Tunes and Tomes
The Maureen O�Hara vehicle Christine was a Broadway flop, as was Marc Blitzstein�s Juno, but Marc Miller is glad to see the cast albums of both shows issued on CD.

The Director and the Choreographer Should Be Friends

Star-Ledger: McCarter promises variety by MICHAEL SOMMERS
Two premieres of new American works -- at least one with major New York prospects -- two world classics and a darkish British comedy comprise the upcoming season at McCarter Theatre in Princeton.

posted at 4/13/2002 11:55:53 AM by Tim Dunleavy | Item Link

Dodgers and Equity Strike Deal for 42nd Street Tour
Dodger Theatricals has struck a deal with Actors� Equity Association regarding the first national tour of 42nd Street. The tour...[Read More]

Happily Ever After? by Richard Ridge
Fresh from an acclaimed engagement in L.A., INTO THE WOODS comes bac to Broadway.

Peter Filichia is scheduled to return on Monday.

Moms Get Naked Boys for Free May 12

Is This Your Card? Mamet's Ricky Jay Begins at Second Stage, April 13

Smell of the Kill Cast on "Weekend Today Show" April 14

Camille Gets Kept in Kreiger-Russell Musical, Opening April 13 in CA

Sex and the City: Leguizamo's Sexaholix... Debuts on HBO, April 13

Broadway Gets Witchy: Into the Woods Begins Previews April 13

Harold Gould Leads Old Wicked Songs In L.A. April 13-May 19, Travels to Santa Fe

Today In Theatre History: APRIL 13

Union! Equity and Dodger Theatricals Agree to Special Contract for 42nd Street Tour

Burnett To Rest on Mattress One More Time

Rent Cheap! In Honor of Sixth Anniversary, Seats for April 30 Show Are $20

LaChiusa's Revised First Lady Suite Extends in L.A. Through April 28

DIVA TALK: News of Betty, Bernadette, Patti, Karen, Audra & Ute: Who Could Ask for Anything More?

L.A.'s Taper Is Home to Homebody, Unknowns, Wilson's Gem in 2002-03

PBOL'S THEATRE WEEK IN REVIEW, April 6-12: Topdog/Underdog Has Its Day

City of London Announces Grant for Barbican Theatre

McDonagh's Inishmore Returns To London Stage in June

Victoria Wood To Raise Funds for UK's King's Head Theatre

West End's Constant Wife Confirms Edward Hall's Rising Star

Florence Klotz to Receive Patricia Zipprodt Award June 10
posted at 4/13/2002 07:42:43 AM by James Marino | Item Link

Friday, April 12, 2002

"Houston, we had a problem..."
Sorry for the delay on today's update. BroadwayStars.com was the victim of a massive spam attack taking down our servers. We think everything (except the "contact" and "blind" forms) is working okay now, but let us know by email if not.
posted at 4/12/2002 03:31:44 PM by James Marino | Item Link

USA Today: Again upon a 'Mattress' with Carol Burnett by Bill Keveney
Maybe they should call it Thrice Upon a Mattress.
Once Upon a Mattress is getting its third production on CBS, complete with the actress who is synonymous with the musical: Carol Burnett.

Tonys '02 #8 by Ken Mandelbaum

Brit Hit The Play What I Wrote Readies for B'way

Florence Klotz to Receive Patricia Zipprodt Award June 10

Archerd: Halle Berry plays "the feminine James Bond" by Army Archerd
Jack Klugman said he's going back onstage in "The Value of Names" in Lincoln, Neb., a blacklist-set story in which he plays a once-blacklisted actor who asks for forgiveness by someone (Louis Zorich) who named him.

Los Angeles Times: 'Homebody/Kabul' to Open Taper's Season by DON SHIRLEY
Tony Kushner's play begins Sept. 19; also scheduled is a version of Deaf West Theatre's Huck Finn musical, "Big River."

Chicago Sun-Times: You go, 'Girl!'
There was a time when Noelle Krimm was sure she never wanted to see or hear another musical, much less write one.

Yahoo/Backstage: Equity Health Fund Premium Rates Rise
Actors' Equity Association members on self-pay for their coverage from the Equity-League Health Trust Fund will receive an increase in rates on their next statements. Self-pay members are participants who are no longer covered by employer-paid contributions but remain on the plan.

Yahoo/Backstage: The Principles of Interest
Since Sept. 11, enormous sums of money taking the form of special one-time relief funds for nonprofit arts institutions have been announced and disbursed, then generally classified as re-grant money for smaller groups rendered financially vulnerable by the attacks.

Yahoo/Backstage: Small Theatres Lead Pack in LADCC Awards
Greenway Court Theatre's environmental stage adaptation of Horace McCoy's Depression-era novel, "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?" galloped past the finish line to win seven awards on Mon., April 1, at the 33rd annual Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards.

Oscar-Winning Composer Set for Broadway Debut by Robert Hofler
Note the item about "Harlem Song" setting an opening date.

Taper Forum to Spotlight Wilson's 'Gem' by Phil Gallo
Two plays about Los Angeles and the world premiere production of August Wilson's "Gem of the Ocean" highlight the Mark Taper Forum's upcoming 2002-2003 season.

