Walter Bobbie News

Wendy Williams began her Broadway debut engagement as Matron 'Mama' Morton in the Tony Award-winning musical smash Chicago last week on Friday, June 28. Williams, who was originally set to begin performances at the Ambassador Theatre (219 W. 49th St.) on Tuesday, June 25, was sidelined with a sinus infection earlier last week. BroadwayWorld brings you photos from her opening night curtain call and after party below!

Wendy Williams began her Broadway debut engagement as Matron 'Mama' Morton in the Tony Award-winning musical smash CHICAGO last week on Friday, June 28. Williams, who was originally set to begin performances at the Ambassador Theatre (219 W. 49th St.) on Tuesday, June 25, was sidelined with a sinus infection earlier last week. BroadwayWorld brings you a first look at Williams in action below!

Producers Barry and Fran Weissler welcome celebrated talk show host and best-selling author Wendy Williams in her Broadway debut engagement as Matron 'Mama' Morton in the Tony Award-winning musical smash CHICAGO, beginning today, June 28.

Producers Barry and Fran Weissler announced today that celebrated talk show host and best-selling author Wendy Williams will now begin her Broadway debut engagement as Matron 'Mama' Morton in the Tony Award-winning musical smash CHICAGO on Friday, June 28.

FOOTLOOSE, with stage adaptation by Dean Pitchford and Walter Bobbie based on the original screenplay by Dean Pitchford, with music by Tom Snow, lyrics by Dean Pitchford, and additional music by Eric Carmen, Sammy Hagar, Kenny Loggins and Jim Steinman, will run at PCA, beginning July 18, 2013. The show is directed by Jon Meyer with musical director Chris Tenney and choreography by Amanda Woolsey.

The acclaimed revival of the Tony Award-winning, record-breaking musical smash CHICAGO welcomes Drama Desk nominee Alexander Gemignani tonight, June 18, in the role of 'that silver-tongued Prince of the Courtroom' Billy Flynn.

FOOTLOOSE opens in Ivoryton on July 3rd and runs through July 28th . Performance times are Wednesday and Sunday matinees at 2pm. Evening performances are Wednesday and Thursday at 7:30pm, Friday and Saturday at 8pm. Tickets are $40 for adults, $35 for seniors, $20 for students and $15 for children and are available by calling the Playhouse box office at 860-767-7318 or by visiting our website at www.ivorytonplayhouse.org (Group rates are available by calling the box office for information.) The Playhouse is located at 103 Main Street in Ivoryton.

New York Stage and Film (Johanna Pfaelzer, Artistic Director; Thomas Pearson, Executive Director; Mark Linn-Baker, Max Mayer, Leslie Urdang, Producing Directors) and Vassar College (Ed Cheetham, Producing Director) recently announced the line-up of their 2013 Powerhouse Theater Season, which runs fromJune 21st - July 28th at Vassar College (Poughkeepsie, New York). The 2013 season will include fully staged productions of new plays by Seth Zvi Rosenfeld andMozhan Marno, as well as two exciting musical workshops: the Steve Martin & Edie Brickell collaboration Bright Star (featuring music from their newly released recording "Love Has Come For You"), directed by Tony Award-winner Walter Bobbie (Chicago); and A new musical inspired by The Brooklyn Hero Supply Company, music and lyrics by Peter Lerman, book by Simon Rich, based on characters created by Pulitzer Prize winning novelist Michael Chabon and Ayelet Waldman, directed by Tony Award-winner Michael Mayer (Spring Awakening). The casts met the press earlier today and you can check out coverage from the special event below!

First, beginning Monday, June 10, stage and screen veteran Paul C. Vogt makes his CHICAGO debut in the role of Roxie's all-but-invisible husband, 'Mister Cellophane' Amos Hart. Then on Tuesday, June 18, CHICAGO welcomes Drama Desk nominee Alexander Gemignani in the role of 'that silver-tongued Prince of the Courtroom' Billy Flynn.

The Vineyard Theatre, Douglas Aibel, Artistic Director, and Sarah Stern, Co-Artistic Director, has just announced the third production of their 2013-2014 season and casting of the world premiere musical THE LANDING.

The award was presented at a gala event at B.B. King on May 13 with four-time Tony Award-winning playwright and actor Harvey Fierstein, a frequent collaborator of Jerry Mitchell (and bookwriter of Kinky Boots), to emcee a tribute written by six-time Emmy Award winner Bruce Vilanch. Grammy Award-winner Cyndi Lauper, who wrote the music & lyrics for Kinky Boots, introduced a number from Kinky Boots included in the tribute. Director Jack O'Brien presented Mr. Mitchell with the award. Check out full photo coverage from the festivities below!

Christine Baranski, Kelli Barrett, Walter Bobbie, Jeremy Cohen, Dalton Harrod, Randy Skinner,Shonn Wiley, Karen Ziemba, New York City Ballet Principal dancer Joaquin De Luz andAmerican Ballet Theatre principal dancer Irina Dvorovenko starred in Rodgers and Hart's On Your Toes, the final Encores! presentation of the 2012-13 New York City Center season. BroadwayWorld brings you photo coverage from the show's closing night reception below!

