Barrowman as bachelor and singer

[fajrdrako]

pfyre posted an article about John Barrowman from 2002. Interesting but odd in a number of ways, the most striking being that it played the '35-year-old bachelor' angle - when Barrowman must have been with his boyfriend Scott almost ten years already at that point. Not a word about his being gay, just a parallel between him and the unmarried, presumably straight, character he would be playing.

I'm accustomed to Barrowman being outspokenly gay, the poster-boy for gay success in the entertainment industry, the Stonewall 'Man of the Year', the man who deliberately takes gay and bi roles, the man about to civil-partner his boyfriend. - Can I use 'civil partner' as a verb? I keep wanting to say 'marry', but it's 'civil partnership' in the UK. Barrowman has said clearly that he sees a difference between this and marriage, and that he is not, in fact, in favour of gay marriage. I can't quite get my head around that: I see it as a matter of equal rights in law, and a valuable thing to at least have the option of marriage the same way straight people do. But. To each his own choice.

It remains surprising for me to see any kind of article about Barrowman that talks about his life but doesn't talk about his being gay. This article was written less than five years ago. Were things so different then?

...Maybe.

I wonder if it makes a difference that this is an American article, while most of what I've been seeing and reading about him is British.

I'm noticed that John Barrowman changes his emphasis from one interview to another - or maybe it's different emphases at different times. Lately, a lot of his talk has been about his upcoming civil partnership ceremony, understandably. (Less than a week away now.) A couple of years ago, in the Doctor Who era, he was saying that he was gay, gay, totally gay, not bi, despite playing the bisexual-omnisexual Captain Jack so convincingly. Now he's said he's maybe-sort-of-kinda bi even though he describes himself as gay, but he 'loves women' and he tells cute sexual anecdotes about himself with them, and gets photographed kissing Eve Myles. I don't think it's insincere, but I do think it is strategic PR.

And I can understand that anyone might enjoy kissing Eve Myles.

... On another topic (but still John Barrowman), I was thinking this morning about how I have said since about the age of twelve that my favourite singer is Andy Williams. (Not that I always or often have the nerve to say it out loud. Not a popular choice with my generation.) Then thinking of John Barrowman singing Moon River, which I was listening to yesterday thanks to the magic of YouTube, and comparing it to Andy Williams singing Moon River, which was one of his theme songs - you know, I like Barrowman's voice better. Andy Williams might just have been supplanted in my affections, after forty-mumble years of loyalty. That's quite a feat.

Comments

[jonquil.livejournal.com]

Actually, he does. He just wrote a passionate letter to the Times, bless him, objecting to a revival being referred to as "Sondheim's Company" when the credit should equally be given to George Furth, who wrote the book.

Company gets revived fairly often because the score is so great.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I am sure that Sondheim cares about the writer getting credit, and I suspect that he actually does care about the story - but his musicals do tend to be based on strong themes, rather than strong stories, and when I think over his greatest successes, all appeal to me for their music, not their storyline. (It may be that he and I just have different notions of good writing and storytelling.) I don't mean this to disaparage his musicals, but none of his works are on my short list of 'favourite musicals' for that reason. Great songs, though.

[jonquil.livejournal.com]

::holds up lighter::

Oh, *I* think his books by and large suck. It's just that he doesn't. I always hoped he'd collaborate with Stoppard. They both have puzzle-y minds.

Sondheim is my favorite post-'50s musical writer, by leagues and leagues. And I think *Follies* and *Assassins* are both genius; they work on all levels. Your opinion is entitled to vary, even though it is clearly wrong. *g*

I saw *Bounce* in Chicago, on its pre-Broadway tryout. (It closed before Broadway.) Now there was a truly unsalvageable book.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

*I* think his books by and large suck. It's just that he doesn't.

Yup, that's about it.

I always hoped he'd collaborate with Stoppard.

I think that would be amazing.

And I think *Follies* and *Assassins* are both genius; they work on all levels

I can't argue with that because I've never seen either. I've heard, and enjoyed, the music.

I've barely even heard of "Bounce". What, a musical about fabric softener?

Bounce

[jonquil.livejournal.com]

Well, you haven't heard of it for good reason...
Great concept. Srsly. Two legendary American conmen, the Mizner brothers. Fortunes made, fortunes lost, the invention of the Palm Beach architectural style. *Irving Berlin* wanted to make a musical about them.

Didn't work.

http://www.sondheim.com/news/bway_loses_its_bounce.html

Re: Bounce

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

What an interesting story about a musical. My goodness - it sounds as if it was cursed by an evil stepmother at birth!