San Francisco Chronicle: She Writes The Songs
Susan Werner finds 'Misery & Happiness' in her new album
by Derk Richardson
Werner is already planning her next project -- an album of what she calls "original jazz standards" inspired by the mature, sophisticated and somewhat more formalized style of the great Broadway songwriters, such as Cole Porter, Cy Coleman and George & Ira Gershwin. She already dedicates a segment of her live concerts to such material.
Susan Werner plays on Saturday night at Joe's Pub in NYC. She is one of America's finest songwriters, and has amazing talents as a vocalist, pianist, guitarist and comedian. Compositions such as her "Maybe If I Sang Cole Porter," "May I Suggest," "Snow White" and "So Nice Seeing You Again" deserve to be performed by every cabaret singer in New York; why they're not is a mystery.

posted at 4/12/2002 12:41:09 PM by Tim Dunleavy | Item Link

On Stage and Off: Slapstick Is Their Shtick by JESSE McKINLEY

THEATER REVIEW | 'THE GOLEM'
The Price of Revenge
By BRUCE WEBER
The legend of the Golem is pertinent today as Israelis and Palestinians persist in their agonizing war, but this production's theatrical hyperbole takes away from its power.

MY MANHATTAN
Not Just a Library, an Oasis of Civilization
By SUSAN JACOBY
What has always impressed me most forcefully about the New York Public Library is its connection to the everyday life of New Yorkers, from giggling teenagers to the very old.

'GOLEM' PRODUCTION A MONSTER HIT
By DONALD LYONS
THE Golem, a mighty creature brought to life from clay to defend the harassed Jews of 16th-century Prague, has long been a key figure of the Jewish imagination.

IT'S A GAY OL' TIME
By CHIP DEFFAA
THERE'S no funnier show now running off-off-Broadway than Doric Wilson's "Street Theater."

�PLACEBO' PRICELESS FROM THAT $3 SEAT
By CHIP DEFFAA
REFRESHINGLY silly, irrelevant and offering more fun than you'd ever expect to find at such prices, "Placebo Sunrise" brings Theater of the Absurd to 42nd Street.

'MONTY' IS STILL WONDER-FULL WITH A NEW CAST
By CLIVE BARNES
THAT lovely blockbuster of a Broadway musical, "The Full Monty," has once more stripped down for action. All five of its original guys have left - four have packed up their G-strings and opened in the current London production, and the one who didn't make that trip, Patrick Wilson, is now singing his heart out in "Oklahoma!"

TUNE ON TAP
By MICHAEL RIEDEL
HE'S been MIA from Broadway for nearly 10 years, but now it looks as if Tommy Tune is plotting a comeback.Tune, one of the great director-choreographers, is said to be toying with the idea of turning "Ginger and Fred," Federico Fellini's 1986 movie about ballroom dancing, into a stage musical.

PAUCITY OF POWER, PASSION IN PIAF TRIBUTE
By CHIP DEFFAA
ELIZABETH Hodes' tribute to Edith Piaf at Danny's is a mildly pleasant, earnest, even-tempered show. At that is a pity. Piaf - a larger-than-life figure who was consumed by the fiercest of passions - deserves far more.

Taper to spotlight Wilson's 'Gem'
Play's world preem to close 2002-2003 season
Two plays about Los Angeles and the world premiere production of August Wilson's "Gem of the Ocean" highlight the Mark Taper Forum's 2002-2003 season.

B'way 'Amour' Legrand's 1st
1997 Prix Moliere winner makes B'way debut

McCormack play will follow 'Targets' run
Untitled piece by playwright to follow

A Fun Plunge With G.I. Janes
When "Swimming With Watermelons" begins, the cast sings "The occupation's about to start," to the tune of "Another Opening, Another Show." This might make you imagine you are in for yet another evening of camp � even if the subject is the U.S. occupation of Japan. Well, you are.

Monster of Clay Gets a Treatment of Lead

Salonga Confirmed for B'way Flower Drum Song
Lea Salonga, who won a Tony Award for her performance as Kim in Miss Saigon, will recreate her leading role as Mei-Li in Flower Drum Song when the revival starts performances at the Virg...[Read More]

Tony Committee Makes Eligibility Decisions
The Tony Awards Administrative Committee made some decisions on April 11 regarding eligibility. The committee only made judgments about shows that opened on or before March 26, a spokesperson for the...[Read More]

Elton John Appointed Chairman of Old Vic Trust
Pop superstar Sir Elton John has been appointed chairman of the Old Vic Theatre Trust. The trust bought the theater four years ago in an effort to keep the 180-year-old venue open.

Necessary Targets to Shutter on April 21
Eve Ensler�s Necessary Targets , which recently advertised it was near the end of its run, will close on Ap...[Read More]

Follow Spot
Looking forward to the teaming of Sigourney Weaver and Anthony LaPaglia in the film version of The Guys, Anne Nelson�s play about the interaction between two disparate New Yorkers post 9/11/01.

Charles Nelson's Casts and Forecasts
Tony Kushner tries a tuner, Dylan Baker scores a sitcom pilot, and the cabaret world embraces Broadway babes.

Cabaret Notes
Lillias White cuts the talk and sings in her new show at Feinstein�s at the Regency.

Mois�s Kaufman Awarded Guggenheim Fellowship in Playwriting

Coconut Grove and Paper Mill Co-Produce New Musical, Romeo and Bernadette, in 2003

Carmen Electra and Pussycat Dolls Live Bring Bawdy Burlesque to L.A. May 9-30

John Turturro Hosts Shakespeare Evening With Dame Cleo Laine for TFANA's Benefit April 22

