First Down - 2022 - Off-Broadway Articles Page 20

Overall, A BEAUTIFUL NOISE—now on stage at Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa through August 10, 2025—comes off as guaranteed musical candy for Neil Diamond devotees, thanks to its current form as a polished, tidy, nostalgia-baiting jukebox musical loaded with familiar hits, sprinkles of sparkle, and enough vocal authenticity to make fans of his music swoon. The impressive performances—from the lead vocals to the 'Beautiful Noise' ensemble's hypnotic, lyrical dance moves—bring a measurable level of enjoyment. But as a deep-dive drama? It's, well… just fine. The show's narrative stakes are satisfactory, but a bit paper-thin. While certainly clever in concept, the book often sacrifices real, emotional complexity for palatable, crowd-pleasing moments, and this therapy-session-as-framing-device never truly develops into the kind of character exploration one hopes for in a definitive bio-musical.

Writer and director Rynn Vogel and her husband, Adam J. Jefferis talk about their latest Shakespeare mashup, Roswell That Ends Well, running weekends, August 2–24, at Media Park in downtown Culver City.

The Hollywood Bowl signals a return to its annual summer musical tradition with a bold new staging of Jesus Christ Superstar, led by Cynthia Erivo and Adam Lambert.

Cinderella is preparing to enchanting family audiences at Shakespeare North Playhouse this Christmas – and the full cast for the award-winning theatre’s seasonal show has been revealed.

Today’s subject Jonathan Rockefeller is currently living his theatre life bringing “Suuuuny days” to Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater as the book writer and director for Sesame Street the Musical. The shows will continue its DC residency through August 31st.

James Trickey is throwing it all away. A hotly anticipated debut hour from award-winning new act and chartered accountant (but in a cool way) which explores what it means to risk everything. Expect to laugh, learn and crucially, laugh again.

Audiences from all walks of life can enjoy this story of family and identity up-close in an immersive production at Area Stage in South Miami. With a unique audience experience, innovative staging, and solid performances by a talented young cast, “Disney’s Tarzan” can please audiences from ages 4 to 104.

Out 8/15, Cat & the Hounds is a bold new album that revives the spirit of early 1920s Black jazz and blues with historical insight and contemporary urgency, featuring GRAMMY-nominated vocalist Catherine Russell. Read a conversation about the album.

The Louisville Orchestra is continuing the lauded “In Harmony” tour this September, bringing free music and community events to six more Commonwealth stops. Learn more!

Two years of cancellations because of Covid helped lead to the dissolution of Capital Fringe in January after 20 years. To salvage the idea — and help the creators who had in some cases spent years on creating their own upcoming Fringe productions — a new, smaller District Fringe was established this summer up at the University of the District of Columbia.

After runs in Chicago and on Broadway, Good Night, Oscar arrives at the Barbican Centre in London this month. The show, starring Sean Hayes as the titular character, follows famed character actor and pianist Oscar Levant on an unforgettable night as a guest star on Jack Paar’s late-night television talk show. Recently, we had the chance to speak with Ben Rappaport, who plays the role of Jack Paar in Good Night, Oscar. We discussed what it’s been like to be a part of the show since 2022, how he has worked on the role and how it feels to be bringing the show to the West End.

Laguna Playhouse will present the final show of its 2024/2025 season, the boot-scootin’, foot-stompin’, dancin’ in the aisles, country music party of the year, Honky Tonk Angels, written by Ted Swindley, choreography by Jill Gorrie, musical direction by John Massey and direction by David Ellenstein.

Read our review of MY FAIR LADY, playing now at Union Avenue Opera through July 12. This beloved musical has everything going for it: absolutely captivating melodies by Frederick Lowe, lovely clever lyrics by Alan Lerner, and plenty still of the incomparable wit of that old master George Bernard Shaw, from whose play, Pygmalion, the musical is adapted.

The new national tour of the iconic musical Beauty and the Beast is now traveling across America. Read the reviews as they come in here and learn more about the production!

Birdland Jazz Club and Birdland Theater are open this July with a full slate of nightly performances! See the full lineup here and learn how to purchase tickets!

Theater On The Edge's acclaimed Cinematic Theater Experience will return this summer with The Sunset Limited by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Cormac McCarthy.

Theater On The Edge's acclaimed Cinematic Theater Experience will return this summer with The Sunset Limited by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Cormac McCarthy. Learn more!

Rise and shine, BroadwayWorld! It is June 27, 2025 and it's time to catch up on all of the theatrical happenings you may have missed in the last 24 hours.

Just In Time’s origin story as well as overall conceit has much in common with one of Broadway’s very first jukebox musicals, which was ahead of its time. In 1985, Leader of the Pack, telling the story of pop singer-songwriter Ellie Greenwich, opened at the Ambassador on Broadway. Learn all about pop music bio-musicals here!

Broadway's best have put pen to paper to turn out theatre page-turners of every kind. From theatre biographies to theatre fiction; theatre books for kids to theatre history; check out our collection of 24 new Broadway books for every theatre lover's Summer 2025 reading list.

On June 7, 2026, viewers will be able to tune in to watch P!nk take the stage at Radio City Music Hall as a first-time host for the 79th annual ceremony. Do you know who has hosted the ceremony the most?

Wicked: For Good will soon arrive for all the world to see. BroadwayWorld collected all the information we could about the upcoming film - including who's starring, what viewers can expect, and what will change from stage to screen.

Visit our list of the best musicals & shows you can watch from home! We've got you covered with all the must-sees on streaming sites including Tony-award winners, favorite stars and top performances.

Which Broadway shows are the longest running of all time? Which current Broadway productions have a chance of breaking the top ten? We've got the full list!