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BILLY ELLIOT THE MUSICAL Coming to Playhouse on the Square
by BWW News Desk - July 13, 2015
The 47th season for Playhouse on the Square begins with the regional premiere of Billy Elliot the Musical! Set in a northern English town amidst the turbulent 1984 miners' strike, Billy Elliot the Musical is the inspiring tale of one boy's journey as he exchanges his boxing gloves for ballet shoes. Featuring music by Elton John, The New York Times declares that Billy Elliot the Musical 'isn't a dance show; it's about why people need dance.'
MOUNTAIN VIEW Runs Now thru 8/2 at TheatreWorks
by BWW News Desk - July 10, 2015
When her father leaves unexpectedly, Jokate must take care of her younger brother while navigating the minefield of her mother's grief. Both independent and fiercely loyal, she tells the story of her kinfolk and her survival in the mountains of Appalachia. Mountain View is a world premier production and a winner of the 2013 Playhouse on the Square NewWorks@TheWorks playwriting competition and is written by local Memphian, Teri Feigelson.
LIBERACE! Opens Tonight at Theatre Memphis
by BWW News Desk - July 10, 2015
Liberace! will open tonight, July 10, and run until July 26, 2015, in the Next Stage at Theatre Memphis as a Summer Showcase performance. Featuring Gary Beard as the title character, this moving and highly entertaining tribute to the performer and musician famous for his charm, glitz, and glamour relives the highs (and lows) of Liberace's prolific life revealing the real person behind the persona. Interwoven with a rollicking piano score spanning classical and popular music from Chopin to 'Chopsticks,' and Rachmaninoff to Ragtime, this solo-performer production will have the audiences cheering the life of a unique American icon.
The Great Wine Performances at Playhouse on the Square Set for 8/18
by BWW News Desk - July 09, 2015
As the 47th season opens, join Playhouse on the Square for The Great Wine Performances on August 18th from 6 - 8pm. The Great Wine Performances is a fun and funky fundraiser that brings some of your favorite Hollywood and Broadway musicals together with 10 different wines, to create an evening that you won't soon forget!
Orpheum Theatre to Roast President & CEO Pat Halloran, 9/24
by BWW News Desk - July 09, 2015
On Thursday, September 24th the Orpheum Theatre will recognize longtime President and CEO Pat Halloran with a Roast. Halloran recently announced his retirement effective December 31st of 2015. By that time, he will have completed 35 years of invaluable service to the Orpheum. Proceeds from this special night of anecdotes will benefit Halloran's last and largest project: the Halloran Centre for Performing Arts & Education. Tickets will go on sale to the public on Thursday, July 23rd.
Tickets to MENOPAUSE THE MUSICAL at Orpheum Theatre Now on Sale
by BWW News Desk - July 07, 2015
GFour Productions, winners of 54 Drama Desk and 44 Tony Awards, today announced the cast of leading ladies for the Memphis production of the international hit show Menopause The Musical, which will play the Orpheum Theatre for 3 performances, August 1-2, 2015. Tickets are available for purchase online at the official Orpheum Theatre website, www.orpheum-memphis.com, The Orpheum Box Office (901.525.3000), the ticket counter at The Booksellers at Laurelwood, and all Ticketmaster centers (901.743.ARTS).
MOUNTAIN VIEW to Run 7/10-8/2 at TheatreWorks
by BWW News Desk - June 26, 2015
When her father leaves unexpectedly, Jokate must take care of her younger brother while navigating the minefield of her mother's grief. Both independent and fiercely loyal, she tells the story of her kinfolk and her survival in the mountains of Appalachia. Mountain View is a world premier production and a winner of the 2013 Playhouse on the Square NewWorks@TheWorks playwriting competition and is written by local Memphian, Teri Feigelson.
BACKSTAGE BASH Returns to The Orpheum, 8/7
by BWW News Desk - June 25, 2015
The 2nd annual Backstage Bash will be held on Friday, August 7th, 2015 from 6:00 PM to 10:00 PM at The Orpheum Theatre. The Backstage Bash gives guests the 'star's view' of the Orpheum by taking place on the theatre's iconic stage and providing access to the Orpheum's celebrated collection of murals painted by Broadway touring casts.
