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Wednesday, April 23, 2008

    This morning's Michael Portantiere:

    [ STARS ]  Go, Billy!

    Elton John himself introduces the three boys who will rotate in the title role Billy Elliot on Broadway. Plus: Lynn Redgrave, Brian Murray, Stew, and other Lucille Lortel Award nominees party hardy.

    Gone With the Wind:

    [ DT ]  Frankly, my dear, it's a damn long night, by Charles Spencer

    The vultures have been circling over this show for weeks. There have been cancelled previews, reports that it was so long that audiences were missing the last train home, and of people physically collapsing in the foyer through sheer exhaustion. Actually I made that last bit up. But I have to say that when I emerged from the theatre after three hours and 40 minutes, it felt as if I had spent several years watching Gone with the Wind and that I had probably missed not just the Beijing Olympics but the London games planned for 2012 as well.

    [ ES ]  Frankly, this show is damned, by Nicholas de Jongh

    Connoisseurs of big, bad musicals must rush to catch Gone With The Wind in case it's quickly blown away on gales of ridicule. Or is a small, well-placed tornado in the vicinity of the theatre too much to hope for?

    [ OLTG ]  The First Night Feature: Gone With The Wind

    It was one of the most anticipated musicals of the year: a new stage adaptation of Margaret Mitchell's famous Civil War-era novel Gone With The Wind, adapted for the stage by first-time stage writer Margaret Martin and directed by Trevor Nunn. Throw in American actress Jill Paice and former reality star Darius Danesh as leads Scarlett O'Hara and Rhett Butler, and it makes for a very intriguing project indeed.

  • Posted by Matthew Murray at 11:18 AM | Item Link


      • [ NYP ]  COBRAS AND 'COUNTRY' By MICHAEL RIEDEL
      CRITICS GET FANGS OUT FOR SHAKY REVIVAL

      [ CT ]  String together enough Russian composers and you get an act by Chris Jones

      Thought Broadway in Chicago had a monopoly on pre-Broadway shows in Chicago? Not so.
      Consider "Russian on the Side," the new solo attraction opening Wednesday at the Royal George Theatre. According to Mark Nadler, who wrote and performs in the show-an exploration of the roots of the great American songbook-it's headed to the Helen Hayes Theatre on Broadway this fall.

      [ NY ]  'Young Frankenstein' - Yes, 'Young Frankenstein' - Leads Outer Critics Circle Noms

      [ LAT ]  Gold Derby by Tom O'Neil
      Drama League noms: 8 new plays, 8 tuners, 69 actors

      [ B ]  2008 Drama League Nominees Announced; 70 Actors Receive Nods

      [ TM ]  2008 Drama League Award Nominations Are Announced

      [ P ]  74th Annual Drama League Award Nominees Announced

      [ TM ]  Jeremy Piven to Star in Broadway Revival of Mamet's Speed-the-Plow

      [ P ]  Piven to Star in Broadway Revival of Mamet's Speed-the-Plow

      [ NYT ]  With 'Speed-The-Plow,' David Mamet Gathers Steam on Broadway By CAMPBELL ROBERTSON; Compiled by LAWRENCE VAN GELDER

      [ TM ]  Roundabout to Produce David Rabe's Streamers in October

      [ P ]  Soldiers of Rabe's Streamers Will March Again Off-Broadway; Ellis Directs

      [ B ]  David Rabe's Streamers to be Revived Off-Broadway by Roundabout

      [ NYT ]  Arts, Briefly: Footnotes
      Compiled by LAWRENCE VAN GELDER

      [ TM ]  Peter Filichia's Diary: Cuban Kid, American Playwright

      "American Idol":

      [ NJ ]  American Idol, Top 6: Andrew Lloyd Webber night by Alan Sepinwall

      [ USA ]  'Idol' recap: The stage is full of theatrics By Ken Barnes

      [ WP ]  Idolettes as Broadway Babies: Do Cry for Us, Argentina By Lisa de Moraes

      [ LAT ]  Show Tracker: What you're watching

      American Idol Tracker: Titans of song battle Andrew Lloyd Webber

      [ CST ]  A showdown of the music of the night BY MISHA DAVENPORT

      'Phantom' song works for one of the Davids

      Features:

      [ VV ]  The Guardian's Michael Billington: A Man for All Theater Seasons by Alexis Soloski

      The Voice chats with the U.K.'s leading critic

      [ NJ ]  A far cry from Bosco's real family by Steve Hedgpeth

      [ BN ]  'Ugly' Barbican Arts Center in London Gets Stripe-Clad New Boss
      Interview by Farah Nayeri

      [ P ]  PLAYBILL.COM'S BRIEF ENOUNTER With Harvey Fierstein

      [ BR ]  Broadway debut for Mario Lopez BY ERIN CARLSON, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

      [ WP ]  Backstage: More Shows, Fewer Showgoers By Jane Horwitz

      Helen Hayes Group Cites Increase of 402 Performances, Decrease of 36,000 Patrons

      [ HC ]  Theater Heavyweights Pay Tribute To Simon By FRANK RIZZO

      [ TM ]  Simply for Simon By: Joseph Marzullo; Text by Brian Scott Lipton

      Michael Douglas, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Lucie Arnaz, Michael Berresse, Colman Domingo, Jennifer Ehle, Katie Finneran, Penny Fuller, Charles Grodin, Dick Latessa, and Lin-Manuel Miranda salute Neil Simon.

