Entertainment
What To Watch July 22th To Take Away The Blues
1pm: Folksbiene LIVE: Maida Feingold Living Room Concert: Sing Out For Peace and Justice Versatile Soprano Rachel Policar starred as Goldele in the Off-Broadway debut of Folksbiene’s Drama Desk-nominated The Golden Bride. Her concert will be performed in Yiddish and Hebrew, all with English supertitles.
1pm: The Broadway Q&A Series: Kathleen Marshall This episode features three-time Tony winner Kathleen Marshall. The Broadway director-choreographer will answer questions about Anything Goes, Nice Work If You Can Get It, The Pajama Game, Wonderful Town, and more.
1pm: Primary Stages Lunch and Learn with Caroline Aaron The playwright will host a free hour-long writing workshop with prompts to get your ideas on the page so you can connect while creating new material and keep your skills sharp. After the workshop, stay online with each other via our platform to eat your lunch together virtually and chat about what you’ve written!
3pm: The Show Must Go Online: Henry V British actor and director Robert Myles launched The Show Must Go Online, a weekly online reading group—performed by actors via Zoom and live streamed on YouTube—that works through Shakespeare’s plays in the order they were written.
British actor and director Robert Myles launched The Show Must Go Online, a weekly online reading group—performed by actors via Zoom and live streamed on YouTube—that works through Shakespeare’s plays in the order they were written.
3pm: The Early Night Show with Joshua Turchin is available across all social media platforms with full videos on YouTube, Facebook Watch and www.theearlynightshow.com released every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 3pm EST.
3pm and 7pm: The Weir By Irish Repertory Theatre In a remote country pub in Ireland, newcomer Valerie arrives and becomes spellbound by an evening of ghostly stories told by the local bachelors who drink there. With a whiff of sexual tension in the air and the wind whistling outside, what starts out as blarney soon turns dark as the tales drift into the realm of the supernatural. Then, Valerie reveals a startling story of her own….
Conor McPherson’s The Weir is a haunting, evocative evening in the theatre you will never forget. This new production has been filmed remotely from quarantine and designed for a digital experience; it is the third Irish Rep production of The Weir. The 2013 Irish Rep production of The Weir was nominated for a Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Revival. Due to audience demand, The Weir was revived again in Irish Rep’s 2015 season.
Written by Conor McPherson
Directed by Ciarán O’Reilly
Starring Dan Butler, Sean Gormley, John Keating, Amanda Quaid, and Tim Ruddy
4pm: Why We Do It: Clint Ramos joins The New Group Founding Artistic Director Scott Elliott for a conversation about theatre and performance.
Since we’ve been thinking about “why we do what we do”, we’ve asked some of our immediate community of artists to join us for creative conversations that explore what continues to draw them to the theater, touchstones in their theater careers and what hopes they have going forward.
Moderated by Founding Artistic Director Scott Elliott.
Immediately following the free “Why We Do It” conversations, audiences are invited to keep the insightful conversation going over virtual drinks with these artists via Q&A in “Drinks With,” an intimate scale Zoom setting, with a very limited number of participants, moderated by Scott Elliott. Original drink recipes curated by Sammi Katz, creator of A Girl’s Guide to Drinking Alone (AGirlsGuidetoDrinkingAlone.com). Please visit TheNewGroup.org/why-we-do-it to register and make a donation for the “Drinks With” events only, available for a $50 tax-deductible donation per participant per talk.
4pm–9:30pm: Marie’s Crisis Virtual Piano Bar Tonight’s scheduled pianists are James Merillat (@James-Merillat-2) and Franca Vercelloni (@Franca-Vercelloni).
5pm: Metropolitan Opera: The Merry Widow Franz Lehár’s frothy 1905 operetta The Merry Widow, starring the beloved American soprano Renée Fleming as a rich widow and Nathan Gunn as the handsome former flame whose pride prevents him from marrying her for her money. Sir Andrew Davis conducts this 2015 performance, which also features Broadway’s Kelli O’Hara.
