No Gilbert and Sullivan comic opera boasts as many walk-away tunes as The Pirates of Penzance, the only collaboration of the pair to premiere on Broadway, and not in England. Building on the success of the previous year’s H.M.S. Pinafore, but trading—as their principal “serious” focus—the rigors of naval discipline for the obligations of duty, G&S manage to burlesque their normal share of popular institutions, including the army, the police, and operatic sopranos. Pirate apprentice Frederic, at age 21, has faithfully served out his indentures and, replete with a sense of duty, joins the police force, determined to exterminate his old mates. He falls in love with Mabel, the first girl he sees, but the daughter of Major-General Stanley, who himself is the target of a pirate revenge plot. Plans go awry when it is revealed that, thanks to a leap-day birth, Frederic is really only five and one-quarter years old. The engaging musical score includes some of the catchiest music in the G&S canon: Mabel’s pyrotechnic “Poor, wandering one;” the tongue-twisting patter song “I am the very model of a modern major-general;” “A policeman’s lot;” “Climbing over rocky mountain”—a survivor from Thespis, G&S’s lost first stage work; and “With catlike tread,” which, more than a quarter-century later, was given new words as “Hail, hail, the gang’s all here.” At The Egyptian Theatre.
The Collegiate Chorale presents the New York City premiere of Eric Idle and John Du Prez's Not The Messiah (He's a Very Naughty Boy) at Carnegie Hall, December 15-16, 2014 at 8pm.
The Collegiate Chorale presents the New York City premiere of Eric Idle and John Du Prez's Not The Messiah (He's a Very Naughty Boy) at Carnegie Hall, December 15-16, 2014 at 8pm.
The first Globe for All free Shakespeare tour will begin today, October 28 and will culminate in three low-cost performances on November 7 - 9 in the Globe's Hattox Hall, part of the Karen and Donald Cohn Education Center in the Conrad Prebys Theatre Center.
Milwaukee Chamber Theatre (MCT) celebrates the holiday season with THE COMPLETE WORKS OF WILIAM SHAKESPEARE (ABRIDGED) [REVISED]. Ray Jivoff directs this literary romp featuring Chris Klopatek, Rick Pendzich, Chase Stoeger and Marcus Truschinski. The cast of MCT favorites are also all alumni of the UW-Whitewater theatre program. Performances are November 19 - December 14, 2014 at the Broadway Theatre Center's Studio Theatre in Milwaukee's Historic Third Ward.
The Old Globe invites your participation and coverage as it begins presenting shows through an exciting new producing platform, Globe for All. This free-of-charge tour of a professional production of Shakespeare will allow the theatre to serve more communities throughout San Diego by collaborating with a diverse range of local organizations. Old Globe Artistic Director Barry Edelstein directs the first production, Shakespeare's fascinating romance All's Well That Ends Well. He has cast local professional actors, including recent graduates of the Old Globe/University of San Diego Graduate Theatre Program. The first Globe for All free Shakespeare tour will begin October 28 and will culminate in three low-cost performances on November 7 to 9 in the Globe's Hattox Hall, part of the Karen and Donald Cohn Education Center in the Conrad Prebys Theatre Center.
The Guthrie Theater presents My Fair Lady, the hummable, quotable, utterly enjoyable musical for the whole family. Playing for the first time at the Guthrie, under the direction of Joe Dowling, My Fair Lady will feature Helen Anker as Eliza Doolittle, Tony Sheldon as Colonel Pickering, Donald Corren as Alfred P. Doolittle - all in their Guthrie debuts - and Jeff McCarthy as Professor Henry Higgins. Performances began on the Wurtele Thrust Stage on Saturday, June 28, with an opening slated for tonight, July 4, 2014.
After an astounding record-breaking 22 month run, their award-winning production of PEARLS OVER SHANGHAI, San Francisco's longest-running Cockettes musical hit is back on The Hypnodrome stage for a Fifth Anniversary Revival production. The show has been extended for the final time and MUST CLOSE on July 26, 2014.
