All stories by MICHAEL RIEDEL on BroadwayStars

Thursday, December 17, 2015

Biting, brittle, bitchy: New bio reveals the magic of Maggie Smith by Michael Riedel

If you’ve been knocking around the theater world as long as I have, you’re bound to come across a Maggie Smith story. Here’s my favorite: During the 1990 run of “Lettice and Lovage�…

SOURCE: The New York Post at 08:15PM
Sunday, December 13, 2015

Tantrums, terror, B12 shots: Inside Al Pacino’s Broadway bomb by Michael Riedel

Producer Jeffrey Richards had no trouble raising the money for “China Doll,” the new David Mamet play starring Al Pacino. What a perfect match — Mamet, celebrated for writing tough, ru…

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:00AM
Thursday, December 10, 2015

Get a piece of Brando for half a million by Michael Riedel

“I have always depended on the kindness of strangers,” Blanche DuBois says in “A Streetcar Named Desire” — and it’s perhaps the most famous line in the American theater. But …

SOURCE: The New York Post at 07:29PM
Saturday, December 5, 2015

Here’s what the 1 percent give each other for Christmas by Michael Riedel

This time of year stokes a competitive spirit in the city’s wealthiest residents — finding the finest brands, of course, but also the most exclusive gifts. The ones so limited that you c…

SOURCE: The New York Post at 01:17PM
Thursday, December 3, 2015

Andrew Lloyd Webber recalls the worst night of his life by Michael Riedel

As Andrew Lloyd Webber strolls down West 51st Street to the Winter Garden Theatre — where his delightful new musical “School of Rock” opens Sunday night — he passes by another theate…

SOURCE: The New York Post at 07:11PM
Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Of all the musicals to put on live TV, why ‘The Wiz’? by Michael Riedel

Producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron have had a good run at NBC doing live broadcasts of great Broadway musicals. Nearly 20 million people tuned in to see Carrie Underwood teach the von Trap…

SOURCE: The New York Post at 07:49PM
Thursday, November 19, 2015

B’WAY BUZZES ABOUT ‘FELA!’ by Michael Riedel

THE fun of covering Broadway is that, just when you think you’ve got the lay of the land, out of no where comes a show to shake up the terrain. A year ago, the buzz was all about ̶…

SOURCE: The New York Post at 08:45PM

PARTON AND A FRESH TUNE by Michael Riedel

CURTAIN up! The new theater season is here, so let’s shine the spotlight on a few of the big names trying to conquer the Great White Way. * HELLO, DOLLY! Country music hasn’t far…

SOURCE: The New York Post at 08:45PM

PRINCE: PUT ART BACK ON B’WAY by Michael Riedel

HAL Prince was watching the Screen Actors Guild awards on TV last January when he turned to his wife and started babbling. “Get dressed,” she said. “We’re going to th…

SOURCE: The New York Post at 08:45PM

Will this be the show that finally sinks Al Pacino’s stage career? by Michael Riedel

Time to check in with poor bedraggled Al Pacino, star of David Mamet’s “China Doll.” The play was supposed to have opened Nov. 19, but, after I reported on the disastrous previews, the…

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:52PM
Thursday, November 12, 2015

Beloved ‘Star Trek’ actor is now the ‘Asian Betty White’ by Michael Riedel

Don’t beam him up. Tweet that he’s in a new musical on Broadway and tell everybody to buy a ticket. Broadway was a little slow to embrace social media, but George Takei and the produ…

SOURCE: The New York Post at 07:45PM
Thursday, November 5, 2015

Pacino’s not alone: Willis needs an earpiece to remember his lines too by Michael Riedel

Theatergoers racing through Shubert Alley to make curtain time, beware! If you’re not careful, you might trip over all those wires piping lines to actors with memory lapses. As I reported …

SOURCE: The New York Post at 09:21PM
Saturday, October 31, 2015

Meet the scariest woman in Hollywood by Michael Riedel

As villains go, “Trumbo” — the movie about blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, opening Friday — has a doozy: Hedda Hopper, the gossip columnist who terrorized the film industry f…

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:00AM
Thursday, October 29, 2015

Al Pacino ‘totally lost’ over his terrible new Broadway play by Michael Riedel

True story: Two women walked out of a matinee of David Mamet’s “China Doll” at intermission. Said one to the other, in a strong Long Island accent: “Michael Riedel is going to have a…

SOURCE: The New York Post at 07:17PM
Friday, October 16, 2015

Bruce Willis on Broadway is off to a rough start by Michael Riedel

To the list of theatrical dynasties — the Barrymores, the Redgraves — add the Willises! Papa Bruce and his daughter Rumer are making their Broadway debuts this season: Rumer’s playing.…

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:08AM
Friday, October 9, 2015

Stalkers and an injury aren’t keeping Keira Knightley down by Michael Riedel

It’s all in the wrist! Keira Knightley suffered an injury to her wrist this week, forcing the temporary cancellation of “Thérèse Raquin,” the play in which she’s appearing at the...