5pm: LAO at Home: Opera Family Time In this “Bard on Broadway” episode of Shakespeare Sings, soprano (and Shakespeare super-fan) Katherine Powers and dramaturg Stephanie Lim explore how Shakespeare inspired the titans of musical theater, and tenor Todd Strange performs beloved Broadway songs.
5pm: Watch Me Work: Suzan Lori Parks She’s back. A meditation on the artistic process, and an actual work session, featuring Suzan-Lori Parks working on her newest writing project. Traditionally hosted on the mezzanine of The Public Theater Lobby, this new version will bring the program to your home via Zoom sessions and HowlRound livestreams.
7pm: Babbling by the Brook Paper Mill Playhouse’s Summer Musical Theater Conservatory, a star-studded roster of performers, writers, directors, and more theatrical denizens.
7pm: Project Sing Out! A one-night-only livestreamed event featuring musical performances, spoken word and special appearances from a variety of Broadway and TV’s biggest names, including Audra McDonald, Chirta Rivera, Don Cheadle, Vanessa Willams.
7pm: Visitors in the Dark Charles Busch’s latest campy comedy tells the story of four women living together in a Greenwich Village tenement (cast includes Busch and usual co-conspirator Julie Halston) who suspect that space aliens may be involved in the 1965 blackout.
7pm: New York Theatre Barn: ¡Americano! and Tenn By New York Theatre Barn new musicals ¡Americano! and Tenn.
¡Americano! features lyrics by Michael Barnard, Carrie Rodriguez, and Jonathan Rosenberg, with music by Rodriguez, and a book by Barnard and Rosenberg, with a live (remote) performance by Sean Ewing.
Inspired by the events of 9/11, Tony geared his entire childhood towards enlisting in the Marines on his 18th birthday. Yet when he did, Tony was devastated to learn his parents had not been honest with him and that he was an undocumented immigrant, unable to realize his dream. ¡Americano! casts a profoundly human light on what it means to be a Dreamer.
Jullian Hornik’s bio-musical Tenn follows the early years of playwright Tennessee Williams living in St. Louis and New Orleans. Performing numbers are Christian Probst (The Book of Mormon) and Bandits on the Run.
7pm: Hastings Street Virtual Concert By Plowshares Theatre Company Michigan’s only professional African American Theatre, Plowshares Theatre Company, presents a virtual concert of songs from an original musical set in Detroit past. The play, Hastings Street, is a work in progress set in 1949 at the cusp of the order to tear down Black Bottom, the segregated Black community that was once where I-75 is now.
Sporting a book by local artists John Sloan III with a score written by Sloan and Kris Johnson, Hastings Street, explores the lives of Detroiters at a moment when the city was rewriting the landscape and displacing thousands of African Americans in the name of progress. The story follows the experiences of the Carson Family as they navigate issues of being uprooted on a personal and communal basis.
7:30: Bay Street Theater 2020 Gala: A Starry Night By Bay Street Theater Tony nominee Richard Kind hosts the Bay Street Theater’s 2020 virtual gala, titled A Starry Night. The special celebration will pay homage to Broadway musicals of the 1970s, and harken back to the celebrity telethon specials popular at the time.
Set to perform are Tony winners André De Shields, Ben Vereen, Betty Buckley, and Tony nominees Raúl Esparza, Melissa Errico, Josh Young. Also on the line-up are Hunter Parrish, Trent Saunders, Arianna Rosario, and Omar Lopez-Cepero.
7:30pm: Verdi’s Macbeth The plot may be focused on the eponymous Scottish king, but Verdi’s high-flying take on Shakespeare’s drama boasts three powerhouse arias for Lady Macbeth, making it a signature showpiece for divas at the very top of their game. Drawing equally on showstopping vocal virtuosity and deftly crafted drama, Verdi’s version of this tale of intrigue and power will keep you on the edge of your seat for all four razor-sharp acts.
