Do You Hero the People Sing? (feat. Doug Reside)

A cape, a sponge, and a big question: what makes a superhero musical fly? We put It’s A Bird, It’s A Plane, It’s Superman (1966) side by side with The SpongeBob SquarePants Musical (2017) and trace how Broadway turns comic book logic and cartoon chaos into real character arcs, zany jokes, and genuinely smart songcraft. After we discuss each show and run our Tech Check, rating each show's scientific plausibility, we welcome Doug Reside, curator at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center. Doug breaks down how theater archives work, what you can actually view at NYPL, and how recording technology helps decide which musicals become widely known over time.  If you’re into sci fi musical theater, Broadway history, cast recordings, and the weird joy of watching a genre mashup commit to the bit, hit play. Subscribe, share this with fellow theater nerds, and leave a review with your pick for the most underrated superhero musical.Show Notes:Get Doug’s BookWatch the 1975 Superman TV specialWatch the 2013 Encores Performance of SupermanFind the Spongebob TV special:Paramount+AppleTVYouTubeNYPL Links:Digital Collections (search for Superman photos in Mary Bryant Papers, etc)Research Catalog (search for everything else)Michael Friedman Reading of The StrangerAcross A Crowded Room 2020 Videos:Jonathon's Show (The Carousel of Inevitability and Certain Foreboding)Andi's Show (Rejected)Send us Fan MailSupport the showYou can find us on most social media by searching:  sci-fi musicalsCheck out our Patreon (for early access and EXCLUSIVE CONTENT!!!) Follow our blog at scifimusicals.com. We love comments. Follow us and listen every month for The Sci-Fi Musicals PodcastLike and subscribe. Tell your friends! Thanks! Andi & Jonathon