Robin Wagner News

LEAP OF FAITH might have taken its final bow back in May, but sources in the cast tell us that an album is in the works. The cast will gather tomorrow, June 13 to record the original cast album. A release date has not yet been announced.

Continuing our extensive countdown considering many of Broadway's best clips as represented on Tony Awards telecasts recent and distant, today we look to the third and final clip from a Michael Bennett musical on our countdown - and, many would argue, the creme de la creme of them all - the only; the one; A CHORUS LINE. A 5, 6, 7, 8...

As previously scooped by BroadwayWorld.com, it's now official that the Hollywood Bowl's production of the Broadway hit THE PRODUCERS will star Richard Kind as Max Bialystock and Jesse Tyler Ferguson as Leo Bloom.

Alan Menken has taken to his twitter just now to announce that LEAP OF FAITH will be recording a Broadway cast album sometime soon. No details regarding a label, recording or anticipated release date have been confirmed at present.

LEAP OF FAITH plays its final performance today, May 13, at Broadway's St. James Theatre (246 West 44th Street) after the matinee performance. Broadway's LEAP OF FAITH opened on Thursday April 26 and will have played 24 previews and 20 regular performances. Take a look back through video from the show's opening in Los Angeles to its first steps on Broadway, and everything in between, including fan's reactions and an opening-night interview with Raul Esparza!

LEAP OF FAITH plays its final performance today, May 13, at Broadway's St. James Theatre (246 West 44th Street) after the matinee performance. Broadway's LEAP OF FAITH opened on Thursday April 26 and will have played 24 previews and 20 regular performances. Take a look back through photos of Raul Esparza and the company on stage, the show's opening night curtain calls and party, its Gypsy Robe Ceremony with Dennis Stowe and more below!

Producers of LEAP OF FAITH announced today that the show will close at Broadway's St. James Theatre this Sunday May 13 after the matinee performance. In a statement, they said "Although we love our show and very much appreciate both our many award nominations and the joy of our audiences, we have not been able to achieve a sustainable level of ticket sales to continue. We thank all those who worked so hard over so many years to bring LEAP OF FAITH to Broadway."

"It's always gorgeous when you sing," and so the same goes for NBC's musical drama series SMASH. This week's penultimate episode of the first season order of fifteen gave us a long-awaited real look at the actual production of the musical-within-the-show live onstage in the form of the first Boston preview in the out-of-town tryout of BOMBSHELL. Up until this point, we have only been provided with sporadic glimpses into the mind's eye of the director of the show as he stages and rehearses the various song sequences. With last night's "Previews" episode we got our third major iteration of "Let Me Be Your Star" - following the full-out song at the conclusion of the pilot episode and the subsequent ballad opening number version shown in Episode 2 - with Rebecca Duvall (guest star Uma Thurman) belting it out to mixed results. Mixed results is the kindest way to say that the volatile and kooky movie star character simply does not work in any way as Marilyn Monroe in the bio-musical about her life being created - not physically, tonally and certainly not musically. Croaking out the sumptuous and richly melodic Marc Shaiman/Scott Wittman gems that have been specifically created for SMASH's BOMBSHELL - songs dutifully doled out in sparingly small doses of one or two each week - is near-sacrilege when one ponders the talent even on the very same stage; Ivy (Megan Hilty) or Karen (Katharine McPhee) could both kill the role, as wee have seen. So, who will ultimately make it to the stage that now, in the eleventh hour, the star of the show has walked? Of course, the sure-to-be action, drama and music-filled finale to Season One arrives next Monday at the same SMASH place and same SMASH channel - will the Marilyn musical be a bomb or a smash? Will the show even go on at all given the unforeseen obstacles? A lot remains to be answered, but the fever pitch fans and viewers have been yearning for has definitely entered, stage right. Next week we will see who truly sparkles, who really shines - and who ends up exploding.

LEAP OF FAITH's Kecia Lewis-Evans will be interviewed on WAMC radio on Tuesday May 8 at 10:35 AM on all Northeast Public Radio frequencies; it also streams live at www.wamc.org.

