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News ... ... News ... ... News ... ... News
BROADWAY'S FRESH BLOOD
- Elton John and Bernie Taupin
8th
May 2003
"Dance of the Vampires" was so last year. Elton John and Bernie
Taupin are at work on a
new musical, "The Vampire Lestat," based onAnne Rice's bloodsucking hero.
My Fair Lady is to
close on August 30!
2th
May 2003
Cameron Mackintosh has announced that his multi-award-winning production of My Fair Lady is to complete its 30-month London run at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane on August 30 this year. The final cast of My Fair Lady includes Anthony Andrews, Laura Michelle Kelly and Russ Abbot as Professor Henry Higgins, Eliza Doolittle and Alfred P Doolittle. Stephen Moore plays Colonel Hugh Pickering, Hannah Gordon appears as Mrs Higgins, Michael Xavier as Freddy Eynsford-Hill and Patsy Rowlands as Mrs Pearce.
Rat
Pack transfers to the strand!
2th May 2003
The much-travelled musical The Rat Pack - Live From Las Vegas will transfer from the Haymarket Theatre Royal to the Strand theatre in June. This toe-tapping schmoozical is set on one night in the legendary Sands Night Club with Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr. during the time they were filming Ocean’s 11.
'Thoroughly
Modern Millie' to hit London Stage!
8th April 2003
The
transfer of hit Broadway musical Thoroughly Modern Millie looks set for
an autumn arrival (See The
Goss, 27 Feb 2003). According to today's Daily
Mail, the show will receive its West End premiere in October, most probably
at the Shaftesbury Theatre where the Toyah Willcox-led touring production of Calamity
Jane has just announced a conveniently
limited season from 12 June to 20 September 2003 (See News,
3 Apr 2003). As for Millie, its title role in London is tipped for
British screen actress Amanda Holden, best known for her TV roles in series such
as Cutting It and Hearts and Bones and for cheating on her husband
Les Dennis in a thoroughly modern tabloid fashion. Based on the 1967 film
starring Julie Andrews, Mary Tyler Moore and Carol Channing, the nostalgic
musical comedy is set in 1920s New York where recent arrival-from-Kansas Millie
Dillmount is determined to bob her hair, dance to jazz, get a job and marry her
boss - all in the modern fashion. In addition to period tunes and songs from the
film, the musical features new numbers by Dick Scanlan (lyrics) and Jeanine
Tesori (music), with a book by Scanlan and Richard Morris. Opened last March at
Broadway's Marquis Theatre, where it continues to play, Thoroughly Modern
Millie was the big winner at the 2002 Tony Awards, taking home six trophies
including Best Musical.
What’s on Stage
Working
Girl takes lead in Chicago
15th March 2003
It has just been confirmed that Melanie Griffith, star of such Hollywood
films as Working Girl, Born Yesterday, and Mulholland Falls, will make her Broadway debut as Roxie Hart in the Broadway revival of Chicago beginning
July 11. Griffith is scheduled to be with the production through September 8.
The revival, which won six Tony Awards and helped spawn the Academy Award winning film version, is currently in its seventh year on Broadway and is
now playing at the Ambassador Theatre, where it moved in late January from the Shubert. A new national tour of Chicago is scheduled to open on June 10
at the National Theatre in Washington, D.C.
What’s on
Broadway at the moment?
15th
March 2003
Urban Cowboy
– the musical
Presented
by Chase Mishkin and Leonard Soloway, URBAN COWBOY is based on the hit Paramount
film of the same name that starred John Travolta and Debra Winger. URBAN COWBOY
is the story of Bud, a new breed of cowboy who’s turnin’ heads and lookin’
for love in the biggest honkeytonk in the world. But can he raise the roof, get
the girl and ride the bull, all before last call? URBAN COWBOY will feature
classic songs from the original film, hits from such current stars as Shania
Twain, Clint Black and the Dixie Chicks, and original songs from Jason Robert
Brown (who also serves as Musical Director and Conductor), Jeff Blumenkrantz and
Bob Stillman. Lonny Price will direct with choreography .. and a ‘no bull’
mechanical bull is just one of the starring roles!
For
generations of Americans, they play like the soundtrack to our lives. Songs that
are sophisticated and stylish, complex, subtle, exhilarating. These ageless and
unforgettable melodies and lyrics came from composer BURT BACHARACH and
lyricist HAL DAVID, the formidable songwriting team that penned hundreds
of America’s most popular tunes, including an astonishing 66 top hits.
