Through the Years Photos - Broadway

I have visited Laguna Beach for several consecutive summers, enjoying the vibrant arts scene by spending a full day wandering through THE SAWDUST FESTIVAL, THE LAGUNA ART A-FAIR, FESTIVAL OF ARTS and PAGEANT OF THE MASTERS, with all sites, including the Laguna Playhouse, within walking distance of each on the main street into the city. The beautiful coastal city has so much to offer in the way of fine dining, art galleries, shopping, theatre, beach activities, all accessible via a free shuttle service, it would easily make for a wonderful week-long family vacation site or a jam-packed day of celebrating the arts.

For the past several summers, I have attended the Festival of Arts and The Pageant of the Masters in Laguna Beach. But this year, I also decided to also visit two other art festivals along Laguna Canyon Road rather than spend any time cruising the town as I had done before. The full-day of exploring all the artistic delights on display this year at all three locations left me dazzled by all the talent on display, while wishing I had lot of extra income to purchase and bring home many of the awe-inspiring items that caught my fancy. But the real highlight of the day was viewing the abundance of 'local color' on display in this summer's 'Under the Sun' themed Pageant of the Masters.

It's the time of year to reflect on the past and enjoy familiar stories that warm our hearts. In otherwords, 'tis the season for ANNIE. That spunky waif has been part of our American culture for more than 130 years. She was first penned into existence by poet James Whitcomb Riley in 1885. His poem, 'Little Orphant Annie',was inspired by Mary Alice 'Allie' Smith, an orphaned child who came to live in the Riley home.

Pearl (www.PearlTheShow.com), a new American-Chinese dance-theatre spectacular, inspired by the life of Pearl S. Buck, the first woman to win both the Nobel and the Pulitzer Prizes, will have its world premiere at the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center for 4 performances only, August 27-30th. Scroll down for a sneak peek at the dancers!

Beautiful Soup Theater's has announced that their revival of Ferenc Molnar's Liliom will open at The Celebration of Whimsy [formerly The Living Theatre] in New York City on February 26th, 2014. Performances will play Wednesday through Saturday at 7:00pm, with Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2pm. The run will conclude on March 9th. Below, check out a behind the scenes look at the revival's recent photo shoot!

Appearing on Broadway for the first time in almost 40 years, Tony and Grammy Award-winning superstar Bette Midler plays the legendary Hollywood agent Sue Mengers (1932-2011) in I'LL EAT YOU LAST, written by Tony Award winner John Logan, and directed by Tony Award winner Joe Mantello. Below you can check out photos of Midler in the BroadwayWorld.com series 'In The Spotlight' by acclaimed photographer Walter McBride below!

I'LL EAT YOU LAST began previews on Friday, April 5 and opens Wednesday, April 24 at the Booth Theatre (222 West 45th Street). Appearing on Broadway for the first time in 30 years, Tony and Grammy Award-winning superstar Bette Midler will play the legendary Hollywood agent Sue Mengers (1932-2011) in the new, one-character play. BroadwayWorld brings you a first look at Midler's name in lights below!

I'LL EAT YOU LAST will begin previews Friday, April 5 and opens Wednesday, April 24 at the Booth Theatre (222 West 45th Street). Appearing on Broadway for the first time in 30 years, Tony and Grammy Award-winning superstar Bette Midler will play the legendary Hollywood agent Sue Mengers (1932-2011) in the new, one-character play. BroadwayWorld brings you a first look at the marquee below!

ReGroup opened SUCCESS STORY by John Howard Lawson, the 4th play ever performed by the Group Theatre at The Robert Moss Theatre, 440 Lafayette St on Wed March 6th. It will now play through the 24th of the month, and runs in rep with Lawson's farce LOUD SPEAKER. This is the first time these plays have been seen in generations. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast of SUCCESS STORY in action below!

Celebrating 80 years, the Bergen County Players (BCP) will present 'Beehive', The 60s Musical, a rollicking revue of a musical decade dominated by historically powerful female performers. Under the direction of Dottie Fischer, 'Beehive' will be performed at the Little Firehouse Theatre in Oradell from February 16th through March 9th. Meet the cast in the photos below!

This is the time of year that theatres are looking for productions to attract large audiences in order to bring some extra money into the coffers. BECK, for a number of years did BEAUTY AND THE BEAST for their holiday show. This year they opened the classic ANNIE.

Set in French Guiana, a region where on Christmas Eve the temperature has graciously dropped to 104 degrees, three amiable convicts are employed as roofers above the Ducotel's general store. The roof winds up being the least of the family's troubles.