Tim Rice News

Under the MASTERWORKS BROADWAY label, the New Broadway Cast Recording of Evita was recorded in April in anticipation of a June 19th 2012 release. The album is now available for pre-order on Amazon.com. The album cover art has just been released and BroadwayWorld brings you a first look below!

Ricky Martin, currently starring in the new revival of EVITA, will host a fundraising event on May 14th to support the re-election of President Barack Obama.

East West Players (EWP), the nation's largest producing organization of Asian American artistic work and the longest-running professional theatre of color in the country, announces its 47th Anniversary Season, along with the return of THREE YEAR SWIM CLUB. This season, themed Spirited Away, includes the multidisciplinary ENCOUNTER by S.M. Raju and Aparna Sindhoor, the newly-reimagined TEA by Velina Hasu Houston, the world premiere of CHRISTMAS IN HANOI by Eddie Borey, and the Broadway musical CHESS, music by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus Ulvaeus & lyrics by Tim Rice.

Ricky Martin and the cast of Broadway's EVITA performed 'And the Money Kept Rolling In' live today on ABC's 'The View.' View the performance below!

Amazon.com ha anunciado que el nuevo doble álbum editado por MasteWorks del musical de Andrew Lloyd Webber y Tim Rice, Evita, incluirá como bonus track la canción DON'T CRY FOR ME ARGENTINA interpretado por Elena Roger, que protagoniza el musical actualmente en el Marquis Theatre de Broadway, junto a Ricky Martin como el Che y Michael Cerveris como Perón.

Thank you to all those who entered the 'Throw Your Arms Up, Evita!' contest - it was a sheer success! Today, BroadwayWorld is thrilled to congratulate Michael Yavorsky, whose entry won him a trip to New York to see the Tony Award-nominated production and dinner for two at the Chimichurri Grill! Check out his winning entry below, taken on the balcony of the Casa Rosada in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

In its 15th year, THE LION KING remains ascendant, recently becoming the highest-grossing Broadway show in history. Since its Broadway premiere on November 13, 1997, 19 productions around the globe have been seen by more than 64 million people, grossed over $4.8 billion and, cumulatively, run a staggering 91 years. Produced by Disney Theatrical Productions (under the direction of Thomas Schumacher), THE LION KING is the sixth longest running musical in Broadway history and only the second show to produce five productions running 10 or more years.

Dan Domenech and Tony Award-winning actress and Disney Legend Lea Salonga sang 'A Whole New World,' Disney's ALADDIN's theme, at the latter's live concert recently held at the Tuacahn Ampitheatre, an outdoor performance space nestled in a verdant valley, and surrounded by towering red rock cliffs.

Which came first, the music or the libretto? Today, May 5, 2012, 4:00PM, at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Andreas Mitisek, Artistic and General Director of Long Beach Opera, will interview Tony award-winning author David Henry Hwang about his libretto for Ainadamar, the opera by Argentine composer Osvaldo Golijov based on the life of Spanish poet and playwright Federico Garcia Lorca and his murder by Fascists during the Spanish Civil War.

Outspoken and always opinionated radio 'shock jock' Howard Stern, the newly appointed judge of 'America's Got Talent,' makes his first guest appearance on THE VIEW live, MAY 10. Stern is the show's sole featured guest for the entire hour and will be seated alongside all five co-hosts.

Disney's Beauty and the Beast, the award-winning worldwide smash hit Broadway musical, is coming to Philadelphia as part of the Broadway Season, presented by The Kimmel Center and The Shubert Organization. Produced by NETworks Presentations, this elaborate theatrical production will come to life on stage at the Academy of Music for 9 performances on June 4 - 10. The engagement is now set to open on Monday, June 4 (from previously scheduled June 5 opening), with the additional performance added due to overwhelming demand. The press opening is still Tuesday, June 5 at 7:30 pm.

