Richard Termine News

Barbra Streisand, a former client of the late Sue Mengers, has announced her approval of Bette Middler playing the famed Hollywood publicist in I'LL EAT YOU LAST, which ended a limited run at Los Angeles' Geffen Playhouse last night.

John Tartaglia, Tony-nominated actor who has appeared on Broadway in Shrek, Avenue Q, Hair and Beauty and the Beast, as well as TV's Sesame Street, has a long history of collaborating with The New York Pops. He will reunite with the Pops' Music Director Steven Reineke this Saturday to narrate a brand new family concert version of A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS. Tartaglia recently chatted with BWW about guiding the audience through what he hopes will become a new holiday tradition, using his family programming background to his advantage, and directing the new musical Because of Winn Dixie, currently running in Little Rock.

Steven Reineke, Music Director of The New York Pops, is hoping to bring the true meaning of Christmas to Carnegie Hall this Saturday with a brand new family concert version of A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS, based on the beloved TV special by Charles M. Schulz. Reineke recently spoke with BWW about adapting A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS for the stage and the collaborative power behind it.

Now starring in the title role of the national touring company of EVITA, genuine triple-threat Caroline Bowman embodies the Dior-clad role of Argentina's once shining real-life jewel Eva Peron, and has been winning over audiences and critics alike with her powerful vocals and grounded acting. Right before she and her cast-mates invaded Segerstrom Center for the Arts for its two-week tour stop (ending December 22), Bowman agreed to answer a few silly questions from BroadwayWorld's Michael Lawrence Quintos.

A middle-aged 9-5er sits at attention at his highly organized desk in a dull, spare, wood-paneled office. He pores over a safety manual, vigorously highlighting essential remarks, forcefully repeating them to himself as though trying to permanently lodge their obvious yet hilariously vague sentiments into his head (strive to 'support functionality of ourselves and others'). With his 1980s comb-over and droopy eyes hidden behind coke-bottle glasses, Frank is one of those office drones that works to live, yet life outside the office seems non-existent. He's a sad, even depressing, figure, and yet, in The Pigeoning, created and directed by Robin Frohardt and presented as part of the HERE Dream Music Puppetry program (one of the few programs in the country to commission contemporary adult puppet works), he's exceptional.

Bette Midler and Sue Mengers. Two iconic Hollywood female personalities of the last fifty years. Midler scored with her first movie The Rose in 1979, after many successful years in New York, on and off-Broadway. She was and has remained an iconic performer for the Gay community, and with strong choices, hard work and perseverance has become a super star in every medium she has played from New York to LA to Las Vegas. Super agent Mengers came to Los Angeles from New York with a German background and from a poor family and worked her way to the top as one of the strongest, gutsiest, hard-working and caring agents Hollywood has ever seen. So, the two ladies have a lot in common; Midler certainly fits the bill to play Sue Mengers in John Logan's one-person play I'll Eat You Last: A Chat with Sue Mengers, now at the Geffen through December 22 only.

The award-winning Vital Theatre Company is pleased to announce its long-running family hit Pinkalicious The Musical will move to the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Theater for performances today, November 23rd, 2013 through Sunday, January 5th, 2014 with a special performance Friday, November 29th at 1:00 PM.

Experience the passion and seduction in this elegant masterpiece, Tony Award-winning musical EVITA. Opening at the Aronoff Center on February 2 and running through March 2, 2014, EVITA is a part of the Fifth Third Bank Broadway in Cincinnati 2013-2014 Season. Ticket prices start at $28 and are available at the Aronoff Center Box Office downtown at 650 Walnut Street, online at CincinnatiArts.org or by phone at 513.621.ARTS. Group orders of ten or more may be placed by calling 513.369.4363.

Here are some shows playing this weekend in San Diego that you don't want to miss!

The National tour of EVITA is in San Diego through Sunday, November 17, 2013 at the San Diego Civic Theatre.

The award-winning Vital Theatre Company is pleased to announce its long-running family hit PINKALICIOUS THE MUSICAL will move to the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Theater for performances Saturday, November 23rd, 2013 through Sunday, January 5th, 2014 with a special performance Friday, November 29th at 1:00 PM.

The LA Times reports today that the going rate for the best seats in the house for Bette Midler's Los Angeles engagement of her hit Broadway show I'LL EAT YOU LAST: A CHAT WITH SUE MENGERS is just over $400, including fees. The Geffen Playhouse opened individual ticket sales last Friday, November 8, with prices ranging from $87 to $397. The cheapeast are already sold out.

Experience the passion and seduction in this elegant masterpiece, Tony Award-winning musical EVITA. EVITA opens at ASU Gammage on December 3 and runs through December 8, for a limited engagement! Tickets to EVITA are available at the ASU Gammage Box Office, by calling 480.965.3434 or ticketmaster.com. Ticket prices start at $25.

Musical America, now in its third century as the indispensable resource for the performing arts, today announced the winners of the annual Musical America Awards, recognizing artistic excellence and achievement in the arts.

In one of this season's most pleasantly stunning surprises, the latest Broadway iteration of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's grand stage musical EVITA has arrived in Southern California at the beautiful Pantages Theatre in Hollywood (its three-week L.A. tour stop concludes November 10). A faithful, richly layered direct transfer of the show's 2012 Tony Award-nominated revival, this entertaining, vibrantly refreshed production expertly blends modern sensibilities with classic staging, all while highlighting what is arguably Webber and Rice's most interesting musical collaboration.

Producers Hal Luftig, Scott Sanders, Troika Entertainment & The Nederlander Organization have announced that EVITA will return to L.A. by way of Hollywood Pantages for a limited three week engagement; October 23 - November 10, 2013.

The new musical, AN AMERICAN IN PARIS, has targeted Broadway for the spring of 2015 following its world premiere in December, 2014 at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris. It will be directed and choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon, making his Broadway directing debut. Featuring music and lyrics by George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin and a book by Tony and Pulitzer Prize nominee Craig Lucas, the creative team also includes Tony Award winners Bob Crowley (sets and costumes), Natasha Katz (lighting) and Scott Lehrer (sound) with a musical score adapted and supervised by Rob Fisher. Bartlett Sher is creative consultant. Based on the Academy Award winning film inspired by the 1928 orchestral composition by George Gershwin, AN AMERICAN IN PARIS brings this classic tale to Broadway for the first time.

The 28th Anniversary Jubilee for Career Transitions for Dancers, 'Broadway and Beyond' was held at City Center on Tuesday. With impressive honorees and a star-studded stage show, the event was a resounding success.

The current national tour of EVITA kicked off earlier this Fall to rave reviews and rapt audiences and one of the featured players of the hit company discusses her memorably one-song role in the show in a new interview - Krystina Alabado as The Mistress.

Tickets to the first national tour of "Evita" at The Smith Center on sale now and plays inside Reynolds Hall Nov. 26 to Dec. 1. Tickets begin at $26 and are on sale now at The Smith Center Box Office, located at 361 Symphony Park Avenue, by phone at 702-749-2000 or808-326-6868 (TTY) and online at www.TheSmithCenter.com. For preferred seating and special rates for groups of 10 or more, contact 702-749-2348.