Walter Bobbie News

Today, the Tony Award-winning, record-breaking revival of John Kander, Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse's hit musical Chicago will become Broadway's second longest-running show, right behind THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. With 7,486 performances, it surpasses CATS, which played 7,485 performances.

David Mirvish and National Artists Management Company have just announced that they will present the Broadway premiere of The Heart of Robin Hood, written by David Farr, featuring original music performed on-stage by Parsonsfieldand directed by acclaimed Icelandic theatrical artist Gísli Örn Gardarsson. The production will open on Broadway on Sunday, March 29, 2015 at the Marquis Theatre (1535 Broadway). Previews begin on Tuesday, March 10, 2015. The production will play a strictly limited engagement through Sunday, August 23, 2015.

The West End premiere of Irving Berlin's much-loved musical White Christmas is led by Aled Jones as Bob Wallace, Tom Chambers as Phil Davis, Wendi Peters as Martha, Graham Cole as General Waverley, Rachel Stanley as Betty Haynes and Louise Bowden as Judy Haynes, with Lori Haley Fox,Michelle Bishop, Phil Cole, Brendan Cull and Jonathan Halliwell. White Christmas opened at London's newly refurbished Dominion Theatre on Wednesday, 12 November, and continues for a strictly limited eight-week season, ending on 3 January 2015. BroadwayWorld brings you highlights from opening night below!

Yesterday the Tony Award-winning, record-breaking revival of John Kander, Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse's hit musical Chicago celebrates 18 years playing on Broadway. Below, BroadwayWorld brings you pictures of the star-studded celebration!

The West End premiere of Irving Berlin's much-loved musical White Christmas is led by Aled Jones as Bob Wallace, Tom Chambers as Phil Davis, Wendi Peters as Martha, Graham Cole as General Waverley, Rachel Stanley as Betty Haynes and Louise Bowden as Judy Haynes, with Lori Haley Fox,Michelle Bishop, Phil Cole, Brendan Cull and Jonathan Halliwell. White Christmas opened at London's newly refurbished Dominion Theatre on Wednesday, 12 November, and continues for a strictly limited eight-week season, ending on 3 January 2015. BroadwayWorld has more photos from the opening night festivities below!

The West End premiere of Irving Berlin's much-loved musical White Christmas is led by Aled Jones as Bob Wallace, Tom Chambers as Phil Davis, Wendi Peters as Martha, Graham Cole as General Waverley, Rachel Stanley as Betty Haynes and Louise Bowden as Judy Haynes, with Lori Haley Fox, Michelle Bishop, Phil Cole, Brendan Cull and Jonathan Halliwell. White Christmas opened at London's newly refurbished Dominion Theatre on Wednesday, 12 November, and continues for a strictly limited eight-week season, ending on 3 January 2015. BroadwayWorld has photos from the opening night festivities below!

The West End premiere of Irving Berlin's much-loved musical White Christmas will be led by Aled Jones as Bob Wallace, Tom Chambers as Phil Davis, Wendi Peters as Martha, Graham Cole as General Waverley, Rachel Stanley as Betty Haynes and Louise Bowden as Judy Haynes, with Lori Haley Fox, Michelle Bishop, Phil Cole, Brendan Cull and Jonathan Halliwell. Below, BroadwayWorld brings you a first look at the cast in action!

You could feel the excitement rising as the crowd began to enter the theatre; the pull of liquor and jazz tugging them towards their seats as the opening night of Chicago at San Francisco's SHN was about to begin. Filled with songs that have become Broadway classics, such as 'All That Jazz', 'Razzle Dazzle', 'Cell Block Tango,' and really the list goes on, the revival is the winner of six 1997 Tony Awards, outperforming the 1976 original which received ten nominations but no wins. Celebrity murderesses, jazz, greed, lime light, and amazingly inspired Fosse style dancing - what could be better than a night of Chicago, playing now through November 16 at SHNSF's Orpheum Theatre.

The Old Globe today announced that James Vasquez (Dr. Seuss' How The Grinch Stole Christmas!, Richard O'Brien's The Rocky Horror Show) will direct the final show of its 2014-2015 Season, the West Coast premiere of an exciting new American play, Rich Girl, by acclaimed playwright Victoria Stewart. Rich Girl will play May 23 - June 21, 2015.

CHICAGO on Broadway's Terrra C. MacLeod and Bianca Marroquin are back on the road as the accused celebrity killers and reluctant vaudeville partners Velma Kelly and Roxie Hart, respectively, whose combination delivers equally strong lead performances.

