Something More! - 1964 - Broadway Articles Page 14

The impetus behind ROCK AND ROLL MAN: THE ALAN FREED STORY was not the Freed family. Gary Kupper was approached by Larry Marshak, with whom he had worked for many years, about a third party's desire to do a story about Alan Freed as a 'jukebox musical'. The intention was that Kupper might be able to write a couple of songs for the piece. Kupper realized that Freed's story is a classic one. A rise and fall and then redemption story that can't be told as a jukebox musical because Alan Freed wasn't a singer. He feels that a jukebox musical would have cheated the story. This is the story of this man, and the story of Rock-and-Roll. That notion gave birth to the 'book musical'. In 2011, Kupper started writing original songs and sometime later, the team started writing the script. Freed's son, Lance, stepped-in and helped to secure the rights to the Rock-and-Roll classics. They have combined the music of the era with storytelling. They admit it's both risky and tricky and has never really been done to the extent that it is in this show. Thirty to thirty-five original songs were written, most of which were thrown out. A little more than a dozen are in the current iteration of the show.

A Tony Award-nominated musical with folk, bluegrass and gospel influences will come to the southeast Michigan for two weekends when the Croswell Opera House presents VIOLET.

Violinist Itzhak Perlman, one of the reigning artists of our day, will make a rare appearance for a recital to inaugurate the Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts' 2019-2020 Season on September 19 at 7pm.  Perlman is accompanied by Rohan De Silva, piano.

Fiddler on the Roof first debuted on Broadway in 1964 and in the intervening 55 years, it's become a beloved standard in the Broadway musical canon, being revived many times and performed on stages all over the world in productions both professional and amateur. The heartwarming tale of the world-weary dairyman Tevye, his long-suffering wife Golde, their five(!) daughters and their suitors and all of the other inhabitants of the Russian village of Anatevka has been delighting audiences ever since that initial mounting and rather than growing old and rather precious over time, Fiddler on the Roof instead has become even more relevant, particularly in the current socio-political climate in which immigrants have become political pawns and in which change is constant.

Charlie Bucket has been found and he has a Golden Ticket! Producers John Frost, Craig Donnell, Warner Bros Theatre Ventures, Langley Park Productions and Neal Street Productions today announced the five boys who will play the role of Charlie in the Melbourne season of the Helpmann Award nominated spectacular new musical Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Roald Dahl's delicious tale will begin at Melbourne's Her Majesty's Theatre on 9 August following an outstanding six-month season at Sydney's Capitol Theatre.

Jazzmobile Inc. and Harlem Jazz Enterprises have entered into a new partnership to present live music at the iconic Minton's Playhouse jazz club, 206 West 118th Street, in Harlem. This open-ended residency will begin on Independence Day with pianist Nat Adderley, Jr. and will continue every Thursday evening with a world-class jazz band. The Summer lineup will be announced at the opening celebration on July 4.

The Eugene O'Neill Theater Center announces casting and creative teams for the summer season of new musicals and plays selected for development at the National Music Theater Conference and National Playwrights Conference.

Atlantic Theater Company' presents the world premiere of the new musical The Secret Life of Bees, book by Lynn Nottage, music by Duncan Sheik, lyrics by Susan Birkenhead, directed by Sam Gold, choreographed by Chris Walkerand based on the best-selling novel by Sue Monk Kidd.

The French Institute Alliance Fran aise (FIAF) honors the great French composer Michel Legrand, who died in January this year, with a special Cin Salon series devoted to his life and work. Curated by one of his longtime collaborators and greatest interpreters, singer and actress Melissa Errico, Summer of Michel Legrand brings together seven of his films from his best known triumphs such as The Umbrellas of Cherbourg and The Young Girls of Rochefort to lesser known gems such as the enchanting fairy-tale musical Donkey Skin. Screenings take place on Tuesdays in July at 4pm and 7:30pm in FIAF's Florence Gould Hall.

