Platinum Broadway

'39' steps off on Jan. 10 - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety

'39' steps off on Jan. 10 - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety.

After two years, three theaters and 771 Broadway perfs, "The 39 Steps" will shutter Jan. 10. The play, a small-scale, comic take on the Alfred Hitchcock film, started its Gotham life as a Roundabout Theater Company offering at the American Airlines Theater in early 2008. The show then migrated to the Cort Theater in April 2008 for a commercial run that eventually picked up and moved to the Helen Hayes early this year. Production, which has aimed to attract a tourist crowd, has not yet recouped, but producers say they hope to do so by the time January rolls around. Show is produced by Bob Boyett, Harriet Newman Leve/Ron Nicynski and Stewart F. Lane/Bonnie Cromley, among others, along with the Roundabout and Boston's Huntington Theater, where the production had its American preem in 2007. Original London incarnation of the show has been running since 2006.

Critics in tune with 'Idiot' - Entertainment News, The Verdict, Media - Variety

Critics in tune with 'Idiot' - Entertainment News, The Verdict, Media - Variety.

The Verdict looks at critical reaction to key productions opening Off Broadway, regionally and abroad that appear likely candidates for further life on Broadway and/or elsewhere. Gotham legiters already had their eye on "American Idiot," the Green Day musical that opened last week at Berkeley Repertory Theater. Its Broadway momentum now seems inevitable in the wake of mostly upbeat reviews. The "American Idiot" tuner -- or is it a punk opera? -- is based on the 2004 album of the same name by the Grammy-winning Green Day, with tunes from the record supplemented by material pulled from the band's latest, "21st Century Breakdown." Book is credited to Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong and Michael Mayer, who also helms. Mayer is one of several alums of the Tony-nabbing team behind "Spring Awakening," including designers Christine Jones and Kevin Adams, lead thesp John Gallagher Jr. and producers Tom Hulce and Ira Pittelman, who are involved with "American Idiot." Local press tended to think the story a little wan, but most found much to enjoy in the developing musical, and there's seemingly little in the reviews to discourage producers from bringing the show in to Gotham as early as the spring.

Used to Be a Major Motion Picture - ‘Catch Me if You Can’ Onstage - NYTimes.com

Used to Be a Major Motion Picture - ‘Catch Me if You Can’ Onstage - NYTimes.com.

AS opening night approached early this month for the new musical “Catch Me if You Can,” about a con man on the run from the F.B.I., the director Jack O’Brien and his creative team were making changes to the production here almost hourly. Dialogue was added; dialogue was dropped. The pacing of some scenes was stepped up. Actors’ hand gestures and body language were tweaked. And one entire section — “mostly nuts-and-bolts exposition” — was excised entirely. What Mr. O’Brien did not do — did not even contemplate doing, he said — was turn for last-minute inspiration to the commercially successful 2002 film by Steven Spielberg that is the basis for the musical (and shares its title). Mr. O’Brien directed the Broadway productions of “Hairspray” and “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels,” which were also created from movies, and he said he believed it was essential to reimagine the original movies, add new layers to the stories and characters and demonstrate clearly to audiences why a theatrical version of a popular film is warranted. “The ones that usually don’t work are the musicals that are slavish to the original movie,” Mr. O’Brien said over breakfast with the rest of the “Catch Me” creative team. “I’m not going to talk about any specific musicals. But there are some movies that have an inherent theatricality, where you can imagine these characters singing and dancing. And there are others that simply don’t.”

Times Square: Broadway unbound - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety

Times Square: Broadway unbound - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety.

