I Love You Because 00/00/0000 - Articles Page 6

For the past several seasons, Stratford's Festival Theatre stage has been home to classic musical theatre productions with catchy tunes that audiences might find themselves humming long after the company had taken its final bow. This season, the musical living on that stage is a little different. It is not a classic from the golden age of broadway, the music, while moving, is likely not that familiar ear worm that you will wake up singing, and the story is as gritty and high stakes as many of the Shakespearean productions we have seen on that stage in recent years. BILLY ELLIOT officially opened to a raucous standing ovation on Tuesday evening, making it clear that Stratford audiences are more than happy to branch out to something a little different.

JERSEY BOYS follows the true story of 1960s group The Four Seasons; Tommy DeVito (Corey Greenan), Bob Gaudio (Eric Chambliss), Nick Massie (Johnathan Cable), and Frankie Valli (Jonny Wexler). This jukebox musical, with music by Bob Gaudio and lyrics by Bob Crewe, utilizes some of the bands biggest hits to tell the rise and fall of the iconic group of boys from New Jersey; including "Big Girls Don't Cry," "Sherry," "December 1963 (Oh, What a Night)," and "Can't Take My Eyes Off You."

Tom Brennan explains that what you want, what you really, really want, is a comedy set in a school in May 1997.

Arthur, Guenevere, Lancelot, Merlin-these names spark the imagination and bring to mind images of knights, swords, castles, and magic. The tales of King Arthur, the Knights of the Round Table, and the legendary Camelot are the subject of myriad novels, movies, TV shows, songs, plays, and musicals. From the 1938 tale The Sword the Stone (which was made into the animated film by Disney in 1963) to the 2008 TV series Merlin to the 2005 Broadway show Monty Python's Spamalot (based on the 1975 movie Monty Python and the Holy Grail), for generations these stories have taken us on magical adventures. The 1960 musical Camelot, by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe is based on the T.H. White novel The Once and Future King. Camelot comes to life at Dutch Apple Dinner Theatre May 9-June 22. Check out our interview with Matthew Blake Johnson, who can be seen on stage at Dutch Apple as Mordred in Camelot.

 In 1962, fifty-seven years ago, the magnificent TONY BENNETT recorded "I Left My Heart in San Francisco."  The song was honored with two Grammy Awards, including "Record of the Year" and gave Tony a signature tune that, as he delights in saying, has made him "A Citizen of the World."  Last March, the classic was entered into the National Recording Registry of the Library of Congress as "an aural treasure worthy of preservation." Now in 2019, and about to turn an ageless 93, the legendary performer -  himself a world treasure - continues to leave his heart in each song that he sings and in every aspect of his life.

Don't miss this legendary FREESTYLE  Jam featuring  JUDY TORRES, TKA/K7, GEORGE LAMOND, COVER GIRLS, SWEET SENSATION, CYNTHIA, JOHNNY O, NOEL & ROB BASE- all taking to the stage to performing their hits on Saturday, August 17 at 8 p.m at Convention Hall in Asbury Park. Tickets are on-sale now at Ticketmaster.com.

The Royal Opera's new production sidelines the opera in favour of meaningless chaos.

You've never seen a Kong like this, but there's more at play than Beast Meets Girl in the latest incarnation of the 1930s classic.

This week finds Jeremy Benton - Broadway's favorite tap-dancing man - in Paducah, Kentucky, with the rest of the cast and crew of Irving Berlin's White Christmas, preparing for tonight's opening performance of the quintessential holiday season musical. He's spent so many holiday seasons performing in White Christmas, in fact (he joined the show back in 2005 and has been a part of the company off and on ever since) that it's become second nature to him now.

PS CLASSICS, the label that celebrates the heritage of Broadway and American popular song, has released its groundbreaking new recording Philip Chaffin: Will He Like Me? today, Friday, November 9. The album is featured in The New York Times "2018 Holiday Gift Guide," which raves, "From 'When I Marry Mr. Snow' to 'I Got Lost in His Arms,' Chaffin tells a familiar story that has never sounded so new." 

This week finds Jeremy Benton - Broadway's favorite tap-dancing man - in Paducah, Kentucky, with the rest of the cast and crew of Irving Berlin's White Christmas, preparing for tonight's opening performance of the quintessential holiday season musical. He's spent so many holiday seasons performing in White Christmas, in fact (he joined the show back in 2005 and has been a part of the company off and on ever since) that it's become second nature to him now.

Matthew Morrison couldn't be more 'Glee'-ful about launching Bay Area Cabaret's 15th Anniversary Season on Sept. 30 at the world-famous Venetian Room at the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco. 'I love places that have so much history,' says the Tony, Emmy and Golden Globe nominee. Among the celebrated singers who've sung there: Nat King Cole, Ella Fitzgerald, Marlene Dietrich, Peggy Lee and Tina Turner. And in 1961, Tony Bennett first performed 'I Left My Heart in San Francisco' there, which is especially apt since the Fairmont sits high upon Nob Hill, 'where little cable cars climb halfway to the stars.'