Christine Baranski, Kelli Barrett, Walter Bobbie, Jeremy Cohen, Dalton Harrod, Randy Skinner, Shonn Wiley, Karen Ziemba, New York City Ballet Principal dancer Joaquin De Luz and American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Irina Dvorovenko starred in Rodgers and Hart's On Your Toes, the final Encores! presentation of the 2012-13 New York City Center season. BroadwayWorld brings you photo coverage from the show's closing night curtain call below!

Five months…  FIVE MONTHS after their previous musical comedy, Jumbo, opened at the Hippodrome, the trio of Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart and George Abbott had a brand new one at the Imperial.  But far from seeming a rush job, their 1936 On Your Toes can easily be argued to be a huge step forward in refining musical comedy into a sophisticated art form.

Christine Baranski, Kelli Barrett, Walter Bobbie, Jeremy Cohen, Dalton Harrod, Randy Skinner, Shonn Wiley, Karen Ziemba, New York City Ballet Principal dancer Joaquin De Luz and American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Irina Dvorovenko will star in Rodgers and Hart's On Your Toes, the final Encores! presentation of the 2012-13 New York City Center season. BroadwayWorld brings you highlights from the show below!

Christine Baranski, Kelli Barrett, Walter Bobbie, Jeremy Cohen, Dalton Harrod, Randy Skinner, Shonn Wiley, Karen Ziemba, New York City Ballet Principal dancer Joaquin De Luz and American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Irina Dvorovenko will star in Rodgers and Hart's On Your Toes, the final Encores! presentation of the 2012-13 New York City Center season

Christine Baranski, Kelli Barrett, Walter Bobbie, Jeremy Cohen, Dalton Harrod, Randy Skinner, Shonn Wiley, Karen Ziemba,New York City Ballet Principaldancer Joaquin De Luz and American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Irina Dvorovenko will star in Rodgers and Hart's On Your Toes, the final Encores! presentation of the 2012-13 New York City Center season.

Christine Baranski, Kelli Barrett, Walter Bobbie, Jeremy Cohen, Dalton Harrod, Randy Skinner, Shonn Wiley, Karen Ziemba, New York City Ballet Principal dancer Joaquin De Luz and American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Irina Dvorovenko will star in Rodgers and Hart's On Your Toes, the final Encores! presentation of the 2012-13 New York City Center season. Directed and choreographed by Warren Carlyle. On Your Toes will have guest music direction by Encores! founding music director Rob Fisher and will play seven performances, from May 8 - 12 at New York City Center, W. 55th Street (between 6th and 7th Avenues). The "Slaughter on Tenth Avenue" ballet, originally choreographed by George Balanchine, will be staged by Susan Pilarre, who served as a Ballet Mistress of the show's 1983 Broadway Revival.

New York City Center Encores! presents Rodgers & Hart's ON YOUR TOES, May 8-12, 2013. BroadwayWorld's Richard Ridge visited the cast in rehearsals and stopped to chat with Artistic Director Jack Vertel, music director Rob Fisher, director and choreographer Warren Carlyle and cast members Karen Ziemba, Randy Skinner, Walter Bobbie, Joaquin De Luz, Irina Dvorovenko, Christine Baranski, Kelli Barrett and Shonn Wiley. Click below to watch the interviews, plus a sneak peek of the show!

Today we are talking to a versatile stage and screen actress who has scored in a number of unique roles on Broadway and around the country in addition to making a recent mark with her work on the Broadway-themed web series IT COULD BE WORSE - the passionate and compelling Alison Fraser. Discussing her vast resume and some of her most fondly remembered performances to date, Fraser opens up about her remarkable career thus far - including her work originating parts in IN TROUSERS, MARCH OF THE FALSETTOS, THE SECRET GARDEN, ROMANCE/ROMANCE, GUNMETAL BLUES, THE DIVINE SISTER and more - and looks ahead to her most recent projects, current, upcoming and beyond. Most importantly, Fraser details the finer points of LOVE THERAPY, the new Wendy Beckett play she stars in Off-Broadway and outlines her continuing collaboration onstage with the playwright, having previously starred in CHARITY CASE, as well as what we can expect from the realistic new drama, opening April 29. Additionally, Fraser sheds some light on her recent work in the world premiere of the Tennessee Williams play IN MASKS OUTRAGEOUS AND AUSTERE and how that led to her new solo revue, THE TENNESSEE WILLIAMS SONGBOOK. Plus, memories of appearing in GYPSY on Broadway with Patti LuPone and working with Arthur Laurents on that as well as his own final play, cameoing on SMASH, reflections on her memorable musical partnerships with husband Rusty Magee and noted FALSETTOS songwriter William Finn, as well as thoughts on the contemporary theatre scene and her various theatre-related web projects, favorite recent shows and much, much more!