Carmen Cusack News

The votes have all been counted and audited and we're VERY excited to announce the results of the first ever BroadwayWorld.com Philadelphia Awards! Tens of thousands of votes were cast during six weeks of intensive voting on over 150 nominees in 25 categories.  Thank you to all who voted and congratulations to all the winners!

The votes are in, the ballots tallied and the people have spoken. Yes, the 2010 BroadwayWorld Seattle Theater awards results are in and my oh my was it a nail biter. There was some fierce competition out there but the voters have spoken. But since the results were so close, we're going to put in not only the winners but also the 1st and 2nd runners up as well. And I'm also going to throw in my own Critic's Choice for the hell of it. So without further ado, the envelopes please...

Bob Boyett and NETworks Presentations announce casting for the National Tour of The Lincoln Center Theater Production of Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein's prize-winning musical SOUTH PACIFIC, directed by Bartlett Sher playing PlayhouseSquare in Cleveland; February 1 - 13, 2011.

After sweeping the 2008 Tony Awards and enchanting audiences throughout the country, the Lincoln Center Theater Production of Rodgers & Hammerstein's SOUTH PACIFIC - featuring the largest orchestra of any Broadway production currently on tour - will land at Prudential Hall in the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) for an eight performance run starting Wednesday, January 26, 2011.

Between the Southern California arrivals of Lincoln Center Theatre's impressive SOUTH PACIFIC revival and the Tony-winning NEXT TO NORMAL tour starring Alice Ripley, to the incredibly entertaining offerings from regional and smaller theaters in the area, 2010 was a banner year in musicals and plays.

Tour of Tony-winning Lincoln Center Production at the Kennedy Center Until January 16, 2011

Stage veteran David Pittsinger will reprise his role as Emile de Becque in the national tour of SOUTH PACIFIC, set to make its holiday run at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts from December 14, 2010 through January 16, 2011. Pittsinger, a well-renowned opera singer, made his mark as Emile de Becque in Lincoln Center's revival of the production in 2008. He joins a cast that includes Anderson Davis (Lt. Cable), Timothy Gulan (Luther Billis), Jodi Kimura (Bloody Mary), Gerry Becker (Capt. Brackett), Peter Rini (Cmdr. Harbison), Sumie Maeda (Liat), Rusty Ross (Professor), Genson Blimline (Stewpot), Christina Carrera (Ngana) and CJ Palma (Jerome), and ensemble members Christopher Carl, Christian Carter, Eric L. Christian, Jacqueline Colmer, Alexis G.B. Holt, Rashaan James II, Chad Jennings, Christopher Johnstone, Kristie Kerwin, Joe Langworth, Cathy Newman, Julia Osborne, Diane Phelan, John Pinto Jr., Bret Shuford, Kristen J. Smith, Matt Stokes, Gregory Williams, Victor J. Wisehart and Amos Wolff.

Happy Holidays everyone! Come visit our Nation's Capital during the holiday season. It's such a beautiful time of the year here, with so many lights shimmering on the monuments, The Mall, and on The White House. As we await the first snow flakes, DC area theatres are chocked full of productions for the whole family filled with elves, reindeers, Santas, and Scrooges.

Bob Boyett and NETworks Presentations announce casting for the National Tour of The Lincoln Center Theater Production of Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein's prize-winning musical SOUTH PACIFIC, directed by Bartlett Sher playing Philadelphia's Academy of Music Nov. 23 - 28. The press opening is Tues. Nov. 23 at 7:30 pm.

Bob Boyett and NETworks Presentations announce casting for the National Tour of The Lincoln Center Theater Production of Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein's prize-winning musical SOUTH PACIFIC, directed by Bartlett Sher playing Philadelphia's Academy of Music Nov. 23 - 28. The press opening is Tues. Nov. 23 at 7:30 pm.

Stage veteran David Pittsinger will reprise his role as Emile de Becque in the national tour of SOUTH PACIFIC, set to make its holiday run at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts from December 14, 2010 through January 16, 2011. Pittsinger, a well-renowned opera singer, made his mark as Emile de Becque in Lincoln Center's revival of the production in 2008. He joins a cast that includes Anderson Davis (Lt. Cable), Timothy Gulan (Luther Billis), Jodi Kimura (Bloody Mary), Gerry Becker (Capt. Brackett), Peter Rini (Cmdr. Harbison), Sumie Maeda (Liat), Rusty Ross (Professor), Genson Blimline (Stewpot), Christina Carrera (Ngana) and CJ Palma (Jerome), and ensemble members Christopher Carl, Christian Carter, Eric L. Christian, Jacqueline Colmer, Alexis G.B. Holt, Rashaan James II, Chad Jennings, Christopher Johnstone, Kristie Kerwin, Joe Langworth, Cathy Newman, Julia Osborne, Diane Phelan, John Pinto Jr., Bret Shuford, Kristen J. Smith, Matt Stokes, Gregory Williams, Victor J. Wisehart and Amos Wolff.

