Christopher Castanho News

As a professional, year-round, regional theatre, Mill Mountain Theatre has proudly served the southern Virginia region and the industry for more than 50 years. This year they present the hilarious 'LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS', October 4th-22nd. Part horror comedy musical, part sci-fi spoof; Little Shop has been making audiences all over the country scream with laughter since its debut in the early 80's. Producing Artistic Director, Ginger Poole choreographs while Assistant Artistic Director, Alicia Varcoe directs. This cult favorite musical is sure to please our Roanoke Valley audiences- its equal parts funny, frightening and touching, and full of catchy songs.' says Varcoe. 'I'm thrilled to work with such a stellar cast to bring this musical to Mill Mountain Theatre for the very first time.

Hundreds gathered in Mill Mountain Theatre's Trinkle Mainstage on September 14th to hear the fun and exciting news: Mill Mountain Theatre's 2018 Season Announcement. Their upcoming season will consist of four main stage musicals on the Trinkle, four shows for Young Audiences , three productions in the Waldron Fringe Series, two concerts in their Music Series, and a special family event. A brilliant balance of shows that all will enjoy.

This Monday, August 28th at 7 pm the original Off-Broadway cast of 'The Lightning Theif: The Percy Jackson Musical' will reunite for one night only at the Green Room 42 for a special concert event. Lightning Theif Composer and Lyricist Rob Rokicki will host the celebration in honor of the cast album reaching the #3 spot on the Billboard Cast Album award. I was lucky enough to chat with James Hayden Rodriguez, Shenandoah Conservatory alum and cast member of 'The Lightning Theif Musical' about his experience being a part of a show whose subject material has such a cult following, and hear about his career.

Stephen Flaherty's catchy and powerful melodies and Lynn Ahren's poignant lyrics 'It was the music of something beginning, an era exploding, a century spinning. In riches and rags, and in rhythm and rhyme. The people called it Ragtime.' can be heard at Maine's very own Ogunquit Playhouse running now until August 26th. I was lucky enough to sit down and chat with ensemble member Megan Lione to talk about how the story of Ragtime is more important than ever, as it is a piece of theatre that discusses diversity, inclusion, and love. Lione says 'The cast is incredible, all ages and backgrounds. It's really amazing.'

Recent graduate of Florida State University's Musical Theatre program, Trevor Michael Schmidt is currently seizing the day in Music Theatre Wichita's production of 'Newsies' as 'Crutchie' the sickly boy with a big heart. Schmidt has been a company member in MTWichita's whole summer season and is wrapping up his stay in Kansas by telling the Newsboy strike of 1899.

The 'Samuel French Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival' has been around for 42 years, and during that time over 500 theatre companies and schools have participated. Applicants have included companies from across the country as well as abroad from Canada, Singapore, and the United Kingdom. 'Singularity' by playwright Alex Flanigan will be performing on the festival's first day, August 8th at 6:30 pm.

Ken Davenport, Tony-Award winning Broadway producer, is gearing up for his next project 'Once on This Island' to hit the Great White Way this fall.  When not working on his four other shows on Broadway (Groundhog Day, Kinky Boots, and The Play That Goes Wrong) he writes a blog called 'The Producer's Perspective' giving up and coming theatre artists a behind the scenes look at his role in the industry.

Ohio's very own Short North Stage will be hosting yet another Charles Busch play 'Cleopatra' July 27th - August 6th at the Garden Theater. Having produced other tear-jerking comedies by the 'campy playwright' in previous years, Short North Stage Fan favorites 'Psycho Beach Party', 'Die Mommy Die', and 'The Divine Sister' Artistic Director Edward Carignan is excited

Broadway musical licensor Theatrical Rights Worldwide (TRW) and Rock The Audition's Sheri Sanders have partnered to create a series of new rock musicals that bridge the gap between popular music and musical theatre.

FEINSTEIN'S/54 BELOW, Broadway's Supper Club, presents '54 Sings 1776' on July 3 and July 4, 2017. The Fourth of July meets Broadway in the fourth annual concert staging of the beloved musical, 1776, at Feinstein's/54 Below.   Featuring Broadway stars like Carrie St. Louis (Wicked/Rock of Ages) and Kyle Scatliffe (Les Miserables/The Color Purple) you're sure to feel patriotic watching this beautifully staged concert.

