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Theater News and More: Iris Apfel, Tina – The Tina Turner Musical, Martin McDonagh, Lucas Hnath and Leonard Soloway’s Broadway

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Iris Apfel, is now 98. She still works all the time, and it is very difficult for her to spend time socially. In Macy’s is a brand new store within a store called “Story”. Macys has incorporated this unique concept through all their stores. It is new, fresh, colorful and unique. Iris on Thursday November 21st, from 4:00 PM – 7:00 will be hosting a trunk show featuring rare gems from her personal jewelry collection.

Those who have purchased a piece(s) from the collection will get the rare opportunity to meet Iris and take a photo with her. Please note it is first come, first serve, so if you are the first in line, you will be the first to view the jewelry, purchase + meet Iris.

Stage Entertainment, James L. Nederlander and Tali Pelman, in association with Tina Turner, have announced that Anna Wintour, Editor in Chief, Vogue U.S.; U.S. Artistic Director and Global Content Advisor, Condé Nast will co-host a cocktail reception followed by a special performance of Broadway’s Tina – The Tina Turner Musical to benefit RAINN, the nation’s largest anti-sexual violence organization, on Friday, January 31, 2020 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre (205 West 46th Street).

To purchase tickets to this special performance of Tina – The Tina Turner Musical. click here.

The critically acclaimed Royal Court Theatre/Atlantic Theater Company production of Academy Award® winner, Olivier Award® winner and Tony Award® nominee Martin McDonagh’s new comedy Hangmen will begin performances on Friday, February 28, 2020, and officially open on Thursday, March 19, 2020, at Broadway’s Golden Theatre (252 West 45th Street) for a strictly limited twenty-week engagement through Saturday, July 18, 2020.  

Martin McDonagh’s Hangmen, which the New York Times hailed in their “Critic’s Pick” review as a “triumphant return for Martin McDonagh,” marks McDonagh’s seventh play to be produced on Broadway and his return to the stage following his BAFTA and Golden Globe Award-winning and Oscar-nominated film Three Billboards Outside of Ebbing, Missouri.

Casting will be announced shortly.

Vineyard Theatre Artistic Directors Douglas Aibel and Sarah Sternannounce dates for Dana H. by Lucas Hnath, adapted from interviews withDana Higginbotham conducted by Steve Cosson, and directed by Les Waters. Previews will begin on February 7 at Vineyard Theatre (108 East 15th Street) with Deirdre O’Connell reprising the title role for the New York premiere direct from engagements at Center Theatre Group and The Goodman Theatre. Opening night is set for February 25. 

In Dana H., Dana was a chaplain of a psych ward where she met a charismatic patient, an ex-convict searching for redemption. A harrowing true story, Dana was held captive with her life in this man’s hands — trapped in a series of Florida motels, disoriented and terrified — for five months. Told in Dana’s own words and reconstructed for the stage by her son Lucas Hnath (A Doll’s House Part 2Hillary And Clinton), “one of the freshest playwriting voices to emerge in the past five years” (The New York Times), this innovative work shatters the boundaries of the art form and our understanding of good and evil, with the Los Angeles Times calling it “a profound contribution to the theater.”  

Dana H. had its world premiere at the Kirk Douglas Theatre at Center Theatre Group, Los Angeles, in June 2019, where it received seven L.A. Stage Alliance Ovation Award nominations including Best Playwright, Best Actress, and Best Production of a Play.  The production opened at The Goodman’s Owen Theatre, Chicago, in September 2019.

Leonard Soloway’s Broadway, (www.LeonardSolowaysBroadway.com) a new documentary produced and directed by Jeff Wolk (After Louie; Last Glimmer of Day) is available for purchase on Amazon as well as on demand and digitally. The film premiered on November 4th at The Landmark on 57th Street. Leonard Soloway’s Broadway is available on the following digital platforms: iTunes, Amazon Prime Video, Google Play, Xbox, VUDU, FandangoNOW, iN Demand Movies, Verizon, Vubiquity, Dish and Telus

