David Clarke - Page 14

Before BE MORE CHILL was an Off-Broadway sensation, actor and singer George Salazar and composer-lyricist-book writer Joe Iconis were close friends. Over the years, Salazar has gotten to sing and even premiere some of Iconis's best work. Recently, Ghostlight Records released TWO-PLAYER GAME, an album that took the pair's sold-out cabaret show at Feinstein's / 54 Below and put that concept on an a delightfully entertaining and intoxicatingly fun album.

Two-thirds of the way through her ambitious 12-EP OBSESSED project, Lena Hall's August release honors rock genius David Bowie. Across its five tracks, OBSESSED: DAVID BOWIE is a delightful surprise because it adequately represents Bowie's varied musical styles without resting on the obvious hit songs. Everyone knew Hall singing Bowie would be better than good, but we probably weren't expecting it to be so refreshing.

MACBETH seems to be one of the most abused pieces from Williams Shakespeare's canon; yet, when a production does the show justice, it is incredibly spellbinding. Luckily for fans of the play and art of theatre in general, you'll be hard-pressed to find a more robustly magnificent production of the classic than NINAGAWA MACBETH.

There's another post-apocalyptic jukebox coming to theaters across the United States. Jim Steinman's BAT OUT OF HELL - The Musical kicks off a US national tour in Detroit this November. But, you don't have to wait for the show to tour to your neck of the woods to hear its score. Recently, Ghostlight Records released the rollicking BAT OUT OF HELL - The Musical Original Cast Recording, giving audiences the world over unprecedented access to the potentially epic musical.

Andrew Lloyd Webber's sequel to his smash hit THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, entitled LOVE NEVER DIES is currently touring across the United States. The staging of the production is inspired by the reworked 2011 Australian premiere of the musical. To give Houston audiences an inside look into the show sure to leave them spellbound, we sat down with Sean Thompson who plays hero turned flawed husband and father, Raoul, Vicomte de Chagny.

Lena Hall kicks the seventh month into overdrive with her OBSESSED: JACK WHITE. This four-track gem contains songs from the singer and songwriter that many remember as the lead singer and guitarist for The White Stripes. This solid collection of tunes is delightfully guitar heavy and features Hall beautifully alternating between her signature raucous vocalizations and softer, almost-country stylings.

FRUIT TRILOGY is a new trio of plays by Tony Award winning playwright Eve Ensler. The New York debut features Kiersey Clemons and Liz Mikel in three short plays that give a voice to women. To get the inside scoop, we sat down with Clemons and Mikel to discuss the show.

Six months in and Lena Hall's OBSESSED series is still going strong with solid homages and tributes to various artists. This month, Hall spectacularly croons her way through delightful gloomy misery on OBSESSED: Radiohead. The new EP is, more-or-less, the anti-summer collection of music you didn't know you needed.

Philip Dawkins's latest play is making its New York premiere at the Cherry Lane Theatre. The play recounts the fateful meeting of William Inge and Tennessee Williams prior to the Chicago premiere of THE GLASS MENAGERIE. We sat down with Dawkins to get the inside scoop on this sexy and searing new drama.

Lena Hall rings in May with OBSESSED: P!NK, a tribute to the diva who transitioned from mercurial party girl to a songstress giving the world healthy doses of resilient strength, love, and feminism. With both artists being inspiringly bold, with vocals defined by their signature grit, and both possessing magnetizing stage presences, this EP seems almost too obvious a choice. Yet, as with each of the previous entries in the 'Obsessed' series, it does anything but disappoint.

Recently released CALENDAR GIRLS (Original London Recording)cis just perfectly nice. Based on the charming and quaint 2003 film by the same title written by Tim Firth, the musical itself garnered warm notices from London media. So, it is no surprise that the music and this cast was recorded for preservation; however, the two-disc album doesn't convince listeners that this musical is better than the original film as some British theater writers claim.

Dorcas Leung, currently touring the nation with HAMILTON as the standby for Angelica Schuyler, Eliza Hamilton, Peggy Schuyler/Maria Reynolds, is an Asian immigrant who grew up in Houston and went to elementary, middle, and high school in Spring Branch ISD. Making a triumphant return to the city that helped raise her in a one of the most popular musicals to ever grace the stages of the world, BroadwayWorld chatted with her about the true power of the show. 

The January 15 news that Dolores O'Riordan, lead singer of The Cranberries, had passed was nothing short of devastating for many. With hearts broken all over the world, it's hard to know when releasing a tribute to The Cranberries would be appropriate. With OBSESSED: THE CRANBERRIES, Lena Hall proves that that time is now, and listening to the EP, I'm sure O'Riordan is simultaneously proud of Hall while jamming out to these incredible covers.

After sitting out the 2017 holiday season, anticipation for NBC's return to the live musical game ran high. The choice to present Andrew Lloyd Webber's rock opera JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR on Easter Sunday seemed obvious. Then, they packed the cast with stalwart veterans of the Billboard Top 40 charts and Broadway stage, which added fuel to the pyre of excitement. Luckily, as millions of people tuned in on Sunday night, viewers were treated to the best televised musical since this medium was revived in 2013.

For many, musical theater and Andrew Lloyd Webber are synonymous. Whether you love him or hate him, there is no denying that his music has been influential within and outside of the world of musical theater. To celebrate the prolific composer's 70th birthday, UMe / Polydor has released ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER UNMASKED: THE PLATINUM COLLECTION, a sprawling and somewhat bloated 4-disc collection of music personally curated and overseen by Lloyd Webber himself.

This week in New York City, Philharmonia Orchestra of New York (PONY) is premiering LA TRAVIATA with 3D holographic projections for the sets. On March 20 and 21, 2018 audiences at the Rose Theater will be treated to the show's classic and beloved arias set against awe-inspiring backdrops like Niagara Falls. To get the inside scoop on this first-of-its-kind presentation we chatted with PONY Maestro Atsushi Yamada.

The pulsating energy of Elton John has long been one of the things that has turned listeners into rabid fans of him and his music for decades. This is not lost on Lena Hall, who matches him kilowatt for kilowatt in her exuberant OBSESSED: ELTON JOHN, which is this month's release in her in ongoing series of EPs for calendar year 2018.

Riverdance, the internationally acclaimed dance phenomenon returns to Houston with, RIVERDANCE - THE 20TH ANNIVERSARY WORLD TOUR from March 9 to 11. To get the inside scoop on the long-running fan favorite, we sat down with Lead Dancer Any-Mae Dolan and chatted about the show.

Jamie Morton, co-creator of the popular podcast MY DAD WROTE A PORNO, is taking Rocky Flintstone's scintillating and rib tickling erotica novels on a world tour. Morton and his friends/co-creators, James Cooper and Alice Levine, are spreading the love all around North America at stops that include San Francisco, Seattle, Toronto, and New York City. Recently, we sat down with Morton to get the inside scoop on these live shows.

The inventive musical adventure ERNEST SHACKLETON LOVES ME tells the story of a single mom who is struggling to balance her familial obligations and her work as a video game composer. One sleepless night, she posts a dating video and gets a response from famed 20th century polar explorer Ernest Shackleton. What follows is an odyssey of virtuosic electro-violin performance from Val Vigoda and Wade McCollum's charismatic and lush vocals.