Vanessi News

KISS ME, KATE, directed by Chris Causer, is led by Mikaela Sullivan and Cliff Gabor as Lilli Vanessi/Katherine and Fred Graham/Petruchio, respectively. The cast also features Heidi Hansfield (Lois Lane/Bianca), Tyler Sonkin (Bill Calhoun/Lucentio), Jenilee Houghton (First Gangster), Jessica James (Second Gangster), Anthony C. Brown (General Harrison Howell), Ken Rubenstein (Harry Trevor/Baptista), Korinne Yonan (Hattie), Larry D. Trice II (Paul), Becca Duff (Gremio/Ensemble), Emma Widlowski (Hortensio/Ensemble), Adrian Briones (Ralph/Ensemble), Stephanie Fongheiser (Philip/Ensemble), and Lauren Romano (Nathaniel/Ensemble).

In Cole Porter's sparkling 1948 musical, the warring lovers of The Taming of the Shrew are causing trouble both onstage and off. While mounting a musical version of Shakespeare's play, exes Fred Graham and Lilli Vanessi can't decide if they're enraged, enamored or enormously confused whenever they cross paths out of character. Throw in some mistaken identity, a pair of surprisingly eloquent gangsters and a whole lot of romantic entanglements, and what you get is Kiss Me, Kate - a dazzling classic that earned the first-ever Tony Award for Best Musical.

Cole Porter's 1948 love letter to showbiCole Porter's 1948 love letter to showbiz is brilliantly served by Opera North's big, bold and bawdy production - both soaringly romantic and packed with meta winks. A touring staple, Jo Davies' detailed take (the revival helmed by Ed Goggin) beds down very comfortably in the London Coliseum.

Today's subject, Alexandra Silber, is known on both sides of the pond as a versatile, killer performer. This international dynamo is currently living her theatre life onstage at Shakespeare Theatre Company (STC) as Guenevere in Camelot. The production has been extended and now runs through July 8th in STC's Sydney Harman Hall space.

Molto spesso noi miseri e incompresi amanti del musical ci lamentiamo di non riuscire a volare fino a Londra o a New York per assistere alle grandi produzioni, a causa di mancanza di tempo e di denaro. Quest'anno pero il Ravenna Festival, giunto alla sua diciannovesima edizione, ha deciso di fare un regalo agli appassionati del genere, portando sul palco del Teatro Alighieri la compagnia inglese Opera North.

Ahead of opening their all-singing, all-dancing production of Kiss Me, Kate at London's Coliseum on June 20th, Opera North today release their full- length West End trailer. Cole Porter's riotous homage to Shakespeare and irresistible celebration of the joy and madness of working in theatre features some of the greatest songs in American musical theatre including, Another Op'nin, Another Show, So In Love, Always True to You In My Fashion and Too Darn Hot.

As one of the nation's leading professional theaters and recipient of the 2016 Regional Theatre Tony Award, Paper Mill Playhouse (Mark S. Hoebee-Producing Artistic Director) has a well-earned reputation for launching both performers and shows to Broadway. Since their inception in 1996, the Paper Mill Playhouse Rising Star Awards for Excellence in High School Musical Theatre have ignited the careers of many notable performers, all of whom attended high school in New Jersey.  Among the early nominees and winners are Academy Award winner Anne Hathaway (Les Miserables), Tony Award winners Laura Benanti (Gypsy) and Nikki M. James (The Book of Mormon), Tony nominee Rob McClure (Chaplin), Shanice Williams, star of NBC's The Wiz Live! and Olivier Award nominee Jared Gertner (The Book of Mormon).  This year Union High School took the prize for 'Outstanding Overall Production.' A complete list of award winners is below.

Per chi conosce la gioia e la follia del teatro, e per chi non sa resistere a spiare dietro le quinte; per chi vuole ripassare Shakespeare e per chi vuole farsi trascinare dalle arguzie del jazz; per i romantici e per i cinici, e semplicemente per chi non vuole perdersi la festa: l'appuntamento e con il musical di Cole Porter Kiss Me, Kate al Teatro Alighieri il 7, 8 e 9 giugno.

'Another op'nin', another show...' Following the award-winning production in 2015, Opera North's Kiss Me Kate returns to tour the UK this summer. Talking to Kate herself during rehearsals, Stephanie Corley shares her journey into opera, the challenges of taking on a musical, and her connection to the show.

As BroadwayWorld reported yesterday, stage and screen star, Patricia Morison died at the age of 103 at home in Los Angeles of natural causes. A stage icon and legend best known for her starring roles in Cole Porter's Kiss Me Kate and The King & I opposite Yul Brynner, she established an indelible mark in films with a reputation as a the villainous femme fatale with large blue eyes and extremely long, dark hair that made her a favorite of studios and fans alike. 

Stage and screen star, Patricia Morison died today at the age of 103 at home in Los Angeles of natural causes. A stage icon and legend best known for her starring roles in Cole Porter's Kiss Me Kate and The King & I opposite Yul Brynner, she established an indelible mark in films with a reputation as a the villainous femme fatale with large blue eyes and extremely long, dark hair that made her a favorite of studios and fans alike. 

