Iceboy! Preview

Posted on December 17, 2020 by boz

Mullaly and Devine

Pasadena Playhouse has released a preview of Iceboy!, part of their In Development from PlayhouseLive. Megan Mullally, Nick Offerman, Adam Devine, and Laura Bell Bundy star in this “absolutely untrue story” of a 10,000-year-old Neanderthal who’s discovered frozen in the Arctic, brought to New York, and adopted by Vera Vimm (Mullally), the biggest Broadway star of 1938. However, once thawed, Iceboy (Devine) becomes an acting sensation whose talents threaten to upstage the once mighty Vera. It’s All About Eve — if Eve were a caveman. The creative team includes Tony-winning composer Mark Hollmann, Jay Reiss, and Erin Quinn Purcell. For free access to the preview, featuring four songs from the new musical, you need to create a PlayhouseLive account.

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The Theatre Channel

Posted on December 17, 2020 by boz

The Theatre Channel, a new web series launched in the UK on Oct. 2, will launch in the US on Dec. 23. It showcases award-winning West End musical stars, including the program’s Café Four singers (Alyn Hawk, Emily Langham, Sadie-Jean Shirley, Alex Woodward), in performances of theater songs from today and yesterday, all filmed on location in London’s Theatre Café. The first four episodes feature sets of show tunes programmed around a theme. The premiere is appropriately titled “Welcome to the Café,” opening with the song “On Broadway” from Smokey Joe’s Café. Episode 2, “Musical Horrors,” is dedicated to Halloween shows, including songs from Beetlejuice, Carrie, and Young Frankenstein. The third episode features tunes from rock musicals, such as Rent and Jagged Little Pill, and the fourth episode highlights yuletide songs from shows including Mame and White Christmas. New episodes will be released monthly through the spring. Episodes purchased can be viewed unlimited times.

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Broadway Birthday: LaChanze

Posted on December 16, 2020 by boz

Happy Birthday to Tony-winning performer LaChanze, born Rhonda Sapp on Dec. 16, 1961, in St. Augustine, Fla. After graduating from University of the Arts in Philadelphia, she joined the ensemble of Uptown … It’s Hot! during out-of-town tryouts, making her Broadway debut with the revue in 1986. She returned to Broadway the following year in the ensemble of the Dreamgirls revival. Her breakthrough came in 1990, when she originated the role of Ti Moune in the Off-Broadway premiere of Once on This Island, which she followed to Broadway, winning a Theatre World Award and earning her first Tony and Drama Desk nominations. Below is the cast of Once on This Island at the 1991 Tonys.

She next appeared on Broadway as Marta in the 1995 revival of Company, then in Disney’s 1997 animated film Hercules and its subsequent TV series as Terpsichore. LaChanze ended the decade on Broadway, replacing Audra McDonald as Sarah in Ragtime. In 2000, she originated the title role of the Off-Broadway musical The Bubbly Black Girls Sheds Her Chameleon Skin, then the title role of the 2005 Off-Broadway musical Dessa Rose, for which she won an Obie and earned a Drama Desk nomination. At the end of 2005, she originated the role of Celie in the Broadway premiere of The Color Purple, winning the Tony for best actress. Below is the cast of The Color Purple at the 2006 Tonys.

In the past decade, LaChanze has appeared in the Broadway musicals If/Then (2014) and Summer (2018), as one of its three Donnas, for which she earned her third Tony and fourth Drama Desk nominations. In 2019, she portrayed the eldest beekeeping sister in the Off-Broadway musical The Secret Life of Bees, winning an Outer Critics Award and earning Lortel and Drama Desk nominations. Below are the three Donnas of Summer performing “Last Dance” at the 2018 Tonys.

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In Memoriam: Ann Reinking

Posted on December 15, 2020 by boz

Tony-winning choreographer Ann Reinking died on Saturday in Seattle, while visiting family. Reinking was born Nov. 10, 1949, and raised in Bellevue, Wash. She made her professional debut at age 12 in Giselle with the English Royal Ballet and moved to New York at age 18. After gigs in the corps de ballet at Radio City Music Hall and the ensemble of a national tour of Fiddler on the Roof, she made her Broadway debut at age 19 in Cabaret. 