This summer, Broadway has been radically different. The street itself, that is. Since Memorial Day, five blocks of Broadway, stretching from West 42nd Street to West 47th Street, have been closed to traffic in an effort to ease congestion and to turn a significant chunk of Times Square into a pedestrian promenade. And with those newly established semi-piazzas right in the heart of the theater district, reviews from legiters have been coming in all summer. The more serious logistical obstacles raised as possibilities by the theater industry when the plan was first announced in February seem not to have materialized -- at least not yet -- while many of the hassles associated with the area have been alleviated. Take, for instance, the annual Rialto promotional performance Broadway on Broadway. This year the event, which attracts an estimated 50,000 people, will occur Sept. 13 in its usual prime outdoor spot in the center of Times Square, without requiring the same organizational hoops formerly necessary to shut down the area to vehicular traffic. Some spectators might now even get the unprecedented luxury of a seat. But legiters still hold other concerns, which the orgs that maintain the area are working to address. The official report card on the $1.5 million transformation (which also occurred on a few blocks of Broadway in nearby Herald Square) isn't due until December from the Dept. of Transportation, the city org that masterminded the project. Then at the end of the year, based in part on the finding in that report, the mayor will decide whether the change should be permanent. At least so far, the plaza-fication has, surprisingly, not seemed to have much effect at all on area business, positive or negative. Nonetheless, the move has stirred its share of controversy among those who make their livelihoods in the area, including legiters. Many cab drivers will tell you they hate the new set-up, and in recent weeks the addition of sun umbrellas prompted alarm from the neighborhood's outdoor sign industry, worried that their billboards, many of which advertise Rialto fare, would go unnoticed with too many umbrellas blocking the view. (In light of those fears, the number of umbrellas was reduced.) Transportation snafus, involving buses attempting to deposit masses of group ticket buyers in front of their theater, have not occurred as originally feared, although it remains to be seen whether this will hold true in the fall, when group theatergoing generally picks up momentum. Still, this summer, it hasn't been uncommon to hear grumbling from legiters who must now wade through new swaths of lounging humanity to get to their Times Square offices. Many of them rolled their eyes at the cheapo lounge chairs placed in the area temporarily while the more permanent seating was on its way. But since the sturdier but aesthetically unimpressive plaza furniture was installed a couple of weeks ago, legiters now fret that the area still looks like more like a dirty street than an enticing piazza. Those responsible for the promenade respond that the current configuration is still just a pilot version, which will stick around until the mayor's office gives the go-ahead to make the pedestrian areas permanent, and presumably more appealing. And as business development org Times Square Alliance points out, the plazas aren't any dirtier than your average Gotham street -- it's just that now people look at them in a new light. "People's expectations for it are different," says Alliance prexy Tim Tompkins. "They expect it to be cleaner and nicer, and we've got to meet that standard." No matter how it looks, the plaza's effect on sales at area businesses appears to be largely neutral, according to the Alliance -- although those polled have noted the difficulty of making a direct comparison year-on-year given that the economic downturn hadn't yet hit at this time in 2008. The boom in walk-up sales, formerly seen as a possibility by some in the theater industry, didn't seem to happen, at least not at the Marquis Theater, situated right on Broadway. The show in that venue, "9 to 5," has never managed to take off at the box office and will shutter Labor Day. The same holds true at the TKTS booth, the long-established but newly renovated discount ducat outpost located on the north end of the pedestrian zone. The remodeled booth, unveiled last fall, includes attention-grabbing illuminated red steps that also contribute to the new public-space feel of the area. "I don't think the pedestrian zone has had too much of an impact either way," says Victoria Bailey, exec director of Theater Development Fund, which runs the TKTS program. She adds that according to TDF surveys, a surprising number of people lounging on the booth's steps or sunbathing in the plaza don't actually know they can purchase theater tickets there, too. "We're thinking about how we can educate and engage people who are coming to the square and not thinking about buying tickets," Bailey says. Some of those people will be attracted by promotional events, which seem likely to increase in frequency now that planners have begun to take note of the new, more user-friendly layout. In June, the Tonys were simulcast on giant screens in Times Square, and a few weeks ago the season preem of AMC skein "Mad Men" was broadcast there to drum up attention. "The plaza has made a lot of event promoters look at Times Square in a new way," says Tompkins.

Unlikey Survivor - ‘39 Steps,’ Sole Straight Play on Broadway - NYTimes.com

Unlikey Survivor - ‘39 Steps,’ Sole Straight Play on Broadway - NYTimes.com.

The 1,000-watt celebrities have either gone home or on vacation. The enriching revivals from canonical playwrights have finished their runs, and the Tony winners have packed up their trophies. Starting on Monday there will be just one nonmusical on Broadway: “Alfred Hitchcock’s The 39 Steps.” This joyously wacky four-person show has endured cast changes, runs in three different Broadway theaters and a recession, outlasting pretty much every other straight play without the benefit of elaborate sets or well-known stars

A Playwright at Ease in His Own Pigeonhole - NYTimes.com

A Playwright at Ease in His Own Pigeonhole - NYTimes.com.

CAN a New York playwright be too Jewish? If that sounds like wondering whether a pizzeria is too Italian or a matinee idol is overly handsome, tell that to the 36-year-old writer Daniel Goldfarb, who says that in his decade of writing dramas about assimilation and Jewish identity, well-meaning friends and colleagues have repeatedly suggested that maybe he should consider writing about, you know, something else.

Theater - Broadway - New York Times

Theater - Broadway - New York Times.

Conal Creedon’s fine one-acts can be seen in a nearly pitch-perfect production at the Irish Repertory Theater.

Cheap Seats: Theater Discounts Without Standing in Line - ArtsBeat Blog - NYTimes.com

Cheap Seats: Theater Discounts Without Standing in Line - ArtsBeat Blog - NYTimes.com.

Update | 5:34 p.m. A spokesperson for “Bye Bye Birdie” says all $10 tickets for the first preview are sold out. Update | 4:13 p.m. OK, so technically you had to stand in line, but still: the tickets were dirt cheap. This morning hundreds of people stood in line outside Henry Miller’s Theater on 43rd St. to get $10 tickets to the first preview of the Roundabout Theater’s revival of “Bye Bye Birdie.” On hand for the promotional event were Nolan Funk, who plays Conrad Birdie, and several of his “fans” (played with shrieking enthusiasm by a group of teens in “Bye Bye Birdie” t-shirts).

Long Wharf Theater slashes budget - Entertainment News, Entertainment Industry & the Economy, Media - Variety

Long Wharf Theater slashes budget - Entertainment News, Entertainment Industry & the Economy, Media - Variety.

Long Wharf Theater in New Haven, Conn, is slashing its 2009-10 budget by 16% in response to the economic downturn and a drop in contributed income. The theater will lay off 10% of its staff, cut production costs and reduce salaries by between 1% and 4.5%. The new budget will be cut by $1 million, going from the current season’s $6.2 million to $5.2 million. Long Wharf’s new managing director Ray Cullom points out that the current fiscal year ends June 30 and contributions are still coming in. But contributed income has fallen dramatically, especially in the areas of corporate and foundation giving. The number of individual gifts remains stable though the amounts have decreased, said artistic director Gordon Edelstein. However, he added that ticket sales are strong and subscription renewals are ahead of last season. Long Wharf is coming off a strong season at the box office, with hits runs of Paula Vogel’s “A Civil War Christmas,” Athol Fugard’s “Coming Home,” Eugene O’Neill’s “Hughie” starring Brian Dennehy, Theresa Rebeck’s “Bad Dates” and Tennessee Williams’ “The Glass Menagerie.” The latter production, staged by Edelstein and starring Judith Ivey, is rumored to have sparked interest in a New York transfer.