A long-standing opening night tradition on the Great White Way, the fabled Gypsy Robe is bestowed upon a veteran Broadway chorus member for each opening production. In what has now become a theatrical ritual, originating on Broadway 60 years ago, it was just presented to LEAP OF FAITH 'gypsy' Dennis Stowe.

Watch the CBS Early Show tomorrow, Saturday April 28, in the 8 AM half-hour for a feature on LEAP OF FAITH hosted by correspondent Elaine Quihano. LEAP OF FAITH opened last night at The St. James Theatre, 246 West 44th Street, with four-time Tony nominee Raúl Esparza leading the company.

LEAP OF FAITH opened on Broadway on April 26th, 2012 with four-time Tony nominee Raúl Esparza leading the company along with Jessica Phillips, Kendra Kassebaum, Kecia Lewis-Evans, Leslie Odom, Jr., Krystal Joy Brown and Talon Ackerman. BroadwayWorld was on hand to celebrate at the fun-filled after party and chatted with all of the show's stars - in addition to the creative team - throughout the night. Click below to go inside the party!

BroadwayWorld.com was there to capture the show's emotional (and wet!) curtain call!

LEAP OF FAITH opened on Broadway last night, April 26th, with four-time Tony nominee Raúl Esparza leading the company along with Jessica Phillips, Kendra Kassebaum, Kecia Lewis-Evans, Leslie Odom, Jr., Krystal Joy Brown and Talon Ackerman. BroadwayWorld.com was there to capture the show's celebrity red carpet!

LEAP OF FAITH opened on Broadway last night, April 26th, with four-time Tony nominee Raúl Esparza leading the company along with Jessica Phillips, Kendra Kassebaum, Kecia Lewis-Evans, Leslie Odom, Jr., Krystal Joy Brown and Talon Ackerman. BroadwayWorld.com was there to capture the cast at the show's opening night party!

Today we are talking to one of the busiest choreographers on Broadway who was recently represented by four shows running on the Great White Way simultaneously (a new record) - the long-running hit JERSEY BOYS, Pulitzer Prize-winner NEXT TO NORMAL, multi-Tony Award-winning MEMPHIS and THE ADDAMS FAMILY. His most recent Broadway credit is the new Alan Menken/Glenn Slater musical adaptation of the 90s hit Steve Martin comedy LEAP OF FAITH featuring Broadway superstar Raul Esparza in the lead. In addition to discussing the unique demands of his involvement with the aforementioned new musicals with a pronounced focus on his current project, Trujillo opens up about the process of collaborating with a director and what musical staging is all about at its core, as well as outlining his experiences working with a number of notable names on his impressive assortment of projects so far and taking a look back at his own career as a performer, having previously appeared in GUYS & DOLLS, FOSSE and the film version of CHICAGO among other illustrious resume entries. Plus, Trujillo shares his infectious enthusiasm and passionate dedication to his art and reveals what he will be taking on next after LEAP OF FAITH's opening night, which is tonight - a tryout tour of a screen-to-stage adaptation of the iconic 80s hit FLASHDANCE and an original dramatic musical included. All of that and much, much more!

Check out the first video highlights from LEAP OF FAITH as four-time Tony nominee Raúl Esparza leads the company along with Jessica Phillips, Kendra Kassebaum, Kecia Lewis-Evans, Leslie Odom, Jr., Krystal Joy Brown and Talon Ackerman. Opening night is tonight, April 26.

Check out the first video highlights from LEAP OF FAITH as four-time Tony nominee Raúl Esparza leads the company along with Jessica Phillips, Kendra Kassebaum, Kecia Lewis-Evans, Leslie Odom, Jr., Krystal Joy Brown and Talon Ackerman. Opening night is Thursday, April 26.

Performances for LEAP OF FAITH began on Tuesday, April 3, at The St. James Theatre. Four-time Tony nominee Raúl Esparza leads the company along with Jessica Phillips, Kendra Kassebaum, Kecia Lewis-Evans, Leslie Odom, Jr., Krystal Joy Brown and Talon Ackerman. Opening night is Thursday, April 26. Production photos have just been released and BroadwayWorld brings you a look at the onstage action below!

Jessica Phillips, star of Broadway's Leap of Faith, sat down with ABC News 10's What's the Buzz to talk about the show. Watch the video below!