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Monday, May 25, 2015

Today In Theatre History: FEBRUARY 27 by David Gewirtzman and Anne Bradley, Ernio Hernandez

1848 English actress Ellen Terry is born today. She will make her American debut in 1883 with Henry Irving's company. She will go on to star in classic and contemporary works. The Terry fami…

SOURCE: Playbill at 05:58PM

Today In Theatre History: FEBRUARY 28 by David Gewirtzman and Anne Bradley, Ernio Hernandez and Robert Viagas

1894 Birthday of playwright Ben Hecht (1894-1964) , author or co-author of The Front Page, Twentieth Century, Jumbo, The Egoist and The Great Magoo.

SOURCE: Playbill at 05:58PM

Today In Theatre History: MARCH 11 by David Gewirtzman and Anne Bradley, Ernio Hernandez and Robert Viagas

1930 Edward Franklin Albee, vaudeville producer and theatre owner, dies today in Palm Beach, Florida. He joined B.F. Keith in the presentation of variety shows and by 1920 had a vaudeville c…

SOURCE: Playbill at 05:58PM

Today In Theatre History: JANUARY 22 by David Gewirtzman and Robert Viagas, Anne Bradley and Christopher Reichheld

1912 Stop in at the Liberty Theatre in New York and see just what it takes when you're Elevating a Husband. Edward Everett Horton, Conway Tearle and Jessie Carter are among the cast of this …

SOURCE: Playbill at 05:58PM

Today In Theatre History: JANUARY 21 by David Gewirtzman and Robert Viagas, Christopher Reichheld and Anne Bradley

1903 Dorothy, The Scarecrow, the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion are first seen on Broadway today in the original musical The Wizard of Oz, with music by Paul Tietjens and book and lyrics by L…

SOURCE: Playbill at 05:58PM

Today In Theatre History: JANUARY 25 by David Gewirtzman and Robert Viagas, Christopher Reichheld and Anne Bradley

1915 It'll be 90 in the Shade for only 40 performances. The unpaid actors will refuse to go on in this musical with a Jerome Kern score and book by Guy Bolton. Richard Carle and Marie Cahill…

SOURCE: Playbill at 05:58PM

Today In Theatre History: JANUARY 30 by David Gewirtzman and Robert Viagas, Christopher Reichheld and Anne Bradley

1911 Hugh Herbert Hipple is born today in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After dropping two H's, he will become suave actor Hugh Marlowe. In 1940 he will appear in Elmer Rice's Flight To the We…

SOURCE: Playbill at 05:58PM

Today In Theatre History: FEBRUARY 14 by David Gewirtzman and Robert Viagas, Ernio Hernandez and Anne Bradley

1882 Birthday of John Barrymore (1882-1942), actor in the grand style, and scion of the Barrymore acting clan. Though he began as a light comedian, he became identified with the classics, no…

SOURCE: Playbill at 05:58PM

Today In Theatre History: FEBRUARY 20 by David Gewirtzman and Robert Viagas, Ernio Hernandez and Anne Bradley

1893 Birthday of playwright and producer Russel Crouse (1893-1966), whose prodigious output of scripts, many in partnership with Howard Lindsay, includes State of the Union and The Great Seb…

SOURCE: Playbill at 05:58PM

Today In Theatre History: FEBRUARY 21 by David Gewirtzman and Robert Viagas, Ernio Hernandez and Anne Bradley

1879 John Wellington Wells deals his magic and spells for the first time on Broadway with the American premiere of Gilbert and Sullivan's The Sorcerer at the old Broadway Theatre.

SOURCE: Playbill at 05:58PM

Today In Theatre History: MARCH 6 by David Gewirtzman and Robert Viagas, Ernio Hernandez and Anne Bradley

1933 Maxwell Anderson indicts Both Your Houses, a political story at the Royale Theatre. Morris Carnovsky is in the cast of this Theatre Guild production. It will go on to win the Pulitzer P…

SOURCE: Playbill at 05:58PM

Even as injuries mount, 'Spider-Man' execs vow show must go on by JOE DZIEMIANOWICZ, HEIDI EVANS and CORKY SIEMASZKO, DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS

Dogged by talk of a curse, "Spider-Man" producers vowed Tuesday the star-crossed show would go on despite a shocking fall that could have killed its top stunt man. Christopher Tierney wasn't…

SOURCE: New York Daily News at 05:58PM

Injury strikes 'Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark' musical again as stunt double takes plunge into pit by KERRY BURKE, BARRY PADDOCK AND LEO STANDORA

The curse of "Spider-Man" struck again Monday night when a stunt double in the star-crossed show was injured as he plunged from a platform into a pit below the stage.

