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Thursday, October 2, 2008

    [ B ]  Welcome to the New Broadway.com! What's New? We'll Tell You!

    News:

    [ P ]  Hairspray Likely to Close in January; Fierstein Will Return

    [ B ]  Johanna Day and Michael Milligan to Join the Cast of August: Osage County

    [ P ]  Johanna Day and Michael Milligan Join Restless August Clan Oct. 14

    [ TM ]  Johanna Day to Replace Amy Morton in August: Osage County

    [ P ]  Audra McDonald & Barbara Cook: Broadway Voices For Change Set for Oct. 19 at the Hirschfeld

    [ TM ]  Barbara Cook and Audra McDonald to Star in Broadway Voices For Change Benefit

    [ B ]  Annette Bening to Star in Benefit Reading of All About Eve

    [ TM ]  Annette Bening to Star in Actors Fund's All About Eve Reading

    [ TM ]  Journeys Begins La MaMa Run on October 2

    [ TM ]  Harris, Martins, Rivera to be Honored at the Harman Center Gala

    [ TM ]  Dratch, McBrayer, Meyers, Sanz Set for Give Food A Chance Benefit

    [ TM ]  Eddie Izzard to Bring Stripped to London's Lyric Theatre

    [ TM ]  Linda Eder to Perform at NYC's Blender Theatre on October 22

    [ P ]  Police Drama, The Rant, Premieres at New Theatre in FL

    [ P ]  Annette Bening to Star in Actors Fund Reading of "All About Eve"

    [ P ]  Queens Company to Stage Twelfth Night at Urban Stages in November

    [ P ]  "Good Morning America" Will Capture Madness of 39 Steps Oct. 3

    [ P ]  Westerfield Is Equity's New Western Regional Director

    [ P ]  Goodwin, Morgenstern, Ragsdale and Rothauser to Be Exposed at the Zipper

    [ P ]  Pawk and Bowen Set for I Loved Lucy Reading

    [ P ]  Reading of Singer's Sin to Feature Abraham, Hecht, Epstein and More

    [ P ]  Grease Will Be the Word in Paris Beginning Oct. 8

    [ P ]  New Musical Rue Magique to Premiere at London's King's Head

    [ P ]  Joan Rivers Cancels Second West End Run

    [ P ]  "Idol" Finalist Robinson Will Star in Syracuse Godspell

    [ P ]  David Jones, Respected English Director, Dies at 74

    [ B ]  Broadway Marquees to be Dimmed in Memory of Paul Newman

    Features:

    [ B ]  Fresh Face: Graham Phillips

    [ AMNY ]  Chatting with Norbert Leo Butz about 'Fifty Words' By Matt Windman

    [ P ]  PHOTO CALL: Fifty Words Opens Off-Broadway

    [ B ]  VIDEO FEATURES: On the Scene: Fault Lines Brings Belber Back to Naked Angels

    [ B ]  VIDEO FEATURES: Behind the Scenes: Backstage with Off-Broadway's Altar Boyz

    [ P ]  PHOTO CALL: Roundabout Revives Streamers Off-Broadway

    [ B ]  PHOTO OP: The Cast of Roundabout's Streamers Reports for Duty

    [ B ]  PHOTO OP: Billy Elliot Kicks Up its Heels as Previews Begin

    [ P ]  PHOTO CALL: To Be Or Not To Be on Broadway

    [ P ]  PHOTO CALL: [title of show] Visits Forbidden Broadway

    Reviews:

    [ TM ]  Legally Blonde the Musical
    Reviewed by: John Rowell

    Becky Gulsvig is irresistible as think-pink lawyer-to-be Elle Woods in the national tour of the hit musical.

    [ TNO ]  FAMILY VALUES by PATRICK LEE

    Wig Out is a wildly theatrical celebration of a distinct brand of gender-bent performance. Call it a fascinating look at a particular kind of family system.

    [ TB ]  SOUND ADVICE: TRADITIONAL AND WITH A TWIST by Rob Lester

    [ TONY ]  Equus
    Review by David Cote

    Word of advice to movie stars clattering across our stages: Learn to trot before trying to gallop.

    [ TONY ]  Wig Out!
    Review by Adam Feldman

    Paris Is Burning without the fire, Wig Out! is woefully superficial; it gives good face, but falls short on realness.