As one of the nation's leading professional theaters and recipient of the 2016 Regional Theatre Tony Award, Paper Mill Playhouse (Mark S. Hoebee-Producing Artistic Director, Todd Schmidt-Managing Director) has a well-earned reputation for launching both performers and shows to Broadway

See brand new footage from 5th Avenue Theatre's new production of Kiss Me, Kate. Kiss Me, Kate, a significant work in the canon of great musical theater, features a dynamic cast including the previously announced Cayman Ilika as Lilli Vanessi/Kate,Ben Davis as Fred Graham/Petruchio, Clyde Alves as Bill Calhoun/Lucentio and Robyn Hurder as Lois Lane/Bianca. Joining them is an acclaimed local lineup of 5th Avenue Theatre favorites including Allen Fitzpatrick as General Howell, Allen Galli as Second Man, Sarah Russell as Hattie, Jeff Steitzer as Harry/Batista, Ty Willis as Paul and Richard Ziman as First Man.

Virginia Musical Theatre will close out its 27th season with the Tony-winning 1999 revival of Cole Porter's Kiss Me, Kate, at the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts, April 27-29. The musical production blends the talents of William Shakespeare with the music of Porter to create one of the most chaotic, disruptive and enduring romances of all time on the stage. Kiss Me, Kate follows the embattled exes Fred Graham and Lilli Vanessi, and their onstage/offstage antics throughout a musical version of "The Taming of the Shrew," where Graham is Petruchio and Vanessi is Katharine. Add an ambitious showgirl, a Broadway hoofer who gambles often, and singing gangsters, and it's the perfect recipe for disaster. Featuring such classic songs as "Too Darn Hot," "Brush Up Your Shakespeare," "I Hate Men," "Another Op'nin', Another Show," and "Always True to You (In My Fashion)," Kiss Me, Kate is a real crowd-pleaser.

See brand new footage of the number 'Too Darn Hot' from 5th Avenue Theatre's new production of Kiss Me, Kate. Kiss Me, Kate, a significant work in the canon of great musical theater, features a dynamic cast including the previously announced Cayman Ilika as Lilli Vanessi/Kate,Ben Davis as Fred Graham/Petruchio, Clyde Alves as Bill Calhoun/Lucentio and Robyn Hurder as Lois Lane/Bianca. Joining them is an acclaimed local lineup of 5th Avenue Theatre favorites including Allen Fitzpatrick as General Howell, Allen Galli as Second Man, Sarah Russell as Hattie, Jeff Steitzer as Harry/Batista, Ty Willis as Paul and Richard Ziman as First Man.

When you think the classic era of Broadway Musicals, many lean toward Rodgers and Hammerstein or Lerner and Loewe but for my money I always go right to Cole Porter. Maybe not as prolific when it comes to hit shows as the others but you can't dismiss the undeniable genius of "Anything Goes" and of course "Kiss Me, Kate" (my personal favorite), currently playing at the 5th Avenue Theatre. And the folks at the 5th have not only done right by this classic tuner by packing it to the brim with the best singers, dancers and comedians they could find but the production is a love letter to the predecessors of the production, most notably the visual style which is so reminiscent of the 1953 film version, making this far more than a killer show, but an homage.

Check out photos from the 5th Avenue Theatre's new production of Kiss Me, Kate. Kiss Me, Kate, a significant work in the canon of great musical theater, features a dynamic cast including the previously announced Cayman Ilika as Lilli Vanessi/Kate,Ben Davis as Fred Graham/Petruchio, Clyde Alves as Bill Calhoun/Lucentio and Robyn Hurder as Lois Lane/Bianca.

See brand new footage of the number 'Wundebar' from 5th Avenue Theatre's new production of Kiss Me, Kate. Kiss Me, Kate, a significant work in the canon of great musical theater, features a dynamic cast including the previously announced Cayman Ilika as Lilli Vanessi/Kate,Ben Davis as Fred Graham/Petruchio, Clyde Alves as Bill Calhoun/Lucentio and Robyn Hurder as Lois Lane/Bianca. Joining them is an acclaimed local lineup of 5th Avenue Theatre favorites including Allen Fitzpatrick as General Howell, Allen Galli as Second Man, Sarah Russell as Hattie, Jeff Steitzer as Harry/Batista, Ty Willis as Paul and Richard Ziman as First Man.

See brand new footage from 5th Avenue Theatre's new production of Kiss Me, Kate. Kiss Me, Kate, a significant work in the canon of great musical theater, features a dynamic cast including the previously announced Cayman Ilika as Lilli Vanessi/Kate,Ben Davis as Fred Graham/Petruchio, Clyde Alves as Bill Calhoun/Lucentio and Robyn Hurder as Lois Lane/Bianca. Joining them is an acclaimed local lineup of 5th Avenue Theatrefavorites including Allen Fitzpatrick as General Howell, Allen Galli as Second Man, Sarah Russell as Hattie, Jeff Steitzer as Harry/Batista, Ty Willis as Paul andRichard Ziman as First Man.

Rehearsals are in full swing for The 5th Avenue Theatre's production of Kiss Me, Kate, which begins performances next Friday, April 6.