Team Behind ‘The Wiz’ Eases on Down the Encores! Road - NYTimes.com

Team Behind ‘The Wiz’ Eases on Down the Encores! Road - NYTimes.com.

THE commercial theater is famous for “creative differences” — also known as vicious rivalries, titanic egos, abrupt firings, explosive fights and nasty backbiting. But apparently no one has told Thomas Kail, Andy Blankenbuehler and Alex Lacamoire, who collaborated on the Tony-winning musical “In the Heights” and are together again for the summer Encores! production of the “The Wiz,” which opened on Thursday.

2009 Tony Awards winners list - Entertainment News, Tony Awards, Media - Variety

2009 Tony Awards winners list - Entertainment News, Tony Awards, Media - Variety.

2009 Tony Awards winners list

'Billy Elliot' scores big at Tony Awards - Entertainment News, Tony Awards, Media - Variety

'Billy Elliot' scores big at Tony Awards - Entertainment News, Tony Awards, Media - Variety.

In the biggest and most widely anticipated sweep of Broadway's top kudos since "The Producers" devoured the competition eight years ago, "Billy Elliot" pirouetted away with 10 Tony Awards on Sunday night. Its wins included the coveted prize for new musical, as well as lead actor to the three triple-threat teens alternating in the title role. With clear favorites in each of the main races, the other three key production categories at the 63rd annual Antoinette Perry "Tony" Awards were only marginally more suspenseful. Yasmina Reza's box office smash "God of Carnage" won for new play, marking the second triumph in that category for the French playwright, lauded for "Art" in 1998. Both plays were adapted into English by Christopher Hampton. The caustic comedy about two middle-class couples who unleash their snarling inner beasts over the course of a long evening of booze-fueled friction also scored actress honors for Marcia Gay Harden, as well as the prize for direction of a play to double-nominee Matthew Warchus. Iconic counterculture tuner "Hair" took the nod for musical revival, providing vindication for originating producer the Public Theater, which was shut out of Tony glory in 1969 when the premiere production lost the musical award to "1776." "Peace now, freedom now, equality now, justice forever," said euphoric Public a.d. Oskar Eustis, recounting how the org was founded 55 years ago "with the very simple idea that if the theater was going to matter, it had to be a theater for the people, and it had to talk about the things that mattered to the people." The revival's success since opening at the Hirschfeld in March has silenced all those pundits who feared the magic of last summer's Central Park staging would be lost when the show moved indoors. "Hair" has the distinction of being the only American show to win one of the top trophies this year. In the season's most competitive race, in which as many deserving shows were overlooked as were nominated, Alan Ayckbourn's bittersweet comic trilogy about tangled relationships and unfulfilled lives, "The Norman Conquests," landed the gold. Transferred to Broadway from London's Old Vic, the production was also helmed by Warchus, the first director nominated twice in the same category since A.J. Antoon in 1973. In the run-up to Tony night, gripes were aired about the early decision to relegate the play revival category to the untelevised seg, including comments from Old Vic a.d. Kevin Spacey, which may have influenced CBS to make a last-minute switch and include the award in the broadcast. But the Tonys were dominated by "Billy Elliot," the uplifting Brit import about a blue-collar kid in a strikebound 1980s Northern English mining town, whose dream of becoming a ballet dancer provides an avenue of escape from bleak reality.

Tony Nominees for Best Choreography - One Singular (Dance) Sensation - NYTimes.com

Tony Nominees for Best Choreography - One Singular (Dance) Sensation - NYTimes.com.

YOU can have successful musicals without important choreography. But from the early 1920s to the early ’60s they often had both, and it can’t be just an accident that those years have left an abiding impression as the golden era of the stage musical. Forms of music related to ragtime, jazz and swing helped to make the musical irresistible, and those forms had dance potential — intricacy of rhythm — built in.

Politics Can Wait - The President Has a Date - NYTimes.com

Politics Can Wait - The President Has a Date - NYTimes.com.

The Obamas escaped Washington on Saturday in search of a quintessential New York evening — dinner and a Broadway show.

Musical numbers to highlight Tonys - Entertainment News, Tony Award nominee, Media - Variety

Musical numbers to highlight Tonys - Entertainment News, Tony Award nominee, Media - Variety.