Forget "Rock Of Ages." That 21st century musical about the 1980s has nothing on the real thing. "Cats," the show that set much of the look and tone of musical theater for the next decade or so when it opened in London in 1981 and in New York in 1982 (and began continuous touring in 1984, a record unmatched in theater history) is on display for this week only (sorry, "Now And Forever") at Chicago's Cadillac Palace Theatre. Forget "Rock Of Ages." That 21st century musical about the 1980s has nothing on the real thing. "Cats," the show that set much of the look and tone of musical theater for the next decade or so when it opened in London in 1981 and in New York in 1982 (and began continuous touring in 1984, a record unmatched in theater history) is on display for this week only (sorry, "Now And Forever") at Chicago's Cadillac Palace Theatre. And I, who saw the original Broadway production twice during that heady decade and have not seen the show in any form since then, was eager to go and see what the fuss was, and is, all about. So I went, Tuesday night. If you've never seen this show, if you kids have never seen it, or if you want to experience the magic of this unique theatrical masterpiece one more time, then this is a great opportunity to do so, as this is the only remaining North American production to (somewhat) accurately replicate the award-winning, record-setting British musical that took America and the world by storm thirty years ago. This tour of non-Equity performers, with its usual orchestra of five beefed up to eight for a weeklong stand (May 1-6) in a major theatrical market, has enough going for it that I highly recommend it. It's a little like entering a time machine, and there's a lot of sleight of hand, but it works. Let me explain. What is "Cats?" Much maligned by insiders, derided as dated by visual artists, underrated by dance teachers and ignored by voice teachers (save for its megahit song, "Memory," which is heard twice, but never in the sheet music version everything has heard and claims to know), it is in many ways a dichotomy. It's a dance show (choreography by Gillian Lynne) written by a singer's songwriter (Andrew Lloyd Webber), as well as a British song cycle based on poems written by a St. Louis-born English poet (T. S. Eliot) who never intended his work ("Old Possum's Book Of Practical Cats," and other snippets) to be either musicalized or staged. Its plot, slight though it is, is also the subject of much derision, but to this observer is very reminiscent of "A Chorus Line," a universally revered work that does include dialogue and more depth of character, but also honors unity of time and place. However, there are indeed works that dispense with plot entirely, and which people unabashedly love (you know, revues--"Ain't Misbehavin'" comes to mind), and even shows like "Forever Plaid" and Lloyd Webber's "Starlight Express" feature heaven-going as a climax that is not entirely a surprise. So, enough complaining about there being no dramatic tension, already. But the spectacle! Is it a rock concert with dance, a dance concert with character, a makeup and hair extravaganza with arena-style lighting (still thrilling, the work of David Hersey, as recreated by Rick Belzer), a radio-friendly cast album with a decidedly British keyboard-rock spin, an intellectual set of inscrutable poems with earworm melodies, an environmental theater piece that's fun for all ages (an unmistakeable set and costume design by the remarkable John Napier)--what exactly is going on? The answer, of course, is all of the above. Oh, and it owes a lot to the English music hall tradition and to contemporary classical music, too, not to mention Puccini. Name another show that encompasses so much. Not to mention that original marketing campaign. Aside from his immature works (the children's show "Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" and others), Lloyd Webber's previous shows written with Tim Rice (the two nominated for the Best Revival of a Musical Tony Award this year, "Jesus Christ Superstar" and "Evita,") were both introduced to the world via record albums and marketing campaigns that featured a logo rather than a star name and image. But "Cats" seemed to take that even further, dispensing with the concept album and zeroing in on the show AS the star. Indeed, this show has no leading roles. Really. But who can forget that moon/cats' eyes/dancer silhouette logo, and the letters of the title in color-coordinated graffiti (echoing the oversized junkyard scene design). It was exciting and revolutionary at the time, and the only shows that have done it better since then (Lloyd Webber's "The Phantom Of The Opera" and director Trevor Nunn's "Les Miserables," all three produced by wunderkind Cameron Mackintosh) are the only ones that have run longer in London and New York, due to the lessons they learned from the feline juggernaut before us now. It was "the birth of the musical spectacular," as Broadway In Chicago's promotional materials tell us. This particular edition of the endless "Cats" tour, directed and choreographed by Richard Stafford and featuring mostly young, recent graduates of top U.S. musical theater and dance schools, is indeed "cut down" from the total makeover that the Winter Garden Theatre in New York displayed for the 18 years it played there (1982-2000). But the "Christmas lights" that once ringed the audience do indeed extend past the proscenium arch, and the cast makes several trips out into the aisles, a nice touch. The back wall of the set does not swing down to reveal the ship's set needed for the "Growltiger's Last Stand" sequence--they use drops and a false proscenium downstage center here, and I almost liked it better. The set as a whole is not as detailed and certainly not as deep as it once was, but if you haven't seen the video of the London production, or the show as it played in the early '80s, you would be none the wiser. Sound-wise, I have to give credit to sound designer Duncan Robert Edwards, musical supervisor Kristen Blodgette and music director J. Michael Duff. I swear the show sounds better than ever, even with a smaller orchestra than originally employed. And I could understand the lyrics! The costumes and makeup design look simplified to me, though, but again, a newcomer to the proceedings wouldn't know. And do I care of part of the set is inflatable, as rumor would have it? I don't care how they get it from city to city, or how quickly they do it, but somebody does care, and they figured out a way to make it work! The floating tire and the thing that comes down from the fly space (spoiler alert?) look great, absolutely. Absolutely. The cast is led by Melissa Grohowski as Grizabella, the role made famous by Elaine Paige and Betty Buckley and carrying with it, shall we say, a certain expectation of a certain money note. Boy, does Ms. Grohowski deliver! Three people stood during the applause for the number. Bravo to Clemmons/Dewing Casting, I say! The two singing roles for the men, Old Deuteronomy and Gus/Growltiger/Bustopher Jones, are essayed here by Nathan Morgan and Christopher E. Sidori, who both acquitted themselves well and were very effective theatrically, whatever their actual ages. Among the dance roles, Daniel J. Self as the narrator Munkustrap, Chris Stevens as Rum Tum Tugger and especially Chaz Wolcott as Mistoffelees were crowd pleasers: Self with his movement detailing, Stevens with his Elvis impersonation and Wolcott with his amazing fouette turns. The cast of two dozen or so performers dances uniformly well, and sings very well, too, save for a few minor quibbles with single lines here. And there or some missing low notes that older performers would probably have no trouble with. But these are easily forgiven. Who cares if the leading lights of Broadway (Harry Groener, Terrence Mann, Anna McNeely and of course Ken Page) have been replaced in these roles by recent graduates of Wright State, SUNY-Purchase and Oklahoma City University? These energetic, disciplined performers are working their tails off (pun intended), singing like people who can't dance a lick and are basking in the glow of theater history with every city they visit. Yes, the show has moments that seem a little longwinded, and sure, it doesn't challenge your intellect as much as it challenges your wallet and your caffeine intake (it takes place at night, and everybody is dressed like a cat!). But I challenge you to remain unmoved when Grizabella begs for physical contact, when old Gus relives his moment of youthful theatrical triumph, when assorted junk becomes the train that Skimbleshanks loves, and when the sopranos of the ensemble soar on the words, "'Round the cathedral rang 'Vivat!" Come on! It's "Cats." It's eye and ear candy galore. I don't even like cats, but I do like "Cats." Very much. "Cats" plays this week only, Tuesday night through Sunday night, with additional matinee performances on Saturday and Sunday, at the Cadillac Palace Theatre, 151 W. Randolph Street in Chicago. Tickets are available at all Broadway In Chicago box offices, the Ticket Kiosk at Water Tower Place, all Ticketmaster retail outlets, by phone (800.775.2000) and online at www.BroadwayInChicago.com. Photos: Melissa Grohowski; The Cast

