Jerry Robbins News

In celebration of this extraordinary legacy on the occasion of the series' 40th anniversary on PBS, a stellar roster of diverse alumni gather to share their personal stories of what Great Performances has meant to them, with reminiscences and performances by Julie Andrews, Audra McDonald, Don Henley, David Hyde Pierce, Josh Groban, Itzhak Perlman, Peter Martins, Patti Austin and Take 6, Met Opera star El?na Garan?a and Michael Buble. The evening, taped at Lincoln Center last November, will be televised on Great Performances, Today, October 18 at 9 p.m. on PBS (check local listings).

Kyle Froman has made the extraordinary transformation from dancer for America's premier dance company to one of the country's best -known dance and theater photographers.

In celebration of this extraordinary legacy on the occasion of the series' 40th anniversary on PBS, a stellar roster of diverse alumni gather to share their personal stories of what Great Performances has meant to them, with reminiscences and performances by Julie Andrews, Audra McDonald, Don Henley, David Hyde Pierce, Josh Groban, Itzhak Perlman, Peter Martins, Patti Austin and Take 6, Met Opera star El?na Garan?a and Michael Buble. The evening, taped at Lincoln Center last November, will be televised on Great Performances, Friday, October 18 at 9 p.m. on PBS (check local listings).

Actress/singer Valerie Perri, best known for her role of Eva Peron in Evita, will open as Norma Desmond in MTW's Sunset Boulevard Saturday July 13 in Long Beach. In our chat she discusses the challenges of portraying bigger than life fictional silent movie queen Norma Desmond.

Today we are talking to a legendary triple-threat performer who over the course of her unique career has become one of a select few in show business to have attained the entertainment quadruple crown - Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony, that is; commonly referred to as the EGOT - the exceptionally gifted Rita Moreno. Exploring many aspects of her revealing and absorbing new autobiography RITA MORENO: A MEMOIR, Moreno opens up about her unique and boundary-breaking career in Hollywood and on Broadway, having appearing in three of the greatest movie musicals of all time - SINGIN' IN THE RAIN, THE KING & I and WEST SIDE STORY - as well as in the Mike Nichols classic CARNAL KNOWLEDGE, in addition to an impressive list of TV and theatre credits. Additionally, Moreno reveals her insights into the creative process itself and the strides she made in the industry as the first Latin American actress to win an Academy Award. Plus, memories of starring in Terrence McNally's THE RITZ on Broadway and its subsequent film adaptation, as well as a rich recounting of her time starring in the original West End production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's SUNSET BOULEVARD as the one and only screen icon Norma Desmond. Also, Moreno reveals plans to revisit her one woman show from which sprung her stupendous new book, titled LIFE WITHOUT MAKE-UP, as well as shares her thoughts on Broadway today, remarks upon favorite recent films, shows and performers as well as offers an update on her new family-friendly film MICKEY DEUCE and touched upon her current small-screen role in HAPPILY DIVORCED - and much, much more!

To those who've seen the Oscar-winning screen adaptation of WEST SIDE STORY, the recollections of George Chakiris' performance as Bernardo remain vivid. His acting is top notch, his singing is superb and his dancing comes darn close to burning up the celluloid it is preserved on. He was awarded an Oscar as 'Best Supporting Actor' for his work on that film and now, fifty years later, he is about to imprint his handprints and signature outside of the famed Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood. Sometimes the film industry can be a little slow on the uptake, won't you agree?

Staging one of the theatre's most unique and unclassifiable pieces, Brecht & Weill's THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS for the New York City Ballet, starting May 11 and running through May 16, is just the latest act in a career made up of anomalies, seemingly built upon always attempting to do the impossible - from her Broadway debut, trying to bring balletic bravado to Trevor Nunn's terminally troubled 1988 musical CHESS (a project begun under the guidance of Michael Bennett before his death), up through the trying-but-Tony-winning TITANIC in 1997 and, this century, SWING! starring Ann Hampton Callaway and Laura Benanti and a succession of successful regional ballets and theatre pieces - the gifted and dynamic director/choreographer Lynne Taylor-Corbett continues to challenge herself, her peers and audiences with each of her audacious new endeavors. THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS, starring two-time Tony-winning Broadway legend Patti LuPone as Anna I, is a particularly problematic play - or is it a musical? Or, is it a ballet? A song-spiel? - and in this revealing and engaging discussion, Ms. Taylor-Corbett and I attempt to deduce the themes, analyze the structure and look back at the authors' lives to gain insight into the perplexing America painted by Brecht and Weill in the forty-minute-long theatrical experiment. Also, in this complete conversation, Lynne and I take a look back at her long and varied career and she generously shares her thoughts on where the place of dance is in the twenty-first century, the exhilaration of working with a theatre artist like Patti LuPone, her own inspirations and formative experiences in the theatre, the legacy of Michael Powell and THE RED SHOES, the theatre versus the dance world, her son Shaun's career, and much, much more! Further information on THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS - including tickets - is available here.

Today, I am sharing with you Part II of my exclusive InDepth InterView with legendary Broadway star Donna McKechnie who is perhaps best known as the genius director-choreographer Michael Bennett's muse and primary interpreter as well as the originator and inspiration for the character of Cassie in A CHORUS LINE - for which she won Best Actress In A Musical at the 1976 Tony Awards - in addition to her many roles on Broadway and the West End, as well as all over the country on tours of every kind over the years. In Part II of this comprehensive chat we discuss her new show with Kaye Ballard and Liliane Montevecci that kicks off next year titled BROADWAY LADIES, working with choreographers Jerome Robbins and Ron Field, Bennett's thoughts on Leonard Bernstein, Robbins and ON THE TOWN, what Robbins work meant to Bennett growing up, what Gwen Verdon's work meant to her, her thoughts on punk rock and amplification in the theatre as well as working with Rock Hudson, Dick Van Dyke and, of course, Bennett himself.

Variety has reported that writer Ray Bradbury has signed a deal with White Oaks Films to develop a new miniseries entitled 'The Bradbury Chronicles,' based on six of Bradbury's short stories of his choosing.

Jerome Robbins had an extraordinary career and a reputation to go with it....

Jerome Robbins had an extraordinary career and a reputation to go with it....

Without auditioning or formally training in dance, Jimmy has performed in four hit musicals on Broadway.

Dibble Does Christmas in New York! opened at the Michael Weller Theatre on December 14th after beginning previews on December 9th

For the first time ever, the popular XM radio series Dibble will be presented as a live radio show at the Michael Weller Theatre (311 West 43 Street, Suite 602), complete with sound effects table.

In this first of two parts, The Times They Are A-Changin's musical supervisor talks about collaborating with legends and bringing this challenging show to Broadway.