Thrillpeddlers is excited to announce that due to great reviews, sold-out houses and popular demand, they are extending the run of Pearls Over Shanghai now thru June 28, 2014. (originally scheduled to run thru May 31, 2014.) After an astounding record-breaking 22 month run, their award-winning production of Pearls Over Shanghai, San Francisco's Longest-Running Cockettes Musical Hit is back on the Hypnodrome stage for a Fifth Anniversary Revival Production. Pearls Over Shanghai unanimously received rave reviews from critics and audiences alike, and this revival is a critic's delight all over again. It's a phenomenon that keeps on growing! Pearls Over Shanghai plays Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8:00 pm. The Hypnodrome is located at 575 10th St., in SF. 94103. (Bryant & Division Sts.)
The Guthrie Theater today announced casting for the production of My Fair Lady, the hummable, quotable, utterly enjoyable musical for the whole family. Playing for the first time at the Guthrie, under the direction of Joe Dowling, My Fair Lady will feature Helen Anker as Eliza Doolittle, Tony Sheldon as Colonel Pickering, Donald Corren as Alfred P. Doolittle - all in their Guthrie debuts - and Jeff McCarthy as Professor Henry Higgins. Performances begin on the Wurtele Thrust Stage on Saturday, June 28. Single tickets start at $28 and are now on sale through the Guthrie Box Office at 612.377.2224, toll-free 877.44.STAGE, 612.225.6244 (Group Sales) and online at www.guthrietheater.org.
Ben Edquist, of Houston, won the $15,000 First Prize in the finals of the 2014 Lotte Lenya Competition, sponsored by the Kurt Weill Foundation for Music and held on April 12, 2014, in Kilbourn Hall of the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, N.Y. Arlo Hill, of New York, won the Second Prize of $10,000, and the Third Prize of $7,500 was awarded to Natalie Ballenger, also of New York.
Today in 1981, Joe Papp's revival of THe Pirates of Penzance opened at the Uris Theatre, where it ran for 787 performances. The Pirates of Penzance is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. The opera's official premiere was at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on 31 December 1879, where the show was well received by both audiences and critics. Pirates was the fifth Gilbert and Sullivan collaboration and introduced the much-parodied Major-General's Song.
Maureen McGovern has been called the singer with 'The Stradivarius Voice,' so tremendous is her talent. Her 40-year career has encompassed recording, song writing, concerts, radio, television, film and Broadway, and is about to begin her second show-stopping stint with The Fabulous Palm Springs Follies, appearing tonight, January 7 through March 8, 2014. McGovern made her Broadway debut in The Pirates of Penzance in 1981.
Maureen McGovern has been called the singer with "The Stradivarius Voice," so tremendous is her talent. Her 40-year career has encompassed recording, song writing, concerts, radio, television, film and Broadway, and is about to begin her second show-stopping stint with The Fabulous Palm Springs Follies, appearing January 7 through March 8, 2014. McGovern made her Broadway debut in The Pirates of Penzance in 1981. She later starred in Nine with Raul Julia and in 3 Penny Opera with Sting, and has appeared in many musicals and dramas throughout the country. In 2005, McGovern returned to Broadway, originating her Drama Desk-nominated role of Marmee in Little Women, The Musical. She continued in that role with the national touring company.
Broadway veteran Maureen McGovern comes to Pittsburgh to perform at The Cabaret at Theater Square today, November 4 at 7:30 p.m. This performance is part of the TRUST Cabaret Series, presented by the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, which provides the opportunity for audiences to experience some of the finest cabaret acts in the entertainment industry.
