All stories by FRANK RIZZO on BroadwayStars

Wednesday, June 28, 2023

My 2014 Interview With Lyricist Sheldon Harnick by Frank Rizzo

Sheldon Harnick, the great Broadway lyricist died earlier this month at the age of 99. Here is an interview I did with him from his Manhattan home in 2014 to advance a production off “Fidd…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 12:02AM
Tuesday, June 27, 2023

Richard Thomas: Acting Is His Life" by Frank Rizzo

“To Kill a Mockingbird” For 65 years Richard Thomas has been a working actor, first making his Broadway debut when he was …

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 11:53PM

The Magic of Connecticut's Falling Waters by Frank Rizzo

Enter Connecticut’s waterfall wonderland and let your dreams take over. Take in the blurring cascades, the glistening moss, the summer leaves dotting the waters, the hypnotic swirls of an …

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 11:25PM
Tuesday, June 13, 2023

My Own Take: 'Gypsy" at Goodspeed by Frank Rizzo

The show: “Gypsy” at Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam What makes it special?: It’s the first time the classic musical from Broadway’s Golden Age is being presented at the theate…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 10:15AM
Saturday, June 3, 2023

Connecticut's Season of RuPaul's Drag Race: Some Dish and Shade by Frank Rizzo

There was Amethyst killing it on her first Lip Synch-For-Your-Life—and triumphing—after making the ultimate faux pas of wearing sneakers on the runway. Then there was Robin Fierce, tryin…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 03:42AM

What the Gaze Reveals by Frank Rizzo

Look into their eyes, these tender young men of a century or two ago. In haunting vintage tintypes from the 1840s, secret snapshots taken in mirrors, clandestine shoots in bedrooms, narrow s…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 03:22AM
Saturday, May 13, 2023

Off-Broadway Musical "White Girl in Danger" by Frank Rizzo

The show: “White Girl in Danger” at the Tony Kiser Theater (305 West 43rd St.) in New York What makes it special?: The follow-up musical by Michael R. Jackson who won a Tony Award and a…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 06:23PM
Monday, May 8, 2023

Drag Business Flourishes In State's Arts and Entertainment Scene by Frank Rizzo

Drag performances have been around the state for decades, but in the past few years the scene has flourished into a thriving business for performers, promoters and venues. For years the show…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 09:36AM
Thursday, May 4, 2023

Some Plucky Thoughts on the Tony Award Nominations by Frank Rizzo

After seeing nearly the full slate off Broadway shows this season, some thoughts on the Tony Award nominations that were announced on Tuesday: — She was robbed. I am shocked that Laura Lin…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 09:56AM
Saturday, April 29, 2023

My Own Take: " New York, New York" -- The Best Musical of the Broadway Season by Frank Rizzo

The show: The Broadway musical "New York, New York" What makes it special?: Very loosely inspired from the 1977 Martin Scorsese film that starred Liza Minnelli and Robert De Niro , this time…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 09:53PM
Tuesday, April 25, 2023

My Variety Review: 'Summer, 1976' by Frank Rizzo

Friends come and go. Some stay throughout our lives while others, however significant for a time, fade into the haze of memory yet always linger within us. In “Summer, 1976,” the new Bro…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 10:02PM
Saturday, April 22, 2023

Off Broadway's "Regretfully. So the Birds Are" by Frank Rizzo

All photos by Chelcie Parry The show: “Regretfully, So the Bird Are” at Playwrights Horizons by Julia Izumi, directed by Jenn…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 12:12PM
Sunday, April 16, 2023

My Own Take: "The Coast Starlight" Off Broadway by Frank Rizzo

Photos by T. Charles Ericxkson The show: “The Coast Starlight” What makes it special: A new play by Keith Bunin. It also sta…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 11:51AM
Friday, April 14, 2023

My Variety Review: "Camelot" at Lincoln Center by Frank Rizzo

In Aaron Sorkin’s revised script for Lincoln Center Theater’s new Broadway production of “Camelot,” the magic is missing — in more ways than one. The declared aim of the stage, TV …

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 12:00AM
Tuesday, April 11, 2023

International Festival of Arts & Ideas Now Looks Inwards by Frank Rizzo

For more than two decades, New Haven’s International Festival of Arts & Ideas has brought theater, dance and music artists—as well as great thinkers and influencers—to the city fro…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 05:51PM
Monday, April 10, 2023

Visitors Expected To Surge With Museum Reopenings in 2024 by Frank Rizzo

Earlier this winter the Yale Center for British Art closed its doors for 2023 — and which will remain closed until next year. While the temporary closing for a building conservation projec…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 12:41PM
Thursday, April 6, 2023

My Quick Take Review: Broadway's "The Wanderers" by Frank Rizzo

The show: ”The Wanderers” off Broadway What is it?: New pay by Anna Ziegler, directed by Barry Edelstein for Roundabout Theatre Company What makes it special?: It stars Katie Holmes. It�…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 12:26PM
Wednesday, April 5, 2023

