Barnes News

Disney's Aladdin marked its anniversary this week having celebrated its official opening night three years ago on 15 June 2016. The spectacular West End musical has now welcomed more than two million audience members at the Prince Edward Theatre where tickets are on sale for performances up to and including Saturday 24 August 2019 - when it will conclude its magical run in London. For further details please visit www.aladdinthemusical.co.uk

Splashy casting news is plenty exciting but we're taking a moment to give a shoutout to the casts of some of Broadway's long-running shows. Meet the current cast of The Book of Mormon below!

The Sauk, Hillsdale County's community theatre, is excited to announce the cast for their upcoming production of MAMMA MIA! Performances are scheduled for August 8-11 and 15-18.

Well before that founding father refused to throw away his shot, even before those Mormons made us giggle with their irreverence, the hot ticket in town was "Wicked". Well, Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman's witches have returned to the Emerald City and the bloom is still quite firmly attached to that bright pink rose in Glinda's hair.

Natasha J Barnes (Cordelia), Daniel Boys (Marvin), Matt Cardle (Mendel), Gemma Knight-Jones (Charlotte), Laura Pitt-Pulford (Trina) and Oliver Savile (Whizzer) will star in the eagerly awaited European premiere of the multi award-winning musical, Falsettos.

The Daily Mail has announced casting for a forthcoming production of Falsettos at The Other Palace Theatre in London's West End.

Massey Hall is pleased to announce that Toronto Mayor John Tory has proclaimed June 14, 2019 "Massey Hall Day" in honour of the National Historic Site's 125 birthday.

The National Theatre has announced 15 productions of new plays and fresh adaptations by leading writers.

Author Sophie Barnes announces the release of her new historical romance novel, More Than A Rogue. Scheduled for release on June 25, 2019, the book is already receiving rave reviews from readers and reviewers.

Anna Ziegler's play 'Boy' gives an unflinching look at gender identity. I was fortunate enough to see it's Off-Broadway premiere back in 2016 and found it quite moving and engaging. But it's a tough one to get into and requires some top-notch performances to grab the audience as it's all talk. I say this because that's exactly what we do not have with the current production from Fantastic.Z Theatre. What we have here is a series of flat and at times strange line readings from an ensemble that are each in their own play and not connecting with the others with whom they share the stage.

David Maraniss, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and bestselling author, has been chronicling American life and now with 'A Good American Family,' he turns the lens on his own family to examine the politics of the 1950s McCarthy era with this powerfully resonant book.

What happens if you take the upbeat and danceable pop music of a Swedish supergroup, place it in a beautiful sun-drenched setting, add in a dash of comedy, some athletic dancing, and a pinch of bright colors, and wrap it all in a simple, but entertaining, story? You get MAMMA MIA!, the hit musical featuring the music of ABBA,  which is the first musical offering in the 2019 Nutmeg Summer Series at the Connecticut Repertory Theatre (CRT) at the University of Connecticut. The CT Rep, once again under the artistic direction of Terrence Mann (who also serves as the director of this production), is offering MAMMA MIA! as one of only two shows this summer season (down from the typical three) in order to give more people the opportunity to see each production.

Australian rock legend Jimmy Barnes has secured a staggering sixteenth #1 album today, with his critically acclaimed My Criminal Record debuting at the top of the ARIA Album Charts. After four with Cold Chisel and now 12 in his own right, Jimmy has had more number ones in this country than any other artist in ARIA Chart history, surpassing Madonna and U2's 11 chart-toppers with today's achievement.

Cole Porter's musical comedy Kiss Me, Kate - 2019 Broadway Cast Recording is available for digital download and streaming starting today, Friday, June 7.

Prolific playwright David Edgar is directed in his professional performance debut by triple Fringe First Award-winner Christopher Haydon in a solo show considering the legacy of the events of 1968. In 1968, playwright David Edgar was 20 years old. It was also the year of some of the most important and formative events in modern history, including the Paris student revolt, the assassination of Martin Luther King, Enoch Powell's "rivers of blood" speech, and the ongoing war in Vietnam. Trying It On is a new play written and performed by David Edgar, which reflects on the legacy of this momentous year, drawing on first-person interviews with some of the leading political figures of the time, as well as contemporary activists. The performance also marks David's first professional stage performance in this autobiographical one-man play.

Dan Looney, Adam Paulden and Jason Haigh-Ellery for DLAP Entertainment are delighted to announce full casting for the Tony award winning musical CURTAINS which stars the previously announced Jason Manford as Detective 'Frank Cioffi' coming to Darlington Hippodrome later this year.

Connecticut Repertory Theatre presents the first production of the 2019 Nutmeg Summer Series: "Mamma Mia!," the Tony Award-nominated musical based on the songs of ABBA.  

Williamstown Theatre Festival announces additional casting and full creative teams for productions

GHOSTLIGHT RECORDS will release the 2019 Broadway Cast Recording for Cole Porter's musical comedy Kiss Me, Kate. The album will be released for digital download and streaming on Friday, June 7. The CD release is planned for later this year.