The Dazzle 2002 - Articles Page 12.2

After two very successful audition dates in Boston and Atlanta, 'American Idol' made its way to the Windy City. With the largest attendances as yet, 'Idol' came to Chicago with high expectations. 5-time Grammy winner Shania Twain served as guest judge for the 12,000 hopefuls and Chicago looked to be a promising stop on the long road to Hollywood.

It has been confirmed that former Destiny's Child songbird Michelle Williams is Chicago-bound. Williams will portray the wannabe star-turned-murderess Roxie Hart for a limited run from February 8 to March 28. Williams will be taking over the role from Ashlee Simpson-Wentz, who debuted in the revival on December 1.

Finally appearing together again after their Tony Award® winning performances in Evita, Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin bring their critically acclaimed theatre concert to The Royal Alexandra Theatre for 6 performances only, from February 9 through 14. Tickets are now on sale.

Multi award-winning music master Marc Shaiman celebrates a very special event last Thursday, October 22nd...his 50th birthday! This Saturday, the Hairspray mastermind and Tony and Grammy winner celebrated in style with a large birthday bash.

Peter Nero and the Philly Pops opens its 2009-10 season with its signature show, Broadway Showstoppers! Celebrating its ninth year, Broadway Showstoppers is, without a doubt, Philadelphia's unparalleled Broadway show. Broadwayworld.com called it '... the envy of any New York production.'

The 2009 Regional Theatre Tony Award winning-Signature Theatre presents the world premiere theater event First You Dream': The Music of Kander & Ebb, September 10 through 27, 2009. A tribute to Broadway's most celebrated songwriting partnership - from Cabaret to Chicago to Curtains - Signature pulls out the stops with Broadway's Heidi Blickenstaff, James Clow, Norm Lewis, Julia Murney, Matthew Scott, and Eleasha Gamble and a 19-piece orchestra, plus staging and set design by Artistic Director Eric Schaeffer and choreography by Karma Camp.

The 2009 Regional Theatre Tony Award winning-Signature Theatre presents the world premiere theater event First You Dream': The Music of Kander & Ebb, September 10 through 27, 2009. A tribute to Broadway's most celebrated songwriting partnership - from Cabaret to Chicago to Curtains - Signature pulls out the stops with Broadway's Heidi Blickenstaff, James Clow, Norm Lewis, Julia Murney, Matthew Scott, and Eleasha Gamble and a 19-piece orchestra, plus staging and set design by Artistic Director Eric Schaeffer and choreography by Karma Camp.

The national tour of Chicago The Musical will entertain Starlight Theatre patrons with its scintillating story and showstopping song and dance numbers on Aug. 11-16. Now the seventh-longest running musical on Broadway, this tale of sin and intrigue is sure to give Kansas Citians a sample of the intrigue of 1920s' Chicago.

The national tour of Chicago The Musical will entertain Starlight Theatre patrons with its scintillating story and showstopping song and dance numbers on Aug. 11-16. Now the seventh-longest running musical on Broadway, this tale of sin and intrigue is sure to give Kansas Citians a sample of the intrigue of 1920s' Chicago.

The national tour of Chicago The Musical will entertain Starlight Theatre patrons with its scintillating story and showstopping song and dance numbers on Aug. 11-16. Now the seventh-longest running musical on Broadway, this tale of sin and intrigue is sure to give Kansas Citians a sample of the intrigue of 1920s' Chicago.

obby Fox, Scott Johnson, Glaston Toft and Stephen Mahy star in Jersey Boys - The story of Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons, Broadway's multi-award winning musical opening in Melbourne's Princess Theatre on July 4. Rehearsals began in Melbourne in April. Previews started June 20, the cast celebrates the official opening tonight.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) announces the final show of its 2008-09 season: Edward Albee's At Home at the Zoo, staged by acclaimed director Rebecca Bayla Taichman (world premieres of Theresa Rebeck's The Scene and Mauritius and Sarah Ruhl's Dead Man's Cell Phone). This new spellbinder by the master playwright who also penned Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and A.C.T.'s The Goat, or Who is Sylvia?, is a meticulously calibrated and dangerously brutal look at relationships intimate and unexpected. The story opens with Peter, a tweedy book editor, and his wife, Ann, whose everyday conversation takes an unexpected turn into dangerously personal territory. It's the kind of conversation that can drive a husband out for a walk-to Central Park, where Jerry, a desperate outcast, awaits. An unforgettable pairing of Albee's original The Zoo Story with a freshly penned prequel, At Home at the Zoo (formerly titled Peter and Jerry) bares its teeth to threaten the delicately balanced world its characters inhabit. Artistic Director Carey Perloff has put together an all-star artistic team on this production, featuring Tony Award-nominated actor Manoel Felciano (Ragtime at The Kennedy Center, A.C.T.'s Rock 'n' Roll, and Sweeney Todd on Broadway) as Jerry and scenic designer Robert Brill, who received a Tony Award nomination last week for his work on Guys and Dolls on Broadway. Hailed by critics as 'a thoroughly satisfying package of jagged-edged provocation' (Newsday) and 'an essential and heartening experience' (The New York Times), Edward Albee's At Home at the Zoo plays at A.C.T. June 5-July 5, 2009. Opening night is Wednesday, June 10, 2009, at 8 p.m. Tickets-starting at $14-are available by calling A.C.T. Ticket Services at 415.749.2228, or at www.act-sf.org.

