Jessica Lewis - Page 155

Yesterday Kathie Lee Gifford, the co-host of the fourth hour of NBC's 'Today Show' performed the Patsy Kline classic 'Stop Look and Listen' with the cast of MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET, the Broadway musical sensation.

After it's highly successful staging in NYC in June 2010, Allan Buchman has announced the West Coast debut of Twin Spirits on Tuesday, February 15th at the Mark Taper Forum at the Music Center of Los Angeles County. Presented by Culture Project, Sting and Trudie Styler will reprise their roles as classical composer Robert and his wife, pianist Clara Schumann; reading the couple's poignant letters with accompaniment from a six-member ensemble of classical musicians. A portion of the evening's proceeds will be used to support the ongoing work of Culture Project, the Royal Opera House and Mustardseed Arts Trust.

It was announced today that Jenni Barber (The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee) and Emily Walton (August: Osage County) will complete the cast of the upcoming Off-Broadway revival of Abe Burrows' classic comedy Cactus Flower. They join previously announced cast members Maxwell Caulfield (Grease 2), Lois Robbins ('Ryan's Hope'), Anthony Reimer ('Rescue Me'), John Herrera (The Times, They are a Changin'), Robin Skye (Parade) and Jeremy Bobb (Is He Dead?). Michael Bush will direct the upcoming revival, which begins previews on Thursday, February 24 with an official opening night set for Thursday, March 10, 2011 at the Westside Theatre Upstairs (407 West 43 Street, NYC).

Classic Stage Company (CSC) under the leadership of Artistic Director Brian Kulick and Executive Director Jessica R. Jenen, has extended the run of its highly-anticipated production of Anton Chekhov's THREE SISTERS through Sunday, March 6 due to strong ticket demand. The production, which began previews on January 12, features Maggie Gyllenhaal (Masha), Josh Hamilton (Andre), Jessica Hecht (Olga), Marin Ireland (Natasha), Juliet Rylance (Irina) and Peter Sarsgaard (Vershinin). Also featured in the cast are Ebon Moss-Bachrach (Tuesenbach), Anson Mount (Solyony), Roberta Maxwell (Anfisa), Louis Zorich (Chebutykin), George Morfogen (Ferapont), Paul Lazar (Kulygin), Gabe Bettio (Rode) and James Patrick Nelson (Fedotik). No further extension will be possible. Production shots appear below!

HBO will shoot the current Broadway hit 'Colin Quinn Long Story Short' for a special to debut on the network in April, it was announced today by Nancy Geller, senior vice president, HBO Original Programming. Recently extending its run at the Helen Hayes Theatre through March 5, the one-man show features the comedy veteran's take on world history and is directed by Jerry Seinfeld.

MCC Theater (Robert LuPone, Bernard Telsey, Artistic Directors; William Cantler, Associate Artistic Director; Blake West, Executive Director) will celebrate the company's 25th anniversary by honoring a host of MCC artists past and present at Miscast 2011. This highly anticipated annual gala will take place on Monday, March 14, 2011 at The Hammerstein Ballroom (311 West 34th Street between 8th and 9th Avenues). Andy Cohen (Host of Bravo TV's 'Watch What Happens Live') will host the evening. David Duchovny (star of the recent MCC Theater hit, The Break of Noon), Téa Leoni, Hugh Dancy (star of yet another recent MCC hit, The Pride) and Claire Danes are this year's honorary chairs. Funds raised from Miscast help MCC Theater produce some of the most talked-about new work Off Broadway and support their Youth Company and in-school partnerships that serve New York City public high school students, as well as their literary development work with emerging playwrights.

Today Wednesday, January 26, Kathie Lee Gifford joined the cast of Million Dollar Quartet on stage for a special 'Sitting in with the Band' performance. Click below for a first look at her performance!

The American Repertory Theater is pleased to announce that two-time Tony-nominated actor Gavin Creel will be performing the role of Prometheus in the world premiere musical Prometheus Bound.

On January 29, Oscar nominee Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network) will be hosting Saturday Night Live with musical guest Nicki Minaj. Click below for his promo spot!

