The Stage Door. To some, it means a chance to meet their favorite performers of theatre. To others, it means an opportunity to thank them for a beautiful show! And it’s a nice gesture to the public of having one’s playbill signed but the actors they saw. All in all, it’s a wonderful experience that one has of their Broadway experience.
Read MoreSelecting a “best” of creative work is about as futile as picking the “best” Beatle.
Yet we are here at awards season for Broadway and off-Broadway, and most lovers of this art form are paying close attention to who gets nominated and who wins.
Read MoreA couple of years ago, I attended a production of RENT that was touring through my area. I was sitting towards the front of the mezzanine area and behind me were a group of younger men and women who were very excited to see the show.
As the show began, and pretty much throughout the entire performance, they all proceeded to sing or speak dialogue from the show. Seldom is a minute go by where I didn't hear their rendition of various moments in the script.
When the show ended and we got out to leave the theatre, I took a dollar out of my pocket and offered to the girl behind me.
"What's this for?" she asked.
"I wanted to make sure I paid you for the performance," I said with the most amount of snark I could muster.
Read MoreI’ve noticed something of a trend at the Winter Garden Theatre over the past few years. Three of the last four productions that have played there have been musicals based on movies with iconic central characters. The one production that did not was about icons, but of a very different sort. The historical figures depicted in “Wolf Hall” are iconic, but not from movies, not from being embodied by a singular actor. Rocky, from “Rocky,” Dewey, from “School of Rock,” and Beetlejuice, from “Beetlejuice,” are very closely tied to the actors who played them originally, actors who were a big part of why the movies were so popular that they were adapted into musicals. As each one of these musicals has come to Broadway, most recently “Beetlejuice,” taking up residence in the Winter Garden this spring, I’ve had the same apprehension: the material may be good for the musical theatre treatment, but who’s going to get stuck toeing the fine line between doing his own thing and imitating an icon?
Read MoreIt’s one of my favorite films. And now it’s going to be presented on stage in a musical format with music by Sir Elton John, lyrics by Shaina Taub, and book by Paul Rudnick.
And just announced, Steppenwolf Theatre Company Artistic Director Anna D. Shapiro, a 2008 Tony winner for her direction of August: Osage County, has been named as the director.
Read MoreNow I am not one to judge before a product is released and reviewed but this just feels wrong. I am personally not a big fan of Spears but there is just something about a musical with her music coming to Broadway. I will be the first to admit I was wrong if it turns out to be a hit. It seems we are starting to see a trend of musicals coming out with the music of popular artist.
Read MoreLast week, it was officially announced that a Michael Jackson musical would be making its way to Broadway next year. “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough” is set to open its out-of-town tryout in Chicago on Oct 29th with plans to move to New York in Spring 2020.
However, should plans for the upcoming show be altered considering the detailed sexual abuse allegations in a new documentary?
Read MoreI don’t take calling for boycotts likely. I don’t think they should be thrown out casually because if they are effective, they can have a lasting impact on everyone involved. While they target those at the top, they immediately impact those at the bottom. I’m well aware of that which is why this has weighed on me.
But after seeing the behavior of Scott Rudin and his representatives over the past month, and seeing the way they have threatened community theatres across the country, I’m fed up.
Read MoreA meme or photo (not sure the difference tbh) posted on this site made a joke about time traveling to see closed Broadway shows, which made me think about shows I'd see if time travel was possible. To keep this piece under 10,000 words, I limited myself to five shows. I further narrowed it to shows that are no longer running (i.e., not going back to the opening night of Hamilton) AND limiting the list to shows I never saw if they originally ran during my lifetime. Here are my time travel shows in no particular order.
Read MoreI recently went to see a broadcast of David Hare’s new play, ‘I’m Not Running.’ A political comedy that is excellently staged, one exchange stood out to me. “I’m not political” claims Pauline when she first meets Sandy as his doctor, “why not?” is Sandy’s response.
This question is important because we should all be political, whether we want to be actively involved or not we should all be focused on politics as it affects every part of our lives. If you are lucky enough not to be political, it shows how you feel so secure and protected in your existence and have never had to worry about how someone’s opinions will affect your daily life. How far into politics and political agendas should theatre delve? Should theatre stay away from specific political events such as Brexit, and controversial political figures such as Donald Trump?
Read More“Rent: Live,” which aired January 27th on Fox, is the third time Jonathan Larson’s landmark pop-opera has been filmed. There’s the 2005 film adaptation (which recently got the Movie Musical Shakedown treatment) and the closing Broadway cast, which was filmed in 2008. The live broadcast stayed true to the roots of “Rent,” while tweaking elements to make it feel fresh and contemporary. Some changes worked, some were expected (you apparently can’t say dildos on primetime TV) and some were downright baffling. To pick apart the good, bad and ugly moments of the broadcast, we enlisted two of our critics Noah Golden, Brittany Strelluf and Erin Karll.
While Noah and Brittany are not super-fans of the show going in, Erin said she’s been a “Renthead for over a decade.” They all agreed that the three “enjoyed this production very much.” As Brittany put it: “‘Rent’ is about finding the joy in a world full of bad, light in a world of darkness, and love in a time of hatred. We need that message now, as much as we needed it when it was written, as much as we will need it in the future.”
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