Something Different - 1983 - Off-Broadway Articles Page 1

What did our critic think of THE SAVANNAH SIPPING SOCIETY at Westport Community Theatre?

Gordon Bovinet has had long and storied career in Musical Theater, Opera and as one of the most in-demand vocal coaches in Europe. He is in town this week to celebrate his 80th birthday and to take in a performance of the show that launched his career: CATS – or in this case: CATS: JELLICLE BALL!

Jane Comfort and Company will debut a world premiere alongside two existing works at LaMama's Ellen Stewart Theater March 19-22 2026

The Spring 2026 season has officially begun, and with it, comes new plays for theatre lovers of all kinds. Whether you live for intense dramas or would rather escape with zany comedies, there's something for everyone both on and off-Broadway in March 2026.

Tony Award winner Richard Maltby, Jr. discusses with Jennifer Ashley Tepper About Time, his new revue written with collaborator David Shire which, alongside Starting Here, Starting Now and Closer Than Ever, completes the writing team’s trilogy. They also chat about friendship with Stephen Sondheim, how Off-Broadway has evolved since the 1960s, the role Yale University has played, and more.

Carolyn Lucas was studying dance in college when a friend took her to see iconic postmodern dance choreographer Trisha Brown (1936–2017) and her eponymous company at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. The experience changed her life and launched her career, according to Lucas.

A previously unheard recording has been released of vocalist Peggy Lee performing the classic “La Vie en Rose” in French, accompanied by a jazz trio. Check it out now.

The Broadway production of Ragtime was a glorious accomplishment, a riveting testament to the original American musical and to all that America itself could be. The show ran for 834 performances at the Ford Center, closing in the final year of the 20th century. It was nominated for 13 Tony Awards, taking home four.

One of the most effective things the musical gains by moving from page to screen to stage is permission to reframe the story without betraying it. By leaning harder into the Curtis brothers as the emotional spine, the musical clarifies a distinction that’s always been present in the text but rarely foregrounded this explicitly: Darry, Soda, and Ponyboy are family by blood, bound by obligation and grief; while the Greasers are family by choice, bound by loyalty and survival.

54 BELOW will celebrate the happiest time of the year with an incredible lineup of performances by Tony winner Christine Ebersole with Billy Stritch, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” star Darius de Haas, and more.

In the past few theater seasons, Sehnaz Dirik has enhanced her reputation for playing strong women.

Earlier this year, it was announced that the Library of Congress had acquired the Stephen Sondheim collection. The legendary composer and lyricist passed away in 2021 at the age of 91 after a long and extraordinary career. His collection at the Library of Congress is in the midst of being catalogued, and this piece shares several highlights from the boxes of Sondheim’s lyric drafts, music manuscripts, rewrite notes, brainstorm pages, song list outlines, and more.

Perhaps no one is more surprised Steve Hackett is doing a retrospective on THE LAMB 50 years after the fact than the guitarist himself. THE LAMB was ranked in the top ten of Rolling Stone magazine’s top 50 progressive rock albums of all time. The BBC called it a “conceptual masterpiece.” Hackett has another word for it: an anomaly.

Colin Hay, who will perform an acoustic show Nov. 2 at the Southern Theatre (21 E. Main Street in downtown Columbus), disagrees with the assessment, but the former Men at Work frontman is a man of misperceptions. For example:

The Washington Chorus and National Philharmonic will partner to present the program One Song: Exultávit! at The Music Center at Strathmore. Learn more here!

With the original cast recording now streaming, we caught up with Dave Malloy and Lucy Kirkwood to discuss their musical of Roald Dahl's The Witches, which held its world premiere at the National Theatre in 2023.

The 2025 Season of the Stratford Festival is officially open, and kicking it off is a delightful production of AS YOU LIKE IT at the Festival Theatre. Director, Chris Abraham has assembled a stellar cast to tell this story that brings lots of laughts as it explores themes of love at first sight, uncertainty, resilience, and transformation. With strong performances, exciting set and lighting design, original music by Ron Sexsmith, and at times, a very silly humour that many are craving right now, this production ticks all the boxes for an audience that just wants reassurance that we all can still love and laugh in our own trying and uncertain times.

Noted reviewer Leonard Maltin gave STOP MAKING SENSE four out of four stars and called it  one of the best concert films. The staging was ambitious: set pieces float in and out of the frame while screens project random images and words behind the band.

Today’s subject Elizabeth Bruce is currently living her theatre life as the co-host and co-creator of the Creativists in Dialogue podcast. A series that covers a variety of topics as they relate to creativity. The series can be heard on Substack and Spotify.

This time, the reader question was: How often do Broadway musicals change their titles after Broadway? We're unpacking the history of shows that have been renamed.

BroadwayWorld chats with Pearl Ong about 'Night Driver,' her solo show about leaving behind her cosseted Hong Kong childhood to drive a cab at night in wild and crazy late 70s San Francisco, running through April 5 at The Marsh.

Handspring Puppet Company, known for War Horse and stole hearts with Little Amal, joins Cape Town's Baxter Theatre to transform Nobel Laureate J.M. Coetzee's 1983 Booker Prize-winning novel Life & Times of Michael K into theatre.

Very few bands have made a mark on the Canadian music scene quite like The Tragically Hip. From their early roots in Kingston, Ontario to winning the hearts of millions across Canada, The Tragically Hip have become more than just a band, but rather a national treasure. 

Commemorating the GRAMMY® Award-winning record’s 20th birthday this year, the California trio proudly present the definitive American Idiot 20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition out October 25, 2024. They have assembled massive Limited Edition Super Deluxe Box Sets available in 8-LP Vinyl and 4-CD configurations. Listen to tracks from the album now!

Partnering with oceanographer Georgy Manucharyan and six visionary composers, violinist Rachel Lee Priday will embark on a musically rich project that blends classical music with the visual poetry of fluid dynamics experiments, including a new album, Fluid Dynamics, with pianist David Kaplan out Friday, August 23, 2024 on Orchid Classics.