Salt Lake City Interviews
BWW Feature: Live Theatre Triumphantly Returns to the SCERA with THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL
by Tyler Hinton - June 08, 2020, Salt Lake City
The SCERA realized it would be able to comply with state and local guidelines, keeping audiences safe while also providing them the live theatrical experience they've been unable to indulge in for several months. And after the dearth of opportunities to attend a performance in person, it was electri...
Broadway Actor Chase Ramsey on New Streaming Musical BLINK
by Tyler Hinton - May 23, 2020, Salt Lake City
Hale Center Theater Orem is premiering a new contemporary musical, BLINK, via streaming. The show was written over a matter of weeks entirely during quarantine by David Paul Smith and Chase Keala Ramsey, who is the standby for the lead role of Elder Cunningham in the Broadway cast of THE BOOK OF MOR...
SCERA Executives on Streaming A NIGHT OF BROADWAY “Quarantine Edition”
by Tyler Hinton - April 28, 2020, Salt Lake City
A favorite tradition of Orem's SCERA is A NIGHT OF BROADWAY--the annual concert that showcases local performers in songs from musicals. The show will go on this year in a special fully produced 'Quarantine Edition' that has been newly rehearsed, designed, and professionally filmed especially for st...
The Directorial Team Behind The Ziegfeld Theater's ASL and Spoken English Production of NEWSIES
by Chloe Rabinowitz - February 19, 2020, Salt Lake City
The much-beloved musical Newsies follows the tale of Jack Kelly, a newsboy and leader of a ragtag group 'newsies' in turn of the century New York City, who dreams a life better than the streets of New York can offer. When publishing titans Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst raise distributi...
Utah Rep to Produce the Murderous Debauchery of AMERICAN PSYCHO, with Composer Duncan Sheik Attending a Performance
by Blair Howell - November 23, 2019, Salt Lake City
AMERICAN PSYCHO gushes blood, sex and moneya?'and Utah Rep fearlessly stages the musical of the controversial bestseller. The musical has 'something for everyone: romance, murder, '80s nostalgia, and a cornucopia of sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll,' says the company's director. 'Yet despite its surface...
Director Wes Grantom on Pioneer Theatre Company's THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT
by Tyler Hinton - November 01, 2019, Salt Lake City
Pioneer Theatre Company will present the thought-provoking drama THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT through November 16, 2019, directly following its run on Broadway starring Cherry Jones, Daniel Radcliffe, and Bobby Cannavale earlier this year. Director Wes Grantom, who most recently directed BEEP BOOP at the ...
Director Tim Threlfall Q&A on SWEENEY TODD at UVU
by Blair Howell - October 21, 2019, Salt Lake City
The Noorda Center/Utah Repertory Theater Company production of SWEENEY TODD is shaping up to be the theatrical event of the season, with the insightful leadership of Director Tim Threlfall....
PTC's Karen Azenberg on Concert Productions, Including the Upcoming DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS
by Tyler Hinton - October 08, 2019, Salt Lake City
For several years now, each season at Pioneer Theatre Company has included a concert production of a musical, including THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW, CHESS, IN THE HEIGHTS, and LA CAGE AUX FOLLES. Always audience and critics' favorites, they feature a unique production style transported from New York City...
BWW Interview Part 3: PIONEER THEATRE COMPANY'S New Managing Director Chris Massimine on Leadership and Mentorship by Hal Prince
by Blair Howell - September 26, 2019, Salt Lake City
Newly named as Pioneer Theatre Company's Managing Director, Chris Massimine is one of the country's youngest theater management executive. He discusses the mentoring that lead to accepting a major theater production position and what he learned about leadership....
BWW Interview Part 2: As Newly Named Managing Director, Chris Massimine Will 'Pioneer Way for a Brighter' PIONEER THEATRE COMPANY
by Blair Howell - September 19, 2019, Salt Lake City
An exclusive BWW Q&A interview with Chris Massimine, the newly named Managing Director at Pioneer Theatre Company. 'PTC has such a brilliant reputation for top-tier work and first-class service, to both patrons and visiting artists alike. The company's artistic leadership in Karen Azenberg is second...
