Interview: CHOREOGRAPHERS ELLENORE SCOTT & AYODELE CASEL GIVE FUNNY GIRL'S SAGA FLAIR, FUN & FINESSE
by Valerie-Jean Miller
- May 28, 2024
VJM: Thank you both for giving of your time to answer my questions. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of two Choreographers being hired for the same Broadway show, not even a revival, that I can think of. How did that come about for both of you?
Ellenore Scott: Funny Girl was my Broadway debut as a choreographer. I was so happy when I got a call from Michael Mayer (the director) asking me to work on this revival with him. He knew I was NOT a tap dancer and was aware of the multiple tap routines in the show and asked if I would be down to share the billing with Ayodele Casel. Ayo is an extraordinary artist so I was thrilled to be by her side as she made her Broadway debut as well. Michael first met me initially at Head Over Heels on Broadway where I was an associate choreographer to Spencer Liff. In 2019, he asked if I would choreograph the Off-Broadway revival of Little Shop of Horrors and we opened the show October 17th, 2019. I have loved working with Michael and feel as though he keeps his people close and I’m grateful he thought of me for this historic revival.
Ayodele Casel: I met Michael Mayer in 2016 when he directed a New York City Center Encores! show I performed in. Later that fall he invited me to perform that piece in a Broadway for Hillary fundraiser he was also directing. We'd kept in touch over the years and in 2019, after seeing a show I’d premiered at The Joyce Theater, he asked if I would be interested in providing the Tap choreography for a revival he was working on. Like Ellenore shared, Michael wanted to work with us both to deliver the full choreographic vision of the show. I believe it was a very progressive vision on his part and I’m really thankful that I was able to make my Broadway debut with this team.
Review: FUNNY GIRL at Ahmanson Theatre
by Harker Jones
- Apr 8, 2024
FUNNY GIRL is a gold standard that has endured through the ages and the production that just hit downtown Los Angeles is a rollicking and heartfelt success.
Interview: FUNNY GIRL's Stephen Mark Lukas's the Go-To Nick Arnstein for Six Fanny Brices
by Gil Kaan
- Mar 26, 2024
The North American tour of Funny Girl lands in Los Angeles at the Ahmanson April 2, 2024, and later at Segerstrom May 28. 2024. Tony Award winner Michael Mayer directs the cast of Melissa Manchester, Katerina McCrimmon, Stephen Mark Lukas, Izaiah Montaque Harris, Walter Coppage. Leah Platt, Cindy Chang, Eileen T’Kaye, David Foley Jr., Vinny Andaloro, Lamont Brown, Kate E. Cook, Julia Grondin, Jackson Grove, Alex Hartman, Dot Kelly, Ryan Lambert, Kathy Liu, Meghan Manning, Bryan Charles Moore, Sami Murphy, Emily Anne Nester, Hannah Shankman, Jordon Taylor, Rodney Thompson, Sean Thompson and Annaliese Wilbur. I had the chance to chat with Stephen (Nick Arnstein to Katerina’s Fanny Brice) over the phone during his stint at the Connor Palace Playhouse Square in Cleveland.
FUNNY GIRL Comes to the Ahmanson Next Month
by Stephi Wild
- Mar 22, 2024
FUNNY GIRL, the sensational musical comedy revival, is coming to the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles for a limited four-week engagement from Tuesday, April 2 to Sunday, April 28, 2024. The press opening is Wednesday, April 3.
FUNNY GIRL is Coming to the Orpheum Theatre in April
by Chloe Rabinowitz
- Mar 14, 2024
The North American Tour of FUNNY GIRL is coming to BroadwaySF’s Orpheum Theatre for a limited four-week engagement this spring. See who is starring in the tour and learn how to purchase tickets.
Review: The Brice is Right with FUNNY GIRL at the Fabulous Fox
by Rob Levy
- Jan 28, 2024
The laughs keep coming with Funny Girl at the Fabulous Fox! Originally staged with Barbra Streisand in 1964 and revived to great acclaim on Broadway in 2022, this playful romp about the life of comedian, actress, model, singer, and radio star Fanny Brice, is highlighted by great performances and spry musical numbers.
Broadway at TPAC Opens 2024 Live Theater in Nashville With 'Startling, Stunning, Sexy' FUNNY GIRL
by Jeffrey Ellis
- Jan 3, 2024
What a way to open a brand-new year of live theater in Nashville: in Funny Girl, audiences may have found exactly what they were longing for as Tennessee Performing Arts Center’s touring presentation provides a portentous kick-off to 2024. In fact, we can’t recall a standing ovation more gratifyingly sincere and genuine in the 35+ years we’ve been reviewing shows at TPAC than the one with which the company was rewarded on opening night in Andrew Jackson Hall. It was appreciative and effusive – downright enthusiastic and straight from the heart – the thunderous and sustained reaction to two-and-a-half hours of gloriously exhilarating musical theatre straight out of the golden age.
The North American Tour Of FUNNY GIRL Comes to St. Louis This January
by A.A. Cristi
- Dec 14, 2023
The producers of FUNNY GIRL, the sensational musical comedy revival, are delighted to announce full casting for the North American Tour coming to the Fabulous Fox Theatre in St. Louis for a limited two-week engagement from January 23 to February 4.
Review: A Dazzling Revival of FUNNY GIRL Ushers in All the Laughs at Straz Center for The Performing Arts
by Drew Eberhard
- Dec 1, 2023
Funny Girl is a semi-autobiographical comedic musical about the life and times of comedian and Broadway star Fanny Brice, and her tumultuous relationship with entrepreneur and gambler Nick Arnstein. With a musical score by Jules Styne, lyrics by Bob Merill, and featuring a book by Isobel Lennart, Funny Girl first opened on Broadway in 1964 featuring Barbara Streisand in the starring role, and was produced by Fanny’s own son-in-law Ray Stark.
The first Broadway production received 8 Tony Nominations at the 18th Annual Awards Ceremony, and the OBC (Original Broadway Cast) Recording was inducted into the Grammy’s Hall of Fame in 2004.
Kansas City Actors Theatre Reveals 2024/2025 20th Anniversary Season
by Stephi Wild
- Nov 15, 2023
Kansas City Actors Theatre has announced the line-up for its 20th Anniversary season, which will feature one classic work receiving its first professional regional production, a revival of a contemporary classic, the regional premiere of a new adaptation of a classic thriller, and the regional premiere of an award-winning new play.
Review: FUNNY GIRL at The Hippodrome
by Timoth David Copney
- Oct 25, 2023
What did our critic think of FUNNY GIRL at The Hippodrome? When I was a kid, I wanted nothing so much as to be Barbara Streisand in Funny Girl. I mean, it literally shaped my career aspirations. And I desperately wanted to see the stage version, having practically worn out my LP of the Broadway musical.
Review: FUNNY GIRL at Blumenthal Performing Arts
by Perry Tannenbaum
- Oct 20, 2023
They haven't fixed the clunky storytelling or finally used actual Fanny Brice material, but FUNNY GIRL still scores big when it comes equipped with an electrifying lead and a top-notch cast.
Review: FUNNY GIRL at Providence Performing Arts Center
by Christopher Verleger
- Sep 20, 2023
Providence Performing Arts Center (PPAC) kicks off the 2023/2024 theater season with the national tour launch of the long-awaited revival of the legendary Broadway musical, “Funny Girl.”
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