IL Northlight Has Wendt in Rounding Third and Premiere of Sky Girls in 2002-03

Broadway Up-N-Comers Star in NYSTI Musical, Magna Carta

Illyria, New Musical Take on Twelfth Night, Plays NYC April 12-28

Marian Seldes and Mercedes Ruehl Guest on TV's 'Theatre Talk' April 12

Black and de Guzman Are in Alley's House and Garden April 12-May 12

Atlantic Theater Presents Series of One-Acts in April

Today In Theatre History: APRIL 12

British Hit The Play What I Wrote to Reach New York

Tony Sez: Stritch, Arthur, Cook, Leguizamo Eligible as Special Theatrical Event

Broadway-Bound Musical Amour Nabs Music Box for Oct. 15 Bow

It's Official: Flower Drum Song Will Open at Virginia Theatre Oct. 17

Necessary Targets Ends Off-Bway Run April 21

Boy From Oz, Aiming at Bway in Spring 2003, Announces Workshop Cast

Boy George to Join Company of West End Taboo May 6

Madonna Tickets Are Up for Grabs at High Prices in West End

Sir Elton John Joins Board of London's Old Vic Theatre Trust
posted at 4/12/2002 08:52:02 AM by James Marino | Item Link

Thursday, April 11, 2002

Mamma Mia!, Urinetown and Penis Cast Members on "The Daily Show"

Nobu McCarthy, Former Artistic Director of East West Players, Dead at 67

Playwright Bargaining Legislation Introduced in Washington, DC

Senators Propose Bill to Help Playwrights

Law, Izzard & Brit Productions Look to NYC Stage

Life After Juno by Ken Mandelbaum

Report: Jude Law and Eddie Izzard Hope to Hit Broadway

Report: Hyde Pierce, Hagen Will Not Dance in Lessons on Broadway

What Follies! Linden, Duke, Carr, Bosley Do Sondheim in L.A. June 15-23

Bohmer, McDermott & Daytime TV Stars Headline May 6 Leukemia Benefit

Lookin' for Love? Try FL's Coconut Grove, Where Urban Cowboy Will Debut in Fall

Titanic's Michael Cerveris To Star in Kennedy Center's Passion

Helen reviewed by Brooke Pierce

Talk reviewed by Dan Bacalzo

Newsday: A Spring Bounce to the Season by Patrick Pacheco
WITH THE OPENING of "Fortune's Fool," "The Graduate," and "Topdog/Underdog" in quick succession, a disappointing (some might say boring) Broadway season, suddenly perked up. Box-office juggernaut "The Graduate" was treated as dismissively by the critics as "Topdog/Underdog" was hailed, and "Fortune's Fool" received, for the most part, surprisingly good reviews, particularly for Alan Bates' bravura performance as an impoverished nobleman in Turgenev's 1848 melodrama.

posted at 4/11/2002 01:04:58 PM by Tim Dunleavy | Item Link

Legislation to Help Playwrights Negotiate

Law, Izzard shows to visit New York
ATG preps Brit slate for Gotham transfer
Jude Law and Eddie Izzard look ready for their grand returns to the New York stage.

Bill dramatizes playwrights' effort
Legit scribes look to collectively negotiate contracts

This is major news. Changing the DG contract will amount to increased prices on Broadway, if you can believe that. Broadway writers are protected much more than Hollywood writers. These changes can make borderline productions unproducable. Does no one worry that Broadway producers see less and less of a reason to keep producing Broadway shows? Producing film and television is becoming the haven for wouldbe Broadway producers.

Burton Shines In Career
When Kate Burton left home for Brown University in 1975, she had no notion of studying drama. Instead, the daughter of worldrenowned actor Richard Burton opted for Russian studies. Good thing she chose an acting career instead.

Three Legs of the Rat Race

Que Pasa? Viva Variety & Vaudeville!

Urban Cowboy Set for World Premiere in Florida
Urban Cowboy, which was announced for a Broadway run last season, will have its world premiere at the Coc...[Read More]

Capitol Steps Readies for Opening at the Houseman
As we reported on April 5, Capitol Steps is set to replace Puppetry of the Penis on the John Housem...[Read More]

Weaver & LaPaglia Set for Film Version of The Guys
ContentFilm will finance and distribute a motion picture based on Anne Nelson�s The Guys. Sigourney Weaver and Anthony LaPaglia, who previously appeared together in the stage production of the...[Read More]

STEALING JOKERS
By MICHAEL ROVNER
THE fastest route to the comedy big time often starts on the stage of a small Chelsea theater.In the last year, such shows as "Saturday Night Live" and "MadTV" have poached more than a dozen performers from a comedy theater called the Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB, to those in the know).

A PAGE FROM OPRAH'S BOOK
By JARED PAUL STERN
BOOKWORM LAST week Oprah Winfrey announced that she was scaling back on her book club because she could no longer find novels she felt "absolutely compelled to share." From a woman who has felt compelled to share an awful lot of crap over the years, this is a surprising statement. One suspects that the fact that her book club shows drew lower ratings is closer to the mark.

WHEN GOOD SHOWS GO BAD
By DON KAPLAN
JUMP the Shark," a popular Website where people talk about when and how their favorite TV series began to go downhill, is being turned into a syndicated TV show.

Chicago's Court Presents Irreverent, Intimate My Fair Lady April 18

San Jose Rep Reads Bohmler Musical, Winchester House, in Fest June 14-16

Love and War: Off-Bway's Vineyard Opens Swimming With Watermelons April 11

Former Footloose Star Heads to the WB Network

PHOTO CALL: Jonathan Freeman Gets Hung Up at Sardi's

Coverse Stars in Premiere of Hatcher Play, Mercy of a Storm, April 11-May 5

Maltby and Shire's Evening in Nyack Includes Crosby, Groenendaal and Take Flight April 11

Atlantic Theater Presents Series of One-Acts in April

La Chanze, de Haas, and New Childs Musical Featured in the American Songbook April 11-13

Today In Theatre History: APRIL 11

Shirley MacLaine Live at the Palace Gets CD Release April 23

Puppetry Moves to Smaller Houseman Space April 16; Capitol Steps Starts May 8

Report: Duke, Leonard, Tomei and Shenkman To Read Odets' Awake and Sing May 6

NYC's Irish Rep Wallows in Finn's Pigtown April 19-June 9
posted at 4/11/2002 08:54:01 AM by James Marino | Item Link