The West End premiere of Irving Berlin's much-loved musical WHITE CHRISTMAS will be led by Aled Jones as Bob Wallace, Tom Chambers as Phil Davis, Wendi Peters as Martha, Graham Cole as General Waverley, Rachel Stanley as Betty Haynes and Louise Bowden as Judy Haynes, with Lori Haley Fox, Michelle Bishop, Phil Cole, Brendan Cull and Jonathan Halliwell. Below, BroadwayWorld has a sneak peek at the company in rehearsal!

The cast of White Christmas launched the Christmas windows at Fenwick of Bond Street in London yesterday, 29 October 2014. The cast, led by Aled Jones, Tom Chambers, Wendi Peters, Graham Cole, Rachel Stanley and Louise Bowden, performed the London premiere of the title number from the show to crowds on Bond Street. White Christmas will be at the Dominion Theatre in London from 8 November until 3 January. Check out a look back below!

Today in 1998, Footloose opened at the Richard Rodgers Theatre, where it ran for 709 performances. Footloose is a 1998 musical based on the 1984 film of the same name. The music is by Tom Snow (among others), the lyrics by Dean Pitchford (with additional lyrics by Kenny Loggins), and the book by Pitchford and Walter Bobbie. It starred Jeremy Kushnier as Ren McCormack, Stephen Lee Anderson as Reverend Shaw Moore, Jennifer Laura Thompson as Ariel Moore, Tom Plotkin as Willard Hewitt, and Dee Hoty as Vi Moore.

Directed by Walter Bobbie, Bright Star runs now through November 2, 2014 on the Donald and Darlene Shiley Stage in the Old Globe Theatre, part of the Globe's Conrad Prebys Theatre Center. Previews run through September 27. Below, BroadwayWorld brings you a new look at the cast in action!

CHICAGO which opened to rave reviews on November 14, 1996, now has the distinction of being the longest running American musical in Broadway history, and... shows no sign of ever slowing down, opens at the Majestic Theatre for eight performances, January 27 through February 1, 2015. Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m., Friday, October 17.

Rehearsals for the West End premiere of Irving Berlin's much-loved musical WHITE CHRISTMAS begin today, Monday 13 October. The company is led by Aled Jones as Bob Wallace, Tom Chambers as Phil Davis, Wendi Peters as Martha, Graham Cole as General Waverley, Rachel Stanley as Betty Haynes and Louise Bowden as Judy Haynes, with Lori Haley Fox, Michelle Bishop, Phil Cole, Brendan Cull and Jonathan Halliwell. Also in the cast are Vikki-Marie Ryan, Lucinda Lawrence, Karen Aspinall, Emma Caffrey, Hayley Reed, Helen Patching, Vicki Davids, Jennifer Davison, Grace Holdstock, Ross McLaren, Joshua Lay, Matt Cheney, Jonny Labey, Anthony Whiteman, Eddie Myles, Stuart Winter, Matt Clark and Gary Murphy. Amy Snudden, Emily Robins, Sophia Pettet and Tatum Confrey will alternate the role of Susan.

Cocktails named after some of the show stopping musical numbers from the smash Broadway musical CHICAGO greeted the cast, crew, and guests at a post-performance party at Marti's, a bistro in the French Quarter, late Tuesday night. CHICAGO's current tour cast, headlined by Bianca Marroquin (Roxie Hart), Terra C. MacLeod (Velma Kelly), John O'Hurley (Billy Flynn in select cities), Jacob Keith Watson (Amos Hart), Roz Ryan (Matron 'Mama' Morton), and C. Newcomer (Mary Sunshine), kicked off CHICAGO's 16th U.S. Tour at the newly reopened atmospheric theatre in NOLA, the 2,736-seater Saenger Theatre along Canal Street, with a rapturous standing ovation from a packed audience earlier that evening.

In celebration of this season's ON THE TOWN, we've collected 10 of our favorite dance musicals. From classics like ANYTHING GOES, 42ND STREET, A CHORUS LINE and WEST SIDE STORY to modern marvels such as NEWSIES and STRICTLY BALLROOM, the way choreography is used to tell a story continues to evolve and inspire.

David Mirvish in co-production with the Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre, and by arrangement with Barry and Fran Weissler, have announced the cast of the Canadian premiere production of THE HEART OF ROBIN HOOD by David Farr, directed by Gisli Örn Gardarsson.

What I found so utterly engaging about the world premiere of Steve Martin and Edie Brickell's new musical BRIGHT STAR is its complete unpretentiousness. Certainly its musical style --American bluegrass with a heaping helping of laid back mountain charm -- has the kind of lilting homespun ease that makes you feel like you're listening to the neighborhood jug band on mama's back porch, and there's something oddly comforting about that.