Ben Michael News

Perfectly Victorian is a bold new musical set for a staged reading in the Broadway Bound Theater Festival on Friday August 17th at 1:30pm. The show features a score by Bryan Adam with Book & Lyrics by Bryan Adam & Matt Kelly.

From curtain rise to fall, 'An American in Paris' hinges on dance. The show is a work of art from start to finish, as every danced moment, from the nuance of falling in love to show-stopping kick lines, is crafted to artistic perfection.

Eiffel in love. A quarter of the way through its second act, "An American in Paris" transforms from a golden-age dancebox musical into full-out modern musical theatre. The quintet of lovers at the heart of its story weave their raw, overlapping passions through three songs written by George and Ira Gershwin. And they do it all while barely moving. It's a welcome moment of stillness in an otherwise kinetic show.

In recent years, Broadway musicals have come from seemingly every kind of source material, from books to movies to comics. Sometimes, the results are extraordinary and exceptional, while other times, they are just ordinary. Or, in some cases, like An American in Paris, it turn out to be a less-than-ordinary show that fails on many levels.

What a trail of stardust the whole musical leaves! There are the sets and lighting which dazzle in their nimble evocation of the wonders of Paris, with a side-step into a fantasy nightclub that seems to be Radio City Music Hall, complete with spangled leggy chorines and dudes in top hats and tails. There is the dancing of the athletic McGee Maddox and the graceful Allison Walsh. (How many performers out there can claim true balletic chops, skill at acting and singing - and the aforementioned hotness?) And the word 'dazzling' seems to have been coined for Gershwin's music, generously ladled over the entire enterprise, and beautifully performed.

This must be one of the prettiest shows for the stage. AN AMERICAN IN PARIS, currently being presented at Mirvish, will have you shaking your head in wonder at Bob Crowley's imaginative set design and Christopher Wheeldon's breathtaking direction and choreography. The musical, inspired by the Academy Award-winning motion picture with Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron, features the sublime music and lyrics by George and Ira Gershwin. Although the performances are tremendously uneven, the musical is a feast for the eyes that is an unmissable theatrical attraction in Toronto.

The current touring production of AN AMERICAN IN PARIS is an absolutely resplendent musical from start to finish.  Heavy on the dance and with stunning sets, this show is a feast for the senses that will have your toes tapping and fill your heart with joy.

In most of the national tour musicals that have passed through the Ohio Theatre, dance often seems to be a submissive stepchild to storyline and song. However, AN AMERICAN IN PARIS: A NEW MUSICAL, a reimagining of the music of George and Ira Gershwin, finds the perfect marriage between music and movement.

Adam Hochberg (Matthew Scott) befriends fellow U.S.GI, Jerry Mulligan (McGee Maddox) after both decide to stay in Paris after World War 2.

AN AMERICAN IN PARIS is coming to Omaha! This winner of multiple Tony Awards, based on the 1951 Academy Award winning film of the same name and adapted for stage by Christopher Wheeldon, will run February 13-18 at Omaha's Orpheum Theatre.

BroadwayWorld presents a comprehensive weekly roundup of regional stories around our Broadway World, which include videos, editor spotlights, regional reviews and more. This week, we feature LES MIS, WAITRESS, PRSCILLA, and More!

Another S'Wonderful night at the Saenger! From the stunning backdrops to the French accents, you may find yourself believing that you're in Paris by the end of the night. 'An American in Paris' is a fantastic review of dance set to the incredible score by George and Ira Gershwin.

Calling all humans! Tonight, AN AMERICAN IN PARIS opens at the Saenger Theatre in New Orleans, and this is a show you absolutely don't want to miss. With music by the Gershwin brothers, book by Craig Lucas, and with the choreography and direction of Christopher Wheeldon, this show brings beauty and light to the aftermath of World War II in Paris. We follow three young men who are on a journey to find love and to find their way in the world through making art in a time when the world was struggling to recover.

BroadwayWorld presents a comprehensive weekly roundup of regional stories around our Broadway World, which include videos, editor spotlights, regional reviews and more. This week, we feature The Phantom of the Opera, A Christmas Carol, The Lorax, and More!

Washington is awash in holiday parties this month; however you'd be remiss to skip the celebration of life, dance, art, and Gershwin that is the swanky touring production of An American in Paris.

An American in Paris, the most awarded new musical of 2015 and winner of four Tony Awards, is currently playing until December 10th at the Detroit Opera House. It is a stunning show filled with some of the most exquisite dance numbers in recent history, catchy songs, and a beautiful story to go along with it.

Gershwin talent is inimitable; in 1932, Of Thee I Sing was the first musical to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. George wrote the orchestral piece, An American in Paris, in 1928, inspired by the time he spent in Paris. In 1951, MGM released the musical film An American in Paris. It won Best Picture Oscar. Directed by Vincente Minnelli (Judy Garland's husband), the film featured many tunes of Gershwin, and concluded with an extensive, elaborate dance sequence built around the An American in Paris symphonic poem. The 2015 stage musical, AN AMERICAN IN PARIS won four Tony Awards, three Outer Critics Circle Awards, a Drama League Award, two Theatre World Awards, four Drama Desk Awards, three Fred and Adele Astaire Awards.

David Mirvish and Aubrey Dan present AN AMERICAN IN PARIS, the most awarded new musical of 2015 and winner of four Tony Awards. AN AMERICAN IN PARIS will play Toronto's Princess of Wales Theatre, for a 5-week engagement March 27 - April 29, 2018.

There is a new vision of heaven tap-dancing its way through my brain replete with beautiful showgirls and handsome chorus boys performing a show-stopping version of George and Ira Gershwin's I'll Build a Stairway to Paradise from An American in Paris, the sumptuous musical now onstage at Tennessee Performing Arts Center's Andrew Jackson Hall through Sunday, November 5 and, quite frankly, if that is not what paradise will look like should I arrive there after my untimely demise, I will simply refuse to stay. For if paradise isn't the gorgeous and glittery, utterly theatrical vision supplied by this altogether splendid production, I'll say to hell with it (and me, I suppose), because surely paradise is set to a lush and memorable Gershwin score. Anything else is simply a poor facsimile of the real thing. Est-ce que tu comprends?