In honor of this week's big casting coup coming in the form of original Dorothy Stephanie Mills joining the cast of NBC's live musical presentation of THE WIZ later this year, titled THE WIZ LIVE!, today we are posing some possible casting suggestions that line up with the thoughtful and affectionate choice of Mills as Auntie Em by taking a look at some of the other original leads and stars associated with the property who could be perfect fits for the live telecast as well as some familiar faces who would be ideally cast in the Oz-centric musical spectacular. Tony Award-winning Broadway divas to Hollywood superstars and beyond, this list has more potential than munchkins in Oz!
The York Theatre Company celebrates the great American lyricist Marshall Barer (Once Upon a Mattress) with a special concert event, The Marshall Barer Project, a musical tour through the life, career and mind of a man whose songs are shimmering jewels from the American Songbook. Starring BJ Ward with special guest Michael Feinstein. Directed by Gordon Hunt, The Marshall Barer Project will play two performances only on Tuesday June 10, 2014 at 5:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. The York Theatre Company at Saint Peter's (Citicorp Building, entrance on East 54th Street, just east of Lexington Avenue).
'Exciting' is not a word normally associated with productions of Thornton Wilder's Our Town. Heartwarming? Sure. Chilling? When its climax is done well, certainly. But director David Cromer's non-traditional take on the play - which remains completely faithful to the author's text and themes - is one of the most exciting theatre events of the season.
On April 7, ArkivMusic released eight long-unavailable cast recordings on cd for the first time. New releases include DisinHAIRited, Hazel Flagg, Jimmy, The Last Sweet Days of Isaac, Let It Ride!, New Faces of 1952, New Faces of '56, and The Threepenny Opera.
