Lauren Mufson

Pangea, a vital incubator for new work crossing boundaries between theatre, music and elsewhere, will present a diverse mix of entertainers in February.  Among the highlights are several Pangea favorites returning with special encores of their popular and well-reviewed shows.

Four decades later and in the middle of a show business shut down, Brandy's Piano Bar is still offering live entertainment ... and some great hot toddies.

Coming to a computer, smartphone, television, or tablet near you, it is the second edition of The Revue of Revues. Performed entirely in the digital realm, The Revue of Revues presents performers from around the country collaborating on musical numbers and sketch comedy routines.

Today (August 5) in live streaming:Forbidden Broadway alumni unite on Stars in the House, Liz Callaway visits Backstage Live, and so much more!

Brandy's Piano Bar has been the little bar that could for five months, and as the lockdown continues, the team at Brandy's starts a new fundraising effort - a concert series on Thursday nights.

As we enter the fifth month of the shutdown of New York City's nightlife, the staff of Brandy's Piano Bar asked how they could help keep the lights on at our beloved establishment. They decided to dedicate the month of August to raising funds to keep the bar alive, which is a valued part of the city's nightlife and a small locally owned gay business that welcomes everyone who crosses our threshold.

The Manhattan Association of Cabarets (MAC) has announced the 2019 MAC Award nominees. The nominees, in a majority of the categories, were determined by votes cast by the active MAC membership. Special committees selected the nominees in the Ensemble Instrumentalist, Piano Bar Instrumentalist, Piano Bar Singing Entertainer (Female; Male), Recording (LaMott Friedman), Major Recording, Song and Comedy/Novelty Song categories.

Richard Skipper topped himself once again with a rousing afternoon of Broadway and Off-Broadway stars taking to the stage at the Laurie Beechman Theater to tell stories of how they created or personalized great roles in the musical theater.

Ms. Bradbury, after Elia Kazan discovered her at the Actor's Studio, made her debut on Broadway in play, J.B. performing alongside Raymond Massey and Christopher Plummer. But it was her creation of the role of Dainty June in the original Broadway production of Gypsy with the legendary Ethel Merman that put her in the public eye. She also originated the role of Charlotte Goodall in the Broadway premiere of Tennessee Williams' The Night of the Iguana.

The Manhattan Association of Cabarets (MAC) is pleased to announce the 2018 MAC Award nominees. The nominees, in a majority of the categories, were determined by votes cast by the active MAC membership. The MAC Board of Directors selected the nominees for Show of the Year. Special committees selected the nominees in the Ensemble Instrumentalist, Piano Bar Instrumentalist, Piano Bar Singing Entertainer (Female; Male), Recording (LaMott Friedman), Major Recording, Song and Comedy/Novelty Song categories. The names of the songwriters in the Song and Comedy/Novelty Song categories are being withheld during the voting period, but will be announced publicly as soon as the voting period concludes.

Following its developmental San Francisco Bay Area run earlier this year, LOVE SICK, the award-winning new musical, will hold an industry invite-only reading in New York today, November 16 and Friday, November 17.

Following its developmental San Francisco Bay Area run earlier this year, LOVE SICK, the award-winning new musical, will hold an industry invite-only reading in New York on Thursday, November 16 and Friday, November 17.

The Manhattan Association of Cabarets & Clubs (MAC) has announced the 2017 MAC Award nominees.

Having had the privilege to serve as Broadway World's Maine Editor for more than three years now, I can say with pride that the state, though remote as it may seem from the epicenter of the theatre world, Broadway, is blessed to be home to so many thriving theatre companies who produce exciting, vibrant seasons. As I compiled my list for 2016 with many familiar names, I was also struck by the extraordinary consistency of excellence these companies maintain. Here are my personal choices of the best in Maine, grouped by theatre and show.

'It's the music and the storytelling; the storytelling walks a fine line between being universal and silly. There is a lot of humor and a lot of warmth and so many relationships you can connect with. All that coupled with joyful, upbeat, recognizable music - those crazy tunes by those inspired creators - make for magic.' Leading lady Lauren Mufson is explaining what she believes to be the enduring appeal of the joyous ABBA musical, Mamma Mia! In which she is currently playing Donna Sheridan, a role she performed on Broadway and national tour. She is joined by a panel of other artists - actors Ian Knauer (Sam Carmichael), Mylinda Hull (Rosie), Chelsea Williams (Sophie) and stage manager Mark Johnson - all involved with the stunning revival that opened to rave reviews at Maine State Music Theatre on August 11th for the last in the Peek Behind the Curtain series of interviews by Broadway World's Carla Maia Verdino-Sullwold, held at Brunswick's Curtis Memorial Library on August 17th.

The electric, near ecstatic atmosphere in Brunswick's Pickard Theater last night more closely resembled that of a rock concert than a theatre company opening. For months in advance, the sold out box office has signaled the joyful anticipation of Maine State Music Theatre's new production of Mamma Mia! - one of the first regionally for the blockbuster Broadway hit. But anticipation aside, it is the delivery here that is the story: a stunningly executed, intelligently staged, deliciously performed rendition of the 2001 long running ABBA musical that transformed the intimate Pickard Theater into a boisterous celebration.

If you were among the lucky theatre lovers who scored a ticket to the Broadway blockbuster hit, Mamma Mia! in 2005, you might have had the pleasure the pleasure of experiencing Lauren Mufson make her Broadway debut in the leading role of Donna Sheridan. Now more than ten years later, the actress returns to the beloved ABBA musical in a highly anticipated new production at Maine State Music Theatre that opens August 10. The musical theatre and cabaret artist, teacher and voice coach and mother of two is delighted not only to revisit one of her favorite parts, but to make her Maine stage debut in one of the first ever regional productions of the show.

Maine State Music Theatre closes out its 2016 season in Brunswick with MAMMA MIA!, the Broadway smash-hit based on songs of pop super group, ABBA. MAMMA MIA! runs from August 10 to August 27. Due to popular demand, three matinees have been added on August 13, 20, and 27.

'We are excited to have the audience open its eyes to some sunshine. [Artistic Director] Curt Dale Clark and I were just saying this morning that this has been an intense season so far, and Fiddler on the Roof and Evita cannot let in much sun. But we stream that light in Mamma Mia, and we hope it will provide a chance to breathe in the joy of the Greek Isles. If we do it right, we will all feel an uplift.' Director/choreographer Mark Martino is waxing eloquent about his latest project and one which constitutes his Maine State Music Theatre debut: a new production of the 2001 Broadway smash it musical Mamma Mia, based on the songs of ABBA. Martino has what he calls 'a very short history' with the show, having mounted a production for the first time in June of this year at the Theatre Aspen. 'The two will be staged very differently,' he explains. 'Aspen is a 200-seat thrust stage, and here they have a 600-seat proscenium theatre. The Pickard Theater gives me an opportunity to expand the show. Our cast at MSMT is about one third larger than in Colorado - some twenty-seven actors - which is even a bit larger than the twenty-four in the original Broadway production. The production values are going to be large and lavish, and the cast has a huge amount of energy, so for me it is an opportunity to revisit the show and make different pictures and entirely different choreography.'

Paper Mill Playhouse opens its 2015-2016 season with the world premiere musical THE BANDSTAND. As previously announced, Tony Award nominee Laura Osnes (Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella, Bonnie and Clyde), Corey Cott (Newsies, Gigi) and Tony Award winner Beth Leavel (The Drowsy Chaperone, 42nd Street) star in the show, which runs through Sunday, November 8, 2015. BroadwayWorld takes you inside the opening night curtain call below!