Wednesday, April 10, 2002

The Underpants Extends Run at CSC

Little Shop of Horrors Eyes Broadway Run in 2003

Tonys '02 #7 by Ken Mandelbaum

Keeping It Gay, Gary Beach Appears in Drag on TV's "Queer As Folk" April 14

The Last Five Years Was a Labor of Love for Composer Jason Robert Brown

Sondheim's Pacific Overtures Part of Summer Lincoln Center Fest July 9-13

Sold-Out The Guys Has New Block of Tickets for May 8-24

More Underpants! Steve Martin Play Extends to May 12 at CSC

Love Changes Everything: Palo Alto Players Revives Revised Aspects of Love April 26

Bway Frankie and Johnny, with Falco and Tucci, Still On Track for Late Summer

Necessary Targets Posts Ads for "Last Weeks"

Kristin Chenoweth Makes TV Appearances April 12 & 22

Peter Filichia's Diary
Remembering the original Two by Two and looking forward to concert performances of the show this week.

Chicago Sun-Times: Questions worth considering for playwright BY HEDY WEISS
In his remarks to a packed house Monday night at Evanston's Cahn Auditorium, Tony Kushner, author of the Pulitzer and Tony Award-winning epic "Angels in America," "Slavs!" and the recent "Homebody/Kabul," talked about the three types of playwrights.

Chicago Sun-Times: Bernstein, Paris and a big mess BY HEDY WEISS
The Sun-Times reviews the productions at this year's Humana Festival of New American Plays at the Actors Theatre of Louisville.

Los Angeles Times: Will Her Works Play at Home? by DON SHIRLEY
L.A. audiences may not know the plays of Suzan-Lori Parks, but she lives in Venice and has ties to CalArts and Hollywood.

posted at 4/10/2002 03:29:12 PM by Tim Dunleavy | Item Link

"There are so many lives that I want to share with you,
I will never be complete until I do..." [+]

Follow Spot
The National Broadway Touring Awards have once more pitted Actors Equity against the League of American Theatres and Producers.

Charles Nelson's Casts and Forecasts
Harvey Fierstein tests the Waters, Chase Mishkin hopes to enter a dark horse in the Tony race, and rarely heard Rodgers holds sway at the York.

A Musical 'Lysistrata' Tests Friendship
By PETER MARKS
What makes the bad feelings over Aristophanes' ribald comedy unusual is that two competing visions were born out of one production.

Theater Review | 'Circle': Playing Spin the Bottle (With an Adult Twist)

Critic's Notebook: Even the Doughboy Gets Burned at This Bake-Off

'Little Shop' plants roots on Broadway
Revival to hit stage in January 2003
Twenty years after its downtown premiere, "The Little Shop of Horrors" is relocating uptown for Broadway biz.

B'way on B.O. hunt
Post-Easter sesh off but much better than '01

N.Y. 'Allergist' cast goes on tour
Busch comedy to hit L.A. first

'Topdog/Underdog' gets day
Parks' B'way debut nabs Pulitzer

Broadway Grosses: Picture Perfect
An Almost Holy Picture packed the house in its last week on Broadway. The play, starring Kevin Bacon, filled the 704-seat American Airlines Theater to 101.67% capacity. That capacity figure was...[Read More]

Necessary Targets Advertises "Last Weeks!"
Eve Ensler�s Necessary Targets is advertising �Last Weeks!� in its New York Times listing. A production spokesperson for the show confirmed to Broadway.com that producers are planning on...[Read More]

RICH SHOW, POOR SHOW
By MICHAEL RIEDEL
THIS is a tale of two plays, their box offices and their futures.One play got rave reviews and a Pulitzer. The other got terrible reviews and stands no chance of winning any prizes whatsoever, except maybe a booby prize.

ALLEGORY IS LOST IN 'ANDORRA'
By DONALD LYONS
'ANDORRA" is an allegorical play written by Swiss dramatist Max Frisch in 1961 in which, with two exceptions, characters are called the Teacher, the Doctor, the Priest, etc.

PHOTO CALL: King's Kids: Paper Mill Chorus Takes a Bow

PHOTO CALL: Gray and Carmello Are The King and I

PHOTO CALL: Hello, Young Lovers: Montalban and Gates Star in King and I

Charlotte Rae, Marni Nixon Are 70, Girls, 70 in L.A. May 14-June 9

Camille Boogies to 80's Beat in Kreiger-Russell Kept April 10-May 5 in CA

Former TDF President Thomas Leahy Dead at 64; Mass Held April 10

Hairspray's Fierstein, Chenoweth, Ebersole Did Miscast Songs for MCC

How to Make an American Kilt: Wilson Play Has U.S. Premiere, April 10-May 4

Suzan-Lori Parks' Peer Gynt May Be Workshopped in 2003

Marian Seldes and Mercedes Ruehl Guest on TV's "Theatre Talk" April 12

Today In Theatre History: APRIL 10

Equity and New England Theatres Reach Agreement; Four Troupes Go Equity

Equity Asks Members to Boycott League's National Broadway Touring Awards

Broadway Grosses: April 1-7
posted at 4/10/2002 07:17:32 AM by James Marino | Item Link

Tuesday, April 09, 2002

I received a phone call from Peter Filichia last night who informed me that his mother, Mary Filichia, has died. The online theatre community means a tremendous deal to him, and many of the people he has met were aware of the situation and expressed their concern. He asked me to post the information about the funeral service here, and since Peter Filichia is a true Broadway Star, and a significant friend not only of BroadwayStars.Com but also me personally, I am only too happy to oblige.
The wake will be held on Wednesday and the funeral will be held on Thursday. The name, address, and phone number of the funeral home is:

Dello Russo
306 Main Street
Medford, MA 02155
(781) 396-9200

Our thoughts here are all with him during this difficult time.
posted at 4/9/2002 06:08:31 PM by Matthew Murray | Item Link

THEATER REVIEW | 'HELEN'
The Face Again, Still Gorgeous but a Bit Weary
By BEN BRANTLEY
Donna Murphy, who plays the title role in "Helen," has always been a seductive actress of major transformative powers.