      [ P ]  PHOTO CALL: O'Neill Theatre Center Honors Neil Simon with Monte Cristo Award

      [ B ]  PHOTO OP: Goodbye to Baltimore: Darlene Love's Farewell to Hairspray

      [ P ]  PHOTO CALL: The Leading Men III at Birdland

      "Billy Elliot":

      [ DN ]  Trying to please dad spurred Elton John on 'Billy Elliot' musical BY JOE DZIEMIANOWICZ

      [ ND ]  Wantagh teen wins lead 'Billy Elliot' Broadway role BY ROBERT KAHN

      [ P ]  PHOTO CALL: Billy, Billy, Billy-Broadway Meets Stars of Musical Billy Elliot

      [ B ]  STAGE NOTES BLOG: Photo Tease: Meet Billy(s)!

      [ P ]  Broadway Finds Its Billy Elliots

      [ B ]  Billy Elliot Names Its Trio of Young Leading Men

      [ TM ]  Initial Casting Announced for Broadway's Billy Elliot

      "La Fille du Regiment":

      [ TM ]  La Fille du Regiment
      Reviewed by: David Finkle

      Juan Diego Florez, Natalie Dessay, and Marian Seldes shine in the Metropolitan's joyously right production of Donizetti's comic opera.

      [ NYT ]  Counting a Tenor's High C's in 'Fille du Régiment' at the Metropolitan By BERNARD HOLLAND

      Juan Diego Flórez delivered his famous string of high C's in Act I of Donizetti's "Fille du Régiment" and then, repeating the whole thing, nailed them again.

      [ NYT ]  Ban on Solo Encores at the Met? Ban, What Ban? By DANIEL J. WAKIN

      [ DN ]  Howard Kissel: The Cultural Tourist
      La Fille du Regiment

      At times I had the feeling I was in a Broadway theater of yore watching vintage musical comedy. Everything about the production is that effervescent and that direct.

      [ BN ]  Lederhosen and Laughs as Met Tenor Struts His High C (Update1)
      Review by Manuela Hoelterhoff

      [ V ]  La Fille du Regiment
      Review By ERIC MYERS

      Other Reviews:

      [ V ]  Time Is the Mercy of Eternity
      Review By MARK BLANKENSHIP

      There's gorgeous writing and design in "Time Is the Mercy of Eternity," but the two don't fit together -- so the production only hints at the power of Deb Margolin's four short plays.

      [ TM ]  Time Is the Mercy of Eternity
      Reviewed by: Andy Propst

      Deb Margolin's four playlets are overwritten and often wearisome.

      [ AMNY ]  Kiss Me Gorgeous by Matt Windman (***)

      New Jersey's Paper Mill Playhouse scored big time when it recruited Patti Colombo.

      [ BR ]  Theater review: "Kiss Me, Kate" at Paper Mill Playhouse BY JIM BECKERMAN

      The result is delicious, start to finish.

      [ TB ]  Kiss Me, Kate Comes Wealthily and Happily to Paper Mill by Bob Rendell

      [ BS ]  The Brain - Reviewed by JERRY PORTWOOD

      The overall purpose of this careful articulation of Einstein's life is unclear, raising few questions as to his humanity and instead reinforcing a view of him as godlike, expressing unalloyed wonder at his genius and influence on modernity.

      [ BS ]  Babylon Babylon - Reviewed by JERRY PORTWOOD

      The Brick Theater's new piece comes across as an elaborate history lesson sprung from the mind of someone who let his research of ancient civilizations get the best of him.

      [ NYT ]  Beneath the Surface, Something Odd Is Going On By NEIL GENZLINGER

      Matthew Freeman again peers under the surface of domestic Middle America and finds some odd goings-on in "When Is a Clock."

      [ NYT ]  The Three-Ring Circus That's Usually a Ferry Ride Away By JASON ZINOMAN

      "Fire Island" is Charles Mee's new erotic drama of vast cinematic images and banal theatrical clichés.

      [ NYT ]  In a Dirty World, Trying to Scrub Clean By JASON ZINOMAN

      Kate Harris has adapted Francis Ford Coppola's classic 1974 paranoid thriller, "The Conversation," for the stage.

      [ NYP ]  'EMANCIPATION' SERVES ITS PURPOSE By FRANK SCHECK (***)

      [ TNO ]  WHEN THE ACTING TURNED SERIOUS by Bill Stevenson

      The Walworth Farce is utterly original and nearly always unpredictable. The play is alternately funny and frightening.

      [ VV ]  A Catered Affair's Identity Crisis Management by Michael Feingold

      [ BS ]  Barbara Carroll's Sunday Jazz Brunch - Reviewed by DAVID FINKLE

      At times Carroll is all in fun; at other times she's all in seriousness - but always all in the cause of high-quality performance.

