Walt Spangler News

For anyone who's ever lived in Chicago, has a fond spot in their heart for any incarnation of 'Grease,' or eaten a Whoopercheesie, American Theater Company's 'The Original Grease' is the show to see this summer.

If you never cracked the incredibly thick binding of Crime and Punishment' in literature class, here's your chance to experience Dostoevsky's masterpiece of madness and murder stripped down to its essential elements.

The 18th Annual Merritt Award for Excellence in Design and Collaboration program, honoring and celebrating the work of scenic designer Walt Spangler (Desire Under the Elms, King Lear), will take place on Monday, May 2, at Goodman Theatre. Goodman Theatre's Artistic Director Robert Falls, a founding member of the Michael Merritt Endowment Fund Steering Committee, will present the award to Mr. Spangler. Sound designer, composer, musician and DJ, Mikhail Fiksel (Old Town, Last of the Dragons) will receive The Michael Maggio Emerging Designer Award. There will also be a presentation of three student scholarship recipients representing The Theatre School at DePaul University (sound designer Jeff Gary), Northwestern University (scenic designer Scott Davis) and from Columbia College Chicago for The John Murbach Scholarship for Collaborative Design (lighting designer Claire Chrzan).

The 18th Annual Merritt Award for Excellence in Design and Collaboration program, honoring and celebrating the work of scenic designer Walt Spangler (Desire Under the Elms, King Lear), will take place on Monday, May 2, at Goodman Theatre. Goodman Theatre's Artistic Director Robert Falls, a founding member of the Michael Merritt Endowment Fund Steering Committee, will present the award to Mr. Spangler. Sound designer, composer, musician and DJ, Mikhail Fiksel (Old Town, Last of the Dragons) will receive The Michael Maggio Emerging Designer Award. There will also be a presentation of three student scholarship recipients representing The Theatre School at DePaul University (sound designer Jeff Gary), Northwestern University (scenic designer Scott Davis) and from Columbia College Chicago for The John Murbach Scholarship for Collaborative Design (lighting designer Claire Chrzan).

Classic Stage Company's production of Anton Chekhov's THREE SISTERS will play its last performance on Sunday, March 6 The production features Maggie Gyllenhaal (Masha), Josh Hamilton (Andre), Jessica Hecht (Olga), Marin Ireland (Natasha), Juliet Rylance (Irina) and Peter Sarsgaard (Vershinin). Also featured in the cast are Ebon Moss-Bachrach (Tuesenbach), Anson Mount (Solyony), Roberta Maxwell (Anfisa), Louis Zorich (Chebutykin), George Morfogen (Ferapont), Paul Lazar (Kulygin), Gabe Bettio (Rode) and James Patrick Nelson (Fedotik).

Cleveland Play House Artistic Director Michael Bloom announces the 2010-11 Season lineup - the final one at the historic venue on 85th and Euclid Avenue before relocating to downtown Cleveland's Theater District in the fall of 2011. A re-imagining of an American classic by Horton Foote, Midwest premieres of acclaimed literary adaptations, modern musicals and clever comedies are all contributing to the wide variety of entertainment Bloom has designed for The Play House's 95th consecutive season.

Classic Stage Company's acclaimed new production of Anton Chekhov's THREE SISTERS sold out its entire engagement through March 6 within 24 hours of its opening this past Thursday, February 3. Directed by Austin Pendleton, the production features Maggie Gyllenhaal, Josh Hamilton, Jessica Hecht, Marin Ireland, Juliet Rylance and Peter Sarsgaard. Also featured in the cast are Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Anson Mount, Roberta Maxwell, Louis Zorich, George Morfogen, Paul Lazar, Gabriel Bettio and James Patrick Nelson.

Classic Stage Company (CSC) opened Anton Chekhov's THREE SISTERS last night, February 3. The production will run through Sunday, March 6. The production, which began previews on January 12, features Maggie Gyllenhaal (Masha), Josh Hamilton (Andre), Jessica Hecht (Olga), Marin Ireland (Natasha), Juliet Rylance (Irina) and Peter Sarsgaard (Vershinin). Also featured in the cast are Ebon Moss-Bachrach (Tuesenbach), Anson Mount (Solyony), Roberta Maxwell (Anfisa), Louis Zorich (Chebutykin), George Morfogen (Ferapont), Paul Lazar (Kulygin), Gabe Bettio (Rode) and James Patrick Nelson (Fedotik). BroadwayWorld brings you opening night photos below!