Ted Sperling, Artistic Director of MasterVoices, announced details of the acclaimed ensemble's 77th season, celebrating the power of the human voice to unite, inspire and connect since 1941. The upcoming season will be framed by two major musical events, the New York premiere of a multi-media version of Handel's oratorioIsrael in Egypt performed at Carnegie Hall, and a new adaptation of the Kurt Weill-Ira Gershwin-Moss Hart avant-garde musical, Lady in the Dark, starring Victoria Clark at New York City Center. Lady in the Dark has not been seen in New York since it was presented at New York City Center in 1994 as part of the inaugural Encores! season.

We chatted recently with Trafalgar Releasing's CEO Marc Allenby, and recently hired senior VP, programming and acquisitions Kymberli Frueh to get the scoop on everything the company is up to, the current state of event cinema and so much more. 

Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU) presents its annual free introductory panel Thursday, September 20, 2018: WHO IS TRU? A Free Introduction to Our Community and Programs at 7:30pm (doors open for networking at7pm) at The Playroom Theatre, 151 W. 46th Street, 8th fl., NYC. This panel is free but please reserve using the bright red reservation box athttps://truonline.org/events/who-is-tru/, or call at least a day in advance (or much sooner) for reservations: 212-714-7628; or e-mail TRUStaff1@gmail.com.

San Diego Repertory Theatre announced the cast lineup for Fun Home, one of the most celebrated musicals in recent Broadway history. Fun Home is the coming-out memoir of Alison Bechdel, an exploration of family, memory, first love and a daughter's relationship with her father. Fun Home was nominated for 12 Tony Awards in 2015 winning five including Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, Best Original Score, Best Leading Actor and Actress in a Musical. Fun Home was also winner of the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Musical, Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Off-Broadway Musical and the Obie Award for Musical Theatre.

I want to stretch my technical and artistic capabilities as far as they will go. It's wonderful for me to play around with different emotional journeys

National Alliance for Musical Theatre (Betsy King Militello, Executive Director) is thrilled to announce the line-up of new musicals for their 30th Annual FESTIVAL OF NEW MUSICALS, which takes place on Thursday, October 25 and Friday, October 26, 2018 at New World Stages (340 West 50th Street, between 8th and 9th Avenues). The Festival events will kick off on Monday, October 22 with Thank You, 30!, a gala event to celebrate the 30th Annual Festival.

Good morning BroadwayWorld! Today's top stories: Irish Rep's On a Clear Day You Can See Forever officially opens tonight, and more!

While its original production, as most Broadway shows go, offered the expected big sets, first-rate costumes, and impressive production values, the 2015 Tony Award-winning revival production of THE COLOR PUPLE---currently slaying audiences for a week-long stop at Orange County's Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa through June 24---is decidedly more subdued and scaled-down by comparison, allowing the songs, the story, and the cast performances to shine on their own merits instead. The resulting show is a powerful, uplifting one, bathed in a loving, spiritual embrace that shines a light on the struggles, the insecurities, the passions, and the tenacity of African-American women living in the early decades of the 20th Century. I can say without hesitation that this revival production is an excellent way to experience this beautiful, touching, and ultimately triumphant musical.

The Shakespeare Center of Los Angeles (SCLA) currently presents their new distinct take on Shakespeare's classic HENRY IV. Helmed by Tony Award-winning director Daniel Sullivan, SCLA has combined PART I and PART II into a single sitting of theatre, featuring the Los Angeles stage debut of Tom Hanks as Falstaff. We had the opportunity to chat with one of HENRY IV's most talented co-conspirators, actor Harry Groener who plays Northumberland and Justice Shallow.

Genre defying R&B/Soul goddess Deva Mahal is set to release her much-anticipated debut album Run Deep on March 23 via Motéma Music, fresh off the success of her self-titled introductory EP. Run Deep was produced by Scott Jacoby (Vampire Weekend, José James, Coldplay), with two tracks produced by Jarrett Wetherell (Beyonce/FKA Twigs). The album is available to pre-order now with the track 'It's Down to You' available as an instant grat.

Producers Darlene Kaplan, Laura Janik Cronin and Scott Newsome, in association with Alec Seymour, present the Off-Broadway premiere of The Stone Witch, a play by Shem Bitterman (A Death in Colombia, Influence).  Performances begin Monday, March 12, 2018 for an open-ended engagement atThe Westside Theatre - Upstairs (407 West 43rd Street between 9th and 10th Avenues).  Opening Night is Sunday evening, March 25, 2018 at 6:30PM.

Due to demand, The New Group has announced a three-week extension for Jerry Springer - The Opera, with Matt McGrath appearing as Jerry Springer beginning March 13.  Terrence Mann, currently appearing in the role of Jerry Springer, plays his final performance March 11 due to an existing commitment beyond that date.

Award-winning songwriter and sought-after film and television producer, Tammy Hyler, has announced the formation of Smashville Entertainment. Hyler opens the doors to her Nashville-based music management and publishing company (located in The Gulch) as official with the ambition to lend assistance and directive to young songwriter and artist hopefuls to nurture, grow and develop long-lasting, sustainable careers.