The Tony Awards telecast will showcase all the Broadway tuners nominated for musical or musical revival, along with segs from three shows on tour, "Jersey Boys," "Legally Blonde" and "Mamma Mia!" Performance slots are considered valuable opportunities to market legit offerings during the theater world's highest-profile kudofest. Similarly, the inclusion of performances from well-known offerings such as "Mamma Mia!" can help drum up viewer interest in the usually ratings-challenged broadcast. "Billy Elliot," "Next to Normal," "Shrek the Musical" and "Rock of Ages," all in the running for the new tuner trophy, will be featured, as will musical revival contenders "West Side Story," "Hair," "Guys and Dolls" and "Pal Joey" (which ended its limited run earlier this season). News looks like a snub of the tuner version of "9 to 5," which, although not nommed for new musical, seemed a shoo-in for inclusion given the broad fanbase of Dolly Parton, the show's composer-lyricist. But it's said that Parton and the tuner's three lead actress will sing the title tune of "9 to 5" as part of the ceremony's opening number -- although that remains unconfirmed. Telecast exec producers Ricky Kirshner and Glenn Weiss have previously said they will try to include bits from as many Broadway productions in the ceremony as possible. Neil Patrick Harris hosts the 63rd Tony Awards, set for June 7 at Radio City Musical Hall and broadcast on CBS. This year the kudos, along with the initial hour of creative arts awards not shown on CBS, will be simulcast on a large screen in the newly pedestrian-friendly Times Square.

'Hair,' others win Drama League honors - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety

'Hair,' others win Drama League honors - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety.

Broadway offerings "Billy Elliot," "God of Carnage," "Hair" and "Blithe Spirit" won the competitive production categories at the Drama League's annual awards luncheon. Geoffrey Rush, selected from a field of about 70 performers, nabbed the actor prize. New tuner "Billy," new play "Carnage" and tuner revival "Hair" are all Tony contenders in their respective categories, and the Drama League wins rep another upshift in awards momentum for the offerings. Play revival "Blithe Spirit," however, was left out of the Tony race in a season packed with notable non-tuner revivals. A dozen play revivals were nommed for a kudo from the Drama League, whose traditionally wide-ranging list of Broadway and Off Broadway nominations included 10 new tuners and 11 new plays. Rush, who scored the thesping award for his turn in "Exit the King," was selected from a pool of nominated performers that included Sutton Foster ("Shrek"), Daniel Radcliffe ("Equus"), David Hyde Pierce ("Accent on Youth"), Kristin Scott Thomas ("The Seagull"), James Gandolfini and Marcia Gay Harden (both of "God of Carnage") and Rush's co-star Susan Sarandon. Previously announced honors were handed out to Elton John, composer of "Billy Elliot," for musical theater achievement; Angela Lansbury ("Blithe Spirit"), for unique contribution to the theater; and to producer Herb Blodgett, who received the League's 75th anniversary leadership laurel. Arthur Laurents, book writer and helmer of the current revival of "West Side Story," could not attend the ceremony due to illness, so his award for directing excellence was accepted on his behalf by "West Side" associate director David Saint. The 75th Anniversary Drama League awards ceremony and luncheon was held May 15 at Gotham's Marriott Marquis. Jeremy Irons and Cynthia Nixon hosted.

Irons & Nixon to Host 75th Annual Drama League Awards 5/15

Irons & Nixon to Host 75th Annual Drama League Awards 5/15.

The Drama League (Jano Herbosch, President) is pleased to announce that Jeremy Irons (Broadway's Impressionism) and Cynthia Nixon (Off-Broadway's Distracted at the Roundabout Theatre Company), who first starred together as father and daughter in the 1984 Broadway production of The Real Thing, will reunite this spring to serve as co-hosts for The 75th Annual Drama League Awards Ceremony and Luncheon. This season's awards luncheon is set for Friday, May 15, 2009 in the Grand Ballroom of the Marriott Marquis Hotel in Times Square (1535 Broadway at 46th St.). The event begins at noon. Long considered the theatre season's most festive award ceremony, The Drama League Awards pays tribute to the season's best performers by including the nominees of The Distinguished Performance Award on a dais. The 75th Annual Drama League Awards dais will feature approximately 60-70 stars from the 2008-09 Broadway and Off-Broadway season.

Broadway Looks for Another Ambassador as Rocco Landesman Goes to Washington - NYTimes.com

Broadway Looks for Another Ambassador as Rocco Landesman Goes to Washington - NYTimes.com.

Ever since the November death of Gerald Schoenfeld, the theater owner and the longtime public face of Broadway to New Yorkers and their mayors, governors and lawmakers, many people in the theater world thought one of his peers, Rocco Landesman, would succeed him as the next ambassador for Broadway.

Neil Patrick Harris to Host 2009 Tony Awards: Theater News on TheaterMania.com - 05/14/2009

Neil Patrick Harris to Host 2009 Tony Awards: Theater News on TheaterMania.com - 05/14/2009.

Neil Patrick Harris will host the 2009 Tony Awards on Sunday, June 7 at Radio City Music Hall and aired live on CBS-TV. The 2009 Tony Awards are presented by The Broadway League and The American Theatre Wing. Billy Elliot, the Musical leads the field with 15 nominations, including Best Musical. Other shows with multiple nominations include Next to Normal (11), Hair (8), Shrek the Musical (8), Mary Stuart (7), The Norman Conquests (7), God of Carnage (6), and Joe Turner's Come and Gone (6). Harris appeared in the Roundabout Theatre Company's production of Assassins and starred in renowned productions of Sweeney Todd, All My Sons, and Rent. He stars in the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother and previously starred in the title role of ABC's Doogie Howser, M.D..

N.Y. Desk Critics hand out awards - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety

N.Y. Desk Critics hand out awards - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety.