The Production Company rounded off its 2013 season last night with Gilbert and Sullivan's classic operetta The Pirates of Penzance. There was, however, little reference to the classic that was first performed in 1879. There have been many adaptations of the original, with this production centering on the 1981 Broadway production. This show is undoubtedly fun. In fact, that is the most apt word to describe this production. It's light and fluffy in all the right places, however, its biggest strength is also its ultimate undoing. For while director Dean Bryant has tapped into the light pantomime frolics that make Pirates so enjoyable, there is little variation to the over flamboyance presented on opening night. This show fails to find the truth in moments that call for it. Any honest point is made light of or brushed over with seemingly little regard. The show fights against itself, leaving us partially satisfied but never fully satisfied.
Broadway veteran Maureen McGovern comes to Pittsburgh to perform at The Cabaret at Theater Square on Monday, November 4 at 7:30 p.m. This performance is part of the TRUST Cabaret Series, presented by the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, which provides the opportunity for audiences to experience some of the finest cabaret acts in the entertainment industry.
The Dallas Opera has announced the opening production of their 2013-2014 “By Love Transformed” Season: Georges Bizet's colorful, sensual and passionate 19th century masterpiece, CARMEN, one of the most beloved and popular works in the entire opera canon.
A contemporary theatrical dramatization of Homer's masterpiece, 'An Iliad' adapted by Lisa Peterson and Denis O'Hare makes its Michigan Premiere tonight, September 26 through October 27, 2013 with an all star cast and high-end designers at Performance Network Theatre, Michigan's most award winning professional theatre as their season opener.
Thrillpeddlers announces their annual Halloween Extravaganza Shocktoberfest 14: Jack the Ripper - An Evening of Horror, Madness, Spanking and Song Commemorating the 125th Anniversary of the Jack The Ripper Murders in London. Thrillpeddlers presents its 4th and final preview performance of Shocktoberfest 14 on Sept. 30, the very date that police received the letter that coined the name 'Jack the Ripper' and the case's double-murder occurred.
AARP reports that singer Linda Ronstadt has revealed that she suffers from Parkinson's disease, which has affected her ability to perform for some time. Diagnosed eight months ago, Ronstadt told the organization that she 'can't sing a note' and that she realizes now she had started to show symptoms years ago.
A contemporary theatrical dramatization of Homer's masterpiece, 'An Iliad' adapted by Lisa Peterson and Denis O'Hare makes its Michigan Premiere on September 26 through October 27, 2013 with an all star cast and high-end designers at Performance Network Theatre, Michigan's most award winning professional theatre as their season opener. Single tickets will be on sale soon.
Hottest Articles on BroadwayWorld.com from this weekend Sunday, August 18, 2013 - Sunday, August 18, 2013.
Thrillpeddlers announces their annual Halloween Extravaganza Shocktoberfest 14: Jack the Ripper - An Evening of Horror, Madness, Spanking and Song Commemorating the 125th Anniversary of the Jack The Ripper Murders in London. Thrillpeddlers presents its 4th and final preview performance of Shocktoberfest 14 on Sept. 30, the very date that police received the letter that coined the name 'Jack the Ripper' and the case's double-murder occurred.
Producers Daryl Roth and Eva Price announced today that Emmy Award-winning actor Tom Skerritt will make his Broadway debut in A Time to Kill, Tony Award-winning playwright Rupert Holmes' stage adaptation of John Grisham's best-selling novel. Skerritt will portray Lucien Wilbanks, the mentor to protagonist Jake Brigance (played by Sebastian Arcelus), in this thrilling, iconic courtroom drama. Skerritt joins the previously announced Sebastian Arcelus, Chike Johnson, Patrick Page, Tony Award winner Tonya Pinkins, Fred Dalton Thompson, John Douglas Thompson, and Ashley Williams plus Dashiell Eaves, J.R. Horne, John Procaccino, Tijuana Ricks, and Lee Sellars. Casting is now complete.
The Public Theater's new musical LOVE'S LABOUR'S LOST, the second show of The Public's 2013 free Shakespeare in the Park season at the Delacorte, officially opens tonight. Directed by Alex Timbers, LOVE'S LABOUR'S LOST will feature songs by Michael Friedman with book adaptation by Timbers and will run through Sunday, August 18.
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