wnyc.org / 93.9fm / am 820

Listen to "You're the Fool," introduced by host Dean Olsher.
Introduction: Conversation with Roy Nathanson
You're the Fool, Act I
You're the Fool, Act II
You're the Fool, Act III

About Roy Nathanson
For one thing, he composed the Next Big Thing theme song and led the band that performed it. He plays the saxophone, among other instruments. He was in the Lounge Lizards and formed the Jazz Passengers, which became Debbie Harry's band after Blondie split up. His most recent compositions include music for the film "Raising Victor Vargas." He's an actor and writer, too, and this is a story he's wanted to tell for years.

About "You're the Fool"
The play features Roy Nathanson as the character Jay, along with David Margulies as Jay's father, Bill, and Debbie Harry as his Aunt Toby. Bill, like his son, is a musician. He has Alzheimer's, which, in a way, loosens the boundaries in the family, allowing for unexpected events and communication. The play floats between past and present, dream and reality. Original music is not incidental, nor in the background, but part of how the story unfolds.

The Cast:

David Margulies is a veteran New York actor. His solo performance "In Dreams and Gimpel," based on stories by Delmore Schwartz and Isaac Bashevis Singer (translated by Saul Bellow), had an extended off-Broadway run. He appeared as Tony Soprano's lawyer on "The Sopranos" and as the mayor of New York in "Ghostbusters." Other movie credits include "Brighton Beach Memoirs," "Man of the Century," "9½ Weeks," and "Last Breath."

Deborah Harry was the lead singer of Blondie and has appeared in several movies, including "Copland" and Woody Allen's "New York Stories." She was also featured on VH1's "Behind the Music."

Characters :	Actors
Jay:	Roy Nathanson
Bill:	David Margulies
Aunt Toby:	Deborah Harry
Larry, Dr. Lipshitz, Dr. Bonner, fireman:	Tim Jerome
Hannah:	Helen Engelhardt
T.V. Announcer:	J.R. Horne
Popcorn Vendor:	Henry Leyva
Chris:	Brad Jones
Uncle Vernon, Mr. Mitchell (Chris' Dad):	Kevin Sylvan
Gladys	Joselyn Reyes
Young Larry, Young Jay	Jules Bartkowski
Mr. Santiago, Machito	Eddie Bobe
Moira (voice from the old age home)	Mary McCarthy
Additional doctors	Elizabeth Nilson, Adam Ostrow

Production
Directed by Marjorie Van Halteren
Post-production mix by Ed Haber
Music mix by Hugo Dwyer
Production coordination by Jule Gardner and Emily Botein

The Next Big Thing is radio drama. We're giving over the whole hour to "You're the Fool," written by Roy Nathanson for our show. It's more than a play with music. In a way, it's an extended musical composition … with a plot.