Despite its general pleasant nature, many cute moments, and a plethora of genuine talent on stage, this stage musical adaptation of CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY---Roald Dahl's beloved 1964 children's novel about a sweet, affable kid who wins a meet-and-greet (and more!) with an eccentric Candy Man named Willy Wonka--- comes off less magical and whimsical than one would hope it would be considering its source material. Is this national tour production---now continuing performances at Segerstrom Center for the Arts through June 9---joyful enough for kids and kids-at-heart to enjoy? Sure. But, overall, something about it feels just slightly under-baked, as if all the additional necessary ingredients that would have made this musical extraordinary didn't quite make it into the mix.

Music legend and Beach Boys co-founder Brian Wilson and iconic British pop pioneers The Zombies recently announced a North American tour celebrating the music from the late 1960's and early 1970's called 'Something Great from 68' and beyond.

The Sydney season of the spectacular new musical Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is coming to an end, with the season extended due to huge demand until 21 July. Tickets for the final two weeks will go on sale on Friday 31 May. Following the Sydney season, the production will play at Her Majesty's Theatre, Melbourne from 9 August, and at the Lyric Theatre, Brisbane from March 2020.

The spectacular new musical Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is coming to Brisbane in March next year, playing at the Lyric Theatre, QPAC, following a hugely successful season in Sydney and the much-anticipated season at Her Majesty's Theatre, Melbourne from August. Tickets for the Brisbane season will go on sale in July but waitlist now to be the first in line to purchase tickets at CharlieTheMusical.com.au

If you’re looking for audition songs suitable for an alto range, we’ve compiled a list of classic and contemporary options for you. These 20 audition songs offer a variety of stories and styles, so you can choose the right ones for your voice and type. 

'Forever Plaid,' now playing at Theatre In The Park's indoor facility at the Johnson County Arts and Heritage Center, is a very pleasant excuse to spend an evening stepping through a gentle time warp and into an entirely different musical experience.

Certainly, if you're lucky enough to spend a scant two hours in the company of Cumberland County Playhouse's Forever Plaid - comprised of Chris Hallowes, Ross Griffin, Paul Gary and Justin Burr - you'll feel like you've been good, thanks to their heavenly harmonies, delightful performances and all-around good-guy affability.

Over the course of each Broadway season, unexpected and unique storylines inevitably pop up. This morning, with the announcement of the 2019 Tony Award nominations, a number of new narratives have come to life.

No matter how you describe them - although granted, 'handsome, charming, engaging and amazingly talented' comes readily to mind - nor how many times you've seen them (whether it's your first or twenty-first time), there's one thing you cannot help but think about Under the Streetlamp: These four guys really know how to put on a show!

When I saw Hello, Dolly! In New York with Bette Midler last year, I was in awe. I knew that it was special, and it was an experience I'd never forget. I truly considered myself one of the luckiest theatre goers after seeing Midler in this iconic role and now I consider myself even luckier with the night I had at the Orpheum in Minneapolis. Not only have I seen one legend as the infamous Dolly Levi, but now I've seen two. Betty Buckley, best known for her Tony-Award winning performance as Grizabella in Cats, is saying hello audiences across the country in this national tour of Hello, Dolly!.

The Queens College Evening Readings series is back for the spring season with highly anticipated readings by acclaimed writer Brad Gooch and performer Cherita Armstrong.

The Shed, New York City's new arts center dedicated to commissioning, develops, and presents original works of art, across all disciplines, for all audiences, will open to the public on April 5 with the world premiere of Soundtrack of America. The five-night concert series, conceived and directed by Steve McQueen with a creative team led by Quincy Jones and Maureen Mahon, celebrates the unrivaled impact of African American music on contemporary culture with performances by a new generation of artists. A free live stream of the April 5 concert will be available on The Shed's website, TheShed.org, and its social media channels.

Bette Midler is a household name known for her stage and screen work, but she also does another very important job: keeping New York City clean.

YALE REPERTORY THEATRE the multiple Tony Award-winning theatre dedicated to the production of new plays and bold interpretations of classic works, has announced its 2019-20 Season.

The spectacular new musical Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is coming to Melbourne in August this year, playing at Her Majesty's Theatre, following a hugely successful season in Sydney. Tickets will go on sale to the general public on Friday 15 March at 1pm.