Pat Cerasaro - Page 208

Last week I had the exceptional privilege of interviewing newly minted SAG and Golden Globe-winner for Best Actor In A Drama Series for his work on HBO'S BOARDWALK EMPIRE, Steve Buscemi, along with his wife, artist/choreographer Jo Andres, about their participation in the experimental music/theater space in Brooklyn, ISSUE Project Room. For those that are not aware, ISSUE Project Room is a community performance space for up-and-coming musicians, artists, performers and choreographers at 110 Livingston Street with the goal of creating a centralized space for all the arts - avant garde and otherwise. In addition to discussing their shared beginnings in the fringe theatre scene in the East Village in the eighties and the artists who inspired them, Buscemi and Andres also talk about the ultimate goals of the venue, both new and old, and the reason that now is the perfect time for a space such as this to flourish, as new artists get the opportunity to see their work produced. Further information about the venue - and how you can become a member - can be found here.

Yesterday I had the exceptional privilege of interviewing newly minted SAG and Golden Globe-winner for Best Actor In A Drama Series for his work on HBO'S BOARDWALK EMPIRE, Steve Buscemi, along with his wife, artist/choreographer Jo Andres, about their new experimental theater space in Brooklyn, the Issue Project Room. For those that are not aware, the Issue Project Room is a new theater space being developed for up-and-coming artists, performers and choreographers at 110 Livingston Street to create a centralized space for all the arts - avant garde and otherwise. In addition to discussing their shared beginnings in the fringe theatre scene in the East Village in the eighties and the artists who inspired them, Buscemi and Andres also talk about the ultimate goal of the venue and the reason that now is the perfect time for a space such as this for new artists to see their work produced. Further information about the venue - and how you can become a member - can be found here.

Today we are talking to one of the most influential musical theatre writers of all time, having written the book and lyrics for JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR, EVITA, CHESS and many more, as well as contributing lyrics to the stage adaptation of Disney's BEAUTY & THE BEAST and winning Oscars for his work on Disney's ALADDIN with Alan Menken and THE LION KING with Elton John - as well as sharing a Tony for Best Score with Elton John for AIDA in 2002 - who is now preparing for the world premiere of Andrew Lloyd Webber's new production of THE WIZARD OF OZ for which the superstar composing team has rejoined once again to pen five new songs - Sir Tim Rice. Discussing everything from his 70s Andrew Lloyd Webber collaborations to CHESS to the first news on his new musical version of FROM HERE TO ETERNITY, to GLEE and beyond, plus a look at his roots - all with an emphasis on his commitment to craft and bringing new audiences to the theatre. Sir Tim was kind and generous enough to illuminate his illustrious career in Hollywood, the West End and on Broadway exclusively for BroadwayWorld.

Today we are presenting a correlative conversation to our weekend feature interview with Richard Thomas, the star of the Public Theater Shakespeare LAB's new production of William Shakespeare's TIMON OF ATHENS, with the director of that innovative new take on the troublesome tragedy, Barry Edelstein. Having directed the lauded Public productions of JULIUS CAESER starring Jeffrey Wright and THE MERCHANT OF VENICE starring Ron Leibman, in addition to producing this season's smash hit Broadway revival starring Al Pacino and all of his notable work at the Classic Stage Company, Edelstein is one of the foremost American Shakespeare directors in the twenty-first century. Discussing what makes TIMON tick, what makes Shakespeare always relevant to modern audiences and the power of the poetry implicit in each and every Shakespeare play - no matter how obscure - Edelstein was generous enough to impart his vast knowledge and acute understanding of the greatest dramatist the English language has ever known.

This week, in honor of our InDepth Interview series of articles on the Public Theater Shakespeare LAB production of TIMON OF ATHENS featuring Richard Thomas and Barry Edelstein, we are setting out to prove that all the world's a stage and we are, indeed, merely its players with a collection of clips featuring the work of William Shakespeare. Leonardo Dicaprio to Anthony Hopkins to Russell Brand; Ian McKellen & Judi Dench and more await with many marvelous visions for weary eyes and ears to behold and be bequeathed. TITUS, ROMEO & JULIET, THE TEMPEST and MACBETH are merely a taste of the grand banquet!

