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Saturday, November 21, 2009

    [ V ]  Life after death on Broadway By ROBERT HOFLER

    Even flops make money in amateur, stock productions

    [ B ]  Enter Laughing Aims for Broadway Bow Next Season

    [ P ]  Producer Whitten Plans to Bring Enter Laughing to Broadway

    [ NYT ]  Arts, Briefly: 'Enter Laughing' Is Bound for Broadway By PATRICK HEALY; Compiled by DAVE ITZKOFF

    [ TM ]  Evan Parke and Ben Vereen to Star in Will Power's Fetch Clay, Make Man at McCarter Theater

    [ P ]  Vereen, Parke, Jelks, Martin and Masur Cast in Fetch Clay World Premiere

    [ NYT ]  Arts, Briefly: New Play About Life of Muhammad Ali By PATRICK HEALY; Compiled by DAVE ITZKOFF

    [ P ]  Sidney Howard's Late Christopher Bean, a Praised "Find," Extended Off-Broadway

    [ TM ]  TACT's Late Christopher Bean Extends Through December 12

    [ TM ]  Dean-Charles Chapman To Be New London Billy Elliot

    [ P ]  London's Billy Elliot Extends Booking to December 2010; New Billy Joins

    [ B ]  Jenny Seagrove and Honeysuckle Weeks to Star in West End Debut of Agatha Christie's A Daughter's A Daughter

    [ TM ]  Jane Carr Joins Los Angeles Company of Mary Poppins

    [ NYP ]  Jude pad's ogle-y truth By JENNIFER GOULD KEIL and TODD VENEZIA

    Jude Law should have realized he was giving a free show.

    "Girl Crazy":

    [ P ]  DIVA TALK: She Said/He Said with Girl Crazy's Becki Newton and Chris Diamantopoulos

    [ NYT ]  Home on the Range and on the Stage By CHARLES ISHERWOOD

    "Girl Crazy," the Gershwin musical from 1930 about a handful of wiseacre New Yorkers plopped down in the Wild West, opens this year's Encores! series of concert musicals at City Center.

    [ NYP ]  Gershwin score rescues 'Girl' by Elisabeth Vincentelli (***)

    [ V ]  Girl Crazy
    Review By STEVEN SUSKIN

    This breezy song-and-dance show from 1930 aims only to deliver its saddle-bag full of song hits.

    [ TB ]  Girl Crazy
    Review by Matthew Murray

    With a score this good, who needs a book? One can only assume this was the rationale behind the City Center Encores! production of Girl Crazy, which is playing through Sunday.

    [ YN ]  Melodies still soar in Gershwins' 'Girl Crazy' By MICHAEL KUCHWARA, AP Drama Critic

    If only the rest of the show were as much fun as the sounds produced by its accomplished on-stage orchestra, which is under the direction of guest conductor Rob Fisher. But the production, using a severely pared-down adaptation by David Ives of the slender Guy Bolton-Jack McGowan book, suffers from casting that can best be described as serviceable. Not bad but unable to shake the rafters.

    [ TM ]  Girl Crazy
    Reviewed by: Andy Propst

    City Center Encores! production of the classic George and Ira Gershwin is pleasingly zany, but lacks a little heart.

    [ BS ]  Girl Crazy (in Concert) - Reviewed by ERIK HAAGENSEN

    The last thing you would expect George and Ira Gershwin's classic score for "Girl Crazy" to be is dull. But that's exactly what it is in Encores! concert production.

    Features:

    [ LAT ]  Theater project holds a mirror up to the recession By Geraldine Baum

    'The Great Recession,' premiering off-off-Broadway, brings together six up-and-coming playwrights and a troupe of unpaid young actors. Waiting in the wings are their own real-life hard times.

    [ LAT ]  PHOTOS: Recession on off-off-Broadway

    [ NYT ]  'Fela!' Broadway? Dance! By JON PARELES

    "Fela!" follows a tricky path between musical reproduction and reinvention to explore the life of a musical legend.

    [ NYT ]  Glitter and Be Essential By CHARLES ISHERWOOD

    On "Glee," show tunes are confections. Barbara Cook makes them art.

    [ NYP ]  The Law & Order of comedy By Elisabeth Vincentelli

    There's been some chatter about how the New York theater community is really into "Glee."

    [ TM ]  Giving Thanks! By: Patrick Lee

    Gavin Creel, Sutton Foster, Marc Kudisch, Priscilla Lopez, Julia Stiles and more stars share what they're thankful for this year.

    [ NW ]  Mourning Joe By Jeremy McCarter

    Papp made theater free, and proved it was priceless.

    [ WSJ ]  A Method to Mamet By TERRY TEACHOUT

    In 'Race,' the playwright Mamet revisits some signature motifs, from ambitious women to ringing phones.

    [ P ]  Playblog: Oleanna Audiences Can Take Mamet Home

    [ G ]  Salad Days - the other longest running West End musical by Brian Logan

    It's been labelled derisory and unperformable, Monty Python lampooned it, even its fans admit it's ridiculous. But the neglected 1950s musical Salad Days isn't mere escapism

    [ CST ]  Viva variety: Cirque's 'Banana Shpeel' reinvents vaudeville BY HEDY WEISS

    [ CST ]  Peter Gallagher shows off theatrical side in solo show BY MARY HOULIHAN

    [ BS ]  Stars Come Out for Citymeals on Wheels By Hilary Tuttle

    [ P ]  Playblog: Here's to the Ladies Who Lunch

    [ P ]  Playblog: Carrie On

    [ NYT ]  A Permanent Theater Festival on Puget Sound By PATRICK HEALY

    Seattle is alive with artistic energy. While the city's musical voices thrive, stage productions are on the rebound after the loss of prized playhouses.

