''Infinite Joy'' is a musical

revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatre, theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketch comedy, sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural pre ...

consisting of songs by

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

composer

William Finn William Alan Finn (February 28, 1952 – April 7, 2025) was an American composer and lyricist. He was best known for his musicals, which include ''Falsettos'', for which he won the 1992 Tony Awards for Tony Award for Best Original Score, Best O ...

. The songs are mostly material cut from Finn's earlier shows and material from works Finn was then working on. Several of the songs were included in the composer's

song cycle A song cycle () is a group, or cycle (music), cycle, of individually complete Art song, songs designed to be performed in sequence, as a unit.Susan Youens, ''Grove online'' The songs are either for solo voice or an ensemble, or rarely a combinat ...

Elegies An elegy is a poem of serious reflection, and in English literature usually a lament for the dead. However, according to ''The Oxford Handbook of the Elegy'', "for all of its pervasiveness ... the 'elegy' remains remarkably ill defined: sometime ...

''.

Productions

The revue was initially performed on various dates in September 2000 and December 2000 through 2001 at

Joe's Pub Joe's Pub, one of the six performance spaces within The Public Theater, is a music venue and restaurant that hosts live performances across genres and arts, ranging from cabaret to modern dance to world music. It is located at 425 Lafayette Str ...

, a nightclub within

The Public Theater The Public Theater is an arts organization in New York City. Founded by Joseph Papp, The Public Theater was originally the Shakespeare Workshop in 1954; its mission was to support emerging playwrights and performers.Epstein, Helen. ''Joe Papp: ...

in New York City. Finn played the piano and sang several songs. Other performers included:

Liz Callaway Liz Callaway (born April 13, 1961) is an American actress, singer and recording artist, who is best known for having provided the singing voices of many female characters in animated films, such as Anya (Anastasia), Anastasia in ''Anastasia (1997 ...

Carolee Carmello Carolee Carmello is an American actress best known for her performances in Broadway musicals and for playing the role of Maple LaMarsh on the television series '' Remember WENN'' (1996–1998). She is a three-time Tony Award nominee and a five ...

, Lewis Cleale,

Stephen DeRosa Stephen DeRosa (born June 10, 1968) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying Eddie Cantor in the television series ''Boardwalk Empire'' (2010–2013). Education He attended Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., as an undergradu ...

, Wanda Houston, Norm Lewis,

Mary Testa Mary Testa is an American stage and film actress. She is a three-time Tony Award nominee, for performances in revivals of Leonard Bernstein's '' On the Town'' (1998), '' 42nd Street'' (2001) and'' Oklahoma'' (2019). Early life Testa was born in P ...

, Farah Alvin, James Sasser, and Kristin Woodbury. The revue was performed again at Joe's Pub in November 2008, with performers Carolee Carmello, Mary Testa,

Malcolm Gets Malcolm Gets (born December 28, 1963) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Richard in the American television sitcom '' Caroline in the City''. Gets is also a dancer, singer, composer, classically trained pianist, vocal direct ...

, and Stephen DeRosa. A live recording was made at the January 2001 performance and released on RCA Victor in May 2001. William Ruhlmann, reviewing the recording for Allmusic wrote: "Finn's songs often have an "inside baseball" quality to them, revolving around the gay, Jewish world of

musical theater Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, moveme ...

. But they are often so witty, moving, and accomplished that they become universal despite themselves." On March 29, 2004, another concert of Finn's songs was performed at the

Merkin Concert Hall Merkin Hall is a 449-seat concert hall in Manhattan, New York City. The hall, named in honor of Hermann and Ursula Merkin, is part of the Kaufman Music Center, a complex that includes the Lucy Moses School, a community arts school, and the Spec ...

as part of The Kaufman Center's annual Broadway Close Up series, titled ''More Infinite Joy: The Music of William Finn''. Performers included

Betty Buckley Betty Buckley (born July 3, 1947)LuKanic, Steven A (1995). Film Actors Guide'. Los Angeles, CA: Lone Eagle Publishing. p. 55. . is an American actress and singer. Buckley is the winner of a Tony Award, and was nominated for an additional Ton ...

Raúl Esparza Raúl Eduardo Esparza is an American actor. Considered one of Broadway's most prominent leading men since the 2000s, he is best known for his Tony Award-nominated performance as Bobby in the 2006 Broadway revival of ''Company'' and for his te ...

Jesse Tyler Ferguson Jesse Tyler Ferguson (born October 22, 1975) is an American actor. From 2009 to 2020, he portrayed List of Modern Family characters#Mitchell Pritchett, Mitchell Pritchett on the sitcom ''Modern Family'', for which he earned five consecutive nomin ...

and Janet Metz. The songs were from Finn's ''

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee ''The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee'' is a musical comedy with music and lyrics by William Finn, with a book written by Rachel Sheinkin, created by Rebecca Feldman with additional material by Jay Reiss. The show centers on a fictional ...

'', ''Elegies'', ''

Falsettos ''Falsettos'' is a sung-through musical theatre, musical with a book by William Finn and James Lapine, and music and lyrics by Finn. The musical consists of ''March of the Falsettos'' (1981) and ''Falsettoland'' (1990), the last two installment ...

'', and ''

A New Brain ''A New Brain'' is a musical with music and lyrics by William Finn and book by Finn and James Lapine. Though many of Finn's previous musicals are to some extent autobiographical, ''A New Brain'' deals directly with his own harrowing experienc ...

''. A third installment, ''Even More Infinite Joy'' was presented by The Kaufman Center at Merkin Concert Hall on October 31, 2005, featuring Finn, and featured songs from his "Songs of Innocence and Experience".

Songs

*Mister Make Me a Song *How Marvin Eats His Breakfast *The Music Still Plays On *Republicans *I'd Rather Be Sailing *Hitchhiking Across America *That's Enough For Me *And They're Off *Anytime *Falsettos At the East Milford Community Center (Finn & DeRosa's spoken intro) *The Baseball Game *The Bitch and the Madonna (Finn welcomes Mary Testa & Carolee Carmello) *All Fall Down *When The Earth Stopped Turning *Tannis Root (Bill & Mary discuss parenting) *Set Those Sails *I Have Found *Infinite Joy *Stupid Things I Won't Do *Infinite Joy (reprise) *Bows

References

External links

Free music tracks from the CD (U.S.A. Only)
{{William Finn Song cycles 2001 musicals Off-Broadway musicals Revues Musicals by William Finn