Overbrook Entertainment partners James Lassiter, Ken Stovitz, Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith have formed a joint venture with Shawn 'JAY-Z' Carter to develop and produce major motion pictures. One of the projects being discussed is the re-imagination of the classic Broadway musical ANNIE as a vehicle for Willow Smith to star. The film will be developed with Sony Pictures Entertainment and produced by Overbrook Entertainment and Mr. Carter.

The longest-running show in Broadway history, the Cameron Mackintosh/Really Useful Group, Inc. production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, directed by Harold Prince, reaches an unprecedented milestone today, Wednesday, January 26, 2011, when it celebrates its Twenty-Third Anniversary on Broadway. Playing its 9,566th & 9,567th performances at The Majestic Theatre (247 West 44th Street), it becomes the first Broadway production ever to have run 23 years.

Directed by Marc Bruni, with choreography by Wendy Seyb, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee opened January 23 at the Paper Mill Playhouse. The production began performances on January 19 and runs through February 13, 2010.

In an interview with the UK Guardian out this morning, former Green Goblin Alan Cumming (who departed the production before rehearsals began last year due to the numerous delays), speaks openly about his decision to depart the production, and what it was like to continue to work with Julie Taymor on The Tempest film thereafter.

Ben Vereen is back. And he's brought his bowl of cherries. On February 18, 2011, the legendary song and dance man will perform his concert, Stepping Out With Ben Vereen, at Town Hall in celebration of the release of his corresponding album. In the concert, recorded live during its recent Hartford engagement, Vereen highlights his stage career and delivers American Standards with his signature 'razzle dazzle' as only he can.

Lead producers Michael Cohl and Jeremiah J. Harris announced today that tickets have gone on sale for the 8:00 p.m. preview performance on Monday, February 7th. The performance was previously reserved for the show's opening night. In addition, as of today, tickets are now on sale for performances of SPIDER-MAN Turn Off The Dark through Sunday, May 8th. Directed by Julie Taymor and featuring a book by Julie Taymor and Glen Berger, and new music and lyrics by U2's Bono and The Edge, SPIDER-MAN Turn Off The Dark is now in previews at Broadway's Foxwoods Theatre (213 West 42nd Street).

The Public Theater (Artistic Director Oskar Eustis; Executive Director Andrew D. Hamingson) will begin previews Tuesday, February 1 for the world premiere production of Rinne Groff's COMPULSION, directed by Oskar Eustis. The cast features Hannah Cabell, Matte Osian, and Mandy Patinkin, with puppet design and puppetry supervision by Matt Acheson. COMPULSION runs through Sunday, March 13 at The Public Theater (425 Lafayette Street) with an official press opening on Thursday, February 17. Tickets are on sale now.

As previously announced, Anne Hathaway and James Franco will co-host the 83rd Annual Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2010 on Sunday, February 27, 2011, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center. The show will be televised live by the ABC Television Network. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.

AsianInNY, New York's premier online destination for multicultural networking and entertainment, is partnering with the Greater Chinatown Community Association (GCCA) to present a festive celebration of Lunar New Year on February 5, 2011, 7:00 PM to 11:00 PM, at the Chinese Community Center Auditorium, 62 Mott Street, in Chinatown. We have gathered an exciting lineup of Asian and Asian American talent to bring guests a night of comedy, music, and fashion. There will be great live performances, two fabulous fashion runway shows, foot-stomping music, a top martial arts and dance group, and amazing drinks. The night will be a fun, unforgettable celebration to start the Year of the Rabbit. This will also give everyone a chance to see what people do to celebrate the most important holiday in Asia and provide a venue for Asians to share the amazing night together.

This morning, music duo Alan Menken and Glenn Slater received an Oscar nomination for Best Song for 'I See The Light' from Disney's Tangled. This is the 19th nomination for Menken, who has earned 8 Academy Awards already, more than any living person. This is the first nomination for Slater, who has collaborated with Menken on several projects, including Broadway's The Little Mermaid and Sister Act, which is scheduled to open on Broadway on April 20, 2011. The show has played in the West End and is currently a hit in Hamburg, Germany.

The New York Times reports today that a group of Republican politicians are campaigning to abolish the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities. The congressional group is called the Republican Study Committee is comprised of 165 Republican house members and 'also called for eliminating the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which got $430 million.' The NEA and NEH were granted $167.5 million from the Federal Government last year.