Papa, can you hear me? It's the last episode of our Season of Babs, and we're going out strong! That's right: today we look at Barbra Streisand's magnum opus, the 1982 film Yentl – which she both directed and starred in.   We talk about: Prayer & Texts:  What it means to study sacred texts, and the critical differences between traditionally-Christian and traditionally-Jewish ways of understanding scripture. Sexuality & Gender:  Is Yentl transphobic, or is it ahead of its time? Leadership & Power:  Finally, a woman at the helm of a major Hollywood film! What doe ..read more

Is it a musical? Is it a $6MM home movie? A contemporary Purim spiel? This is a weird movie, you guys. The evergreen story of A Star Is Born has attracted legendary performers like Judy Garland, Barbra Streisand, and Lady Gaga. Today, Peter and Nathan focus on the 1976 film version with Barbra and Kris Kristofferson in the context of Gaga and Garland.    We talk about: The Backstory:  Dorothy Parker, Moss Hart, David O. Selznick, Joan Didion, and all the geniuses who should have made a better movie. The Crowd:  1970s, rock-and-roll culture and the phenomenon of contemporar ..read more

It may not be a musical, but it sure is close... It's The Way We Were! It’s 1973. Watergate has happened. Barbra Streisand, Robert Redford, Arthur Laurents, and Sidney Pollack get together to re-create the weepy romcom in the non-musical—but musical-theatre-adjacent!—classic The Way We Were.   We talk about: The Conflict: Streisand & Laurents versus Pollack & Redford, and some of the behind-the-scenes drama that led to the creation of this classic. The Song: Marvin Hamlisch’s classic song that put the film on the map. The Laughter: What does it mean to sing, "so it’s the laughter ..read more

Peter and Nathan watched this movie so you don't have to! It's time for a deep cut... We’re talking about the 1970 film version of Alan Jay Lerner and Burton Lane’s very strange musical, On A Clear Day You Can See Forever – a show about a psychiatrist with terrible boundaries.   We talk about: ESP: Is there a meaningful distinction between extrasensory perception and Christian conceptions of spirituality and prayer? Reincarnation: We talk about the case of Bridey Murphy, the 19th-century Irishwoman who was purportedly reincarnated as a 20th century American housewife. What are we suppose ..read more

If you're just joining us... It's priestly, it's profane, it's the queerest thing we've ever done – it's the Gospel of Musical Theatre, the podcast that dives deep into the spirituality of musical theatre! And when we can't find any spiritual themes to talk about, we talk about the clothes and the chorus boys.   Previous seasons: Season 1:  Rodgers & Hammerstein Season 2:  Lerner & Loewe Season 3:  Stephen Sondheim Season 4:  Andrew Lloyd Weber Season 5:  Barbra Streisand Bonus episodes: Schmigadoon, Season 1 Schmigadoon, Season 2 Steven Spielberg's West ..read more

She's still glowin', she's still crowin,' she's still goin' strong... That's right: we're continuing our deep dive into the career of the great Barbra Streisand with a look at the mid-60s Broadway classic, Jerry Herman’s Hello Dolly!   We talk about: Discernment: Dolly is a woman on a journey out of grief – and is looking for her sign. What kind of a theology of discernment does the show depend on? Gender: We take a close look at Horace’s song about marriage, “It Takes A Woman” and dig a little bit underneath the surface of the show’s fun to pull apart the class and economics of male-fem ..read more

Isn’t it "people who DON'T need people are the luckiest people in the world?" It’s the Gospel according to Barbra! Today we look at the role that made Barbara Streisand's early career: the role of Fanny Brice in Jule Styne & Bob Merrill’s 1964 musical Funny Girl and the 1968 film directed by William Wyler.   We talk about: The Greatest Star: The phenomenon of the original Fanny Brice, how Barbra got involved in the project, and where the line between ego, strength, and vanity lies. The Audience: The sacred relationship between performer and audience and Barbra’s theory of audience (o ..read more

Everybody said don't, but we're doing it anyway... It's the Gospel According to Babs! We're doing something a little different this season and focusing on the musicals (and musical-adjacent) films of one of the greats, and who better than Barbra Streisand: GOAT queer diva, filmmaker, actor, and singer, who just released her autobiography My Name is Barbra.   We talk about: – The Method: Barbra’s early training in the method developed by Konstantin Stanislavski and his students in the early decades of the 20th century – and the theology of human experience it depends on. – The Albums: Stre ..read more

Schmigadoon is back on Apple TV! The second season takes us in a slightly different direction, and today Peter & Nathan explore the theology of the musicals being lovingly "spoofed" by "Schmicago" and wonder what it means that "every day can be a happy beginning." (By the way: if you missed our episode on Schmigadoon Season 1, you can listen here, or wherever you like to listen!)   We talk about: – The power of parables, and how stories can (and can’t) transform us. – The theology of the Broadway musicals of the 60s & 70s, steeped in sex & nihilism, and how Schmicago navigates ..read more

We descend into the depths of the Paris Opera for the 1986 musical phenomenon The Phantom of the Opera – one of the most successful & beloved musicals of all time, which centers around a troubling story about abuse, lust, and the power of music. We talk about: – Is the Phantom (or "Erik" as he’s known in the original novel) a serpent or a savior? – What is the relationship between Christine and the Phantom? An abusive mentor relationship, a forbidden love, an artistic partnership or a classic Gothic obsession? – How did power and patriarchy operate in the Victorian world of the Paris Opera ..read more