Welcome to a new Wildcard Wednesday, on a Tuesday! In anticipation of my forthcoming piece on the first season of Arrested Development — which I’m currently readying for publication tomorrow — and to tide you all over until the next Musical Theatre Monday entry, which I’ve bumped until Monday (August 26), I wanted to offer a fun, timely treat.

One of my favorite things about Arrested Development is its terrific casting — and that extends to its guests and recurring players as well, including, specifically, Liza Minnelli as Lucille 2. Minnelli offers one of the funniest performances of her career in the first season of this series, and in celebration of her immense talents, I thought I’d share — with subscribers who comment below to alert me of their private, non-commercial interest — access to a live audio from her first Broadway show: Flora, The Red Menace, which also boasted a promise-filled score by the young Kander & Ebb. Here’s an excerpt — “A Quiet Thing” — just one sample of this extraordinary entertainer’s long-time excellence… of which we’ll see more tomorrow…

Come back next week for a new Wildcard! And stay tuned tomorrow for Arrested Development!