    [ TONY ]  Break Out
    Review by David Cote

    Nothing and no one can sit still for a second without being popped, locked, kick-twirled or head-spun into profound idiocy.

    [ TONY ]  In Conflict
    Review by Helen Shaw

    There is no split between real and represented-the script is journalism, and the stories need to be heard.

    [ TONY ]  Irena's Vow
    Review by Raven Snook

    It's a testament to Dan Gordon's capable writing and Tovah Feldshuh's masterful performance that Irena's Vow is so moving, despite the movie-of-the-week material.

    [ TONY ]  Close Ties
    Review by Rob Weinert-Kendt

    The leap from quaint to queasy is handled so masterfully by Diggs, director Pamela Berlin and the top-notch cast that we can almost forget that this is, at bottom, a should-we-put-Grandma-in-a-home play.

  • Posted by Tim Dunleavy at 7:53 PM | Item Link


      • [ V ]  Rosie to get 'Variety Show' on NBC

      Thanksgiving special to kick off series

      [ FOX ]  FOX411 By Roger Friedman
      Rosie O'Donnell's Really Big Show

      [ P ]  "Rosie's Variety Show" to Air Thanksgiving Weekend

      [ TM ]  Broadway to Dim Lights in Memory of Paul Newman on October 3

      [ P ]  Broadway to Dim Its Lights Oct. 3 in Honor of Late Paul Newman

      [ NYP ]  PAGE SIX
      $9M END TO 'CHICAGO' SUIT

      Features:

      [ P ]  THE LEADING MEN: Hoff, Barbour, Wilson, Newman, Spirtas and Bullock

      [ P ]  ASK PLAYBILL.COM: Workshops

      [ TM ]  All Over the Map By: Dan Bacalzo, Tristan Fuge, and Zachary Stewart

      This Beautiful City in Los Angeles, Dirty Dancing in Chicago, and The Toxic Avenger in New Brunswick, NJ.

      [ USA ]  Showtime on Broadway for 'Weeds' star Hunter Parrish By Donna Freydkin

      [ EW ]  PopWatch Blog
      The Footlights: 'Amazing Race' star Nick Spangler on his 'Fantasticks' day

      [ B ]  FIRST PERSON: Patrick Page Hails Langella as a True Man for All Seasons

      [ B ]  BACKSTORY: The Triumphant Flight of The Seagull

      [ P ]  PLAYBILL.COM'S BRIEF ENCOUNTER With Campbell Scott

      [ CST ]  Steppenwolf wunderkind Hill spreads wings in 'Kafka' BY HEDY WEISS

      [ WP ]  Curtain Goes Up At the Eisenhower By Jacqueline Trescott

      $18 Million Renovation Completed

      [ WP ]  Kaiser's Sage 'Turnaround' Of the Arts By Jacqueline Tresco

      Kennedy Center Chief Pens New Book on Strategy

      [ WP ]  Backstage: Stronger Than a Fleeting Ballot By Jane Horwitz

      Election Year or Not, Actor Is Super 'Citizen'

      [ P ]  PHOTO CALL:Broadway Welcomes New Jersey Boys

      [ P ]  PHOTO CALL: Avenue Q Welcomes New Star Romano

      [ TM ]  Taking an Opening By: Joseph Marzullo, Tristan Fuge, & Brian Scott Lipton

      Cynthia Nixon, Edie Falco, Simon Pegg, Amy Ryan, Joel Grey, Bobby Cannavale, Adam Guettel, and Eartha Kitt prove to be purr-fect opening night guests.

      [ B ]  WORD OF MOUTH: Jersey Girl Whitney Hopes to Bring a Young Voice to the Panel

      "Fifty Words":

      [ BN ]  Michael Weller, Sixties Chronicler, Dissects Iraq War, Marriage
      Interview by Jeremy Gerard

      [ NYT ]  How Do I Love Thee? Let Me Count the Bruises and Battle Scars By BEN BRANTLEY

      Norbert Leo Butz and Elizabeth Marvel bring authentic and unsparing life to "Fifty Words," Michael Weller's bruising domestic drama.

      [ CU ]  Fifty Words

      Norbert Leo Butz and Elizabeth Marvel are sheer dynamite as battling spouses who veer from loving to biting conversation, from tender to more violent embraces, from mutual admiration to hurtful putdowns.

