Kristen Bell
Fiona Apple, Cyndi Lauper, Aimee Mann Wrote Songs for Apple TV’s Central Park
Today brings the debut of Apple TV’s Central Park, the new animated series from Loren Bouchard and Nora Smith’s (Bob’s Burgers). With the first two episodes now streaming, their accompanying soundtracks have also been released. In fact, the songwriting credits for the entire first season has been revealed, and there are some big names attached. Fiona Apple, Cyndi Lauper, Aimee Mann, Sara Bareilles, and Meghan Trainor have all contributed music to the series. Other songwriters include Anthony Hamilton, Darren Criss, activist Rafael Casal, and actor-rapper Utkarsh Ambudkar. That’s in addition to songs from the show’s core writing team (Kate Anderson, Elyssa Samsel, and Brent Knopf), as well as composers for TV, film, and theater such as Alan Menken and Glenn Slater. Unfortunately, ...
Loren Bouchard’s Central Park Struggles to Hit the Right Notes for Apple TV: Review
The Pitch: Apple TV+ has been searching for a big show to serve as its first hit, since unveiling the streaming service last November. Could it be Central Park, a half-hour animated musical comedy from the creator of Bob’s Burgers and featuring a massive voice cast including Kristen Bell, Josh Gad, Stanley Tucci, Daveed Diggs, and Leslie Odom, Jr.? The streaming service’s metaphorical fingers are tightly crossed. Breaking Into Song: Any fan of the Fox animated sitcom Bob’s Burgers knows that the show isn’t shy about having its characters break into song, or about having music be an overall major part of its wacky hijinks in a seaside town where the eponymous restaurant resides. The Belcher family is very, very weird: there’s burger chef Bob, his gleeful wife Linda, his boy-obsessed teenage...
