Peter James Zielinski News

Buck Henry and Holland Taylor star in Lisa Ebersole's new Off-Broadway play MOTHER, receiving its world-premiere production, previews began July 8th, prior to its official press opening tonight, July 15th at The Wild Project Theater (195 East 3rd Street) in Manhattan. Andrew Grosso (PERFECT HARMONY) directs.

SHREK THE MUSICAL star and 2009 Tony Award nominee Brian d'Arcy James helped New Yorkers kick off a massive week-long volunteer effort in honor of Mandela Day, Mr. Mandela's 91st birthday celebration, with a reading of 'Nelson Mandela's Favorite African Folktales' for over 100 children ages 5-9 from the Harlem School of the Arts at Washington Square Park on Monday, July 13th.

Bailey Hanks (Legally Blonde) joins the cast of the new cartoon musical, VOTE! Deidre Goodwin (A Chorus Line) and Morgan Karr (Spring Awakening, Everyday Rapture) also star in this high-energy musical comedy focusing on the electoral process from the perspective of three high school seniors. The race forces the candidates to consider the meaning of each vote and the importance of distinctive character in politics. While some of the students have no problem gaining approval from their peers, others act as though they'll stop at nothing to win the coveted position of student council president.

The complete cast, all-star band and crew of HAIR (a total company of 50)will travel to Los Angeles to give a performance from the Tony Award-winning musical on NBC's 'The Tonight Show with Conan O' Brien' on their day off, Monday, July 13th .

Rich Affannato in association with Meri Krassner will present a special invitational reading of the new musical, CALIGULA, with book, music & lyrics by Eric Svejcar, for two performances on Monday, July 13 and Tuesday, July 14 at 3 p.m. at New World Stages (340 West 50th Street).

Daniel Radcliffe, the young star of the upcoming 'Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince' as well as the recent acclaimed lead of Peter Shaffer's play EQUUS on Broadway, is featured in the current online 'Vulture' column for New York magazine. Radcliffe chatted about a variety of subjects with a delightful and very nervous young reporter for Scholastic News who strolling the red carpet at the recent New York City premiere for the newest 'Potter' flick.

By popular and critical demand the acclaimed 'The Temperamentals' by Jon Marans, has now extend the engagement for the summer through August 23rd. The hit show welcomed backstage Joan Rivers and Tovah Feldshuh after a recent performance and BroadwayWorld.com was there!

Roundabout Theatre Company (Todd Haimes, Artistic Director) has announced a one-week extension of Waiting for Godot through Sunday, July 12th, 2009.

R Family Cruises will once again host a star-studded collection of Broadway performers in their up-coming R Family Vacations 2009 Summer Cruise. The much acclaimed 'week of community, learning, laughter and love celebrates freedom and pride aboard the Norwegian Star', the cruise begins July 11th, 2009.

Pasadena Playhouse (Sheldon Epps, Artistic Director, Stephen Eich, Executive Director, Tom Ware, Producing Director) today announced full casting for the West Coast Premiere of THE NIGHT IS A CHILD, a new play by Charles Randolph-Wright. Sheldon Epps (Pasadena Playhouse Artistic Director), who directed Pasadena Playhouse's production of Ray Charles Live!, directs a cast of six led by JoBeth Williams (The Big Chill and Poltergeist). Preview performances begin August 28 with the official press opening set for Friday, September 4 at Pasadena Playhouse (39 South El Molino Avenue, Pasadena).

The best of Broadway is FREE on six consecutive Thursdays this summer with '106.7 Lite fm Presents Broadway in Bryant Park 2009' - a lunchtime series that kicked off on Thursday July 9th at 12:30PM on the Bryant Park Stage. The series, sponsored by Bank of America and State Farm, features live performances excerpted from big-name on- and off-Broadway shows for open-air enjoyment during lunch hour. BroadwayWorld.com's cameras were there to celebrate the launch!

Rich Affannato in association with Meri Krassner will present a special invitational reading of the new musical, CALIGULA, with book, music & lyrics by Eric Svejcar, for two performances next Monday, July 13 and Tuesday, July 14 at 3 p.m. at New World Stages (340 West 50th Street). Under the direction of Chris Presley, the cast features Euan Morton (Taboo) in the title role, with Autumn Hurlbert (MTV's Legally Blonde: The Search for Elle Woods), Matt Bogart (Jersey Boys, Aida), and Anastasia Barzee (White Christmas, Urinetown). These presentations of CALIGULA will be backed by a six-piece band led by Musical Director David Andrews Rogers.

Actress/singer/songwriter Alicia Witt returns to Joe's Pub on Friday, July 17, 2009, 11:30 PM to celebrate the release of her new self-titled EP! Witt will be singing and playing a set of her original songs with full band.

Dancap Productions presents the Canadian Premiere of The Toxic Avenger opening at The Music Hall Halloween 2009.

Color symbolism is a literary device that is hammered home by high school English teachers around the country. Students are encouraged to ponder why Jay Gatsby reaches out to the green light at the end of Daisy Buchanan's dock and what Robert Frost meant when he wrote about two roads diverging in a yellow wood. Why did these authors choose the colors green and yellow? What did they mean?

Just weeks prior to the Tony Award-winning musical AVENUE Q's 6th anniversary on Broadway, one of the stars of the original cast, Ann Harada, returned to the role of 'Christmas Eve' on Monday, July 6th at the John Golden Theatre (252 West 45th Street) in New York City. Ms. Harada -- who created the role on Broadway and played 'Christmas Eve' in the London production -- was joined in the production by members of the U.S. national tour of AVENUE Q, which recently concluded a phenomenally successful two-year run: Robert McClure will assume the roles of Princeton/Rod on Broadway, along with Anika Larsen as Kate Monster/Lucy the Slut, and Danielle K. Thomas as Gary Coleman. BroadwayWorld.com's cameras were there to catch the first bow of the 'new' and 'final' cast of AVENUE Q!

The producers of 2009's Best New Off-Broadway Musical*, The Toxic Avenger, celebrated the show's 100th performance on Friday, July 3 with a very special Independence Day party after the show. To commemorate the 100th performance (and America going green!), the cast and crew munched on 'toxic' cookies provided by Bobby Cookie and posed for the BroadwayWorld cameras!

Cast members from the Tony Award-Winning revival of HAIR joined members from Broadway Kids Care (BKC) to tie-dye bandanas for charity on Wednesday, July 1st at the Fireman's Park 235 West 48th Street (between Broadway and 8th Avenue).

Five-time Tony Award Nominated smash hit musical, ROCK OF AGES, along with US Air Guitar (the official air guitar association of the United States who is responsible for operating the US Air Guitar Championships) broke the Guinness World Record for Largest Air Guitar Ensemble immediately following the matinee performance yesterday, Wednesday, July 1, 2009 at The Brooks Atkinson Theatre, 256 W. 47th Street. BroadwwayWorld.com's headbangin' cameras were there to bring it all to you in our usual 'face melting' fashion!