Andrew Jackson News

They say we've become a society anesthetized from violent images since the days when graphic television news footage from Vietnam helped spark the largest anti-war movement this country had seen up until that time.  But the video clips from Gaza shown in Pulitzer-winning journalist Lawrence Wright's solo piece, The Human Scale, are enough to test any playgoer's stomach.

This past Friday afternoon I read that this person has been meeting with producers to consider the possibility of appearing on Broadway, in order to, 'expand her brand by taking to the stage.'  That evening I heard the 82-year-old Marilyn Maye, after nearly ninety minutes of superlative interpretations of musical theatre classics from the likes of Jerry Herman, Frank Loesser and Kander and Ebb, tell her completely enthralled audience that it's still her ambition to one day be on Broadway, before emoting a beautifully vulnerable 'Losing My Mind' that segued into a classy and celebratory 'I'm Still Here' that brought just about the entire packed Metropolitan Room house to its feet in one of the most adoring ovations I've ever seen.

BLOODY BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON began performances on Broadway at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre (242 W. 45th Street) on Monday, September 20, 2010 and officially opens on Wednesday, October 13, 2010. The show is written and directed by Drama Desk and Obie Award winner Alex Timbers and Obie Award winner Michael Friedman. Click below for a preview of the show on Broadway!

The Public Theater, Jeffrey Richards and Jerry Frankel, producers of BLOODY BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON are pleased to announce that Tony Award winning producer Norton Herrick as well as Universal Pictures Stage Productions have joined the producing team of the show. BLOODY BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON is playing at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre (242 W. 45th Street) and officially opens on Wednesday, October 13, 2010.

It has been a banner year for PROMISES, PROMISES' Katie Finneran. Her critically acclaimed performance as Marge MacDougall in the smash hit musical comedy PROMISES, PROMISES swept the 2010 awards season winning her the Tony Award, Drama Desk Award and Outer Critics Circle Award. On Sunday, August 22, Ms. Finneran married long time companion Darren Goldstein (Bloody, Bloody Andrew Jackson), and now the couple has announced that they are expecting a child this winter. It is with best wishes that the producers of PROMISES, PROMISES announced today that Tony Award winner Katie Finneran will play her final performance in the smash hit musical comedy on Sunday, October 10, 2010. This new production of PROMISES, PROMISES, directed and choreographed by Tony and Emmy Award winner Rob Ashford with Neil Simon's funny and touching book and Burt Bacharach and Hal David's hit-packed score, began previews at the Broadway Theatre (1681 Broadway) Saturday, March 27, 2010, and opened on Sunday, April 25, 2010. Casting for Broadway's next Marge MacDougall will be announced shortly.

Nashville Opera presents the first production of its 30th Anniversary Season, Umberto Giordano's Andrea Chenier.

Billboard's Top Cast Albums chart for week ending 10/9/2010.

A friendly giant known best for his devilish and, at times, demonic lead roles in THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW as Frank N. Furter, the eponymous DRACULA and the first replacement cast of THE LION KING as Scar - in addition to his current essaying of the role of the lecherous lawyer Billy Flynn in the smash hit Broadway revival of CHICAGO - time and perseverance has aided Tony-nominated actor Tom Hewitt in carving out a career on Broadway quite unlike most others in existence. In this comprehensive conversation we discuss his many marvelous stage performances on Broadway and beyond thus far, including his new lead role in the New York Musical Theater Festival musical THE GREAT UNKNOWN written by William Hauptman (PUMP BOYS & DINETTES) and Jim Wann (BIG RIVER) and directed by Don Stephenson. In addition to a thorough discussion of that new NYMF musical, we also talk about working with Julie Taymor on the PBS film FOOL'S FIRE and Broadway's THE LION KING, what the insane ROCKY HORROR LIVE experience was like from a stage perspective, his many stints in CHICAGO, as well as working with co-stars like Matt Morrison, Kelli O'Hara, Brenda Braxton, Charlotte D'Amboise and Chip Zien. We also discuss his feelings on Dan Savage's IT GETS BETTER campaign and what he thinks of GLEE taking on the garters, boas and stilettos of Frank & Crew when they do their ROCKY HORROR tribute later this month. Performances of the original bluegrass musical THE GREAT UNKNOWN have already begun so be sure to grab some tickets a the link below and catch the show on Sunday if you haven't done so yet!