"Ruined," "Billy Elliot" and "Black Watch" snagged honors in the annual round of kudos handed out by the New York Drama Critics Circle. "Ruined" took the award for play and Brit import "Billy Elliot" scored the laurel for tuner, while Scottish production "Black Watch" nabbed the title for foreign production. Special citations went to director Matthew Warchus and the cast of "The Norman Conquests" on Broadway, and to Gerard Alessandrini, creator of the long-running "Forbidden Broadway" series of legit spoofs. A career award for her contribution to the American theater went to Angela Lansbury, currently appearing in the Rialto revival of "Blithe Spirit." The NYDCC kudo for "Ruined," Lynn Nottage's Congo-set drama loosely inspired by "Mother Courage and Her Children," reps yet another win for the play, which scored the Pulitzer last month and the Lucille Lortel award for new play on Sunday. It's also the second NYDCC win for Nottage, whose play "Intimate Apparel" scored the org's award in 2004. "Ruined" won with a clear majority in a first-round vote by the circle.

'Ruined' wins Pulitzer for drama - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety

'Ruined' wins Pulitzer for drama - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety.

Lynn Nottage's play "Ruined" has picked up the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for drama. Show, set in the present-day turmoil of the Democratic Republic of Congo, was commissioned by Chicago's Goodman Theater, where it preemed in the fall. Play is in the midst of an extended run at Off Broadway's Manhattan Theater Club

Imagem nabs Rodgers and Hammerstein - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety

Imagem nabs Rodgers and Hammerstein - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety.

Imagem Music Group has signed an agreement to purchase the Rodgers and Hammerstein Organization, the licensing agency that owns the rights to a slew of Broadway classics including "South Pacific" and "Oklahoma!"

'Les Miz' tops Helen Hayes Awards - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety

'Les Miz' tops Helen Hayes Awards - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety.

Signature Theater's pared-down production of "Les Miserables" was the most popular tuner among judges at the 25th Helen Hayes Awards, while new musical "Next to Normal," which opens Wednesday on Broadway, also scored multiple trophies. Additional laurels at the D.C. area's annual legit kudos went to Chita Rivera for her performance in Kander and Ebb's "The Visit"; Stacey Keach for his turn in the tour of "Frost/Nixon"; and Natascia Diaz, a thesp in another show now playing in Gotham, "Rooms: A Rock Romance," which opened Off Broadway in March. "Next to Normal," which made the jump to Broadway after its well-reviewed run at Arena Stage, drew three awards, including top nonresident production. Alice Ripley took lead actress in a nonresident show (an award shared with Nilaja Sun in Woolly Mammoth Theater Company's presentation of "No Child ...") while Aaron Tveit drew the supporting performer nod. Both thesps remain with "Normal" on the Rialto.

New York Nonprofit Theaters Brace for Even Tougher Season - NYTimes.com

New York Nonprofit Theaters Brace for Even Tougher Season - NYTimes.com.

Fancy gift bags and elaborate centerpieces were out of the question for Signature Theater Company’s spring gala on Monday night at Espace, a reception room on West 42nd Street in Manhattan.

Few surprises at Tony talks - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety

Few surprises at Tony talks - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety.

Few surprises came out of a Thursday meeting of the Tony Awards Administration Committee, which convened to decide questions of Tony category eligibility for a recent batch of Broadway shows. Will Ferrell's satiric takedown of George W. Bush, "You're Welcome America. A Final Night with George W Bush" was deemed a special theatrical event. It could potentially have been considered a new play, although that had seemed unlikely. Angela Lansbury, one of the top-billed stars in the revival of "Blithe Spirit," will be considered a featured actress for her turn in the supporting role of eccentric psychic Madame Arcati, while "Hedda Gabler" castmates Michael Cerveris, Paul Sparks and Peter Stormare will all be eligible for a featured actor slot. Short-lived Broadway tuner "The Story of My Life," which played just five perfs following its February opening, is ineligible for the Tonys because its run was so brief. Admin committee will meet one more time at the end of the season to decide the eligibility of the final rush of spring offerings. Season cutoff is April 30. Tony Awards are skedded for June 7.

Disney Celebrates 15 Years on Broadway with deal | The Disney Blog

Disney Celebrates 15 Years on Broadway with deal | The Disney Blog.

It started with an idea — why can’t we take the successful theme park stage show version of Beauty and the Beast and turn it into a full fledged Broadway show. Of course, people laughed at the idea of the Walt Disney Company doing stage musicals. But Disney knew that their strength was telling stories and that it would fit perfectly with the stage. Beauty and the Beast opened in 1994 and became one of the longest running shows on Broadway before it closed. Since then Disney Theatrical has produced a dozen productions, not all of them reaching Broadway, but many with successful touring additions. It’s now been 15 years and Disney wants to celebrate by letting you buy a companion ticket to their shows for just $15. Beginning at noon this Sunday, April 5 until 11:59 PM on Sunday April 19, theatre-goers will have the opportunity to buy a $15 companion ticket for all three popular Disney on Broadway shows with the purchase of a regular priced ticket to more than 125 performances throughout the spring. Restrictions apply, you can read more about the deal at Broadway World.

Harvey Fierstein to Host 2009 Drama Desk Awards: Theater News on TheaterMania.com - 03/25/2009

Harvey Fierstein to Host 2009 Drama Desk Awards: Theater News on TheaterMania.com - 03/25/2009.

Four-time Tony Award-winner Harvey Fierstein will host the 54th annual Drama Desk Awards, to be held at the F.H. LaGuardia Concert Hall at Lincoln Center, on Sunday, May 17, at 9 pm, directed by Jeff Kalpak. This will mark the fourth time Fierstein has hosted the awards, having previously emceed them in 2004, 2005 and 2006. Fierstein's Torch Song Trilogy, which opened on Broadway in 1982, won him two Tony Awards, two Drama Desk Awards, and the Dramatist Guild Award. He won his other two Tonys for his work on La Cage aux Folles and Hairspray.

