You Never Know 2005 - Articles Page 4.2

Broadway’s master songman, Mandy Patinkin, accompanied by Adam Ben-David on piano, will bring his newest theatre concert Mandy Patinkin in Concert: BEING ALIVE, to Barrington Stage Company’s Boyd-Quinson Stage for one performance only on Tuesday, June 27, 2023 at 8:00 PM.

All of these theaters had programming that was - you know, sort of your tent poles on the mainstage, your occasional blockbuster musical. On the second stage, there was riskier work, new work being developed that might not appeal to a 700-seat audience. I thought that was incredible - you're doing these blockbuster Broadway musicals, the best of the best plays, and then new work that is exciting and thrilling. And that sort of became part of my DNA as I was thinking about directing.

John Farmanesh-Bocca is a multi-award-winning physical theatre director, the Founding Artistic Director of both Not Man Apart - Physical Theatre Ensemble (2005-2015) and Shakespeare Santa Monica (2003-2014). Now he has shifted gears to go on a search for America by directing the sensual, passionate, and delightfully funny Pulitzer Prize winning play Picnic by William Inge, with his version featuring an entirely Black American cast. I decided to speak with him about his vision for presenting the quintessentially American play and the unique challenges faced while shifting gears from physical movement to character development.

This month, the reader question was: There's a lot of talk about Lea Michele's performance in Funny Girl, and how she won't be eligible for a Tony Award since the show opened last season. Is there any history of Tony Awards rules changes/exceptions in the past?

Something I have said many times is that I wish audience members would fully realize the amount of work and the amount of people it takes to put on a production. The things I have heard in theatre lobbies are both scary and laughable at the same time. Things like 'Oh, I want a chance to crash that chandelier. It's just one button!' or 'Wow, that didn't look hard at all. I could do that easily'. Well folks, working in theatre is not an easy profession. It comes with lots of stress and long days but if you have the drive and passion, it can be very fulfilling.

The creators of the Queer Circus, Martinoa Mayotte and Gabe Gabriel, met while attending a theater conservatory in New York in 2005(AMDA). They moved to Minnesota and started producing in and around the Twin Cities as Silver Slipper Productions LLC in 2007. Early productions included drag queen hosted musical theater cabarets, original musicals, licensed plays, and burlesque/drag shows in unconventional spaces.

This weekend, The Normal Anomaly Initiative, Inc. will be presenting a workshop production of STRAPPED, which follows seven strangers as they navigate conversations surrounding intimacy, trauma, and sex. We spoke with co-writers Bryan-Keyth Wilson and Dr. Arelia Johnson to learn more about this upcoming show!

Overture Center for the Arts and FPC Live present Ani DiFranco with The Righteous Babes Revue: Gracie and Rachel, Pieta Brown, Jocelyn Mackenzie on Saturday, Nov. 5 at 8 p.m. in Capitol Theater.

Backed by her longtime band featuring guitarists Ethan Ballinger and Jerry Massey, steel guitarist Spencer Cullum, keys player Daniel Mitchell, bassist Jonathan Murray, backing vocalist Gwen Sebastian and drummer Max Zemanovic, Lambert treated fans to more than 20 songs throughout her wide-ranging 90 minute set.

SPECIAL FORCES: THE ULTIMATE TEST (wt), a series in which household names endure some of the harshest, most grueling challenges from the playbook of the Special Forces selection process. There are no votes, and no eliminations – just survival. These celebrities are so used to being in the spotlight quickly learn the meaning of “no guts, no glory.”

Overture Center for the Arts and FPC Live will present Ani DiFranco with The Righteous Babes Revue: Gracie and Rachel, Pieta Brown, Jocelyn Mackenzie on Saturday, Nov. 5 at 8 p.m. in Capitol Theater.

2022 marks our tenth anniversary of Horrible Histories in the West End, so we decided to celebrate it with Terrible Tudors, which was the first HH production we produced back in 2005.

QUEEN KWONG (a.k.a. Carré Kwong Callaway) shares the new video for 'Without You, Whatever.' Filmed in Brighton, UK during a trip to visit close friend and collaborator Laura-Mary Carter (Blood Red Shoes) who co-stars with Carré, the video was shot and directed by another close friend, Mimi Supernova (Roger O'Donnell / Permafrost).

