Pee-Wee Herman News

Paper Mill Playhouse has just announced the full creative team behind its season opener, the premiere of a new Disney stage musical, Newsies. Featuring music by eight-time Academy Award®-winning composer Alan Menken (Beauty and the Beast, Sister Act, The Little Mermaid), lyrics by Jack Feldman and a new book by four-time Tony® Award winner Harvey Fierstein (La Cage aux Folles, Torch Song Trilogy), Newsies is adapted for the stage from the 1992 live-action Disney feature film musical. The show begins performances on Thursday, September 15. The official press opening is scheduled for Sunday, September 25.

The nominations were released this morning for the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences 2011 Primetime Emmy Awards. Mad Men topped the list with 19 nominations, followed by Boardwalk Empire with 18, Modern Family with 17, Saturday Night Live with 16, Game of Thrones and 30 Rock with 13 and GLEE with 12. Lots of theatre stars received nominations this year as well, check out the complete list below!

Abrons Arts Center and Barbara Busackino have announced that the critical and popular hit Arias with a Twist will return for a limited encore engagement Wednesday, September 14 - Saturday, October 15. This bigger-than-life cabinet of curiosities was created by seductive songstress Joey Arias, who stars, and Basil Twist, who directs and designs.

The Down Syndrome Association of Los Angeles (DSALA) announced today that they will present the 2nd annual fundraising event TWENTYWONDER, A Carnival of the Mind, hosted by the L.A. Derby Dolls at the Doll Factory (1910 West Temple Street) on Saturday, July 9.

Nominations in 26 competitive categories for the American Theatre Wing's 65th Annual Antoinette Perry 'Tony' Awards were announced May 3, 2011 by Tony Award winning actor Matthew Broderick and Tony Award winning actress Anika Noni Rose, at the Tony Award Nominations Announcement sponsored by IBM.

The American Theatre Wing's 65th Annual Antoinette Perry 'Tony' Awards presented by The Broadway League and the American Theatre Wing, will air on CBS on Sunday, June 12th from 8:00 - 11:00 PM (ET/PT time delay) live from the Beacon Theatre. Now, join BroadwayWorld.com's Editor-in-Chief Robert Diamond for an exclusive blog from Tony Rehearals... Spoilers Ahead!

Image Entertainment, Inc. (OTCQB: DISK) has acquired the home entertainment rights to THE PEE-WEE HERMAN SHOW ON BROADWAY and will be releasing it on Blu-rayTM and DVD in the fall in honor of the 25th Anniversary of Pee-wee's Playhouse. Opening to critical acclaim at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre on Nov. 11, 2010, 'The Pee-wee Herman Show' is 90 minutes of subversive humor and childlike wonder based on both Reubens' original stage show, 'The Pee-wee Herman Show,' and the Emmy-winning Saturday morning TV show, 'Pee-wee's Playhouse,' which became a cultural phenomenon. The New York Times called the new Broadway show 'yummier than chocolate,' New York Magazine said, 'Welcome back, Pee-wee! You were sorely missed,' and the New York Post noted, 'The audience screams for joy!' The announcement was made by Image Entertainment's Chief Acquisition Officer, Bill Bromiley.

Three decades after his first HBO special, Paul Reubens returned to the network in an exclusive presentation of his recent hit Broadway show. The HBO presentation THE Pee-Wee Herman SHOW ON BROADWAY was shot at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre in New York in January, immediately following the conclusion of the show's exclusive Broadway engagement. Now, Pee-Wee is asking Emmy voters for their consideration in an ad that closely resembles the one that Melissa Leo made for this year's Oscars. Check out the photo below!

Waterwell, one of the Village Voice's Best Arguments for Devised Theater (2010) and creators of Goodbar and #9, announced today the premiere of a new version of Much Ado About Nothing starring 11-13 year old actors from the Professional Performing Arts School (PPAS) in Manhattan. Adapted and directed by Casey McClellan and featuring sound design by M.L. Dogg (The Pee-wee Herman Show, Sons of the Prophet), this Much Ado takes place inside a surreally comic American high school. Performances will be Wednesday, May 25th through Friday, May 27th at 7:00 p.m. at the Professional Performing Arts School (328 West 48th Street in NY

Winners of the 2010-11 Drama League Awards, presented at the 77th Annual Drama League Awards Ceremony and Luncheon on Friday, May 20, 2011 (1 p.m.) at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in Times Square..

The Drama League has announced the rosters of stars who will appear as presenters at The 77th Annual Drama League Awards Ceremony and Luncheon on Friday, May 20, 2011 (noon) in the Grand Ballroom of the Marriott Marquis Hotel in Times Square (1535 Broadway at 46th Street). The ceremony will be hosted by Kathleen Turner (High).

Superheroes. Space opera. True romance. Hijinks. History. Literature. Autobiography. Lines. Dots. Shapes. Pencil. Sound. Ink. Movement.

Last week, I created my Tony Categories that SHOULD Exist and posted nominations in ten categories. You spent the week voting, and now it's time to announce the winners! Everyone who voted (and then tweeted me at @BroadwayGirlNYC) was entered to win a BroadwayGirlNYC Prize Pack. I've chosen that winner as well. And here they are...

It's Tony Awards Season again, and I've been pondering the things about theatre that I appreciate the most. Surely, score and libretto and scenery and (of course) acting. But what about the ensembles, the special effects, the fight scenes, and the on-stage chemistry of so many sexy couples? Sure, the Tonys can't cover EVERYTHING. But the shows deserve accolades for more than just the traditional Tony honors. So I present to you my 2011 Alternative Awards -- aka Tony categories that SHOULD exist -- for the 2010-11 Broadway Season.

Superheroes. Space opera. True romance. Hijinks. History. Literature. Autobiography. Lines. Dots. Shapes. Pencil. Sound. Ink. Movement.