The Muppets News

What's up BroadwayWorld?! Welcome back to my weekly blog here at the Goodspeed Opera House! Last week I gave you a bit of an inside look at the rehearsal/production process of our show. This week, I thought it might be fun to get to know a bit more about the Composer / Lyricist of this masterpiece: Frank Loesser.

Often referred to as the beating heart of the Festival, the Pleasance once again presents a programme for this year's Edinburgh Festival Fringe this is both entertaining and thought-provoking.

 "We are extremely proud of the series the studio is producing for ABC and other networks. This TV season is especially exciting as we have increased the number of quality shows over last season," said Patrick Moran, EVP, ABC Studios.

Dixon Place's new commission THE FLATIRON HEX, starring Award-winning puppeteer/performance & visual artist James Godwin, will have its world premiere today, May 15th. Godwin's previous collaborations include Julie Taymor, David Bowie, the Muppets & even Aerosmith. A 2014 Jim Henson Award recipient, Godwin utilizes remarkable puppets, masks & mystical neo-noir visuals to tell a story set in a parallel, near-future NYC filled with ghosts, elemental spirits & evil demigods. THE FLATIRON HEX will play six performances only -- May 15th, 16th, 22th, 23th, 29th, and 30th at 7:30PM, at Dixon Place (161A Chrystie Street).

It's time to get things started! Today, ABC has shared a first look at the network's new series for next season. Check out THE MUPPETS, UNCLE BUCK and many more!

ABC continues its commitment to great storytelling with the announcement of its 2015-16 slate of programming, including the addition of 10 new series. Paul Lee, president, ABC Entertainment Group, will unveil the network's new lineup to the advertising and media communities this afternoon at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall.

ABC has greenlit the comedy series UNCLE BUCK,  starring comedian Mike Epps. The show joins three other previously announced comedies for the network including “The Muppets”, “Dr. Ken,”  and “The Real O'Neals.”

Good morning, BroadwayWorld! Because we know all our readers eat, sleep and breathe Broadway, what could be better than waking up to it? This weekend's big news: The Divine Miss M heads out on tour, a new Bob Marley musical debuts in Maryland, and the Lortel Awards are set for this weekend!

Carla Johnston, Ensemble Parent, TADA! supporter and hilarious comedian, will host this special evening of laughs, A Good Laugh, tonight, May 8 2015 at Gotham Comedy Club.

"Take a look and you'll see into your imagination" with this new music video from YouTube star and electronic violinist Lindsey Stirling and multi-platinum recording artist Josh Groban as they perform "Pure Imagination*" with the Muppets!

The USO makes 30,000 moments every day for our nation's troops and their families worldwide, striving to be always by their side from the moment they join the service, throughout their military journey and as they transition back into their civilian communities.

Carla Johnston, Ensemble Parent, TADA! supporter and hilarious comedian, will host this special evening of laughs, A Good Laugh, on Friday, May 8 2015 at Gotham Comedy Club. Join Johnston ("Orange is the New Black") and top comics Andy Pitz ("The Tonight Show"), Nancy Witter (Nick at Nite's "Funniest Mom"), Dave Konig (3-time Emmy Award-winner) and Ryan Hamilton (winner of Great Americam Comedy Festival)  for a night of laughter, door prizes and fund-raising for TADA! Your entire date night is planned for you: drop your kids off at TADA!, eat dinner at Bastardo Restaurant (10% of your bill is donated to TADA!) and then see a hilarious comedy show at one of NYC's oldest comedy venues!

According to the New York Daily News, Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Jeffrey Oing has ruled that off-Broadway's STOMP is free to leave the Orpheum Theater after 21 years.

The Spire Center for Performing Arts, the entertainment mecca of Plymouth, presents a eclectic season of summer entertainment at The Spire Center for Performing Arts, 25 ½ Court Street, Plymouth. 

Four time Grammy Award winner Renee Fleming makes her Broadway debut alongside Tony Award nominee Douglas Sills, two-time Emmy Award nominee Anna Chlumsky, Jerry O'Connell, Blake Hammond and Scott Robertson in Living on Love by two-time Tony Award winner Joe DiPietro, based on the play Peccadillo by Garson Kanin, and directed by three-time Tony Award winner Kathleen Marshall. Living on Love opens tonight, April 20, 2015 at the Longacre Theatre. Scroll down to learn more about the cast and watch interviews with the company!

Spoiler Alert! If you attend Avenue Q, you will find yourself at one of the most creative productions of the theatrical season. Avenue Q opened on Friday April 17 at the Barn Players in Mission, Kansas. Based on the original concept of Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx Avenue Q is a musical in two acts. Music and lyrics are by Lopez and Marx with the book by Jeff Whitty.

Lincoln Center Theater presents Rodgers & Hammerstein's The King and I, led by Kelli O'Hara (as Anna Leonowens) and Ken Watanabe (as the King of Siam), directed by Bartlett Sher. The production opens tonight, April 16, 2015 at the Vivian Beaumont Theater (150 West 65 Street). Scroll down to learn more about the company, plus watch highlights from the show!

Emmy- and Peabody-winning filmmaker Peter Rosen (American Masters - Garrison Keillor: The Man on the Radio in the Red Shoes, The Cliburn: Playing on the Edge) uncovers the story of legendary musician Jascha Heifetz (1901-1987), the first truly modern violin virtuoso, for THIRTEEN's American Masters series.

Dixon Place's new commission THE FLATIRON HEX, starring Award-winning puppeteer/performance & visual artist James Godwin, will have its world premiere on Friday, May 15th. Godwin's previous collaborations include Julie Taymor, David Bowie, the Muppets & even Aerosmith. A 2014 Jim Henson Award recipient, Godwin utilizes remarkable puppets, masks & mystical neo-noir visuals to tell a story set in a parallel, near-future NYC filled with ghosts, elemental spirits & evil demigods. THE FLATIRON HEX will play six performances only -- May 15th, 16th, 22th, 23th, 29th, and 30th at 7:30PM, at Dixon Place (161A Chrystie Street).

When the latest Rodgers and Hammerstein revival, THE KING AND I, opens in just over a week, starring Ken Watanabe and Kelli O'Hara, it will be the show's fifth Broadway production. Over the past six decades since the production originally opened on Broadway, basically only Yul Brynner has played the King of Siam, earning him the unofficial title of “The King of THE KING AND I.” However, many different women have donned the gorgeous gown to sing “Shall We Dance?” on the Great White Way since the original 1951 Broadway version. In honor of the upcoming revival, BroadwayWorld brings you a look back at the Top 5 women who have portrayed Anna in THE KING AND I on Broadway.