People Are Wrong!

Infobox Musical
name= People Are Wrong!
subtitle=


caption=
music= They Might Be Giants
lyrics=
book=
basis=
productions= 2004 Off-off-Broadway
awards=

"People Are Wrong" is a 2004 Off-Broadway musical written by Robin Goldwasser and Julia Greenberg, and stars John Flansburgh, Robin Goldwasser's husband, from the band They Might Be Giants. It played Off-Broadway at the Vineyard Theatre from October 22, 2004 until December 11, 2004.

The show tells the story of a young New York couple who move to the country upstate and are tormented by Xanthus, a cult leader posing as a gardener/landscape artist. The story is told entirely in music, most likely making this musical a rock opera.

Background

In an interview on [http://www.gothamist.com/archives/2004/11/12/john_flansburgh_songwriterperformer.php www.gothamist.com] , John Flansburgh said People Are Wrong! was originally conceived as a concept album much in the vein of wp|Jesus Christ Superstar (film)|Jesus Christ Superstar, with the couple in the play based on him and Robin. While he was involved in the early idea stage of the concept, as it evolved he took a background role giving minor suggestions as well as lending a hand in production. Robin Goldwasser and Julia Greenberg continued the concept development and writing on their own, only later asking the two Johns to lend their talent when the concept became a play and they needed help with booking, filling the role of Russ, and an accordion/sax player. An interesting note: John says that while acting is a different kind of performance than music, People Are Wrong! was not his first time as an actor. In the 80s he was in a performance art group called Watchface.

Typical song order

*I Know What I Saw Part 1 - Chainsaw Dick
*The Meeting Song - The Disciples, Chainsaw Dick, Joyce the Agway ManagerCar Alarms / How Our Garden Grows Part 1 - The Homeowners
*At The Agway - The Agway Staff
*Our Wedding - The Homeowners
*Perennials - Joyce
*Ponytail - Xanthus
*Who Is This Xanthus? Part 1 - The Homeowners
*Xanthus Saves - Joyce, The Homeowners, The Disciples
*How Our Garden Grows Part 2 - The Homeowners
*Chainsaw Dick - Chainsaw Dick
*Life Is Like A Boomerang - Xanthus, The Disciples
*Elizabeth X. Oliphant - The Homeowners
*Dear Old Plants - Xanthus
*I Know What I Saw Part 2 - Chainsaw Dick
*Dimension Six Rock - The Vision
*The Gravel's Coming With Us - Xanthus, The Disciples
*Who Is This Xanthus? Part 2 - The Homeowners
*Xanthus, I'm Getting Nervous - Joyce, Xanthus
*Xanthus Fucked Us - The Homeowners
*People Are Wrong! - Disciple Olivia, Xanthus
*What World Do You Live In? - The Homeowners, Xanthus
*You'll Regret A Killing Spree - Xanthus, The Disciples, Chainsaw Dick
*I Know What You Saw - Joyce
*Go It Alone Song - Xanthus
*Enter X. Oliphant - Elizabeth X. Oliphant, The Disciples, The Homeowners
*The Beyond Ballet - The Cast

Credits

Cast

*Chris Anderson - Chainsaw Dick
*Xanthus' Disciples:
**Sean Altman / Todd Almond - Mikey
**Connie Petruk - Katie
**Tricia Scotti - Olivia
*Robin Goldwasser - Joyce
*The Homeowners:
**John Flansburgh - Russ
**Julia Greenberg / Erin Hill - Terri
*David Driver - Xanthus
*Maggie Moore / Mary Birdsong - The Vision / Elizabeth X. Oliphant
*Stephen Colbert - Narrator

Musicians

*The Loser's Lounge:
**Joe McGinty - Piano
**Jeremy Chatzky - Bass
**Clem Waldmann - Drums
**Kris Woosley / Dan Miller - Guitar
**Jon Spurney - Guitar
*STC (Sean Altman, Tricia Scotti, Connie Petruk) - Vocals
*John Linnell - Accordion, Saxophone

Crew

*Julia Greenberg and Robin Goldwasser - Writers
*David Herskovits - Director
*John Flansburgh - Producer
*Joe McGinty and Jeremy Chatzky - Musical Directors
*Jody Ripplinger - Choreographer
*G.W. Mercier - Set Design
*Mattie Ullrich - Costume Design
*Lenore Doxsee - Lighting Design
*Brian Speiser - Sound Design

Reviews

* [http://theater2.nytimes.com/2004/11/05/theater/reviews/05peop.html?ex=1167368400&en=c903076d814fcd2f&ei=5070 NYTimes review]
* [http://www.villagevoice.com/music/0237,sotc,38239,22.html Village Voice review 1] , [http://www.villagevoice.com/theater/0445,feingold3,58260,11.html review 2]
* [http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117925473.html?categoryid=33&cs=1 Variety review]
* [http://www.curtainup.com/peoplearewrong.html CurtainUp review]
* [http://www.nysun.com/article/4382 New York Sun review]
* [http://www.talkinbroadway.com/ob/11_04a_04.html Talkin' Broadway review]
* [http://nymag.com/nymetro/arts/theater/reviews/10398/ New York Magazine review] (brief)
* [http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/stage/ny-etledew4030215nov05,0,7063150.story?coll=ny-theater-headlines Newsday review]
* [http://www.broadway.com/gen/Buzz_Story.aspx?ci=501974 Broadway.com review]
* [http://www.theatermania.com/content/news.cfm/story/5311 Theater Mania review]

External links

* [http://peoplearewrong.net/ "People Are Wrong!" official website - *no longer active]
* at