She went on to chorus roles in Coco (1969), Wild and Wonderful (1971), and Pippin (1972), where she met Bob Fosse. She earned a Theatre World Award for Over Here! (1974), then a Tony nomination for Goodtime Charley (1975). In 1976, she replaced Donna McKechnie in A Chorus Line, and in 1977, she replaced Gwen Verdon in Chicago. The next year, she starred in Fosse’s revue Dancin’, receiving her second Tony nomination. In 1979, she appeared in Fosse’s semi-autobiographical film All That Jazz. Below is Reinking with Erzsebet Foldi performing “Everything Old Is New Again” in the film.

Reinking appeared in two more films: Annie (1982) and Micki & Maude (1984). In 1986, she returned to Broadway, replacing Debbie Allen in Sweet Charity, but moved from performing to choreographing, including the 1992 revue Tommy Tune Tonite! and the 1995 TV adaptation of Bye Bye Birdie. In 1996, she created the choreography for Chicago at City Center’s Encores! series. Within a few months, the production moved to Broadway, becoming the longest-running American musical. In 1999, she recreated Fosse’s work for the Tony-winning revue Fosse, which earned her a fourth Tony nomination. Below is Reinking with Bebe Neuwirth and the Chicago revival cast performing “All That Jazz / Hot Honey Rag” at the 1997 Tony Awards.

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Quarantine a Musical

Posted on December 14, 2020 by boz

Publishing execs and theater super-fans @JeremyWest and @JeffreyWest have created #QuarantineAMusical, a series of timely show posters of classic musicals. “After being under quarantine and maintaining social distancing recommendations, my brother Jeffrey and I have been brainstorming fun projects to keep our creative juices flowing,” Jeremy told Playbill. “This project started when I tweeted a joke about John Guare releasing a revised version of his play titled Six Feet of Separation, making changes in light of 2020 social distancing. From there, we made a list of parody musicals re-imagined during a quarantine.” Below are just two of about two dozen examples of their artwork so far.

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Broadway Birthday: Dick Van Dyke

Posted on December 13, 2020 by boz

Happy Birthday to performer Dick Van Dyke, born Dec. 13, 1925, in West Plains, Mo. He began his career as a radio DJ and half of the comedy duo Eric and Van: The Merry Mutes, which led to steadier work as a local TV emcee. After making his network debut on Chance of a Lifetime (1954), he began to book other hosting gigs and guest roles on programs like The Phil Silvers Show (1957). He made his Broadway debut in the short-lived revue The Girls Against the Boys (1959), for which he received a Theatre World Award. For his next Broadway show, Bye Bye Birdie (1960), he won the Tony Award for best featured actor in a musical, making his screen debut in the film adaptation (1963). Below is Van Dyke singing “Put on a Happy Face” in the film.

He returned to TV as Rob Petrie in The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961-66), for which he won three Emmy Awards as outstanding lead actor in a comedy series. His next film musical was Mary Poppins (1964), earning him a Golden Globe nomination and a Grammy Award. “Chim Chim Cher-ee,” one of the numbers Van Dyke originated in that film, won the Oscar for best original song. 

His subsequent TV work includes The New Dick Van Dyke Show (1971-74), Van Dyke and Company (1976, Emmy), and Diagnosis: Murder (1993-2001). His other musical work includes the 1968 film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, the title role in the 1975 animated film Tubby the Tuba, Harold Hill in the 1980 Broadway revival of The Music Man, the 2018 fantasy film Buttons, and a cameo in the 2018 sequel Mary Poppins Returns. Below is Van Dyke singing “Trip a Little Light Fantastic” from Mary Poppins Returns.

https://youtu.be/rnBBW-9coLU

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Today in Musical History: City of Angels

Posted on December 11, 2020 by boz

The Tony-winning City of Angels opened Dec. 11, 1989, and ran on Broadway for 879 performances at the Virginia (now August Wilson) Theatre. The musical weaves two plots: the real world of a writer turning his book into a screenplay and the fictional world of the film he is writing about. The musical is an homage to 1940s Hollywood film noir, with the real world scenes in full-color and the fictional scenes in black-and-white. Most of the cast (with the exception of those playing Stine and Stone) doubles as characters in both worlds.

