Claudette Colbert News

Theatre Forty's popular series of Monday Night Theatre Appreciation Seminars is resuming. Learn more about the series!

Theatre icon Charles Busch has released his new memoir! 'Leading Lady: A Memoir of a Most Unusual Boy' was released on August 29, 2023. To celebrate the release, Busch held a party at Michael’s New York. Check out photos here!

We're falling into fall with a great Broadway read! This season, Broadway's best have put pen to paper to turn out theatre page-turners of every kind. From theatre biographies to theatre fiction; theatre books for kids to theatre history; check out our collection of 21 new Broadway books for every theatre lover's fall reading list.

Universal Theatrical Group (UTG), Universal Pictures’ live theater division, announced development of the musical IMITATION OF LIFE, based on the novel by Fannie Hurst and the Universal Pictures films, with book by Lynn Nottage, music and lyrics by John Legend, and directed by Liesl Tommy.

From theatre biographies to theatre fiction; theatre books for kids to theatre history; check out our collection of 27 new Broadway books for every theatre lover's Summer reading list.

'Leading Lady: A Memoir of a Most Unusual Boy' is described as a poignant, deliciously anecdotal account of a talented artist’s Oz-like journey in the worlds of Off-Broadway, Broadway, and Hollywood.

The bronze statue is dressed as Mrs. Cunningham from the 'Happy Days' series, which ran for 10 years from 1974-1984 and was sculptured using a screen accurate replica of a costume that Marion wore on the show and is seated on a park bench reaching out to invite any passerby to join her.

Noted television director and producer John Erman, who directed episodes of many of the great television shows and TV movies and mini-series from the early sixties all the way into the 2000’s, died in New York on June 25th after a brief illness.

The groundbreaking reading series continues as Obie Award winner Metropolitan Playhouse presents its next free 'screened' readings, live-streamed at no charge, with talkback to follow: THE WIDOW'S VEIL, Alice Rostetter, streaming at 8 PM Eastern at: www.metropolitanplayhouse.org.

Today, Feinstein's at the Nikko announced an exciting lineup of national and local artists who will take the stage at San Francisco's premier intimate nightclub this spring. Additional artists will be announced at a later date. Tickets for all shows are on-sale now by visiting www.feinsteinssf.com or calling 866-663-1063. Ticket prices are subject to change without notice.

Nowadays there appears to be an increasing awareness in the theatre about presenting women characters through the aesthetic of male playwrights and directors, much of it involving the movie term 'male gaze' which was coined by Laura Mulvey in the 70s to describe the disproportionately sexualized manner in which women were presented in film.  From that context, it's possible to conclude that this is what playwright/actor Charles Busch has been commenting on all along.

This Friday, TONY Award winner & TV Icon, Julie Newmar, is celebrating her 86th birthday - 

On Sunday, August 11th, Hollywood insider, Donelle Dadigan, and respected actress, Lee Purcell, hosted and invitation only screening of the documentary - THE MAX FACTOR.  The film takes a look behind the scenes into the star studded and astounding life of the inventor, pioneer and Hollywood' legendary King of Make-up.  The screening was followed by Q&A with the hosts and Filmmakers Clara and Julia Kuperberg and was moderated by film historian and critic, Leonard Maltin, who remarked 'The Max Factor Building is a true Hollywood treasure. I'm always happy to spend time there celebrating its history.' 

We're goin' (WEST) Hollywood! HOLLYWOOD PARTY: MOVIE SONGS 1928-1936 Today, July 27th at 9:00pm at The Gardenia at 7066 Santa Monica Blvd., West Hollywood, CA. Come hear the songs from when the movies first learned to sing with the wonderful Shelly Markham at the piano. Reserve via your telephone at 323-467-7444. Dinner is served from 7:00pm-9:00pm. So, make a night of it! Hope I'll see all my West Coast buddies. 

Norm Foster has written over sixty plays which have been produced all over the world. Selections from this most-produced Canadian playwright have been included at Theatre 40 for many years, but this time the group is excited to present the U.S. Premiere of his appropriately titled new play SCREWBALL COMEDY which pays homage to this classic genre of entertainment. Emerging in the 1930s, screwball comedies were a wild new strain of fast-talking farces involving battles of the sexes and a world forever on the brink of chaos. The elements included a male and female who may be adversarial at first but are ultimately ideal for each other. Think of the classic films It Happened One Night, His Girl Friday, Bringing Up Baby and My Man Godfrey during which some farcical or slapstick action occurs, including snappy patter and crackling dialogue with bits of off-color humor thrown in, with the plot ultimately leading to the female gaining the upper hand in the relationship.

We're goin' (WEST) Hollywood! HOLLYWOOD PARTY: MOVIE SONGS 1928-1936 Friday, July 27th at 9:00pm at The Gardenia at 7066 Santa Monica Blvd., West Hollywood, CA. Come hear the songs from when the movies first learned to sing with the wonderful Shelly Markham at the piano. Reserve via your telephone at 323-467-7444. Dinner is served from 7:00pm-9:00pm. So, make a night of it! Hope I'll see all my West Coast buddies. 

Adapting a classic film to the stage is no easy task. IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT director Erica Parrish found it 'a challenge, but lots of fun.'

The Maggie Allesee Department of Theatre and Dance, a department within the College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts at Wayne State University, will honor legendary Broadway lighting designer, Natasha Katz, with the 2018 Apple Award on Thursday, April 19, 2018 during an invitation-only ceremony at the Fisher Theatre prior to that evening's performance of Broadway's 'School of Rock,' for which Ms. Katz designed the lighting.

Songs from when the movies first learned to sing -- Today, November 30th 7pm

Songs from when the movies first learned to sing -- Thursday, November 30th 7pm