Recently in Musicals Category
A pig, a spider and a lamb walk into a barn…
I’m so excited to see the play CHARLOTTE'S WEB at Youth Theatre Northwest on Mercer Island, running August 1 to August 10.
Based on the classic book by E. B. White about a little pig named Wilbur with a strong will to live, and a very talented spider, it is a perfect summer play for the whole family.
Of course, I'm a wee bit biased, since my daughter Trinity is in the play! She's the Lamb, as well as a Spectator and a Fair-Goer. They're in pretty seriously intense rehearsals right now and they open next Friday.
CHARLOTTE'S WEB is the second show in YTN's summer series. Next up is Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical CINDERELLA running August 22- 31.
On a special note, this is Youth Theatre Northwest's 25th Anniversary and they have quite the line up planned for the season including INTO THE WOODS, WIZARD OF OZ and FIDDLER ON THE ROOF!
For tickets to CHARLOTTE'S WEB call 206-232-4145, or visit their website.
BroadwayWorld has some excellent photo coverage of Bailey Hanks' curtain call and after party for her first performance on Broadway as Elle Woods in Legally Blonde the Musical on July 23!
Here I go again!
I get it! I finally get it! I saw Mamma Mia yesterday and absolutely loved it. I can't wait to go back and see it again. Meryl Streep is my favorite superhero this summer! Take that Batman!As background, I was a gigantic ABBA fan when I was a teenager (I also loved disco, there I said it). My best friend was Swedish and she introduced me to ABBA and she always got the latest album ahead of everyone else. I was hooked. ABBA was standard fare at sleepovers, and we'd dance around the pool table in her basement (I always wanted a pool table!) to Mamma Mia. Yeah, yeah, the cooler kids hated ABBA, but I've never considered myself cool. I liked all kinds of music, but there was something about those arrangements, those voices, those melodies, those cute Swedish inflections that just made me get up and dance, and sing along.
So of course I was excited about the stage musical production of Mamma Mia when it came out in the early 90s. However, when I actually saw the musical in Toronto, with Louise Pitre as Donna, I really didn't like it. Maybe it was because the decibel level was so high it made my ears bleed, or maybe because the arrangements sounded different. Or maybe it was the silly storyline. I don't know but I never bonded with the musical for some weird reason.
For some reason I'd been really excited about the release of the movie. Maybe because I heard that two of my cuties, Colin Firth and Pierce Brosnan, were cast in the movie. I love Meryl Streep but I was skeptical about her vocal prowess. But the trailers looked really exciting and fun, so the girls and I went today.
I totally loved it. I laughed, I cried, I boogied.
I finally felt the feeling of twirling joy I used to feel when listening to the ABBA records. The Greek island setting was perfect, the colors, the sun, everything. Meryl Streep is amazing as Donna Sheridan, and she has a great voice and totally inhabits the character. It's like she's dancing around inside an ABBA song. I don't mind the silly story line, and I love the way the movie is a musical, full stop. No apologies needed for breaking out into song and dance, whether you are a main character or part of the "greek chorus" of villagers. I mean, isn't that why you do musicals in the first place?
And let me just say that Colin Firth has a great voice. Very folky, but with a surprisingly high level of musicality to my ears. Pierce Brosnan isn't a singer per say, but Remington Steele slash James Bond can do no wrong in my ears. (Hmmmm, I think I know what age group this movie is targeted at…). I'm not as familiar with Stellen Skarsgard who played the third "dad", but he was good too!
The whole cast rocked (Amanda Seyfried, Dominic Cooper, Julie Walters) but one of my favorites was Christine Baranski. She was hilarious.
And did I see cameo shots of Benny and Bjorn in the movie? Methinks I did!
Make sure you stay for the credits!
Say Something: A Spoken Word Salon, an evening featuring spoken word performances from a mix of writers and actors, will be presented Aug. 15 at the Laurie Beechman Theatre.
The 6 PM performance at the West 42nd Street venue will boast the talents of Hunter Bell, Susan Blackwell, Phil Geoffrey Bond, Paul Cavalconte, Donna Lynne Champlin, Christine Lavin, Carl Kissin, Christine Pedi and Kate Shindle.
The artists, according to press notes, will offer "new work as well as excerpts from some of their favorite texts."
Hunter Bell and Susan Blackwell are the current stars of the new Broadway musical [title of show]. So get ready for this cool event! I won't be able to attend, but everyone else should. =P
In that it's so horrid, but I can't stop watching!
Well, I've probably talked about how much I kinda hate watching reality TV shows where nobodies get sent home to continue their unfulfilling jobs as paralegals when they really want to be the next American Idol. It just makes me feel bad. That's why I like Dancing with the Stars - those people are already celebs, so when they get sent home, they're going back to being famous and doing what they love.
