Changing Lives

It's Frank DiLella with New York One's onstage We are here for the opening night of Eleanor!: The Eleanor Roosevelt musical Let's talk process When I'm in character I go insane I stagger, I stammer, I sob I make the audiences feel my pain And if they don't leave depressed Then I've not done my job Each time I find a role like Eleanor The artist inside of me thrives I put on that wig and those prosthetic teeth And know I'm changing lives By the time I get tuberculosis in act two Even the people who are dead inside Will shout "Bravo" on cue (bravo) The first review is in New Jersey Star Ledger Don't tell me Unless it's a rave or a mix positive It says we're hit, my God! We're a hit and I think we deserve it That's for sure Also it means that this tour de force Will not be forced to tour To Eleanor! May she run for eternity (To Eleanor!) Cheers to a show that's so inspiring It's almost too much to sit through And if we've won that might mean one more thing That in ten years or so, we'll do Eleanor 2 (wow) I can predict what the reviews will say Before the next note has arrived It's ground-breaking (Earth-shaking) Life-affirming (breath-taking) Gut-wrenching (heart-aching) In two words it's history-making That's why every actor strives For adulation and compensation That comes from nightly Changing Lives It's just what we do