• The Origin of 'At The Gala'

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    Apparently the animators of the show like to parody existing musicals!

    This is similar to what they did with Art of the Dress, which was based on another musical called Putting it Together.

    Both the original and the Gala songs are below the page break.





    Saturday, May 7, 2011 op
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    64 comments:

    1. AnonymousMay 7, 2011 at 11:22 PM

      Kind of blew my mind there.

      Now my head is full of apples.

      ~Scratch

      ReplyDelete
    2. AnonymousMay 7, 2011 at 11:24 PM

      I love when animators actually have a taste in music and apply it to their shows.

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    3. AnonymousMay 7, 2011 at 11:25 PM

      Mmmm, classy!

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    4. AnonymousMay 7, 2011 at 11:27 PM

      Here's hoping for more quality musical homages in Season 2!

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    5. CaliBronyMay 7, 2011 at 11:27 PM

      The musical director must be a Sondheim fan...

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    6. AnonymousMay 7, 2011 at 11:27 PM

      I knew it! I totally knew it!
      I performed that musical in High school. The second I heard that music I could place the song. I was actually a little annoyed that the snatched the music from it.

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    7. DraxMay 7, 2011 at 11:29 PM

      Dammit, I knew that song was familiar... My school did Into the Woods in High School. This explains everything.

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    8. EricMay 7, 2011 at 11:29 PM

      Heh. When we watch it on Friday, the second the Gala song ended, my wife laughed and started singing "Into the Woods"
      (it is, after all, one of her favorite musicals)

      Between this and Art of the Dress, seems like the pony crew (or at least Ingram) are Sondheim fans.
      Nice taste.

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    9. Peaches n' CreamMay 7, 2011 at 11:32 PM

      This comment has been removed by the author.

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    10. AnonymousMay 7, 2011 at 11:32 PM

      I don't believe it's called Art of Success; I think the song is "Putting It Together" from Sunday in the Park with George.

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    11. LiaMay 7, 2011 at 11:32 PM

      Stephen Sondheim? Approve, muchly.

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    12. Peaches n' CreamMay 7, 2011 at 11:33 PM

      When I first heard this I could have sworn at Twilight's part (2:28) that when she said "It is going to be so special as she takes" I swore she was going to say my virginity XDD Am I the only one?!

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    13. LiaMay 7, 2011 at 11:33 PM

      Also, though, it was 'putting it together', not Art of success, wasn't it?

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    14. D. ShadowsMay 7, 2011 at 11:33 PM

      Can someone comfirm for me that they used part of robotech opening music in 'Cutie Mark Chronicles'?

      I've been on a nostalgia bender lately watching ducktales.

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    15. My Little Pony NewsMay 7, 2011 at 11:34 PM

      "Art of Success"? Isn't it "Putting it Together" from the musical "Sunday in the Park with George"?

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    16. NinestempestMay 7, 2011 at 11:35 PM

      @Anonymous
      This is correct; IIRC the verses in Art are similar to msot of Putting It Together, or the chorus is the same as everything. But yeah.

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    17. AnonymousMay 7, 2011 at 11:36 PM

      Same here, Drax. My HS did Into the Woods for the school musical as well a couple years ago.

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    18. BejotyMay 7, 2011 at 11:36 PM

      Yup, caught that on my first run through! ^^
      My high school performed that musical two years ago~

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    19. AnonymousMay 7, 2011 at 11:36 PM

      I knew I recognized that! I love Sondheim. As do the writers, apparently.

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    20. Cereal VelocityMay 7, 2011 at 11:38 PM

      My bad! I fixed the mistake on the other musical.

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    21. BejotyMay 7, 2011 at 11:39 PM

      Apparently a lot of us had that in our high school experience. Cultural education win? xD

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    22. AnonymousMay 7, 2011 at 11:47 PM

      Yep, first thing that popped into my mind when I watched the episode, and my school performed it too, didn't know it was so popular.

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    23. AnonymousMay 7, 2011 at 11:59 PM

      Derpy is on line for Applejack's treats, near the beginning of the line, as wall-eyed as ever. See 0:34 on the "Gala" video.

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    24. AnonymousMay 8, 2011 at 12:03 AM

      this explains why it sounded so familiar

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    25. TotalOverflowMay 8, 2011 at 12:05 AM

      It's weird... On the one hand, I'm kind of cheesed that the song-writers for MLP used other songs as templates for their own, but on the other hand, it does show their musical taste is 'well-bred', and their versions are so much better IMO anyways, that it kind of balances out.

