Jeffrey Kare - Page 12

I recently had the great pleasure of interviewing actor Korie Lee Blossey, who at the time of our conversation was getting ready to start performances as the Genie in the national tour of Disney's Aladdin in Charlotte, North Carolina. He made his national tour debut as a standby for the role about two and a half years prior to this. A New Yorker by way of Michigan, some of Korie's previous credits include Kerchak in Tarzan, Oberon in A Midsummer Night's Dream, Caliban in The Tempest, and Audrey II in Little Shop of Horrors.

This holiday season, three-time Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Harry Connick, Jr. will be headlining a one-man show celebrating the work of composer/lyricist Cole Porter for a limited run on Broadway. Recently, he played a premiere engagement at the Durham Performing Arts Center this past weekend. I got to be in attendance for the very first performance on September 21st, and now I give you my review.

Based on Harold Gray's comic strip titled Little Orphan Annie, this musical tells the story of a little orphan with equal measures of pluck and positivity who charms everyone's hearts, despite a next-to-nothing start in 1930's New York City. She is determined to find her parents who abandoned her years ago on the doorstep of a New York City Orphanage run by the cruel, embittered Miss Hannigan. With the help of the other girls in the Orphanage, Annie escapes to the wondrous world of NYC, finds herself a new home and family in billionaire Oliver Warbucks, his personal secretary Grace Farrell, and a lovable mutt named Sandy.

Loosely based on the fictitious life of Pippin the Hunchback, this musical tells the story of the young prince Pippin, Heir to the Frankish throne, who is in search of the secret to true happiness and fulfillment. He seeks it in the glories of the battlefield, the temptations of the flesh, and the intrigues of political power. When I last saw Pippin, it was a circus at DPAC back in 2015. Now through June 16th, Raleigh Little Theatre is presenting their own production of the 1973 Tony-winning musical, and it could not be more different.

Based on Thornton Wilder's 1954 play titled The Matchmaker, Hello, Dolly! follows famed New York City matchmaker Dolly Gallagher Levi as receives her toughest challenge yet. She must travel to Yonkers to find a suitable match for the miserly 'well-known unmarried half-a-millionaire' Horace Vandergelder. She successfully matches many others in the city, including Horace's niece and his two young clerks, but everything seems to go wrong when it comes to matching Horace.

Coming to the Durham Performing Arts Center from May 21st-26th is the national tour of Broadway's classic musical comedy, HELLO, DOLLY! starring the legendary Tony Award winner Betty Buckley. I recently had the great pleasure of interviewing actor Lewis J. Stadlen, who stars opposite Betty as the wealthy half-a-millionaire Horace Vandergelder.

Eric Woodall has a long history with North Carolina Theatre; as an actor, teacher, and director. As a high school student, he performed in JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR and GEORGE M! at NC Theatre. After successful years on stage and television, Eric returned to NC Theatre in the late 90's to direct and help cultivate the existing Summer Theatre Arts School program into the NC Theatre Conservatory. For the past 16 years, Eric worked as one of New York's top casting directors in the office of Tara Rubin Casting. Through casting and developing new musicals, Eric has been lucky enough to work alongside Stephen Sondheim, Cameron Mackintosh, William Finn, Sir Richard Eyre, Stephen Daldry, Susan Stroman, Stephen Schwartz, Casey Nicholaw, James Lapine, Phyllida Lloyd, and Hal Prince. A few of his Broadway casting credits include SUNSET BOULEVARD, ALADDIN, FALSETTOS, LES MISERABLES, THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, BILLY ELLIOT, MARY POPPINS, THE LITTLE MERMAID, and MAMMA MIA! (Broadway, National tour). Past NC Theatre directorial credits include MAMMA MIA!, GYPSY, JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR, MARY POPPINS, BILLY ELLIOT, DRIVING MISS DAISY, and STEEL MAGNOLIAS. Other directing credits include NEXT TO NORMAL, WEST SIDE STORY, BIG RIVER, ON GOLDEN POND (Casa Manana); BIG FISH, THE LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA, PARADE, AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY, and VIOLET (Theatre Raleigh); AMADEUS (Memphis' Playhouse on the Square), and HAY FEVER (Playmakers Repertory). As a guest lecturer, Eric has taught at universities and training programs around the country including NYU, Baldwin Wallace, and Elon. Internationally, Eric was invited to lead workshops in Sydney and Melbourne, Australia through Actors Equity of Australia. Last year, American Theatre named Eric one of the 'People You Should Watch' in its 'Role Call: Six Theatre Workers You Should Know' series. Eric is a drama graduate of Carnegie Mellon University and is a member of SDC and CSA.