      [ V ]  Fifty Words
      Review By DAVID ROONEY

      It's obvious why this volatile drama would attract an actor-director to the helm, and Austin Pendleton's taut production for MCC referees gladiatorial performances from Norbert Leo Butz and Elizabeth Marvel that make it impossible to look away.

      [ YN ]  'Fifty Words' dissects a volatile relationship By MICHAEL KUCHWARA, AP Drama Critic

      The best thing about Weller's play is that it offers no easy answers for making a relationship work.

      [ TB ]  Fifty Words
      Review by Matthew Murray

      [ ND ]  Reviews: 'Fault Lines,' 'Fifty Words,' 'Wig Out!' BY LINDA WINER

      [ PRESS ]  Who's Afraid of Brooklyn Yuppies?: Michael Weller's black comedy, 'Fifty Words' simultaneously goes for the jugular and the punchline by Mark Peikert

      [ DN ]  '50 Words' doesn't amount to much by Joe Dziemianowicz (**)

      [ NYP ]  THEM'S FIGHTING 'WORDS' By FRANK SCHECK (**)

      [ BS ]  Fifty Words - Reviewed by GEW OREL

      Have you ever been in the middle of a bickerfest between a couple you don't really know and can't get away from? Michael Weller's new play is a lot like that.

      [ TM ]  Fifty Words
      Reviewed by: David Finkle

      Elizabeth Marvel and Norbert Leo Butz give excellent performances in Michael Weller's less-than-realistic portrait of an unraveling marriage.

      [ NJ ]  High casualties on this marital battlefield BY MICHAEL SOMMERS

      Director Austin Pendleton's production is carefully detailed in every aspect from set designer Neil Patel's cozy brownstone duplex to the actors' ultra-committed performances. Too bad the harrowing drama registers as such a disagreeable time for everybody.

      [ BN ]  Hot Kisses, Flying Food Leave Couple Dazed, Bruised: John Simon

      We cannot help recalling how good Michael Weller's youthful plays of the '70s were, as we sadly watch the second of his late middle-age ones come to grief.

      "Fault Lines":

      [ NYT ]  Audio Slide Show: Drinks and Deceit

      David Schwimmer and Stephen Belber talk about collaborating on the play "Fault Lines."

      [ P ]  PHOTO CALL: Belber's Fault Lines Shake Off-Broadway

      [ P ]  PHOTO CALL: Fault Lines, with Josh Lucas, Opens Off-Broadway

      [ NYT ]  The Things You Learn at a Bar: Guys, Friendship, Its Strains and Surprises By JASON ZINOMAN

      Stephen Belber's enjoyable if flawed "Fault Lines" is part of a genre about vaguely homoerotic male friendship in which the towel-slapping banter usually hides much deeper divides.

      [ YN ]  A guy-talk look at friendship in 'Fault Lines' By MICHAEL KUCHWARA, AP Drama Critic

      Playwright Stephen Belber has a knack for making male banter sound real even while his plot veers into improbability while attempting to keep the audience off-balance.

      [ AMNY ]  'Fault Lines': David Schwimmer's Off-Broadway debut nothing new By Matt Windman (**)

      [ CU ]  Fault Lines

      Looking for a play that is both credible and preposterous at the same time? Then this one is for you.

      [ TM ]  Fault Lines
      Reviewed by: Sandy MacDonald

      Stephen Belber's compelling and funny play about a boys' night out yields surprise after surprise.

      [ V ]  Fault Lines
      Review By SAM THIELMAN

      It's difficult not to resent a comedy for self-destructing in the name of surprise, but the insights Belber finds amid the backstabbing are smart enough -- barely -- to justify the meltdown.

      [ NYP ]  BOOZE-FUELED NIGHT LASTS A ROUND TOO LONG By FRANK SCHECK (** 1/2)

      "Fault Lines," like many an alcohol-fueled evening, is a lot of fun before it turns increasingly uncomfortable.

      [ TB ]  THE SIEGEL COLUMN By Barbara & Scott Siegel

      Two Off-Broadway Shows Make a Big Impression: Fault Lines and The Marvelous Wonderettes.

