All stories by Robert Simonson on BroadwayStars

Monday, November 25, 2013

James Lapine, Frank Rich and Stephen Sondheim Discuss "Six by Sondheim," New HBO Film About Composer by Robert Simonson

Director James Lapine, journalist Frank Rich and composer Stephen Sondheim chat with Playbill.com about HBO's new film "Six by Sondheim."  * 

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:00AM
Sunday, November 24, 2013

The 12 Shows of Christmas: How Broadway Performers Handle Holiday Schedules by Robert Simonson

For the majority of workers in most fields of endeavor, the holiday season means a few days off to relax and enjoy the familiar comforts of hearth and home. For Broadway performers, however,…

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:00AM
Friday, November 22, 2013

Marc Breaux, Choreographer of Movie Musicals, Dies at 89 by Robert Simonson

Marc Breaux, who, with his partner-wife, delighted 1960s movie audiences with his choreography for the hit Julie Andrews musicals "The Sound of Music" and "Mary Poppins,"…

SOURCE: Playbill at 01:58PM

PLAYBILL.COM'S THEATRE WEEK IN REVIEW, Nov. 16-22: Spider-Man to Fly Off Broadway and A Gentleman's Guide Opens by Robert Simonson

It took three years, but those predictions that Spider-Man Turn Off the Dark detractors made that the ever-beleaguered musical would shutter at a great loss have finally come true.

SOURCE: Playbill at 01:30PM
Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Tomorrow and Tomorrow: Macbeth Becomes Actors' Go-To Shakespeare by Robert Simonson

Rob Ashford, Patrick Stewart and Ethan Hawke weigh in on the recent popularity of Macbeth on the New York stage. *

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:00AM
Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Broadway Box-Office Analysis, Oct. Nov. 11-17, 2013 by Robert Simonson

Playbill's newest weekly feature examines the box-office trends of the past week. *

SOURCE: Playbill at 11:00AM
Friday, November 15, 2013

PLAYBILL.COM'S THEATRE WEEK IN REVIEW, Nov. 9-15: The Bard Takes Broadway, 700 Sundays and Little Miss Sunshine Open and Rebecca Lawsuit Continues by Robert Simonson

If you like Shakespeare and live in New York, you are an exceedingly happy camper this autumn.

SOURCE: Playbill at 02:15PM
Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Broadway Box-Office Analysis, Nov. 4-10, 2013 by Robert Simonson

Playbill's newest weekly feature examines the box-office trends of the past week. *

SOURCE: Playbill at 01:17PM
Friday, November 8, 2013

PLAYBILL.COM'S THEATRE WEEK IN REVIEW, Oct. Nov. 2-8: After Midnight Earns Raves, Midsummer Opens at TFANA and Two Shows Announce Closings by Robert Simonson

After Midnight, the jazz revue which celebrates Duke Ellington's years at the famed Harlem nightclub the Cotton Club — using his original arrangements and performed by a world-clas…

SOURCE: Playbill at 01:31PM
Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Broadway Box-Office Analysis, Oct. 28-Nov. 3, 2013 by Robert Simonson

Playbill's newest weekly feature examines the box-office trends of the past week. *

SOURCE: Playbill at 02:00PM
Monday, November 4, 2013

William Dodds, Veteran Broadway Stage Manager, Dies at 91 by Robert Simonson

William Dodds, a veteran stage manager with dozens of Broadway credits, died Nov. 1 in his sleep. He was 91.

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:34PM
Saturday, November 2, 2013

Presidential Candidate Fred Thompson Takes the Stage — and the Stand — in A Time to Kill by Robert Simonson

Former Presidential candidate Fred Dalton Thompson talks with Playbill.com about making his Broadway debut as Judge Noose in the legal thriller A Time to Kill. *

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:00AM
Friday, November 1, 2013

PLAYBILL.COM'S THEATRE WEEK IN REVIEW, Oct. 26-Nov. 1: Betrayal Opens, Real Thing to Return and Public Theater Scores by Robert Simonson

The Broadway revival of Harold Pinter's time-bending drama Betrayal, starring Daniel Craig, Rachel Weisz and Rafe Spall, officially opened Oct. 27 at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre.

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:48PM
Thursday, October 31, 2013

St. Ann's Warehouse Breaks Ground on New Brooklyn Home by Robert Simonson

Playbill.com reports on the ground-breaking ceremony for St. Ann's Warehouse's new location at the Tobacco Warehouse in Brooklyn Bridge Park.

