In August 2021 Molly Dubin, curator of the Jewish Museum, Milwaukee, interviewed Ernie Harburg (Yip’s son) and Deena Rosenberg Harburg (Yip’s daughter-in-law) for the podcast “Conversation Starter: Over the Rainbow with the Family of Lyricist Yip Harburg” on the occasion of the Museum’s exhibit “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? Jewish Artists of the WPA.”
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BROTHER, CAN YOU SPARE A DIME?: JEWISH ARTISTS OF THE WPA
The Jewish Museum of Milwaukee’s exhibit, “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?”: Jewish Artists of the WPA, named after the Depression-era song by Yip Harburg and Jay Gorney, features creations by Jewish artists as part of the Works Progress Administration, a branch of the Federal Arts Project launched by the Franklin D. Roosevelt administration in 1935. The exhibit, running from June 17 to September 5, 2021, is originally curated from local and regional private and personal collections.
ASHLEY PARK SINGS “OVER THE RAINBOW”
Broadway singer Ashley Park did an a cappella rendition of the Yip Harburg-Harold Arlen song classic “Over the Rainbow” on The Drew Barrymore Show on Oct. 30, 2020. See it here.
CHER AND MELISSA SING YIP… FOR JOE BIDEN
Cher has contributed a slightly rewritten lyric to the Yip Harburg-Harold Arlen classic “Happiness Is a Thing Called Joe” as her pitch for the 2020 Presidential candidacy of Joe Biden. See it here. Previously, Broadway singer Melissa Errico, accompanied by Lara Downes, performed the same song for the same campaign, with her own rewrite of the lyric. See it here. Melissa and Errico have also released the track for streaming and it can be accessed here.
RANDY RAINBOW’S “JITTERBUG” PARODY
See and hear Randy Rainbow’s clever parody of the Yip Harburg-Harold Arlen song “The Jitterbug” (cut from The Wizard of Oz film) in which the singer-satirist skewers the Trump administration’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the George Floyd killing.
THE LAST LEGACY OF E.Y. “YIP” HARBURG
Phil Springer, composer of “Santa Baby,” has released a CD/DVD collection of the songs he wrote with Yip Harburg, entitled the Last Legacy of E.Y. “Yip” Harburg. He spoke with journalist Sarah Pilla, and on Oct. 15, 2020 the Palisadian-Post published an article about the project.
“DARLING OF THE DAY” Discussion
James Morgan, Producing Artistic Director of The York Theatre Company, will moderate a live panel discussion of the company’s highly successful 1998 and 2005 “Musicals in Mufti” productions of the EY Harburg-Jule Styne-Nunnally Johnson musical Darling of the Day which ran on Broadway in 1968 starring Patricia Routledge and Vincent Price. Nancy Opel and Simon Jones headed the 1998 cast; Jones reprised his role in 2005 opposite Rebecca Luker.
Joining James will be the director of both productions, Michael Montel, adapter Erik Haagensen, and theatre historian Charles Wright, with other special guests to be announced soon. The discussion will take place on Monday May 18, 2020 at 7 pm. Reservations begin at 10 a.m.
Full contact information is available at the theatre’s web site.
MICHAEL FEINSTEIN & BROADWAYWORLD.COM SHOWCASE “THE WIZARD OF OZ”
Music historian, archivist and performer Michael Feinstein appears in his personal archive to showcase The Wizard of Oz and the creators of its score, Yip Harburg and Harold Arlen in this episode of his new web series “Conversations and Music,” presented by Broadwayworld.com.
“OVER THE RAINBOW” spreads hope – again
Although California’s annual Chino Valley Unified School District (CVUSD) Choral Festival—originally scheduled for Wednesday, March 18—had been cancelled, the Chino Hills HS Chamber Singers demonstrated resilience by recording their individual a cappella portion of Yip Harburg and Harold Arlen’s classic “Over the Rainbow” in their separate homes, and through technology were able to appear together as a family again. Their harmonious performance was shared online for the CVUSD community with the goal of spreading hope and cheer during this difficult time. Even after 80+ years, it’s the song people sing in times of trouble.
DAVE SCHWEISGUTH SINGS YIP
San Francisco cabaret singer Dave Schweisguth will perform a concert of songs with Yip’s lyrics in “Here’s to Your Illusions: Songs About Life by Yip Harburg” at Martuni’s in San Francisco on Feb. 29, 2020 at 7pm. The program will consist of standards as well as buried treasures. The music director is Russell Deason.