Elle News

ShowKids Invitational Theatre (SKIT) presents two shows this May - A Night on Broadway musical review and Into the Woods Jr.

Tony Award-winning actor, director and writer John Cameron Mitchell will tour Australia for the first time with his new show The Origin of Love: The Songs and Stories of Hedwig, dropping in to Queensland Performing Arts Centre's (QPAC) Concert Hall on Tuesday 17 July 2018.

Sobini Films announced today that Dayo Okeniyi has been cast as the lead in the Civil War-era historical drama EMPEROR, to be directed by Mark Amin, the veteran producer and former Vice Chairman of Lionsgate. The film will be produced by Reginald Hudlin for Hudlin Entertainment and by Cami Winikoff and Amin for Sobini, with a script co-written by Amin and Pat Charles. Sobini's Tyler Boehm is executive producing. UTA is handling domestic sales. EMPEROR is scheduled to go into production in June in Savannah, Georgia.

The Keegan Theatre is proud to announce its 2018-2019 season, a ten-show lineup that includes three musicals, two regional premieres, two DC-area premieres, and two Keegan PLAY-RAH-KA productions for families.  "Heading into our 22nd season, Keegan is as vibrant and busy as we've ever been," says Producing Artistic Director Mark A. Rhea. "We are more passionate than ever about engaging with our community as far as the stories we tell and the programming we offer - through our main stage season, our Boiler Room series, and our ever-growing educational branch, Keegan PLAY-RAH-KA."

National talk show host, best-selling author, media mogul, fashion designer and entrepreneur, Wendy Williams returns to host Lifetime Movies' third annual Don't Mess with Mommy Mother's Day stunt featuring a week of your favorite Mommy thrillers leading up to three new films airing May 11-12.

Casting is announced for two REPRISE 2.0 productions with two Tony Award leading actress nominees: Laura Bell Bundy (Legally Blonde - Tony Nomination, Hairspray, Anger Management) is to play Charity in Sweet Charity, directed and choreographed by three time Tony Award-winner Kathleen Marshall from June 20 to July 1, and Carmen Cusack (Bright Star - Tony Nomination, Wicked) is to play Victoria Grant in Victor/Victoria directed by Richard Israel and choreographed by John Todd from September 5 to 16 at UCLA's Freud Playhouse.

The smash hit Broadway and West End Musical based on the best loved movie follows beautiful and popular sorority sister Elle Woods who loves to be pampered and is passionate about pink. When she is dumped by her boyfriend Warner Huntingdon III for a more serious girlfriend she puts down the credit cards and picks up the books. Packing up her trusty pooch, Bruiser, she bags herself a place at the prestigious Harvard Law School to try and win him back.

On Thursday, May 24 at 7pm, students and supporters from 29 participating schools across the Mid-South will gather at the Orpheum Theatre for the 9th Annual High School Musical Theatre Awards, sponsored in part by Sedgwick, Memphis Audio, and Dean HD and other generous sponsors. Modeled after the Tony® Awards, the High School Musical Theatre Awards recognize achievements in all areas of high school musical theatre.

First there was Grease: You're the One That I Want! On NBC in 2007. Then on MTV came Legally Blonde: The Search for the Next Elle Woods on Broadway in 2008. Soon, theater fans will be excited to watch the next Broadway-themed reality show.

On April 21, 2018, Opera Santa Barbara presented Douglas Moore's GALLANTRY and Leonard Bernstein's TROUBLE IN TAHITI at the Center Stage theater in downtown Santa Barbara. The Center Stage is a 130-seat black box auditorium on the third floor of the chic, user-friendly Paseo Nuevo.

Ohmigod, you guys- the earworm that stays with you long after curtain call, that you find yourself looking for on Spotify on the drive home, but turn it off because it doesn't hold a candle to this version - is also my reaction to New Tampa Players' production of the musical Legal Blonde The Musical. This show is brilliant and Chelsie Camaro Smith proves she has star power!

Sony Music Masterworks has announced the release of How To Talk To Girls At Parties (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack),the musical companion to the hugely anticipated new film from award-winning writer-director, John Cameron Mitchell (Hedwig and the Angry Inch), based on the short story by Neil Gaiman (American Gods, Norse Mythology). The album arrives at all music retailers and streaming services on Friday, May 11. Out today ahead of the full soundtrack release is the single track, 'Between the Breaths' from beloved indie-darlings, Mitski and Xiu Xiu. The A24 release of a See-Saw Films/Little Punk production, How to Talk to Girls at Parties opens in theaters across the U.S on May 25. StudioCanal UK releases the film across the UK on May 11.

A soulful retelling of L. Frank Baum's beloved The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, The Wiz combines fairy-tale glamour with street smarts to make a classic fantasy sparkle for today.  And our directors and choreographer will bring a blast of New Orleans Creole magic to this production!  Winner of seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical and Best Score, The Wiz ingeniously mixes rock, gospel, soul, and jazz, and features hits like 'Ease on Down the Road,' 'A Brand New Day,' and 'Home.'

The French Institute Alliance Francaise (FIAF), New York's premiere French cultural center, is thrilled to launch Iconic French Speaker Luncheons, an incisive new series of conversations hosted by French journalist and TV personality Olivier Barrot. Over an elegant luncheon, Mr. Barrot will bring his unique insights into today's most pressing issues as he interviews some of France's greatest minds about their areas of expertise.

A rare treat this weekend only, Opera Santa Barbara presents an evening of one-act comic operas in the intimacy of Center Stage Theater. Leonard Bernstein's Trouble in Tahiti will be performed along with Douglas Moore's broadly comic work, Gallantry. Both showcase the talents of Opera Santa Barbara's Chrisman Studio Artists (Chelsea Melamed, Byron Mayes, Elle Valera, and Jonathan Walker-VanKuren) in featured roles. Opera Santa Barbara's Artistic Director, Kostis Protopapas, praises these singers for their 'charisma and charm combined with impeccable comedic timing.'

In the decade and a half since she last performed at Adrian's Croswell Opera House, Cassie Okenka has appeared on an MTV reality show, toured nationally with the casts of THE WIZARD OF OZ and WICKED, and landed roles in two Broadway shows.

MARY SHELLEY opens in theaters May 25th and VOD June 1st. The film is directed by Haifaa Al-Mansour and stars Elle Fanning, Maisie Williams, Bel Powley, Douglas Booth, Joanne Froggatt and Stephen Dillane.

LEGALLY BLONDE COMING TO STAGE AT at New Tampa Players on Saturday April 14

Romance of the Rose Productions announces the first casting for the new West End musical Knights of the Rose. Directed by Racky Plews and created by Jennifer Marsden, Knights of the Rose opens on 29th June for 9 weeks only at The Arts Theatre. Leading the noble Knights is Adam Pearce (King Aethelstan) who is joined by Chris Cowley (Palamon), Oliver Saville (Hugo), Rebecca Bainbridge (Queen Matilda / Bess), Rebekah Lowings (Isabel), Matt Thorpe (Horatio), Ruben Van keer (John), Katie Birtill (Hannah) and Bleu Woodward (Emily). Ian Gareth-Jones, Kelly Hampson and Tom Bales make up the ensemble.

Gemma Sutton will star as Angel, alongside Caroline O'Connor in the first London revival in 20 years of Kander and Ebb's THE RINK. The new production of THE RINK will play at Southwark Playhouse for a limited season from 25 May to 23 June 2018, with a national press night on Tuesday 29 May. Further casting to be announced.