7:30pm Colonial and My Emancipation Pregones/PRTT The latest works-in-progress from the Remojo 2020 festival.In “Colonial” by Joel Perez (Fun Home), a man inheriting a colonial house in Old San Juan, discovers a box of journals kept by his grandmother which uncover the truth about his family and the part they played in the failed Puerto Rican Nationalist Party revolts in the 1950’s. “My Emancipation,” written and performed by Cedric Leiba, Jr., explores LGBTQ themes.
8pm: Mrs. Loman By The Tank It begins the day Willy dies. Mrs. Loman is written by Barbara Cassidy and directed by Meghan Finn. The work stars Monique Vukovic Monique Robinson, Nate DeCook, Matt McGlade, Jerry Ferris, Linda Jones, Joe Gregori, and Sophia Reyes on flute.
8pm: Stars in the House: Rent’s Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp SiriusXM Broadway host Seth Rudetsky and producer James Wesley bring the Rent co-stars together.
In the golden age of Manhattan night life top vocalists of the day would begin their engagements in venues like The Copa, Latin Quarter, Oak Room, Living Room, and similar glamorous nightspots. In the same month you might have Jack Jones at the Plaza’s Persian Room, Buddy Greco swinging in the Americana’s Royal Box and Vic Damone headlining the Rainbow Room. It all created a special kind of entertainment euphoria and excitement in New York City.
When the 54 Below advertisements came out heralding Clint Holmes’ engagement it rekindled that feeling for me. Clint’s talent and fame have been well established over decades and he’s just the type of performer who makes a town more exciting when he’s appearing in it. Seeing Clint’s extraordinary performance last night at 54 Below in his show celebrating Peter Allen, (back to back after being thrilled by Tom Jones at The Beacon and Barry Manilow at Radio City) brought me back to that era of New York’s glittering night life. What a joy to be in the audience and get that adrenaline rush from legendary performers whose artistry and charisma have not diminished, and are now communicating an even deeper expressiveness and musical eloquence than in their earlier years.
Here are photos from the closing night of Clint Holmes sensational run at 54 Below and an after party hosted by Producer Sunny Sessa saluting Director Will Nunziata, Music Director Michael Orland, guest artists Nikki Renee Daniels and Kelly Clinton- Holmes.
CLINT HOLMES
CLINT HOLMES
CLINT HOLMES
MICHAEL ORLAND, NIKKI RENEE DANIELS , CLINT HOLMES, KELLY CLINTON-HOLMES, WILL NUNZIATA
CLINT HOLMES & WILL NUNZIATA, DIRECTOR
NIKKI RENEE DANIELS
CLINT HOLMES & NIKKI RENEE DANIELS
CLINT HOLMES
KELLY CLINTON -HOLMES & CLINT HOLMES
KELLY CLINTON-HOLMES
KELLY CLINTON HOLMES & CLINT HOLMES
AARON ROMERO, MICHAEL ORLAND, NIKKI RENEE DANIELS, CLINT HOLMES, KELLY CLINTON-HOLMES, WILL NUNZIATA, JAKUBU GRIFFIN, JOHN ISLEY
MICHAEL ORLAND & DEBBIE GRAVITTE
LUBA MASON & BILLY STRITCH
CLINT HOLMES, EDA SOROKOFF, KELLY CLINTON-HOLMES
SUNNY SESS, PRODUCER & GARRY KIEF
EDA SOROKOFF & LUBA MASON
BILLY STRITCH, LUBA MASON, DEBBIE GRAVITTE, MICHAEL ORLAND, STEPHEN SOROKOFF
CLINT HOLMES
Broadway
Theatre News: Doubt: A Parable, Here Lies Love, Prayer for the French Republic, Eisenhower and Hell’s Kitchen
Tyne Daly and Liev Schreiber will star in a revival of Doubt: A Parable on Broadway. The production is to begin performances next February at the American Airlines Theater.
The new production is produced by the Roundabout Theater Company, and will be directed by Scott Ellis, who has been serving as the nonprofit’s interim artistic director since the death of artistic director Todd Haimes in April.
The play, by John Patrick Shanley, is about a nun who suspects a priest has sexually abused a student at a Catholic school. In 2005, the year it first opened on Broadway, it won both the Pulitzer Prize for drama and the Tony Award for best play; it was later adapted into a film and an opera.