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    26. AnonymousMay 8, 2011 at 12:09 AM

      I KNEW IT I KNEW IT I FUCKING KNEW IT! I CALLED THAT SHIT AUGH I FEEL LIKE SUCH A NERD AND YET AWESOME AT THE SAME TIME FOR GETTING THE REFERENCE...I APOLOGIZE FOR THE CAPS LOCK!

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    27. lifegospelMay 8, 2011 at 12:15 AM

      I knew it sounded familiar, especially because I just auditioned for that show last week.

      (MFW I realize I used the same song, and how big an idiot I am for not noticing it earlier.)

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    28. AnonymousMay 8, 2011 at 12:18 AM

      Correction: the sentence reads "This is similar to what they did with Art of the Dress, which was based on another musical called Putting it Together."

      It should be: "This is similar to what they did with Art of the Dress, which was based on the song Putting It Together from the musical Sunday in the Park with George".

      Also, I kept on saying "To get the money, to meet the king, to sell the cow, INTO THE WOOOOOODS" during the airing of this song.

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    29. AnonymousMay 8, 2011 at 12:19 AM

      yeah...that was what i really noticed, the ending. "to sell, to keep, to wed, to have the child, etc. etc."

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    30. FrankMay 8, 2011 at 12:22 AM

      Confound these ponies, they drive me to high school nostalgia!

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    31. AnonymousMay 8, 2011 at 12:24 AM

      Yup, I knew it could not just be a coincidence "at the gala" sounded so much like "ever after."

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    32. BenMay 8, 2011 at 12:25 AM

      I love it when writers do this. Loved it with WB and their cartoons (Tiny Toons, Animaniacs, Pinky and the Brain and Freakazoid) love it now with Hasbro studios.

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    33. ErynMay 8, 2011 at 1:03 AM

      I wondered! I knew it sounded a little familiar, and then definitely raised a brow when they said "into the gala" near the end. Glad to see my suspicions confirmed.

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    34. princess chuchiMay 8, 2011 at 1:33 AM

      It isn't the animators as much as it is the composer (who is brilliant), the writer and the storyboarder.

      (original song is great, but really lacking without Rainbow Dash's rock chorus!!!)

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    35. AnonymousMay 8, 2011 at 2:06 AM

      the more i listen the more i like that song.

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    36. AnonymousMay 8, 2011 at 2:53 AM

      Moulin Rouge did the same thing with other songs and that's one of my favorite things to watch. "El Tango De Roxanne" gets me every time.

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    37. AnonymousMay 8, 2011 at 3:06 AM

      They sure got good taste!

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    38. Mysterious, Disembodied VoiceMay 8, 2011 at 6:58 AM

      In drama, it was a tradition to watch 'Into the Woods' once a year.

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    39. Midnight ShadowMay 8, 2011 at 7:02 AM

      It always makes these songs 20% more awesome (at least) when I find out where such things "come from"

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    40. Springtime BluesMay 8, 2011 at 7:16 AM

      You know I'm gonna call it 'At the Gala' is way better.

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    41. RidleyMay 8, 2011 at 7:35 AM

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpM4KDxUg_0
      -cough-My mashup of the two-cough-

      ReplyDelete
    42. NaxtsMay 8, 2011 at 7:59 AM

      Oh wow. I thought that at the gala was just a piece of musical genius that the composers came up with.
      I'm kindda mixed about this. I love how they used such a great piece to make their song, but I also kindda wished it was a bit more original

      At the Gala still a great song. I already played it like 20 times on my Ipod XD

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    43. EwyndallMay 8, 2011 at 8:52 AM

      Am I an uncivilized barbarian if I prefer the Gala version over the origianl? :(

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    44. RolloutMay 8, 2011 at 9:01 AM

      I knew I recognized that melody.

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    45. AnonymousMay 8, 2011 at 9:43 AM

      Into the Woods doesn't have the Rainow Dash solo. No contest.

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    46. mbulshtMay 8, 2011 at 11:18 AM

      The "Art of the Dress" song is based on "Putting it Together," a song from the musical "Sunday in the Park With George," by Stephen Sondheim (writer/composer of popular musical "Sweeney Todd"). It's one of my favs, you should all check it out!

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    47. AnonymousMay 8, 2011 at 11:44 AM

      I knew that I had heard this song somewhere. It's great that they have good taste in music! :D

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    48. AnonymousMay 8, 2011 at 12:22 PM

      Ha, I've actually seen that show! Gosh, this is mid-90s level of cartoon quality.

