Quote of the Day

Most second acts [in musicals] begin with something virtually expendable: the song that has nothing to do with anything…The authors feel an obligation to welcome you back in for Act II in a way that suggests the worst is, perhaps, over—”Welcome back, dear audience,” they seem to be saying. “We’re really here to entertain you after all. We’re glad you stayed, and we hope you are, too.” Theater makers today tend to refer to this moment as “one for nothing”—a gift to the audience, and, in some cases, to the songwriters as well.

—Jack Viertel, The Secret Life of the American Musical