      [ DN ]  Mysterious stranger sets up 'Fault Lines' by Joe Dziemianowicz

      'Fault Lines' - 3 stars; 'Wig Out' - 3 stars

      "Wig Out!":

      [ NYT ]  Slide Show: Scenes From a Ball

      [ NYT ]  Families Come in All Shapes and Hairstyles By BEN BRANTLEY

      Tarell Alvin McCraney's "Wig Out!" is a gutsy, pulsing portrait of uptown drag queens and the men who love them.

      [ TM ]  Wig Out!
      Reviewed by: Dan Bacalzo

      Tarell Alvin McCraney's vibrant and innovative new play about "House Balls" is given a bold and stylish production.

      [ TB ]  Wig Out!
      Review by Matthew Murray

      A piercing and oddly poetic look at the drag underworld and the glamorous balls that make it respectable.

      [ CU ]  Wig Out!

      It's all eye-poppingly lively but It's not until the backstage business segues into an actual Drag Ball that everything begins to make sense.

      [ YN ]  'Wig Out!' brims with attitude and extravagance By MICHAEL KUCHWARA, AP Drama Critic

      [ VV ]  The Vineyard's Wig Out Sports Some Hairy Pageantry By Alexis Soloski

      [ NJ ]  All dressed up with no place to go BY MICHAEL SOMMERS

      "Wig Out!" studies the rivalries in a household of drag divas. Not much of a play, frankly, but certainly one fabulous show, thanks to fierce performances and director Tina Landau's extremely stylish staging.

      [ V ]  Wig Out!
      Review By MARK BLANKENSHIP

      "Wig Out!" is a fierce drag show, but it's wobbly theater.

      [ P ]  Drag Out: Vineyard Extends Wig Out! Run Off-Broadway

      [ B ]  Wig Out! Gets Two-Week Extension at Vineyard Theatre

      NYMF:

      [ NYT ]  Enter Singing: Giant Bedbugs, Fancy Boys, Bank Robbers, Potato Farmers By ANITA GATES

      There are two big messages in this year's New York Musical Theater Festival: Nobody wants to be in 2008 New York. Everybody is gay.

      [ TB ]  Idaho!
      She Can't Believe She Said That!
      Reviews by Matthew Murray

      [ BS ]  That Other Woman's Child - Reviewed by LISA JO SAGOLLA

      A foot-stomping, Bible-pounding, down-home country musical set in the back hills of Kentucky, That Other Woman's Child features a delightful score of bluegrass dance tunes and country-western ballads, anthems, and hymns. Unfortunately, the show's book is far less compelling than its energizing music.

      [ BS ]  Cyclone and the Pig-Faced Lady - Reviewed by A.J. MELL

      Any musical that rhymes "coup d'état" with "Wonderbra" obviously has something going for it, though this fantasy of Coney Island in the 1920s works better as a live-action cartoon than as an evocation of personal tragedy.

      [ TM ]  Kate Shindle to Host NYMF's Next Broadway Sensation Finals on October 3

      [ P ]  Shindle to Host "Next Broadway Sensation" Finale Oct. 3

      [ P ]  LAST CHANCE: Fela!, What's That Smell, English Channel and NYMF

      Other Reviews:

      [ V ]  Creditors
      Review By DAVID BENEDICT

      It's a test of controlled power, and Alan Rickman's grippingly acted production for the Donmar Warehouse pulls it off with exhilarating intensity.

      [ TM ]  Turn of the Century
      Reviewed by: Jonathan Abarbanel

      Rachel York and Jeff Daniels give dazzling star turns in this entertaining but not-yet-ready-for Broadway musical about a pair of songwriters transported back in time.

      [ V ]  The Civilians' This Beautiful City
      Review By BOB VERINI

      Steven Cosson and Jim Lewis weave first-person interviews in Christian boomtown Colorado Springs, conducted by theatrical community activists the Civilians, into a fascinating crazy quilt on faith's role in American life.

      [ V ]  Joe's Garage
      Review By TERRY MORGAN

      Pat Towne and Michael Franco's adaptation of "Garage" into a two-act musical is properly respectful of its source material, and the world premiere production by the Open Fist Theater Company is lively and provocative, with a committed cast.

      [ V ]  Kafka on the Shore
      Review By STEVEN OXMAN

      Audacious in its ambition but not fully satisfying in its execution, Frank Galati's adaptation of Haruki Murakami's vastly evocative novel "Kafka on the Shore" possesses plenty to admire but not quite enough to adore.

