Don't "You Be My Neighbor"
No singing at the Capitol Visitor Center
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WASHINGTON: The U.S. Capitol is seen from the newly finished Capitol Visitor Center during a media tour on Capitol Hill Nov. 10, 2008. The 580,000 square foot facility with a price tag of $621 million to finish will be opened to the public on Dec. 2, 2008. About three million people are expected to visit each year.
First, they put the kibosh on dancing at the Jefferson Memorial – even sans music. Now they won’t let you sing at the Capitol Visitor Center.
The organizers of a recent documentary screening were hoping to close out the night with hundreds of guests singing the “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” theme, “Won’t You Be My Neighbor,” led by David Newell, who played Mr. McFeeley on the classic children’s show.
But no.
There is no music or singing allowed in the $621 million visitor center without special approval.
Last Tuesday’s screening of a Pittsburgh-based documentary called “My Tale of Two Cities” was sponsored by the Capitol Hill Business Improvement District, according to the Washington Examiner. The day before the screening, a CVC special events assistant told the organizers that there is no "music/singing in the CVC," what the assistant deemed "one of those random nuances in our rules" having "something to do with the business of Congress," according to the Examiner.
The BID's request for a sing-along "did not come in soon enough to allow for the appropriate review," CVC spokeswoman Sharon Gang told the Examiner. She could not say whether there are security reasons behind the music ban, but said it's "a working office building" and music isn't necessarily appropriate in that environment.
“My Tale of Two Cities” centers on Hollywood screenwriter Carl Kurlander's return to his hometown of Pittsburgh, only to find himself and the Steel City suffering a midlife crisis. The film explores the complexities of coming home again, as well as the challenges of urban revitalization.
The classic PBS children’s show “Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood” was taped in Pittsburgh, hence the “Won’t You Be My Neighbor” connection.
The evening ended with Newell speaking the theme song as if it were poetry -- although the Examiner reported he couldn’t help but break into song for the final notes.