Leonard Soloway’s Broadway pulls back the curtain of one of the most admired and loved Broadway producers and general managers you’ve probably never heard of. Through interviews, photos and other archival material, this film is an inside look at the “business” of “show business” in a career that has spanned more than seventy years. Leonard Soloway has been involved with over 150 productions, including Waiting in the Wings with Lauren Bacall and Rosemary Harris, How to Succeed in Business Without Really TryingJerome Robbins’ BroadwayA Moon For the Misbegotten and Mark Twain Tonight! with Hal Holbrook. His productions collected more than 40 Tony Awards, 21 Drama Desk Awards and three Pulitzer Prizes. In addition to launching many careers from performers to craftspeople, Leonard has worked with veteran stage actors like Jason Robards and Colleen Dewhurst as well as film stars like Paul Newman whose revival of Our Town on Broadway was facilitated by Mr. Soloway.  At the age of 90, Leonard Soloway’s love for the theatre has not dimmed. As he faces the challenges of a new production, from raising money to weathering the anticipation of reviews, he is ready with a smile and a wink. Even as we witness his latest production come to a disappointing end in the course of this film, Leonard Soloway is still enamored with the “lullaby of Broadway” as he plans his next production.

Leonard Soloway’s Broadway is also a story of a gay man who never hid his identity at a time when this just wasn’t done. 

The documentary, narrated by Campbell Scott (Noises Off; upcoming A Christmas Carol),features candid interviews with Screen Actors Guild Award winner John Slattery (“Mad Men;” Laughter on the 23rd Floor), Tony Award nominee Tovah Feldshuh (Yentl; Irena’s Vow), Academy, Golden Globe and Emmy Award winner Olympia Dukakis (Steel Magnolias, Social Security), Tony Award Winner Elizabeth Ashley (Cat On A Hot Tin Roof; Take Her, She’s Mine), Tony Award Winner Debbie Gravitte (Jerome Robbins’ Broadway; Zorba), Multiple Tony Award winning producer Manny Azenberg, Chairman of the Shubert Organization and Theater Hall of Fame Inductee Philip J. Smith and Shubert Organization President Robert E. Wankel.

Suzanna, co-owns and publishes the newspaper Times Square Chronicles or T2C. At one point a working actress, she has performed in numerous productions in film, TV, cabaret, opera and theatre. She has performed at The New Orleans Jazz festival, The United Nations and Carnegie Hall. She has a screenplay and a TV show in the works, which she developed with her mentor and friend the late Arthur Herzog. She is a proud member of the Drama Desk and the Outer Critics Circle and was a nominator. Email: suzanna@t2conline.com

Broadway

Theatre News: Bob Fosse’s Dancin’, Parade, The Shubert Organization Donates to ECF and Millennials Are Killing Musicals,

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Tovah Feldshuh, Huma Abedin, Hillary Clinton at Opening Night of Bob Fosse’s DANCIN’. Photo by Emilio Madrid

Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton at Bob Fosse’s DANCIN’. Photo by Bruce Glikas

The curtain was raised last night at The Music Box Theatre (239 West 45th Street) as Bob Fosse’s Dancin’, the American showbusiness legend’s landmark musical tribute to the artform that defined his life, opened on Broadway 45 years after the original smash-hit production premiered. The production’s direction and musical staging is by Tony Award-winner Wayne Cilento, one of the stars of the original Broadway production, and is produced in cooperation with Nicole Fosse.

Wayne Cilento and Bernadette Peters. Photo by Emilio Madrid

Chita Rivera at Opening Night of Bob Fosse’s DANCIN’. Photo by Emilio Madrid

In attendance on opening night were Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton, Nicole Fosse; original A Chorus Line cast members Baayork Lee, Donna McKechnie, Priscilla Lopez; Chita Rivera; Erich Bergen; Jordan E. Cooper; Tovah Feldshuh;  J. Harrison Ghee; Jane Krakowski; Adam Lambert; Ralph Macchio; Abby Lee Miller; Audra McDonald; Casey Nicholaw; Justin Peck; Tiler Peck; Bernadette Peters; Tonya Pinkins; Tony Roberts; David Rockwell; Krysta Rodriguez; Christopher Sieber; Jennifer Simard; Will Swenson and more.

