'The Showtune Mosh Pit' for September 4th, 2013

THE LATEST IN UNAUTHORIZED GOSSIP AND BUZZ

FROM THE HEART OF CHICAGO'S SHOWTUNE VIDEO BARS,

AND MUSICAL THEATER NEWS FROM CHICAGO TO BROADWAY

by Paul W. Thompson

Overheard last weekend under the showtune

video screens at Sidetrack and The Call:

At midnight late last night (or was it at midnight early this morning?) the Equity Jeff Award nominations were announced, signifying that the field contending for Chicago's best-known honors in theater would be front and center once again. I am proud to point out that the production leading the field with the most nominations (8) is the Chicago Shakespeare Theater at Navy Pier's staging of "Sunday In The Park With George," the show that was the winner of our very own BroadwayWorld Chicago Award for Best Revival of a Musical (Resident Equity) last winter. Its star, Jason Danieley, similarly won the Broadie last year and is nominated for a Jeff now. All told, there are 166 nominations in 36 Jeff categories, representing productions which opened between August 1, 2012 and July 31, 2013.

Besides SITPWG, the other productions Jeff has nominated in the category Production - Musical - Large (gotta love these categories) are "South Pacific" from the Marriott Theatre (which received 6 nominations in all), the Court Theatre's "James Joyce's 'The Dead'" (with 5 total nominations), the Drury Lane Theatre's "Oliver!" (3 nominations), and "The Jungle Book" at the Goodman Theatre (with 4 nominations, though curiously it was not tapped in the New Adaptation category). The awards will be handed out to the winners on November 4, 2013, at the Drury Lane Theatre in Oakbrook Terrace.

Other musical productions with multiple nominations are Porchlight Music Theatre's "Pal Joey," leading the contenders in the Midsize categories with 6 overall nods, six shows with 3 nominations each: Porchlight's "A Class Act" and "Lady Day At Emerson's Bar And Grill," The Second City e.t.c.'s "A Clown Car Named Desire," Mercury Theater Chicago's "A Grand Night For Singing," the Marriott Theatre's "My One And Only" and the Drury Lane's "Singin' In The Rain," and six productions with 2 nominations apiece: Mercury Theater's "Barnum," Marriott Theatre's "Dreamgirls," The Second City's "Let Them Eat Chaos," Chicago Shakespeare Theater's "Othello: The Remix," Northlight Theatre's "Woody Sez: The Life And Music Of Woody Guthrie" and the co-production of The Second City and Lyric Opera Of Chicago, "The Second City Guide To The Opera."

In addition to all the wonderful actors, directors, designers, choreographers and musical directors nominated from these outstanding productions, I note the following "orphan" nominees: Michael Halberstam for his direction of "Sweet Charity" (Writers' Theatre), Richard Strimer for his appearance in "What A Glorious Feeling" (Theatre At The Center), Christine Sherrill for her appearance in "Sunset Boulevard" (Drury Lane Theatre), Alex Goodrich for his appearance in "I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change" (Marriott Theatre), Danielle Plisz for her appearance in "We Three Lizas" (About Face Theatre), Linda Fortunato for her choreography of "42nd Street" (Theatre At The Center) and Marc Robin, Harrison McEldowney and Matt Raftery for their choreography for "Now And Forever: The Music Of Andrew Lloyd Webber" (Marriott Theatre). Bravo to everybody!

2012-2013-Jeff-Awards-Equity-Nominations-Announced

I think there is only one production on the Jeff Award-nominated list that I have never mentioned here in the Mosh Pit. I'm not sure how that happened! Can you spot the debutante entry? ............ It is "A Clown Car Named Desire" at The Second City e.t.c., which opened to gangbuster reviews at the end of June and continues in an unabated open run at North and Wells. Director Ryan Bernier and musical director Alex Kliner lead a cast of six sketch comedians (Carisa Barreca, Brooke Breit, Mike Kosinksi, Michael Lehrer, Punam Patel and Chris Witaske). They're there eight shows a week. Won't you go and laugh hysterically?

http://www.theatreinchicago.com/a-clown-car-named-desire/6451/

Speaking of Porchlight Music Theatre, last night was the press opening of the Chicago premiere of "Double Trouble," written by Broadway brothers Bob Walton and Jim Walton and starring (as the entire cast, I think) Chicago brothers Adrian Aguilar and Alexander Aguilar (that's them in the accompanying photo). Matthew Crowle directs and choreographs, with musical direction by Linda Madonia. Running through October 6, the show is about two brothers in 1940s Hollywood who have only a few hours to write a song for a major motion picture. Sounds like a cool idea for an intimate show! And the Aguilars (one of whom has already been on Broadway, with the other rumored to be heading there after "Double Trouble" is over) may never again be shown off in this way for their hometown theater crowd. So much talent on display. Get thee to Stage 773 to experience this Aguilar-aganza!

