The Happy Time - 1968 - Broadway Articles Page 10

Angela Lansbury has enjoyed a career without precedent. Her professional career spans more than half-a-century, during which she has flourished, first as a star of motion pictures, then as a four-time Tony Award-winning Broadway musical star, and most recently as the star of 'Murder, She Wrote,' the longest running detective drama series in the history of television.

Good morning BroadwayWorld! Today's top stories: Ain't Too Proud opens its pre-Broadway run in Toronto tonight, and more!

With three sailors on shore leave, a carnival of fantastics seeking to console a disconsolate janitor, and the oddest choreography for Bellini's 'Casta Diva' you'll ever see, FALL WORKS launched Charlotte Ballet's 2018-19 season with wit and style.

Amas Musical Theatre (Donna Trinkoff, Artistic Producer) in celebration of its 50thseason, will present The Algonquin Kid, a musical revue about growing up in the Algonquin Hotel, written by Michael Colby.

 50 years ago, in 1968, the nation was at a crisis point.  War, assassinations, political strife; millions of voices were yearning to be heard, to be understood.  A year later, 1969, at least on the creative-artistic front, one voice came forward to carry a message, lyrics in song that reached out to those millions. That voice, those lyrics, were JOHN FOGERTY. His natural talent to capture emotion in words, coupled with being the lead singer and guitarist for Creedence Clearwater Revival at the time, gave us three amazing albums in one year!  

It's the day of the show, y'all: The Nashville premiere of Mart Crowley's The Boys in the Band is tonight - at The Barbershop Theatre, 4003 Indiana Avenue in The Nations - and six of the actors portraying Crowley's now-iconic characters took time from tech week to answer questions about their processes and to offer their reasons for why you should come see the show.

Berkeley Repertory Theatre presents A Doll's House, Part 2, written by Lucas Hnath and directed by Les Waters, which begins previews on Thursday, September 6 and runs through Sunday, October 21. Individual tickets begin at $30 ($15 if you're under 35) and can be purchased online at berkeleyrep.org or by phone at 510 647-2949 beginning August 12, 2018. Subscription tickets are available now. 

October brings four Prime Original series, one Prime Original series special and one Prime Original movie exclusively available for Prime members to stream or download at no additional cost to their membership.

The Nashville Association of Talent Directors (NATD) has announced six highly-respected honorees who will be recognized at the 8th Annual NATD Honors Gala scheduled for November 7, 2018, at the Hermitage Hotel. Tickets for the gala can be purchased here.

When it comes to soul, Stax Records owned the '60s. Classic records from Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Rufus & Carla Thomas, and a legion of others helped transform what was once known as rhythm 'n' blues into rugged, emotionally bare 'soul' music. This made Stax one of the decade's most influential labels of any genre. It all crescendoed in 1968, a tempest-tossed year when the label redefined its own sound and, in the process, channeled a larger historical zeitgeist.

Vintage Theatre Productions announces 11 shows for the 2019 season. Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m. at Vintage Theatre, 1468 Dayton St. in Aurora. Early bird season tickets are $199 and currently on sale. Single ticket will go on sale October 1. Call 303-856-7830 or purchase online at www.vintagetheatre.org. 

The 3rd annual Hip Hop Film Festival was held, fittingly, at the historic National Black Theatre founded by Dr. Barbara Ann Teer who moved to Harlem in 1968 and saw that the once vibrant neighborhood was suffering from a sense of hopelessness after the losses of African American leaders Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X and desperately needed a community space and cultural arts institution that would 'be reflective of the power, grace and excellence of a people' (according to her daughter and current CEO Sade Lythcott).

In 1967, an enigmatic singer, songwriter and producer named Bobbie Gentry rose out of the Mississippi delta and enchanted audiences around the world with her beautiful, captivating voice and her "Ode To Billie Joe." An unconventional, beguiling song with simple acoustic guitar and sparse production, and notably without a discernible chorus, the song introduced Gentry and her style of storytelling that was very different to the confessional song writing of other emerging female singers. The song caused a lot of commotion as it shot to number one in America and knocked The Beatles' "All You Need Is Love" off the top spot. When the album Ode To Billie Joe was released the following month, it topped the charts and was the only record to displace Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band from its 15-week reign. Over the next several years, Gentry, whose birthday was this past Friday, July 27, released seven studio albums and broke ground in numerous ways as one of the first female musicians to write, produce and even publish her own music. She also produced her elaborate stage shows via her own production company and was the first female singer songwriter to be afforded her own BBC TV series in the UK where she was wildly popular. She became one of the most iconic and influential artists of the 1960s and 70s, and then in the early '80s she made her final appearance and disappeared from the public eye completely, never to return.