Cleveland Play House Artistic Director Michael Bloom announces the 2010-11 Season lineup - the final one at the historic venue on 85th and Euclid Avenue before relocating to downtown Cleveland's Theater District in the fall of 2011. A re-imagining of an American classic by Horton Foote, Midwest premieres of acclaimed literary adaptations, modern musicals and clever comedies are all contributing to the wide variety of entertainment Bloom has designed for The Play House's 95th consecutive season.

Classic Stage Company (CSC) under the leadership of Artistic Director Brian Kulick and Executive Director Jessica R. Jenen, has extended the run of its highly-anticipated production of Anton Chekhov's THREE SISTERS through Sunday, March 6 due to strong ticket demand. The production, which began previews on January 12, features Maggie Gyllenhaal (Masha), Josh Hamilton (Andre), Jessica Hecht (Olga), Marin Ireland (Natasha), Juliet Rylance (Irina) and Peter Sarsgaard (Vershinin). Also featured in the cast are Ebon Moss-Bachrach (Tuesenbach), Anson Mount (Solyony), Roberta Maxwell (Anfisa), Louis Zorich (Chebutykin), George Morfogen (Ferapont), Paul Lazar (Kulygin), Gabe Bettio (Rode) and James Patrick Nelson (Fedotik). No further extension will be possible. Production shots appear below!

Classic Stage Company (CSC), under the leadership of Artistic Director Brian Kulick and Executive Director Jessica R. Jenen, will present Anton Chekhov's THREE SISTERS, featuring 2010 Academy Award nominee Maggie Gyllenhaal (Masha), Josh Hamilton (Andre) 2010 Tony Award nominee Jessica Hecht (Olga) and acclaimed actor Peter Sarsgaard (Vershinin).

Acclaimed actress Anna Aimee White takes on the role of Ginger Rogers in Backwards In High Heels:The Ginger Musical, the captivating story of the star's journey from her hometown to Hollywood and from one love affair to another.

Classic Stage Company (CSC) under the leadership of Artistic Director Brian Kulick and Executive Director Jessica R. Jenen, has extended the run of its highly-anticipated production of Anton Chekhov's THREE SISTERS through Sunday, March 6 due to strong ticket demand. The production, which begins previews this coming Wednesday, January 12, features Maggie Gyllenhaal (Masha), Josh Hamilton (Andre), Jessica Hecht (Olga), Marin Ireland (Natasha), Juliet Rylance (Irina) and Peter Sarsgaard (Vershinin). Also featured in the cast are Ebon Moss-Bachrach (Tuesenbach), Anson Mount (Solyony), Roberta Maxwell (Anfisa), Louis Zorich (Chebutykin), George Morfogen (Ferapont), Paul Lazar (Kulygin), Gabe Bettio (Rode) and James Patrick Nelson (Fedotik). No further extension will be possible.

The Guthrie Theater today announced that British theater, television and film actor Daniel Gerroll will play the role of Ebenezer Scrooge in the 2010 production of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, presented by U.S. Bank.

Acclaimed actress Anna Aimee White takes on the role of Ginger Rogers in Backwards In High Heels:The Ginger Musical, the captivating story of the star's journey from her hometown to Hollywood and from one love affair to another.

Atlantic Theater Company (Neil Pepe, Artistic Director; Jeffory Lawson, Managing Director)'s first main stage production of its 2010-2011 season, THE COLLECTION & A KIND OF ALASKA: TWO PLAYS BY HAROLD PINTER has been extended in advance of officially opening later this month.

Ginger Rogers danced her way into our hearts in the arms of Fred Astaire, setting the gold standard for grace and elegance on the silver screen. Backwards In High Heels tells the captivating story of the star's journey from her hometown to Hollywood and from one love affair to another. San Jose Repertory Theatre's production of this sure-to-be holiday favorite has been called 'an enchanted evening...the melody is flowing and the tap shoes are chattering away, all is nirvana' (Florida Sun-Sentinel).

