Wake Up With BWW 4/9: FOSSE/VERDON Premieres, Ginna Claire Mason Begins in WICKED, and More!

Good morning, BroadwayWorld!

First, we'd like to wish a great first performance to Ginna Claire Mason who joins the Broadway company of Wicked as Glinda tonight! Break a leg, Ginna!

In more Wicked casting news, Hannah Corneau has been announced as the next Elphaba. Corneau will be making her Broadway debut in the role, succeeding Jessica Vosk, in May.

Sara Bareilles is hitting the road! The singer/songwriter has announced her Amidst the Chaos tour. Is she coming to a city near you? Check out the list of dates below!

Full casting has been announced for the upcoming production of Tommy at the Kennedy Center! New to the cast are Mykal Kilgore, Hudson Loverro, Taylor Iman Jones, and more!

Want to learn more about these and other stories? Keep scrolling! Want our morning reports delivered via email? Subscribe here!

1) Hannah Corneau Will Make Broadway Debut as WICKED's Next Elphaba; Jessica Vosk Plays Final Performance This May

Beginning performances Tuesday, May 14, Hannah Corneau will assume the role of Elphaba in the Broadway production of WICKED.. (more...)

---

2) Protestors Take On Long Island High School Production of THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE, Citing 'Racism is Not Entertainment'

Newsday Reports that protestors took to the streets outside Huntington High School in Long Island to protest the production of Thoroughly Modern Millie taking place inside, which they say is 'racist against Chinese-Americans.'. (more...)

---

3) BWW Exclusive: The Race for Best Revival of a Musical
by Cara Joy David

For a while, it seemed like we might only have one musical revival, the Roundabout Theatre Company production of KISS ME, KATE. Then a transfer of critical darling OKLAHOMA! was announced for the Circle in the Square, adding some excitement to the Tony race. This excitement is not just over which of these revivals will win, but rather whether there will be a Best Revival of a Musical award at all. All signs point to yes, though it is not a definite.. (more...)

---

4) Sara Bareilles Will Embark on 'Amidst The Chaos' Tour, Stopping in Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, New York, LA, and More!

Grammy, Tony and Emmy award-nominated singer, songwriter, actress, and author Sara Bareilles today announced her Amidst The Chaos Tour. Produced by Live Nation, the 30-city tour will kick off October 5th in Detroit, MI and make stops in Boston, Chicago, Houston, San Francisco and more, before wrapping November 26th in Atlanta, GA. The tour will also include stops at the iconic Madison Square Garden in New York City and the famous Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, CA.. (more...)

---

5) Photo Coverage: The Cast of OKLAHOMA! Has a Beautiful Day at the Opening Night Cast Party
by Jennifer Broski

Rodgers & Hammerstein's Oklahoma! opened last night, April 7, at Broadway's Circle in the Square Theatre. It will play a limited engagement through Sunday, September 1, 2019.. (more...)

---

---

Today's Call Sheet:

Ryan Murphy hosts a performance of THE PROM tonight!

Six-time Emmy Award winner Ryan Murphy will host a special performance of The Prom to benefit Hetrick Martin, GLAAD and The Trevor Project tonight!

Ginna Claire Mason joins WICKED as Glinda beginning tonight!

Ginna Claire Mason joins the company of Wicked after having spent the last year playing Glinda on tour. She has also appeared on tour in Newsies and Flashdance the Musical and starred as Korie in Duck Commander: The Musical in Las Vegas. Her regional credits include Thoroughly Modern Millie, Hairspray and Grease.

Ms. Mason will join a cast which currently includes Jessica Vosk as Elphaba, Nancy Opel as Madame Morrible, Michael McCormick as The Wizard, Ryan McCartan as Fiyero, Jamie Jackson as Doctor Dillamond, Gizel Jiménez as Nessarose and Jesse JP Johnson as Boq. Katie Rose Clarke will play her final performance as Glinda on Sunday, April 7.

FOSSE/VERDON premieres on FX tonight!