THEATER REVIEW | 'FORBIDDEN CITY BLUES'
Funny, You Don't Look . . . Uhhh . . . Whatever You Are This Time
By D. J. R. BRUCKNER
That race change is a challenge worthy of the new era is the altogether frivolous premise of Alexander Woo's "Forbidden City Blues."

CABARET REVIEW | LILLIAS WHITE
Moving From Theater to Theatrical Jazz
By STEPHEN HOLDEN
Lillias White is a singer who makes the most challenging vocal feats look almost easy. Endowed with endless stamina and exuberance, she marches jubilantly across stylistic borders like Napoleon's army sweeping through Europe.

BOOKS OF THE TIMES | 'SPIES'
That Nice Lady Up the Road. A Spy?
By MICHIKO KAKUTANI
Michael Frayn's characters, in both his novels and his plays, suffer from a form of psychological myopia, a blindered self-absorption that leads them to impose their obsessions upon the world, with comical or devastating results for themselves and everyone around them.

SHE'S TOP DOG by MICHAEL RIEDEL
YESTERDAY was a pretty amazing day for Suzan-Lori Parks.

'HELEN' IS NO BEAUTY by DONALD LYONS
WHEN you retell the ancient mythic stories, you'd better have a strong, striking, possibly funny point of view.
Ellen McLaughlin forgot this in "Helen," her dull modernizing of Euripides' play "Helen."

A Trojan Bore, Mostly by Howard Kissel
Helen of Troy has been a topic for poets and playwrights for nearly 3,000 years. This doesn't mean the subject has been exhausted, but you could easily get that impression from Ellen McLaughlin's "Helen."

Rhea Perlman Confirmed for B'way's Allergist's Wife

Black, Hubert & McArdle to Star in Monologues

Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train Heads to the West End

Valerie Harper Takes Allergist's Wife on the Road

Goodman Theatre Season Features Gold!

Thoroughly Modern Millie Cancels Performance

Brad Garrett to Play Amos Hart in Chicago

Richard Nelson's Franny's Way Extends a Week

CDs: I Do! Do I? by Ken Mandelbaum

Theatre O Gives Off-Broadway 3 Dark Tales, Opening April 9

New Production of Little Shop of Horrors Has Bway Hopes

DC's Woolly Has 9/11-Themed Recent Tragic Events in New Season

Patti LuPone to Star in NBC Sitcom

Melissa Errico to Star in Bway LeGrand Musical Amour in Fall

PHOTO CALL: Bow Wow Wow: Topdog/Underdog Opens

PHOTO CALL: Def and Parks Are Topdogs

PHOTO CALL: Topdog Attracts Entertainment's Top Dogs: Spike Lee, Chris Rock

PHOTO CALL: Topdog Attracts Entertainment's Top Dogs: Wesley Snipes, Jesse L. Martin

PHOTO CALL: Topdog Attracts Entertainment's Topdogs: Rosie Perez, James Earl Jones

Manilow: Harmony Will Reach New York in 2003

Audra McDonald Returns to Joe's Pub in May

Allergist's Wife Cast Is California-Bound; New Stars Expected for Bway

Spitfire Grill Cast Album Due Out in Late April; FL and WI Stagings Due in 2002

Actor Ralph Richardson's Papers Bought For British Library

Matt Damon's Start in West End Youth Postponed

The Queen Mum's Love for Theatre Is Remembered

PLAYBILL ON-LINE'S BRIEF ENCOUNTER with Suzan-Lori Parks
Suzan-Lori Parks began her week with a bang. On Sunday April 7 her new play, Topdog/Underdog, opened on Broadway to raves, and on Monday the work won her the 2002 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. What does she do for an encore, and how does she feel about awards? She spoke to us hours after the literary prize was announced.

A Closer Look at ... Philadelphia by M. Scott Mallinger

Los Angeles Times: New Sexual Politics of Old English 'Beauty' by TONY PERRY
This spicy period comedy directed by Mark Lamos, catches England and the Restoration stage in the throes of political and romantic upheaval.

Yahoo/Backstage: SAG: $328M Lost If ATA Pact Fails

Yahoo/Backstage: Pre-Season Tony Handicapping

Yahoo/Backstage: Equity Races Begin

San Francisco Chronicle: Bronson Pinchot breaks out of Balki by Christopher Hawthorne
Former sitcom star takes on meatier role in Broadway's 'Stones'
posted at 4/9/2002 03:57:47 PM by Tim Dunleavy | Item Link

Casting info for LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS Broadway production:
Rehearsals begin mid-September (in NY). Out of town run begins Oct. for 6 week run, city to be determined. Broadway performances begin approximately January 2003 at a theatre to be determined. Director: Connie Grappo.
posted at 4/9/2002 11:38:41 AM by James Marino | Item Link

THEATER REVIEW | 'THE SWEEPERS': At War's End, a New Dawn in a Little Italy By LAWRENCE VAN GELDER
Change is in the air. The time is the summer of 1945. The atomic age is about to dawn. World War II is drawing to a close, and life in these United States is about to be transformed, including life in a little backyard in Boston.