SOURCE: Playbill at 03:00PM
Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Broadway Box-Office Analysis, Oct. 21-27, 2013 by Robert Simonson

Playbill's newest weekly feature examines the box-office trends of the past week. *

SOURCE: Playbill at 03:40PM
Monday, October 28, 2013

An Inside Tour of Theatre for a New Audience's Brooklyn Home, the Polonsky Shakespeare Center by Robert Simonson

Playbill.com gets an inside look at the Polonsky Shakespeare Center, Theatre for a New Audience's new Brooklyn home, with artistic director Jeffrey Horowitz.  *

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:01AM
Friday, October 25, 2013
Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Broadway Box-Office Analysis, Oct. 14-20, 2013 by Robert Simonson

Playbill's newest weekly feature examines the box-office trends of the past week. *

SOURCE: Playbill at 03:00PM
Monday, October 21, 2013

Byron Nease, Phantom Actor, Dies at 59 by Robert Simonson

Byron Nease, who originated the role of Raoul in the Canadian production of The Phantom of the Opera, died Oct. 16. He was 59.

SOURCE: Playbill at 03:31PM

Ralph Cook, Off Off-Broadway Figure and Founder of Theatre Genesis, Dies at 85 by Robert Simonson

Ralph Cook, who, as founder of Theatre Genesis, was a significant figure in the formation of the Off Off-Broadway scene in the 1960s, died Sept. 23 in Bay Minette, AL. He was 85.

SOURCE: Playbill at 03:14PM
Friday, October 18, 2013

PLAYBILL.COM'S THEATRE WEEK IN REVIEW, Oct. 12-18: Roundabout Enjoys a New Company and The Winslow Boy Wows Audiences by Robert Simonson

It was a week of surprises. But none was perhaps more surprising — or more talked about — than the news that the Roundabout Theatre Company was considering producing a new reviva…

SOURCE: Playbill at 03:00PM
Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Broadway Box-Office Analysis, Oct. 7-13, 2013 by Robert Simonson

Playbill's newest weekly feature examines the box-office trends of the past week. *

SOURCE: Playbill at 02:00PM
Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Paul Rogers, British Shakespearean Known for Pinter's The Homecoming, Dies at 96 by Robert Simonson

Paul Rogers, the British actor who won a Tony Award for his portrayal of the brutish father of a twisted family in the original Broadway production of Harold Pinter's The Homecoming, die…

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:31PM
Friday, October 11, 2013

PLAYBILL.COM'S THEATRE WEEK IN REVIEW, Oct. 5-11: Big Fish Splashes onto Broadway, Janis Joplin Gives Us Her Heart and Soul Doctor Bids Farewell by Robert Simonson

Big Fish, the new musical by composer Andrew Lippa and librettist John August, and directed by Susan Stroman, opened on Broadway this week.

SOURCE: Playbill at 03:00PM
Thursday, October 10, 2013

Stanley Kauffmann, Cerebral Theatre and Film Critic, Dies at 97 by Robert Simonson

Stanley Kauffmann, a thinking-man's drama and film critic who spent a half century mulling over the arts of stage and screen, their histories and practitioners, died of pneumonia at St. …

SOURCE: Playbill at 09:38AM
Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Broadway Box-Office Analysis, Sept. 30-Oct. 6, 2013 by Robert Simonson

Playbill's newest weekly feature examines the box-office trends of the past week. *

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:45PM

Henry Guettel, Former Director of Theatre Development Fund, Dies at 85 by Robert Simonson

Henry Guettel, for whom musical theatre was both work and home life, died of pneumonia Oct. 7 in Southampton, NY. He was 85.

SOURCE: Playbill at 12:40PM
Friday, October 4, 2013
Thursday, October 3, 2013

June Reimer Springer, Actress and Singer, Dies at 85 by Robert Simonson

June Reimer Springer, an actress, singer and dancer who—as June Reimer—appeared in several shows in the 1940s and '50s, including the original production of Kiss Me, Kate, di…

SOURCE: Playbill at 09:06AM
Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Broadway Box-Office Analysis, Sept. 23-29, 2013 by Robert Simonson

Playbill's newest weekly feature examines the box-office trends of the past week. *

SOURCE: Playbill at 01:17PM

Ruth Maleczech, Founder of Mabou Mines, Seminal Downtown Theatre Group, Dies at 74 by Robert Simonson

Ruth Maleczech, who co-founded the influential and sui generis experimental theatre troupe Mabou Mines and helped shepherd it through four decades of productions, becoming arguably its most …

SOURCE: Playbill at 11:22AM