The Happiest Medium

Mike Milazzo — Open Mike

by The Happiest Medium on September 15, 2011

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interview done by Karen + Stephen Tortora-Lee


Mike Milazzo – The Show from Mads Jeppesen on Vimeo.

If you’ve ever seen Mike Milazzo play the guitar then you already know what an amazing experience it is to watch him – his fingers fly effortlessly over the strings producing almost unbelievably complex sounds that are not only beautiful and powerful but raw and real.  As a songwriter Mike has the ability to find the core of what connects us all and finesse it into thoughtful words and haunting melodies.  As a singer, Mike’s voice is earnest and true; evocative and filled with emotion.  He takes you on a journey with every line he sings, and it’s not until he’s strummed his last note that you’re able to break the hypnotic spell which his music has cast over you. You only have to sit through one of Mike’s performances to know that he is one of the best musicians around.

For those not lucky enough to be able to see Mike perform in person, he’s working on getting a new album out called “The Show”.   Mike Milazzo took some time in between gigs to chat with us about what inspired him to write these songs, what the differences are between collaborating and going solo, and he finally solves the mystery of who, exactly, “Mr. Barry” is.  Read on …

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Early Risers / Night Owls … Come With Me – Help Save UNDER St. Marks

by Karen Tortora-Lee on April 4, 2011

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Linda Evangelista is the source of the oft-quoted line “I won’t get out of bed for less than $10,000 a day.” I’ve often paraphrased and said that I won’t get out of bed before six a.m. unless a number like that is mentioned. Yeah, well … how about a number like over 5 million?

Let me explain …

Horse Trade Theater Group (Erez Ziv, Managing Director, Heidi Grumelot, Artistic Director) learned today [March 30th] that 94. St. Marks Place, home to UNDER St. Marks Theater has been put up for sale at the market rate of $5,750,000.

Regular readers of The Happiest Medium know that UNDER St. Marks Theater is one of the theatres that I return to time and time again.  It’s where I first laid eyes on Killy Dwyer and Kill The Band, it’s where Alex Bond did her staged reading of Late Nights With The Boys, it’s where Penny Pollak holds Penny’s Open Mic and where Gigi LaFemme holds Revealed Burlesque. It’s where I saw Heidi Grumelot make a sock puppet into something much more in Donnie and the Monsters.  UNDER St. Marks is home to not only an army of downtown theatre artists but also to countless people who sit in the audience and shower them with love.  People like … me.

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Last Looks At The Happiest Medium In 3-D – Pull Your Glasses Out

by Stephen Tortora-Lee on November 21, 2010

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happiest party

For those of you who attended the Happiest Medium’s 1st Anniversary Party (in 3-D) you may have seen these slide shows already. They feature the great performers we had there, and some of their upcoming projects. Here is the main slide show with the normal as well as 3-D-ified images that will jump out at you if you look at them with ChromaDepth 3-D glasses.

And let me thank all our performers and sponsors one last time -

Ahmond, Monica Bauer, Charites, John Fico, Jeff Grow, Paolo Javier, Kampfire PR, Kill the Band, MTWorks, Karen Tortora-Lee, and  Franca Vercelloni,

Now to look at the slides… Continue Reading…

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It’s A Double Header Of Our Favorites – BALLS! And KILL THE BAND!

by Karen Tortora-Lee on November 19, 2010

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We’re still coming down from the amazing party that was held (in 3-D!) on Monday night – celebrating The Happiest Medium’s first year.  If you were lucky enough to be at the party you saw some wonderful performances.  If you missed it – I’ve got some great news for you.

This weekend you can get you fill of BALLS! The Testosterone Plays of Monica Bauer . . . and afterward you can get your Girl Balls fix with Killy Dwyer and Kill The Band as they open and close ALTER EGO with their avant garde comedic punk rock performance art and antics!!  If you don’t have enough balls in your life, this is the weekend to get your fill . . .

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“Kill The Band” Knocks ‘Em Dead (Frigid Festival 2010)

by Karen Tortora-Lee on March 5, 2010

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Killy Dwyer, Joe Yoga, Mike Milazzo and Bamboo Silva

Killy Dwyer, Joe Yoga, Mike Milazzo and Bamboo Silva

I thought it was a very good sign that my latest obsession, Lady Gaga’s pulsating, driving song Teeth, was blaring as I entered Under St. Marks to get ready to see Killer Killy Dwyer’s latest offering “Kill The Band” which is not just the name of her band, but which is also the name of the show that’s part of Frigid Festival 2010.  I saw it as a good omen not just because I haven’t been able to get the song out of my head these last few weeks, but more because the song is the type of song that gets down into you and makes you bop in your seat and I figured a gal who was serving up Gaga as the appetizer must have the all-you-can-eat-buffet to back it up.  Musically speaking, of course.

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