Nicole Rosky - Page 470

Today in 1987, the FIRST Broadway revival of Dreamgirls opened at the Ambassador Theatre, where it ran for 177 performances. Dreamgirls features music by Henry Krieger and lyrics and book by Tom Eyen. Based upon the show business aspirations and successes of R&B acts such as The Supremes, The Shirelles, James Brown, Jackie Wilson, and others, the musical follows the story of a young female singing trio from Chicago, Illinois called 'The Dreams', who become music superstars. The musical opened on December 20, 1981 at the Imperial Theatre, and was nominated for thirteen Tony Awards, including the Tony Award for Best Musical, and won six. It was later adapted into a motion picture from DreamWorks and Paramount Pictures in 2006. The 1987 cast featured Lillias White as 'Effie.'

Today in 1976, the second Broadway revival of Pal Joey opened at the Circle in the SquareTheatre, where it ran for 73 performances. Pal Joey is a musical with a book by John O'Hara (from his novel of the same title) and music and lyrics by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart based on a character and situations O'Hara created in a series of short stories published in The New Yorker. The original 1940 Broadway production was directed by George Abbott and starred Gene Kelly. There have been several revivals since, including a 2008-09 Broadway run, and a 1957 film adaptation starring Frank Sinatra, Rita Hayworth and Kim Novak. The 1976 cast featured: Christopher Chadman (Joey), Harold Gary (Mike), Terri Treas (Kid), Janie Sell (Gladys), and Gail Benedict (Gail).

Today in 1986, Arsenic and Old Lace opened at the 46th Street Theatre (now the Richard Rogers Theatre) where it ran for 221 performances. Arsenic and Old Lace is a play by American playwright Joseph Kesselring, written in 1939. It has become best known through the film adaptation starring Cary Grant and directed by Frank Capra. The play is a farcical black comedy revolving around Mortimer Brewster, a drama critic who must deal with his crazy, homicidal family and local police in Brooklyn, NY, as he debates whether to go through with his recent promise to marry the woman he loves.

Happy Birthday, Hunter Foster! Foster is perhaps best known for playing 'Bobby Strong' in Urinetown, for which he received nominations for an Outer Critics Circle Award and a Lucille Lortel Award. In 2003, Foster starred as 'Seymour' in the Broadway revival of Little Shop of Horrors, for which he received his first Tony Award nomination. Foster also appeared as 'Leo Bloom' in The Producers on Broadway, 'Ensign Pulver' in Mister Roberts at the Kennedy Center, 'Ben' in Modern Orthodox off-Broadway, and 'Sam Phillips' in Million Dollar Quartet.

Idina Menzel kicked off her world tour this spring, at Olympic Hall in Seoul, Korea, before a recent stop in Manchester. While she was there, she performed two fan favorites- 'For Good' from Wicked and Frozen's 'Let It Go'. Click below to check out both songs!

The 25th annual Kleban Prize for the most promising musical theatre lyricist has been awarded to Sam Willmott and the 25th annual Kleban Prize for the most promising musical theatre librettist has been awarded to Sam Carner. The 2015 prizes were presented earlier this week in a private ceremony hosted by ASCAP and BMI at ASCAP. BroadwayWorld was there for the presentation and you can check out highlights below!

Happy Birthday, Bob Fosse! Fosse won an unprecedented eight Tony Awards for choreography, as well as one for direction. He was nominated for an Academy Award four times, winning for his direction of Cabaret. Amonst his many Broadway credits are The Pajama Game, Damn Yankees, Sweet Charity, Pippin, Chicago, Dancin' and many more.

Today in 1972, the first Broadway revival of Man of La Mancha opened at the Vivian Beaumont Theatre, where it ran for 140 performances. Man of La Mancha is a musical with a book by Dale Wasserman, lyrics by Joe Darion and music by Mitch Leigh. It is adapted from Wasserman's non-musical 1959 teleplay I, Don Quixote, which was in turn inspired by Miguel de Cervantes's seventeenth century masterpiece Don Quixote. It tells the story of the 'mad' knight, Don Quixote, as a play within a play, performed by Cervantes and his fellow prisoners as he awaits a hearing with the Spanish Inquisition.The original 1965 Broadway production ran for 2,328 performances and won five Tony Awards, including Best Musical. The musical has been revived four times on Broadway, becoming one of the most enduring works of musical theatre.

Just yesterday, celebrity guests, including Hoda Kotb, the Rockettes, Jared Grimes and more, gathered to support more than 100 children from the Garden of Dreams Foundation for the annual Garden of Dreams Talent Show at Radio City Music Hall. Check out highlights from the show below!

The Segal Centre closes its blockbuster 2014-2015 Theatre Season with The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz: The Musical, a world premiere musical adaptation of Mordecai Richler's novel and the feature film by the same name, through July 12, 2015. This new production boasts an original musical score by Alan Menken, the legendary Oscar and Tony winning composer of Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin, with book and lyrics by acclaimed lyricist-librettist David Spencer and direction by American theatre veteran Austin Pendleton. Presented with the generous support of RBC and Muse Entertainment. The poignant Montreal coming of age story of ambitious scoundrel Duddy Kravitz, Canadian author Mordecai Richler's beloved anti-hero, will premiere as a brand new musical in the city where the story takes place. Let's see what the critcs had to say...

