Some of the "best singers on the planet" are on Jim Caruso's list at his Cast Party at Birdland and last night they all had their performances memorialized by famed Broadway artist Justin "Squigs" Robertson. Justin, a caricaturist in the tradition of Al Hirschfeld had to work fast since it's against Cast Party rules to sing a ballad. After each performer zipped through a swinging tune they were presented with a quickly drawn "Squigs" caricature. Marilyn Maye, who is currently appearing at the Metropolitan Room dropped in and sang one of her great medley's and even though it gave Justin enough time to do an oil painting, she too got a quick drawing. All donations made for the artwork were given to Justin "Squigs" designated charity, Convenant House.
Broadway Noire: Make Them Hear You is a celebration of African American Musical Theater. Broadway Noire: Make Them Hear You will take you on a journey with music from the 1920's through the present!
Although Clifford Odets forgotten masterpiece 'Rocket to the Moon' first premiered back in 1938, many of the themes of the Depression-era drama feel totally in step today with our own financial and career woes. With its central character, Ben Stark, (Jesse Steccato) is a dentist stuck in an unhappy marriage and a stagnant dental practice who longs for both more money as well as more passion and joy in his life. Things are set on a collision course with fate when he hires the beautiful, young Cleo Singer (lovely Kristin Couture) as his new receptionist. As his marriage fails and he succumbs to Cleo's flirting, will she be his proverbial rocket to the moon, thus allowing his dreams to come true? And will he be willing to change his life and take the necessary risks in order to make that happen?
We've all got our divas. And Luke Frazier is no different. He's going to be spending this Friday night celebrating that Funny Girl, Barbra Streisand for her 75th birthday.
La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts reaches a true milestone by announcing the most added presentations it has EVER offered its 39-year history! For the first time, patrons will enjoy 22 unforgettable and can't-miss events in one extraordinary theatre. LMT's most spectacular, most star-studded, most "special" special events season ever features everything from superstar comedian Bob Newhart to Vicki Lawrence and Mama; from Classic Albums Live!, showcasing the music of David Bowie and Creedence Clearwater Revival to Sing-Alongs with "Grease" and "Willy Wonka;" also, a National Theatre Live screening of "Amadeus;" country's Terri Clark, legendary Judy Collins; our on-stage Cabaret series; and so much more! There is simply no doubt that 2017 brings something for everyone to enjoy at La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts!
The Harris Theater for Music and Dance is pleased to present the Chicago premiere of Last Work performed by one of the foremost contemporary dance companies in the world, Batsheva Dance Company on January 27 & 28 at 7:30 PM. Rapier-like one moment, slow and methodical the next, the otherworldly performers of Batsheva Dance Company exemplify the pioneering genius of Artistic Director and Choreographer Ohad Naharin. Batsheva dancers work in the innovative movement language Gaga, created by Naharin, which is informed by a heightened knowledge and self-awareness of the body. In Last Work, Naharin offers an open-ended meditation on the humanism inherent in the body's motion, veering explosively between the political and the excruciatingly personal.
Singer Lynn Henderson will reprise her critically lauded cabaret show, 'T'Ain't Nobody's Bizness If I Do, at Don't Tell Mama on Saturday, January 28th for one show only.
Andrew Upton's new adaptation of Anton Chekhov's first play, Platonov, The Present opens tonight at the Barrymore Theatre (243 West 47th Street) for a limited engagement through Sunday, March 19, 2017. THE PRESENT features the Sydney Theatre Company cast of 13, each making their Broadway debut, including Cate Blanchett (Anna) and Richard Roxburgh (Mikhail).
Building on the success of their sold out smash hit Heathers: The Musical, Staged! presents a concert reading of 1980's Teen Musical, a piece designed for teen performers by Mark LaPierre (4X4=Musicals) and Eric Nordin (The Snowstorm) and directed by Diane Englert (Heathers: The Musical).