Today, we are featuring an exclusive conversation with one of the most accomplished and respected stage and television actors of his generation, showing solid proof that a child actor can go on to have a wildly successful career as an adult onstage and onscreen if he has the talent to go with it - the star of the Public Theater's new production of William Shakespeare's TIMON OF ATHENS, Richard Thomas. From the seventies TV smash THE WALTONS to Stephen King's IT and NIGHTMARES & DREAMSCAPES in the 90s and 00s, to Edward Albee's TINY ALICE and David Mamet‘s RACE onstage, we touch upon many of the memorable roles that have made Richard Thomas a household name over the course of his forty years in show business and what the work of William Shakespeare means not only to him and those involved with this avant garde production of the problematic play, but also the pertinent message the show carries with it in these tumultuous times we live in today and what we can learn from it.

Today, we are taking a look at LES MISERABLES: LIVE AT THE O2, now available on DVD/Blu-Ray, and talking to one of the stars of the spectacular, once-in-a-lifetime concert event, the worldwide singing sensation who has made a name for herself as one foremost musical theatre actresses of the late-twentieth and early-twenty-first century: the incomparable and inimitable Lea Salonga! Following a recap and review of the disc, in this exclusive and revealing discussion Salonga and I detail what has made LES MIZ the international phenomenon it has become and how she has grown as both an actress and an individual in the ten years since she first essayed the role on Eponine on the 10th ANNIVERSARY CONCERT CD/DVD concert spectacular - not that we should ever compare the two- as well as what the powerful and prescient message of the show means for us now in 2011. Lea, LES MIZ and much, much more awaits in this SPOTLIGHT!

In honor of Sunday's broadcast of the 53rd annual Grammy Awards on CBS and today's early-morning premiere of Lady Gaga's newest single off of her forthcoming sophomore album (sharing the same title as the song) BORN THIS WAY, in this week's Flash Friday and Saturday we are taking a look at some of the most memorable Grammy moments from the past - and casting a glance towards the future as we take a listen to the new Gaga track. What we can expect from her highly-anticipated first live performance of the electronica anthem - as well as from performances by Barbra Streisand, Jennifer Hudson and more - in the nearly-four-hour broadcast celebrating all genres of music on Sunday? Also, what will win best cast album? We can be sure we are in for one hell of a show - after all, some of us were just born to set the stage ablaze, as today's goo-goo-for-Gaga FLASH FRIDAY and tomorrow's super-special-Babs-blow-out SATURDAY SPECIAL surely do attest. Queens all around, yet who will take the crown?

With the biggest budget in the history of the mega-hit GLEE - all-too-befitting of the post-Super Bowl expectation-heavy extravaganza, whatever the network or entity - how did the highly-awaited return of the hottest show on TV fare in its raptly anticipated - making the most vociferous among the gleeks near-rapacious - super-duper Sunday special edition and how did it score across the board? How does it measure up to the massively successful Season One and the best of the best of the rest? What about side-by-side with Season Two? See why 'The Sue Sylvester Shuffle' was a Super Bowl stunner or a lamentable loser of a let-down in this play-by-play recap of the biggest (ostensibly) Broadway-related event of 2011 - at least until the Tony Awards in the Spring; not counting SPIDER-MAN (but that isn't a 'musical' anyway, right?). See who scored big and see if anyone fumbled - and who, at the end of the game, made the stadium truly rock.

Having appeared on Broadway in FOOTLOOSE, CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF co-starring James Earl Jones and Phylicia Rashad, and snagging a Tony Award for her work on Jeanine Tesori and Tony Kushner's CAROLINE, OR CHANGE, Anika Noni Rose cites the stage as her first love.