The creative team was Larry Gelbart (book), Cy Coleman (music, vocal arrangements), David Zippel (lyrics), Michael Blakemore (direction), Walter Painter (musical staging), Billy Byers (orchestrations), Yaron Gershovsky (vocal arrangements), Gordon Lowry Harrell (music direction), Robin Wagner (sets), Florence Klotz (costumes), Paul Gallo (lights), Peter Fitzgerald and Bernard Fox (sound), Steve Atha and Patrik D. Moreton (hair), BH Barry (fight direction).

The cast included Gregg Edelman (Stine), James Naughton (Stone), René Auberjonois (Buddy), Randy Graff (Oolie / Donna), Dee Hoty (Alaura), and Kay McClelland (Bobbi / Gabby) with Peter Davis (Angel City 4), Shawn Elliott (Munoz), Tom Galantich (Officer Pasco), James Hindman (Mahoney), Gary Kahn (Angel City 4), Amy Jane London (Angel City 4), Alvin Lum (Yamato), Jackie Presti (Angel City 4), Scott Waara (Jimmy), and Rachel York (Mallory). Below is the Broadway cast at the 1990 Tony Awards.

The production was nominated for 11 Tony Awards, winning for musical, book (Gelbart), score (Coleman & Zippel), actor (Naughton), featured actress (Graff), and sets (Wagner). The cast recording was nominated for best musical theater album but lost to Les Misérables. The 1993 London premiere won the Olivier Award for best new musical, and the 2014 West End return won the Olivier for best musical revival. The show has not yet received a Broadway revival nor a film adaptation.

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Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical

Posted on December 11, 2020 by boz

At 7 p.m. (ET) on New Year’s Day, the curtain will rise on Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical, as the viral sensation comes to Broadway. Seaview Productions will offer a filmed concert of the crowd-sourced show for streaming on TodayTix, as a benefit for The Actors Fund. After the Jan. 1 premiere, the event will be on sale for view on demand within the next 72 hours. Click here for tickets, which start at $5.

It was only in August that Emily Jacobsen posted “Ode to Remy,” which exploded all over social media, attracting more than 200 million fans around the world for the musical project, including additional songs such as “Tango (Colette and Linguini)” by Blake Rouse and Acacia Pressley, “Trash Is Our Treasure” by Gabbi Bolt, and “Anyone Can Cook” by RJ Christian. The final song list and cast for this unique concert adaptation of the 2007 Disney film will be announced soon.

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The Grinch Review Roundup

Posted on December 10, 2020 by boz

Morrison as The Grinch

The NBC adaptation of the Grinch stage musical, based on the children’s book How the Grinch Stole Christmas! by Dr. Seuss, has received mostly negative reviews from critics. The 1957 story was first adapted for TV in 1966 with Boris Karloff voicing the grumpy, green creature. The stage adaptation debuted in 1994 at Children’s Theatre Company in Minneapolis, eventually making it to Broadway in 2006 with Patrick Page. Other adaptations include the 2000  live-action film with Jim Carrey and 2018 3-D animated feature with Benedict Cumberbatch.