On Jan.6, beloved SNL icons and comedic superstars Jon Lovitz and Dana Carvey celebrated the grand opening of their 20-show residency, 'Reunited,' at The Foundry inside SLS Las Vegas. The entertaining night was filled with crowd-roaring laughs and impeccable impressions including Dana Carvey's takes on Paul McCartney, Liam Neeson, Johnny Carson and Christopher Walken, to name a few. Throughout the show, the duo performed individual stand-ups acts and musical numbers together including renditions of 'Hey Jude,' 'Heaven' and an original composition called 'It's Not Complicated.' Following an audience Q&A session, the night was topped off with a duet of Carvey's 'Choppin' Broccoli.'
Riverside Theatre, led by Producing Artistic Director/CEO Allen D. Cornell and Managing Director/COO Jon R. Moses, present Noel Coward's uproarious comedy, Private Lives, which performs on the Stark Stage from January 31 - February 19, 2017. Private Lives is sponsored by Bobbie Olsen and Riverside Theatre's Patron Producers Group.
Riverside Theatre, led by Producing Artistic Director/CEO Allen D. Cornell and Managing Director/COO Jon R. Moses, present the contemporary comedy An Empty Plate in the Cafe du Grand Boeuf, which performs on the Waxlax Stage from January 17 - February 5, 2017. An Empty Plate in the Cafe du Grand Boeuf is sponsored by Riverside Theatre's Patron Producers Group.
On January 7, celebrate the New Year with artists and change makers at Target First Today. Highlights include performances by Tank and The Bangas, Discwoman, and Cakes Da Killa; a pop-up feminist publishing workshop with Pilot Press; and a screening of Suited.
As reported back in 2012, the 1982 comedy film TOOTSIE, which starred Academy Award-winner Dustin Hoffman, is being adapted for Broadway by Scott Sanders, producer behind THE COLOR PURPLE and more. Now, according to an interview with the Australian, TOOTSIE 'is about a year away.'
Celebrated nightclub singer Marta Sanders returns to The Laurie Beechman Theatre, 407 West 42nd Street, in "Follow Me," her new show that was seen in a short run last year. With Mark Nadler directing, the upcoming four-week major engagement of "Follow Me" performs on Thursday February 2; Saturday February 11; Thursday February 16, and Saturday February 25, all at 7pm.
It isn't just her New Year's Eve Party that launched the start of a great new New York City Cabaret year. Marilyn Maye is also keeping the musical festivities going at the Metropolitan Room on Jan. 6,7,11,12,13, and 14th. It's become one of the hottest tickets in town. Her song selection may be a little different than New Years but the excitement and excellence of her performance are the same. The Metropolitan Room is also launching their new menu selections for 2017.
RJ PRODUCTIONS presents Sandra Bernhard, Tony Award Winner Christine Ebersole, Marilyn Maye, Billy Porter Jarrod Spector, Master Illusionist Elliott Zimmet and Judy Gold in "A Tony Winter Warm-Up Concert: One Night Only!" on Sunday January 8, 2017.
Milwaukee Repertory Theater presents the Pulitzer Prize-winning play Disgraced, written by one of the most in-demand playwrights of today Rep Associate Artist Ayad Akhtar in the Quadracci Powerhouse beginning January 17 through February 12.
Skeptics of musical theater like to ask, 'But how do they know the song?' when characters join in during a musical number. One of the virtues of HAIRSPRAY is that the audience itself actually does this: the songs are so catchy that we start singing along. This is appropriate, given the show's message of inclusivity and empowerment of the ordinary. Marc Shaiman (music and lyrics) and Scott Wittman (lyrics) are responsible for the irresistible score of this show, set in Baltimore in the 1960s, that follows plucky, overweight teenager Tracy Turnblad's quest to integrate the 'Corny Collins Show,' an AMERICAN BANDSTAND-style teen dance party that she adores. Along the way, she falls in love with one of its stars, locks horns with another, makes new friends who are black and have a different perspective and a different way of dancing, and finds a place for herself on the show and in life. And her mother Edna and best friend Penny also benefit from Tracy's widening world.