However, with High School Musical: Get in the Picture, not only are they sending home people who don't have their dreams waiting back home, they're sending home young people. For example, last Sunday and Monday were the Eastern semi-finals and finals. They sent home a girl who was 16. 16!!! I don't know, but that made me really sad.....
Other than that, the show is pretty good. The talent is... okay. But the structure and premise of the show are really good.
From the official High School Musical: Get in the Picture website:
This summer's reality show, Disney's "High School Musical: Get in the Picture", will award one prize winner the chance of a lifetime -- he or she will literally "get in the picture" when that person stars in a music video shown in the end credits of the feature film, Disney's "High School Musical 3: Senior Year," opening this fall. In addition, the winner will also receive an exclusive talent hold agreement with ABC and a recording contract for two singles with Walt Disney Records, one of which will be a version of the song from the music video.
Hosted by Nick Lachey, the television series debuts on ABC on Sunday, July 20 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET) and runs Sundays and Mondays (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET) for three weeks, then continues Mondays at 8:00 p.m., ET through mid-September. During the series, finalists will ultimately participate in a summer music program to hone their skills, and one talented newcomer will become a part of "High School Musical" history.
Executive producers of "High School Musical: Get in the Picture" are Jay Blumenfield and Tony Marsh (both of "Here Come the Newlyweds"). The production company is The Jay and Tony Show.
Next week the Western auditions are on. That means more crying and feeling sorry for these poor young people whose dreams are crushed when they get sent home... But I can't wait!
Shout out to my friend Seth Weinstein, who wrote the music for HOW TO SAVE THE WORLD AND FIND TRUE LOVE IN 90 MINUTES. I met Seth when he did a fabulous job musical directing my show PLANE CRAZY at NYMF in 2005. I loved HOW TO SAVE THE WORLD AND FIND TRUE LOVE when I saw it in New York. I saw Hollie Howard (who played Holly Banks in PLANE CRAZY) in the role of Violet Zipper and she was amazing. It's really a great show, so go get your copy today!
From an article on Playbill.com:
A cast recording of How to Save the World and Find True Love in 90 Minutes, which played Off-Broadway's New World Stages/Stage 5 Nov. 4-Dec. 31, 2006, is now available.
The recording features the original Off-Broadway company, including Michael McEachran as Miles Muldoon, Anika Larsen as Julie Lemmon and Nicole Ruth Snelson as Violet Zipper with Stephen Bienskie, Natalie Joy Johnson and Kevin Smith Kirkwood as The Greeks.
The CD, which was recorded January 2, 2007, at Avatar Studios in Manhattan, also features conductor Seth Weinstein on keyboards, Jonnah Speidel on piano, James Bettincourt on bass and Greg Germann on drums.
The complete track listing for How to Save the World follows:
Prologue
Love or Fear
I'm Afraid of Everything
The Country Song
The Melon Ballet
Why Are All the Good Men Unconscious?
The Voices in My Head
I'm in Love With a Terrorist
Who I Am Matters Not (I)
Love Is Violet
Yoga Class/Fifteen Minutes
I Want to Know You/Read My Mind
He's a Pussy
When the Music Played
We Can Save the World and Find True Love
Save the People
Who I Am Matters Not (II)
Oh, God The Company
Read My Mind
With book and lyrics by Jonathan Karp and music by Seth Weinstein, How to Save the World. . ., according to press notes, is set at the United Nations and concerns "a cowardly bookshop clerk, a sexy diplomat and an idealistic slacker [who] confront their deepest fears when an office romance leads to international crisis."
Christopher Gattelli directed and choreographed the Off-Broadway run. The creative team comprised Beowulf Boritt (set design), David Murin (costume design), Jeff Croiter (lighting design) and Peter Hylenski (sound design).
The CD, priced $14.95, includes a 16-page color booklet with lyrics and photos. For more information visit www.howtosavetheworldandfindtruelove.com.
On Sunday, Max Crumm and Laura Osnes, winners of the reality TV show Grease: You're the One That I Want!, ended their run on Broadway as Danny and Sandy in the Broadway revival of Grease. However, that means that Derek Keeling and Ashley Spencer will replace them..... They're the ones that I wanted (see my previous post)!!!!!
Keeling was most recently seen in the West Coast premiere of All Shook Up and also played Danny Zuko in a national tour of Grease. Spencer was recently on Broadway playing Amber von Tussle in the Tony-winning musical Hairspray.
The current cast of Grease, directed and choreographed by Kathleen Marshall, includes Janine DiVita as Rizzo, Ryan Patrick Binder as Doody, Susan Blommaert as Miss Lynch, Will Blum as Roger, Jeb Brown as Vince, Allison Fischer as Patty, Robyn Hurder as Marty, Lindsay Mendez as Jan, Jose Restrepo as Sonny, Matthew Saldivar as Kenickie, Jamison Scott as Eugene, Kirsten Wyatt as Frenchy and "American Idol" winner Taylor Hicks as Teen Angel. The ensemble comprises Josh Franklin, Natalie Hill, Matthew Hydzik, Keven Quillon, Allie Schultz, Brian Sears, Christina Sivrich, Amber Stone and Anna Aimee White.
