Does anyone know if Bart Sher rehearsed this production himself or if it was staged by an associate? I loved this production in New York, but I have seen far too many sub-par non-equity tours. I know that often, tours are staged by the associate director of the original production, especially lower-tier and non-equity tours, but I wonder if that was still the case here, considering how many visual elements must have been rethought to make the production able to tour. Knowledge that the cast w
The Distinctive Baritone put it quite well, I would just add that to further complicate matters today, many composers are writing in such extremes of vocal ranges that they how little consideration for how human voices really work. Evan Hansen, for example, spans from an A2 to a Bb4 in just the song "Waving Through a Window"--and both notes are sustained and repeated. In opera, a role a with an A2 would pretty unambiguously make the role a baritone/bass role, but few baritone roles
Kevin Anderson (Mr. Breeding) has been in a variety of different productions around the world encompassing leading roles in approximately 30 film and cable television productions, 2 network TV shows, Broadway and West End musicals, and dramatic plays from Goodman and Steppenwolf here in Chicago, to Broadway and Off-Broadway, the West End in London, Dublin, and many other regional theatre. He has been nominated for Tony, Golden Globe, and
The best thing you can do for yourself right now is to get a copy of the book I Got In! by Mary Anna Dennard. That book is indispensable for navigating the process of applying to college in theatre.
Also, the forums at talk.collegeconfidential.com can be useful. You'll have to wade through all of the anxious stage moms, but there is so much useful information on that website.
SweetLips22 said: "I would be curious to know, with all these minute changes being made every single night, are they rehearsed or just told what to do and expected to remember them as they perform?
Also I do check in here daily to check out all reports but reading all the changes means absolutely nothing to me 'cause without having seen this piece, I really have no idea what BC is talking about, fascinating though it all is."
I have not seen it yet, but I've heard very positive things from people who saw a preview this weekend.
From the website, "Downstate is a co-commission and co-production with the National Theatre of Great Britain. This exciting collaboration will premiere at Steppenwolf in fall 2018 and transfer to the National Theatre in spring 2019. Under the direction of Tony Award winner Pam MacKinnon, Downstate will feature an American and British cast and creative team.&qu
What exciting news! I'm also thrilled to see that Gregory Mosher is directing--his production of A View from the Bridge in 2010 was thrilling and, in my opinion, far superior to the Ivo van Hove production. Mosher is truly an actor's director, and he has two of America's greatest actors leading one of the greatest American plays ever written. I could not be more excited.
ryankon said: "There is a serious problem with Tootsie that people are glossing over: it's distressingly retro in that this supposedly feminist tale is told thru a man's eyes. Why are we so dependent on men to give us our feminist awakening? At the time the film was made this was a more forgivable sin--but in 2018 it's bothersome. Very. All the good intentions in the world don't erase the fact that Tootsie relies on a man to give us our feminist awakening. That's
Ted Sperling is a frequent collaborator of Bart Sher's (along with the entire design team of this revival), and I have always found him a lively and exciting conductor to watch. I once had a teacher say that when you are conducting, you are not only helping the musicians, but you are also putting on a show for the people behind you, helping them understand how to listen to the music.
It's worth noting that Ted is also a fantastic orchestrator and vocal arranger (his new o
All I can do is echo the praise on this board already. It's not a perfect show yet, but they have a hit on their hands. It must be nice to be David Yazbek right now--the toast of Broadway with a Tony winning musical selling out every night and an out of town tryout that has audiences rolling in the aisles.
I saw the film for the first time earlier this week, and I loved it. I loved the musical as well. The overall structure is mostly the same, but the musical captures what works ab
Tootsie - Chicago tryout Sep 11
2018, 06:19:08 PM
I won the lottery for second preview tomorrow, as did two friends. I don’t know anyone who has lot yet, so it seems a pretty good lottery to enter!
She was on the New York Times Book Review Podcast last week to talk about Jamie Bernstein's memoir Famous Father Girl (which, incidentally is now on my reading list), and she mentioned how she was working on the Stritch biography. No big details or anything, but yes she is working hard on it still.
I find it fascinating that the press release doesn't explain the concept beyond that the cast will all be women. Will names and pronouns be adjusted (like the London revival of Company), or will we understand them to be women playing men, adding a contextual layer (like how in Hamilton the actors are people of color, while the historical figures they play are white)?
Also it should be noted that Amy Morton has directed the play before, in a successf
The production that played Drury Lane Oakbrook in 2010 remains one of the best pieces of theatre I have ever seen. It was directed by the great Rachel Rockwell, who sadly passed away earlier this year. No other production I have seen has equaled it. It felt epic, yet incredibly intimate. Smaller versions of the show which try to get the minimalism often miss what makes the story (both the musical and the book) so great--its epic sweep. In Ragtime, you feel that you are getting t
In between Waitress and Carousel, she shot a small role in the film The Post. I would love to see her grow into a film career as she can be very subtle and nuanced. And I know that they already have a cast from the lab, but I actually think she could bring something really interesting and different to The Secret Garden. I would also love to see her take on Marian the Librarian or The Baker's Wife (in Into the Woods
This company included some of the most talented actors, singers, and dancers on the New York stage. First they're saddled with an amateurish production, and now they're out of work. I can't say I'm surprised that word of mouth caught up to this. Jack O'Brien, who used to be one of Broadway's greatest directors, turned in work on an amateur level. From misunderstanding what the piece is about and insisting on unnecessary cuts to his incredibly awkward pla
If you need to use the program to explain the show's meaning to your audience, you haven't done your job in clearly expressing that meaning in the play. I understand a wish to address the concerns brought up in this director's note, but I imagine there's a way to do so without simultaneously casting blame on the show's (still living) authors. There's a difference between saying "viewer discretion advised" and apologizing for the art you made before putti
@Scotty, while I agree with you about Staunton's Rose, I think it's worth noting that those who saw the production in person generally agree that her performance played much better in the theatre. What feels subtle in a 1,000-seat house can read as scenery-chewing on camera. I wish that she had dialed it in for the cameras (as I wish she also did in the NTLive broadcasts of Follies and ...Virginia Woolf?), considering she has done such great film work.
