Fun
Knit to This: David Byrne
Dear Kay,
“Babies’ brains have hundreds of millions more neural connections than we do as adults,” David Byrne tells us early in his show, American Utopia, now running on Broadway.
By the end of the show, I’m pretty sure everybody in the audience has regained at least a few of those lost neural connections.
I had the chance to see this last week with my two lads, who are in their early twenties.
By the end, everybody’s dancing, cheering, self-consciousness gone. It’s a performance that turns a room full of mostly middle-aged, mostly tired Talking Heads fans into a bunch of happy babies.
The visuals are astonishing in their simplicity: from Maira Kalman’s stage curtain to David Byrne and his musicians all dressed in pale gray suits, feet bare—the coolest marching band you ever saw.
The band is loaded with percussion and dancers and joy—constantly in motion like a Busby Berkeley musical for the modern age. The music is a wall of sound. By the end of it, you think you can pretty much solve some problem. You at least got to dance like nobody’s watching. Even your two boys loved it.
The Sunday Morning profile up top gives you a glimpse of it all. The show runs through February 16 if you find yourself in New York.
Love,
Ann
Thank you so much for posting this clip – I went to NYC just to see this show and the clip has me in tears of joy again.
Oh, would I love to see this show in person! Thanks so much Ann for updating me with what Byrne is doing now. I was in school with those folks! I’m digging out my old CDs, getting in the car and turning up the volume, like i used to. Love it.
Thank you for posting. I saw this show in St Pete, FL and by far it was the best show I have ever seen. And I see 20 plus a year. He is a genius!
If you can’t make it to Broadway, there’s more David Byrne joy to be had on Netflix, in John Mulaney and the Sack Lunch Bunch. Shoulder pads ahoy!
Good to know about the show on Netflix. Video won’t play in Canada but I’ll see if there’s something’s ng on You Tube. BTW Knit to this is one of my favorite things about MDK- about half way through Cheer, last week’s recommendation. (Actually I love all things MDK.
What a great start to Saturday morning. I saw America Utopia – the concert tour when the album released.. Similarly by the end of the concert everyone was standing, dancing and having a great time. Now- on to listen to some more music by David. and try the Netflix suggestion!
We saw this show in Durham. Now I wish I could see it again! My sister and I try to get to any show that David does in the area.
My husband and I are headed to NYC from Denver to catch the show on one of its final days and I cannot wait! Even more excited now after your glowing review. Thanks!
This. This is why I love MDK. I watched Stop Making Sense for the first time in over 20 years about a month ago on Amazon Prime and had the best time knitting and watching that movie again. And then you show up with this! Maybe it takes too little but you have made my day!
This just puts me in the happy zone! Saw the concert tour unexpectedly: leaving work, I walked by the tour buses as one of the percussionists got off with a book in his hand. Asked him what he was reading (Zola Neale Hurston) and told him I’d followed David Byrne’s music
since RISD days. When he heard I wasn’t going because of ticket prices but was just happy they were in town, he went to the box office and got me a Row 2, center stage ticket. Much dancing ensued!
What a great story! 🙂
Isn’t it great that some of us* get to grow older and older and keep creating and expanding and doing and becoming? Love to see it. Thanks for sharing this.
*humans
Sadly can’t see this clip in Aus but it sounds amazing…wondering if he’ll bring the show here?
Thank you so much for this clip. Love you MDK.
I saw American Utopia in December, kind of on a lark. And it was the best thing I have ever seen! The show was described somewhere as part concert, part vision quest and part WTF. But it was all about joy in my book. Glad that it will be returning to Broadway next fall.
OMG!!!!!!!! Clicked on the link to watch–fabulous. But it took me down the rabbit hole an I’m back after an hour of clicking and watching tons of other music videos. When you hear all the talent out there it makes me incredibly happy–and hopeful. Thanks for always sharing things that make my day.