Christopher Gattelli News

The much-acclaimed Lincoln Center staging of THE KING AND I celebrates a triumphant start to its national tour at the Providence Performing Arts Center. This jewel of a production is so utterly exceptional in every detail, words of praise scarcely seem to do it justice. Simply put, this is one of the finest shows to grace the PPAC stage in recent memory.

Broadway In Chicago has just announced its next season line-up: a new Pre-Broadway musical ESCAPE TO MARGARITAVILLE featuring the songs of legendary singer-songwriter-author Jimmy Buffett, Tony Award-winning AN AMERICAN IN PARIS, Tony Award-winning RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN'S THE KING AND I, the completely original new musical comedy SOMETHING ROTTEN! and LES MISERABLES.

It was the most successful show in the history of Chicago's Goodman Theatre, and very soon, New York will get a taste of it too.

On October 24, the Stage Directors and Choreographers Foundation (SDC Foundation) will celebrate the 27th Annual Joe A. Callaway Award winners for Direction and Choreography at the Laurie Beechman Theatre. The evening will be hosted by former Callaway Award-winning Jack O'Brien and Callaway Award finalist Joshua Bergasse.

As My Fair Lady continues to play to packed houses, Minister for Trade, Tourism and Major Events Stuart Ayres and producers Opera Australia and John Frost are thrilled to announce that the 60th Anniversary production of MY FAIR LADY, has sold more tickets than any other production in the history of the Sydney Opera House.

NEWSIES is a Disney Theatrical Productions musical based on their 1992 film Newsies. The original film took its inspiration from the Newsboys Strike of 1899 in New York City. NEWSIES has a book by Harvey Fierstein with music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Jack Feldman. It premiered at the Paper Mill Playhouse in 2011 and made its Broadway debut in 2012, where it played for 1004 performances. The stage version contains songs from the movie and several new numbers. Those who grew up on the film version will notice that this new adaptation has written out Jack's original love interest Sarah Jacobs as well as the New York Sun reporter Brian Denton, who writes about the Newsies. These characters have been replaced by a new character, Katherine Plumber, a reporter who is a composite of the characters from the original film. The North American tour, which is currently playing at the Bass Concert Hall, started in October 2014 and is ending its 43 week run on October 2, 2016 here in Austin, TX.

Ambassador Theatre Group and NETworks Presentations LLC recently announced that Laura Michelle Kelly (Anna Leonowens) and Jose Llana (King of Siam) would lead the national tour of the Lincoln Center Theater production of Rodgers & Hammerstein's THE KING AND I. The tour will launch in Providence, RI at the Providence Performing Arts Center (PPAC) October 30-November 6, 2016.

Shenandoah Conservatory in Winchester, Virginia will be mounting the award-winning rock musical: SPRING AWAKENING this September, directed by Broadway veteran and new musical theatre program coordinator Kevin Covert. I was lucky enough to sit down with Kevin, hear about his experience at Shenandoah so far and learn about his process working on the rock musical with current theatre students.

Ambassador Theatre Group and NETworks Presentations LLC just announced that Laura Michelle Kelly (Anna Leonowens) and Jose Llana (King of Siam) will lead the national tour of the Lincoln Center Theater production of Rodgers & Hammerstein's THE KING AND I. Joan Almedilla will play Lady Thiang with Brian Rivera as Kralahome, Manna Nichols as Tuptim, Kavin Panmeechao as Lun Tha, Anthony Chan as Prince Chulalongkorn, Graham Montgomery as Louis Leonowens and Baylen Thomas as Captain Orton/Sir Edward Ramsey. The tour will launch in Providence, RI October 30-November 6, 2016, and will play multi-week and single week engagements throughout the 2016-17 touring season and beyond. Please find complete schedule at www.thekinganditour.com.

The National Tour of The Lincoln Center Theater Production ofRodgers and Hammerstein's THE KING AND I will launch at the Providence Performing Arts Center (PPAC) this fall. A preview performance has been announced for Sunday, October 30, 2016 at 1P, with regular performances running from Tuesday, November 1 through Sunday, November 6, 2016.

This week, we go around our Broadway World to feature stories in Chicago, Madison, Sydney and more. Check out our top 10 stories around our Broadway World below, which include HOW TO SUCCEED in Chicago, ENDGAME in Madison, and MY FAIR LADY directed by Julie Andrews in Sydney, just to name a few.

It's not easy being king...of New York, that is. In anticipation of the upcoming cinematic release of Disney's smash Broadway hit, NEWSIES, the cast has gone back into rehearsal. Reprising his Tony-nominated performance as Jack Kelly, original cast member, Jeremy Jordan took to Instagram today to document his hard-earned rehearsal fatigue.  

The National Tour of The Lincoln Center Theater Production ofRodgers and Hammerstein's THE KING AND I will launch at the Providence Performing Arts Center (PPAC) this fall. A preview performance has been announced for Sunday, October 30, 2016 at 1P, with regular performances running from Tuesday, November 1 through Sunday, November 6, 2016.

My Fair Lady officially opened at the Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House, on 6 September, 2016, and is running for a strictly limited season. This new production, which recreates the original 1956 Broadway one, is directed by the actress who created the role of Eliza Doolittle in the original production, the world-renowned actor and director Dame Julie Andrews. BroadwayWorld brings you a complete look at the show's press night!

My Fair Lady officially opened at the Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House, on 6 September, 2016, and is running for a strictly limited season. This new production, which recreates the original 1956 Broadway one, is directed by the actress who created the role of Eliza Doolittle in the original production, the world-renowned actor and director Dame Julie Andrews. BroadwayWorld brings you a first look at the show's press night!

My Fair Lady opened at the Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House, on 30 August, 2016, and is running for a strictly limited season. This new production, which recreates the original 1956 Broadway production, is directed by the actress who created the role of Eliza Doolittle in the original production, the world-renowned actor and director Dame Julie Andrews.  BroadwayWorld brings you a first look below!

I already knew Disney's NEWSIES had developed cult status before I saw the show. Its legions of loyal 'Fansies' have championed it from the very beginning. But even I wasn't prepared for the audience's screams of appreciation for the hard-working boys - and one girl - who form the heart of the current national tour playing at the Hollywood Pantages through September 4th.

Lerner & Loewe's My Fair Lady, directed by Julie Andrews, just started performances at the Joan Sutherland Theatre at Sydney Opera house, and will travel for seasons in Brisbane and Melbourne following its time in Sydney. BroadwayWorld has a sneak peek at the company in rehearsal below!

The highly anticipated Los Angeles return of Disney's NEWSIES begins performances today, August 30, at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre for a one-week engagement through Sunday, September 4.

Australia's MY FAIR LADY, directed by Julie Andrews, stars British performer Alex Jennings, as Professor Higgins and the young Australian star, Anna O'Byrne, as Eliza Doolittle. The production begins performances tonight 30 August at Sydney Opera House, followed by a gala opening night on 6 September.