Carmen Cusack News

The Drama League (Executive Artistic Director, Gabriel Shelian-Shanks) gathers today for the 82nd Annual Drama League Awards Ceremony, hosted by 2016 Tony® Award-nominees, Zachary Levi (She Loves Me) and Megan Hilty (Noises Off), in the Broadway Ballroom at the Marriott Marquis Times Square (1535 Broadway). 

BroadwayWorld has teamed up with renowned caricature artist Ken Fallin, a life-long theater enthusiast, who has drawn many Broadway and Off-Broadway productions. Below, check out his latest illustration of Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in A Musical Tony nominees: Jessie Mueller (Waitress), Laura Benanti (She Loves Me), Phillipa Soo (Hamilton), Cynthia Erivo (The Color Purple), and Carmen Cusack (Bright Star).

Manhattan Theatre Club just hosted its annual Spring Gala last night, May 16 at Cipriani 42nd Street (110 East 42nd Street) honoring Marie T. Gallagher, Senior Vice President, PepsiCo, Inc. BroadwayWorld was on hand for the special night and you can check out photos below!

On Monday, May 16 the Theater People podcast welcomes BRIGHT STAR's Tony nominated leading lady, Carmen Cusack.

Today I'm addressing another excellent question from @JudyMolnar: 'What are some favorite items Bright Star cast members have in their dressing rooms? Show & tell.'

Hottest Articles on BroadwayWorld.com from this weekend Sunday, May 15, 2016 - Sunday, May 15, 2016.

Manhattan Theatre Club hosts its annual Spring Gala tonight, May 16 at Cipriani 42nd Street (110 East 42nd Street) honoring Marie T. Gallagher, Senior Vice President, PepsiCo, Inc.

The newly minted Drama Desk nominees met the press just yesterday and BroadwayWorld.com was there to meet all of them!

The newly minted Drama Desk nominees met the press today and BroadwayWorld.com was there to meet all of them! 

Carmen Cusack has finally made her Broadway debut, and it's in the role of a lifetime. She plays Alice Murphy (at two ages) in Steve Martin and Edie Brickell's BRIGHT STAR- a performance that earned her a nomination for Best Performance by and Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical. Hear her story below!

Today's big news: DO I HEAR A WALTZ? begins at Encores!, NC Stage's BRAVE NEW WORLD musical with Justin Matthew Sargent starts tonight, and HAMILTON gets honored with the 2016 Brendan Gill Prize!

In this second part of Understudying on Broadway (you can find Part 1 here), I'm discussing the subject with two women who each have tons of experience, Sandra (Sandy) DeNise and Sarah Jane Shanks, both currently covering the demanding, central role of 'Alice Murphy' in Bright Star. (I should mention that they both also cover the role of 'Lucy Grant,' and additionally, Sandy covers 'Mama Murphy!')

Ghostlight Records recently released the original cast recording of Bright Star, the new musical from Grammy and Emmy Award winner Steve Martin and Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Edie Brickell. The album - produced by the legendary, multi-Grammy Award-winning producer, manager, and musician Peter Asher - will be available in stores everywhere beginning Friday, May 27. The digital booklet features full lyrics, show photos, liner notes from Martin, Brickell and Asher, in addition to a synopsis and essay by Bill Rosenfield. To order the album, please visit http://www.sh-k-boom.com/bright-star-original-broadway-cast-recording. Below, watch as Tony nominee Carmen Cusack records 'If You Knew My Story' in the studio!

Manhattan Theatre Club will host its annual Spring Gala on Monday, May 16 at Cipriani 42nd Street (110 East 42nd Street) honoring Marie T. Gallagher, Senior Vice President, PepsiCo, Inc.

With the chance for a Tony win looking far out of reach, the struggling musical tries building box office momentum with its five nominations.

Just In! The Outer Critics Circle, the organization of writers and commentators for media covering New York theatre announced today its award winners for the 2015-16 season in 25 categories.

Those of you who have seen Bright Star know what a tour de force the role of "Alice Murphy" is for our Tony/Drama Desk/Outer Critics Circle-nominated leading lady, Carmen Cusack. And while she seems to be indefatigable, ever in great voice, and able to do eight brilliant and emotional shows a week, plus any number of extracurricular appearances, it's only a matter of time (or vacation) before "Alice Murphy" will fall into the hands of one or both of her understudies, who have been preparing diligently for the big task. Lucky for us, those two women are the super-talented and highly experienced Sandra (Sandy) DeNise and Sarah Jane Shanks, who, in their regular Bright Star tracks, carry an already heavy load as members of the ensemble, acting, singing, dancing, and set-moving their way through almost every scene in the show. 

Who really cares about spring? Awards season has arrived- the only time of the year that really matters to Broadway fans everywhere. The 2016 Tony nominees were announced earlier this week, with a record 16 nods going to HAMILTON, and show like SHUFFLE ALONG, SHE LOVES ME and LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT also picking up a considerable amount of recognition. Just yesterday the nominees flocked to the Paramount Hotel, where they met with the press for the first time since getting the big news. BroadwayWorld will be bringing you coverage from the epic day over the next month (so watch out for lots more), but for now, hold yourself over with some beautiful portraits of the nominees as captured by Walter McBride.

Below, check out how each show fared individually in BWW's list of nominations by show.

The 2016 Tony nominations were announced this morning. Below, check out some fun facts about this year's nominees!