Norbert Leo Butz News

On June 4, Broadway veterans will unite for a fundraiser with President Barack Obama and special guest President Bill Clinton at the New Amsterdam Theater, titled- BARACK ON BROADWAY. Featuring direction by George C. Wolfe, the event will be hosted by Margo Lion, Thomas Schumacher, Michael David, Lauren Mitchell, Roger Berlind, and Paul Boskin.

Seth Rudetsky will host/music direct NOT SINCE HIGH SCHOOL at 7:30, Monday June 18th at XL (512 West 42nd Street). The show will benefit the Chesapeake Bay Academy (http://www.cba-va.org/) a school for children with learning issues.

Nationally syndicated morning show 'LIVE! with Kelly' previously announced the lineup of guest co-hosts who will join Kelly Ripa this week, May 21-25, 2012. Today, Monday, May 21, 'Private Practice' star Taye Diggs shares the hosting duties with Ripa. R&B superstar Robin Thicke chats with the hosts and performs for the 'LIVE' audience, and 'The Bachelorette' Emily Maynard sits down with Kelly and Taye.

The Drama League announced today the winners for the 78th Annual Drama League Awards: Distinguished Play, Other Desert Cities, presented by Philip Seymour Hoffman; Distinguished Revival of a Play, Death of a Salesman, presented by Christian Borle; Distinguished Production of a Musical, Once, presented by Cynthia Nixon; Distinguished Revival of a Musical, Follies, presented by Kelli O'Hara; and Distinguished Performance, Audra McDonald, presented by John Lithgow at a star-studded luncheon ceremony hosted by Stockard Channing (Other Desert Cities) and John Larroquette (Gore Vidal's The Best Man) at the Marriott Marquis Times Square.

XL Cabaret has announced its upcoming shows for May and June 2012, featuring RuPaul's Drag Race Winner Bebe Zarah Benet, a work by Seth Rudetsky and more. See the full schedule below.

Today we are continuing BroadwayWorld's ongoing interview series with the stars and creative team of NBC's hit musical drama series SMASH with a Broadway/Hollywood leading man who first made his mark on the stage creating a role in the Tony Award-winning TITANIC after having appeared in BLOOD BROTHERS and CAROUSEL and who has since starred in productions as diverse as SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS, DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS, NEXT TO NORMAL, SHREK and many more - the jovial and multi-talented Brian d'Arcy James. Discussing all aspects of his role on SMASH as well as cluing us in on what we can expect from Monday's highly awaited season finale, d'Arcy James and I also take a look back at his career onstage thus far and he shares fond recollections of working on TITANIC, SWEET SMELL, SHREK, NEXT TO NORMAL, TIME STANDS STILL and THE WILD PARTY Off-Broadway as well as offers his observations of his collaborators and co-stars in each endeavor. Plus, Brian also reveals his other current TV project: his character arc on Showtime's dramedy THE BIG C, starring his TIME STANDS STILL co-star Laura Linney and previous John Benjamin Hickey, that begins this Sunday and continues through the rest of this month. Additionally, we also discuss his upcoming 54 Below concerts June 26-30 - as well as his thoughtful and candid opinions on some of his favorite songwriters and his own songs. Plus, comments on his film roles in HBO's GAME CHANGE, FRIENDS WITH KIDS, an upcoming short film - and much, much more!

On Monday, May 21, 'Private Practice' star TAYE DIGGS will share the hosting duties with Ripa. R&B superstar Robin Thicke chats with the hosts and performs for the 'LIVE' audience.

The Last Five Years, Jason Robert Brown's imaginative reminiscence/dissection of a crumbling, contemporary marriage, debuted at Street Theater Company last night (Friday, May 4), in a compelling production helmed by director Lauren Shouse and musical director Rollie Mains. Starring two relative newcomers to the Nashville stage-Kacie Phillips and Ryan Greenawalt-it's an engaging and intriguing 90-plus minutes of theater that is likely to leave you introspective and, somehow, oddly satisfied.

Tony Award-Winner Dick Latessa, Honorary Board Chair, brought together Broadway stars on April 30 to help raise funds for Creative Alternatives of New York (CANY) which uses drama therapy to help New York's most vulnerable children and adults. This year's 2012 Annual Gala, which highlighted the CANY mission with the theme of 'Creativity+ Community+ Change = Rebuilding Lives,' was held at the Edison Hotel Ballroom (240 West 47th Street). The 2012 Honorees were Broadway veteran, film and TV star Anita Gillette and CANY Chair Emerita, Ellen Kealy.

This week the 2012 Tony Awards Nominations were announced! I always get up early to watch the nominations on NY1; but my favorite part of the noms is the day after, when the nominees meet the press. Here are excerpts from my favorite nominee reactions in recent years.

Manhattan Theatre Club's world premiere production of THE COLUMNIST by Tony and Pulitzer Prize winner David Auburn, directed by Tony Award winner Daniel Sullivan currently opened last night, April 25, at MTC's Samuel J. Friedman Theatre. The production, which recently announced an extension, is scheduled to run though June 24, 2012. Below, BroadwayWorld brings you photo coverage from the opening night pre-show and post-show red carpets below!