My Variety Review: "Shucked" on Broadway by Frank Rizzo

Some Broadway wags might have scoffed at the idea of a cornpone musical comedy and its punny promotions. But with its exuberance, heart and non-stop yucks, “Shucked” is the surprise deli…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 12:41PM
Sunday, March 26, 2023

My Take Broadway Review: 'Wolf Play' by Frank Rizzo

All photos by Julieta Cervantes The show: “Wolf Play” at Manhattan Class Company by Hansol Jung,previously presented at at S…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 07:08AM
Friday, March 17, 2023

My Variety Review : Broadway's Stunning Revival of 'Parade" by Frank Rizzo

All photos by Joan Marcus. Traveling from the relative calm of the Clinton era to more perilous, contemporary times of mobs, mend…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 04:36AM
Monday, March 13, 2023

New Housing Developments Offer New Audiences For The Arts by Frank Rizzo

Anthony McDonald of the Shubert Theatre in New Haven Could the wave of new housing developments in downtown New Haven be a potent…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 12:00PM
Monday, March 6, 2023

Trio of Connecticut Queens Star on 'RuPaul's Drag Race' by Frank Rizzo

For 14 seasons we’ve watched the Emmy Award-winning RuPaul‘s Drag Race showcase queens from such states as New York, Georgia, Florida, Illinois, North Carolina—even Arkansas. But after…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 08:32AM

J. Harrison Ghee Likes It 'Hot' by Frank Rizzo

There’s a show-stopping moment in the Broadway musical Some Like It Hot, based on the classic 1959 film comedy. In the new show, Jerry and Joe are two musicians in Depression-era Chicago w…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 08:14AM
Tuesday, February 28, 2023

My Quick Take Broadway Review: 'Pictures From Home" by Frank Rizzo

The show: “Pictures from Home” by Sharr White (“The Other Place.,” “The Snow Geese” and the Netflix limited series “Halston.” What is it?: A new Broadway play inspired by La…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 02:32PM
Thursday, December 15, 2022

Review: 'Christmas in Connecticut' at Goodspeed by Frank Rizzo

The show: “Christmas in Connecticut” at Goodspeed Opera House What makes it special?: It’s a new musical based on the 1945 film starring Barbara Stanwyck. …

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 11:09AM
Monday, December 12, 2022

Part 3 Photo Gallery of Final "KPOP" Show on Broadway by Frank Rizzo

Sunday afternoon was the final performance of the Broadway run of the musical “KPOP” at the Circle in the Square Theater on 50th Street. Though it was a hit when it was an experiential p…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 02:22PM

Part 2 of Photo Gallery off Final "KPOP" Show on Broadway by Frank Rizzo

Sunday afternoon was the final performance of the Broadway run of the musical “KPOP” at the Circle in the Square Theater on 50th Street. Though it was a hit when it was an experiential p…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 02:06PM

Photo Gallery of "KPOP"'s Closing Show On Broadway by Frank Rizzo

Sunday afternoon was the final performance of the Broadway run of the musical “KPOP” at the Circle in the Square Theater on 50th Street. Though it was a hit when it was an experiential p…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 09:25AM
Sunday, December 11, 2022

My Variety Review: 'Some Like It Hot' Musical by Frank Rizzo

Taking a classic film comedy — especially one that plays fast and loose with gender and sexuality — and turning it into a big Broadway musical is far from a sure thing in these contempor…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 09:08PM
Saturday, December 10, 2022

Alternate Universe: Graphic, Comic and Fantastic by Frank Rizzo

Need an escape from the realities of the world, a nostalgic visit to reconnect with childhood friends, or a quick rescue from a superhero or two? Then perhaps you need to step into another u…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 09:34AM

Hallelujah! Yale Embraces Gospel Music At Divinity School by Frank Rizzo

Sing hallelujah because gospel music is finally getting its due. Yale University is aiming to be the academic center of the gospel music world with its new interdisciplinary Program in Music…

SOURCE: ShowRiz at 09:18AM

All that Chat

2024-2025 BROADWAY SEASON
Jun 05, 2024: Home - Todd Haimes Theatre
Jul 11, 2024: Oh, Mary! - Lyceum Theatre
Jul 30, 2024: Job - Hayes Theater
Sep 12, 2024: The Roommate - Booth Theatre
Nov 14, 2024: Tammy Faye - Palace Theatre
Dec 12, 2024: Cult of Love - Hayes Theater
Dec 19, 2024: Gypsy - Majestic Theatre
Mar 17, 2025: Purpose - Hayes Theater
Apr 01, 2025: Glengarry Glen Ross
Apr 10, 2025: Smash - Imperial Theatre
TBA: Titanic