The Jungle Book, a short play based on the classic stories by Rudyard Kipling, is Roanoke's very own Mill Mountain Theatre's summer outreach production, taking live theatre to unconventional settings, including parks and libraries. This production feature's MMT's 2017 Summer Apprentice Company. I was lucky enough to sit down with the director and adaptor of the well-known tale to hear about the process creating this new play and learn more about how Mill Mountain Theatre is spreading the gift of theatre across Roanoke, for free.

Skyler Volpe plays Mimi Marquez, the sexy, young, fun loving girl who has lived a tough life but chooses to see the world through an optimistic lens. I was lucky enough to talk to Volpe, an alumnus of Connecticut College, about her experience being a rock star on the 20th-anniversary national tour of RENT.

Shenandoah Conservatory's popular web series The Dream Team concluded its story with a riveting series finale last week. The Dream Team is an original series created by two Shenandoah University students in October of 2015, it currently has garnered 12 thousand views on YouTube, over 180 subscribers, and upwards of 340 FaceBook likes. Each episode centered around a freshman theatre class living out their first year of college at the fictional Betsey Bell Conservatory.

You don't always need a fairy godmother for your dreams to come true. Nineteen-year-old Emily Bautista was lucky enough to have extremely supportive parents and a boatload of talent instead. The thankful and humble young woman is now performing eight times a week in the Broadway revival of “Miss Saigon” as an ensemble member and understudies the lead: Kim. Emily and I actually went to high school together at the Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts for Musical Theatre, and I was floored and overjoyed to see that she had been cast in the production. Bautista took some time in between shows of the Tony-nominated production to chat with me about her experience landing her first Broadway show.

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 a Spanish adaptation of IN THE HEIGHTS in Washington, DC, HERE LIES LOVE at Seattle Rep, and WEST SIDE STORY in Los Angeles, just to name a few. Check out our top features below!

'Ay carajo, it's hot!' Can be heard at the Theater of the Performing Arts, but it's not due to the temperature on Washington Street in Hartford, it's about the temperature In The Heights. With a diverse and talented cast of thirty students, The Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts' spring musical proudly presents 'In The Heights' written by the Pulitzer-Prize Winning Writer Lin-Manuel Miranda, most famous for his recent creation: HAMILTON.

As I am graduating from Shenandoah Conservatory in the next couple weeks, I have been reflecting on the programs and faculty members that have positively impacted me during my time here, and ironically I have learned so much about myself and my craft outside the classroom. I credit a lot of my artistic growth from spending time in the dance studio, practice rooms, and rehearsal hall during late nights after classes have ended, collaborating with my peers. I think that when going into any industry it is important to have a wide understanding of communication and how to effectively talk to your teammates in order to achieve a goal.

Currently sailing the high seas and freezing hearts with her magical powers in the new Disney Crusie Line production 'Frozen, A Musical Spectacular' is mainstage performer Julianne Daly. I was lucky enough to sit down and chat with the actress and hear about how her experience developing a new musical adaptation of this famous and well-loved Disney film, in addition to being a Disney Cruise ship performer.

It's always a comfort knowing that alumni from your Musical Theatre program are working and doing great things in the entertainment industry. Jake Emmerling is doing just that, currently spreading the good word across the country in The Book of Mormon national tour as a member of the ensemble. After returning to his alma mater for an afternoon to teach a choreography masterclass, I was lucky enough to sit down with the performer and hear about his experience being on tour with such a big Broadway hit.

How To Succeed has always been on my list of musicals to see, but hadn't gotten the opportunity to experience, until I saw the Gay Men's Chorus of Washington DC's production at the beautiful and ornate Lincoln Theater. The original Broadway show ran for fourteen hundred performances and picked up the Tony-Award for Best Musical and Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1962. The show has been revived several times on the Great White Way, including the 1995 production starring Matthew Broderick and the 2011 revival headlined by Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe.