Harvey Fierstein News

The Village Voice, the nation's first and largest alternative weekly newspaper, announced today that esteemed critic and longtime judge of the awards will resume his former position as Obie chairman for the 58th Annual Village Voice OBIE Awards, replacing former Chairman Brian Parks who has moved on from The Village Voice.

Just last night, star of the original movie version of Newsies, Bill Pullman, attended a performance of the Tony Award winning new American musical, and visited with the cast backstage afterwards. Additionally, 'Dance Moms' Abby Lee Miller stopped by for a quick photo with the cast. BroadwayWorld was there to capture the festivities backstage and you can check out exclusive photo coverage below!

Eight-time Academy Award-winning composer Alan Menken will take us on a unique musical journey through his renowned and beloved songs. This special performance will include a Q&A with the artist and will be followed by a dessert reception with desserts donated by Fairway Market and cheese donated by Murray's Cheese. Mr. Menken will be joined by three distinguished Belvoir Terrace alumnae: Deborah Grausman, Emma Rosenthal, and Nora Menken, who will each sing a Menken song, accompanied by Diane Marcus, Camp Director and Belvoir Alumna. The benefit performance will take place in the Kaufman Center's beautiful concert venue, Merkin Hall, on Thursday, February 28th at 7pm. The money raised will go to the Edna Y. Schwartz Scholarship Fund for talented young women to attend the prestigious arts camp, nestled in the heart of the Berkshires, in Lenox, MA.

Happy Birthday, Christopher Sieber! Sieber made his Broadway debut as Agis in the musical Triumph of Love with Betty Buckley and F. Murray Abraham. Following this role, he appeared as a replacement in the roles of Gaston in Beauty and the Beast, Trevor Graydon in Thoroughly Modern Millie and Billy Flynn in Chicago. Sieber played the role of Rapunzel's Prince and shared the role of the Wolf with Gregg Edelman in the revival of Into the Woods in 2002. In March 2005, Sieber originated the role of Sir Dennis Galahad in the Broadway musical Monty Python's Spamalot. He starred as Lord Farquaad in Shrek the Musical which opened on Broadway on December 14, 2008, after an out-of-town tryout in Seattle. On March 11, 2011, Sieber replaced Jeffrey Tambor as Georges in the Broadway production of La Cage Aux Folles opposite Harvey Fierstein.

Pop music royalty, passionate philanthropist and super mom, Cyndi Lauper is definitely more than just a girl who wants to have fun. With a successful career that has spanned over three decades, the icon is opening up her unavoidably chaotic, often comical and truly multi-faceted life in WE tv's newest original 12-part series Cyndi Lauper: STILL SO UNUSUAL, which premiered this January and continues tonight, February 16, at 9pm ET/PT. Tonight's episode features details on the musical KINKY BOOTS and its earlier debut in Chicago, as well as the show's plans for Broadway!

Disney's NEWSIES has released its first social media app for iPhone and Android devices. The Newsies Photo Booth app is available for free download via the iTunes and Google Play stores. To download the app, visit www.newsiesthemusical.com/photobooth.

From Kristin Chenoweth to Deborah Cox to Idina Menzel to Barbra Streisand to Michael Crawford to the Ladies of THE VIEW to Adam Pascal, Patti LuPone, Raul Esparza, Alan Menken, Lea Salonga, Bernadette Peters, Laura Osnes, Victoria Clark, GLEE and Everything in Between - It's the BroadwayWorld.com 2013 Valentine's Day Special - It's the Biggest Ever!

Hi fabulous Broadway World Blog readers! Welcome to your behind-the-scenes snippets of Kinky Boots the musical as notated by me... Tory Ross! You may (not) remember me from such (non) pivotal roles as: Daphne the downer in 9 to 5 the Musical or a late-edition Hatchet Face in Cry-Baby or maybe you saw me sing tipsily at a gay bar benefit or maybe you've never heard of me but want to know everything about Kinky Boots cause it's AWESOME. No matter... welcome to my musings!

Driven by the belief that what was traditional in 429 BC is radical today, FRTC performs Oedipus the King exactly as Sophocles intended… sort of. Men play all of the roles (including Love Interest/Mom Jocasta) just as the Greeks would have wanted it; only with Faux-Real, the role of Oedipus is played by a woman. Searching beyond the Freudian notions of "boy loves Mom," Faux-Real re-examines Oedipus with modern eyes (pun intended) and ancient techniques, to shed new light on this classic tale of sex, power, murder and the dark urges lurking inside of us all.