SOURCE: New York Daily News at 05:58PM

Would the Bard Have Survived the Web? by SCOTT TUROW, PAUL AIKEN and JAMES SHAPIRO

Literary and creative talents often remain undeveloped unless markets reward them.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:58PM

Fun, Fun, Fun With Porgy, Bess and George by STEPHEN HOLDEN, JON PARELES, JON CARAMANICA and BEN RATLIFF

New albums by Brian Wilson, John Mellencamp, Trace Adkins, Esperanza Spalding and Boris & Ian Astbury.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:58PM
Sunday, May 24, 2015

Playbill Vault’s Today In Theatre History: May 24 by David Gewirtzman and Robert Viagas, Ernio Hernandez and Anne Bradley

1925 Godfrey Tearle is Hamlet in the Fellowship Players production at the Prince of Wales Theatre. The Fellowship offers Sunday performances so these employed professionals have the chance t…

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:00AM
Wednesday, May 20, 2015

Playbill Vault’s Today In Theatre History: May 20 by David Gewirtzman and Anne Bradley, Robert Viagas

1919 Guy Bolton and P.G. Wodehouse call this Kissing Time at London's Winter Garden Theatre. Ivan Caryll provides the music for this tale of complications arising when French ladies carr…

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:00AM
Monday, May 18, 2015

Sinatra at the Stage Door Canteen by Barbara Cohen-Stratyner, Curator Of Exhibitions, New York Public Library For The Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center

  Stage Door Canteen, NY. Photograph by Florence Vandamm. Image ID: ps_the_4036 We have received many questions recently about this, the secondary key image for the exhibition. In t…

SOURCE: The New York Public Library at 10:53AM

Playbill Vault’s Today In Theatre History: May 18 by David Gewirtzman and Robert Viagas, Anne Bradley and Ernio Hernandez

1923 Sweet Nell of Old Drury runs beyond the season at the 48th Street Theatre in New York. Alfred Lunt stars as Charles II and Laurette Taylor as his mistress Nell Gwynne. Lynn Fontanne and…

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:00AM
Thursday, May 14, 2015

Playbill Vault’s Today in Theatre History: May 14 by David Gewirtzman and Anne Bradley, Ernio Hernandez

1931 Playwright, producer David Belasco dies today in New York City. He began his theatrical life as a child actor in California and started writing plays in his twenties. He adapted the Joh…

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:00AM
Tuesday, May 12, 2015

Playbill Vault’s Today In Theatre History: May 12 by David Gewirtzman and Anne Bradley, Ernio Hernandez

1905 Theatrical producer Sam S. Shubert dies today in a train accident. His brothers Lee and J.J. will honor him by naming many of the theaters they are to build after him, including their f…

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:00AM
Sunday, May 10, 2015

Playbill Vault’s Today In Theatre History: May 10 by David Gewirtzman and Robert Viagas, Ernio Hernandez and Anne Bradley

1838 John Wilkes Booth (1838-1865), perhaps the most infamous actor in American history, is born today. The son of actor Junius Brutus Booth, and brother of actors Junius Brutus Booth Jr…

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:00AM
Sunday, May 3, 2015

Playbill Vault’s Today In Theatre History: May 3 by David Gewirtzman and Anne Bradley, Ernio Hernandez

1919 Birthday of Betty Comden, Broadway lyricist and librettist, mainly in collaboration with Adolph Green. Her works include On the Town, Wonderful Town, Peter Pan, On the Twentieth Century…

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:00AM
Friday, May 1, 2015

Playbill Vault’s Today In Theatre History: May 1 by David Gewirtzman and Robert Viagas, Ernio Hernandez and Anne Bradley

1922 Comedy team Potash and Perlmutter are Partners Again. The show plays 31 weeks at the Selwyn Theatre.

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:00AM