Rosalind Russell News

When it comes to Tony Award snubbing, there are several artistic high crimes and misdemeanors. For instance, Fiorello! winning Best Musical over Gypsy, or the good Music Man besting the better West Side Story. Or how about this awful upset: Two Gentlemen of Verona (the since-forgotten musical) beating both Grease and Follies for the top honor. Perhaps worst of all is this: Even though A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM was Stephen Sondheim's first and most successful Broadway show as a composer and lyricist, and even though it would win six of its eight nominated Tony Awards in 1962-1963 (including Best Musical), Mr. Sondheim himself was not even nominated for his lyrics and score. A show that features some of the most beloved comic songs from the early 1960's--'Comedy Tonight,' 'Lovely,' and 'Everybody Ought to Have a Maid'--wasn't even nominated for these iconic numbers. (For the record, Oliver! won that year for Best Score.) Broadway's greatest composer would have to wait almost a decade to receive his first Tony Award.

Rom Com Fest, a new Los Angeles based film festival which celebrates love through film and experiences, announced the lineup for its inaugural festival which will take place June 20-23, 2019. The lineup includes special themed screenings of iconic romantic comedies, as well as a competition lineup of new romantic comedies, and a number of unique themed events and activities. The program was announced today by the festival's Founder and Executive Director Miraya Berke.

The line between Broadway-type musical theatre and opera becomes finer by the year--though I dare say that TOOTSIE is unlikely to be showing up at the Met any time soon. But the Kurt Weill-Ira Gershwin-Moss Hart LADY IN THE DARK might have morphed in a slightly different, better piece of music theatre if it arrived in the 21st century rather than World War II.

As I'm going through all my Gypsy CDs (yes, to ensure I have them all either on my hard drive or accessible in the cloud, before throwing them out), I'm finding myself weirdly most drawn to Tyne Daly's recording, from her Tony-winning performance in the 1989 revival. The thing is I know Tyne Daly, I mean I know her work. She's been a familiar and distinctive presence on stage and screen for as long as I can remember and I even have a few musical theater recordings featuring her singing, but hers is not a singing voice I live with on a LITERALLY daily basis like, say, Ethel Merman's, Angela Lansbury's, Bette Midler's, Bernadette Peters's or Patti LuPone's. So to me, Tyne Daly's Rose is a unique sound that I can only identify with Tyne Daly's Rose and, therefore, a character. For today, that's the Gypsy I most feel like listening to.

Counter-Productions Theatre Company is presenting the world premiere of Kevin Broccoli's THE MARRIED NAME this weekend at AS 220's Black Box Theatre, 95 Empire St in Downtown Providence. Broccoli is a very talented actor, playwright, and artistic director of Epic Theatre in Cranston. In an uninterrupted hour and twenty minutes, THE MARRIED NAME deals with four men getting together for dinner a short time before the wedding of two of them. Rex and Dan are planning this wedding and encountering problems that probably should have been dealt with earlier. Kevin Broccoli can write funny.

Turner Classic Movies (TCM) will kick off the 10th annual TCM Classic Film Festival on Thursday, April 11th with a 30th anniversary screening of the seminal romantic comedy When Harry Met Sally... with beloved stars Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan and acclaimed director/producer Rob Reiner in attendance. The 2019 TCM Classic Film Festival, held in the heart of Hollywood April 11th-14th, marks the 10th annual celebration of classic films on the big screen from TCM. The TCM network will also celebrate its 25th anniversary on closing night of the festival.

An admission. I didn't go to the New York City Ballet fashion gala. Why? Because I didn't care. The New York City Ballet is probably the only company in the world that never had to pander to an audience seeking couture thrills, at least when Balanchine was alive. I know that's changed and the company has to bring in the bucks, but when the draw seems to be clothes and not choreography, it gets me thinking. What's in store for us?

Broadway, West End, and National Tour Veteran Jill Paice is adding yet another accomplishment to her long list of credits as she performs her first solo show, Don't Quit Your Daydream at Feinstein's 54 Below on August 13th at 7:00 PM! Amidst planning and prepping for her big night, she talks a bit about all things from how she got her start in theatre, to what to expect on August 13th in the interview below!