A CHORUS LINE original cast members Priscilla Lopez,Donna McKechnie Baayork Lee photo by Bruce Glikas

Priscilla Lopez at Opening Night of DANCIN. Photo by Emilio Madrid

Dancin’is Fosse’s full-throated, full-bodied celebration of dancers and dancing. Utterly reimagined for the 21st century, this Dancin’brims with a level of warmth, emotion, and color seldom seen in modern interpretations of Fosse’s influential style and features some of his most inventive and rarely performed choreography. With New York’s hottest cast performing wall-to-wall dance, including Fosse classics such as “Mr. Bojangles,” and “Sing Sing Sing.” Dancin’ delivers the quintessential Broadway experience for Fosse fans and first-timers alike. You think you’ve seen dancing, but you’ve never seen Dancin’like this.

Cast of Bob Fosse’s DANCIN’ Opening Night photo by Emilio Madrid

Curtain call of Opening Night of Bob Fosse’s DANCIN’. Photo by Emilio Madrid

The cast, consisting of some of the best of Broadway’s elite dancers includes Ioana Alfonso (Hometown: Miami via DR/PR), Yeman Brown (Hometown: Tallahassee, FL), Peter John Chursin (Hometown: San Francisco, CA), Dylis Croman (Hometown: Dallas, TX), Jovan Dansberry (Hometown: St. Louis, MO), Karli Dinardo (Hometown: Melbourne, Australia), Tony d’Alelio (Hometown: Roanoke, VA), Aydin Eyikan (Hometown: Fairfield, CT), Pedro Garza (Hometown: Abilene, Texas), Jacob Guzman (Hometown: Brockton, MA), Manuel Herrera (Hometown: Charlotte, NC), Afra Hines (Hometown: Miami, FL), Gabriel Hyman (Hometown: Chesapeake, VA), Kolton Krouse (Hometown: Gilbert, Arizona), Mattie Love(Hometown: Layton, UT), Krystal Mackie (Hometown: Brooklyn, NY), Yani Marin (Hometown: Miami, FL), Nando Morland (Hometown: Colombia / Denver, CO), Khori Michelle Petinaud (Hometown: Centreville, VA), Ida Saki (Hometown: Dallas, TX), Ron Todorowski (Hometown: Pittsburgh, PA), and Neka Zang (Hometown: Scottsdale, AZ).

Adam Lambert at Opening Night of Bob Fosse’s DANCIN’. Photo by Emilio Madrid

Abby Lee Miller at Opening Night of Bob Fosse’s DANCIN’. Photo by Emilio Madrid

Bob Fosse’s Dancin’ is produced by Joey Parnes, Hunter Arnold, Kayla Greenspan, Rodger Hess & Michael Seago, Jay Alix & Una Jackman, Bob Boyett, The Shubert Organization, James L. Nederlander, Tim Forbes, Carson Gleberman, Park West Productions, McCabe Ventures, Fran Kirmser & Jodi Kaplan, Greg Young, The Fabulous Invalid, Julie Hess & Tommy Hess, and The Old Globe in cooperation with Nicole Fosse.

Wayne Cilento at Opening Night of Bob Fosse’s DANCIN’. Photo by Emilio Madrid

Nicole Fosse at Opening Night of Bob Fosse’s DANCIN’. Photo by Emilio Madrid

Bob Fosse’s Dancin’ originally opened on Broadway at the Broadhurst Theatre on March 27, 1978 and later transferred to the Ambassador Theatre. The production ran for 1,774 performances. Dancin’ was nominated for seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and brought Fosse his seventh Tony Award for Best Choreography.

Nicole Fosse and Wayne Cilento photo by Emilio Madrid

This production of Bob Fosse’s Dancin’ premiered at San Diego’s Old Globe Theatre from April 19, 2022, to June 5, 2022.

Interscope Records is proud to announce the cast album for the “brilliant” (Variety) 2023 revival of Parade — Alfred Uhry and Jason Robert Brown’s award-winning musical, which opened on March 16 at New York’s Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre to rave reviews. Parade (2023 Broadway Cast Recording) features the vocal talents of Tony, Grammy, and Emmy Award® winner Ben Platt and Micaela Diamond and conducted by composer Jason Robert Brown, and will be released on Thursday, March 23. Pre-order it HERE.

Leo and Lucille Frank (Ben Platt and Micaela Diamond) are a newlywed Jewish couple struggling to make a life in the old red hills of Georgia. When Leo is accused of an unspeakable crime, it propels them into an unimaginable test of faith, humanity, justice, and devotion. Riveting and gloriously hopeful, Parade reminds us that to love, we must truly see one another.