Her 'Topdog' Is A Champion By PATRICIA O'HAIRE
First, her play "Topdog/Underdog," opened Sunday at Broadway's Ambassador Theater to mostly enthusiastic reviews. Yesterday, Suzan-Lori Parks won the Pulitzer Prize for the two-character drama.

Spring Forward, Fall Back: Debbie Does Dallas Now Slated for Late 2002
When exactly is Debbie doing Dallas? And, hmm, where might I have read about this before?

Gilman's Police Drama, Blue Surge, Has New York Debut, April 9

Black, Hubert and McArdle Begin in OB's Monologues, April 16

Betty Buckley to Star in April 29 Reading of New Musical Fool

Ute Lemper�Singer and Painter�Returns to NYC

Musical Revue, Streakin' Has NYC Tryout April 9-30; Free Tix Offered

Talk Back to The Goat on Tuesdays Starting April 9

Elaine Stritch at Liberty Cast Album Due April 9

A Frog Runs for President in Rare Revival of Rome Musical, April 9-21 in NYC
posted at 4/9/2002 06:27:10 AM by Matthew Murray | Item Link

Monday, April 08, 2002

Topdog/Underdog Wins 2002 Pulitzer Prize for Drama

Emily Watson to Star in Donmar's Vanya & Twelfth Night

Bulletin: Topdog/Underdog Awarded 2002 Pulitzer Prize in Drama

Second Stage Delays First Preview of Ricky Jay: On The Stem to April 13

The Boy from Oz Begins NYC Workshop April 8

Mulgrew Plays Make-Up Performances of Tea Thru April 13

PHOTO CALL: That Face, That Face: Helen Celebrates

PHOTO CALL: 'Cosby''s Rashad Featured in Public's Helen

posted at 4/8/2002 03:30:16 PM by Tim Dunleavy | Item Link

Star-Ledger: Mrs. Anna saves Paper Mill's 'King'
BY PETER FILICHIA
Terrible "King." Wonderful "I."
Luckily for Paper Mill Playhouse theatergoers, when Rodgers and Hammerstein wrote "The King and I," they gave British schoolteacher Anna Leonowens much more time on stage than the Siamese monarch. Carolee Carmello is incandescent in the role, in a performance that must be seen.

Newsday: An Exhilarating Tale of Two 'Dogs'
'Topdog/Underdog' has an eye on today's Pulitzer Prize
By Linda Winer
THE PLACE, according to the program, is "Here." The time is "Now." And life for the African- American brothers named Lincoln and Booth has always been a tough hustle.

The New Yorker: THE BOARDS: BEEHIVES ON BROADWAY
This August, a musical based on "Hairspray," the John Waters movie that celebrates rigid updos and disintegrating racial segregation in early-sixties Baltimore, is coming to Broadway, and the other week a dozen or so group-sales people�responsible for ordering the big blocks of tickets that buoy a show's audience figures�came to a loft apartment in the West Twenties for a special preview.
Thanks to BackToBefore on All That Chat for the link.

Were Mos Def & Jeffrey Wright Topdog with Critics?

Tonys '02 #6 by Ken Mandelbaum

No Fool Like a New Fool by Ken Mandelbaum

Matthew Warchus to Direct Madness Musical in UK

Avengers Star to Appear in West End Monologues
Honor Blackman in The Vagina Monologues... hmm... wonder if she's playing the same character she played in Goldfinger?

Report: Mayer and Roundabout Working on New Version of After the Fall

"Everybody Loves Raymond" Star Brad Garrett Joins Chicago June 25

San Jose Rep 2002-03 Season Includes Humpty Dumpty, Premiere Wind

A Double-Dose of Brian Stokes Mitchell On TV, April 8 and 9

Musical Mister With Rent's Rapp and Alers Plays NYC April 9-30

Levee James Not in the Lineup for Victory Gardens in 2003

Producers Cast Help NYC Mayor Spoof His Own Image

It's Good to Be the King
Schmuel Gelbfisz, a glove salesman who entered the movie mainstream under the Americanized name of Samuel Goldfish, and Irvin Alan Kniberg, the man who would be Alan King and whose father hailed from the same Warsaw ghetto as Gelbfisz, crossed paths only once � but there was a sweet smell of success about the experience that lingers today.

Topdog/Underdog
Reviewed By: David Finkle

posted at 4/8/2002 01:41:00 PM by Tim Dunleavy | Item Link

The "Are You a Show Freak?" Quiz by Peter Filichia
posted at 4/8/2002 12:00:16 PM by Matthew Murray | Item Link

Ideas, Words, All Spilling Off the Table

'Electra' stops at Long Wharf
Next season's schedule for Stage II includes 'Two Days'
To no one's surprise, Gordon Edelstein, the new artistic director elect of New Haven's Long Wharf Theater, has announced that the production of Eugene O'Neill's "Mourning Becomes Electra" featuring Jane Alexander he's currently producing and directing at his A Contemporary Theater in Seattle, also will be part of the LWT's 2002-03 mainstage season.

'Millie' gets modern makeover
Robert Hofler: Noises Off

Road grosses
Biz dips; Pitt 'Fever' 865g

Broadway grosses
B.O. up; 'Aida' 866g

ROXIE WITH MOXIE
By BARBARA HOFFMAN
BRITAIN'S perkiest TV star has the world's best weight-loss plan."It's called the 'Chicago' workout," says Denise Van Outen."Lose fat with Fosse!"Since starring in the hit musical in London and here, Van Outen's lost several pounds, two dress sizes and, to the dismay of Britain's tabloids, much of her celebrated cleavage - which Arnold Schwarzenegger groped on her "Big Breakfast" TV show.