Huddle up, gleeks! This week, we are casting our sights on the dual-dose sleeks will be getting - first, following the big game on Super Bowl Sunday is the highly awaited Super Bowl spectacular return of GLEE on FOX, and Tuesday's "Silly Love Songs" Valentine's Day Tribute episode has its own winsome and winning charms and allure. What's most exciting is the monstrous music events each promise to be - and here, in this column, we have everything from the Katy Perry opening number of the super-special Super Bowl show and Darren Criss taking on "Bills, Bills, Bills" to Lea Michele tacking Lady Antebellum and, of course, the hoped-for Holy Mary game-saver the mash-up of Michael Jackson's "Thriller" and the Yeah Yeah Yeah's "Heads Will Roll" is supposed to be! In taking a look back at Season 2 so far, GLEE could use a pristine, knock-down/drag-out victory. Will they score?

I recently spoke to screenwriter/director Richard Levine about his new feature film EVERY DAY starring Liev Schreiber, Helen Hunt, Carla Gugino, Eddie Izzard and Brian Dennehy, as well as took a look back at his work on Ryan Murphy's groundbreaking dark drama series NIP/TUCK with him - NIP/TUCK also having recently been released as a complete series boxset. From casting some of the most accomplished thespians onstage or on screen - all five can frequently be seen on Broadway and off, as well as in film and television - to his favorite NIP/TUCK episodes and thoughts on GLEE, Levine offers forth his insight and experience. Given that EVERY DAY focuses on a writer on a sudsy medical drama that wallows in the shocking and prurient, perhaps art isn't too far from life after all. EVERY DAY is in selected cities now.

Growing up as the daughter of one of the most iconic comediennes of all time could not have been easy, yet Melissa Rivers has managed to carve her own place in the Hollywood landscape as a producer and television personality herself, coming after nearly a decade of co-hosting the red carpet fashion rundowns on E! and the TV GUIDE channel with her mother Joan. Her (mostly) behind-the-scenes work as a producer on E!'s weekly FASHION POLICE show starring Joan is just half of her duties, as she also stars in and produces the new WE reality series JOAN & MELISSA: JOAN KNOWS BEST? Also, she manages to find the time to be a single mom and confidant to her legendary mother - and clean up after camera crews. I was lucky enough to speak to Melissa over the weekend in anticipation of tonight's special edition FASHION POLICE: SCREEN ACTORS GUILD AWARDS on E! and Tuesday's JOAN KNOWS BEST? on WE. Also, be sure to check out my weekend feature interview with Joan Rivers, as well.

This week, we are going to go a bit off of the beaten path in an attempt to remove the doom and gloom of midwinter as the snow nearly suffocates the Great White Way and take a look at some truly gloriously guffaw-inducing items from the legendary fifty-year-career of Broadway and Hollywood comedy icon Joan Rivers who is also this week‘s InDepth InterView participant. Ed Sullivan to Johnny Carson, red carpets to talk shows to her two weekly TV series FASHION POLICE and JOAN & MELISSA: JOAN KNOWS BEST? - as well as her best and most outrageous comedy special to date and an interview with Lucille Ball herself!

Last night I had the privilege of interviewing comedy icon and red carpet legend Joan Rivers about her first love of theatre and live performance, working the red carpet and virtually inventing celeb-reality culture, her Broadway endeavors - FUN CITY, Neil Simon's BROADWAY BOUND and SALLY MARR... AND HER ESCORTS, plus her new autobiographical piece - as well as all about the dazzling documentary JOAN RIVERS: A PIECE OF WORK. All of this, in addition to discussing her two weekly TV shows - FASHION POLICE on E! and the hit new WE reality series with daughter Melissa Rivers, JOAN AND MELISSA: JOAN KNOWS BEST? Stay tuned to BroadwayWorld for a complete conversation with Melissa all about growing up Hollywood, her superstar mother and running a production company and what it was like filming season one of MOTHER KNOWS BEST? coming up soon.