      [ TM ]  Aliens with Extraordinary Skills
      Reviewed by: Dan Bacalzo

      Saviana Stanescu's whimsical romantic comedy follows a pair of illegal immigrants trying to find love and permanent residency in the U.S.

      [ V ]  Aliens With Extraordinary Skills
      Review By SAM THIELMAN

      At last, a play for the Moldovan balloon wrangler in all of us. Saviana Stanescu's "Aliens With Extraordinary Skills" is about as structurally sound as an old cobweb, but, like a cobweb, it's hard not to take a little of it with you when you leave.

      [ CU ]  Aliens with Extraordinary Skills

      A highly entertaining piece of work, but it is unlikely to move anyone to outrage or action.

      [ NJ ]  Cosmic questions by Peter Filichia

      'Defying Gravity' weighs the value of life in a space-age society

      [ V ]  Flip Side
      Review By MARK BLANKENSHIP

      For all its yearning, "Flip Side" plays like a romp.

      [ TB ]  A Cause for Celebration: Return of The Colored Museum and the Crossroads Theatre Company by Bob Rendell

      [ TB ]  The Canterville Ghost
      Review by Fred Sokol

      [ TE ]  "FANCY BOYS FOLLIES - XXX Rated" - Review by Oscar E Moore

      Perhaps if you saw this show on Fire Island, at midnight, in a bar, drunk or stoned you could appreciate the cockamamie shenanigans goings on. No pun intended.

      [ BSUN ]  Without its high roller, 'Legally Blonde' falls flat By Mary Carole McCauley

      Musical based on hit Witherspoon film isn't as charming

      [ PW ]  Stage by J. Cooper Robb

      Rock 'n' Roll; Herringbone

      [ CP ]  Rock in a Hard Place: Tom Stoppard's Rock 'n' Roll by Mark Cofta

      Supporting performances, particularly by Mary McCool as a frisky academic and Ryan Farley as Jan's closest friend, emphasize the human dimensions of a typically dizzying Stoppard script.

      [ CP ]  Lost Universe: The World Goes Round by David Anthony Fox

      I thought Prince's mission was to cultivate interesting new work. Nothing here qualifies.

      [ VV ]  Equus, The Tempest, and The Glass Cage-Old Texts That Need Some Old-Style Theatrical Flair By Michael Feingold

      [ VV ]  In Conflict, A Soldiers' Play By Alexis Soloski

      [ VV ]  Review: Irena's Vow By Alexander Nazaryan

      [ VV ]  Review: Close Ties By Alexis Soloski

      [ VV ]  Review: The English Channel By Rob Weinert-Kendt

      [ NYT ]  Punch Lines, Torch Songs and Plenty of Scatting By STEPHEN HOLDEN

      On Monday evening at Smoke, Lea DeLaria and a jazz trio performed two sets of songs that focused on material from her new album.

      [ BS ]  Mary Testa and Alison Fraser: Together Again - Reviewed by DAVID FINKLE

      This show, which deserves better than a two-night booking, is a retrospective of songwriter Rusty McGee, and I challenge anyone to rack his or her brain for a better pair to demonstrate how vital the late tunesmith's work remains.

      News:

      [ TM ]  James Earl Jones to Receive SAG's Lifetime Achievement Award

      [ P ]  James Earl Jones to Be Honored with 2008 SAG Life Achievement Award

      [ P ]  Julie Andrews to Receive 2008 National Arts Lifetime Achievement Award

      [ P ]  Never Forget Cancels Transfer to London's Lyric Theatre; Tour Planned

      [ TM ]  Full Cast, Creative Team Set for Mark Taper's The School of Night

      [ P ]  Who's Who of Elizabethan England Is Cast in Marlowe Murder Mystery School of Night, at Taper