Coming to the Durham Performing Arts Center from April 16th-21st is the national touring production of ANASTASIA. I recently had the great pleasure of interviewing actress Joy Franz, who is currently appearing in it as the Dowager Empress. A role that in the 1997 animated film was voiced by Angela Lansbury and on Broadway was originated by two-time Tony nominee Mary Beth Peil.

Based on the songs of ABBA, Mamma Mia! is set on a Greek Island where a young woman named Sophie Sheridan is about to get married, and she wants her birth father to give her away. Yet, she has no idea who it is, so she invites three men who were romantically involved with her mother 20 years ago to the wedding. When they arrive to the island, Sophie's mother, Donna Sheridan, is brought back memories of love and heartbreak.

Tonight, FOX will air their third live musical production. Following in the footsteps of Grease and A Christmas Story, the network will be presenting Jonathan Larson's Rent, a rock musical that is loosely based on Giacomo Puccini's 1896 opera, La boheme. The story follows a group of impoverished young artists struggling to survive and create a life in New York City's East Village in the thriving days of Bohemian Alphabet City, under the shadow of HIV/AIDS.

Based on Sholem Aleichem's series of short stories about Tevye the Dairyman, Fiddler on the Roof centers on Tevye, a poor milkman who lives in pre-revolutionary Russia with his wife and five daughters. Among the traditions in their little village of Anatevka, the matchmaker arranges a match between a boy and a girl, and the father must approve the arranged marriage. However, Tevye must cope with both the strong-willed actions of his three eldest daughters who wish to marry for love and outside influences of the Tsar who intrude upon his village.

Coming to the Durham Performing Arts Center from January 8th-13th is the current national touring production of Fiddler on the Roof. I recently had the great pleasure of interviewing dance captain (and North Carolina native) David Ferguson.

Jersey Boys is presented in a documentary-style format that dramatizes the formation, success and eventual breakup of The Four Seasons. When I last met up with these boys, it was during their return engagement at DPAC back in 2015. Since then, the Broadway production celebrated its 10th anniversary, closed up shop, and is now running Off-Broadway at New World Stages.

Based on Ron Chernow's 2004 biographical novel titled Alexander Hamilton, the musical, Hamilton, tells the true story of one of America's Founding Fathers, Alexander Hamilton. An immigrant from the West Indies who became George Washington's right-hand man during the Revolutionary War and was the new nation's first Treasury Secretary.

In the Heights is an original musical that is set over the course of three days, involving characters in the largely Hispanic-American neighborhood of Washington Heights in New York City. Originally conceived by Lin-Manuel Miranda during his sophomore year at Wesleyan University, the musical had its world premiere through their student theater company in April of 2000.

From October 16th-21st, North Carolina Theatre will be opening their 2018-19 season with a production of Lin-Manuel Miranda & Quiara Alegria Hudes' 2008 award-winning musical, In the Heights, at the Raleigh Memorial Auditorium. I was recently able to get in touch with two of the cast members, Genny Lis Padilla and David Guzman.

Based on Emile Ardolino's 1992 film of the same name, Sister Act follows disco diva Deloris Van Cartier as she is put in protective custody after witnessing a murder. Not only that, but she is hidden in the one place that the cops are sure she won't be found, a convent. While struggling through the restrictions of her new lifestyle, Deloris uses her unique disco moves and singing talent to inspire the choir, but in doing so, she jeopardizes her cover.