Let's Face It! 1942 - Articles Page 34

OK, so we're all sick of the trend of movies turned into musicals but, Dear Readers, just as movies have to keep remaking themselves, Broadway will keep culling from film vaults for new musicals. Let's face it, it ain't going anywhere. But if they're going to do it, such as with the current production of 'Secondhand Lions' being tried out on the stages of the 5th Avenue Theatre, let's make sure it can be done on a stage and still make sense. Yes, the fanciful stories and budding and heartfelt relationship between the two old curmudgeons and their young nephew are still there and done quite well in moments. But the attempt to jam that title down our throats without even the slightest hint of the actual lion storyline feels a bit insulting to anyone who saw the film. But we'll get to that in a minute.

Rajiv Satyal estimates he has dated about 100 women from virtually every socioeconomic background. Despite his smoothest efforts, not one relationship has ever worked out. Now, the Los Angeles-based comedian is getting ready to explore the "it's-not-you-it's-me" syndrome in his new one-person show, "No Man's Land," November 1 and 2, at the ACME Comedy Theater in Hollywood.

Okay! Those of us that know, the cabaret stages of New York City are as limited in scope as the imagination of producers and performers. And let's face it, in this city, ANYTHING GOES!!! So the NYC Cabaret Festival made sure it had its share of acts beyond the traditional piano /singer standards and revues. With two weeks, three stages and over two hundred performing artist, there truly is something for everyone.

This new tour makes the second of four stops in Hartford, at the Bushnell, one of the production's producers.

Well hello there, my name is Eric Ulloa (pronounced oo- yo- ah), and I am in the cast of Goodspeed's upcoming revival of The Most Happy Fella. I am also your blogger for these next several weeks to give you an inside scoop on the cast, production, backstage happenings and what I'm calling, 'tell 'em all you can without getting a train ticket home.'

Okay! Those of us that know, the cabaret stages of New York City are as limited in scope as the imagination of producers and performers. And let's face it, in this city, ANYTHING GOES!!! So the NYC Cabaret Festival made sure it had its share of acts beyond the traditional piano /singer standards and revues. With two weeks, three stages and over two hundred performing artist, there truly is something for everyone.

The summer sun doesn't have anything on Rogers Park theatre troupe Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre. The group's latest, the musical revue 'A Cole Porter Songbook' puts plenty of sizzle into the summer and has now been extended through Sept. 15.

Dressed all in white, singing like angels and dancing like the devil, the 13 performers of "Gertrude Stein's Saints" are young, energetic, talented, and, let's face it, hot enough to be cast in Glee. What's most remarkable about this ensemble, all of them drama students at Carnegie Mellon University, is that, instead of covering songs by Journey or Rihanna, they have composed original music and turned two inaccessible avant-garde operas into a rousing entertainment.

You can almost smell the scent of misfit adolescence in the air down at the Vern Riffe Center, and as you take your seat surrounded by Set Designer Michael S. Brewer's all-too-realistic high school gymnasium stage, you can't help but feel the awkwardness and anxiety of your earlier years come flooding back.

Last night on THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO, the Tony and Emmy winning Kristin Chenoweth appeared to sing a hilarious parody version of WICKED's 'Popular', all about Anthony Weiner. Yes, Anthony Weiner.

With the International Al Jolson Society's 17th Annual Long Island Festival just three weeks away (On August 17, from 9am to 4:30pm, at Oceanside Knights of Columbus, 2985 Kenneth Place, Oceanside, NY 11572.), BroadwayWorld.com Cabaret Review/Columnist and passionate Al Jolson fan Stephen Hanks fantasizes about what it might be like to have a conversation with 'The World's Greatest Entertainer,' 53 years after he died. You ain't read nothin' yet.

Back in February, when Theatre Under the Stars (TUTS) announced their 2013-2014 season, Bruce Lumpkin, TUTS' Artistic Director, gave BroadwayWorld an exclusive heads up about an exciting development that was occurring within the organization. Now TUTS is ready to announce their exhilarating new project, an invigorating and diverse season of fresh, edgy musical theatre called TUTS Underground. This season will run in The Hobby Center for the Performing Arts' intimate Zilkha Hall and feature innovative modern works. According to Bruce Lumpkin, the intended audience for this line up is "a contemporary minded audience, an audience looking for something new, something different than what's been offered." The inaugural season for TUTS Underground will feature four fresh shows that are "not only new, newly done, but newly done for our audiences here."

In some rare cases, a decision to share tales of one's past can give the audience a theatrical experience that it will remember far after the last bow. Qurrat Ann Kadwani's solo piece 'They Call Me Q' is one of those shows.

I hope you will indulge me, Dear Reader, as I will not be reviewing the current production of "The Pirates of Penzance" at the 5th Avenue Theatre. Instead let's call this what it is, a thank you letter to the remarkable cast and crew at the 5th Avenue for infusing a musical theater classic with such heart, fun, humor, talent and beauty that even a diehard fan of the show found himself leaving the theater with a huge grin on his face and a renewed love for the piece. (I'm referring to myself, of course.)

There would be few people who have not heard the story of Little Red Riding Hood, a cautionary tale warning of what we now refer to as "stranger danger" and, let's face it, they don't come much stranger than a talking wolf.

'How does one make that first trip to the range, gun store, or even a friend's house to check out a gun or two without looking like a total doofus? Like all new things, learning how to handle guns can be intimidating. How do new shooters take the first step now that Miss Manners' Super Duper Guide to Shooting Etiquette is out of print?'

Summer vacations are on many family agendas, but let's face it - traveling with children can be a challenge. For decades, Fast Park, the leading offsite airport parking company, has provided a relaxing start to any trip. This month Fast Park is going a step further to assist parents and caregivers traveling with children this summer with free advice.

Ingenious spirit beefs up Boy meets Girl classic.

Let's see what the critics had to say...

Let's see what the critics had to say...

Legendary Soul Man Sam Moore will perform at the White House to celebrate the timeless classics of 'Memphis Soul' as part of the Emmy Award-Nominated PBS Music Special IN PERFORMANCE AT THE WHITE HOUSE Series on Tuesday, April 9, 2013. President Obama's remarks from the evening follow.

Matthew Dunster directs Rodney Ackland's Before The Party at The Almeida Theatre, which opened on 28 March 2013 and runs until 11 May 2013. Based on a short story by Somerset Maugham, Before The Party has designs by Anna Fleischle with lighting by Philip Gladwell and sound by Ian Dickinson. Dunster's production of Before The Party will be the first in over 25 years.

Let's see what the critics had to say...

For diehard fans of Judy Garland, for those who adored every song she sang and every word she uttered, Peter Quilter's account of Judy's final comeback in the UK at Talk of the Town in December, 1968, called End of the Rainbow must be seen. Yes, it's darkly frank showing literally the decay of the alcoholic/drug addicted superstar whose great pain and loneliness drove her over the edge, but it retains a delicious sense of humor, Judy Garland's unique sense of humor whereby she could put herself down and everyone in the room around her, get big laughs and get away with the deprecation...and still be adulated and adored by all. Garland was iconic who delivered every performance from the bottom of her soul, and in End of the Rainbow Tracie Bennett's mesmerizing electricity dominates her portrayal, giving us the essence of the woman on and off the stage. It's uncannily brilliant!

This high stepping, singing and dancing musical revue, is a fine tribute to the music and lyrics of George and Ira Gershwin. The cast of 5 talented performers, are certain to put a smile on your face and a song in your heart.