If you've only ever seen the movie version, or a community theatre production, you owe it to yourself to check out the touring company of the 2008 Broadway revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein's SOUTH PACIFIC that's currently playing the Fox Theatre. This is a lavish and impressive production filled with gorgeous melodies, many of which have become standards that you'll find yourself humming on the way home. The social issues that this Pulitzer prize winning drama tackles were groundbreaking for their time, and they still manage to make an impact today, despite how far we've come. But, most importantly, this production affords you the opportunity to see a top notch, and well-seasoned cast tackling this wonderful material.

Bob Boyett and NETworks Presentations announce casting for the National Tour of The Lincoln Center Theater Production of Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein's prize-winning musical SOUTH PACIFIC, directed by Bartlett Sher playing the Benedum Center in Pittsburgh, November 2-7, 2010. SOUTH PACIFIC ispart of the PNC Broadway Across America - Pittsburgh Series, presented by The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, Pittsburgh Symphony and Broadway Across America. For more information on the production, please visit www.SouthPacificOnTour.com.

Bob Boyett and NETworks Presentations announce casting for the National Tour of The Lincoln Center Theater Production of Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein's prize-winning musical SOUTH PACIFIC, directed by Bartlett Sher playing Philadelphia's Academy of Music, November 23 - 28.

Bob Boyett and NETworks Presentations announce casting for the National Tour of The Lincoln Center Theater Production of Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein's prize-winning musical SOUTH PACIFIC, directed by Bartlett Sher playing the Benedum Center in Pittsburgh, November 2-7, 2010. SOUTH PACIFIC ispart of the PNC Broadway Across America - Pittsburgh Series, presented by The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, Pittsburgh Symphony and Broadway Across America. For more information on the production, please visit www.SouthPacificOnTour.com.

Bob Boyett and NETworks Presentations announce casting for the National Tour of The Lincoln Center Theater Production of Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein's prize-winning musical SOUTH PACIFIC, directed by Bartlett Sher playing Philadelphia's Academy of Music Nov. 23 - 28. The press opening is Tues. Nov. 23 at 7:30 pm.

American-born singer/actress Carmen Cusack has certainly had a lot of experience playing extraordinary women. Besides turns as Christine on PHANTOM OF THE OPERA and Fantine in LES MISERABLES (both in England), she took on the role of Elphaba in the US National Tour of WICKED. Now she's wowing more audiences across the country in yet another iconic musical theater role: as Nellie Forbush in the First National Tour of the critically-acclaimed Lincoln Center Theater revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein's SOUTH PACIFIC, currently on stage at the Orange County Performing Arts Center through October 24. Before the tour arrived in Costa Mesa, Cusack chatted with BroadwayWorld's Michael Lawrence Quintos about her early musical roots, her roles in this landmark musical as well as that other musical that turned her skin green, and her current woes battling a certain miniature critter colony that's been constantly in the headlines.

Bob Boyett and NETworks Presentations announce casting for the National Tour of The Lincoln Center Theater Production of Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein's prize-winning musical SOUTH PACIFIC, directed by Bartlett Sher playing the Benedum Center in Pittsburgh, November 2-7, 2010. SOUTH PACIFIC ispart of the PNC Broadway Across America - Pittsburgh Series, presented by The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, Pittsburgh Symphony and Broadway Across America. For more information on the production, please visit www.SouthPacificOnTour.com.

Bob Boyett and NETworks Presentations announce casting for the National Tour of The Lincoln Center Theater Production of Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein's prize-winning musical SOUTH PACIFIC, directed by Bartlett Sher playing the Fabulous Fox Theatre in St. Louis, MO for two weeks only, November 9-21.

Though times certainly have changed from when the Greatest Generation showed true heroism in the battlefields of European and Tropical soil, it's staggering to realize that in 2010, racial issues still feel like a haphazardly patched wound reopened. Prejudice, no matter what the decade, still stings. These themes were boldly explored back in 1949, the year the original production of Rodgers and Hammerstein's SOUTH PACIFIC first wowed audiences. In this new, exquisite, magnificent revival, director Bartlett Sher lets loose an oustanding, revitalized production that is now playing for a two-week engagement at the Orange County Performing Arts Center through October 24. It's a classic beautifully reborn.