Ohio

(Music: Leonard Bernstein | Lyrics: Betty Comden and Adolf Green | Arrangement and Conducting: Brendan Milburn)

Billie Wildrick, Vocals

THE ORCHESTRA:
Brad Allison (Flugelhorn and Trumpets), Dane Anderson (Clarinet, Flute), Tom Dziekonski (Violin), Virginia Dziekonski (Cello), Stuart Hambley (Trombones), Kimberly Harrenstein (Violin), Chris Monroe (Drums), Brendan Milburn (Piano), Rick Neff (Viola), Jennifer Nelson (Bass Clarinet, Clarinet), Dave Pascal (Bass), Antonio Portella (Bass Trombone), Derek Smith (Bassoon, Clarinet, English Horn)

By the mid-2000s, I had moved back to Seattle from stints in LA and NYC. I had opportunities here that seemed too good to pass up, but I didn’t even have my Actor’s Equity card. We have a 2000-seat, 1920s-era theatre, The 5th Avenue, which locally produces musical theatre. It is kind of an outrageous idea as most of these large, historic venues around the country only host national touring shows, not locally produced shows with a local subscriber base.

David Armstrong and Bill Berry, a married couple who have been leading the theatre artistically for over twenty years, took a chance on me. They came to the late, great Empty Space to see me in a musical spoof called Ming the Rude. Of course, the night they came, I had hurt my foot and was in a wheelchair trying to re-create the choreography just with my arms—nice! That did not stop them from casting me in the Leiber and Stoller review Smokey Joe’s Cafe.

The next show I did at the 5th was Wonderful Town. It is not produced much; there are some clunky parts (a football number?). But it captured my heart. It was based on the play My Sister Eileen with a score written by Leonard Bernstein for Rosalind Russell, who was not a singer, so the whole part of Ruth Sherwood was pitched in the basement. It is a true contralto part and I got to lead a company of incredible artists playing opposite Billie Wildrick as my younger sister Eileen.

“Ohio” is comedic song about missing the small community that the sisters ran from; both Billie and I grew up in small towns and deeply related to this song, which made us cry each night when we sang it to each other.

Billie is a true polymath who has gone from a young ingenue star to a singer of mature depth, a theatre director, a producer, and a community leader. I love that we bonded as theatre sisters long ago. A special shout out to my old friend Brendan Milburn who I met when we were freshman at the Claremont Colleges. He did the arrangements for twenty-two instruments for all the musical theatre songs on the record.