Daly, who will play the nun who serves as the school principal, and Schreiber, who will play the parish priest, are both Tony winners. Daly, is known for her role in “Cagney & Lacey”. She won the 1990 Tony Award for her portrayal as Mama Rose in the revival of Gypsy. Schreiber, is the star of Showtime’s “Ray Donovan.” He won a Tony Award in 2005 for a revival of Glengarry Glen Ross.
Doubt is one of three plays to be staged by Roundabout this coming season. The others are I Need That, a new play by Theresa Rebek starring Danny DeVito alongside his daughter, Lucy, and Home, a 1979 revival, directed by Kenny Leon, by Samm-Art Williams.
David Byrne, Fatboy Slim and Here Lies Love are causing controversy with their July Broadway debut. The show’s extensive use of prerecorded music has the American Federation of Musicians’ Local 802, up in arms. The Local’s Broadway musical contract stipulate that productions employ 19 live musicians.
In response to the union’s concerns, Byrne and the show’s PR team released a statement on Instagram to lay out the production’s revolutionary format and genre-bending originality. Here Lies Love is not a traditional Broadway musical. The music is drawn outside of the traditional music genre. The performance of the live vocals to pre-recorded, artificial tracks is paramount to its artistic concept. Production has ripped out the seats in the theater and built a dance floor. There is no longer a proscenium stage. The Broadway Theater has been transformed into a nightclub, with every theatergoer immersed in the experience.
Here Lies Love is on Broadway because Broadway must support boundary-pushing creative work. Broadway is also the venue for a well conceived, high-quality show that highlights the valued traditions of specific cultures whose stories have never been on its stages. Here Lies Love does not believe in artistic gatekeepers. Here Lies Love believes in a Broadway for everyone, where new creative forms push the medium and create new traditions and audiences.
I saw Here Lies Love at The Public and not sure what kind of fast talking this is, but this statement rings false and full of how can we cut the costs while sticking it to the audience.
Photo by Murphymade
Prayer for the French Republic, by Joshua Harmon is coming to Broadway this season.This award-winning Off Broadway production played to rave reviews at The Manhattan Theatre Club. The production was the winner of the 2022 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play and Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding New Off-Broadway Play. Broadway performances will begin previews on Tuesday, December 19, at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, with an official opening night on Tuesday, January 9, 2024. David Cromer directs.
Off Broadway: Tony winner John Rubinstein starts previews June 13 at St. Clement’s in one-man show Eisenhower.
Alicia Keys’ musical Hell’s Kitchen will run at The Public Theater from October 24 – December 10, starring Shoshana Bean. Inspired by Keys’ own life, the new musical features an original score by the 15-time Grammy-winning singer-songwriter, with a book by Kristoffer Diaz. Hell’s Kitchen will be directed by Michael Greif and choreographed by Camille A. Brown.
Leading the cast will be Maleah Joi Moon as Ali, opposite Bean as Ali’s mother Jersey, with Brandon Victor Dixon as Ali’s father Davis, Chad Carstarphen as Ray, Vanessa Ferguson as Tiny, Crystal Monee Hall as Crystal, Chris Lee as Knuck, Jackie Leon as Jessica, Kecia Lewis as Ali’s piano teacher Miss Liza Jane, Mariand Torres as Maria, and Lamont Walker II as Riq.
Completing the cast are Reid Clarke, Chloe Davis, Nico DeJesus, Timothy L. Edwards, Raechelle Manalo, Sarah Parker, and Niki Saludez, with understudies Badia Farha, Gianna Harris, Onyxx Noel, William Roberson, and Donna Vivino.
The musical is described as a coming-of-age story set in a cramped apartment in the neighborhood of the title near Times Square, where 17-year-old Ali is desperate to get her piece of the New York dream. Ali’s mother is just as determined to protect her daughter from the same mistakes she made. When Ali falls for a talented young drummer, both mother and daughter must face hard truths about race, defiance, and growing up.
The production has set design by Robert Brill, costumes by Dede Ayite, lighting by Natasha Katz, sound by Gareth Owens, and projection design by Peter Nigrini.