Peter Cetera, acclaimed solo artist and former lead vocalist of Chicago, performs at Mayo Performing Arts Center on Today, August 2 at 8 pm. Tickets are $59-119.

Academy Award-nominated and Emmy Award-winning writer and actress Renee Taylor - known to millions for her role as Fran Fine's food-obsessed mother, Sylvia, on 'The Nanny' - returns to the New York stage in the New York premiere of My Life on a Diet, an autobiographical comedy written by Ms. Taylor and her late husband Joseph Bologna. Originally directed by Mr. Bologna, My Life on a Diet just opened at Theatre at St. Clement's.

Berkeley Repertory Theatre today announced final casting for A Doll's House, Part 2, written by Lucas Hnath and directed by Les Waters, which begins previews on Thursday, September 6 and runs through Sunday, October 21. Individual tickets begin at $30 ($15 if you're under 35) and can be purchased online at berkeleyrep.org or by phone at 510 647-2949 beginning August 12, 2018. Subscription tickets are available now. Press night of this first show of Berkeley Rep's 50th anniversary season will be on Thursday, September 13.

Before the opening night performance a representative of Actors' Equity presented the theatre with a proclamation in honor of their 50thanniversary which included praise for not only Porthouse and Kent State University, but for Terri Kent, who has been leading the endeavor for 18 successful years. The words praised the venue for not only setting high professional theatrical goals, but for being a place where support, encouragement and respect is stressed.

Craft Recordings proudly announces the 50th anniversary of America's greatest rock band, Creedence Clearwater Revival. It was in the summertime half a century ago that CCR, a group that would reach sky-high success while retaining a resolutely rootsy, earthbound sound, released their debut album. This marked the beginning of an incredible legacy that was formed over just four years of unbridled creative output (1968-1972).

Peter Cetera, acclaimed solo artist and former lead vocalist of Chicago, performs at Mayo Performing Arts Center on Thursday, August 2 at 8 pm. Tickets are $59-119.

As previously announced by Barbra Streisand and Netflix at the 2018 Netflix FYSee closing night celebration which featured Streisand in conversation with Jamie Foxx in support of Barbra: The Music… The Mem'ries… The Magic! Netflix audiences worldwide will soon enjoy a fresh selection of content from the Streisand library including award-winning My Name Is Barbra (1965), Color Me Barbra (1966), Barbra Streisand: A Happening in Central Park (1968), Barbra Streisand and Other Musical Instruments (1973), Barbra Streisand: The Concert (1994), and Barbra Streisand: Timeless (2001). Netflix is also thrilled to present a special edition of Barbra Streisand's classic movie A Star Is Born (1976). Supervising the edit, Ms. Streisand was happy to include never-before-seen footage – the scene where she first plays “Evergreen” on the guitar for Mr. Kristofferson. To Ms. Streisand's surprise almost a year later, the song went on to win the Academy Award, the Grammy, and the Golden Globe. The other never-before-seen footage includes a rock n' roll version of the film's finale “Watch Closely Now.”  All of the titles will launch on Netflix in the US this Friday, June 15.

The Boys in the Band finally got its big Broadway opening last night.

A younger playgoer knowing nothing about Mart Crowley's classic 1968 Off-Broadway comedy/drama The Boys in the Band except, perhaps, that its original run is regarded as an important landmark in depicting gay men on stage, might be shocked to witness the happenings these days at the Booth Theatre, which now houses the piece's premiere Broadway production.

McCarter is proud to welcome a group of esteemed and emerging playwrights and theater artists to Princeton for the Sallie B. Goodman Artists' Retreat. The annual Retreat in June is a centerpiece of McCarter's LAB, a platform and creative incubator devoted to ongoing theatrical development and artist cultivation. The 2018 Retreat will take place from June 6 - June 13.