"American Utopia" will return to Broadway this fall; Nathan Lane and Laurie Metcalf to lead a Broadway revival of "Death of a Salesman"; Disney to release a filmed version of "Hamilton" on Broadway; Spike Lee to film "American Utopia"; "Sing Street" cast album comes out March 26th; Rebecca Luker reveals she has been diagnosed with ALS; Jeremy Jordan to replace Gideon Glick in "Little Shop of Horrors"; RIP Kevin Conway, Paula Kelly, Lynn Cohen, and Orson Bean
All tagged Lin-Manuel Miranda
Phylicia Rashad to direct Charles Randolph-Wright's "Blue" at the Apollo Theater; Shakespeare in the Park season will be “Richard II” and “As You Like It”; "The Notebook" to premiere in Chicago; reimagined “Aida" will premiere at Paper Mill Playhouse in 2021; "Hairspray" national tour launches in the fall; "The Karate Kid" musical in development; "Almost Famous" headed to Broadway? "The Phantom of the Opera" turns 32; RIP: Margo Lion, Joseph P. Patria Jr., and Peter Larkin
Jessie Mueller, Tracy Letts, Armie Hammer, and Austin Pendleton will star in Letts' "The Minutes" on Broadway; Donmar Warehouse's "City of Angels" will transfer to the West End; Lear deBessonet will replace Jack Viertel as artistic director of City Center Encores!; Katharine McPhee will return to close "Waitress" on Broadway; Ariana DeBose will play Alyssa Greene in the Netflix film adaptation of "The Prom"; Andrew Garfield will star in "Tick, Tick ... Boom!" film; Spencer Liff will direct and choreograph the premiere of "Spring Awakening" in China; "Jagged Little Pill" to release a cast album on December 6th; "Wicked" is now the fifth longest running show in Broadway history; RIP Andile Gumbi and Ann Crumb
REVIEW: “Forbidden Broadway: The Next Generation”
After a five year hiatus, the Broadway parody revue “Forbidden Broadway” is back with a new edition that makes fun of Broadway shows, actors, and personalities through sketches that satirize the form. Mostly funny, this iteration is undercut by a tinge of bitterness and resentment toward shifting cultural mores and trends on Broadway. But, in the end, it’s still the same scrappy, low-budget comedy revue that’s been playing, off and on, since 1982.
REVIEW: A Lin-Manuel Miranda-less “Freestyle Love Supreme”
“Freestyle Love Supreme” is an abundantly joyful and amusing freestyle, improvisational, hip-hop comedy show created by Thomas Kail, Anthony Veneziale, and Lin-Manuel Miranda. A pricey enterprise given that it is, fundamentally, an improv show, lovers of wordplay will take great pleasure in the clever and witty rhymes that the rotating cast of rappers and beatboxers come up with on the spot based on audience suggestions, and cynics will see a well-marketed cash grab.
FEATURE: 2019 Fall Season Preview
The city that never sleeps also boasts a theatre scene that never sleeps. With the summer now behind us, this is an overview of all that’s coming to New York stages this fall (spoiler alert: it’s a lot).
NOTES: Jason Robert Brown and Stephen Sondheim in concert at Town Hall
Two weeks ago, I attended what might long rank among the most magical and special concerts I will ever have the privilege to see: Jason Robert Brown in concert with Stephen Sondheim, featuring Katrina Lenk, special guests Shoshana Bean, Joshua Henry, and Rob McClure, and a cameo from Lin-Manuel Miranda
REVIEW: City Center Encores! Off-Center presents “Working”
the annual Encores! Off-Center summer season kicks off with a newly re-conceptualized, site-specific production of Stephen Schwartz’s 1978 flop “Working” that interpolates a series of new monologues based on interviews with facilities staff at New York City Center; an admirable concept that makes for a touching tribute to these workers, the effect blunts the power of the show and cuts short its escalating emotional resonance. A suite of uneven performances and an oversized venue also hamper the effort.
New Tony nominators announced; "Hillary and Clinton" closes a month early; “The Prom” and “Be More Chill” to close August 11th; Lin-Manuel Miranda's "Freestyle Love Supreme" books the Booth, "Deren Brown: Secret" books the Cort, "Girl from the North Country" books the Belasco, Tracy Letts' "The Minutes" will arrive on Broadway in February, and Jeremy O. Harris’ “Slave Play” rumored for Broadway; Netflix film adaptation of August Wilson's "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom" to star Viola Davis; Richard Kind joins “Kiss Me, Kate”; check out Joel Grey’s latest book of photography; Jake Gyllenhaal and Annaleigh Ashford to bring their "Sunday in the Park with George" to the West End
"Hadestown" and "The Ferryman" take home the top prizes at the Tony Awards; "Gary: A Sequel to Titus Adronicus" closes several weeks ahead of schedule; Dave Chapelle books the Lunt Fontanne; Ed Harris to replace Jeff Daniels in "To Kill a Mockingbird"; "Ain't Too Proud" will launch a national tour in 2020; "Xanadu" tour with Ginger Minj and Jinkx Monsoonwill planned; Lin-Manuel Miranda to have cameo in forthcoming "In the Heights" film adaptation; plans for the Times Square Theatre; John Mellencamp musical is in development
Lin-Manuel Miranda, Thomas Kail, Jeffrey Seller, and James Nederlander purchase the Drama Book Shop; Ingrid Michaelson composing "The Notebook" musical; "Almost Famous" to get development lab; "Houdini Among the Spirits" musical has industry reading; Actors’ Equity Association calls for a strike against developmental presentations; Broadway's box office reaches record-breaking $57M gross; RIP Liza Redfield
“Moulin Rouge! The Musical" books the Al Hirschfeld Theatre; BC/EFA awards $225k for fire relief; League of Professional Theatre Women report finds gender equality progress Off-Broadway; "The Ferryman" extends 20 weeks; "The Secret Life of Bees" cast announced; Norbert Leo Butz, Laura Osnes, and Ethan Slater join Fosse/Verdon on FX; "If I Forget" to air on PBS; tickets on sale for Lincoln Center's "American Songbook" series; Astoria Performing Arts Center to present "Caroline, or Change"; producer Jerry Frankel dead at 88; writer William Goldman dead at 87