Wish You Were Here

Tomorrow, April 25th, will mark the 32nd anniversary of the passing of vocal arranger, musical director, pianist, and musical genius James Raitt. He was only 41years old when AIDS took him from us far too soon. While James’ career was cut short, what he left us will always be a reminder of his many talents.

The festival runs from 25 February to 8 March in Glasgow.

​​​​​​​In today’s culture, it is hard to find anyone who doesn’t have some experience with the story of Peter Pan. For many, their first exposure to the “boy who refused to grow up” was through Walt Disney’s classic 1953 animated film. Others first journeyed off to Neverland with Peter and Wendy by reading the original 1904 play by J.M. Barrie. And in between (and beyond) have come many different iterations of this timeless adventure. But for musical theatre fans, there is just one PETER PAN – the classic 1954 stage musical which starred Mary Martin and was captured for posterity through a 1955 NBC broadcast. So how does one take a story with its beautiful score but also some troublesome stereotypes and bring it to an audience in 2025? That is just what Larissa FastHorse and the team bringing PETER PAN to life on the stage at the fabulous Fox Theatre have done – taken a classic and updated it for a new generation. And in the role of Tiger Lily, Bailey Frankenberg has a front row seat to what makes this story so magical. I had the chance to catch up with Bailey and hear all about her career and what it is like to play an iconic (but updated) heroine as well as serve as Fight and Flight captain for the show.

Encore Performing Arts has a long and varied history of selecting projects for their appeal to the audience, both within the immediacy of the moment, as well as in the endurance it will hold in the memory for years to come.

Shokat Projects will welcome the world-premiere recording of Georgia Stitt’s Hold Fast Your Dreams, performed by the wife-and-husband team, soprano Zoe Allen and conductor/pianist Christopher Allen. Hold Fast Your Dreams is the first single from the Allens’ upcoming album (out September 7, 2021), Beneath the Sky.

Singer Jill Corey, an overnight sensation in 1953, when she landed on the cover of Life Magazine, passed away from natural causes on April 3 at UPMC Sunnyside in Sunnyside, PA.  She was 85. 

On Tuesday, March 9, Dress Circle Publishing will release of THE UNTOLD STORIES OF BROADWAY, VOLUME 4, the latest in a series by acclaimed historian and producer Jennifer Ashley Tepper. Can't wait to get your hands on it? Let BroadwayWorld hold you over with a special sneak peek from a chapter all about The Imperial Theatre.

Happy Gay Pride! BWW Reviewer Peter Nason chooses the 101 greatest LGBTQ songs and anthems from 1920-2020. See if your favorite songs or artists made the grade!

BWW Reviewer Peter Nason chooses the greatest theatrical works (non-musical) from 1920-2020; see if your favorites made the list!

BWW Reviewer Peter Nason chooses the best film musicals since the sound era began; see if your favorites made the list!

Go inside the creation and 63-year evolution of the musical theatre masterpiece, West Side Story.

Particularly in light of the 2016 documentary I Am Not Your Negro, author and civil rights activist James Baldwin is garnering new attention and appreciation for his astute analyses of race, class, and sexuality in U.S. culture. Our reading group will take up his groundbreaking semi-autobiographical first novel, Go Tell It on the Mountain (1953). Attendees are invited to read this seminal text that brought mid-20th Century African-American literature out of the shadow of Richard Wright while deftly exploring the post-Civil War Great Migration, its southern roots, its religious inflections, and its generational tensions. The suggested edition is the most recent paperback (ISBN 978-0345806543). Traditional New Orleans fare of coffee and beignets at Muriel's Jackson Square with lively discussion to follow led by Festival favorite and Southern literary scholar Gary Richards. Seating is limited to 50 persons; pre-registration is required.

Tony Babino, performer Carol Ostrow and the Actors' Temple Board of Directors are celebrating their 101st year honoring the historic entertainers who have passed through their doors, with their annual gala YOU AIN'T HEARD NOTHIN' YET. Entertainers past and present will commemorate this mecca of modern Jewish culture, including Tony Babino, George Bettinger, Sir Frank London and Friends and special guest Star of the Yiddish Theatre, Joanne Borts. The gala takes place on Monday, March 19, 2018 at 6:30 pm in the Barbra Streisand and Milton Berle rooms of another hub of entertainment greats, the Friar's Club (57 East 55 Street, NYC). Tickets vary in prices and are available at www.theactorstemple.org/events.

