Gene Kelly News

Beck Center for the Arts rolls out its 2012/2013 Professional Theater season with the first locally produced premiere of Xanadu, the award-winning Broadway hit musical based on the Universal Pictures' cult classic movie of the same title, which starred Olivia Newton-John and Gene Kelly. Xanadu runs on the Mackey Main Stage September 14 through October 14, 2012.

PBS is bound for Broadway this fall with a three-hour primetime documentary series that tracks the real life stories of America's top high school musical performers vying in the ultimate competition to find the nation's best young theater stars.

The University of Pittsburgh today observed its own 225th anniversary and the 100th anniversary of the birth in Pittsburgh of special Academy Award-honored dancer, director, choreographer, actor, singer, and Pitt alumnus Gene Kelly (1912-1996) by setting a new World Record.

This week's topics: Gene Kelly Day, Audience Habits, The six reasons people don't go to Broadway, Favorite 'Long' Song, Leaving mid-show, Will Chase in 'Nice Work', Favorite chorus numbers

For 25 years this pint-sized triple threat has been one of the brightest lights of musical theatre, playing some of the great female leads of our time. This is Ruthie Henshall's brain on Musical Theatre ...

A celebrated list of industry elite will gather to honor one of Hollywood's greatest cheerleaders - Dale Olson. The Actors Fund and The Hollywood Museum (formerly The Max Factor Museum), will host a memorial for one of the entertainment industry's greatest publicists and industry insiders, who passed in early August. A lobby exhibit will be designed to highlight the remarkable career of the man who many have referred to as the guardian of the Golden Era of Hollywood.

Due to popular demand, ZACH Theatre in Austin, TX has extended the runs of their hit productions of XANADU and FULLY COMMITTED. FULLY COMMITTED runs from now through September 23rd at the Whisenhunt Stage and XANADU, also running now through September 30th at the Kleberg Stage.

The Emmy(R)- and Golden Globe-winning drama series kicks off its 12-episode third season SUNDAY, SEPT. 16 (9:00-10:00 p.m. ET/PT), exclusively on HBO, followed by other episodes on subsequent Sundays at the same time.

The University of Pittsburgh is observing its own 225th anniversary and the 100th anniversary of the birth in Pittsburgh of special Academy Award-honored dancer, director, choreographer, actor, singer, and Pitt alumnus Gene Kelly with two events.

Austin's Theatre and Texas' longest running theatre, in its last season before the new Topfer Theatre opens, presents the Austin premiere of XANADU, the over-the-top, roller-skating musical that spoofs the outrageously campy 1980s film starring Olivia Newton-John and Gene Kelly. Get a first look below!

The last show of the 2012 summer season at Totem Pole Playhouse keeps audiences humming songs everyone knows, even if they didn't know the author until now.

Slipping and sliding back into Fathom-equipped movie theaters nationwide for an encore engagement on August 22 in honor of its sixtieth anniversary, the iconic and legendary 1952 movie musical masterpiece SINGIN' IN THE RAIN makes its grand return to the silver screen in a brand new HD remastering that any movie musical fan, film fanatic or Broadway baby will definitely want to experience first hand - especially on the very night before Gene Kelly's 100th birthday. A special event presented by Turner Classic Movies - also featuring an exclusive behind-the-scenes documentary hosted by Robert Osborne and spotlighting original film star Debbie Reynolds - this Wednesday's encore showing of SINGIN' IN THE RAIN is one more enduring entry in a continuing series of classic releases shown in HD for the first time in Fathom-equipped movie theaters across the country - past highlighted films have included SCARFACE, WEST SIDE STORY, THE SOUND OF MUSIC, CASABLANCA and many more. So, in celebration of SINGIN' IN THE RAIN splashing its way back to the silver screen one more time, today we are going to take a look back at some of the most well-known and best-loved scenes from the film - boasting a star-studded cast led by Gene Kelly, Donald O'Conner and Debbie Reynolds; directed by Kelly and Stanley Donen, with songs by Nacio Herb Brown and movie musical magnate Arthur Freed - as well as partake in the many famous and infamous homages paying tribute to the rightly well-regarded movie musical gem over the years since its release. Gene Kelly to Gwyneth Paltrow to Kurt Browning to Usher; GLEE to THE MUPPET SHOW to FAMILY GUY; A CLOCKWORK ORANGE to FAME to SPAMALOT and far, far beyond; this retrospective look at one of the most important and influential - and just plain fun - American movie musicals ever produced certainly has it all; and then some! Ain't it great to stay up late (again)?

Dress Circle, in association with the Palace Theatre, has announced a CD signing with the fabulous cast of Singin' In The Rain today, 18th August 2012 from 12-1pm.

Barbra Streisand's LP RELEASE ME is slated to be released next month. Retailers, including Amazon and Elusive Disc, list the release date as September 25 and the track listing as follows.

Award-winning producers Michael & Barbara Ross will present Tony Award-winning actress Tonya Pinkins in Larry Parr's ETHEL WATERS: HIS EYE IS ON THE SPARROW at Luna Stage in West Orange, New Jersey, for a limited run, tonight, August 16 - September 2, 2012. The production will be directed by award-winning director Dennis Courtney, with musical direction by Barry Levitt.

Drury Lane Theatre, 100 Drury Lane, presents the musical XANADU, previewing September 6, opening Thursday, September 13 at 8 p.m. and running through October 28, 2012.

The Carnegie Visual and Performing Arts Center (The Carnegie) begins its 2012-13 Theatre Series with the funny and feel-good roller skating Broadway musical XANADU. Based (often satirically) on the 1980 Olivia Newton-John and Gene Kelly film of the same title, XANADU features pop hits including "Evil Woman," "I'm Alive" and "Magic." The production receives its local professional premiere in The Carnegie's Otto M. Budig Theatre weekends August 11 - 26, 2012, under the direction of lauded former Cincinnatian Alan Patrick Kenny. Tickets are $19 - $26 and are available online at www.thecarnegie.com or by calling The Carnegie Box Office at (859) 957-1940 (open Tu - Fr, noon - 5 p.m.).

Dress Circle, in association with the Palace Theatre, is delighted to announce a CD signing with the fabulous cast of Singin' In The Rain on Saturday 18th August 2012 from 12-1pm.

... The other impression I got from "Singin'" was the incredible depth of talent required of all the actors. The legendary Gene Kelly was the original choreographer, setting a high bar for anyone to follow (or vault over), to belabour the metaphor. This performance is meant to be extremely high intensity; highly athletic. To pull it off, actors must have a huge vocal range, a powerful voice, be highly gifted dancers in a number of genre's including tap, flamenco, ballet, have the agility of an acrobat, be incredibly funny and posses the ability to act ! They were all so physically beautiful, (or perfectly caste, befitting their role). One imagines a vast pool of players and an extreme vetting process to have achieved so many creme de la creme in one show.