BWW Reviews: Playhouse's GOSPEL AT COLONUS Finds Sophocles 'Holy Rollin'
by Joseph Baker - June 21, 2015
While watching THE GOSPEL AT COLONUS, the African-American version of Sophocles' OEDIPUS AT COLONUS as created by Lee Breuer (with music by Bob Telson), I was reminded of the reimagining of the Old Testament by Marc Connelly in the 1930 Pulitzer Prize-winning THE GREEN PASTURES. Like GOSPEL, THE GREEN PASTURES serves up time-honored material by transposing it to a religious setting;. PASTURES relates the Old Testament as envisioned by a young Afro-American boy; thus, Heaven is one big fish fry. When I first saw the 1936 film version (which Connelly, a white man, scripted for Warners' director William Keighley), I found it a special experience -- a wonderful all-black cast was an anomaly for a young viewer in the late 1950's and early i60's; now, with the passage of time (and legislation), I can understand why modern audiences would find it politically incorrect (though that cast is still peopled with some amazing talent). Interestingly, Mr. Breuer eschews following Connelly's suit, and though he utilizes a Black minister and church service to tell his tale, he focuses instead on an ancient Greek tragedy rather than the Old -- or New -- Testament.
THE 39 STEPS Runs Now thru 7/3 at Roxy Regional Theatre
by BWW News Desk - June 19, 2015
Mix a Hitchcock masterpiece with a juicy spy novel, add a dash of Monty Python, and you have the Roxy Regional Theatre's hilarious new offering, THE 39 STEPS, opening tonight, June 19, at 8pm.
MAMMA MIA! National Tour Returns to Orpheum This Weekend
by BWW News Desk - June 19, 2015
Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus' MAMMA MIA!, the smash hit musical based on the songs of ABBA, returns to The Orpheum Theatre in June. Performances begin tonight, June 19 and run through June 21 at The Orpheum Theatre in Memphis TN.
BWW Features: Jill Guyton Nee Brings Momemtum to Memphis
by Caroline Sposto - June 17, 2015
I first met Jill Guyton Nee last fall shortly after she arrived at the University of Memphis as an Associate Professor and Director of Dance. Exceedingly youthful, unassuming, and softspoken, this award-winning perfomer and choreographer has brought fresh focus and energy not only to the U of M Deparment od Theatre & Dance, but also to the local arts scene.
Germantown Community Theatre Offers Sensory Friendly Performance of A YEAR WITH FROG AND TOAD Today
by BWW News Desk - June 17, 2015
Germantown Community Theatre is proud to partner with Full Spectrum Theatre Initiative to present a sensory friendly performance of A YEAR WITH FROG AND TOAD.
OLIVER! to Open Roxy Regional Theatre's 33rd Season
by BWW News Desk - June 16, 2015
In 1983 an abandoned movie house was saved from the wrecking ball, and on November 3, what has become the cornerstone of arts and entertainment in Clarksville-Montgomery County opened to a grand ovation. Through grit, determination and support from likeminded individuals, the Roxy Regional Theatre is now poised to celebrate 33 years of providing an educational and artistic outlet for the Southeast.
LIBERACE! Opens 7/10 at Theatre Memphis
by BWW News Desk - June 16, 2015
Liberace! will open July 10 and run until July 26, 2015, in the Next Stage at Theatre Memphis as a Summer Showcase performance. Featuring Gary Beard as the title character, this moving and highly entertaining tribute to the performer and musician famous for his charm, glitz, and glamour relives the highs (and lows) of Liberace's prolific life revealing the real person behind the persona. Interwoven with a rollicking piano score spanning classical and popular music from Chopin to 'Chopsticks,' and Rachmaninoff to Ragtime, this solo-performer production will have the audiences cheering the life of a unique American icon.
MOTOWN National Tour Coming to The Orpheum, 7/14-19
by BWW News Desk - June 16, 2015
Producers Kevin McCollum, Doug Morris and Berry Gordy, and The Orpheum Theatre, are proud to announce that performances for MOTOWN THE MUSICAL begin July 14, 2015.  Tickets are on sale and available for purchase online at the official Orpheum Theatre website, www.orpheum-memphis.com, The Orpheum Box Office (901.525.3000), the ticket counter at The Booksellers at Laurelwood, and all Ticketmaster centers (901.743.ARTS).  MOTOWN THE MUSICAL will play at The Orpheum Theatre, July 14 - 19, 2015.  Group orders of 15 or more may be placed by calling 901.529.4226.     
Katrina Lenk & Eric B. Anthony Set for TN Shakespeare Company's MIDSUMMER NIGHT
by BWW News Desk - June 16, 2015
Tennessee Shakespeare Company, in partnership with the University of Memphis' Department of Theatre & Dance, presents its second developing musical reading on the U of M mainstage with Midsummer Night by Valerie Vigoda and Brendan Milburn on June 27 at 7:00 pm.
