RIALTO CHATTER: Stritch Confirms in Talks for NIGHT MUSIC

Rumors have been abound that Elaine Stritch and Bernadette Peters could succeed Angela Lansbury and Catherine Zeta-Jones in the Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler's Tony Award-winning masterpiece A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC. It now appears that might be just the case.

In a phone interview today with the NY Times, Stritch shares: "Committing to eight shows a week would be a big thing for me, so it's something that I have to carefully consider."

"You can't say it's gonna happen, it has been talked about but I don't know what's gonna happen," the actress added. "There are a few conditions, and they have to be met. And I'm not talking about money. But I won't commit to eight shows a week without a few principles being met. It's not really a negotiation; I've just explained what it would take for me to do it." She declined to specify the conditions, and declined further comment.

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Despite many rumors of new stars and replacement casts, the first Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler's Tony Award-winning masterpiece A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC, starring Academy Award-winner and Tony-nominee Catherine Zeta-Jones, five-time Tony Award-winner Angela Lansbury and Olivier Award-nominee Alexander Hanson, has announced its final performance will be Sunday, June 20th at 3:00 PM after 20 previews and 217 regular performances. Directed by Tony Award-winner Trevor Nunn, the production began previews on Tuesday, November 24, 2009 and opened on Sunday, December 13, 2009 at the Walter Kerr Theatre (219 West 48th Street).

A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC is nominated for four 2010 Tony Awards including Best Revival of a Musical, Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical (Catherine Zeta-Jones), Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical (Angela Lansbury) and Best Sound Design of a Musical (Dan Moses Schreier & Gareth Owen). The production is also nominated for three 2010 Drama Desk Awards including Outstanding Revival of a Musical, Outstanding Actress in a Musical (Catherine Zeta-Jones) and Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical (Angela Lansbury). Catherine Zeta-Jones is the winner of the 2010 Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical.

A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC stars Catherine Zeta-Jones as Desirée Armfeldt, Angela Lansbury as Madame Armfeldt, Alexander Hanson as Fredrik Egerman, Aaron Lazar as Count Carl-Magnus Malcolm, Erin Davie as Countess Charlotte Malcolm, Leigh Ann Larkin as Petra, Hunter Ryan Herdlicka as Henrik Egerman and Ramona Mallory as Anne Egerman. The cast also includes Stephen R. Buntrock, Bradley Dean, Marissa McGowan, Katherine McNamara, Betsy Morgan, Jayne Paterson, Kevin David Thomas, Keaton Whittaker, Karen Murphy, Erin Stewart, Kevin Vortmann.

Alexander Hanson is appearing with the support of Actors' Equity Association. The producers gratefully acknowledge Actors' Equity Association for its assistance to this production.

Based on Ingmar Bergman's film Smiles of a Summer Night, A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC is set in a weekend country house in turn of the century Sweden, bringing together surprising liaisons, long simmering passions and a taste of love's endless possibilities. Hailed as witty and wildly romantic, the story centers on the elegant actress Desirée Armfeldt and the spider's web of sensuality, intrigue and desire that surrounds her.

A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC - featuring a score by Stephen Sondheim and a book by Hugh Wheeler - originally opened in 1973 at Broadway's Shubert Theatre and ran for 601 performances. Produced and directed by Harold Prince, the production garnered six Tony Awards® including Best Musical and Best Original Score. The Sondheim score features one of the composer's best-known songs, "Send in the Clowns," as well as "Every Day a Little Death," "The Miller's Son" and "A Weekend in the Country."

Trevor Nunn's production of A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC debuted to critical acclaim at London's Menier Chocolate Factory in November 2008 and subsequently transferred to the West End where it played a successful limited engagement through July 25, 2009 at the Garrick Theatre.

The creative team for A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC includes Lynne Page (Choreography), Caroline Humphris (Musical Supervision), David Farley (Set & Costume Design), Hartley T A Kemp (Lighting Design), Dan Moses Schreier and Gareth Owen (Sound Design), Paul Huntley (Wig Design), Jason Carr (Orchestrations) and Tom Murray (Musical Direction).

A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC is produced on Broadway by Tom Viertel, Steven Baruch, Marc Routh, Richard Frankel, The Menier Chocolate Factory, Roger Berlind, David Babani, Sonia Friedman Productions, Andrew Fell, Daryl Roth/Jane Bergère, Harvey Weinstein/Raise the Roof 3, Beverly Bartner/Dancap Productions, Inc., Nica Burns/Max Weitzenhoffer, Eric Falkenstein/Anna Czekaj, Jerry Frankel/Ronald Frankel, James D. Stern/Douglas L. Meyer.

TICKET INFORMATION:

Tickets for A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC are available by calling Telecharge.com at (212) 239-6200, (800) 432-7250 outside the NY metro area, online at Telecharge.com or in person at the Walter Kerr Theatre box office (219 West 48th Street). For A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC group sales, contact Theatre Direct International at 212-541-8457 x 2, or outside the NY metro area at 1-800-BROADWAY x 2.

Tickets range in price from $57 to $137. Tickets for Wednesday matinees range in price from $52 to $132.

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE:

Tuesday at 7pm; Wednesday - Saturday at 8pm; Wednesday & Saturday at 2pm; Sunday at 3pm

For more information, visit www.NightMusicOnBroadway.com.

Photo Credit: Peter James Zielinski