Zachary Ford News

While watching the opening night performance of Musical Theatre West's lively (haha) regional premiere of Mel Brooks' YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN, something struck me almost immediately: I'm laughing hysterically. Though previous productions have certainly entertained in the past, much of the jokes and silly lyrics have been rendered inaudible. Thankfully, MTW's remount fixes the problem. Who would have guessed that a combination of good diction, under-emphasized accents, and working microphones---performed by a wonderful cast---would be a real, honest-to-goodness asset for a show? The show continues through November 17 at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center in Long Beach, CA.

A big, splashy Mel Brooks musical has arrived in Long Beach and Musical Theatre West has created a monster of a good time to go with it. It's YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN, and this luscious regional premiere stars a terrifically talented cast, featuring Susan Stroman's original direction and choreography recreated by Lauren Kadel.

Musical Theatre West at the Richard and Karen Carpenter Performing Arts Center in Long Beach, CA opened its 61st season with Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein, a musical comedy from the creative team of the 12-time Tony Award winning smash hit The Producers. The production, with music and lyrics by Brooks and a book by Thomas Meehan, marks the regional theater premiere of this hilariously tuneful show based on the 1974 smash hit film Young Frankenstein which was a wickedly inspired re-imagining of the Mary Shelleyclassic from the comic genius of Mel Brooks. Check out the opening night shows below!

Musical Theatre West at the Richard and Karen Carpenter Performing Arts Center in Long Beach, CA opens its 61st season with Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein, a musical comedy from the creative team of the 12-time Tony Award winning smash hit The Producers. The production, with music and lyrics by Brooks and a book by Thomas Meehan, marks the regional theater premiere of this hilariously tuneful show based on the 1974 smash hit film Young Frankenstein which was a wickedly inspired re-imagining of the Mary Shelley classic from the comic genius of Mel Brooks.

Musical Theatre West at the Richard and Karen Carpenter Performing Arts Center in Long Beach, CA proudly opens its 61st season with Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein, a musical comedy from the creative team of the 12-time Tony Award winning smash hit The Producers. The production, with music and lyrics by Brooks and a book by Thomas Meehan, marks the regional theater premiere of this hilariously tuneful show based on the 1974 smash hit film Young Frankenstein which was a wickedly inspired re-imagining of the Mary Shelley classic from the comic genius of Mel Brooks.

Musical Theatre West at the Richard and Karen Carpenter Performing Arts Center in Long Beach, CA opens its 61st season with Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein, a musical comedy from the creative team of the 12-time Tony Award winning smash hit The Producers. The production, with music and lyrics by Brooks and a book by Thomas Meehan, marks the regional theater premiere of this hilariously tuneful show based on the 1974 smash hit film Young Frankenstein which was a wickedly inspired re-imagining of the Mary Shelley classic from the comic genius of Mel Brooks.

For anyone who's ever been in love, trouble, or high school comes HEATHERS - THE MUSICAL, based on the greatest teen movie of all time.

For anyone who's ever been in love, trouble, or high school comes HEATHERS - THE MUSICAL, based on the greatest teen movie of all time.

The latest in unauthorized gossip and buzz from the heart of Chicago's showtune video bars, and musical theater news from Chicago to Broadway. 'Jungle Book' reviews, 'Oklahoma!' on the radio, Broadway In Chicago's Park preview, 'Hedwig' and 'Rooms' rock, Team StarKid is back, community theater in Glenview, a children's musical in Mundelein, plus the 'Summer Birthday Showtune Blowout' July 10th!

One of the most stunning, brilliantly-staged productions I've seen in the past few years, Orange County's 3D Theatricals has, once again, outdone itself with its moving, epic-sized revival of Jason Robert Brown's Tony Award-winning musical PARADE. Now playing a limited engagement through May 26 at the Plummer Auditorium in Fullerton, this triumphant, emotionally-resonant, Broadway-caliber presentation directed by 3DT's co-founder and artistic director TJ Dawson ranks as, arguably, the best musical this relatively young regional theater company has produced thus far.

In 1998 when Jason Robert Brown won a Tony Award for the score of this unusually provocative musical Parade, the opulent Broadway production closed to critical acclaim, but due to excessive costs, the show remained inaccessible until the Donmar Warehouse resurrected it and produced a tight - minus the frills - mounting at the Mark Taper Forum in 2009. 3-D Theatricals, who are becoming increasingly known for their superlative skill with producing big musicals, have decided to put back many of the frills of the original and double the cast to its original size - 36, in order to enhance and give the musical the big, full-voiced chorus sound it deserves. And, in my mind, this bigger hybrid version surpasses the Taper's for its grande musical elegance and the presence of a perfectly cast lead actor in the role of Leo Frank, Jeff Skowron.

3-D Theatricals presents PARADE now through May 26, 2013 at Plummer Auditorium, 201 East Chapman Ave, Fullerton, Calif., directed by T.J. Dawson, choreographed by Dana Solimando and musically directed by David Lamoureux. BroadwayWorld was there for opening night and brings you photos from the celebrations below!

The Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza Foundation presents Musical Theatre Guild's TITANIC in the Janet & Ray Scherr Forum Theatre at 3:00 p.m. today, September 30, 2012. The opening performance will take place on Monday, September 24, 2012 at the historic Alex Theatre in Glendale. The award-winning Musical Theatre Guild, a company of professional performers who present concert-staged readings of seldom seen musicals for the past 17 years.

The award-winning Musical Theatre Guild, a company of professional performers who present concert-staged readings of seldom seen musicals, will open its 17th season with TITANIC.

The Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza Foundation presents Musical Theatre Guild's TITANIC in the Janet & Ray Scherr Forum Theatre at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, September 30, 2012. The opening performance will take place on Monday, September 24, 2012 at the historic Alex Theatre in Glendale. The award-winning Musical Theatre Guild, a company of professional performers who present concert-staged readings of seldom seen musicals for the past 17 years.

The award-winning Musical Theatre Guild, a company of professional performers who present concert-staged readings of seldom seen musicals, will open its 17th season with TITANIC.

Musical Theatre West's latest top-notch production is the hilarious regional premiere of the Tony-winning musical Monty Python's SPAMALOT. Full of silly humor and absurdist gags that will have you laughing throughout the show, the show continues at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center in Long Beach through July 15. One of the most amusing shows MTW has ever mounted, it features a stellar ensemble cast led by Davis Gaines and Tami Tappan Damiano.

Musical Theatre West closes its 59th consecutive season with the Tony Award-winning Best Musical, MONTY PYTHON'S SPAMALOT. MONTY PYTHON'S SPAMALOT opened this week and will run through July 15, 2012. Get a look at opening night below!

The award-winning Musical Theatre Guild, a company of professional performers who present concert-staged readings of seldom seen musicals, will conclude its 16th season with SHENANDOAH, a production commemorating the 150th Anniversary of the American Civil War. The opening performance will take place on Monday, June 11, 2012 at 7:30 PM at the historic Alex Theatre in Glendale. A second, and final, performance will occur on Sunday, June 17, 2012 at 3:00 PM at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza's Scherr Forum.