BWW Reviews: Hattiloo's SIMPLY SIMONE Sings and Zings
by Joseph Baker - June 14, 2015
Somewhere in my prodigious vinyl collection there is at least one album by the self-proclaimed 'High Priestess of Soul,' Nina Simone; and having just seen SIMPLY SIMONE: The Music of Nina Simone, at the Hattiloo Theatre, I am taking a deep breath and planning to thumb through my myriad of records in order to seek it out. Nina Simone never quite 'caught on' with mainstream audiences; the legendary Aretha Franklin, who, like Simone, emerged from a gospel background and was a gifted pianist, was much more successful in that respect. Simone was too idiosyncratic a performer to be pigeonholed or labeled. She scoffed at being called a blues singer or a jazz singer; her early classical training, encouraged by a white pianist and patron (who collected money from the people in the town and helped to enroll at Juilliard), always informed her music. Moreover, the songs she chose to interpret, in addition to her own, were an eclectic repertoire: Everything from Gershwin to the Beatles. Underappreciated in her own country, and disillusioned by the stagnation of the Civil Rights Movement after the death of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., she found her audience abroad, particularly in France; she turned her back on disco (which she disdainfully dismissed) and was selective and intelligent in the music she chose to interpret, which left no room for her on the popularity bandwagon.
Photo Flash: Sneak Peek at Diana DeGarmo and More in Studio Tenn's THE WIZARD OF OZ
by BWW News Desk - June 12, 2015
After wrapping up the highly-acclaimed JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT tour, which she co-starred in alongside husband Ace Young, Diana DeGarmo will lead the cast of Studio Tenn's upcoming production of THE WIZARD OF OZ June 13 and 14. Check out a sneak peek behind the scenes below!
See Michael Jordan, Bugs Bunny and More in '90s Hit Movie SPACE JAM Today at the Orpheum
by BWW News Desk - June 12, 2015
The Orpheum Theatre and Kroger present Michael Jordan, Bugs Bunny and more in the popular 1996 sports film SPACE JAM today, June 12th at 1:30 PM. Fans are encouraged to don their best Grizz Gear and arrive early for special appearances by fan favorites Grizz and the Grizz Girls of Memphis' beloved NBA franchise, the Memphis Grizzlies.
Germantown Community Theatre to Offer Sensory Friendly Performance of A YEAR WITH FROG AND TOAD, 6/17
by BWW News Desk - June 11, 2015
Germantown Community Theatre is proud to partner with Full Spectrum Theatre Initiative to present a sensory friendly performance of A YEAR WITH FROG AND TOAD.
See Michael Jordan, Bugs Bunny and More in '90s Hit Movie SPACE JAM, 6/12 at the Orpheum
by BWW News Desk - June 08, 2015
The Orpheum Theatre and Kroger present Michael Jordan, Bugs Bunny and more in the popular 1996 sports film SPACE JAM on Friday, June 12th at 1:30 PM. Fans are encouraged to don their best Grizz Gear and arrive early for special appearances by fan favorites Grizz and the Grizz Girls of Memphis' beloved NBA franchise, the Memphis Grizzlies.
POTS@TheWorks to Present World Premiere of MOUNTAIN VIEW
by BWW News Desk - June 08, 2015
When her father leaves unexpectedly, Jokate must take care of her younger brother while navigating the minefield of her mother's grief. Both independent and fiercely loyal, she tells the story of her kinfolk and her survival in the mountains of Appalachia. Mountain View is a world premier production and a winner of the 2013 Playhouse on the Square NewWorks@TheWorks playwriting competition and is written by local Memphian, Teri Feigelson.
BWW Reviews: Theatre Memphis' ANYTHING GOES - It's 'De-Lovely'!
by Joseph Baker - June 06, 2015
It's early June in Memphis, but, with the recent success of Playhouse on the Square's KISS ME, KATE and, now, Theatre Memphis' sparkling production of ANYTHING GOES, we seem to be having, as my late grandmother might say, 'another 'cole' snap' - Cole Porter, that is. Who would not welcome the giddy book by the great P.G. Wodehouse and Guy Bolton, with a reworking by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse? And who has not delighted to such songs as 'You're the Top,' 'I Get a Kick Out of You,' 'Blow, Gabriel, Blow,' 'It's De-Lovely,' and, of course, the title tune?

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