The current revival of Parade, which is directed by two-time Tony Award nominee Michael Arden, has received overwhelming acclaim since its debut. Entertainment Weekly called it “a phenomenal production that feels more poignant and powerful than ever,” while Variety said, “Ben Platt stuns in a powerful Broadway production of an essential American musical.”

Platt (Dear Evan Hansen, The Book of Mormon) and Diamond’s performances (The Cher Show) were singled out for praise. Deadline gushed “Ben Platt has no trouble reminding us just why he’s become one of Broadway’s most beloved performers. His vocals here are stunning in a pitch-perfect performance,” while The Guardian raved that “Micaela Diamond’s singing voice is luminous.” “Micaela Diamond, as Lucille Frank, breaks your heart with no affectation whatsoever, and a voice directly wired to her emotions,” wrote The New York Times in its Critic’s Pick review. Tickets are available now at www.paradebroadway.com.

Parade (2023 Broadway Cast Recording) showcases their voices, as well as other members of the all-star cast, while capturing the essence of a musical that, Entertainment Weekly writes, “is the most gorgeous production on Broadway.” Viewers will get a special preview of the musical on March 23 when Platt and Diamond perform its signature ballad “This Is Not Over Yet” on NBC’s Today accompanied by Jason Robert Brown on piano.

 

Out of the Box Theatrics (Elizabeth Flemming, Founder and Producing Artistic Director; Ethan Paulini, Associate Artistic Director) is pleased to announce that Grammy and Emmy Award winner Kristolyn Lloyd (Dear Evan Hansen) will star in the Off-Broadway developmental production of Millennials Are Killing Musicals, written by Drama League songwriting contest and NAMT Challenge winner Nico Juber. The production, to be directed by Ciara Renée(Waitress, Frozen), will play a limited engagement from May 7-28, 2023, at Theatre 71 at the Church of the Blessed Sacrament (152 West 71st Street). Opening night is May 15. Tickets are on sale now at Ovation Tix.

Bob Wankel Photo by Natalie Powers

The Entertainment Community Fund, formerly The Actors Fund, the national human services organization supporting the needs of those working in the entertainment and performing arts industry, today announced that The Shubert Organization has made a $5 million gift to the Fund to support expansion of The Samuel J. Friedman Health Center for the Performing Arts in New York City, the Actors Fund Home in Englewood, New Jersey, and affordable housing and a community arts center at The Hollywood Arts Collective in Los Angeles.

The $5 million gift will be used to expand doctors’ offices and services at The Samuel J. Friedman Health Center for the Performing Arts in New York City, with additional support to the Actors Fund Home in Englewood, NJ. Funds will also be used to bolster the construction and programs of The Hollywood Arts Collective, a new affordable housing and community arts center located in the heart of Hollywood where the Central Gardens will be named in honor of The Shubert Organization.

The Shubert Organization has long supported the Fund’s ongoing work to help people in performing arts and entertainment. In 2017, The Shubert Organization unveiled The Shubert Pavilion: an expansion to the Actors Fund Home, an assisted living and skilled nursing care facility located in Englewood, New Jersey. The Shubert Pavilion houses a 25-bed short-stay rehabilitation center available to the general public and intended for people who are recovering from illness or surgery, as well as 14 assisted living beds. The facility also includes a fully equipped gym for physical, occupational and speech therapies. 

Robert E. Wankel, Chairman and CEO of The Shubert Organization, also serves as Chair of The Actors Fund Housing Development Corporation Board of Directors, a role in which he supports and guides the development of affordable housing for the performing arts and entertainment community to improve lives, create jobs, foster economic development and revitalize communities. In 2022, Wankel received the Entertainment Community Fund’s Medal of Honor, an award presented at the Fund’s annual gala that recognizes individuals who have had a profound impact on the entertainment community.

“The Entertainment Community Fund is honored by the long-standing commitment of The Shubert Organization and the countless ways it supports our work to provide a safety net for people in the performing arts community,” said Fund Board Chair Brian Stokes Mitchell. “A special thank you to Bob Wankel for his continued leadership not only at The Shubert Organization, but also with the Actors Fund Housing Development Corporation Board of Directors.”