BWW Interview Part 1: Tony Nominee Chris Massimine 'Just the Right Person' to Continue and Expand Excellence of PIONEER THEATRE COMPANY
by Blair Howell - September 17, 2019, Salt Lake City
With 'American Idiot' and 'Indecent' Chris Massimine became a Tony-nominated producer. He is 'just the right person to continue the journey' of the 57-year-old professional theater in Salt Lake City, according to PTC Artistic Director Karen Azenberg....
U of U Musical Theater Program's Denny Berry Promises 'Something New and Unexpected' With Frank Wildhorn's DRACULA
by Blair Howell - September 11, 2019, Salt Lake City
To open the University of Utah Musical Theater Program season, Denny Berry directs and choreographs Frank Wildhorn's DRACULA -- to continue her reputation for engaging audiences with little-known and perhaps problematic musicals....
Broadway's Jeff Whiting to Helm New Musical FLY MORE THAN YOU FALL at Professionally Focused Theater Department of Utah Valley University
by Blair Howell - September 07, 2019, Salt Lake City
Utahn Jeff Whiting, with major Broadway credentials, is back in the state to lead the Broadway-bound original musical FLY MORE THAN YOU FALL at Utah Valley University, quickly becoming a sought-out actor-training university with its many direct ties to Broadway professionals....
Josh Strickland on Tuacahn and His Time as Tarzan
by Tyler Hinton - August 30, 2019, Salt Lake City
Josh Strickland originated the title role in Disney's TARZAN on Broadway, appearing on the original cast album, and has continued his successful career in Las Vegas, television, and music. This summer and fall, he's starring in the unique red rock setting of Tuacahn Amphitheatre as Tarzan and Hercul...
Laura Osnes, Susan Egan, and Benjamin Rauhala on Bringing Broadway Princess Party to Utah
by Tyler Hinton - July 30, 2019, Salt Lake City
A rare treat is in store for Utah audiences, as the beloved Broadway Princess Party will arrive in Sandy on Aug. 23 with Tony nominee Laura Osnes, who originated the title role in Rodgers and Hammerstein's CINDERELLA on Broadway; Susan Egan, who originated the part of Belle in BEAUTY AND THE BEAST o...
THE BROADWAY PRINCESS PARTY IS IN THE BUSINESS OF MAKING DREAMS COME TRUE IN UTAH
by Hayley Westwood - June 22, 2019, Salt Lake City
If you're not one of the millions of people who are crazy about the Broadway Princess Party, it's time to get on board!...
MICHAEL FEINSTEIN TO SHARE HIS GIFT OF MUSIC AT THE LAYTON AMPHITHEATRE
by Hayley Westwood - June 22, 2019, Salt Lake City
The Davis Arts Council has some treats in store for Utah's BroadwayWorld readers this summer, starting July 2 with the Michael Feinstein concert and later with the Broadway Princess Party on August 24, both at the Edward A. Kenley Centennial Amphitheater in Layton....
Artistic Director Karen Azenberg on PTC's Upcoming Season
by Tyler Hinton - April 05, 2019, Salt Lake City
Pioneer Theatre Company's 2019-2020 season is filled with an eclectic array of exciting shows, many of which are coming direct from Broadway, and it opens with a pre-Broadway tryout of an off-Broadway hit. Artistic Director Karen Azenberg generously gave her time to speak with BroadwayWorld about ho...
BWW Review: A Riveting SWEAT at Pioneer Theatre Company
by Blair Howell - April 04, 2019, Salt Lake City
Pioneer Theater Company stages a riveting SWEAT. The production is more than worthy of the drama's credentials as a 2017 Best Play Tony nominee and winner of the year's Pulitzer Prize....
Mary B. Robinson Directs the 'Fascinating, Thought-Provoking and Enlightening' Pulitzer Prize-Winner SWEAT at Pioneer Theatre Company
by Blair Howell - March 22, 2019, Salt Lake City
Mary B. Robinson, director of SWEAT at Pioneer Theatre Company, says the Pulitzer Prize-winner contains 'nine characters [that] are created with empathy and humanity, demonstrating the 'curiosity not judgment' mantra of Playwright Lynn Nottage.'...
