On Saturday February 28th, I had the privilege to travel to Valparaiso, Indiana to see the third weekend of "Les Miserables" at the Memorial Opera House. This sung through musical based on the novel written by French Poet and Novelist, Victor Hugo, brought the house down with the amazing vocals, and set of this production. As popular as this musical is in the community theater world, Memorial Opera House put their own twist on it and made it a good production.
I never saw Once, now playing at The Ed Mirvish Theatre in Toronto, during the National Tour's engagement here last year. After attending the media opening of the all-Canadian production Sunday afternoon, I can see why a return engagement was needed. Audiences will fall in love with this show, over and over again.
I am taken back to the first Opera I saw as a kid and the pomp and circumstance with wearing a tux and walking to the lavish theatre; this was when I fell in love with classical music. Often times we hear opera and other classical art forms are inaccessible to the people, but Houston Grand Opera's English translation of Mozart's THE MAGIC FLUTE (Die Zauberflote) proved that opera isn't a stuffy, highbrow art form for the bourgeois. THE MAGIC FLUTE premiered on September 30, 1791 at Emanuel Schikaneder's theatre, the Freihaus-Theater auf der Wieden in Vienna, and Mozart conducted the orchestra. The MAGIC FLUTE often referenced as a singspiel, is an opus with spoken dialogue which lends itself to the elements of classical musical theatre. The heart of this new work was an excerpt from the oriental genie tales collected by poet Christoph Martin Wieland but transitioned to have Masonic elements from the novel Sethos by Abbe Jean Terrasson.
For John Lloyd Young's special Valentine's weekend cabaret concert titled 'My Turn'---which continues at the Samueli Theater on the campus of Orange County's Segerstrom Center for the Arts through February 14---the Tony Award-winning star of JERSEY BOYS presented an hour-long set of love songs, both joyful and heart-tugging. With the confidence and panache of a seasoned old-school song interpreter and showman, Young oh-so-passionately crooned and belted his way through an enjoyable songbook of personally curated classic standards that reverberated with the highs and lows of love.
It's V-day on MODERN FAMILY, and what does that mean? The return of Clive and Juliana, of course! The alter-ego's fourth appearance (I don't believe Phil and Claire have brought them back since S3) may easily be one of their best, if not entirely because of the execution of this plot. At the start, Phil wants to bring back Clive and Juliana, but Claire doesn't. So, Phil drops the gag, and goes as himself for Valentine's. But it's quickly revealed that Claire's resistance was a ruse — she just wanted to separate herself from her sexier doppleganger. So, the night ends up being Phil and Juliana — brilliant! Claire's at her naughtiest and Phil's just… Phil. A pairing you can't help but laugh at!
Phoenix Theatre of Indianapolis announces Buyer and Cellar opening March 5 on the Frank and Katrina Basile Stage. This production runs through April 5, 2015, with Chuck Goad serving as director. The production will be an Indiana premiere.
One of the most common questions I get asked is how I started doing stand up in the first place. That first leap is daunting for anyone so people always want to know how I started because, not only did I do it - I did it at 13 years old.
The Coachella Valley Reportory Theatre has scored a coup with HAVING OUR SAY. The top-notch acting of H. Chris Brown and Regina Randolph, the brilliant set design by Jimmy Cuomo, the imaginative props by Doug Morris, and the professionalism of the entire crew make Emily Mann's script sparkle.
As the company prepares for rehearsals to begin, Simon chatted with BroadwayWorld about her sweeping score, choosing the new cast, and so much more! Check out the full interview below!
WICKED just welcomed new cast members to the Gershwin Theatre last month. Caroline Bowman (Kinky Boots, Eva in the Broadway revival tour of Evita) stepped into the role of Elphaba, and Kara Lindsay (original cast of Broadway's Newsies) assumed the role of Glinda, directly from playing the role on national tour. Kathy Fitzgerald returned to the Broadway company as Madame Morrible, a role she has played on Broadway and on national tour, and Matt Shingledecker (West Side Story) assumed the role of Fiyero. Two-time Tony Award Nominee Robin de Jesus (In the Heights, La Cage Aux Folles) stepped into the role of Boq.
Bowman recently chatted with BroadwayWorld about rejoining the cast, her take on the character, and so much more. Check out the full interview below! Click here to read BroadwayWorld's interview with her WICKED counterpart, Kara Lindsay!
Bicycle Adventures, a Pacific Northwest-based active travel company specializing in two-wheel tours in North America, Hawaii (the Big Island) and internationally, now combines the passion for bicycling with a spiritual component intrinsic to Camino de Santiago, the famous pilgrimage route across northern Spain's Basque region through the Spanish Pyrenees.
It's that time of year, and everyone is making their lists. For me, this task is always harder than it probably should be. I wrestle with myself and debate the merits of everything. I worry about who might get their feelings hurt, and whom I may accidentally overlook. So, for 2014, I promised myself to make a simple list of the 10 albums from 2014 that I simply couldn't get enough of. Naturally, that list is actually 15 items long. (Surprise!)
Widely regarded as one of the greatest novels of all time, War And Peace will be told over six one hour episodes. Director Tom Harper (The Scouting Book For Boys, Peaky Blinders, Woman In Black: Angel Of Death) will bring this classic to life for a modern audience on a truly epic scale in what Davies calls 'a thrilling, funny and heartbreaking story of love, war and family life'.
