Joan Marcus News

Inside Broadway's Executive Director Michael Presser is pleased to announce that on Thursday, June 13, Broadway's Imperial Theatre will be visited by thousands of NYC public school students as the Great White Way's leading arts education not-for-profit partners with the Broadway production of Nice Work If You Can Get It to offer two exclusive 'Creating the Magic' events. Taking place at 10:45am and 1:15pm, the programs are being presented for free to over 2,500 New York City public school students as they get a behind the scenes look at the magical world of Broadway and learn about all the career opportunities in the theater.

I'd be hard-pressed to find a more accurate musical theatre representation of the idealized fantasy of 1950s suburbia than the lovely Kelli O'Hara in a lovely housedress singing in her lovely soprano of her enrapturement with her lovely life via Far From Heaven's opening song, 'Autumn in Connecticut.'  It's a magical height from which she will surely descend in Richard Greenberg (book), Scott Frankel (music) and Michael Korie's (lyrics) enrapturing new musical drama that features a gorgeously textured score and the actress' finest New York performance to date.

The Public Theater (Artistic Director, Oskar Eustis; Executive Director, Patrick Willingham) began previews on May 28 for THE COMEDY OF ERRORS, the first show of The Public's 2013 season of free Shakespeare in the Park at the Delacorte. Directed by Daniel Sullivan, THE COMEDY OF ERRORS will feature Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Hamish Linklater as Dromio and Antipholus respectively and will run through Sunday, June 30. BroadwayWorld brings you phtoos of the cast in action below!

TheatreWorks, the nationally acclaimed theatre of Silicon Valley, presents the hilarious new play WILD WITH HAPPY written by and starring award-winning playwright Colman Domingo. The production plays previews tonight, June 5 to Friday, June 7, 2013, with a press opening on Saturday, June 8, 2013. WILD WITH HAPPY will close on Sunday, June 30, 2013.

Roundabout Theatre Company presents the world premiere of The Unavoidable Disappearance of Tom Durnin by Steven Levenson, directed by Scott Ellis. The cast will include Christopher Denham as 'James Durnin,' Lisa Emery as 'Karen Brown-Canedy', Sarah Goldberg as 'Katie Nicholson,' David Morse as 'Tom Durnin,' and Rich Sommer as 'Chris Wyatt'. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!

NICE WORK IF YOU CAN GET IT, the Tony Award-winning musical comedy starring two-time Tony Award-winner Matthew Broderick and Tony Award nominee Jessie Mueller, is now in its final two weeks of performances on Broadway. The final performance will be Saturday, June 15. NICE WORK IF YOU CAN GET IT features music and lyrics by George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin and a book by two-time Tony Award-winner Joe DiPietro, and is directed and choreographed by three-time Tony Award-winner Kathleen Marshall. The production is playing at Broadway's Imperial Theatre (249 West 45th Street).

The national tour of Roundabout Theatre Company's ANYTHING GOES, the new Broadway revival of Cole Porter's timeless classic musical theatre masterpiece, will make its Orange County premiere September 24 - 29 at Segerstrom Center for the Arts as part of the Curtain Call Series.

Tune-in to ABC's "The View" tomorrow, Tuesday, June 4th to watch a performance from the Tony-nominated new Broadway production of PIPPIN. "The View" airs 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. EST on ABC Channel 7 in New York City (check local listings). PIPPIN is now playing at the Music Box Theatre (239 West 45th Street).

Director Brian Kulick sets Classic Stage Company's interesting and spirited new production of Bertolt Brecht's The Caucasian Chalk Circle during the fall of the Soviet Union, 'when the hammer and sickle were replaced by the Coca-Cola bottle.'  The production's Playbill cover depicts a satisfied looking Christopher Lloyd scribbling over that iconic communist emblem with a piece of chalk.  This is certainly an unusual take for a play that, when it premiered in 1948, was intended to depict the fairness to be found in Soviet leadership.

The award-winning revival of ANYTHING GOES (music/lyrics by Cole Porter, original book by Guy Bolton and P.G. Wodehouse, with a revision by Howard Linday and Russel Crouse, and an update by Timothy Crouse and John Weidman) arrives at the Fox Theatre in splashy and resplendent fashion, with a plethora of catchy musical numbers and a game cast. I've seen this musical several times before, it is a community theatre staple after all, but this production easily blows them all away. Sure, it's a period piece, and a bit old fashioned in some regards, but it perks along nicely thanks to an energetic cast and engaging direction and choreography. Even if you have seen it before, this presentation is well worth seeing, and a splendid time is guaranteed for all.

Despite its Disney pedigree, the NETworks tour of BEAUTY AND THE BEAST runs into difficulties early on.

If I were a classical music critic I might describe The Giacomo Variations as an ambitious exploration of common themes expressed in the three operas Mozart composed with librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte.

PippinTony Award nominees Terrence Mann, Andrea Martin and Patina Miller were recently interviewed by WNYC host Leonard Lopate about their experiences in PIPPIN. Click below to listen to the radio interview!

MATILDA THE MUSICAL will be featured on "CBS This Morning" this Monday, June 3, when the show's Tony Award nominated composer and lyricist Tim Minchin and the four girls who share the title role join correspondent Mo Rocca for an interview and performance. The four "Matildas" (Sophia Gennusa, Oona Laurence, Bailey Ryon and Milly Shapiro) will each receive a Tony Honor for Excellence in the Theater.

MOTOWN THE MUSICAL stars Brandon Victor Dixon and Valisia LeKae and director Charles Randolph Wright will visit MSNBC's acclaimed nationally syndicated live weekly show "Melissa Harris-Perry" on Sunday morning, June 2 in the 11:30am half hour.

MOTOWN THE MUSICAL Tony Award nominees, Valisia LeKae and Charl Brown, now starring in the new hit musical based on the life of Motown founder Berry Gordy, will be featured on NY1 News "On Stage" this weekend beginning Saturday morning, June 1 at 9:30am as they sit down with host Frank DiLellato discuss originating the roles of Diana Ross and Smokey Robinson.

'Motown' is Jesse's 2nd Bway show this season after a five-year hiatus he spent focused on his Broadway Boys concert group.

The North American Tour of SISTER ACT will come to the Music Hall at Fair Park, presented by Dallas Summer Musicals, June 4-16. Single tickets, priced from $15-$85, are on sale now at The Box Office, 5959 Preston Royal Shopping Center in Dallas, or any Ticketmaster location; or online at www.ticketmaster.com. For groups of 10 or more, call 214-426-GROUP (4768).

MCC THEATER (Robert LuPone, Bernard Telsey, William Cantler, Artistic Directors; Blake West, Executive Director) is pleased to announce that the world premiere of MCC Playwright-in-Residence Neil LaBute's new play, Reasons to Be Happy, also directed by LaBute, will now extend throughSaturday, June 29th. It was previously scheduled through June 23rd.

On Friday, May 31st from 12:00-12:35PM Terrence Mann, Andrea Martin and Patina Miller will be interviewed live on WNYC's "The Leonard Lopate Show" on 93.9PM and AM820. PIPPIN is now playing at the Music Box Theatre (239 West 45th Street).