Associate Director/Choreographer Jenny Barlow of AN AMERICAN IN PARIS at Hale Centre Theatre Sandy
by Blair Howell - February 06, 2019, Salt Lake City
In the lead AN AMERICAN IN PARIS role of Lise, Hale Centre Theatre Sandy Associate Director/Choreographer Jenny Barlow was able to cast Juliet Doherty, 'a world-class ballerina [who is] quite famous in the ballet world.'...
Mary Fanning Driggs Is A Pioneer Theatre Veteran, With ONCE Marking Her 22nd Production
by Blair Howell - February 06, 2019, Salt Lake City
Her ability to play the accordion helped Equity Actress Mary Fanning Driggs to be cast in ONCE at Pioneer Theatre Company, following 21 other roles she has played on the PTC stage....
Utah Rep to Stage Development Reading of NYC Playwright Drew Fornarola's JUDGING HAYDEN, After Producing the Playwright's Regional Premiere of STRAIGHT
by Blair Howell - January 10, 2019, Salt Lake City
The regional premiere of the Off-Broadway hit STRAIGHT was a major success for Utah Repertory Theater Company, with the production highly acclaimed by reviewers and popularly attended....
Preeminent Music Director Anne Puzey of CAROLINE, OR CHANGE at Good Company Theatre
by Blair Howell - November 21, 2018, Salt Lake City
Anne Puzey is arguably Utah's most-in-demand music director, with experience working with Will Swenson, Marin Mazzie, Jason Robert Brown, Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, along with more productions along Utah's Wasatch Front than surely she can count. She's now lending her talents to Good Company Theatr...
At Regional Premiere By Utah Rep, Playwright S. Asher Gelman Says The Runaway Hit AFTERGLOW Is 'About Love, Loyalty And Trust'
by Blair Howell - November 11, 2018, Salt Lake City
A Q&A with AFTERGLOW playwright S. Asher Gelman. 'I'd love for people who experience AFTERGLOW to feel empowered to have difficult conversations -- with their partners, with their friends, with their family -- because I firmly believe that transparency is the basis of any good relationship.'...
A Utah Premiere, CONSIDERING MATTHEW SHEPARD Uses the Power of Music to Transmute Cruelty to Hope
by Blair Howell - October 21, 2018, Salt Lake City
Opening on the day the ashes of Matthew Shepard will be interred at the Washington National Cathedral, the Utah/Idaho Performing Arts will stage the Utah premiere of CONSIDERING MATTHEW SHEPARD....
DEAR EVAN HANSEN Becomes a Book, and Before Their Promotional Stop in Salt Lake City, Its Creators Discuss the Adaptation Process
by Blair Howell - October 11, 2018, Salt Lake City
DEAR EVAN HANSEN: THE NOVEL launches a book tour, with an event in Salt Lake City. 'We know the passionate love people in Salt Lake City have for musical theater,' said composer Justin Paul....
BWW Interviews: Following the Famed Composer's Visit, Utah Is Wild About Wildhorn
by Blair Howell - October 02, 2018, Salt Lake City
The enthusiasm of Utah theatergoers for the works of Frank Wildhorn was wildly evident during the famed composer's three-day visit to Salt Lake City....
With ART & CLASS, Popular Utah Playwright Launches New Season of Pioneer Theatre's Play-Development Series
by Blair Howell - October 02, 2018, Salt Lake City
Playwright Matthew Ivan Bennett's ART & CLASS "aims to be a character study in standing up - one that shows the costs of standing up. It's a topic that's dead center in American life right now.'...
The 'Naturally Endearing' Ashley Gardner Carlson to Perform in ANYTHING GOES at Hale Center Theater Orem
by Blair Howell - September 30, 2018, Salt Lake City
Ashley Gardner Carlson is about to play Reno Sweeney in ANYTHING GOES at Hale Center Theater in Orem, Utah. 'The things they do at Hale Orem are incredible in such an intimate space,' Carlson says. 'It's always impressive.'...