The 78th Annual Drama League Awards will be held at the Marriott Marquis Times Square on Friday, May 18, 2012 at noon. Check out the 2012 Drama League Nominees for Distinguished Production of a Play, Distinguished Production of a Musical, Distinguished Revival of a Play, Distinguished Revival of a Musical, and the much coveted Distinguished Performance Award.

Earlier today, Megan Hilty, Justin Long and Raven-Symoné announced the 78th Drama League Award Nominees for Distinguished Play, Distinguished Revival of a Play, Distinguished Best Musical, Distinguished Revival of a Musical, and the much coveted Distinguished Performance Award. Below, BroadwayWorld brings you a chart that illustrates the number of Drama League nominees that were subsequently nominated for Tony Awards. Additionally, we calculated the percentage of eligible nominees that earned Tony Awards in the past five years (discounting off-Broadway nominations). Check out the chances that this years DL nominees have at a Tony nod below!

The Drama League has gathered together a team of Broadway's best to serve as Honorary Co-Chairs for the 78th Annual Drama League Awards set for Friday, May 18, 2012 at 12:00 p.m., at the Marriott Marquis Times Square (1535 Broadway). The team of Broadway luminaries includes Nina Arianda, Christian Borle, Norbert Leo Butz, Kathleen Chalfant, Raul Esparza, Rosemary Harris, Jeremy Jordan, Christine Lahti, Linda Lavin, Norm Lewis, Judith Light, Audra McDonald, Cynthia Nixon, Denis O'Hare and Blair Underwood. The Honorary Co-Chairs serve as ambassadors for The Drama League Awards and the excellence of the New York theatre season, and welcome the attendees of the Awards Luncheon at a cocktail reception before the event.

The Orpheum Theater is set to bring CATCH ME IF YOU CAN to Minneapolis audiences from December 11 through the 16th. For tickets to CATCH ME IF YOU CAN's stop at the Orpheum Theater, visit www.minneapolis-theater.com.

Tony Award-Winner Dick Latessa, Honorary Board Chair, brings together Broadway stars to help raise funds for Creative Alternatives of New York (CANY) which uses drama therapy to help New York's most vulnerable children and adults. This year's 2012 Annual Gala, which highlights the CANY mission with the theme of "Creativity+ Community+ Change = Rebuilding Lives," is to be held at the Edison Hotel Ballroom (240 West 47th Street) on April 30, 2012. The 2012 Honorees are Broadway veteran, film and TV star Anita Gillette and CANY Chair Emerita, Ellen Kealy.

Tony Award winner Norbert Leo Butz guest starred on the April 2 episode of NBC's SMASH. Watch his performance in the video below!

"What we did together exploded my whole life like a bombshell," a rain-soaked Julia related to former paramour with whom she recently rekindled a romance, Michael (Broadway notable Will Chase; the former Joe DiMaggio of the Marilyn Monroe musical at the core), qualified by saying, "but I'm not letting anyone say it was not my fault." And so goes the trajectory of SMASH so far - trepidatious and unsure as often as rhapsodically exhilarating and exuberantly entertaining, at almost equal turns; falling short more often than not in many of the melodramatic subplots, excelling with the effortless ease of a surefire hit in the musical sequences and rehearsal scenes of the gestating musical central to the series as a whole. Recently revealed in this very column late last month by SMASH stars Megan Hilty and Anjelica Huston, the confirmed title of the show-within-the-show on SMASH is BOMBSHELL, which is all too an apt a title for a musical arising amidst the war-torn landscape of Broadway in the soapy bathtub stew with everything but the kitchen sink itself that is the universe of SMASH, for better and worse - particularly insofar this group of drama queens and kings is concerned. Such is the nature of SMASH itself - in embracing its flaws it may find its ultimate salvation. Amp up the camp and dial down the drama; pump up the music and pull the shade on secondary subplots; and, please, evict Ellis. Sometimes it takes a few shots to hit the target and every at bat cannot be a home run, but Episode 9 gave us some pleasing development to plotlines that could have fallen by the wayside on a lesser series.

On the April 2 episode of SMASH, Karen (Katharine McPhee) and Ivy (Megan Hilty) find themselves in competition again - this time for an orange juice commercial, but the two actresses let loose after a long, hard, work day in the middle of Times Square with their rendition of Rihanna's 'Cheers (Drink to That)'.

MCC Theater presented the company's highly anticipated annual gala, Miscast last night, March 26, at the Hammerstein Ballroom. The starry line up of participants included Jonathan Groff ("Glee," Spring Awakening), Megan Hilty ("Smash," 9 to 5), Tony® Award-winner Nikki M. James (The Book of Mormon), Josh Gad ("Modern Family," The Book of Mormon), Norm Lewis (The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess), Jan Maxwell (Follies, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang), Rory O'Malley (The Book of Mormon), Constantine Maroulis ("American Idol," Rock of Ages), Nicole Parker ("Mad TV," a Miscast favorite returning for her 4th time). Check out photo coverage of the arrivals below!