Designed to provide theatergoers with an exclusive, behind-the-scenes glimpse into the world of CHICAGO, the latest 'Talkback Tuesdays' celebrated 'Cinco de Mayo' with a talkback featuring Broadway's newest Matron 'Mama' Morton, Latina superstar Sofia Vergara! The sizzling Ms.Vergara made her Broadway debut on Monday, April 27th, 2009.

Broadway/L.A. today announces the lineup for its 2010 Season, with all productions scheduled to play at its flagship venue, Hollywood's historic Pantages Theatre (6233 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood).

Peter Nero and the Philly Pops has pulled out all the stops for its 30th anniversary concert on Friday, June 5 at 7:00 p.m. Two-time Grammy Award-winning pianist/conductor Peter Nero is joined by special guests Jack Jones, Lucie Arnaz, Ann Hampton Callaway, and Christiane Noll for an unforgettable night of music. Celebrate 30 years of Peter Nero and the Philly Pops and toast 'the best orchestra of its kind in the entire cosmos!'

Finally appearing together again after their Tony Award® winning performances in Evita, Patti LuPone joins Mandy Patinkin onstage for An Evening with Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin. These Broadway legends will bring their critically acclaimed theatre concert to the Palace Theatre at PlayhouseSquare for 16 performances only, May 5 - 17, 2009.

Peter Nero and the Philly Pops® celebrates the magic of movie music with Hooray for Hollywood! This special concert event honors the captivating movie music that has the uncanny ability to transport us to another place and time.

South Coast Repertory has announced the lineup of actors and directors who will participate in the 12th annual Pacific Playwrights Festival (PPF). Since its creation in 1998, PPF has grown into one of the most important festivals of new scripts in the United States. This year?s Festival will take place during the May 1 through May 3 weekend and will feature five staged readings and two fully-produced World Premieres on South Coast Repertory?s Segerstrom and Julianne Argryos Stages. Tickets to PPF may be purchased online at www.scr.org, by phone at (714) 708-5555 or in person at the SCR box office.

As reported earlier today by PeopleEnEspanol.com, this spring, Sof?a Vergara, one of the hottest Hispanic TV stars and one of the most beloved personalities of the Latino world, will make her Broadway stage debut as Matron 'Mama' Morton, the reigning cellblock diva of the hit musical CHICAGO for a five-week limited engagement.

Seattle Theatre Group (STG) presents Thievery Corporation on Tuesday, April 21, 2009 at 8:00pm at the Paramount Theatre. Recording in their Washington DC based studio, Rob Garza and Eric Hilton, better known as the international production and DJ duo Thievery Corporation, have released their fifth studio album, Radio Retaliation, through their independent music label ESL Music. The 15-track opus features the duo collaborating with a roster of International all-stars to create the strongest statement yet from Thievery Corporation.

Celebrated jazz vocalist Diane Schuur joins Grammy Award-winning pianist/conductor Peter Nero and the Philly Pops for an extraordinary concert program entitled 88 Keys, a Big Band, and a Voice. These performances mark Ms. Schuur's debut with Peter Nero and the Philly Pops. Between them, Peter and Diane have four Grammy awards and recording careers that combined span more than five decades. Now, take all of that brilliant talent and imagine it together on stage at Verizon Hall!

South Coast Repertory has announced the lineup of actors and directors who will participate in the 12th annual Pacific Playwrights Festival (PPF). Since its creation in 1998, PPF has grown into one of the most important festivals of new scripts in the United States. This year?s Festival will take place during the May 1 through May 3 weekend and will feature five staged readings and two fully-produced World Premieres on South Coast Repertory?s Segerstrom and Julianne Argryos Stages. Tickets to PPF may be purchased online at www.scr.org, by phone at (714) 708-5555 or in person at the SCR box office.

Making music to the ears of budget-conscious audiences, the River To River® Festival today unveiled a stellar line-up of completely free music, dance, and cultural events that firmly establishes Lower Manhattan as the city's summer arts capital.

George Street Playhouse has announced full casting for New Year's Eve a world premiere from the pen of ARTHUR LAURENTS. George Street Playhouse Artistic Director DAVID SAINT will direct a starry cast comprised of WALTER BELENKY, KEITH CARRADINE, PETER FRECHETTE, MARLO THOMAS and NATASHA GREGSON WAGNER. New Year's Eve marks the ninth collaboration between Saint and Laurents at the New Brunswick Playhouse, and the return engagement of Ms. Thomas, who starred in Elaine May's Roger is Dead last season.

Tony Award-winning playwright Richard Greenberg's Our Mother's Brief Affair will receive its World Premiere at South Coast Repertory as part of the theater's 12th annual Pacific Playwrights Festival. Commissioned by SCR and directed by Pam MacKinnon, Our Mother's Brief Affair will run April 3 through May 3, 2009 on the Segerstrom Stage. Low-priced previews are available from April 3 through April 9.