All stories by Susan King on BroadwayStars

Thursday, March 14, 2024

1974 Tony Awards: History was made with wins by ‘The River Niger’ and ‘Raisin’ by Susan King

With the 96th Academy Awards in the history books, it’s time to become obsessed over the 77th Tony Awards. Nominations are April 30th with the awards set to air on CBS on June 16 from Linc…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 07:00PM
Thursday, February 1, 2024

Broadway’s greatest year was 1964: ‘Funny Girl,’ ‘Fiddler on the Roof’ and ‘Hello, Dolly!’ opened by Susan King

Film historians, critics and cineastes have heralded 1939 as the greatest year for Hollywood films. It was the year that saw the release of such classics as “Gone with the Wind,” “Stag…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 10:00AM
Thursday, June 8, 2023

Tony Awards: A closer look at the two revival races by Susan King

Revivals have been a mainstay of Broadway for decades. But it wasn’t until the 31st ceremony in 1977 that the Tony Awards added a new category honoring these productions. The nominees for …

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 04:00PM
Wednesday, May 31, 2023

1983 Tony Awards flashback: When ‘Torch Song Trilogy’ made history by Susan King

The 76th annual Tony Awards have already made history. For the first time, two of the acting nominees identify as non-binary: Harrison Ghee who is contending for lead actor in musical for �…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 01:00PM
Monday, May 8, 2023

Tony Awards flashback to 1963: A not so funny thing happened to Stephen Sondheim by Susan King

What do the 76th annual Tonys have in common with the 17th annual awards? Stephen Sondheim. The late, great influential composer is represented in this year’s Tonys with the acclaimed, pop…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 12:00PM
Thursday, May 4, 2023

Tom Stoppard could make Tony history with ‘Leopoldstadt’ by Susan King

Tom Stoppard and the late Terrence McNally have won the most Tonys for a playwright taking home four each. The 85-year-old Stoppard is a strong contender to pick up his fifth Tony for his la…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 10:00AM
Monday, April 17, 2023

‘Fat Ham’: Broadway’s latest take on ‘Hamlet’ joins a long list by Susan King

James Ijames Pulitzer Prize-winning “Fat Ham,” which opened to strong reviews on Broadway April 12 after a SRO engagement at the Public Theater, is the latest reinvention of a Shakespear…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 06:00PM
Wednesday, April 5, 2023

1973 Tony Awards flashback: Battle of the Stephens (Sondheim vs. Schwartz) by Susan King

It was the battle of the Stephens at the 27th annual Tony Awards telecast March 25, 1973 on ABC from the Imperial Theatre. In one corner was Stephen Sondheim’s glorious and exquisite roman…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 12:00PM
Friday, June 10, 2022

Angela Lansbury: Queen of the Tony Awards by Susan King

One of the most anticipated honors to be handed out Sunday at the 75th annual Tony Awards is Angela Lansbury’s Lifetime Achievement Award. The big question is: Why did it take so long? No…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 07:00PM
Wednesday, June 1, 2022

Tony Awards 25th anniversary celebration has ties to today: ‘Company,’ ‘The Music Man,’ Angela Lansbury [WATCH] by Susan King

What do the 25th and 75th Tony Awards have in common? The landmark Stephen Sondheim/George Furth musical “Company,” Angela Lansbury and the beloved tuner “The Music Man.”  The gend…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 05:00PM
Tuesday, May 10, 2022

Don’t despair Daniel Craig: ‘Macbeth’ is cursed by the Tony Awards by Susan King

A post-James Bond Daniel Craig and Oscar-nominee Ruth Negga currently are shaking things up on Broadway in the latest revival of “Macbeth,” Shakespeare’s tragedy of mayhem, power, murd…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 11:00AM
Thursday, September 23, 2021

Tony Awards: Celebrating the first decade of Broadway’s highest honors by Susan King

With the long-delayed 74th Tony Awards set for Sept. 26 at the Winter Garden and streaming on Paramount + and a CBS special, let’s take a deep dive into Tony Awards history and look back a…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 02:00PM
Friday, September 3, 2021

Tony Awards history: Black winners from pioneer Juanita Hall to record-breaker Audra McDonald by Susan King

Audra McDonald is the most lauded Broadway performer winning a whopping six Tony Awards in both musical and dramatic categories. And she may be receiving her seventh for the revival of “Fr…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 06:00PM
Saturday, August 28, 2021

Tony Awards flashback to first ceremony: Only eight categories but two ties by Susan King

After a 15 months delay, the 74th annual Tony Awards honoring the best of Broadway will be held September 26 on CBS and Paramount +. And there a lot of familiar faces expected at the ceremon…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 09:00AM
Tuesday, August 10, 2021

‘Sunday in the Park with George’ memories with Stephen Sondheim, Bernadette Peters, Mandy Patinkin and James Lapine by Susan King

When James Lapine showed up at the legendary Broadway composer Stephen Sondheim’s New York townhome four decades ago, he had only seen the tunesmiths’ 1979 Tony Award-winning “Sweeney …

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 01:00PM
Monday, July 12, 2021

Classic Broadway musicals on the small screen: From ‘Peter Pan’ to ‘Hamilton’ by Susan King

Lin Manuel-Miranda’s Tony and Pulitzer Prize-winning musical “Hamilton” is a strong contender for multiple Emmy nominations including for Best Variety Special (Taped) and for performer…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 08:31PM
Thursday, June 24, 2021