Porchlight-Music-Theatre-to-Present-DOUBLE-TROUBLE

Officially opening tomorrow night, and also running through October 6th, is "Hank Williams: Lost Highway" by Randal Myler and Mark Harelik, produced by the American Blues Theater at the Greenhouse Theater Center on Lincoln Avenue in Lincoln Park. The production stars Matt Brumlow as the legendary country-western star of the late 1940s and early 1950s (one of his massive hits, "Your Cheatin' Heart," was released after his untimely death). Also in this production are Laura Coover, Jim Leaming, Michael Mahler and Suzanne Petri, with Dana Black, John Crowley, Greg Hirte, Jon Foley and Matt Kahler.

American-Blues-Theater-to-Present-HANK-WILLIAMS-LOST-HIGHWAY

There's an intrepid theater training and performance center for youth in Naperville, founded in September of 2011, that goes by the name "Broadway In Naperville." Founded by Andrea L. Wukitsch, the company is presenting "Once On This Island" in Meiley-Swallow Hall at North Central College, with what seems to be an adult cast. But why does it look like there's only one performance? September 22 at 3:00 is all I can find. Surely there's more than one performance?

http://www.broadwayinnaperville.com/shows/

Two unusual offerings are being brought our way by Broadway In Chicago. One is a return visit by "50 Shades! The Musical," which ran at the North Shore Center For The Performing Arts last November. The touring cast is back now, and coming to the Broadway Playhouse at Water Tower Place for one week only, October 22-27, 2013. It's a parody of novelist E. L. James's 2011 book "Fifty Shades Of Grey" (and its sequels), and the musical, which has played both New York and Edinburgh, was developed here, I think. It's weird that a show that has an original cast album never seems to disclose who wrote it. But it's touring all over the place. Chicago is a high point, as we always are!

50-SHADES-THE-MUSICAL-Set-for-Limited-Run-at-Broadway-Playhouse

To wit, the other unusual offering, "Heartbeat Of Home." Chicago will be the site of the U. S. premiere of this show, but not until next March 4-16, 2014 (at Broadway In Chicago's Ford Oriental Theatre. From the producers and director of "Riverdance," the phenomenally successful and Grammy-winning dance show that played here, Broadway and everywhere in the 1990s, "Heartbeat Of Home" has a score by Brian Byrne and combines Irish, Latin and Afro-Cuban music and dance. The world premiere of the show will be on October 2, 2013 in Dublin, and after three weeks the production will embark on tour. With an online casting competition and a pedigree like this, can a PBS pledge drive be far behind?

HEARTBEAT-OF-HOMEs-US-Premiere-Set-for-Chicagos-Oriental-Theatre

We won't have to wait nearly that long for two of our well-known musical theater actors to appear in the return engagement of the Chicago Children's Theatre production of "A Year With Frog And Toad." The Broadway musical for kids of all ages by Robert Reale and Willie Reale will star James Earl Jones II (fresh out of Chicago Shakespeare's "Shrek") as Frog and Mark David Kaplan (back home after playing Zazu in the national tour of "The Lion King") as Toad, at the Ruth Page Center For The Arts on Dearborn Street from October 9 through November 24. Also in the cast will be Christine Bunuan, Shawn Pfautsch and Brittani Arlandis Green. Henry Godinez directs, with choreography by Tommy Rapley and musical direction by Andra Velis Simon and Nicholas Davio.

James-Earl-Jones-II-Mark-David-Kaplan-to-Lead-CCTs-A-YEAR-WITH-FROG-AND-TOAD

And next January, just as the doldrums of winter begin to set in, Kokandy Productions will bring us a production of "Sweet Smell Of Success," the Marvin Hamlisch/Craig Carnelia tuner unseen in these part since Circle Theatre's production in 2006. Nearly eight years later, at Theater Wit, Scot T. Kokandy will present Brian Rooney and David Schlumpf as J. J. and Sidney, with Victoria Blade as Susan, Nathan Gardner as Dallas and Christina Hall as Rita, with an ensemble of 13. John D. Glover will direct, with choreography by Steven Spanapoulos and musical direction by Aaron Benham. The production will run January 9-Februaray 2, 2014. Sweet!

http://www.kokandyproductions.com/projects/sweet-smell-of-success/

Last but not least for the Mosh Pit peeps this week comes word of a new musical theater magazine! And it's called, "Musical Theatre Magazine." Or, perhaps, Musical Theatre magazine. Which, actually, is awesome. Not since the demise of the late, lamented Show Music magazine at the end of 2002 (after an 11-year run) has there really been a national publication of this sort. Now, it's an online magazine, but everything these days is online, so there's that. But you can subscribe to it, print it, etc. I'm thrilled! Trish Causey, who's been hosting a podcast called "Musical Theatre Talk," is the editor. Let's all get behind this, shall we? The September issue is the very first one, and may there be many more!

MUSICAL-THEATRE-Magazine-Launches-September-2013

So there you are! All the showtune news I could squeeze in between Labor Day and Rosh Hashanah. I'll be back next week with more, and I hope you are too. Until then, keep reaching for the stars, and I'll see you under the video screens.....-PWT

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