Stephen Schwartz News

Rachel Potter is currently appearing as the Mistress EVITA. She appears alongside Ricky Martin, Elena Roger, and Michael Cerveris. Rachel made her Broadway debut as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family starring Brooke Shields, following a tour with Stephen Schwartz's smash hit musical, Wicked (Glinda u/s). Rachel has also performed the roles of Ariel, Belle, and Nemo, among others, at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. Her debut Country album was released May 2012, following an EP release concert at Joe's Pub on May 13th.

The Town Hall, New York's landmark theatre and concert venue kicks off the 6th Annual Summer Broadway Festival, with Frank Sinatra Jr. in Sinatra Sings Sinatra on July 16th at 8pm. Presented on three consecutive Monday nights at 8pm, The Summer Broadway Festival continues with Broadway's Rising Stars on July 23rd, and concludes with Liz Callaway's new show, Even Stephen (with Jason Danieley, Joshua Henry and Norm Lewis) on July 30th.

New York City Opera is proud to announce the six selections that will appear in this year's VOX Festival, the company's workshop for new American operas.

On Saturday, July 21 at 2:00pm, and Sunday, July 22 at 7:30pm, American Opera Projects, in association with Opera New Jersey, will premiere Blessed Art Thou Amongst Women

New York Theatre Barn (Joe Barros, Artistic Director; Jason Najjoum, Producing Director; Barry Levine, Managing Director) will launch the 6th consecutive year of its acclaimed monthly platform for emerging musical theater writers, NYTB in the D-Lounge, on July 9, 2012 at the D-Lounge of the Daryl Roth Theatre. Featured writing teams will be Charlie Sohne and Tim Rosser, and Adam Spiegel and Dan Wolpow, all alumni of the Tony Award-winning BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop. Featured writers for later months in the 6th season will be announced at a later date.

Today we are talking to a Tony Award-winning legend famous for his performances starring in the original Broadway productions of PIPPIN and JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR, as well as his celebrated turns in stage and screen projects as diverse as ALL THAT JAZZ, SWEET CHARITY, CHICAGO, FOSSE, WICKED, GRIND, ROOTS, I'M NOT RAPPAPORT, GOLDEN BOY, IDLEWILD, FUNNY LADY, HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER and many more - the simply incredible Ben Vereen. Discussing many of his most fondly remembered roles and recounting his experiences working with many legendary directors and collaborators - Bob Fosse, Hal Prince, Tom O'Horgan, Herbert Ross, Ann Reinking, Dan Sullivan, Sammy Davis, Jr., Barbra Streisand, Liza Minnelli and many more among them - Vereen paints a vivid picture of a bygone Broadway and reminisces about many of the most significant theatrical creators of the past fifty years and his roles in their stage and film projects. Additionally, Vereen fills us in on what we can expect from his upcoming solo spotlight show - a career retrospective - that will be kicking off at 54 Below on July 10 for a two-week engagement before an even larger, Broadway-bound mounting later this year at Princeton. Also, Vereen elaborates on the causes closest to his heart, shares thoughts on GLEE and SMASH, future plans and much, much more!

Godspell just played its final performance on Broadway yesterday, June 24th, 2012, at Circle in the Square Theatre. Below, BroadwayWorld brings you the closing night speech from director Daniel Goldstein!

Godspell will play its final performance on Broadway today, June 24th, 2012, at Circle in the Square Theatre. Below, BroadwayWorld brings you a multimedia flashback chronicling Godspell's beginning and journey to its final show on the Great White Way.

SILENCE! The Musical is celebrating Gay Pride weekend with a special added matinee performance today, June 23 at 3 PM at PS122. The cast of the smash hit show is scheduled to appear in Sunday's Pride March, which begins at noon at 36th St. & Fifth Ave. and ends at Christopher & Greenwich Streets. The cast will be bringing along fun surprise goodies to hand out to all their fans in the crowd.

Acclaimed recording artist Lee Lessack's national CD release tour takes him to Chicago's Davenport's, 1383 N. Milwaukee, Thursday, July 12 at 8pm.

Who's who in Tennessee theater? Sometimes, without a program in your hand, it's difficult to know who's playing whom-hence, our newest feature: Hey, Jef, Here's My Headshot...featuring some of the Volunteer State's best-known-or soon-to-be-known all over the freakin' world-thespians. And have you ever wondered who the amazing photographers are who make them look so damn good? We're gonna tell ya…Today's actor/subject/model is the handsome, talented and extremely busy Ryan Bowie, who regularly puts his talents on display at Clarksville's Roxy Regional Theatre, where he also serves as director of fundraising and development.

The Boiler Room Theatre (BRT), Williamson County's original and longest-running professional theatre company, follows its successful run of Next to Normal with an imaginative take on the Stephen Schwartz/Bob Fosse extravaganza, Pippin. The production will run from July 6th through the 28th at the theatre's iconic namesake venue in the historic Factory at Franklin, 230 Franklin Rd., Building Six, in Franklin, Tenn.

The Los Angeles-based composers of SILENCE! The Musical, Jon & Al Kaplan, recently returned to check out their smash hit show for the first time since SILENCE! moved to its current home at PS122 in the East Village. Check out the photo of the pair with the SILENCE! team below!

Boiler Room Theatre continues its 2012 season with an imaginative take on the Stephen Schwartz/Bob Fosse extravaganza, Pippin, running July 6-28 at the theater in the historic Factory at Franklin.

Masterworks Broadway continues to make good on its promise to open its vaults with more classic cast recordings previously unavailable in the CD era. Working (1978 Original Broadway Cast), Call Me Madam (Dinah Shore and the Original Broadway Company, 1950) and Desert Song (1959 Studio Cast) will be available as downloads through all major digital service providers and as disc-on-demand with the original cover art, via Arkivmusic.com and Amazon.com.

Summer's here, and it's hotter than blue blazes in Tennessee, as theater companies from one end of the state to the other are hard at work to keep audiences engaged and entertained throughout what promises to be one long hot summer. But think of it this way, with yesterday's Summer Solstice-which means we've survived the year's longest day-everything will get just a little bit shorter, promising a respite from the heat and humidity. This week also marked the celebration of National Martini Day, so may we humbly suggest that you grab a shaker, add some ice, vodka and a whisper of vermouth and shake yourself up an ice-cold drink…

WICKED, the show that broke box office records when it was last in San Diego, is back. Each show presents on opportunity to win some tickets at an amazing price. Running from June 20- July 15 every show offers the opportunity to win $25 orchestra seats in an audience lottery.