Priscilla Queen Of The Desert The Musical | The Official London Theatre Guide

Priscilla Queen Of The Desert The Musical | The Official London Theatre Guide.

Much has been said about the abundance of ‘jukebox’ musicals in the West End: shows that are fashioned around a soundtrack of songs by an artist or genre. Some manage it more successfully than others. In Priscilla Queen Of The Desert The Musical, the stage version of the cult 1994 Australian film, which opened last night at the Palace theatre, the chosen selection of songs fits like a pair of made-to-measure Jimmy Choos. Its characters would demand nothing less. Drag performers Tick (Jason Donovan), Bernadette (Tony Sheldon) and Adam (Oliver Thornton) may be travelling the expanse of the dusty outback in a battered old bus, but they won’t ever look anything less than fabulous. As their story unravels – each is crossing the desert from Sydney to Alice Springs on a personal mission of discovery – the lyrics of the show’s soundtrack of classic disco tunes mirror the action and add an appropriately thick layer of camp. So angst-ridden drag queen Tick sings Say A Little Prayer to a photo of the son he is hoping to meet, aging transsexual Bernadette serenades her departed lover with the funeral lament Don’t Leave Me This Way, and the ensemble tells the trio to Go West. In its choice of songs – bar a couple of recent additions, including Kylie’s Can’t Get You Out Of My Head – and in the storyline, the musical is faithful to the film that saw Hugo Weaving, Terence Stamp and Guy Pearce play the central trio. But even more so than the celluloid version, the musical does not take itself seriously. Though there are moments of seriousness – Adam’s encounter with a bunch of angry rednecks, Tick’s reunion with his son – these are short-lived, the mood quickly broken by a dose of Aussie humour, a costume change and a song. Sheldon, making his West End debut after originating the role of Bernadette in Sydney, imbues his character with an endearing warmth. The matriarch of the three, she has seen it all before but isn’t quite ready to leave it all behind, as her sharp sense of humour suggests. Thornton revels in being outrageous as the showiest of the trio, Adam, whose drag persona Felicia is just an excuse to unleash himself, in all his glory. Donovan, who breathed a huge sigh – of relief or tension perhaps – at the curtain call, may still loosen up into a role which bridges the gap between his travelling companions.

A Changed ‘West Side Story’ Returns to a Changed New York - NYTimes.com

A Changed ‘West Side Story’ Returns to a Changed New York - NYTimes.com.

WHEN Leonard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim, Jerome Robbins and Arthur Laurents created “West Side Story” in the mid-’50s, they lived within walking distance of the concrete alleys and playgrounds that were the backdrop for their updated version of “Romeo and Juliet,” the crowded tenements where new Puerto Rican immigrants rubbed up against the Irish, Poles and Italians who had preceded them.

'Hair' transplant on Broadway - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety

'Hair' transplant on Broadway - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety.

The question hanging over the Broadway transfer of "Hair" isn't whether the 1967 flower-power tuner can still speak to contempo auds. The uncertainty hinges in part on whether the $5.8 million transfer about anti-war hippies retains the same urgency in the age of Obama as it had in the waning days of the Bush administration

Women Who Run the Show: Sarah Benson of Soho Rep

Women Who Run the Show: Sarah Benson of Soho Rep.

In last week’s profile of Angelina Fiordellisi, the first in BWW’s series on women artistic directors, the Cherry Lane Theatre AD said there definitely was a “boys club” mentality among off-Broadway artists and backers. But when the same question was posed to Sarah Benson, artistic director of Soho Rep, she said, “I don’t experience that at all. There’s so many female playwrights and directors and designers that we work with.” Benson specifically excluded the downtown theater community—to which both she and Fiordellisi (whose theater is in Greenwich Village) belong. “Certainly not downtown,” said Benson, then added: “Well, certainly not in my experience, I should say. I don’t know what other people’s experiences are.”

Despite the Economy, Broadway Is Holding On, for Now - NYTimes.com

Despite the Economy, Broadway Is Holding On, for Now - NYTimes.com.

Preview performances of the new Broadway revival of “West Side Story” have lifted spirits across New York theaters: drawing gross revenues of more than $1 million in each of its first two weeks, the show demonstrates that the appetite for plays and musicals is alive and well despite the recession.

‘Rent,’ the High School Musical? Not in Some Communities - NYTimes.com

‘Rent,’ the High School Musical? Not in Some Communities - NYTimes.com.

Theater directors and students at more than 40 high schools across the country have selected a new show for their big springtime musical this year: “Rent: School Edition,” a modified version of the hit Broadway musical that, while toned down a bit, remains provocative by traditional drama club standards.

'Legends' bows in N.Y. - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety

'Legends' bows in N.Y. - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety.

"Legends!" will finally play Gotham, if only for one night. Charles Busch, Lypsinka and Whoopi Goldberg will topline a staged reading of the 1986 play by the late James Kirkwood ("A Chorus Line") as a benefit for charity org Friends in Deed. A comedy about rival over-the-hill actresses who find themselves forced to work together, "Legends!" has had two pre-Broadway runs, both of which were scuttled. The original 1986 national tour starring Carol Channing and Mary Martin famously self-destructed, and resulted in Kirkwood's tell-all book "Diary of a Mad Playwright: Perilous Adventures on the Road with Mary Martin and Carol Channing."