Talk Show Watch: Feinstein on 'Kilborn', Lithgow on 'The View'

Musical Revue, Streakin' Has NYC Tryout April 9-30; Free Tix Offered

Brian Kulick to Direct Twelfth Night in Central Park

Redgrave's Mandrake Root Seeks Off-Broadway Home for the Fall

McClanahan, Gibson and Korey Sings from the Heart for Strays April 8

MCC Turns Sweet 16 w/ Chenoweth, Gleason, Fierstein, Ebersole & Butz, April 8

Producer Schlossberg and Actor Naughton Feted at CAP21 Benefit April 8

Edward Albee's Occupant Ends Run April 7; Future Possible

Oklahoma!'s new website seems to have been launched with little fanfare... flash? That is so 2001...

The lovely and talented Georgia Stitt along with (the also lovely and talented?) John Ruocco are opening up "The Gym", which is a forum designed to give professional, working actors and singers a place to work every week. For more information, click here!
posted at 4/8/2002 08:48:23 AM by James Marino | Item Link

Photo Op: TOPDOG opening - Photos by Bruce Glikas

posted at 4/8/2002 06:55:15 AM by James Marino | Item Link

THEATER REVIEW: 'TOPDOG/UNDERDOG': Not to Worry, Mr. Lincoln, It's Just a Con Game By BEN BRANTLEY
Suzan-Lori Parks's thrilling comic drama, starring Jeffrey Wright and Mos Def, revitalizes a lackluster theater season on Broadway.

DOGS ARE DEF By CLIVE BARNES
FOR thrilling theatrical fireworks, you're not going to do much better than Suzan-Lori Parks' "Topdog/Underdog," which opened at the Ambassador Theatre last night.

2 Aces, But It's No Full Monte by Howard Kissel
In a program note to "Topdog/Underdog," Suzan-Lori Parks explains that what prompted her to write the play was watching a three-card monte hustler on Canal St. At the time, she was with her husband, a musician who used to play it between sets and who explained its scam to her.

Topdog/Underdog review by Charles Isherwood
Move over, Bialystock & Bloom: You're not the only sensational double-act on Broadway anymore....

Topdog/Underdog review by Adam Feldman

Greek to Them: Donna Murphy Is Helen as McLaughlin Drama Opens Off-Broadway, April 8
posted at 4/8/2002 06:28:54 AM by Matthew Murray | Item Link

Sunday, April 07, 2002

Newsday: Hey, Guys, Can We Talk? by Linda Winer
THIS IS SO RETRO that, if it weren't so bizarre, it might even be quaint.
I speak of the unexpected gender-driven fuss around "The Smell of the Kill," the 90-minute domestic-revenge comedy about three upper-middle-class suburban wives who let their husbands die in a meat freezer.

For the Love of the Theater by Karin Lipson
Committed activists and performers raise millions to resurrect Symphony Space, a hallmark of the Upper West Side

Greek Goddess
One icon of beauty portrays another in the Public Theatre's take on Helen of Troy
by Blake Green
IS THIS the face that launched a thousand ships? Well, no. But had life dealt you this hand - make that face - there'd be scant cause for complaint. So it's hardly a stretch that Donna Murphy, the subject of this observation, is playing the title role in "Helen," a new play about that mythological beauty from Troy.

Los Angeles Times: Back to a Family--and a City--in Turmoil by DON SHIRLEY
Ten years after the L.A. riots, Taylor Negron finds new depths in his play "Gangster Planet."

Philadelphia Inquirer: Merchandising Bernstein by Peter Dobrin
The celebrated composer's family is looking to perpetuate his name with items such as watches.

Reknowned Mime Marcel Marceau Performs at L.A.'s Geffen July 30-Aug. 18

Vanessa Williams, Steven Weber to Appear on 'Rosie'

Steven Suskin ON THE RECORD: A Vibrant Oliver! and Evita Highlights

Ten-Minute Plays Get Their 15 Minutes at Actors Theatre of Louisville, April 7

PHOTO CALL: Bjorn Again Meets Mamma Mia!

Humorist David Sedaris Performs April 7 in NJ

Lillias White Jazzes It Up at Feinstein's and on Upcoming CD

Photo Op: ANYTHING GOES LCT Gala - Photos by Bruce Glikas
posted at 4/7/2002 09:42:37 AM by Tim Dunleavy | Item Link

A Jewish Avenger, a Timely Legend By ALISA SOLOMON
A new production of H. Leivick's Yiddish classic, "The Golem," raises enduring questions about violence and its consequences.

Beyond a Black-and-White Lincoln By JOSHUA WOLF SHENK

A Provoking Parable That Won't Quit By JONATHAN KALB

HOW TOP PLAYWRIGHTS KEEP CHURNING 'EM OUT By CLIVE BARNES
It must be difficult enough to write one play, but if it's a success, what do you do for an encore?

Topdog Has Its Day, as Playwright Parks Make Broadway Debut

Edward Albee's Occupant Ends Run April 7; Future Possible

Kevin Bacon Takes Down An Almost Holy Picture April 7 as Bway Show Concludes
posted at 4/7/2002 08:02:15 AM by Matthew Murray | Item Link

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[Past News]

BROADWAYSTAR'S FIVE DAY FORECAST

2007-08
Broadway Season

June 28 - Old Acquaintance (AA)

July 10 - Xanadu (Hayes) [Robert Ahrens, Dan Vickery, Tara Smith/B. Swibel and Sarah Murchison/Dale Smith]

Aug 19 - Grease (Atkinson)

Oct 4 - Mauritius (Biltmore) [MTC]

Oct 11 - The Ritz (54)

Oct 18 - Pygmalion (AA)

Oct 25 - A Bronx Tale (Kerr)

Nov 1 - Cyrano de Bergerac (Rodgers)