For the first time on the West Coast, audiences will have the opportunity to see Ainadamar fully staged in its acclaimed revised version. Long Beach Opera (LBO) presents Argentine composer Oswaldo Golijov and librettist David Henry Hwang's powerful Grammy Award-winning opera on May 20 and May 26, 2012 at the Terrace Theater in Long Beach, CA. Based on the life of famous writer Federico Garcia Lorca and his murder by Fascists during the Spanish Civil War, Ainadamar celebrates Lorca's fight for artistic, political and personal freedom.

In its 15th year, THE LION KING remains ascendant, recently becoming the highest-grossing Broadway show in history. Since its Broadway premiere on November 13, 1997, 19 productions around the globe have been seen by more than 64 million people, grossed over $4.8 billion and, cumulatively, run a staggering 91 years. Produced by Disney Theatrical Productions (under the direction of Thomas Schumacher), THE LION KING is the sixth longest running musical in Broadway history and only the second show to produce five productions running 10 or more years.

For the first time, Disney's Beauty and the Beast, the award-winning worldwide smash hit Broadway musical, produced by NETworks Presentations, is coming to the State Theatre for 3 performances, tonight, May 1 - Thursday, May 3 at 7 PM.

MASTERWORKS BROADWAY has announced details of the release of the complete New Broadway Cast Recording of Evita, the first complete English language stage recording of the show since the original 1979 Broadway cast album. The two-CD set, produced by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Nigel Wright, with Tim Rice as Executive Producer, will be released on June 26, 2012. Visit MasterworksBroadway.com for more information as it develops.

Today in 1988, Chess opened at the Imperial Theatre, where it ran for 68 performances. Chess is a musical with music by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, formerly of ABBA, and with lyrics by Tim Rice. The story involves a romantic triangle between two top players, an American and a Russian, in a world chess championship, and a woman who manages one and falls in love with the other; all in the context of a Cold War struggle between the United States and the Soviet Union, during which both countries wanted to win international chess tournaments for propaganda purposes.

Ricky Martin, currently starring in the new revival of EVITA, will host a fundraising event on May 14th to support the re-election of President Barack Obama. Univision's Primer Impacto announced that Martin will host the event alongside the LGBT Leadership Council and the Futuro Fund.