Now
the music of BACHARACH/DAVID is celebrated in The Look of Love,
one of the most anticipated new Broadway musicals of the season. Showcasing some
thirty songs, ranging from heavy-hitter standards to magical hidden gems, The
Look of Love features smart, stylish staging, sexy dancing, hot
orchestrations, and above all, unbelievable singing. It is an evening in the
theater that, like a BACHARACH/DAVID song, stirs, leaps, and stretches
yearningly up the scale, and then detonates in a dazzling display of emotional
fireworks.
Antonio
Banderas in Nine the Musical
Anyone
who cares about the progress of the Broadway musical has to see Nine!"
That’s what Frank Rich declared in the New York Times after the opening
night performance of this Fellini inspired musical. Based on the classic film 8
1/2, Nine went on to win five 1982 Tony Awards®, including Best
Musical. Now, the show the New York Post hailed as "a
true original" and the
Daily News called "brilliant,
daring, innovative and divine"
returns in a spectacular new production starring Antonio
Banderas (Evita, The Mask Of
Zorro) in his Broadway debut.
Nine
revolves around Guido Contini, a film director in the Fellini mold. Having just
suffered through several box office flops, he attempts to write and direct a new
film but is unable to come up with a suitable plot. Drifting towards a nervous
breakdown, Guido finds himself examining his past flawed relationships with the
many women who have come through his life and struggling to act his mature age
of 40 as opposed to nine.
Antonio
Banderas
will make his Broadway debut playing Guido Contini with Laura
Benanti as Claudia, Jane
Krakowski as Carla, Mary
Stuart Masterson as Luisa and Chita
Rivera as Liliane La Fleur.
And
Finally.. Bernadette Peters WOWS in a new production of Gypsy
( oh and Sam Mendes
directs!)
Set
during the vaudeville era, Gypsy is about a relentless stage mother, Rose
(Bernadette Peters), who travels the country with her two daughters, June (Kate
Reinders) and Louise (Tammy Blanchard), and their manager, Herbie (John Dossett).
While June and Louise wish their mother would settle down and marry Herbie, Rose
continues to pursue dreams of stardom for her girls. When June deserts the act,
Rose turns her attention to the shy Louise, whom she hopes to fashion into a
star. When the act is booked into a burlesque house by mistake, Louise is forced
into the spotlight and Gypsy Rose Lee is born.
'New War Musical
is latest news!'
13th April 2003
A new musical is playing at the Arts Theatre. 'The Madness of George Dubya' has a plot that is thankfully not a true reflection of recent events. However the script is updated EVERYDAY to take account of what is happening in the gulf. Clever hey?!?
Tension
is mounting in the Gulf, war drums beating in Britain and America, and the
commanding general of a US air base in Britain goes 'a little funny in the head'
and orders his airborne division, each armed with countless megatons of nuclear
missiles, to attack their primary targets in Iraq.
It's a
frantic race against time for President George 'Dubya' Bush and Prime Minister Tony to
recall the planes and prevent an all-out war in the Middle East...
Hot
off the press and bang up-to-the-minute, this knock about farce performed by a
brilliantly talented cast, with live music, is a rollercoaster ride through the
delights and terrors of the global war.
Critics' choice
This
lively sexy production has a gloriously distinctive bark with occasional
bite.
Shows
that satire can still be an effective weapon in a time of crisis.
'Our
House schedule change'
13th April 2003
Our
House,
the award-winning musical by Tim Firth that features songs by pop group Madness
(and is currently co-starring Madness singer Suggs), is packing them in to the
Cambridge Theatre in Covent Garden.
Lookin'
For Love: Musical Urban Cowboy Opens on Broadway
27th March 2003
The new musical, Urban Cowboy, opens on Broadway, March 27. The production, which began previews Feb. 28, plays at the Broadhurst Theatre.Lonny Price (A Class Act) directs Urban Cowboy with choreography by Melinda Roy. Aaron Latham, who co-wrote the original screenplay for the movie that starred John Travolta and Debra Winger, shares credit for the book of Urban Cowboy with the late Phillip Oesterman. Chase Mishkin and Leonard Soloway produce.