New York movie musicals from ‘The Jazz Singer’ to ‘In the Heights’ by Susan King

New York, New York is a helluva town. The Bronx is up. And the Battery is down. The people ride in a hole in the ground. New York, New York. It’s a helluva town. And it’s also a perfect …

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 02:58PM
Friday, May 28, 2021

Cynthia Erivo on portraying Queen of Soul on ‘Genius: Aretha’: ‘I saw a progression of a person’ by Susan King

As “Genius: Aretha” star Cynthia Erivo explained during a recent American Cinematheque Zoom conversation, she gained great insight into Aretha Franklin by watching a wide range of interv…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 04:00PM
Sunday, March 28, 2021

Leslie Odom, Jr. on his Oscar-nominated portrayal of singer Sam Cooke: ‘A voice tells you so much about a person’ by Susan King

Leslie Odom Jr. was more than a bit uncomfortable during a recent Zoom conversation with the Wrap’s Sharon Waxman as she ticked off all of his accomplishments including a Tony for his perf…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 08:02PM
Saturday, March 20, 2021

Oscar-nominated Black composers: From Duke Ellington to Terence Blanchard and Jon Batiste by Susan King

The Duke was top! The legendary jazz composer/musician/orchestra leader Duke Ellington made Oscar history 49 years ago when he became the first Black nominee for composing. He contended for …

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 08:30PM
Wednesday, March 10, 2021

Aaron Sorkin on the timeliness of ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ by Susan King

Aaron Sorkin, the writer/director of the red-hot Oscar contender “The Trial of the Chicago 7,” felt the film was “pretty relevant” during production in the winter of 2019. His acclai…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 04:31PM
Saturday, March 6, 2021

George C. Wolfe on directing ‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom’: ‘Jazz gave America its own language’ by Susan King

“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” based on August Wilson’s 1982 play, is set in Chicago the summer of 1927 during a particularly contentious recording session between Ma Rainey and her ban…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 10:39AM
Sunday, December 10, 2017

Oscar trivia quiz: How well do you know your posthumous winners? by Susan King

Earlier this year, August Wilson earned an Oscar nomination for his screenplay to his Tony and Pulitzer Prize-winning 1983 Broadway play, “Fences.” Wilson had written the script long bef…

SOURCE: Gold Derby at 10:06PM
Tuesday, December 20, 2016

'Elf' gets a musical makeover and a visit to Costa Mesa by Susan King

The 2003 movie “Elf” starring Will Ferrell as Buddy, the North Pole helper who learns he’s human and heads off for New York City to find his biological father while spreading the joy …

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 09:00AM
Friday, August 26, 2016

Hal Linden returns to the stage for 'The Fantasticks,' the longest-running musical in history by Susan King

 Hal Linden, 85, acknowledges he’s not the most disciplined human being — and that turned out to be a good thing for his career. “If I had discipline, I would have been a professional…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 08:00AM
Thursday, January 7, 2016

Frank Ferrante brings his one-man 'Evening With Groucho' to the Pasadena Playhouse by Susan King

Frank Ferrante describes himself as a new vaudevillian: Just like the performers of the past, he's on the road every year, performing his one-man show, "An Evening With Groucho," in which he…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 09:44AM
Saturday, January 2, 2016

Blackness as 'a decorative motif'? Tonya Pinkins explains why she left 'Mother Courage' by Susan King

Since making her Broadway debut in Stephen Sondheim's 1981 musical "Merrily We Roll Along," Tonya Pinkins has won a Tony in 1992 for "Jelly's Last Jam" and was nominated for 1997's "Play On!…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 07:07PM
Wednesday, October 21, 2015

'A Ballerina's Tale' documentary raises profile of ABT's Misty Copeland by Susan King

Misty Copeland seems to be everywhere these days. After 15 years with the American Ballet Theatre, the 33-year-old San Pedro-raised Copeland was promoted from soloist to principal dancer in …

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 07:10PM
Saturday, May 30, 2015

'An American in Paris' gets screening, panel at Egyptian by Susan King

The Broadway version of the Academy Award-winning musical "An American in Paris" is the toast of the Great White Way with 12 Tony nominations. And on May 31 at the Egyptian Theatre, the Amer…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 08:15PM
Monday, May 25, 2015

Inside Ingmar Bergman by Susan King

The late director's personal papers and other materials have been released by the Swedish Film Institute for a new L.A. exhibition at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 05:58PM

Grammy preview: MusiCares to honor Barbra Streisand Friday by Susan King

She's recording a new album and getting ready to star in a remake of the musical "Gypsy," but Barbra Streisand isn't too busy to be honored this week by MusiCares, the National Academy of ..…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 05:58PM

All that Chat

2023-2024 BROADWAY SEASON
May 30, 2023: Grey House - Lyceum Theatre
Jun 26, 2023: Just For Us - Hudson Theatre
Jul 24, 2023: The Cottage - Hayes Theater
Nov 16, 2023: Spamalot - St. James Theatre
Dec 18, 2023: Appropriate - Hayes Theater
Mar 07, 2024: Doubt - Todd Haimes Theatre
Apr 14, 2024: Lempicka - Longacre Theatre
Apr 17, 2024: The Wiz - Marquis Theatre
Apr 18, 2024: Suffs - Music Box Theatre
Apr 25, 2024: Mother Play - Hayes Theater
Jun 10, 2024: The Drama Desk Awards