The Piano Teacher - 2007 - Off-Broadway Articles Page 17

This week, I sat down with Janelle Lutz backstage at The Firehouse Theatre, moments before she took the stage for her second (and final) dress rehearsal for THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE, which runs February 18th through March 6th. Lutz (pronounced 'loots,' although she doesn't correct those that rhyme her name with klutz) shared her affection for Julie Andrews' portrayal of the role in the 1967 movie, and admitted some intimidation in following in Sutton Foster's Broadway shoes. As we talked about her exciting stage opportunities around DFW, I couldn't help but observe how one of DFW's largest stage personalities is also one of the most sincere, humble performers I've had the chance to speak with. Upon the end of our conversation, when I gave Ms. Lutz the opportunity to add anything I may have overlooked, she thought for a moment and responded: 'I'd just like to say thank you to the Dallas theatre community. This is my family; they've taken huge chances on me.'

This summer marks another historic milestone for the annual Bard SummerScape festival. For the first time since its founding, this season's focus is on the music and culture of Italy, with seven weeks of music, opera,theater, dance, film, and cabaret keyed to the theme of the 27th Bard Music Festival, "Puccini and His World." This intensive examination of the life and times of Giacomo Puccini opens a window onto Italy's rich musical heritage from Palestrina to Menotti, by way of the most popular and successful - yet, paradoxically, frequently critically underrated - opera composer of all time. Complementing the music festival, some of the Tuscan master's most compelling compatriots provide other key SummerScape highlights. These include a rare, fully staged production of Iris, a forerunner of Madama Butterfly by Puccini's close contemporary Pietro Mascagni; the world premiere of Demolishing Everything with Amazing Speed, four newly unearthed puppet plays from leading Italian Futurist Fortunato Depero, as reimagined by Dan Hurlin;the world premiere of Fantasque, a new ballet set to the music of Respighi and Rossini by John Heginbotham and Amy Trompetter; a film series on "Puccini and the Operatic Impulse in Cinema"; and the return of Bard's authentic and sensationally popularSpiegeltent,hosted by the inimitable Mx. Justin Vivian Bond. Taking place between July 1 and August 14 in the Frank Gehry-designed Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts and other venues on Bard College's stunning Hudson River campus, SummerScape's 2016 offerings provide new opportunities to discover that, as Time Out New York puts it, "the experience of entering the Fisher Center and encountering something totally new is unforgettable and enriching." Tickets go on sale on Monday, February 15; click here for more information.

New York Theatre Ballet invites you to attend NYTB at New York Live Arts Benefit on February 27, 2016.

New York Theatre Ballet will perform at New York Live Arts from February 24-27, 2016.  New York Live Arts is located at 219 W. 19th Street, NYC. Performances: Wednesday, Thursday and Friday at 7:30pm; and Saturday at 2pm and 7:30pm.  Tickets start at $15, and are available online at http://newyorklivearts.org/event/nytb_2016, by calling the Live Arts box office at 212.691.6500, or by visiting the box office, Monday-Saturday 1pm - 9pm and Sunday 1pm - 8pm.  

have been and where we are going? Or how certain kinds of music fit into this diverse universe of sound? These are some of the important questions that music raises, and each year, Pacific Symphony, led by Music Director Carl St.Clair, attempts to shed light on the answers by exploring a different facet of American music through the American Composers Festival (ACF). This year's ACF spotlights organ music through four highly acclaimed organists and the splendor of the king of instruments-in this case, the one-of-a-kind William J. Gillespie Concert Organ, located in the Renee and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. Built from steel, tin, oak, poplar, maple, lead and carbon fiber, the astounding instrument found in the Symphony's concert hall required three years and 42,000 hours of labor by a team of organ builders at C.B Fisk in Gloucester, Mass., before making its debut with Pacific Symphony in 2008.

have been and where we are going? Or how certain kinds of music fit into this diverse universe of sound? These are some of the important questions that music raises, and each year, Pacific Symphony, led by Music Director Carl St.Clair, attempts to shed light on the answers by exploring a different facet of American music through the American Composers Festival (ACF). This year's ACF spotlights organ music through four highly acclaimed organists and the splendor of the king of instruments—in this case, the one-of-a-kind William J. Gillespie Concert Organ, located in the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. Built from steel, tin, oak, poplar, maple, lead and carbon fiber, the astounding instrument found in the Symphony's concert hall required three years and 42,000 hours of labor by a team of organ builders at C.B Fisk in Gloucester, Mass., before making its debut with Pacific Symphony in 2008.

BroadwayWorld.com, the largest theatre web site in the world, announces today that Paul W. Thompson, Editor of BroadwayWorld Chicago, has decided to step down from his post effective January 15, 2016. Misha Davenport, a Contributor to the Chicago regional site since 2011, will assume the reigns.

Mezzo-soprano Stephanie Blythe returns to Carnegie Hall with pianist Alan Louis Smith to lead an audience sing-slong concert, Sing, America!, on Saturday, January 23 at 2:00 p.m. in Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage as part of Carnegie Hall's annual series The Song Continues. Audience members have the opportunity to join in and sing along to some of America's most popular songs from the early 1900s including "Oh, You Beautiful Doll," "Let Me Call You Sweetheart," "By the Beautiful Sea," and many more.

The gulf between what's said and what isn't is at the heart of the sweet and whimsical comedy The Language Archive by Julia Cho, next up at Bristol Riverside Theatre on January 26-February 14.  Directed by Adam Immerwahr, the ensemble cast features Keith Baker, Irungu Mutu, Jo Twiss, Tiffany Villarin, and Julianna Zinkel.