Broadway and TV Star Megan Hilty on Her SCERA Concert
by Tyler Hinton - August 20, 2018, Salt Lake City
Tony-nominated Broadway and television actress Megan Hilty, known for starring roles on NBC's SMASH and in the original cast of 9 TO 5, will perform in concert with the Utah Valley Symphony at the SCERA Shell Outdoor Theatre on Saturday, September 1, 2018. The much-loved performer, who got her start...
Stars of Tuacahn's THE PRINCE OF EGYPT, MATILDA, and CINDERELLA on Their Experience
by Tyler Hinton - August 16, 2018, Salt Lake City
This summer and fall, Tuacahn Center for the Arts is presenting three exciting productions in repertory at its one-of-a-kind outdoor amphitheatre, including one of the very first productions in the world of DreamWorks' THE PRINCE OF EGYPT, the first production of Roald Dahl's MATILDA THE MUSICAL fol...
A Conversation Between a Director and Costume Designer at West Side Theatre Company
by Tyler Hinton - July 27, 2018, Salt Lake City
BroadwayWorld was given the unique opportunity to capture a conversation between the director and costume designer of West Side Theatre Company's imaginative upcoming production of J.M. Barrie's classic play PETER PAN. Director Aubrey Warner and costume designer Jess Wallace Nielsen have worked tog...
Mormon-Bred Utahn Chase Ramsey to Perform as Elder Cunningham in BOOK OF MORMON Musical on Broadway
by Blair Howell - July 19, 2018, Salt Lake City
While he is not the first actor with a direct connection to the Mormon Church, Chase Ramsey will be the first to take on the Elder Cunningham role in BOOK OF MORMON Musical with firsthand experience as a Mormon missionary....
THE STRUGGLE IS REAL Opens West Side Theatre Company's 2018-19 Season
by Tyler Hinton - April 24, 2018, Salt Lake City
On the heels of its sold-out production of the Broadway-bound "Pride & Prejudice - The Musical," West Side Theatre Company announces its exciting second season, kicking off with an impressive and moving original concert, THE STRUGGLE IS REAL, on Friday, April 27 and Saturday, April 28. Season and co...
Cast and Director of Utah Repertory Theater Company's STRAIGHT
by Tyler Hinton - February 19, 2018, Salt Lake City
Utah Repertory Theater Company's regional premiere of the recent off-Broadway hit STRAIGHT plays at the Sorensen Unity Center Black Box Theater from March 9 to 25, 2018. The production's cast and director are passionate about the piece and its relevance to local audiences....
West Side Theatre Co.'s Utah Premiere of the Broadway-Bound PRIDE & PREJUDICE - THE MUSICAL
by Tyler Hinton - February 09, 2018, Salt Lake City
West Side Theatre Company will conclude its successful inaugural season in March with the Utah premiere of the Broadway-bound PRIDE & PREJUDICE - THE MUSICAL. It is one of the first full productions of the musical following workshops with Broadway names such as Tony nominee Laura Osnes (CINDERELLA)...
BWW Exclusive: BRIGHT STAR at Pioneer Theatre Company is a Special Experience
by Tyler Hinton - January 15, 2018, Salt Lake City
BRIGHT STAR at Pioneer Theatre Company is utterly ravishing. The masterful performances and staging will take your breath away as they unforgettably illuminate the moving story and songs. Essentially the original Broadway production transferred to the PTC stage, this is not a locally produced regi...
Ryan Farnsworth Stars in Towering NEWSIES at Utah's Tuacahn
by Wayman Wong - September 13, 2017, Salt Lake City
'Disney's Newsies' has been making headlines all this summer at America's regional theaters, from the MUNY in St. Louis to the Music Theatre of Wichita. Others 'carrying this banner,' Tony-winning musical have included the Wagon Wheel in Indiana, Connecticut Repertory Theatre, Red Mountain Theatre C...
Cade Peirce on the Utah Premiere of ALEXANDER AND THE TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD DAY
by Tyler Hinton - August 07, 2017, Salt Lake City
West Side Theatre Company will present a summer theatrical event for the entire family with the Utah premiere of the Kennedy Center's ALEXANDER AND THE TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD DAY. Adults and children of all ages will equally enjoy a night filled with fun, music, and laughter as they e...
