Teller News

Broadway stars Emily Padgett and Matthew Hydzik will star as "Alex" and "Nick" in the world premiere of FLASHDANCE - THE MUSICAL, the stage adaptation of the 1983 hit film that defined a generation. Padgett and Hydzik will be joined on stage by the legendary Rachelle Rak in the role of "Tess." Sergio Trujillo, director and choreographer for the production returned to the home of FLASHDANCE and launch of the world premiere, Pittsburgh's Heinz Hall, to announce the lead casting from a press conference. Mayor Luke Ravenstahl and Kevin McMahon, CEO of Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, were also on hand to welcome the cast and creative team to Pittsburgh and to make a proclamation, naming January 1, 2013 as FLASHDANCE DAY. Celebrating its 30th Anniversary,FLASHDANCE kicks off a national tour January 1-6 at Heinz Hall and continues on to more than 20 cities with additional bookings to be announced:

Met Principal Conductor Fabio Luisi will lead his first Met performances of Verdi's Un Ballo in Maschera, in a new production by renowned opera director David Alden, beginning tonight, November 8. The staging is the first of two new Verdi productions in the current Met season, which includes seven operas by the great composer in honor of the 200th anniversary of his birth.

Albert Schultz, Founding Artistic Director of Soulpepper Theatre Company and General Director of the Young Centre for the Performing Arts today announced a full year's slate of artistic and community-based activity for Soulpepper and the Young Centre in 2013. Over 700 performances representing the remarkable artistic and cultural diversity of the city will happen under the Young Centre's roof next year, including festivals, cabarets, and community partnerships. Soulpepper Theatre Company's repertory season features fifteen plays including two marathon-style theatrical events to be staged in their entirety: Tony Kushner's Pulitzer Prize-winning Angels in America (Part One: Millennium Approaches & Part Two: Perestroika) and Alan Ayckbourn's The Norman Conquests (Table Manners, Living Together & Round and Round the Garden). Soulpepper's season includes adaptations of plays from the classical canon (Beaumarchais/Rossini's The Barber of Seville, Schnitzler's La Ronde, and Dickens' Great Expectations) alongside twentieth-century gems by Tom Stoppard, Joe Orton, Sam Shepard and Canada's John Murrell.

Met Principal Conductor Fabio Luisi will lead his first Met performances of Verdi's Un Ballo in Maschera, in a new production by renowned opera director David Alden, beginning November 8. The staging is the first of two new Verdi productions in the current Met season, which includes seven operas by the great composer in honor of the 200th anniversary of his birth.

Halloween gets a little scarier with horror icon Tom Savini the award winning special effects make-up artist/actor/director (Dawn of the Dead, From Dusk Till Dawn, Django Unchained) as his latest character 'The Amazing Savini' a dark carnival fortune teller and the host of EPIX's SCARYTALE THEATER.

The national tour of the Tony Award-winning best musical Jersey Boys is starting an engagement at the Durham Performing Arts Center on October 30th. To commemorate the occasion, it was my honor to interview the show's book writer Rick Elice to find out more about this show which has become an international phenomenon.

While the scariness of the season may be all too real and in-your-face to East Coast BroadwayWorld readers due to Hurricane Sandy, late October is indeed the most frightening time of the year, so let's take a look at some of the top picks for Halloween 2012 - whether you are looking to pass some time in the storm, boiling up a cauldron of witch's brew for trick or treaters or donning devilish duds yourself.

As part of the League of Professional Theatre Women's 30th Anniversary 30 Plays Celebrate 30 Years project, an evening dedicated to poetry written and performed by poets P.J. Gibson, Carol Hall, Anne Hamilton, Harriet Slaughter, Mira Spektor and Gayl Teller will be presented at the Cherry Lane Theatre tonight, October 29th at 7:30. Cara Reichel will direct. Melody Berger will provide incidental music.

Lindsay Posner returns to the Almeida to direct Rebecca Lenkiewicz' new stage adaptation of Henry James' The Turn of the Screw from 18 January - 16 March 2013, with press night on 24 January. Designs are by Peter McKintosh with lighting by Tim Mitchell and sound by John Leonard. Casting for The Turn of the Screw will be announced shortly. The Turn of the Screw is presented in Association with Act Productions Limited, Sonia Friedman Productions and Hammer Theatre of Horror.

Recently accepted into the 2012 United Solo Theatre Festival, A Little Potato and Hard to Peel will perform at Theatre Row tonight, October 26 at 6:00 pm.

Tradesy, a new website that unlocks the hidden value in every woman's closet, launched today. Tradesy gives users a safe and easy way to sell their underutilized clothing and accessories to a community of fashionable shoppers.

Halloween gets a little scarier with horror icon Tom Savini the award winning special effects make-up artist/actor/director (Dawn of the Dead, From Dusk Till Dawn, Django Unchained) as his latest character 'The Amazing Savini' a dark carnival fortune teller and the host of EPIX's SCARYTALE THEATER.

OY VEY! THE PLAY will begin performances on Friday, November 23rd at The Lion Theatre at Theatre Row (410 West 42nd Street). This new comedy, which runs through December 16th is written by David Silberg and directed by Sue Lawless. Tickets are $19.25 and are available by visiting www.telecharge.com or by calling at (212) 239-6900 or (800) 432-7250.

Broadway is alive and well and living in Las Vegas. The influence of the Great White Way on the Las Vegas Strip is more evident than ever and the word of the day is "QUALITY!" For theatre goers visiting Las Vegas who have digested just about "one Cirque too many" - Caesars Entertainment offers the antidote, producing the finest theatrical experiences in town ranging from a first rate production of JERSEY BOYS to Jerry Mitchell's tantalizing PEEPSHOW to the always surprising PENN AND TELLER, and more. On a recent trip to Sin City I attended five of Caesar's great theatrical offerings and was treated to a feast for the senses at every turn.

Produced in partnership with South Mountain Storytelling Telling Institute, the Mesa Arts Center hosts a special EVENING OF STORYTELLING; featuring a youth teller, an Arizona teller and national treasure, Donald Davis. Donald's masterful storytelling captures the real and daily adventures of life in an entertaining and engaging way.

Music Avenue Records announces the release of the new single and music video 'This Time I've Got It' featuring The Great Tomsoni & Co. and a number of other top Las Vegas artists and entertainers. The song, co-written and produced by songwriter/producer/artists Randell & Schippers, is now available on iTunes and the video on YouTube. It is already listed online as a top trending tweet.

NBC has announced the cast of the upcoming CELEBRITY APPRENTICE ALL-STAR season. The fourteen returning contestants, who were revealed on NBC's Today show this morning, includes former winner Bret Michaels

The Chancellor on Hotel Union Square is once again host to the SAN FRANCISCO MAGIC PARLOR! The evening's vignettes are highlighted with magical moments employing unusual curios and rare artifacts.

Will Rogers was a great American humorist and philosopher. His understated humor is sage wisdom, but does not make for compelling theatre, in spite of a nice presentation by Neil Thackaberry at Actors' Summit.