This week, in honor of today's InDepth InterView: Idina Menzel, we are taking a look back at some of Ms. Menzel's most memorable appearances over the years, culling clips from everything from RENT to WICKED to GLEE, with some Muppets, music and much more served up for your entertainment enjoyment, as well. All eyes - on Broadway and beyond - are most certainly focused on what Idina will do next, but just look at all she has accomplished thus far!

Today, we have perhaps the biggest Broadway star of the modern era, having appeared in the three most iconic theatre-related enterprises in entertainment in each of the last three decades, having lead roles in the original casts of Jonathan Larson's Pulitzer Prize-winning 1996 rock musical RENT, a Best Actress Tony Award for her work in Stephen Schwartz's megahit WICKED, and now a recurring role on Fox's hit 2011 Golden Globe-winning musical comedy series GLEE - the amply gifted and endearing Idina Menzel. In this exclusive interview we discuss her US concert tour with Oscar-winning maestro Marvin Hamlisch - as well as what she will be singing in their NY Philharmonic performance on February 5th - as well as new motherhood, new music and what she would like to do on the future - on Broadway, on GLEE and beyond! Plus, what does she think of TV daughter Lea Michele taking on her signature RENT tune coming up on GLEE?

We are kicking off 2011 in true Hollywood style, by showcasing and reviewing a number of films coming out this Oscar season - in theaters and on DVD/Instant Watch - with a particular emphasis on the films featuring stage talents - such as Natalie Portman, Nicole Kidman, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Liev Schreiber and more - and what to watch out for on Oscar night. From black swans to boating to rabbit holes and just everyday life, there is sure to be something here to strike even the ficklest of fancies.

Earlier this week I was fortunate enough to get the opportunity to discuss career past, present and future with highly-acclaimed stage and screen star - having appeared in films as diverse as WOLVERINE, SALT, DEFIANCE, TAKING WOODSTOCK, the SCREAM trilogy, RANSOM and the remake of THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE, and in stage roles ranging from Mamet to Miller to Shakespeare - Liev Schreiber, on the eve of the debut of his newest feature film EVERY DAY co-starring Helen Hunt, Carla Gugino, Eddie Izzard and Brian Dennehy, written/directed by Richard Levine. In this exclusive conversation, Schreiber and I discuss his first roles on stage and on screen, favorite characters, sharing life and the screen with partner Naomi Watts, comments on his VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE co-star Scarlett Johansson and that highly-lauded 2009 revival of the play, what we can expect from him onstage in the future - Shakespeare perhaps? - and all about EVERY DAY. Plus, we find out what sequels to his many blockbuster movies - WOLVERINE 2? SALT 2? SCREAM 4 - he may or may not be in and his first comments on the new film he co-stars in with Watts, MOVIE 43. Schreiber's acute thoughtfulness and razor-sharp perceptivity inform his superlative acting choices onstage and onscreen as much as they do his everyday conversation, as became quite clear to me in his quick-witted responses. EVERY DAY opens in NY and LA tomorrow with a wider release planned after that and be sure to stay tuned to BroadwayWorld for an upcoming interview with the writer and director of EVERY DAY, Richard Levine of FX's NIP/TUCK.

Composer, conductor, arranger and all-around music man Lance Horne is a very busy musician these days: this week's GENIUS OF AUTISM benefit and the upcoming American Songbook Series of shows in New York; the Planet Hollywood Las Vegas spectacular playing twice-nightly to sold-out crowds called VEGAS: THE MUSICAL, about to re-open with a slew of new material; a series of London concerts followed by a European tour; conducting at the Sydney Opera House; and a brand new album - FIRST THINGS LAST - released this week. All of this without even mentioning the hotly anticipated new productions he has coming up! Keep your eyes peeled for ARTS & CRAFTS, his new musical created with Jake Shears and starring Sandra Bernhard and Justin Bond, as well as the new Diane Paulus production of the fresh Steven Sater translation of PROMETHEUS BOUND starring Gavin Creel. The future looks bright for a talent like Lance's and in this revealing conversation we touch on all of this and much, much more.