For the centenary of America's favorite musical son Leonard Bernstein, two of his much-loved works

The classic Musical 'Mame' opened the 2018 season last night at NSMT. The Musical by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee, with Lyrics by Jerry Herman, and based on the book by Patrick Dennis, is a 1966 Musical Theatre warhorse that has starred such luminaries as, Rosalind Russell, Angela Landsbury, and even Lucille Ball, in the ill-fated 1970's movie.

Dancing at Lughnasa will be performed at Two River Theater from April 14 to May 13. Written by Brian Friel and directed by Jessica Stone, the cast includes Megan Byrne, Michael Cumpsty, Meredith Garretson, Mylinda Hull, Cillian O'Sullivan, Christa Scott-Reed, Mandy Siegfried , and Harry Smith. Broadwayworld.com had the pleasure of interviewing Christa Scott-Reed who plays Agnes about her career and the show.

As a prelude to this play, vintage cartoons from the 1930's were projected onstage as the audience entered to take their seats. Walt Disney's Steamboat Willie, which introduced Mickey Mouse, was animated by Ub Iwerks, who (we are informed on titles between the shorts) soon left Disney to make his own cartoons for MGM, including Flip the Frog, an example of which followed hard upon. Before curtain, we were also treated to Betty Boop, and all of the cartoons were in stark black & white. Playwright Eli Keel identifies this period as the 'Golden Age of Animation', a time when the form was almost literally being invented. The end of the decade would bring Snow White, often described, somewhat inaccurately, as the first feature-length animated film. That it was in full color underscores the rapid development of the technology and the storytelling. However much the late 1940's and 1950's are celebrated for the rise of Disney's commercial empire, Keel has chosen the most interesting and fertile period of animation creativity in which to set his story.

Riverside Theatre, led by Producing Artistic Director/CEO Allen D. Cornell and Managing Director/COO Jon R. Moses, presents one of Broadway's greatest musicals, Gypsy. Presenting sponsor for Gypsy is Bobbie Olson with additional support from Riverside Theatre's Patron Producers' Group. Gypsy plays the Stark Stage at Riverside Theatre from March 6 - 25, 2018.

Make the Yuletide gay with Three Dollar Bill Cinema and AUNTIE MAME at AMC Pacific Place on December 13 at 6:30 pm. One night only! Festive attire and costumes encouraged for this highly anticipated holiday tradition.

Loosely based on the 1957 memoir by renowned stripetease artist Gypsy Rose Lee, Gypsy follows the dreams and efforts of her mother, Rose, who raises two daughters to perform onstage and casts an affectionate eye on the hardships of show business life. The idea to musicalize this story came about when producer David Merrick read a chapter of Lee's memoirs in Harper's Magazine. From there, he quickly got in touch with her in order to obtain the rights.

Make the Yuletide gay with Three Dollar Bill Cinema and AUNTIE MAME at AMC Pacific Place on December 13 at 6:30 pm. One night only! Festive attire and costumes encouraged for this highly anticipated holiday tradition.

The Warner Stage Company will hold auditions for a Nancy Marine Studio Theatre production of Ken Ludwig's THE GAME'S AFOOT (Or Holmes for the Holidays) on Monday, September 25th and Tuesday, September 26th at 7:00pm by appointment. 

The River Street Theatre (RST), a project of The Park Theatre, will present the classic Ben Hecht & Charles MacArthur fast paced romantic comedy, His Girl Friday, today, August 16 at 7 pm as a fundraiser for the Jaffrey Woman's Club.

The River Street Theatre (RST), a project of The Park Theatre, will present the classic Ben Hecht & Charles MacArthur fast paced romantic comedy, His Girl Friday, on Wednesday, August 16 at 7 pm as a fundraiser for the Jaffrey Woman's Club.

Neglected Musicals will present MAME at Hayes Theatre Co from Wednesday 5 July.  Directed by Richard Carroll, this 1966 Broadway hit will be the first time the musical has been performed on a professional stage since 1968.