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:00AM
Saturday, October 3, 2015

Why the dancers who inspired ‘A Chorus Line’ sold their stories for $1 by Michael Riedel

The Post’s theater columnist, Michael Riedel, knows all the juiciest stories about the backstage shenanigans that make up Broadway’s history. Here, in an excerpt from his new book, “Ra…

SOURCE: The New York Post at 02:25PM
Friday, October 2, 2015

‘Finding Neverland’ is a sinking ship by Michael Riedel

The fall chill is in the air, and for some shows on Broadway that always means softness at the box office. Producers with shows waiting in the wings scour the...

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:00AM
Friday, September 25, 2015

The pint-size Broadway star who’s demanding more money by Michael Riedel

The delightful Sydney Lucas, who’s all of 12, will leave “Fun Home” next month. She’s been with this year’s Tony-winning musical since its workshop three years ago. Critics adored …

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:00AM
Wednesday, September 23, 2015

Jackie Collins’ final frontier was a sexy stage play by Michael Riedel

Jackie Collins, who died Saturday at 77, wrote 32 novels, several of which she adapted for movies or television. But in the final years of her life, she turned her...

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:00AM
Thursday, September 17, 2015

Daniel Craig wants to play someone more badass than Bond by Michael Riedel

Daniel Craig usually plays the hero — most famously, of course, James Bond. But Craig’s thinking of swapping his Walther PPK for Desdemona’s handkerchief as the villainous Iago in a...

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:58PM
Wednesday, September 16, 2015

‘Amélie,’ based on the French movie, seems Broadway-bound by Michael Riedel

Theatergoers are saying “Oui, oui” to “Amélie.” This new musical, adapted from the 2001 French movie, is trying out at Berkeley Repertory Theatre, where it’s just been extended un…

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:01AM
Saturday, September 12, 2015

Inside NYC’s most secret restaurant by Michael Riedel

As the new Broadway season gets under way, Restaurant Row — West 46th Street between Eighth and Ninth avenues — will be teeming with theatergoers darting into Joe Allen, or...

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:00AM
Thursday, September 10, 2015

Why you’ll never see ‘Hamilton’ on Colbert by Michael Riedel

Long before Stephen Colbert kicked off his highly touted debut on CBS this week, Broadway shows were jockeying to be the first to perform on the new “Late Show.” Colbert,...

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:38PM
Tuesday, September 8, 2015

‘Hamilton’ isn’t the only show worth seeing this fall by Michael Riedel

The new theater season has begun and, believe it or not, there are other shows out there besides “Hamilton.” Not that you would know that from the New York Times,...

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:38PM
Thursday, September 3, 2015

Why James Lapine is walking away from his own Broadway musical — for now by Michael Riedel

Sad news for fans of “Falsettos”: Jujamcyn bailed on a revival that was to have opened in the spring. Sources say casting and budgets are to blame. Jordan Roth, the...

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:45PM
Tuesday, September 1, 2015

Opa! Get ready for a ‘Mamma Mia’ sequel by Michael Riedel

Broadway’s gearing up to say “ciao” to what may be the guiltiest of pleasures in the musical theater. “Mamma Mia!” — which gave New York City a much-needed jolt of...

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:52PM
Friday, August 28, 2015

This play’s so good, it doesn’t need a celebrity by Michael Riedel

One of my favorite American plays of the last several years is Lynn Nottage’s “Ruined,” a harrowing look at prostitutes navigating the deadly politics of an African country torn apart.…

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:00AM
Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Kevin Spacey is plotting his return to Broadway by Michael Riedel

Kevin Spacey — Emmy-nominated for his deliciously evil Frank Underwood in “House of Cards” and one of my favorite actors — is plotting his Broadway return. He’s working on a...

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:01AM
Friday, August 21, 2015

This classic Redford and Newman film is headed to Broadway by Michael Riedel

The curtain is going up on . . . “The Sting.” No, no — not that Sting, the one who wrote last year’s noble failure “The Last Ship.” This “Sting” is the...

SOURCE: The New York Post at 06:00AM
Tuesday, August 18, 2015

You have to see this singer impersonate Broadway’s divas by Michael Riedel

Whenever I’m in need of a laugh, I read my old columns — or watch Carly Sakolove’s “Send in the Clowns” video. Who, you might be wondering? A few years...

SOURCE: The New York Post at 04:22PM

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