For tickets, visit here. I really hope that I get to see this!!
Last night was the season finale of Legally Blonde the Musical: The Search for Elle Woods, and Bailey Hanks was selected as the next Elle Woods on Broadway in Legally Blonde! Rhiannon was eliminated at the beginning of the episode, leaving Autumn and Bailey as the last contestants in the competition. The final audition required the girls to perform three numbers from the musical with real Legally Blonde cast members, sets, costume, and orchestra! Plus, Jerry Mitchell was added to the panel of Paul Canaan, Heather Hach, and Bernard Telsey.
Okay, so I'm really happy for Bailey, and she definitely is Elle Woods. Her performance was genuine and easy to watch. However, I enjoyed Autumn's much more. Autumn has the better voice by far. Sorry Bailey, but at times you're a little flat :S Autumn still brought the character to life, but her voice was quite amazing. Maybe after Hanks has finished her run, Autumn will be next in line...
Congratulations Bailey! I hope that your experience as a leading lady on Broadway is as magical and fulfilling as you've always dreamed it to be! Bailey starts her run on Broadway on July 23. For tickets, visit here.
Last Saturday, I saw the matinee performance of the first student production that the Village Theatre in Issaquah has put on so far this summer. It was called The Spitfire Grill, and was presented as part of Village Theatre's KIDSTAGE's Summer Independent program. "Summer Independent" means that the entire show was produced, designed, and directed by young artists ages 20 and under. Professional mentorship was provided by Village Theatre artists and staff, including Kathryn Van Meter, R.J. Tancioco, Kristin Culp, Brian Healy, Jessi Wasson, Jim Henderson, and Skyline High School.
The Spitfire Grill is the story of a young woman named Percy, and her journey as she rejoins the human race after 5 years in prison. To start anew, she travels to the little town of Gilead, Wisconsin, and is employed at the only restaurant in the area: The Spitfire Grill. What ensues is a story of community, love, and renewal.
The cast was amazing. This production starred Eliza Palasz as Percy Talbott, Heather Nobis as Shelby Thorpe, Julia Bicknell as Hannah Ferguson, Danny Kam as Caleb Thorpe, Colin Hartman as Sheriff Joe Sutter, Rachael McLachlan as Effy Krayneck, and John McDevitt as The Visitor. The extremely strong ensemble included Daniel Arteaga, Rachel Beck, Jim Blackett, Sawyer Mittelstaedt, Kendyl Morris, Sarah Oates, Cassie Smith, and Ellen Washburn. Everyone was talented and committed on stage, but I'd like to give a special shout-out to Julia, Rachael, Kendyl, Cassie, and Sawyer, my fellow Last Exit castmembers!
I thought that Justine Stillwell did an excellent job of directing this piece, and I really loved the set. It was detailed enough that you could picture the Grill accurately, but not too elaborate - a very delicate balance when it came to this show. The music was soulful and hummable, and the storyline was both heartwarming and heartbreaking. Overall, I had a very good time!
As you read this blog, if you live in the Issaquah/Sammamish/Seattle/Bellevue/Kirkland/Mercer Island/basically anywhere in that area, you should buy tickets NOW by calling the box office at (425) 392-2202. The last performances are THIS WEEK people, so make sure you get tickets for the Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, or Saturday evening shows, or the Saturday and Sunday matinees. You won't regret it, and it'll be the perfect addition to your summer! =D
Well then. Apparently, Access Hollywood learned **exclusively** that Fergie (aka Stacy Ann Ferguson) of the Black Eyed Peas has been cast in the upcoming movie version of the musical Nine. This is Fergie's first major movie role, although she has appeared before on screen in Grindhouse and Poseidon.
From an article on Access Hollywood:
While there are several female leads in the film, including Academy Award winners Kate Hudson (announced Wednesday), Nicole Kidman, Sophia Loren and Marion Cotillard, as well as Academy Award nominee Penelope Cruz, Fergie’s role will be significant.
The musical revolves around the women in the life of the male lead character, Guido Contini, who will be played by two-time Academy Award winner Daniel Day-Lewis. The show is loosely based on the life of Italian director Federico Fellini, and inspired by his masterpiece, “8½.” “Nine” opened on Broadway in 1982 and was revived starring (amongst others) Antonio Banderas (and later, John Stamos), Mary Stuart Masterson, Jane Krakowski, Chita Rivera and Laura Benanti.
I have definitely heard Fergie sing, and I saw her host Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve in Hollywood. However, I have never seen her "act." It shall be interesting to see how she does. Also, I am particularly intrigued by the selection of Daniel Day-Lewis as Guido Contini. He may have been in something where he sings, but I don't know about. I wonder if he will pass the BlogwayBaby test? We will most certainly find out...