      [ TM ]  Vincent Pastore to Star in Lamppost Reunion Revival

      [ P ]  Pastore and Aiello to Star in Off-Broadway's Lamppost Reunion

      [ P ]  Halbach and Rakel Cast in Off-Broadway's The Affair in 22B

      [ HC ]  Sadly, Hartford's Artworks Is No More
      Frank Rizzo | TICKER

      [ P ]  Chalfant Will Join Glover in Culture Project's Emmett Reading

      [ P ]  Lilies Reading Will Feature Domingo and Keenan-Bolger Oct. 20

      [ TM ]  Arias with a Twist CD Is Now Available

      [ TM ]  Di Mabro, LaBarrie, Nugent, et al. Set for London's Rue Magique

      [ TM ]  Aiello, Cook, Cooper, Drake, et al. to Appear at Theatre Museum Awards

      [ TM ]  American Idol's Anwar Robinson to Star in Syracuse Stage's Godspell

      [ TM ]  Arnold, Lamon, Milo Set for Engeman's Little Shop

      [ TM ]  Gervais, Goldberg, Philbin, Pinette, Springsteen Set for NYCF's Stand Up For Heroes

      [ P ]  Midwest Resident Theatres Explored on Oct. 3 "Theater Talk"

      [ NYT ]  Arts, Briefly: Footnotes
      Compiled by DAVE ITZKOFF

      [ NYP ]  PAGE SIX
      STAGE THROAT

      [ AA ]  Let The Names Begin by Army Archerd

      [ P ]  Latta, Bates, Chadsey and Wool to Explore Love in Blind.ness at PS 122

      [ P ]  Hoffman and Collette to Voice "Mary and Max" Film

      [ P ]  Rob Guest, Australian Stage Star, Dies at 57

    • Posted by Tim Dunleavy at 12:48 PM | Item Link


        • This morning's news:

        [ P ]  Seagull Revival, with Kristin Scott Thomas and Peter Sarsgaard, Opens on Broadway Oct. 2

        [ P ]  Boys' Life, with Biggs, Coiro and Scanavino, Begins Off-Broadway Run Oct. 2

        [ P ]  Off-Broadway Revival of Blessing's Two Rooms Begins Oct. 2

        [ P ]  Soho Rep Offers New York Premiere of Controversial Blasted Beginning Oct. 2

        [ P ]  Free Bryant Park Concert, The Bernstein Songbook, Offered Oct. 2

        [ P ]  Graff, Ashmanskas, Brescia, Osnes, von Essen Explore Broadway: Three Generations Oct. 2-5

        [ P ]  Parson-Directed Radio Golf Completes Wilson Cycle at Pittsburgh Public Oct. 2-Nov. 2

        [ P ]  Little Shop of Horrors Takes Root at Engeman Oct. 2

        [ P ]  Malick and Shaughnessy Star in Don't Blame Me, I Voted for Helen Gahagan Douglas Reading Oct. 2

        [ P ]  Ludwig's Three Musketeers Kicks Off Seattle Rep Season Oct. 2

        [ P ]  Elaine Paige Memoir, Memories, Arrives in U.K. Stores Oct. 2

        [ P ]  Richard III Haunts West End Theatre Beginning Oct. 2

        This morning's features:

        [ NYT ]  If Only the Cool Kids Could See Him Now (at Least Hear His Songs), by Bruce Weber

        Adolescent anxiety is the subject of 13, Jason Robert Brown's new Broadway musical.

        [ NYT ]  Music Man

        Photos of shows written by the composer Jason Robert Brown.

        [ TONY ]  Russian Roulette, by David Cote

        Philadelphia's ingenious Pig Iron Theatre Company performs brain surgery on Chekhov.

        [ TONY ]  The New York 40 Adam Rapp: Playwright, daydreamer by Helen Shaw

        Reviews out of Boston:

        [ STARS ]  Cirque du Soleil's Kooza - Grand Chapiteau at the Bayside Expo Center Reviewed by David Hurst

        [ STARS ]  Handel's Messiah Rocks - Cutler Majestic Theatre at Emerson College Reviewed by David Hurst

        [ STARS ]  The Light in the Piazza - SpeakEasy Stage Reviewed by David Hurst

        [ STARS ]  A Chorus Line - The Boston Opera House Reviewed by David Hurst

        [ STARS ]  Follies - The Lyric Stage Company of Boston Reviewed by David Hurst

        Review out of Los Angeles:

        [ LAT ]  LAT Review of the World Premiere of Itamar Moses' Back Back Back at the Old Globe by Charles McNulty, Times Theater Critic

      • Posted by Matthew Murray at 7:25 AM | Item Link


      • « October 1, 2008 | Front Page | Archives | October 3, 2008 »

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