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Truman Capote invented the "non-fiction novel" with In Cold Blood. Stephen Cole and David Krane could be said to have invented the "non-fiction fictional musical" in The Road to Qatar, whose original cast album has just been released. For while Stephen and David were actually commissioned to write a new musical for the Emir of Qatar, Michael and Jeffrey are the ones doing it in this 2011 musical.Cole's such a musical theater authority that it's worth joining Facebook to see his many perceptive comments about Forgotten Musicals. Here he gets in good puns about Babes in Oil-land and Dubai Bye Birdie. But there's conflict in the show, because Michael and Jeffrey are, after all, New York Jews in a land that sees red instead of rolling out the red carpet for members of the tribe. Still, in this other desert city "if you play the palace, you really do" and "if they say you're hot, you can bet it's true."Matters did get hot for the writers, because they had to glean what the Arabs liked, and how they liked it, and had to give it to them just that way. Each struggles with "all the 'Must Be's' buzzing around my head" and the realization that "they don't want it great; they just want it soon." However, mention "a la mode," and the line gets cut, because "a la" is, after all, a homonym for "Allah."It's a rare composer who can provide sharp and hummable melodies to a rash of comedy songs, but Krane does just that, down to musicalizing an Arabian movie star who plays Gypsy on his iPod. Finally the CD has a lovely song that was cut - in which Michael and Jeffrey meet and find that they have so much in common, it's a phenomenon. Any musical theater enthusiast will relate to this one.

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