In just days, Broadway will again join forces for Broadway Bares, the unrivaled evening of sexy striptease that benefits Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, which is celebrating its 25th spectacular edition. Today, June 19, director Jerry Mitchell and Nick Adams take us behind the scenes of rehersals with an Instagram take over of the @BCEFA account! CLICK HERE to follow them throughout the day, and check out a preview of Broadway Bares: Top Bottoms of Burlesque, below!

Jonathan Groff Jenni Barber, Quentin Earl Darrington, Bradley Dean, Dan Fogler, Ana Gasteyer, Josh Lamon, Aaron Lazar, Alyse Alan Louis and Rema Webb will soon star in the Encores! Off-Center production of William Finn andJames Lapine's A New Brain, running June 24 - 27, 2015. The production will be directed by James Lapine, with choreography by Josh Prince. Below, we take you inside the rehearsal room with the company!

Let's see what the critics had to say...

MASTERWORKS BROADWAY recently released the Original Broadway Cast Recording of An American in Paris, produced by Rob Fisher and Scott Lehrer. The score of An American in Paris includes the songs 'I Got Rhythm,' 'Liza,' 'S Wonderful,' 'But Not For Me,' 'I'll Build a Stairway to Paradise,' and orchestral music including 'Concerto in F,' 'Second Prelude,' 'Second Rhapsody/Cuban Overture' and 'An American In Paris.' Below, we bring you an exclusive, behind-the-scenes video of the company in the recording studio!

Today in 1993, the second Broadway revival of Camelot opened at the George Gershwin Theatre, where it ran for 56 performances. Camelot is a musical by Alan Jay Lerner (book and lyrics) and Frederick Loewe (music). It is based on the King Arthur legend as adapted from the T. H. White tetralogy novel The Once and Future King. The original 1960 production, directed by Moss Hart and orchestrated by Robert Russell Bennett and Philip J. Lang, ran on Broadway for 873 performances, winning four Tony Awards and spawning several revivals, foreign productions and a 1967 film version. The 1993 cast starred Robert Goulet, Steve Blanchard, and Patricia Kies.

Today in 2004, Thoroughly Modern Millie closed at the Marquis Theatre, where it ran for 903 performances. Thoroughly Modern Millie is a musical with music by Jeanine Tesori, lyrics by Dick Scanlan, and a book by Richard Morris and Scanlan. Based on the 1967 film of the same name, it tells the story of a small-town girl, Millie Dillmount, who comes to New York City to marry for money instead of love - a thoroughly modern aim in 1922, when women were just entering the workforce. The production subsequently won six 2002 Tony Awards, including Best Musical and Best Actress in a Musical for Sutton Foster.

Today in 1978, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas opened at the 46th Street Theatre (now the Richard Rodgers Theatre), where it ran for 1584 performances. The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas is a musical with a book by Texas author Larry L. King and Peter Masterson and music and lyrics by Carol Hall. It is based on a story by King that was inspired by the real-life Chicken Ranch in La Grange, Texas. The original Broadway production was directed by Peter Masterson and Tommy Tune and choreographed by Tune and Thommie Walsh.

Happy Birthday, Kerry Butler! Butler received a 2008 Tony Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical for playing Kira/Clio in Xanadu. Other Broadway credits include Blood Brothers, Les Miserables, Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors, (Outer Critics Circle Award nomination), Penny Pingleton in Hairspray (Clarence Derwent Award, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle nominations), Sherrie in Rock of Ages, and most recently Brenda in Catch Me If You Can (Drama Desk nomination).

Jonathan Groff may have been away from Broadway for a while, but this season he is taking the musical theatre community by storm. This spring he appeared in The Public Theater's breakthrough production of HAMILTON as King George III, a role he will follow to Broadway later this summer. He also appeared in a sold-out concert event of HOW TO SUCCEED, performed at London's Royal Festival Hall. Now, Groff is taking on the role of 'Gordon' in A NEW BRAIN, as part of ENCORES! Off-Center series. During a break in rehearsals, Groff chatted with BroadwayWorld about everything A NEW BRAIN, upcoming HAMILTON rehearsals, making his long-awaited Broadway return and so much more. Check out the full interview below and don't forget to catch Groff in the Encores! Off-Center production of A NEW BRAIN, running June 24-27, 2015.

Happy Birthday, John Gallagher, Jr.! Gallagher originated the role of Moritz Stiefel in Spring Awakening on Broadway after performing the role Off-Broadway and in workshops at Lincoln Center. Gallagher won the 2007 Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical for his performance. In 2010, Gallagher starred in American Idiot, a musical based on the Green Day album of the same name, playing Johnny aka 'Jesus of Suburbia'. He most recently starred in the Broadway production of The Royal Court Theatre's Jerusalem.