Category Archives: The Speakeasy Chronicles

Posts about my musical “Speakeasy – the Adventures of John and Jane Allison in the Wonderland”

CINS CHAT CORNER INTERVIEW

Posted on November 15, 2020 by dannyashkenasi

Friday, November 13th, I recorded an interview with Cindy Mich from Art is Alive, which she has now posted on her Blog Talk Radio webpage and YouTube (see below). We talked for nearly 90 minutes about my short film musical … Continue reading →

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OOO! LOOK AT THE LIGHT!

Posted on January 19, 2019 by dannyashkenasi

Pics with a Touch of Light plus a complimentary light-hearted music quiz   Light Music Query #1: Which musical features this dance into the light? (as ever, the answers are tucked into the tabs below)   Above, my gym’s basement … Continue reading →

Posted in Arts-a-Poppin', Melodies Linger On, The Speakeasy Chronicles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

LIGHT ENTERS THE HOME – with a “light”hearted music quiz

Posted on February 7, 2018 by dannyashkenasi

  I’ll have a picture with my puzzle, please Longtime visitors to my site will have noticed that I love sharing photos, under the “Two-fisted Touristing” rubric, of scenic vistas from around the world or places and events in New … Continue reading →

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“HOT MESS” MALE BISEXUALS “TORCHED” OFF BROADWAY

Posted on December 4, 2017 by dannyashkenasi

Hot Mess – Torch Song – Call Me By Your Name – Cabaret – Speakeasy By a quirk of timing I wound up seeing two days in a row the two stage plays currently playing in New York (Off Broadway) … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema Scope, LGBTQ Alphabet Soup, Live! On Stage, The Speakeasy Chronicles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Young Lovers’ Path to Speak Easy

Posted on June 25, 2017 by dannyashkenasi

Two Fawns in the Wood Dance into the Light   Maybe it’s just a dream.  Maybe it’s real.  Maybe it doesn’t matter either way.  For the shame and the betrayal are felt just as acutely. In the musical Speakeasy, an … Continue reading →

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SPEAKEASY – The Irony of the Young Lovers’ Duets

Posted on June 22, 2017 by dannyashkenasi

Curious Colorful Night – It’s a Dream – Momentary Bliss Three lovers’ duets that are not what they seem to the ear Ah, young lovers’ duets.  A hallmark of musicals, especially those of the 1920s and 1930s, and so of … Continue reading →

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SPEAKEASY – Advice from a (Lesbian) Caterpillar

Posted on June 19, 2017 by dannyashkenasi

Two songs from “Speakeasy” explore two sides of a closeted 1920’s lesbian For many years I hoped to write a musical about the queer subculture of Roaring Twenties New York, but didn’t find my “in” until I came upon the … Continue reading →

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On the Anniversary of My Father’s Death

Posted on March 27, 2017 by dannyashkenasi

My father, Abraham Ashkenasi, died on this date last year.  Above is the last picture I took of him, the last day I saw him in person. It was February 16, 2016.  Two days earlier my mother called me to say … Continue reading →

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Emma Thompson Tackles Tricky Tuplets in “Beauty and the Beast”

Posted on March 19, 2017 by dannyashkenasi

This weekend the Disney live-action remake of the 1991 Disney animation classic “Beauty and the Beast” made a big splash with audiences, critics, and, especially, the box office.  I saw it Friday and was completely enchanted.  The movie smartly recreates in … Continue reading →

Posted in Beginnings, Cinema Scope, Melodies Linger On, The Speakeasy Chronicles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Speakeasy Highlight Reel

Posted on February 19, 2017 by dannyashkenasi

It’s the one year anniversary of the workshop performances of “Speakeasy – John and Jane’s Adventures in the Wonderland“.  To mark the occasion, here are some screen shots of the Speakeasy Highlight Reel, a 13 minute edit of selections from … Continue reading →

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SHADOW & LIGHT – an exploration in pictures and music

Posted on December 16, 2016 by dannyashkenasi

Shadow and Light – Danny Ashkenasi (from the musical Speakeasy) Today I will share some photos I have taken over the past few months that feature a play of light and shadow in a diverse variety.  I’ll complement these images … Continue reading →

Posted in Arts-a-Poppin', Melodies Linger On, The Speakeasy Chronicles, Two-fisted Touristing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

NfaC Pride Month Repost: THE NEARLY INVISIBLE BISEXUAL MALE

Posted on June 4, 2016 by dannyashkenasi

June is Pride Month.  So I thought I should make my first post of the month a post that deals heavily with LGBTQ issues.  And although my many posts related to my musical Speakeasy almost invariably deal with LGBTQ issues, … Continue reading →

Posted in Beginnings, LGBTQ Alphabet Soup, The Speakeasy Chronicles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

SPEAKEASY – Douglas McDonnell sings “Dance into the Light”

Posted on May 31, 2016 by dannyashkenasi

The tenor Douglas McDonnell sang two songs from Speakeasy at last weekend’s Lower East Side festival at the Theater for the New City: “Dance into the Light” and “All You Are”.  Unfortunately technical difficulties got in the way of recording … Continue reading →

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BUONA MUSICA; ON NUOVO INTRIGANTE MUSICAL – Mario Fratti reviews Speakeasy

Posted on April 17, 2016 by dannyashkenasi

The Italian playwright Mario Fratti, most famous for the musical “Nine”,  writes about New York Theater for the Italian publication OGGI.  And he included a nice little write up on Speakeasy in one of his recent articles.  A copy was … Continue reading →

Posted in Notes in the News, The Speakeasy Chronicles | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

KICKSTARTER REWARDS MAILING

Posted on March 24, 2016 by dannyashkenasi

Yesterday Kelly Aliano and I got together to put together the mailing of Speakeasy Reward gifts (T-Shirts and Booklets and Posters, oh my!) to those Kickstarter contributors to the showcase production of Speakeasy who weren’t able to pick up their … Continue reading →

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NfaC Double Repost: BREAKING INTO SONG IN MUSICALS

Posted on March 21, 2016 by dannyashkenasi

Time for another Notes from a Composer rerun, or repost, this time a double feature from last April on the convention of breaking into song in musicals, and how cleverly the movie version of Cabaret subverted that convention.  This post … Continue reading →

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