“The Shubert Organization is proud to strengthen the Entertainment Community Fund’s ability to provide affordable housing, medical care, emergency financial assistance and so much more to those in our industry,” said Robert E. Wankel. “We look forward to all that’s to come in our ongoing collaborations, from Englewood to Times Square to Hollywood and beyond.”

 

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Kids Night On Broadway Is Tonight

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Kids’ Night on Broadway, is where young people age 18 and under can see a participating Broadway show for free when accompanied by a full-paying adult*. A Kids’ Night on Broadway ticket also includes restaurant discounts, parking discounts, and more. Select shows will offer in-theatre activities for kids including talkbacks and activity books.

Participating shows include:

& Juliet
A Beautiful Noise
Aladdin

Bad Cinderella
Bob Fosse’s Dancin’
Camelot
Chicago
Hadestown
Hamilton
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
Kimberly Akimbo
Leopoldstadt
Life of Pi
The Lion King
MJ The Musical
Moulin Rouge! The Musical
Peter Pan Goes Wrong
Shucked
SIX
(NOTE: due to show schedules, the Kids’ Night promotion for SIX took place yesterday)
Some Like it Hot
Wicked

If you haven’t gotten your ticket,,,,it is time to do so.

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Hadestown Celebrates Its 1000th Performance and the First Day of Spring With Lilies White, Anaïs Mitchell and Rachel Chavkin

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Hadestown, the Tony® and Grammy Award®-winning Best Musical, celebrated both tomorrow’s first day of Spring and the beloved show recently achieving a milestone 1,000 performances at Broadway’s Walter Kerr Theatre (219 West 48th Street) with a surprise appearance by songwriter Anaïs Mitchell and director Rachel Chavkin.

After a heartfelt thank you from both, Mitchell and Tony Award winner Lillias White led the audience in a special performance of a classic springtime anthem. Then, as the audience departed the theater, the cast took to the Kerr’s fire escape overlooking West 48th Street and threw flowers to fans.

In addition to White, Hadestown also stars original Broadway cast member Jewelle Blackman as Persephone, Grammy Award® winner Reeve Carney as Orpheus, Tony Award nominee Tom Hewitt as Hades, and two-time Tony Award nominee Eva Noblezada as Eurydice. They are joined by Amelia Cormack, Shea Renne, and Soara-Joye Ross as the Fates. The chorus of Workers is played by Emily Afton, Malcolm Armwood, Alex Puette, Trent Saunders, and Grace Yoo. The cast includes swings Sojourner Brown, Brandon Cameron, Max Kumangai, and Yael “YaYa” Reich, Allysa Shorte, and Tanner Ray Wilson.

Hadestown originated as Mitchell’s indie theater project that toured Vermont which she then turned into an acclaimed album. With Chavkin, her artistic collaborator, Hadestown has been transformed into a genre-defying new musical that blends modern American folk music with New Orleans-inspired jazz to reimagine a sweeping ancient tale.

Following two intertwining love stories — that of young dreamers Orpheus and Eurydice, and that of King Hades and his wife Persephone — Hadestown invites audiences on a hell-raising journey to the underworld and back. Mitchell’s beguiling melodies and Chavkin’s poetic imagination pit industry against nature, doubt against faith, and fear against love. Performed by a vibrant ensemble of actors, dancers, and singers, Hadestown delivers a deeply resonant and defiantly hopeful theatrical experience.

Hadestown marks the first time in over a decade that a woman has been the solo author of a musical: writing the music, lyrics, and book, and is the fourth time in Broadway history a woman has accomplished this creative feat. It also marks the first time in Broadway history that a show’s female composer and female director both won Tony Awards for their work. Earlier this year, the landmark musical became the longest running show in the history of the Walter Kerr Theatre and holds the record for highest grossing musical in that venerated stage’s 100-year history.

The Original Broadway Cast Recording of Hadestown is one of the most streamed cast albums of all time with over 300 million streams to date. It topped Billboard’s Broadway Cast Recording chart and debuted at #8 on the Top Album chart. The CD edition features a 64-page booklet and a two-disc set, while the triple vinyl edition features a 16-page booklet. Both editions include complete song lyrics and photos of the Hadestown cast and creative team in the studio, and other exclusive content. A special limited-edition transparent green vinyl box set was just released on Friday.

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