New Repertory Theatre announces THE SNOW QUEEN, tonight, November 28- December 20, 2015 in the Charles Mosesian Theater at the Arsenal Center for the Arts, 321 Arsenal Street, Watertown, MA. The press opening will be Monday, November 30 at 7:30pm.

South Coast Repertory today announced that OFFICE HOUR, a commissioned work from Julia Cho, will receive its world premiere in performances April 10-May 1, 2016. Stage, film and television actor Sandra Oh will lead the cast for this production, which also is part of the Pacific Playwrights Festival. Neel Keller will direct OFFICE HOUR on the Julianne Argyros Stage.

In what has become an annual ritual, a total of 36 established and emerging composers, lyricists, and librettists will converge on the Goodspeed campus from mid-January through mid-February 2016 to participate in the Johnny Mercer Foundation Writers Colony at Goodspeed Musicals. The writing teams, representing 19 new musicals, will populate the campus, creating a truly exciting environment for discovery and inspiration. BroadwayWorld is excited to report that Goodspeed has announced its 2016 participants. Scroll down for details!

The Lancaster based ensemble and season favorite, Trio Clavino, will draw from a wide repertoire from 18th Century to 21st Century for this unique combination of chamber music in SERENADE OF THREE tonight, November 14, 7:30 p.m., at the Ware Center. A combination of strings (violin/viola), winds (clarinet/bass clarinet), and piano will give people a rich sound of classical music. The Ware Center is located at 42 N. Prince Street, Lancaster.

The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) celebrates the 2015 holiday season with a wide variety of concert programming, from the traditional annual performances of Handel's Messiah with the Concert Artists of Baltimore to a one-of-a-kind experience that pairs world-class acrobats and gymnasts with music by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, in an exciting program titled Cirque de la Symphonie.

The Old Globe's 18th annual production of DR. SEUSS' HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS, starring J. Bernard Calloway in the title role, opens tonight, November 12, 2015 and will run through December 26th.

New Repertory Theatre announces THE SNOW QUEEN, November 28- December 20, 2015 in the Charles Mosesian Theater at the Arsenal Center for the Arts, 321 Arsenal Street, Watertown, MA. The press opening will be Monday, November 30 at 7:30pm.

The Lancaster based ensemble and season favorite, Trio Clavino, will draw from a wide repertoire from 18th Century to 21st Century for this unique combination of chamber music in SERENADE OF THREE on Saturday, November 14, 7:30 p.m., at the Ware Center. A combination of strings (violin/viola), winds (clarinet/bass clarinet), and piano will give people a rich sound of classical music. The Ware Center is located at 42 N. Prince Street, Lancaster.

BroadwayWorld can officially report the complete cast and creative team for The Old Globe's 18th annual production of DR. SEUSS' HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS, starring J. Bernard Calloway in the title role!

Pippin and Next To Normal's Kyle Dean Massey headlines The Copa Palm Springs for one very special performance, October 9, at 8 pm in an intimate Cabaret that features "songs he loves but he's never had the opportunity to sing". Massey first joined the North American touring production of Wicked in 2007, as part of the ensemble and understudy for the lead role of Fiyero, before joining the Broadway production. He played Thalia in Broadway's Xanadu and Matthew in Off-Broadway's Altar Boyz as well as the role of Gabe in the Broadway musical Next to Normal, staying with the show until it closed in January 2011. He then returned to Broadway's Wicked in the leading role of Fiyero and  assumed the title role in the Broadway revival of Pippin.He was also featured in a recurring role as openly gay country star Kevin Bicks in the ABC television series Nashville. I had the chance to chat with Kyle as he was preparing for his Copa Concert, Here are a few excerpts from that conversation:

NeekOn will feature Live Music, Dance (including a Persian Folklore Dance Flash Mob), Visual Arts, and Food from multiple cultures around the world. (Neek means kindness.)

-This season, the eighteen young professional musicians of Ensemble ACJW continue their two-year fellowship program with concerts at Carnegie Hall, The Juilliard School, Skidmore College, National Sawdust, and in community venues throughout New York City. In a particular season highlight, Ensemble ACJW leads a residency in Paris in cooperation with The Edmond de Rothschild Foundations from November 15-20 that will consist of workshops at local Paris schools led by the ACJW fellows as well as concerts at Theatre du Chatelet and Studio Bastille. The residency concert at Theatre du Chatelet on November 18 includes a performance of a work written for the group by Meredith Monk, the recent recipient of the United States National Medal of Arts. On November 19 Ensemble ACJW performs works by Boulez, Michael Jarrell, and Phillippe Leroux at Studio Bastille, conducted by Jean-Christophe Vervoitte, horn player with France's noted Ensemble intercontemporain. Ensemble ACJW then travels to Geneva, Switzerland on November 20 for a performance at the Abbaye de Bonmont.

Philadelphia, PA (September 15, 2015) – Pennsylvania Ballet and Artistic Director Angel Corella are pleased to announce that Charles Askegard, former Principal Dancer at New York City Ballet and American Ballet Theater, will be joining the Company as Ballet Master. Kyra Nichols, former New York City Ballet Principal Dancer, will also expand her role by becoming a Ballet Master and five new dancers have joined the Company for the 2015-2016 Season.

Jon Robertson, dean of Lynn University's Conservatory of Music and Philharmonia Guest Conductor, today invited the public to attend 13 musical performances during September and October 2015.

NeekOn will feature Live Music, Dance (including a Persian Folklore Dance Flash Mob), Visual Arts, and Food from multiple cultures around the world. (Neek means kindness.)

Jon Robertson, dean of Lynn University's Conservatory of Music and Philharmonia Guest Conductor, today invited the public to attend 13 musical performances during September and October 2015.