Houston's theatre scene has been consistently upping the ante in 2013. Strong productions have been put on all over the city, and Country Playhouse has further elevated the bar with their tense and comical production of Sam Shepard's TRUE WEST.

Hollywood's legendary El Capitan Theatre will present an exclusive engagement of Disney "Mulan" February 8-March 6, 2013, and in honor of Valentine's Day, the annual, exclusive engagement of Disney "Lady and the Tramp" February 14-18 at 7 pm ("Mulan" continues at 10am, 1 pm and 4 pm), it was announced today by Lylle Breier, Senior Vice President of Worldwide Special Events for Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. Guests can also enjoy "Mulan" with the upcoming 'Mulan 2-Movie Collection Blu-ray Combo Pack' which includes both "Mulan" and "Mulan II" that will available nationwide March 12th.

Tonight is the premiere of Season 2 of NBC's Golden Globe-nominated musical drama series SMASH (Tuesdays, 10-11pm ET), and for those who want a little something extra, tune in for a live web postshow tomorrow, Wednesday at 10:30 with comedian Mike Kelton and the 3 newest cast members of SMASH- Jeremy Jordan, Andy Mientus and Krysta Rodriguez. During the show, the cast will recap the show and get some inside info on what the process has been like.

Tonight is the premiere of Season 2 of NBC's Golden Globe-nominated musical drama series SMASH (Tuesdays, 10-11pm ET), and NBCUniversal Television Consumer Products and Columbia Records will make select songs from each episode this season available in the 'Smash' iTunes store http://www.itunes.com/NBCSmash.

'Submissions Only,' the popular webseries, has announced today the return of the show for its third season. After a very successful and record breaking Season 2 on BroadwayWorld.com, in which episode traffic was double to triple its previous YouTube incarnation, it was announced today that Tony Award-Winning Broadway producer Kevin McCollum has attached himself to the project.

Newsies has just announced nationwaide auditions that start this weekend in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Accoridng to the casting notice the show is seeking: males, 16-22, of all ethnicities, who are strong and technically trained dancers who also tap and sing well. Acrobatics/tumbling a plus. For additional information, click here.

The box office for Kinky Boots, the hotly anticipated new musical that brings together four-time Tony Award-winner Harvey Fierstein (Book) and Grammy Award-winning rock icon Cyndi Lauper (Music & Lyrics), is officially open for business at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre (302 West 45th Street)! Kinky Boots, directed and choreographed by Tony Award-winner Jerry Mitchell, begins previews on Sunday, March 3, 2013, with an official opening night set for Thursday, April 4, 2013.

The Human Rights Campaign - the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization - hosted its annual Greater New York Gala dinner on February 2, at the Waldorf Astoria. The evening featured a performance by Billy Porter, star of this spring's highly anticipated new musical Kinky Boots. With a book by four-time Tony Award-winner Harvey Fierstein, music and lyrics by Grammy Award-winning rock icon Cyndi Lauper, and direction and choreography by Tony Award-winner Jerry Mitchell, Kinky Boots proves that sometimes the best way to fit in, is to stand out.

The Human Rights Campaign - the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization - will host its annual Greater New York Gala dinner tonight February 2, 2013 at the Waldorf Astoria. This year's event comes on the heels of historic electoral wins for marriage equality across the country.

Can we practice goodness and create a world to sustain it? This question, posed by Shen Tei, the good-hearted, penniless and cross-dressing prostitute of Bertolt Brecht's Good Person of Szechwan, is central to the work of The Foundry Theatre. The play's concerns, and the earmarks of the Foundry's new production, make it an ideal offering from the company, which is celebrated for creating memorable theatrical events while pursuing civic inquiry and social justice. The show, starring the singular Taylor Mac as Shen Tei, is directed by Lear deBessonet and features original live music by 'indie rock vaudevillians' (SPIN) Cesar Alvarez and The Lisps.

The Human Rights Campaign - the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization - will host its annual Greater New York Gala dinner on February 2, 2013 at the Waldorf Astoria. This year's event comes on the heels of historic electoral wins for marriage equality across the country.