Robert Lopez News

Since the 2015-16 Season at the Durham Performing Arts Center has wrapped up, I decided to give you guys a little recap. While there were several different offerings that range from overhyped (A Gentleman's Guide to Love & Murder) to thought-provoking, yet a little divisive (Cabaret) to entertaining (42nd Street) to compelling (If/Then), these are some of my top picks of the season.

I love Mormons. I met my first church member while I was a teenager, studying my family history. They archive practically every family tree ever recorded. It has something to do with their religion, but they don't really like to talk about it, similar to their stance on magic underwear. Now on stage at The Wharton Center for Performing Arts on the campus of Michigan State University is the wickedly cutting, outrageously hysterical 'Book of Mormon,' a musical satire that unearths all those little idiosyncrasies associated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. This performance was magical, I could almost feel the mana imbued in the actors' magic underwear. One of the stars, Cody Jamison Strand plays Elder Cunningham, gave a performance to die for.

Casting has been announced for the new musicals in development at Eugene O'Neill Theater Center's National Music Theater Conference later this month. Among the actors premiering new work are Adam Chanler-Berat, Erin Davie, Colin Hanlon, Kevin Mambo, Matt Von Roderick, Christina Sajous, and Remy Zaken.

Back by popular demand, THE BOOK OF MORMON, which played a sold out one-week run in 2015, returns to Vancouver for a limited engagement August 23- September 4 at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. Single tickets will go on sale Monday, June 30 at 10am. Tickets available by visiting www.ticketmaster.ca or by calling 1-855-985-5000.  Group orders of 10 or more may be placed by calling 1-800-889-8457. 

Back by popular demand, THE BOOK OF MORMON, which played a record breaking one week run in 2015 returns to Winnipeg for a limited engagement September 27 - October 2 at the Centennial Concert Hall. Single tickets will go on sale June 13 at 10am. Tickets will be available at the Centennial Concert Hall box office (555 Main Street), all Ticketmaster outlets, by visiting www.ticketmaster.ca or by calling 1-855-985- 5000. Group orders of 10 or more may be placed by calling 1-800-889-8457 and go on sale May 2.

It seems unimaginable that a single work of art can both hysterically mock and lovingly embrace some of our fondest childhood memories. However, as the 'AVENUE Q Theme Song' transitions into the first official song of the musical (one of modern musical theatre's most effective opening numbers) it becomes clear that this show is unlike anything that came before it, and that traditional musical theatre conventions, and easily offended sensibilities, should be thrown out the window.

Back by popular demand, THE BOOK OF MORMON, which played a recordbreaking and sold out week long run in 2014 returns to East Lansing for a limited engagement June 14-19, 2016 at Wharton Center's Cobb Great Hall. Tickets are available at Wharton Center's official ticketing outlets: online at whartoncenter.com, at the Auto-Owner's Insurance Ticket Office at Wharton Center, or by calling 1-800-WHARTON.

Back by popular demand, THE BOOK OF MORMON - which played a record-breaking and sold-out weeklong run in 2014, returns to East Lansing for a limited engagement June 14-19, 2016 at Wharton Center's Cobb Great Hall. In East Lansing, the production will conduct a pre-show lottery at the ticket office, making a limited number of tickets available at $25 apiece per performance.

Manhattan Musical Theatre Lab, a non-profit developmental organization founded 16 years ago by the late Director and Choreographer Bick Goss, announced that it will present a preview of the new musical #MARS at the St. Luke's Theatre on June 22 at 6:30 pm. (St. Luke's is at 308 West 46th Street, between 8th and 9th Avenues.) With music by Willem Oosthuysen and book and lyrics by Laura Kleinbaum, #MARS is the story about how CBS-TV has conducted a worldwide search for qualified Americans to man the first ever mission to Mars. Tune in as Miami's premier plastic surgeon, everyone's favorite romance novelist, a girl next-door type, a retired mathematician in a wheelchair, and an actual astronaut takes human kind's next giant leap.

A Disney Cruise Line show will join the upcoming Broadway production and the recently opened Disneyland Resort attraction.

Back by popular demand, THE BOOK OF MORMON , which played a record breaking weeklong run in 2014, returns to the Fox Cities P.A.C. for a limited engagement October 4-9, 2016. 

The Lakewood Playhouse is proud to present the Final Showof our 77th Season: The South Sound debut of the Tony Award-Winning Musical celebrating its First Decade on Broadway - AVENUE "Q"!  with Music & Lyrics by Robert Lopez & Jeff Marx and a Book by Jeff Whitty Michael Frayn!  This production will also mark the conclusion of our year-long celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the very building we do all of our Productions in - The Lakewood Playhouse Theatre!  From "Taming of the Shrew" in its first year to "Avenue Q" at the end of this season, we will have presented over 300 Productions at this venue that was first built for us in 1965 by the Lakewood Arts Foundation. BroadwayWorld has a look at the production - check out the photos below!

There is a shake-up in the creative team for Disney's Broadway-bound FROZEN. According to Variety, Tony winner Christopher Gattelli (NEWSIES) will join as choreographer in place of Peter Darling (MATILDA, BILLY ELLIOT). Darling reportedly departs the production due to conflicts with another new musical- GROUNDHOG DAY, which is due to premiere in London later this year.

Mad Cow Theatre presents the Tony Award-winning musical AVENUE Q, which brings naughty puppets to the Harriett stage today, June 3, 2016 as the seventh production of Mad Cow Theatre's Season 19. The production is sponsored by Watermark and Harriett Lake.

The Lakewood Playhouse presents the FINAL SHOW of its 77th SEASON: The South Sound debut of the Tony Award-Winning Musical celebrating its First Decade on Broadway - AVENUE "Q"! with Music & Lyrics by Robert Lopez & Jeff Marx and a Book by Jeff Whitty Michael Frayn. Check out photos below!

FROZEN LIVE AT THE HYPERION, a new theatrical adaptation based on Disney's animated blockbuster film, opens May 27 at the Hyperion Theater at Disney California Adventure Park in Southern California.

The actors (and puppets) of Off-Broadway's Avenue Q took a break from the stage to find out what audiences have to say about their hit show by visiting Show-Score.com and reading a handful of reviews. Check it out below!

Die  MusicalCompany des Theater fur Niedersachsen in Hildesheim feiert im kommenden Jahr ihr 10-jahriges Jubilaum, und so stehen in der Spielzeit 2016/2017 auch wieder 5 Musicals auf dem Programm, darunter mit DOGFIGHT eine deutschsprachige Erstauffuhrung. Außerdem werden AVENUE Q, CABARET, UNFASSBAR NAH (CLOSER THAN EVER) und DAS GEHEIMNIS DES EDWIN DROOD aufgefuhrt.

Back by popular demand, THE BOOK OF MORMON, which played record breaking and sold out engagements in 2013 and 2014, returns to Toronto for a limited engagement February 28 - April 16, 2017 at The Princess of Wales Theatre. Tickets will go on sale online on Monday June 13 at 12:01 AM and are available by visiting Mirvish.com, or by phone at 9:00 AM by calling TicketKing at 416-872-1212 or 1-800-461-3333. Tickets will also be available in person at 12 Noon at the Princess of Wales Theatre Box Office, 300 King Street West. Group orders of 15 or more may be placed by calling 416-593-4142 or 1-800-724-6420.

The Barn Theatre, Michigan's oldest professional summer theatre, under the artistic leadership of Brendan Ragotzy, announced today the 70th Anniversary season of plays and musicals to be presented for the 2016 summer season at the landmark theatre.