgers song “The Boy From…” from 1966 revue The Mad Show. You can write to scenetosong@gmail.com with a comment or question about an episode or about musical theater, or if you’d like to be a podcast guest. Follow on Instagram at @‌ScenetoSong and on Facebook at “Scene to Song with Shoshana Greenberg Podcast.” And be sure to sign up for the new monthly e-newsletter at scenetosong.substack.com. Contribute to the Patreon. The theme music is by Julia Meinwald. Music played in this episode: ”With Cat-Like Tread, Upon Our Prey We Steal” from The Pirates of Penzance ”I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major General” from The Pirates of Penzance ”The Element Song” by Tom Lehrer ”My Home Court” from “Original Cast Album: Co-Op” ”I gotta go” from “Original Cast Album: Co-Op” ”Holiday Party (I Did a Little Cocaine Tonight)” from “Original Cast Album: Co-Op” ”The Boy from…” from The Mad Show

    1h 9m
4.7
out of 5
29 Ratings

About

Hosted by writer Shoshana Greenberg, Scene to Song brings on a guest to talk about a musical, musical theater writer, or a topic or trend in musical theater. Theme music by Julia Meinwald.