Show: Pushing Daisies season 1 & 2

4.5/5 for a completely unique theme (and narration)!! I'm tired of cop, hospital, workplace, and gangster shows..... it seems like that's all there is on TV these days (and will continue for a very long time). Fortunately, Pushing Daisies is different (was different...aarrggghhhh). This is a show about a piemaker, Ned, who has a special gift of bringing people back to life. But this gift is also a bane because if he brings dead to life for more than 60 seconds, someone else has to die in its place! How do they die? "One touch they're alive, another touch and they're dead again" You might think that's absurd, but wait until you watch it!!

QUIRKY, bizarre, unique, funny, joyful.....that's this show. Jim Dale, the narrator (from Harry Potter audio books in US) does a perfect job, as always, particularly with the frequent alliterations. Even the visual design is quirky....like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Bright colors and costumes, geometrical set design, and obvious (and purposeful) CGI help in conveying the series' theme.

Thanks to the dumb audience of crappy reality shows, Pushing Daisies is now pushing daisies.....I'm gonna miss the Darling Mermaid Darlings....

Broadway: Mamma Mia!

Who doesn't like the 70's Swedish group? I love ABBA songs, and all of them at a Broadway musical...I could barely sit in my seat!!! You can dance, you can jive, having the time of your life.....

Okay, I'll stop there, I promise!! I loved the show for its music, its energy, the lighting, for the actors, and a touch of craziness. If you haven't seen the show or the movie, here's how the story goes:

Donna's (Carolee Carmello in this show) daughter, Sophie (Brandi Burkhardt) is getting married and wants her father to walk her down the aisle. Unfortunately, she doesn't know who her father is and narrows it down to 3 potential dads after reading her mother's diary. She invites all three, Harry (Ben Livingston), Bill (Pearce Bunting), and Sam (Timothy Booth for this show), to the wedding without telling her mother....and can you imagine the drama? The show's other characters include Sophie's fiance, Sky (Chris Peluso), Dynamos from the band Donna and the Dynamos, Rosie (Gina Ferrall) and Tanya (Judy McLane), Pepper (Gerard Salvador for this show), and the ensemble.

Both Ferrall and McLane are hilarious and adorable, as is Salvador. Carmello's performance, namely her singing, is brilliant, particularly in The Winner Takes It All. Unlike other Broadway musicals, this one doesn't have an extravagant set. Everything about the show exudes happiness and energy, including costumes, which are very Boho-chic.....love them!!

My favorite scene/song is the one between Sophie and Donna, when Donna helps her get ready for the wedding (Slipping Through My Fingers). It does a fabulous job at capturing the emotions...Perhaps the best musical I've seen thus far....even better than Chicago IMO. So if you want to see a Broadway musical and haven't seen this one, go for it!!! If you're going to go for only one musical in your lifetime, this is it. If it's your first musical, this is it! If you're looking for something to cheer you up, this is definitely it!! Just one look and I can hear a bell ring, one more look and I forget everything....