JSP Records is proud to announce the release on August 4, 2017 of JUDY GARLAND: CLASSIC DUETS, a 4-CD 109-track set produced by John Stedman that will include 15 tracks never previously issued on CD.

JSP Records is proud to announce the release on August 4, 2017 of JUDY GARLAND: CLASSIC DUETS, a 4-CD 109-track set produced by John Stedman that will include 15 tracks never previously issued on CD.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, actress Sheila Bond passed away on March 25. She was 90 years old. Bond was best known for her Tony Winning performance in WISH YOU WERE HERE in 1953. She also appeared in DAMN YANKEES, MAKE MINE MANHATTAN, and STREET SCENE.

I wasn't surprised when the reaction to the announcement that Michael Crawford would return to the stage, immediately started to trend on Twitter in the UK and to generate internet traffic across the globe. Here, in his own words Michael Crawford, brings us up to date.

The Janet and Mark L. Goldenson Broadway Musical Concert Series at Rubicon Theatre Company continues with three concerts celebrating the genius of two of the most prolific and most important writing teams in musical theatre history in a show entitled RODGERS & HART & HAMMERSTEIN.

The Janet and Mark L. Goldenson Broadway Musical Concert Series at Rubicon Theatre Company continues with three concerts celebrating the genius of two of the most prolific and most important writing teams in musical theatre history in a show entitled RODGERS & HART & HAMMERSTEIN.

In celebration of Frank Sinatra's centennial year, new, career-spanning collections of the entertainment icon's timeless music have been compiled for worldwide CD and digital release on April 21 by Capitol/UMe.

From September 4-14, 2014, Houston Ballet launches its 45th season with the company premiere of John Neumeier's three-act ballet A Midsummer Night's Dream. The ballet is based on Shakespeare's lighthearted play of the same name and follows the hijinks and hilarity that ensues when a well-intentioned plan with a love potion goes awry. Created in 1977, A Midsummer Night's Dream has served as Mr. Neumeier's calling card, being seen as one of his most joyous and popular creations. Houston Ballet is the first American ballet company to perform the famous work and it is the first piece by Mr. Neumeier to enter the Houston Ballet repertoire.

Berkeley Playhouse continues its fifth season with the Tony Award-winning GUYS AND DOLLS. Jon Tracy (Berkeley Playhouse, Aurora Theatre Company, Shotgun Players, San Francisco Playhouse, Magic Theatre) helms this musical from the Golden Age of Broadway, featuring a cast of 22, and choreography by Chris Black (Berkeley Playhouse, Aurora Theatre Company). GUYS AND DOLLS plays tonight, March 21 through April 28 (Press opening: March 23) at the Julia Morgan Theatre in Berkeley.

Berkeley Playhouse continues its fifth season with the Tony Award-winning GUYS AND DOLLS. Jon Tracy (Berkeley Playhouse, Aurora Theatre Company, Shotgun Players, San Francisco Playhouse, Magic Theatre) helms this musical from the Golden Age of Broadway, featuring a cast of 22, and choreography by Chris Black (Berkeley Playhouse, Aurora Theatre Company). GUYS AND DOLLS plays March 21 through April 28 (Press opening: March 23) at the Julia Morgan Theatre in Berkeley. For tickets ($17-60) and more information, the public may visit berkeleyplayhouse.org or call 510-845-8542x351.

In the crisp, morning hours on December 27, 2012 I got the chance to speak with Lara Teeter, who will be playing Cap'n Andy in the upcoming production of SHOW BOAT at Houston Grand Opera. The celebrated actor had a plethora of interesting and scholarly items to discuss about SHOW BOAT, and the character of Cap'n Andy. We also had a good time discussing his career as an actor, director, choreographer, and teacher.

NBC will celebrate the lighting of the world's most famous Christmas tree with a live broadcast from Rockefeller Center in New York City on Wednesday, November 28 (8-9 p.m. ET). The star-studded holiday special will feature performances from Trace Adkins, Tony Bennett, Mariah Carey, CeeLo Green (NBC's 'The Voice'), Victoria Justice, Chris Mann, Scotty McCreery, Rod Stewart and Il Volo, and special appearances by Billy Crystal, Bette Milder and the Radio City Rockettes.