New Show: Todd Alsup Channels George Michael

Crown & Anchor * 247 Commercial Street * onlyatthecrown.com

When musician Todd Alsup was a kid watching VH1, he listened to 80s pop icon George Michael, “and I thought, that’s what sexy is,” Alsup says. He hasn’t changed his mind since, and this summer he’s channeling Michael at the Crown & Anchor to showcase the range and depth of Michael’s music along with an in-depth journey through the musician’s life. “I want to be embodying him rather than impersonating him,” says Alsup. “My desire is to not talk. I use audio sound clips, videos, and then just sewing my voice into the whole. We’re doing 20 of his hits in an hour and ten minutes!” Alsup’s deep dive into Michael’s life resonates with “gay men of a certain age who hold him in their hearts. His life is such an intense LGBT story, a story of defiance and a sense of humor in the face of being outed so publicly, of not being able to talk about the death of his first love when he died of AIDS, and not letting any of it ruin his career—this is a story that makes sense for Provincetown.” The show is an immersive experience, with a “soundtrack that sounds like a dream,” says Alsup. “People who heard him have a real genuine love for him, and I hope they’ll feel the story was honored and done in a loving way.” And for those who haven’t yet experienced George Michael? “I hope they understand and are blown away by the breadth and depth of his songbook, that when they walk away they’ll want to know even more about who he was.”