The countdown is on and the winners of the 2022/2023 season will be announced in a live televised ceremony on Sunday, June 11.
Here is who we think will win and who should.
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical
The Nominees
Annaleigh Ashford, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Sara Bareilles, Into the Woods
Victoria Clark, Kimberly Akimbo
Lorna Courtney, & Juliet
Micaela Diamond, Parade
This to us is a no brainer … Victoria Clark performance has stood out since she brought Kimberly Akimbo to life off-Broadway in 2021. Though Annaleigh is a terrific performer this is Victoria’s year.
Will Win: Victoria Clark
Should Win: Victoria Clark
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical
The Nominees
Christian Borle, Some Like It Hot
J. Harrison Ghee, Some Like It Hot
Josh Groban, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Brian d’Arcy James, Into the Woods
Ben Platt, Parade
Colton Ryan, New York, New York
This is another no brainer J. Harrison Ghee gives a textured layered performance. Ben Platt and Josh Groban cancel each other out, though both are riveting performances.
Will win: J. Harrison Ghee
Should win: J. Harrison Ghee
Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical
The Nominees
Julia Lester, Into the Woods
Ruthie Ann Miles, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Bonnie Milligan, Kimberly Akimbo
NaTasha Yvette Williams, Some Like It Hot
Betsy Wolfe, & Juliet
Bonnie Milligan took the theatre community by storm in Head Over Heels, but it was not her time. This year Milligan commands the stage and you definitely remember her performance.
Will win: Bonnie Milligan
Should win: Bonnie Milligan
Alex Newell photo by Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman)
Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical
The Nominees
Kevin Cahoon, Shucked
Justin Cooley, Kimberly Akimbo
Kevin Del Aguila, Some Like It Hot
Jordan Donica, Lerner & Loewe’s Camelot
Alex Newell, Shucked
Many think Alex Newell was snubbed in 2018 for his performance in Once on This Island. Newell gets standing ovations over at Shucked for “Independently Owned” and they are well deserved. Kevin Del Aguila to me was a breath of fresh air and made me love his performance not once, but twice.
Will win: Alex Newell
Should win:Kevin Del Aguila
Broadway
National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene Summer Soirée With Barry Manilow, Julie Benko, Adam B. Shapiro, Michael Zegen and More
On June 19 the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene Summer Soirée at The Lighthouse at Chelsea Piers is set to impress. Adam B. Shapiro (from the cast of the award winning Fiddler on The Roof in Yiddish), will be the Master of Ceremonies The celebrity address will be by Michael Zegen, co-star of “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” with a special performance by Julie Benko, the sensational breakout star of Broadway’s Funny Girl. Benko has joined the cast of Harmony coming to Broadway this fall.
Musical Moments from NYTF’s Upcoming Season including a performance by Danny Kornfeld from Barry Manilow and Bruce Sussman’s Broadway Bound New Musical ‘Harmony’
The evening will also feature performances from artists who have been part of NYTF’s stellar productions, including a special appearance by The Mameles, whose singing trio – Maya Jacobson, Raquel Nobile and Jodi Snyder – met while starring in Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish.
Throughout the night, attendees also will be treated to performances by: Dani Apple, Joanne H. Borts, Aaron Diskin, Brian Glassman, Sophie Knapp, Annette Ezekiel Kogan, Yosef Kogan, Frank London, Avram Mlotek, Jenny Romaine, Rachel Yucht, Avi Fox-Rosen, Ilya Shneyveys, Dmitri Zisl Slepovitch, and Matt Temkin and the Schechter Bergen Children’s Chorus
Indulge in a delightful cocktail reception followed by an exquisite dinner as you prepare to be dazzled with exclusive previews of musical moments from NYTF’s upcoming 2023-2024 Season.
My View: Clint Holmes Is In Town!
Golden Moments – Grand Weekend at Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic
Theatre News: Doubt: A Parable, Here Lies Love, Prayer for the French Republic, Eisenhower and Hell’s Kitchen
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