Broadway Officials Warn That Ticket Tax Would Cripple Theater Industry - NYTimes.com

Broadway Officials Warn That Ticket Tax Would Cripple Theater Industry - NYTimes.com.

There was no flashy choreography as grim-faced Broadway industry leaders pleaded bluntly and plainly with New York legislative budget writers on Tuesday to reject Gov. David A. Paterson’s proposed tax on theater tickets, which would raise prices about 8 percent.

Since Jeremy Piven’s Departure, Mamet’s ‘Speed-the Plow’ Has Only Gotten Speedier - NYTimes.com

Since Jeremy Piven’s Departure, Mamet’s ‘Speed-the Plow’ Has Only Gotten Speedier - NYTimes.com.

Is it too late to send a thank you note to Jeremy Piven? This indisputably talented actor has been heaped with scorn and ridicule since he ducked out early (in December) on his contract for the Broadway revival of David Mamet’s “Speed-the-Plow.” While the show’s producers have filed a grievance against Mr. Piven with the Actors Equity Association, I — in the forgiving spirit of a new American era — would like to point out the blessings that have arrived with his departure.

As 9 Runs End, Hope for a Brighter Future on a Darker Broadway - NYTimes.com

As 9 Runs End, Hope for a Brighter Future on a Darker Broadway - NYTimes.com.

Yet the prospect of darkness and days off came with a different meaning this past Sunday night, as nine Broadway productions — including “Hairspray,” “Young Frankenstein,” “Boeing-Boeing,” “13” and “Grease” — closed for good, some as scheduled, and some as a result of declining audiences in grim economic times.

Theater - All Together Now - A Month of Big Finales on Broadway - NYTimes.com

Theater - All Together Now - A Month of Big Finales on Broadway - NYTimes.com.

For those susceptible to the romantic allure of attending the last performance of a Broadway show, January will be one for the history books. The annual post-holiday doldrums in the theater district are proving particularly doleful in 2009, as more than a dozen plays and musicals — almost half of the current lineup, incredible though it may seem — get ready to close by the end of the month.

Public Theater Negotiating With Jeffrey Richards to Help Produce ‘Hair’ - NYTimes.com

Public Theater Negotiating With Jeffrey Richards to Help Produce ‘Hair’ - NYTimes.com.

Broadway’s continuing struggle to mount productions in the difficult economic climate has a big new repercussion: late in the process, the Public Theater is recruiting a new producer to help raise the $6.5 million budget for the revival of “Hair,” the ’60s rock musical that is scheduled to begin previews in six weeks.

La Guardia High's School Musical Halted Due to Budget Bust

La Guardia High's School Musical Halted Due to Budget Bust.

The New York Times is reporting that the Fiorello H. La Guardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts has postponed its annual musical this fall and is now considering canceling it due to current economic constraints. La Guardia High is best known for being featured as the "FAME" school in film, television and stage, in addition to several touring companies, an Off-Broadway musical based on the motion picture FAME played the Litte Shubert Theatre 2003. 

Broadway midseason analysis - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety

Broadway midseason analysis - Entertainment News, Legit News, Media - Variety.

Who would have thought Anton Chekhov and Arthur Miller would have the box office clout to triumph over a tanking economy? Midway through the 2008-09 Broadway season, only two new productions have recouped: revivals of "The Seagull" and "All My Sons." If that suggests a hospitable climate for quality nonmusical theater, then it's good news for the slew of star-driven plays preparing to berth on Broadway in the spring. But it's too early to draw any such conclusions from a season in which the highs and lows likely will be more extreme than usual. While January and February invariably are cruel months for biz, the unusually high number of shows closing Jan. 4 has earned that date the moniker of Black Sunday, with several more to follow that month. Some say it's the economy, others say once-mighty Tony winners like "Hairspray" and "Monty Python's Spamalot" simply had run their course. Either way, such severe thinning of the ranks means the hit shows will be in even greater demand while the misses will be posting closing notices with unusual haste. Even producers with deep pockets are likely to think twice about keeping a show running that hasn't proved itself right off the bat. Offering further evidence that only the strongest will survive the recession blues, a number of productions announced for this season pulled the plug before opening, including revivals of "Godspell" and "For Colored Girls ..." and new tuner "Vanities." The winners and losers already are clearly defined this season. Like last fall, when "Young Frankenstein" and "The Little Mermaid" began performances, two mammoth musicals have again opened to promising business. "Billy Elliot" and "Shrek the Musical" look like potential long-term tenants. Stephen Daldry's dynamic staging of "Billy" opened to rapturous reviews and capacity houses, giving New York its best shot at a durable Brit import since "Mamma Mia!" With its backdrop of economic angst, labor unrest and looming unemployment, the bittersweet story of a miner's son who discovers his passion for dance seems perfectly timed as an antidote to the current malaise. DreamWorks' first stage venture, adapted from the adorable-ogre screen franchise, drew a more mixed response but has the brand-name, impish humor and crowdpleasing quality to find an audience, providing it's not a victim of the American family's shrinking entertainment budget.

The New Leaders of Shubert Organization Have Roots In Its Past - NYTimes.com

Link: The New Leaders of Shubert Organization Have Roots In Its Past - NYTimes.com.