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    49. AnonymousMay 8, 2011 at 12:36 PM

      What about "Winter Wrap Up"? WHen I first saw that (the song, not the entire episode) on YouTube, it struck me as classic musical/operatic staging.

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    50. uberPhoenixMay 8, 2011 at 12:40 PM

      Specifically, Art of the Dress is based on Barbara Streisand's version of Putting It Together. If you compare all three songs, AotD matches the Streisand one much better than it does the Sondheim one, even though all three of them are good songs.
      Original (Go to around the 5:00 mark.): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJFz-ucuTvs

      Barbara Streisand: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uwV1Wf8tUo

      Another version featuring John Barrowman and Carrol Burnett, so unrelated, but awesome: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-836TtoF_5I

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    51. TibekMay 8, 2011 at 1:53 PM

      I KNEW IT. So glad it wasn't just me catching that! :D

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    52. AnonymousMay 8, 2011 at 4:21 PM

      Everytime I hear Bernadette Peters singing I picture the voice coming from an adorable little cat.. you know the one!

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    53. LachlanMay 8, 2011 at 4:36 PM

      I FREAKING KNEW I HEARD THAT SONG BEFORE! I even looked for it in into the woods! hahahaha

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    54. Tim_KangarooMay 8, 2011 at 6:20 PM

      Impressive! Yeah, it was a swipe -- but at least they swiped from one of the best!

      And it was a great way to cap off Season One.

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    55. AnonymousMay 8, 2011 at 11:33 PM

      I knew it. My old high school did this show my junior year. I knew At The Gala (especially the ending) seemed very similar to this song. I gotta say though, they did a good job.

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    56. AnonymousMay 9, 2011 at 12:20 PM

      I really hope they base some of the music for next season on Sweeney Todd songs.
      Just as long as they don't get Pinkie Pie to sing A Little Priest or Epiphany. We don't need another reminder of things best forgotten.

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    57. AnonymousMay 9, 2011 at 6:38 PM

      I knew it! I knew I recognized it from somewhere. 8D Just couldn't place it.
      I hope they have more musical refs like this one in the future. ^-^

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    58. QuentinMay 11, 2011 at 9:24 AM

      @Anonymous

      B-but, Sweeney Todd songs would be -perfect-. My 8th grade music teacher introduced us to that play, and brought us to a show! I loved the movie rendition, I would giggle endlessly at hearing similar in Ponyville. <3

      ReplyDelete
    59. AnonymousMay 12, 2011 at 11:35 AM

      The Sweeney Todd song that might match MLP the best by melody is Pretty Women (sung by Fluttershy). By title, the best match would obviously be My Friends (as long as you drastically change the lyrics and tone).

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    60. TalesMay 19, 2011 at 7:57 AM

      I haven't been caught up on ED in awhile.
      But I KNEW IT!
      Totally called it. When I heard the At The Gala song, I was totally thinking...this sounds familiar...
      Shortly after I realized why.

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    61. JamesMay 19, 2011 at 8:36 AM

      @aramaru
      Rita, amirite?

      Yes, chalk me up for Into the Woods high school nostalgia (Never performed it, but we saw it in class.) I knew there was some inspiration.

      ReplyDelete
    62. AnonymousMay 20, 2011 at 6:14 AM

      Yeah...these Sondheim-based crowd songs are quite a step above the treacly songs from the old "My Little Pony and Friends" cartoon (and also even above those from "My Little Pony Tales"). However, I have a couple ideas for possible crowd song-type big musical numbers...one I'd really like to see on a future episode of MLP:FiM (or at least in a fanfic or fanart thereof) would be a lovely rock anthemic musical number inspired by USA For Africa's "We Are The World", set in a recording studio, featuring the six core ponies, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Spike (yes, even Spike for the first time would be participating in a musical number), and several background ponies, one of whom could be Knight Shade (from the origianl cartoon) and others pony versions of actual singers such as Elton John, Bruce Springsteen (Springsteed), Stevie Wonder, etc. Another would be a Beach Boys-inspired musical number similar to the "Goin' To The Beach" crowd song from an episode of "Sabrina: The Animated Series".

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    63. AnonymousJune 20, 2011 at 4:43 PM

      Thank goodness I wasn't just imagining it! I looked it up immediately as soon as the song finished, too! I was like, wow, that sounds...familiar...

      And I didn't know the Art of the Dress was based off a song, too - I'll have to look it up.

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    64. AnonymousAugust 13, 2011 at 8:35 PM

      we did this play in High school. then when I watched the episode I spent forever trying to figure why that song was so familiar! it all makes sense now.

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