Nashville Opera presents the first production of its 30th Anniversary Season, Umberto Giordano's Andrea Chenier.

Barrett Foa has starred in two of the decade's most popular Broadway shows, Avenue Q and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and was in the original Broadway cast of Mamma Mia!. Foa moved to Los Angeles nearly two years ago, kicking his television career into high gear with guest starring roles on 'Entourage,' 'The Closer,' and 'Numb3rs.' He can currently be seen on the CBS drama 'NCIS: Los Angeles,' where he plays tech genius Eric Beale.

BLOODY BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON began performances on Broadway at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre (242 W. 45th Street) on Monday, September 20, 2010 and officially opens on Wednesday, October 13, 2010. The show is written and directed by Drama Desk and Obie Award winner Alex Timbers and Obie Award winner Michael Friedman. The first production shots have been released and BroadwayWorld brings you a look at the Broadway production below!

BLOODY BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON stars Benjamin Walker and his leading lady, Maria Elena Ramirez, have teamed up to release a dramatic music video about the intoxicating effects of love. The video showcases a Spanish version of the show's 'Illness as a Metaphor,' and stars Ben Steinfeld and Justin Levine, donning guitars, sombreros and exaggerated moustaches -- all in the name of love.

The Civilians, the New York-based theatre company known for projects investigating real-life topics - including the upcoming IN THE FOOTPRINT about the controversy surrounding the development of the Atlantic Yards in Brooklyn - has been awarded a three-year grant in the amount of $700,000 from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for THE GREAT IMMENSITY, a new production about climate change, it has been announced by Steve Cosson, founding Artistic Director of The Civilians.

Check out the October calendar of events on page A21 of today's New York Times featuring well-known writers, celebrities, newsmakers, and musicians.

Today we begin a new comprehensive academic music discussion series on BroadwayWorld in which I speak to the most cutting-edge artists in the recording industry, on Broadway and in Hollywood about their influences and experiences in the industry with an emphatic emphasis on the songwriting process itself and what drives and inspires it. While these discussions may be on occasion only tangentially theatre-related, the insights provided by the various participants is a demonstrative way in which to illuminate perhaps the most mysterious of all the arts: music. Peering into the psyche of the composer and lyricist, we may begin to understand what the craft of composition and lyric-writing is all about and why musical theatre tends to attract the most talented and innovative songwriters, both in the twentieth-century and today (as this column proves).

Eric Rosen, artistic director of Kansas City Repertory Theatre, has announced that a new production of the musical Saved, directed by Gary Griffin (The Color Purple-Broadway and national tour, Pacific Overtures--London), will open the Rep's 2010-11 season.

Pioneer Theatre Company presents Shakespeares tragedy, 'Hamlet.' The show runs September 17 through October 2, 2010.

Nashville Opera presents the first production of its 30th Anniversary Season, Umberto Giordano's Andrea Chenier.

Production Manager Ruth Sternberg is the primary facilitator in executing a stage production within its given financial parameters. She discusses with the director and designers what they want to achieve and provides staffing and resources for each play. After 10 years at Trinity Rep with Oskar Eustis, they both moved to the Public Theater where they work on 6 stages, Shakespeare in the Park at the Delacorte Theater, and off-site productions such as Passing Strange, Hair, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, and The Merchant of Venice on Broadway. Sternberg loves that her job always brings a new challenge, such as the one seen here for Kicking a Dead Horse.

Barnes and Noble at Lincoln Center has announced an exciting line-up of Broadway guests for October. The kick-off begins today, October 1 at 5pm with a Cabaret Convention Preview.