      [ TB ]  A Moon for the Misbegotten on the American Stage: A History of the Major Productions By Laura Shea
      Reviewed by Sarah Boslaugh

      News:

      [ INQ ]  Band of civic saviors pays off Kimmel's debt By Peter Dobrin

      More than six years after opening night, the $275 million Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts is finally paid for.

      [ P ]  Reprise Season to Feature Once on This Island, I Love My Wife, Man of La Mancha and Chess

      [ TM ]  Alexander, Ledisi, Lewis, Porter, Weber, et al. Set for Reprise Season

      [ LAT ]  Reprise Theater Company announces 2008-09 season By Diane Haithman

      [ WP ]  Strathmore's New Reasons to Celebrate: The Piano, 'Take Joy' and More By Jacqueline Trescott

      [ WP ]  Theater J's New Season

      [ V ]  Streisand pulls out of Israeli concert

      Diva will not appear in 60th anniversary event

      [ P ]  [title of show] Cast Will Host Drama Desk Awards

      [ TM ]  [title of show] Cast to Host 2008 Drama Desk Awards on May 18

      [ B ]  Cast of [title of show] to Host Drama Desk Awards Ceremony

      [ P ]  Ashmanskas, Baldwin, Johnson, Latessa and Stone to Star in Huntington's She Loves Me

      [ TM ]  Ashmanskas, Baldwin, Latessa, et al. Cast in Huntington's She Loves Me

      [ TM ]  Amelia Campbell, Laura Heisler Join Michele Pawk in Penguin Rep's The Fall to Earth

      [ TM ]  Blazer, Gets, Harada, Irving, Reichard, et al. Set for Artist's Crossing Benefit

      [ P ]  Blazer, Gets, Harada, Llana and Reichard to Be Part of Artist's Crossing Benefit in May

      [ TM ]  D'Arcy James, Gonzalez, Kudisch, Ripley, Skinner, et al. Cast in Broadway By the Year Concerts

      [ P ]  James, Kudisch and Murney Will Sing 1965 Tunes; Ripley, Skinner and Klausner Will Tackle 1979

      [ P ]  Coogan and McKechnie Join Pamela's First Musical Cast

      [ TM ]  Lila Coogan to Join Donna Murphy in Pamela's First Musical Benefit

      [ TM ]  Jarrod Emick, Jackie Hoffman Set for April 28 What's My Line?

      [ P ]  Emick, Hoffman, Alexandria and Zax Will Be Panelists for April 28 "What's My Line?"

      [ TM ]  Collette, Daniels, Janney, Krasinski, Rudolph, et al. Set for New Sam Mendes Film

      [ P ]  Daniels, Janney and O'Hara Complete Cast for Mendes Feature Film

      [ P ]  "Once Upon a Time" Musical Brooklyn to Play Wisconsin

      [ P ]  Skinner, Lazar, Foard, Walker andMore Set for Free Reading of Black Dahlia Musical

      [ P ]  Stanley and Umphress Will Be Part of May 5 Friends With Benefits

      [ P ]  Rent Stars to Sing Eighties Tunes at the Cutting Room April 23

      [ P ]  Jibson, Kantor, Snow, Lee and Bradford Will Be Seen in a Peep Show April 28

      [ P ]  Gatton Will Be His Own Wife at Barrington

      [ P ]  Philadelphia Theatre Co. Premieres Master Clown Bill Irwin's Happiness Lecture May 16

      [ P ]  Gone with the Wind Opens at the New London Theatre April 22

      [ P ]  Mulgrew Succeeds Ivey in Albee's Dream and Sandbox April 22

      [ P ]  New Musical Angels to Bow at Louisiana's Strand Theatre

      [ P ]  Birch, Bogardus, Desai, Winther and Brady Share New York Stories May 3

      [ P ]  Ascension's Ruckdashel to Be Part of A Body Without a Head Cast

      [ P ]  Talk Show Watch: Judi Dench on "Tavis Smiley," Terrence Howard on "Regis"

      [ TM ]  Daly, Klugman, May, Pasquale, Walsh, Young, et al. Set for George Street Gala

      [ P ]  Today In Theatre History: APRIL 23

      [ P ]  Mayes, Andersen and Lutvak Join Hall at Lincoln Triangle Barnes and Noble April 23

      [ P ]  Amin Fantasy, Steve & Idi, Begins Off-Broadway Run April 23

      [ P ]  Prep School-Set Good Boys and True Begins Second Stage Run April 23

      [ P ]  Prelude to a Dance Gala, with Peters, Kent and Gomes, Presented April 23

      [ P ]  Inge Festival Honoring Durang Begins April 23; Pawk Directs Picnic

      [ P ]  Errico Sings of "Lullabies and Wildflowers" at Joe's Pub April 23-24

      [ P ]  Brits Off-Broadway Storms 59E59 Theaters April 23

      [ P ]  Armadale, Based on Wilkie Collins' Yarn, Begins at Milwaukee Rep

      [ P ]  Teen Time! Cast Announced for Goodspeed Run of 13 Musical

      [ P ]  Australia's Shout! The Legend of the Wild One Taped for Film Distribution

    • Posted by Tim Dunleavy at 8:54 AM | Item Link


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