The ascension of Philip J. Smith and Robert E. Wankel to the top of the Shubert Organization Tuesday night ended a 20-plus-year guessing game about the future of the largest theater-owning enterprise in the nation.

Arts, Briefly - ‘Boeing-Boeing’ to Close - NYTimes.com

Link: Arts, Briefly - ‘Boeing-Boeing’ to Close - NYTimes.com.

Unlike many airline flights, a Broadway show lets you know exactly when it’s departing. In this case “Boeing-Boeing,” the revival of Marc Camoletti’s comedy about an American architect juggling affairs with three European airline hostesses, will play its final performance on Jan. 4, its producers announced. The comedy, directed by Matthew Warchus, won the Tony Award for best revival of a play, and Mark Rylance, above, who plays the architect’s visiting friend, won a Tony for best leading actor in a play. At its closing “Boeing-Boeing” will have played 280 performances and 17 previews at the Longacre Theater; a national tour is planned for next fall.

Broadway Is Dry-Eyed as Monster Falls Hard - NYTimes.com

Link: Broadway Is Dry-Eyed as Monster Falls Hard - NYTimes.com.

The last week was one of the grimmest on Broadway. Within eight days four shows announced their closings. Yet the news about “The New Mel Brooks Musical Young Frankenstein” shutting its doors Jan. 4 seemed to spark an unusual guilty glee among theater people.

Broadway’s Great White Way Takes Environmental Steps to Go Green - NYTimes.com

Link: Broadway’s Great White Way Takes Environmental Steps to Go Green - NYTimes.com.

It was bound to be more than just a news conference; this is the theater, after all. And so it came to pass that Marcie Dodd, the current Elphaba in the Broadway production of “Wicked,” in full costume and green makeup, introduced Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg to a crowd at the Eugene O’Neill Theater on Tuesday. The occasion was the official commencement of Broadway Goes Green, a partnership between the city and Broadway that is meant to shrink the Shrek-size carbon footprint of the Great White Way.

Far From the Spotlight, a Brewing Fight Between Playwrights and Nonprofit Theaters Over Subsidiary Rights - NYTimes.com

Link: Far From the Spotlight, a Brewing Fight Between Playwrights and Nonprofit Theaters Over Subsidiary Rights - NYTimes.com.

When Mr. Lucas agreed to make the Off Broadway premiere of his play “Prayer for My Enemy” part of the Roundabout Theater Company’s 2008-9 season, he said he didn’t realize that the Roundabout’s standard contract would require him to sign over 40 percent of his subsequent author royalties for the play for 10 years. (In other words, if Mr. Lucas were to collect, say, $50,000 from “Prayer” over the next decade — a respectable sum for a well-received new play — the Roundabout would receive $20,000 of it.)

A veteran playwright, Mr. Lucas (“Prelude to a Kiss”) said he knew that nearly all nonprofit theaters exacted a percentage of an author’s future earnings from a new play — known as subsidiary rights — in return for producing its premiere. What startled him was the 40 percent, standard for commercial productions but a figure he considered “far too high” for a nonprofit. So last March Mr. Lucas took the rare step of moving “Prayer” to Playwrights Horizons (for only 10 percent of its future earnings), where it will open on Dec. 9. In doing so, he rekindled a long-simmering debate in the small, interdependent world of American playwrights and nonprofit theaters: do nonprofits deserve a sizable cut of an author’s future royalties for producing a play?

NY Artists Unlimited At IETM Intl. Theater Conf. 11/5-9

Link: NY Artists Unlimited At IETM Intl. Theater Conf. 11/5-9.

Artistic Director Melba LaRose and Resident Director Tony Spinosa represented NY Artists Unlimited at the IETM International Theatre Conference in Zurich, Switzerland, November 5th - 9th 2008. This conference attracts professional theatre producers, directors, arts endowment directors, and creative believers in the growth of the arts on a global level.

Scott Eckern of California Musical Theater Resigns Amid Gay-Rights Ire Over Proposition 8 in California - NYTimes.com

Link: Scott Eckern of California Musical Theater Resigns Amid Gay-Rights Ire Over Proposition 8 in California - NYTimes.com.

The artistic director of the California Musical Theater, a major nonprofit producing company here in the state’s capital, resigned on Wednesday in the face of growing outrage over his support for a ballot measure this month that outlawed same-sex marriage in California.

Wasser Associates to Take Over as General Managers of 2009 Tony Awards

Link: Wasser Associates to Take Over as General Managers of 2009 Tony Awards.

A new statement from the 2009 Tony Awards press office states that "Tony Award Productions have not renewed Liz McCann and Joey Parnes' contract. Alan Wasser and Allan Williams of Alan Wasser Associates will act as the general managers of the 2009 Tony Awards. Ricky Kirshner and Glenn Weiss/White Cherry Entertainment will continue on as the producers of the 2009 Tony telecast."

Cloris Leachman Confirms YOUNG FRANK Offer on 'The View'

Link: Cloris Leachman Confirms YOUNG FRANK Offer on 'The View'.

Cloris Leachman confirmed this morning on ABC's The View that she did indeed get the offer to reprise her film role of Frau Blucher for the Broadway production of Young Frankenstein. The news of Mel Brooks' about face regarding her joining the musical was first reported in yesterday's New York Post. After discussing her recent turn on 'Danincing With the Stars', View hostess Sherri Shepard asked if it was true about her being offered the chance to re-created her iconic Fran Blucher for the stage and Leachman's answer was..."Yes!