Gwen Verdon News

42nd Street Moon, the company renowned for presenting uncommon musical theater, begins its 2011-12 season with a salute to the legendary Cole Porter.

Musical Mondays Theatre Lab, which for 12 years has been instrumental in developing new musicals including 'Next to Normal,' salutes its founder, Bick Goss, with a gala celebration on Monday evening, September 19 at a private penthouse apartment on Manhattan's east side.

The Music Division of the Library of Congress will receive an extensive collection of Broadway and personal memorabilia from the estate of Broadway giant John Raitt, who originated the role of Billy Bigelow in the Rodgers and Hammerstein show 'Carousel' and also starred in 'The Pajama Game,' 'Oklahoma!' and other top musicals from the 1940s to the 1960s.

Musical Mondays Theatre Lab, which for 12 years has been instrumental in developing new musicals including 'Next to Normal,' salutes its founder, Bick Goss, with a gala celebration on Monday evening, September 19 at a private penthouse apartment on Manhattan's east side.

The Harbor Lights Theater Company, a professional not-for-profit company dedicated to illuminating the human experience through the highest quality theatrical production and arts education, announces its professional theater training program 'Enter Stage Right' and its Fall Semester courses, for youth ages 11-18.

On Saturday afternoon, August 27th, that revival will chalk up its 6,138th performance, surpassing A Chorus Line as Broadway's longest running American musical. Sure, there are three Broadway productions higher on the list of total performances - Les Miserables, Cats and the still-running Phantom of the Opera - but the distinction of Chicago being an American musical is a significant one.

Television and recording artist-turned-stage actress, Nikki Gil (Charity Hope Valentine) and newbie theater actor, Kris Lawrence (Oscar Lindquist), lead 9 Works Theatrical's (Rent, The Wedding Singer) production of the classic Broadway musical comedy, Sweet Charity, at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Makati City.

Broadway leading lady, Fosse featured player and, now, the star of the new Fringe Festival play SAMMY GETS MUGGED!, gypsy phenomenon Stephanie Pope Caffey has lit up Broadway stages for almost thirty years - especially memorable for her dance-heavy roles in Bob Fosse's BIG DEAL, SWEET CHARITY, DANCIN‘, CHICAGO and the Tony-winning revue FOSSE itself. We also discuss working with four other legendary directors on four classic shows in the interim - JELLY'S LAST JAM directed by George C. Wolfe, THE WILL ROGERS FOLLIES directed by Tommy Tune, the hit revival of A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM directed by Jerry Zaks and KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN directed by Hal Prince (with choreography by Rob Marshall) - and far beyond. These days, Stephanie operates one of the premiere Bikram yoga studios in the country, Bikram Yoga East Harlem, and she evocatively illustrates how that is a continuation of her dance work and how beneficial the practice has been to her life. Additionally, in this career-spanning conversation we analyze the life of a gypsy dancer and what it takes to make it and rise to the top of the ranks in the best corps on Broadway, then and now - and, all applicable anecdotes that arise along the way, of course (and even some surprises). Plus, Stephanie shares all about her role in SAMMY GETS MUGGED! and reveals what drew her to the project, what to expect from the new drama/comedy, what her character is like and much, much more!

If Mike Nichols and Elaine May ever had a routine about two theatre geeks discussing their favorite unsuccessful musicals, it probably would have resembled the kind of banter that goes on between Jennifer Tepper and Kevin Michael Murphy as creators/producers/hosts of the concert series, If It Only Even Runs A Minute.  Monday night's edition, their seventh, was my third visit to their collection of one-nighters where musical theatre well-knowns and not so well-knowns join music director/pianist Caleb Hoyer to sing selections from underappreciated and/or forgotten musicals between quick histories of each production by Tepper and Murphy.  Frequently, original cast members will be on hand to give first-person accounts of the bumpy roads to opening night.

Nikki Gil (Charity Hope Valentine) and newbie theater actor, Kris Lawrence (Oscar Lindquist), led the opening of the classic Broadway musical comedy, SWEET CHARITY, at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium in Makati City last night.

42nd Street Moon, the company renowned for presenting uncommon musical theater, begins its 2011-12 season with a salute to the legendary Cole Porter.

The Broadway Theatre Project (BTP) is proud to have just completed its 21st consecutive phenomenal three week intensive training program developing key aspects of the Performing Arts and teaching critical life skills for extraordinary theatrical young people on the campus of University of South Florida.

Gwen Verdon, one of Broadway's biggest stars during its golden era and beyond, and winner of four Tony Awards, was recently honored by the Dancers Over 40 organization in New York at the star-studded tribute 'Gwen Verdon: I'm not Lola.'

Nikki Gil plays a dancer for hire, Charity Hope Valentine; Ciara Sotto plays one of Charity's best friends, Helene; OJ Mariano dabbles in double roles as an Italian film star, Vittorio Vidal, and as a charismatic religious leader of the Rhythm of Life Church, Daddy Johann Sebastian Brubeck; and Sheree Bautista plays one of Charity's co-dancers, Carmen; when SWEET CHARITY opens on Friday, August 5 at the Carlos P. Romulo Theater, RCBC Plaza Makati City.

Cortland Repertory Theatre will serve up plenty of 'razzle dazzle' in the second show of their 40th Anniversary 'Ruby Jubilee' season as they present the notoriously sassy and jazzy musical 'Chicago', with music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb and a book written by Ebb and Bob Fosse, based on the play of the same name by Maurine Dallas Watkins.

Cortland Repertory Theatre will serve up plenty of 'razzle dazzle' in the second show of their 40th Anniversary 'Ruby Jubilee' season as they present the notoriously sassy and jazzy musical 'Chicago', with music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb and a book written by Ebb and Bob Fosse, based on the play of the same name by Maurine Dallas Watkins.

Cortland Repertory Theatre will serve up plenty of 'razzle dazzle' in the second show of their 40th Anniversary 'Ruby Jubilee' season as they present the notoriously sassy and jazzy musical 'Chicago', with music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb and a book written by Ebb and Bob Fosse, based on the play of the same name by Maurine Dallas Watkins.

'Who would have thought that a young boy from Weymouth would become part of such a large family of vagabonds,' remarked Hal Holbrook about the actors and industry professionals that gathered to honor him at the 15th annual TONY Award party in Los Angeles. 'Not all of us have been lucky enough to make a steady income from this profession we love so much. It's nice to know an organization such as the Actors Fund exists to watch our backs, while we concentrate on using our craft to make the world a richer place to live,' added Holbrook just after friend and colleague, Sean Penn, presented the accomplished thespian with the Julie Harris Award. Penn, who directed Holbrook in 'Into The Wild,' said 'Hal always got it in the first take, but you wanted him to do it again, just so you could watch him work.'

On Sunday, June 12, BroadwayWorld.com brought you special and exclusive coverage throughout the night of the 65th Annual Tony Awards, airing on CBS live from the Beacon Theatre in New York City, including backstage videos, photos, speech transcriptions, winners stories, blogs and all the latest from the after parties. The night's big winner was The Book of Mormon, which took home nine prizes, including Best Musical. War Horse and Anything Goes were also evening standouts.

Touring production of the hit revival 'Chicago' is still heaven nowadays.