The Send in the Clowns origin story goes like so:  In 1973, right before Sondheim's A Little Night Music was set to debut on Broadway, the decision was made to give a solo number to Glynis Johns, playing Desiree.  Sondheim and Hal Prince wanted to lend voice to her character's inconsolable rage as the show wher best-laid plans and future fall apart before her eyes.  Sondheim wrote it in two days.  In explaining its dramatic origins, he says:

It’s a song of a lady who is too upset and too angry to speak – meaning to sing for a very long time. She is furious, but she doesn’t want to make a scene...So she gives up. So it’s a song of regret and anger.

I know the feeling.  So do you.

There's a practical reason behind the short phrasing and complex triple meter scheme in Send in the Clowns.  Johns had lyrical talent to spare but couldn't sustain long notes.  Sondheim got around this:  "I wanted to write short phrases, so I wrote a song full of questions."

Sound familiar?  It's a sad hallmark of recent Tennessee teams:  Inordinate depth of talent that doesn't do much in the way of Getting Somewhere.   Fans turning against each other and the team.  Inexplicable, infuriating personnel decisions on the field and in the athletic department. A Little Night Music, Sondheim explained, is written to convey ''the wasting of time and the manipulation of people.''  We can relate. 

An angry elegy for a lost cause.  How terribly perfect.

Bumped...Our dear friend Holly is looking for a little insight so if you have any suggestions make sure you touch base with her ASAP! - Paragon

Hey everybody--

I'm a contributing writer to Yahoo's new college football blog, Dr. Saturday, and one of my assignments is a weekly tailgating column highlighting big games around the country.  This week, naturally, we're focusing on USC.  I live about a mile north of campus but I'm new(ish) to Los Angeles and am in search of Trojan tailgate stories and pictures for this Friday's piece.  What better place to look than the finest group of USC fans on the web?

If you'd be interested in an email interview about your typical gameday experience, or if you have pictures you think I should include in the column, hit me up via the email address in my profile.  Thanks so much!

~H

Good evening, Volunteers--

I'm hard at work on what I hope will become a regular tailgating column on a website I'm obligated not to name at the moment, and one of the first sites I want to feature is, of course, good ol' Rocky Top.  I'm particularly focusing on the Vol Navy side of the tailgating scene.  If any of you have wild anecdotes and/or pictures of yourselves, your family or friends rocking the Orange and White on the river, and you'd be interested in being interviewed or having your shots featured in the piece, hit me up via the contact email in my profile.  Thanks so much! 

~H