Joe Mantello News

Beginning performances on Tuesday, June 29, KATHY FITZGERALD will assume the role of Madame Morrible in the musical blockbuster WICKED. Kathy joins a cast which includes Mandy Gonzalez as Elphaba, Katie Rose Clarke as Glinda, P.J. Benjamin as The Wizard, Andy Karl as Fiyero, Alex Brightman as Boq, Jenny Fellner as Nessarose, and Timothy Britten Parker as Dr. Dillamond. Tony Award-winner Rondi Reed will play her final performance as Madame Morrible on Sunday, June 27 at 3:00pm.

Vassar & New York Stage and Film is pleased to announce the cast of the world premiere play WE ARE HERE (June 29 - July 11) by Tracy Thorne, directed by Tony nominee Sheryl Kaller (Next Fall), the first of two fully-staged and designed Powerhouse Mainstage productions for the 2010 season.

Vassar & New York Stage and Film is pleased to announce the casts for the free Readings Festival 1 (June 25 - 27), which opens the 26th annual Powerhouse Theater season on the Vassar campus.

Powerhouse Theater, a unique collaboration between Vassar College and New York Stage and Film, will enter its second quarter-century this summer, continuing its mission to offer a haven for world-class artists to gather and explore new material in an atmosphere that is both protected and challenging.

A world premiere, fully-staged production by John Patrick Shanley, the first professional production for playwright Tracy Thorne, and the newest musical project from the multi-award winning director Michael Mayer will be just a few of the many highlights of Vassar & New York Stage and Film's Powerhouse Theater season, June 25 - August 1, 2010.

The production of WICKED that's currently playing the Fox Theatre delivers an enchanting experience to its audiences that dazzles and delights, filling the stage with jaw-dropping scenery and incredible special effects, as well as a host of wonderful performers. The plot based on Gregory Maguire's novel gives a back story to L. Frank's Baum's beloved Wizard of Oz, that is unexpectedly infused with a strong, positive message about accepting people for who they are inside And, while most musicals are guilty of utilizing a threadbare plot to hang a multitude of songs upon, this is not the case with Wicked, where the reverse is nearly true, with Winnie Holzman's clever adaptation providing a more than sturdy framework for Stephen Schwartz's catchy score.

Kanye West appears to be sampling a bit of WICKED on his new album 'Good Ass Job,' set for release this September. BroadwayWorld brings you full coverage of this video footage showing the rapper remixing Stephen Schwartz's 'Popular' to a hip hop beat. Kristin Chenoweth, who originated the role of 'Glinda,' can be heard on the recording.

WICKED veterans Marcie Dodd and Alli Mauzey will be San Francisco's new witches in the hit musical beginning June 29, 2010. This will be a reunion for Dodd and Mauzey in their roles as Elphaba and Glinda respectively, and will mark the first time the two actresses are back on stage opposite each other since they played the roles on Broadway from November 2008 - February 2009. The actresses will take a final bow with WICKED when it closes on September 5, 2010.

Vassar & New York Stage and Film's Powerhouse Theater is pleased to announce the casts of the two Martel Musicals presented during the 2010 season: BONFIRE NIGHT (July 16 - 18) and ON A CLEAR DAY YOU CAN SEE FOREVER (July 29 - August 1).

Rattlestick Playwrights Theater has announced the cast and creative team for the world premiere of Little Doc, written by award-winning filmmaker Dan Klores and directed by John Gould Rubin. Opening the company's 16th Season, performances of Little Doc will begin Friday, June 11 at Rattlestick Theatre (224 Waverly Place). The official opening night is set for Thursday, June 17. The production is scheduled to run through July 18.

WICKED, London's 'hugely popular musical' (The Times) that tells the untold story of the Witches of Oz, has reached a major new Box Office milestone with an incredible gross to date of £100 million at the Apollo Victoria Theatre. The production has played over 1500 performances since its West End premiere in September 2006.

A day-of-performance lottery for a limited number of orchestra seats will be held daily for WICKED, which will be performing from June 16-July 11 at the Fox Theatre

The Cincinnati Pops Orchestra recently announced that Tony Award-winning actress and singer, Idina Menzel will make her Cincinnati Pops debut at Music Hall for the Orchestra's 2010-11 season opener on September 24, 25 and 26, performing diverse repertoire of classic pop, musical theater favorites (including hits from Wicked and Rent) as well as songs from her album, I Stand. Bernadette Peters was initially scheduled for the Pops opening concert, but is now scheduled to open the following Pops season, Sept. 16-18, 2011 in Music Hall.

TopDog Productions in a co-production with the Elephant Theatre Company are thrilled to announce the Los Angeles Intimate Theatre Premiere of the 2002 Pulitzer Prize-winning play, TOPDOG/UNDERDOG, written by Suzan-Lori Parks and directed by Marty Papazian.

Artistic Director Gregory Boyd announced that the Alley Theatre subscription season, the Theatre's 64th, will combine two world premieres, including Rajiv Joseph's psychological thriller The Medusa Body and Herbert Siguenza's new solo play A Weekend With Pablo Picasso, with new large-scale productions of Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Would Not Grow Up, the fantasy by J.M. Barrie, Pygmalion, George Bernard Shaw's great romantic comedy and Amadeus, Peter Shaffer's Tony Award-winning play.

Vassar & New York Stage and Film is pleased to announce the casts for the free Readings Festival 1 (June 25 - 27), which opens the 26th annual Powerhouse Theater season on the Vassar campus.

DirectorsLabChicago, founded in 2005 by Chicago-based directors Elizabeth Margolius and Karin Shook, has grown into an international yearly event at the Chicago Cultural Center. Directors from around the world gather to exchange ideas and discuss what it means to be a director.

On June 14, 2010, four of today's best and brightest young Broadway performers will share the stage with students who represent the next generation of artists, in recognition of the 40th Anniversary of Harbor Conservatory for the Performing Arts, a division of Boys & Girls Harbor and the only multi-disciplinary performing arts school serving East Harlem.

The American Theatre Wing's 64th Annual Antoinette Perry 'Tony' Awards were held at Radio City Music Hall on Sunday, June 13, 2010 and broadcast on the CBS Television Network. For more information visit tonyawards.com.

Rattlestick Playwrights Theater has announced the cast and creative team for the world premiere of Little Doc, written by award-winning filmmaker Dan Klores and directed by John Gould Rubin. Opening the company's 16th Season, performances of Little Doc will begin Friday, June 11 at Rattlestick Theatre (224 Waverly Place). The official opening night is set for Thursday, June 17. The production is scheduled to run through July 18.