Words Music
Composer Zina Goldrich and lyricist Marcy Heisler bring cabaret show to two Metro Detroit venues.
LYNNE KONSTANTIN
Special to the Jewish News
I
like your dress," is always a great entree to starting up a conversation with a
stranger. And to have the compliment returned can only mean one thing: This
must be the beginning of a beautiful friendship. In the case of Marcy Heisler
and Zina Goldrich, it has proven to be not just beautiful but of great consequence.
In 1992, Goldrich was something of a celebrity at New York City's BMI
Workshop, a performing rights organization for songwriters, composers and music
publishers. Long Island-born Goldrich, who had attended BMI when living in
Manhattan, was now working as a staff songwriter for Disney's feature animations in
Los Angeles and dropped in on a class while in town.
Sitting next to her, Heisler, a lyricist born and bred in the suburbs of Chicago,
paid her the fateful compliment. The two went out for coffee after the class. Then
they ordered dessert. Soon it was dinnertime, and they found a restaurant so they
could keep talking — and eating.
At the end of the evening, the new friends were making plans for brunch the fol-
lowing day. "It was really like we had each found a long-lost friend," says Heisler.
"We still find a lot of things to talk about. And we still eat a lot."
A year later, the new friends began writing songs together, with Goldrich compos-
ing the music and Heisler writing book and lyrics.
Since then, the pair has evolved into the dynamic duo of Goldrich and Heisler,
spending their time on- and off-Broadway, at Carnegie Hall and collecting awards,
including ASCAP's Richard Rodgers New Horizons Theatre Award.
Newest Collaboration
This month, they will bring their most recent collaboration, The Marcy and Zina
Show, to the Detroit area for performances at Temple Beth El in Bloomfield
Township and the Kerrytown Concert House in Ann Arbor.
The show is a lighthearted but tightly woven cabaret-style offering of original col-
laborative efforts from Goldrich and Heisler's extensive repertoire. It includes songs
from musicals they've penned together, such as Dear Edwina, a one-act musical
about Edwina Spoonapple, a teenager extraor-
dinaire from Paw Paw, Mich. (Heisler attended
Composer Zina Goldrich and lyricist
both Interlochen and Camp Walden in
Marcy Heisler: Making beautiful music
Michigan), who gives advice in her garage.
together, the pair recently were voted
"I had a really Happy Days kind of child-
"Best Knocking on Broadway's Door
hood," explains Heisler. "Twelve-year-old girls
Songwriting Team" in the Village Voice
today are waaaay more sophisticated than I
was. I think there's something to be said for
Best of1VYC
having a childhood. So we wrote about it.
"We really liked Schoolhouse Rock (the public
service educational animated vignettes airing during Saturday morning cartoons
from 1973-85) and wanted to do something along those lines," Heisler continues.
"So we pitched it in Hollywood, where we had great feedback. But they didn't
J'N
know what to do with us," says Heisler. "So we brought it back to the theater, which
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WORDS & MUSIC
on page 57
2005
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