The NBC creative team includes Simon Nye (screenplay), Mel Marvin (music), Albert Hague (addl. music), Tim Mason (lyrics), Dr. Seuss (addl. lyrics), Julia Knowles (TV direction), Max Webster (stage direction), and Peter Bingemann (production design). The cast stars Matthew Morrison (Grinch), Booboo Stewart (Young Max), Denis O’Hare (Old Max),  Amelia Minto (Cindy Lou Who), Claire Machin (Grandma Who), Amy Ellen Richardson (Mama Who), Ako Mitchell (Papa Who), and Cary Wilmot (Grandpa Who).

https://youtu.be/g_vZJPJn__I

AV Club (Caroline Siede): Whatever magic it conjures up in the shared communal space of a holiday theater very much doesn’t translate to the small screen. … There were some high points throughout the evening, including fun costuming, a committed Who ensemble, and a truly fantastic set design. … Yet despite all that, The Grinch never amounted to more than the sum of its whimsical parts.

CNN (Brian Lowry): Having brought back the live musical event, NBC offers … a not-live (and not-very-good) stage production. … Staged at the Troubadour Theater in London, the presentation was playful, colorful and visually inventive. … The songs, though, are unmemorable, other than the few cribbed from the original animated classic. … So while it’s a bit tired, perhaps, to say it in rhyme, this Grinch, alas, wasn’t worth the time.

Decider (Joel Keller): Morrison’s choices as The Grinch made us wonder what he and director Max Webster were going for. The gyrating, the makeup that made the Grinch look too handsome and too strange at the same time, the growls, the line readings … all of it added to a forced campiness that just didn’t work. … Our Call: SKIP IT. … You’ll never see the Grinch the same way after watching this mess.

Indie Wire (Ben Travers): Director Julia Knowles sure left no angle un-shot. For those watching without the distraction of a second (or third) screen, the sheer number of cuts, zooms, pans, and movement in general is overwhelming. It really feels like they were going for a zany, over-the-top vibe to match the Seussian weirdness driving this story, and while the set design and costumes got there, the performances, songs, and blocking didn’t quite make it. Grade: C.

USA Today (Kelly Lawler): I’m no Grinch, but NBC’s latest attempt at a holiday musical about him might have made me hate Christmas. … Grinch Musical was grating, painful and pointless from its opening moments. … There is one good thing in this travesty of a musical, and that is the clever set design by Peter Bingemann. … This version of the Grinch can be summed up in three words: stink, stank, stunk. 1 of 4 stars.

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Today in Musical History: Spring Awakening

Posted on December 10, 2020 by boz

The Tony-winning Spring Awakening, based on Frank Wedekind’s 1891 play, opened Dec. 10, 2006, on Broadway and ran 859 performances at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre. It had taken seven years of development, including workshops in San Diego and New York and a 2005 concert at Lincoln Center. The show made its world premiere at the Atlantic Theater Company with a limited Off-Broadway run in 2006 and transferred to Broadway later that year. The creative team was Steven Sater (book, lyrics), Duncan Sheik (music, orchestrations), Michael Mayer (direction), Bill T. Jones (choreography), AnnMarie Milazzo (vocal arrangements), Kimberly Grigsby (music direction), Susan Hilferty (costumes), Christine Jones (sets), Kevin Adams (lights), and Brian Ronan (sound).

The cast included Skylar Astin (Georg), Lilli Cooper (Martha), Christine Estabrook (Woman), John Gallagher Jr. (Moritz), Gideon Glick (Ernst), Jonathan Groff (Melchior), Brian Charles Johnson (Otto), Lea Michele (Wendla), Lauren Pritchard (Ilse), Stephen Spinella (Man), Phoebe Strole (Anna), Jonathan B. Wright (Hanschen), and Remy Zaken (Thea). Astin, Cooper, and Glick marked their Broadway debuts, as did future Tony nominee Jennifer Damiano in the ensemble.

The Off-Broadway production was nominated for six Lortel Awards and won two, including outstanding musical and lights, while Jones received an Obie for his choreography. The Broadway production was nominated for 10 Tony Awards and won seven, including musical, book (Sater), score (Sater & Sheik), featured actor (Gallagher), choreography (Jones), orchestrations (Sheik), and lights (Adams). The original cast album won a Grammy in 2008, and the show won the Olivier as best new musical for its London premiere in 2009. Below is the Broadway cast at the 2007 Tony Awards.

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