From the Barricades to Yorktown: A Chat with Hamilton's Kyle Scatliffe
Kyle Scatliffe is currently starring in the second National Tour of Hamilton, playing the roles of Marquis de Lafayette/ Thomas Jefferson which recently began performances in Seattle at The Paramount Theatre. Mr. Scatliffe is known for playing Enjolras in the 2014 Broadway revival of Les Miserables, and Harpo in the 2015 Broadway Revival of The Color Purple. He also has performed on the West End in The Scottsboro Boys playing the role of Haywood Patterson which earned him an Olivier Award Nomination for “Best Actor in a Musical”.
I had a chance to chat with Kyle about his journey as an actor. But first, I had to ask him what went through his mind when he got the call that he was cast in Hamilton.
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8 Musicals Better Suited to Spielberg Than 'West Side Story'
I'd like to offer some suggestions of musicals that I feel would be better suited to Spielberg than the dance-heavy, New York City set (Spielberg just doesn't scream NYC to me), ultimately very intimate West Side Story.
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Broadway Should Dim Lights for Everyone or No One
Jan Maxwell deserved more. She deserved to win the Tony in 2012. She deserved to be just as highly praised on screen as she was on stage.
She deserved many more years on this planet than 61, dying of breast cancer last week.
But she certainly didn't deserve the treatment she initially received from the Broadway League in the ongoing guessing game that is who is deserving enough to have the tribute of Broadway dimming their lights.
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RANKED: Top 10 Musicals That Never Made it to Broadway
There are a ton of factors to mull over before even beginning to produce a musical on Broadway. Given the financial risk, it's no wonder that a lot of great material gets left out. Even though they may have had legendary Off-Broadway, Regional or even West End productions, something about moving them to Broadway seemed a bit too far fetched.
So here is our list of the 10 best musicals that have yet to get their shot at the Great White Way.
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"As Long As Audiences Will Pay to See Me": A cabaret tribute to Broadway’s “feminist” past and present
I so appreciate everyone coming out tonight, especially the women in this audience who put down their pot roasts and babies to celebrate Broadway’s illustrious and ongoing history of Feminist Musicals! As I’m sure you all know, 2018 has been a difficult year for women, so my friend SKEEZY PIANIST here and I thought we should thank Broadway for stepping it up in the wake of the #MeToo movement by presenting a triad of envelope-pushing revivals.
I’m going to now perform a song from one of these upcoming beauties. Let’s see if you showtunes nerds can figure them out! Hit it, SKEEZY PIANIST!
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"To Wong Foo..." Musical: Some Thoughts and My Dream Cast!
When I heard that they were making “To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar” a musical I was really excited. The movie is VERY underrated. If you watch it with an open mind and heart you will see that there is A LOT of substance in it and it is something I feel works perfectly for the stage.
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Remake "West Side Story"? It's About Time
I saw the poster same as everyone else. Steven Spielberg is set to direct a remake of West Side Story with Tony Kushner providing the screenplay. Holy hell was I unprepared for the social media arguments I saw play out in my newsfeed. Apparently, there are some who believe something’s coming and it’s not all good.
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Alex Brightman: The Artistic Nomad
“If I just move on not knowing what’s ahead of me”, 2016 Tony nominee Alex Brightman told me, “I knew I would always find great things to do.” Call him the artistic nomad.
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Lessons from Lehman Engel
For reasons I understand much better now than when it was happening years ago, I was rejected repeatedly by the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop. I didn't really know how these things worked, I sent them my best stuff, they turned me down. Nowadays I see their point and I am working harder. Fortunately for me, the program's namesake wrote a book.
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There’s a Show for That...
Musicals are incredible works of art. The dancing, the singing, the acting, the lyrics - all work together to create an incredible experience for all involved.
Even ones that may seem more comedic have their very touching moments (yes, I’m looking directly at you, Something Rotten!)
The beauty of musicals is that no matter what you feel, there’s a song for that. There’s a show for that.
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