Urban Cowboy follows the ups and downs of the whirlwind romance of out-of town dreamer Bud and the unlucky-in-love local Sissy. The couple instantly hit it off and marry, but when a little bit of jealousy and a lot of hubris mix in, the newlyweds find their (mobile) home is not as strong as expected.
Filling the Texas cityscape are a blend of characters including Bud's leathery aunt Corene and ailing uncle Bob, the sinister ex-con Wes, the rich flirt Pam, Gilley's rowdy manager Jesse and plenty of young dancing barflies.
The new musical features an eclectic collection of old and new music. Popular country music by Clint Black and Brooks & Dunn will be interpolated among songs from the movie — including the signature "Lookin' For Love" — as well as original works by Jeff Blumenkrantz, Bob Stillman and the production's musical director conductor Jason Robert Brown (The Last Five Years.)
The show stars newcomer Matt Cavenaugh as Bud, who gets seduced by the barflies in and around a honky-tonk Texas bar named Gilley's, where a mechanical bull is the center of attention. Jenn Colella is Sissy, his love interest. The cast also features Leo Burmester, Marcus Chait, Sally Mayes, Rozz Morehead and Jodi Stevens along with Michael Balderrama, Mark Bove, Gerrard Carter, Nicole Foret, Lisa Gadja, Justin Greer, Michelle Kittrell, Brian Letendre, Barrett Martin, Kimberly Dawn Neumann, Tera-Lee Pollin, Chad L. Schiro, Kelleia Sheerin and Paula Wise.
The show has been in development for several years and has gone through many rewrites and reconsiderations in that time. In the last year, Jason Robert Brown was brought aboard and was signed as musical director and arranger. When co-librettist and director Phillip Oesterman died unexpectedly, Price was brought in to direct.
The Florida tryout of the Broadway-bound Urban Cowboy ended its nearly sold out run at Coconut Grove Playhouse. Seats for the show's final week were a top commodity at the Miami venue, a Coconut Grove spokesperson said.
Price told Playbill On-Line at a recent press event, "What this show really is about is: Amidst all of that cold petro-chemical world the way you survive is to find the person you love. A very simple message, but I think a profound one."
Bernadette
Peters Gypsy Announces Student Rush-Ticket Policy
27th March 2003
The much-anticipated revival of Gypsy — starring two-time Tony Award winner Bernadette Peters — has announced a student rush-ticket policy. The policy will offer a limited number of $25 cash-only tickets for students with valid IDs. Tickets are available for Monday through Thursday evening performances (no Wednesday matinees); tickets will be on sale from 10 AM to 2 PM on the day of performance. Some of the seats may have a partially obstructed view, and student rush is “subject to change, blackout dates at any time and availability.” For more information, visit the Gypsy website at www.gypsythemusical.com.
Ragtime
Extends West End Season Three Months
26th March 2003
Award-winning Broadway musical Ragtime, which received strong reviews for its London premiere last week, has announced a three-month extension to its West End season. The musical - starring Dave Willetts, Maria Friedman, Graham Bickley and American Kevyn Morrow - opened at the Piccadilly Theatre on 19 March 2003 (previews from 8 March) and had been booking to 11 June 2003. It is now taking bookings up to 6 September 2003.
Based on EL Doctorow's epic 1975 novel, Ragtime traces the cultural and political sea-changes in America at the turn of 20th century. In a portrait of three very different American families, fictional lives become dramatically intertwined with one another as well as with factual characters and events including Henry Ford, Harry Houdini and the sinking of the Lusitania.
In 1981, Milos Forman brought the story to the big screen, with a cast that included James Cagney, Norman Mailer and Elizabeth McGovern. The musical adaptation - with a book by Terrence McNally, music by Stephen Flaherty and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens - premiered in January 1998 on Broadway where it won four Tony Awards and ran for two years. In the stage show, Doctorow's story is played out against a range of American musical styles - from the catchy, rag-inspired opening through cakewalk, waltz and march.
Ragtime was originally scheduled to open in the West End back in March 1999 at the Prince Edward Theatre (now home to Abba mega-hit Mamma Mia!), but those transfer plans fell through. Somewhat belatedly, the show had its European premiere, with much of the same 30-strong London company, on 26 October 2002 in the concert version at Cardiff's St David's Hall as part of the inaugural International Festival of Musical Theatre.
The West End production of Ragtime is directed by Stafford Arima and designed by Robert Jones, with lighting by Howard Harrison, sound by Peter Hylenski and musical orchestrations by William David Brohn.