Nov 4 - Rock 'N' Roll (Jacobs)

Nov 8 - Young Frankenstein (Hilton)

Nov 9 - Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (St. James)

Nov 10: Local One Strike Begins

Nov 28: Local One Strike Ends

Dec 2 - Cymbeline (Beaumont)

Dec 3 - The Farnsworth Invention (Music Box) [Dodger Properties with Steven Spielberg, Dan Cap Productions, Fred Zollo, Latitude Link and the Pelican Group]

Dec 4 - August: Osage County (Imperial) [Jeffrey Richards, Jean Doumanian, Steve Traxler, Jerry Frankel, Steppenwolf]

Dec 6 - The Seafarer (Booth)

Dec 9 - Is He Dead? (Lyceum)

Dec 16 - The Homecoming (Cort) [Richards, Frankel]

Jan 10 - The Little Mermaid (Lunt)

Jan 15 - The 39 Steps (AA)

Jan 17 - November (Barrymore)

Jan 24 - Come Back, Little Sheba (Biltmore)

Feb 21 - Sunday In The Park With George (54)

Feb 28 - Passing Strange (Belasco)

Mar 6 - Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (Broadhurst) [Stephen C. Byrd]

Mar 9 - In The Heights (Rodgers)

Mar 27 - Gypsy (St. James)

Mar 29 - Macbeth (Lyceum)

Apr 3 - South Pacific (Beaumont)

Apr 17 - A Catered Affair (Kerr) [Jujamcyn Theaters, Jordan Roth, Harvey Entertainment / Ron Fierstein, Richie Jackson and Daryl Roth]

Apr 24 - Cry Baby (Marquis)

Apr 27 - The Country Girl (Jacobs)

Apr 30 - Thurgood (Booth)

May 1 - Les Liaisons Dangereuses (AA)

May 4 - Boeing-Boeing (Longacre)

May 7 - Top Girls (Biltmore)

TBA - Godspell

2008-09
Broadway Season

Oct 16 - Billy Elliot (Imperial)

Nov 08 - Dividing the Estate (a Shubert theater)

Dec 14 - Shrek: The Musical (Broadway) [DreamWorks]

Talked About
Not Scheduled Yet

TBA - 50 Words

TBA - Addams Family (Elephant Eye)

TBA - American Buffalo

TBA - An American Vaudeville [Farrell, Perloff]

TBA - The Beard of Avon [NYTW]

TBA - Being There [Permut]

TBA - Benny & Joon [MGM]

TBA - Billy Elliot

TBA - Brave New World [Rachunow]

TBA - Breath of Life [Fox]

TBA - Busker Alley [Margot Astrachan, Robert Blume, Kristine Lewis, Jamie Fox, Joanna Kerry & Heather Duke]

TBA - Broomhilda

TBA - Bye Bye Birdie [Niko]

TBA - Camille Claudel [Wildhorn]

TBA - Camelot

TBA - Carmen [Robin DeLevita and The Firm]

TBA - Catch Me If You Can

TBA - Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon [Bob and Harvey Weinstein]

TBA - Cry Baby [Grazer, Gordon, McAllister, Epstein]

TBA - Designing Women [Alexis]

TBA - Don Juan DeMarco [New Line]

TBA - Dreamgirls [Creative Battery]

TBA - Duet

TBA - Equus

TBA - Ever After [Adam Epstein]

TBA - Fallen Angels (Shubert) [Kenwright]

TBA - Farragut North [Richards]

TBA - Father of the Bride

TBA - The Female Of The Species (TBA)

TBA - Fool For Love (AA) [Roundabout]

TBA - Girl Group Time Travelers

TBA - Golden Boy

TBA - Harmony [Guiles, Karslake, Smith, Fishman]

TBA - Hitchcock Blonde

TBA - The Importance Of Being Earnest

TBA - Jerry Springer: The Opera! [Thoday, McKeown]

TBA - Jesus Hopped The 'A' Train (Circle)

TBA - Josephine [Waissman]

TBA - Leap of Faith

TBA - A Little Princess [Ettinger, Dodger]

TBA - Midnight Cowboy [MGM]

TBA - The Minstrel Show - Kander and Ebb and Stroman

TBA - Moonstruck [Pittelman, Azenberg]

TBA - Mourning Becomes Electra [Haber, Boyett]

TBA - Monsoon Wedding

TBA - The Night of the Hunter

TBA - The Opposite of Sex [Namco]

TBA - Orphans

TBA - Pal Joey [Platt]

TBA - Paper Doll

TBA - The Paris Letter

TBA - The Philadelphia Story

TBA - Peter Pan

TBA - Porgy and Bess [Frankel, Viertel, Baruch, Routh, Panter, Tulchin/Bartner]

TBA - The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert

TBA - The Princess Bride

TBA - Princesses [Lane, Comley]

TBA - Poe the Musical

TBA - Rain Man [MGM]

TBA - Robin Hood

TBA - Secondhand Lions

TBA - South Pacific

TBA - Speed-the-Plow

TBA - Stalag 17

TBA - Starry Messenger

TBA - Syncopation

TBA - A Tale Of Two Cities

TBA - Torch Song Trilogy

TBA - Turn of the Century

TBA - West Side Story

TBA - The Wall [Weinstein, Mottola, Waters]

TBA - Will Rogers Follies [Cossette]

TBA - The Wiz [Dodger]

TBA - Zanna [Dalgleish]

This list is compiled from various sources. If you have corrections to the Broadway Season, please contact us.

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2007-08Broadway Season

2008-09Broadway Season

Talked AboutNot Scheduled Yet

2007-08
Broadway Season

2008-09
Broadway Season

Talked About
Not Scheduled Yet