FX's highly-anticipated Fosse/Verdon limited series will premiere Tuesday, April 9 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on FX. Fosse/Verdon is an eight-episode limited series from award-winning producers Thomas Kail, Steven Levenson, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Joel Fields.

---

Set Your DVR...

Michelle Williams will appear on THE LATE SHOW WITH Stephen Colbert tonight!

Hugh Jackman will appear on TODAY this morning!

---

What we're geeking out over: Wesley Taylor and More Join The Cast of TOMMY At the Kennedy Center

The full cast for the Kennedy Center production of The Who's Tommy, with direction and choreography by Josh Rhodes (Encores! Grand Hotel, Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella, Bright Star) has been announced!

As previously announced, Casey Cott, star of the hit CW series Riverdale, will play the title role alongside Tony Award winner Christian Borle (Peter and the Starcatcher, Something Rotten!) and Mandy Gonzalez (Hamilton, In the Heights) as Captain Walker and Mrs. Walker, respectively. The cast, which begins rehearsals today, also features Manu Narayan (Merrily We Roll Along, My Fair Lady) as Uncle Ernie, Wesley Taylor(SpongeBob SquarePants, The Addams Family) as Cousin Kevin, and Kimberly Nichole, a fan favorite on season eight of NBC's The Voice, as The Gypsy ("Acid Queen").

New to the cast are Olutayo Bosede, Charl Brown, Rory Donovan, Declan Fennell, Samantha Gershman, Mykal Kilgore, Hudson Loverro, Taylor Iman Jones, Nick Martinez, Michael Milkanin, Trina Mills, Khori Michelle Petinaud, Tiernan Tunnicliffe, Matthew Varvar, Kaleb Wells, Sharrod Williams, and Kristin Yancy.

---

What we're watching: OKLAHOMA! Is Doin' Fine on Opening Night! Plus Performance Highlights!

There was a bright, golden haze on the Circle in the Square Theatre last night, where Broadway's best gathered to celebrate the opening night of a Rodgers and Hammerstein classic. Oklahoma! will play a limited engagement through Sunday, September 1, 2019.

We're taking you inside the big night below. Plus, check out highlights of the cast in action!

---

Social Butterfly: OKLAHOMA's Mallory Portnoy Takes Over Instagram For Opening Night!

Everything really is going our way because we got an inside look at last night's opening of the new reimagined revival of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Oklahoma! Cast member Mallory Portnoy, who plays Gertie, gave as a behind-the-scenes peek of her official Broadway debut, from pre-show to the after party! In case you missed it (or just want to experience it all again), we've compiled Mallory's posts for you to enjoy. You cain't say no to this, so check out all the footage!

---

And a Happy Birthday shout-out to Cynthia Nixon, who turns 53 today!

Emmy, Grammy and Tony Award winner Cynthia Nixon made her film debut in Little Darlings at the age of 12 and her Broadway debut at 14 in The Philadelphia Story. Since then she has appeared in over 40 plays and countless films and television shows.

She has been directed by Sidney Lumet, Louis Malle, Milos Forman, Mike Nichols and Robert Altman. Perhaps best known for her role as Miranda in the HBO series Sex and the City, Nixon will appear in upcoming projects including Richard Loncraine's Life Itself opposite Morgan Freeman and Diane Keaton, as well as James White, an indie film written and directed by Josh Mond.

She was most recently seen on Broadway in The Little Foxes. Other recent credits include: White Rabbit Red Rabbit (Off-Broadway), The Real Thing (Broadway), Wit (Broadway), Distracted (Off-Broadway), The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (Off-Broadway), Rabbit Hole (Broadway), Children and Art (Broadway), The Women (Broadway), and The Vagina Monologues (Off-Broadway). A full list of credits can be seen here.

In real life Cynthia has played an important role in fighting for NYC's public schools, marriage equality and most recently to elect progressive Democrat Bill de Blasio for NYC Mayor.

She lives in downtown Manhattan with her wife Christine Marinoni and their three children Samantha, Charlie, and Max.

---

See you bright and early tomorrow, BroadwayWorld!