Cleveland Play House Artistic Director Michael Bloom announces the 2010-11 Season lineup - the final one at the historic venue on 85th and Euclid Avenue before relocating to downtown Cleveland's Theater District in the fall of 2011. A re-imagining of an American classic by Horton Foote, Midwest premieres of acclaimed literary adaptations, modern musicals and clever comedies are all contributing to the wide variety of entertainment Bloom has designed for The Play House's 95th consecutive season.

Anson Mount will assume the role of Solyony in the forthcoming production of Anton Chekhov's THREE SISTERS at Classic Stage Company, replacing Glenn Fitzgerald, who is withdrawing from the production due to a television project. Mount joins a cast that includes Gabe Bettio, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Josh Hamilton, Jessica Hecht, Marin Ireland, Paul Lazar, Roberta Maxwell, George Morfogen, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, James Patrick Nelson, Juliet Rylance, Peter Sarsgaard and Louis Zorich. Rehearsals begin tomorrow, Tuesday, December 14.

The 5th Avenue Theatre is presenting a brand new addition to holiday theater offerings with the new adaptation of the classic 1983 film, "A Christmas Story: The Musical". And while half the show harkened fond memories of the film and left me with a wonderful sense of hope for this new piece of musical theater, the other half fell into old familiar musical traps and left me wanting as it shot its eye out. In case you haven't seen the movie that is shown incessantly over the holiday season (sometimes for 24 hour periods nonstop) here's a brief rundown. We follow the quest of young Ralphie Parker as he plots and schemes to convince his parents (and Santa) to get him the best Christmas present in the world, a Red Ryder 200 Shot Carbine Action Air Rifle. The problem is he keeps running into obstacles of his Mother, his teacher and even Santa as they warn him away from the gift with the familiar, "You'll shoot your eye out." But Ralphie is tenacious and will have his prize. Meanwhile we also get to know the rest of the Parkers and their neighbors as we dive into the world of story originator Jean Shepherd. Complete with bullies, major awards and triple dog dares, the story harkens back to a simpler time when the biggest thing kids had to worry about was what Santa was bringing them. The show itself is a charmer with book by Joseph Robinette who manages to keep the feel of the original material intact and still hits all the points and jokes that have become so familiar. The problem I ran into was with the songs. As I said, half of the show worked great. Act One was filled with wonderful tuners that captured the tone perfectly. And composers/lyricists Benj Pasek and Justin Paul seemed to show that someone understands the structure of musical theater. The songs were either perfect for moving the story along or emphasizing through song what a character couldn't do any other way. And the songs "Ralphie to the Rescue" and "A Major Award" were both complete show stoppers and crucial to the story. Then we hit Act Two and suddenly it was like a completely different writing team as the songs ceased being essential as every single moment in the play got one right up to the end. So many superfluous numbers that could have been forsaken for just telling the story weighed down the second half until it finally ended with a whimper of exhaustion. The cast however is superb and has the perfect style for the period. Clarke Hallum plays the scheming Ralphie and even though he was a bit presentational at times, his voice is right up there with any of the adults on stage. Anne Allgood is endearingly lovely as Ralphie's Mother and her moment in Act Two where she covers for Ralphie had me in tears. Frank Corrado is spot on as the narrator Jean Shepherd as he weaves this wonderful tale for us in the guise of a radio drama. And special kudos to John Bolton as Ralphie's "Old Man" who practically steals the show with is antics and especially with his overly zealous "Major Award" number. With a gorgeous set from Walt Spangler and costumes that look like they were transported right from the movie by Elizabeth Hope Clancy, this show could have been the new theatrical holiday standard by which all of the "Elf"s, and "Grinch"s would be judged. I only wish the writers had realized what they were doing so right in the first half and could have kept it up in the second. "A Christmas Story: The Musical" plays at the 5th Avenue Theatre through December 30th. For tickets or information contact the 5th Avenue Box Office at 206-625-1900 or toll free at 888-5TH-4TIX (584-4849) or visit them online at www.5thavenue.org. Photo Credit: Chris Bennion