Jerry Herman

We’re turning to the first of two programs on this week’s Dress Circle (10/19 7:00 p.m.) that will feature some of our favorite songs from stage and screen musicals and soundtracks. Michael is up first, and he’s chosen 13 vastly different songs that really do express his rather eclectic tastes, and by no means is this even the tip of the iceberg of the list of his “favorites.”

Although it doesn't happen as much as it once did, hit songs from the musicals do occasionally make the Billboard charts, and we'll be looking at a least a dozen of them on this week's Dress Circle (10/12 7:00 p.m.). We're including three number one hits in Louis Armstrong's version of "Hello, Dolly!", The 5th Dimension's version of "Aquarius / Let the Sun Shine In" from "Hair," and "We Don't Talk About Bruno" from "Encanto."

It’s been a very strange summer so far, but it’s moving along, and we’re going to be welcoming the final full month of summer by looking at some of the shows that opened in New York in August on this week’s Dress Circle (8/3 7:00 p.m.). As we do this, we’ll be looking at shows that span 138 years of musical history.

This week’s Dress Circle (6/8 7:00 p.m.) is a return to one of our favorite topics, “Involuntary Musical Imagery” otherwise known as stuck song syndrome, sticky music, and cognitive itch, or, as the Germans call them, orhwurm. Of course, their earworms. Those pesky songs that you love to hate. You hear them, and they stay with you for a very long time afterwards.

“Every Single Moment” we find that “This Is the Moment” for several good songs from some musicals, and we’d like to ask you to “Take the Moment” and join us for this week’s Dress Circle (5/18 7:00 p.m.) when we’ll be musically “In the Moment.”

Over the years, we’ve often said that pieces were some of our “favorites,” and we do have many. We tried to wrangle them into a manageable size, but we still had enough for several programs. With this in mind, this week’s Dress Circle (2/23 7:00 p.m.) will look at some of our favorite overtures and opening numbers because we had far fewer of those than we did individual songs.

We’re a little early (and probably should be celebrating it after the fact), but January 31st is “Backwards Day,” and on this week’s Dress Circle (1/26 7:00 p.m.), we’ll turn to the musicals for songs about looking back, holding back, falling back, putting back, going back, and several more.

Sadly, we won’t be hearing from any Quokkas on this week’s Dress Circle (12/29 7:00 p.m.) even if they are said to be the happiest animals on the planet, but what we will have is a program of “happy” songs to get you prepared for a Happy New Year.

It’s time again for the ghosts to visit, and this year, we’re being visited by some Programs of Christmas Past on this week’s Dress Circle (12/22 7:00 p.m.) as we look at some listener favorites from past programs featuring songs from stage and screen musicals.

We’re continuing with our series of programs to prepare you for Thanksgiving and the holidays beyond on this week’s Dress Circle (11/17 7:00 p.m.). So far, we’ve looked at “home for the holidays,” and this week, we’re going to be looking at the things we’re truly thankful for: friends.