New
Line Cinema Eyeing a Film of Hairspray
26th March 2003
It's only been a few days since the "Chicago" won the Oscar for Best Picture, but Hollywood producers are already dreaming up ideas for filmdom's next blockbuster movie musical.Liz Smith reported in the New York Post that New Line Cinema wants to make a movie out of the musical Hairspray (which itself was based on a movie). Smith said the production company wants to shoot the film while the show was still a hit on Broadway.
Meanwhile, Harvey Weinstein of Miramax Films, one of the major authors of "Chicago," told the New York Times that his first order of business for the post-Oscar season was to begin work on a new movie musical. One distinct possibility may be to reteam with Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, who are looking toward a new big screen version of Frank Loesser's classic, Guys and Dolls.
Variety reported that the duo and Miramax have nearly secured all the needed permissions, including rights to Damon Runyon's "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown," the story that originally inspired the stage musical; the cooperation of Loesser's widow Jo Sullivan Loesser; and rights to the first movie version, held by Samuel Goldwyn, Jr.
Sweet
Charity Postponed as Search for New Creative Team Continues
26th March 2003
The Broadway-bound revival of Sweet Charity starring Marisa Tomei has been indefinitely postponed as a search continues for a new creative team.Walter Bobbie exited as director of the project in February. The reason given was that Bobbie and producer Barry Weissler could not concur on the makeup of the show's creative team. The parting was described as amicable. Since a new director has not yet been secured, the production is unable to meet the established pre-Broadway dates. New dates will be announced shortly, said a production spokesperson. The Broadway opening—last set for January 2004—will also be pushed back.
"Chicago"
Wins Oscar for Best Picture
24th March 2003
"Chicago" won the Oscar for Best Picture of the year at the 75th Anniversary Academy Awards, which were presented live from Hollywood's Kodak Theatre on March 23.The win marks the first time a movie musical has taken home the Best Picture Oscar in more than three decades ("Oliver!" was the last, in 1968), and tops a victorious awards season for a film that producer Martin Richards had been trying to make for as long.
"Chicago" garnered six awards in all, including one for Catherine Zeta-Jones for Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of killer showgirl Velma Kelly. (Zeta-Jones was nominated in a category that also included her "Chicago" co-star, Queen Latifah.) Zeta-Jones was the only the actor from the Miramax film who received an Academy Award. Renée Zellweger lost the Best Actress prize to Nicole Kidman ("The Hours"), and John C. Reilly lost the Best Supporting Oscar to Chris Cooper ("Adaptation").
Other "Chicago" winners included John Myhre and Gord Sim for Best Art Direction, Colleen Atwood for Best Costume Design, Martin Walsh for Best Film Editing and Michael Minkler, Dominick Tavella and David Lee for Best Sound.
Vying with "Chicago" for Best Picture honors were “The Hours" — featuring a screenplay by David Hare and directed by Stephen Daldry — "Gangs of New York," "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" and "The Pianist." Director Rob Marshall lost out to Roman Polanski, a surprise winner for "The Pianist."
The Oscar broadcast featured a performance of the one new song composed especially for the film of “Chicago.” John Kander and Fred Ebb’s “I Move On” — which runs over the film’s end credits — was performed by “Chicago” co-stars Catherine Zeta-Jones and Queen Latifah. The song lost to "Lose Yourself" from "8 Mile."
"Chicago" has already grossed more than $125 million.
* Featuring a star-studded cast led by Renée Zellweger (Roxie Hart), Catherine Zeta-Jones (Velma Kelly) and Richard Gere (Billy Flynn), the "Chicago" company also includes John C. Reilly (Amos Hart), Dominic West (Fred Caseley), Christine Baranski (Mary Sunshine), Queen Latifah (Mama Morton) as well as Taye Diggs, Colm Feore, Lucy Liu, Mya, Marc Calamia, Deidre Goodwin, Sebastian La Cause, Mary Ann Lamb and a cameo from original Chicago star Chita Rivera. Bill Condon wrote the "Chicago" screenplay, and the film's cinematographer was Dion Beebe; the Tony winning lighting team of Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer lit the film. John Kander and Fred Ebb's musical, which features such songs as "All That Jazz," "Mister Cellophane," and "Nowadays," debuted on Broadway in June 1975 with choreography by the late Bob Fosse.
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