Every so often in our lives along comes a musical full of heart. The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, is a musical comedy with Music & Lyrics by William Finn, with a book by Rachel Sheinkin. The Broadway Production opened in 2005 and was directed by James Lapine. Since its opening, many productions both locally and regionally have been produced throughout the United States. Spelling Bee was nominated for 6 Tony Awards, winning two including Best Book. This fast-paced musical comedy features 6 adult performers playing children in a local annual spelling bee competing for the top prize, and a savings bond for furthering their education. At the judge’s table and moderator for the events of the bee are past spelling Champion Rona Lisa Peretti, who is also a local Real-Estate Agent, and Vice Principal Douglas Panch. The unique aspect of the show is that four audience members are invited on stage with the performers in the show to compete in the bee. The Announcer and Moderator switch off by ad-libbing mixed sentences and various definitions for the words often to hilarious ends. One by one the performers playing middle school-aged children take their turn at the mic and perform their unique form of spelling by talking into their hand, writing the word on the floor with their foot, or drawing the word on their arm all competing to make sure each word is spelled correctly.

Queen Kwong (a.k.a. Carré Kwong Callaway) shares her latest single “Without You, Whatever” from her forthcoming Joe Cardamone (The Icarus Line / Dark Mark vs Skeleton Joe) produced album Couples Only, via Sonic Rituall. It follows “On The Run,” which featured keys and synths by Roger O'Donnell (The Cure).

Rock of Ages is not your typical musical theatre show. Be ready to experience a show like none you’ve ever seen at Dutch Apple now through May 15th!

Following the incredible 23 shows announced as part of the Pleasance Futures season, the third and largest official on-sale brings a host of incredible acts to the Pleasance this summer.  With returning Edinburgh Comedy award-winners, international companies, exciting new companies and debut comics, music, cabaret, live podcasts and children's work. 

The beloved story of Little Women became a Broadway musical in 2005. Now that musical is coming to the Milwaukee area at Forte Theatre Company. Founded by Randall and Brenda Dodge, Forte is on a mission to bring thriving, professional theater to Milwaukee's Southwest suburbs, enriching the lives of the community through high-quality shows and educational programs.

Kinky Boots is just one of those shows you can't help but leave feeling just a little sparklier. Based on the British 2005 film of the same name, Kinky Boots follows Charlie Price, who inherits his family's multigenerational shoe factory from his deceased father. In order to keep the business alive, Charlie partners with a drag queen named Lola to produce heels that can withstand the weight of a male figure. 

In James McMurtry’s new effort, The Horses and the Hounds, the acclaimed songwriter backs personal narratives with effortless elegance (“Canola Fields”) and endless energy (“If It Don’t Bleed”). This first collection in seven years, due August 20 on New West Records, spotlights a seasoned tunesmith in peak form as he turns toward reflection (“Vaquero”) and revelation (closer “Blackberry Winter”). Familiar foundations guide the journey. “There’s a definite Los Angeles vibe to this record,” McMurtry says. “The ghost of Warren Zevon seems to be stomping around among the guitar tracks. Don’t know how he got in there. He never signed on for work for hire.”

West Coast premiere of Lucas Hnath’s A Public Reading of An Unproduced Screenplay About the Death of Walt Disney opens March 26, 2022 at the Odyssey Theatre. Peter Richards directs the cast of Kevin Ashworth, Brittney Bertier, Thomas Piper and Cory Washington. Peter allowed me to probe into the interworking of A Public Read…, as well as his acting/directing career trajectory.

I fell in love with Jersey Boys when I discovered the cast recording back in 2006. That recording turned me into a fan of the group The Four Seasons which I honestly didn't know before this. Granted I knew some of the songs, but I found it fascinating that also 'my elders' didn't really know the group either. Later I learned that they never toured outside the United states. That could be a reason why the band went under the radar. I saw the musical twice in London and once in Las Vegas although my jetlag almost killed that experience. I had to drink four Red Bulls to stay awake. Luckily I did not need any Red Bull during the Norwegian premiere of this show. The show itself was energy booster enough for me.

THE DJANGO, downtown Manhattan’s premier jazz club, will continue to host today’s jazz legends and rising stars. On February 3, The Django celebrates the fifth anniversary of the Brooklyn-based record label, La Reserve, with special performances by the label’s artists.

The pandemic was a fertile time creatively for the brothers. They released a new album, The Way We Love, out of which came an array of accompanying videos. In April 2020, they released the video for 'She-Zee-Zee (Easy on My Eyes.') Check out their new tour dates now!

In the wake of Stephen Sondheim's passing, there has been an outpouring of grief from the Broadway community and beyond. Read them all here.