Song, dance fuel ‘ Crazy’ CW adventure.....................................
Rachel Bloom kicks open the sports bar’s double doors, climbs onto the bar, drops a plate of fries on her head, crawls across tables past giggling girls in Scout uniforms, wipes down a table, wipes her hands on a busboy’s shirt and threatens a dining couple with a knife.
Now that’s a dance. The imaginary scene and the aggressive defensiveness of the lyrics she sings — “I’m a good person, yes, it’s true; I’ma good person, better than you” — explain the sometimes tilted mind of Rebecca Bunch, Bloom’s title character in CW’s dark musical comedy, Crazy Ex- Girlfriend. It also helps explain the knife. Semi- delusional thinking can lead to unorthodox actions for Rebecca, a talented New York lawyer whose chance meeting with long- ago boyfriend Josh ( Vincent Rodriguez III) leads her to leave her job and follow him to suburban West Covina, Calif. Rebecca, whose impulsive move signals personal issues as well as the common ailment of being crazy in love, must adapt to a new environment that features an initially hostile paralegal colleague ( Donna Lynne Champlin) and a prospective suitor ( Santino Fontana).
As Internet star Bloom rehearses the dance, she modifies it with choreographer
Kathryn Burns. The 28- year- old singer/ dancer/ songwriter goes for an amped- up table- wiping move: “I just like the frantic- ness.”
There’s nothing frantic, however, about the preparation that goes into creating the lyrics, music and choreography. Bloom, Burns, executive producer Aline BroshMcKenna and music producers Adam Schlesinger ( Fountains of Wayne) and Steven Gold meticulously produce song- anddance numbers such as I’m a Good Person, whose catchy pop hook belies the insecurity behind Rebecca’s boast.
“When someone says, ‘ You’re a terrible person,’ she’s very defensive because she fears it might be true,” Bloom says during a break. “This song ( reflects) that she is so defensive about being a good person ( that) she does the antithetical thing, which is be horrible.”
Each episode of Crazy, CW’s only new fall show ( inherited after Showtime passed on the pilot), will include two or three original production numbers.
“The songs have to fit in with the emotional stories of the show,” says McKenna
( The DevilWears Prada).
After the two develop a song concept that fits the story, Bloom works on music and lyrics with a group that includes Schlesinger, Gold and writer Jack Dolgen. Musical styles include sexy pop, bubblegum pop, ’ 30s music, Bollywood, Disney and country. Accompaniment can range from synthesizers and drum machines to a 19- piece orchestra.
Bloom sometimes delivers the songs almost fully formed, with title, lyrics and even amelody.
For Good Person, “I wrote something based on her title and some of her jokes,” Schlesinger explains. “Originally, it was almost a punk- pop kind of song. Then we decided to make it a littlemore pop R& B, like Pharrell. It’s got a little Hey, Mickey in it, too. We decided to make it a little more bouncy and retro.”
Bloom then works with Burns on the dance routines.
The completed numbers will serve as “emotional tent poles” reflecting Rebecca’s ups and downs, Bloom says. “We pick emotionally heightened moments and find the funny in that.”