    [ NYT ]  Slide Show: Seattle's Theater Scene

    [ NYT ]  Interactive Feature: Favorite Things

    To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Broadway opening of "The Sound of Music," four people with ties to the show gathered to share their favorite memories.

    [ P ]  Playblog: Rolf and Liesl - Together Again, Older and Wiser

    [ P ]  PHOTO CALL: The Sound of Music Celebrates 50 Years

    [ B ]  It'll Make You Happy: Extensive Video from a Glittering New Dreamgirls

    [ B ]  Fresh Face: Shrek Star Ben Crawford Loves His Big Bright Beautiful New Job

    [ B ]  Exclusive Clips! Broadway's A Tale of Two Cities Gets Second Curtain on PBS

    [ P ]  PHOTO CALL: A Tale of Two Cities Returns in Concert Staging on PBS

    [ BG ]  Merrimack Rep looks up to 'Heroes' By Joel Brown

    [ CT ]  Top 10 holiday shows by Chris Jones

    [ B ]  First Look: Nathan Lane, Bebe Neuwirth and the Cast of The Addams Family on Stage

    [ B ]  Photo Op: A New Starry Cast Steps into Love, Loss and What I Wore

    [ P ]  PHOTO CALL: Love, Loss, and What I Wore Nov. 18-Dec. 13 Cast

    "In the Next Room, or the vibrator play":

    [ NYT ]  Audio Slide Show: Hysteria Lane

    Maria Dizzia talks about performing in "In the Next Room, or the vibrator play."

    [ BS ]  The Discerning Doctor By Simi Horwitz

    "To stand naked on the stage is an outward manifestation of what we do in the best performances," asserts Michael Cerveris.

    [ NPR ]  'The Vibrator Play': Why Yes, It Is About Exactly That by Jeff Lunden

    The title of her latest comedy may be a little titillating, but playwright Sarah Ruhl wants you to know one thing right upfront:
    "A lot of it happens under a sheet."

    [ NYP ]  Sex on Center stage By BARBARA HOFFMAN

    It's quite an eyeful: erotic poems by Emily Dickinson, an essay on "full body orgasms" . . . and detailed drawings of vibrators.
    No, it's not "The Joy of Sex" you're reading -- it's the Lincoln Center Theater Review. And boy, is it a sizzler!

    [ B ]  Videos: More Than a Catchy Title? Learning About In the Next Room or The Vibrator Play on Opening Night

    [ TM ]  Room Service By: Joseph Marzullo, Tristan Fuge, & Brian Scott Lipton

    Mary-Louise Parker, Blair Brown, Jill Clayburgh, Adam Duritz, Piper Laurie, Steven Pasquale, Alice Playten, and Michael Urie join Laura Benanti, Michael Cerveris and company for the Broadway opening of In the Next Room.

    [ B ]  Photo Op: In the Next Room or The Vibrator Play's Buzzworthy Opening Night

    [ P ]  PLAYBILL ON OPENING NIGHT: In the Next Room or the vibrator play - Mrs. Givings' Misgivings

    [ P ]  PHOTO CALL: In the Next Room or the vibrator play Opens on Broadway

    [ DN ]  Gatecrasher: Meg Ryan giggles at a Broadway play that's reminiscent of 'Sally' days

    [ NY1 ]  Review: "In The Next Room Or The Vibrator Play" By: Roma Torre

    The gifted playwright's latest work, "In The Next Room, Or The Vibrator Play," provokes both head-scratching and much laughter. While this one's not her best work, there's no denying it's an original.

    [ TB ]  In the Next Room Or The Vibrator Play
    Review by Matthew Murray

    In the Next Room or the Vibrator Play is a superb 80-minute lark locked in a 150-minute play's lumbering, pent-up body.

    [ B ]  Word of Mouth: Did In the Next Room or The Vibrator Play Get Our Panel All Worked Up?

    "The Orphans' Home Cycle":

    [ B ]  Photo Op: Horton Foote's Remarkable Orphans' Home Cycle Begins at Signature Theatre

    [ P ]  PHOTO CALL: Foote's Orphans' Home Cycle Part One

    [ P ]  PHOTO CALL: Orphans' Home Cycle Part One Opens at the Signature

    [ TB ]  The Orphan's Home Cycle (Part 1)
    Review by Matthew Murray

    Based on the first part alone, which just opened at Peter Norton Space, this could be the event of the season.

    "Equivocation" in Los Angeles and Seattle:

    [ ST ]  Preview: 'Equivocation' speaks to the sacred in life By Misha Berson

    A talk with Bill Cain, author of the much in-demand play "Equivocation," about art, politics and family in Shakespeare's day and our own. It's in previews at Seattle Repertory Theatre and opens Sunday.

    [ V ]  Equivocation
    Review By BOB VERINI

    No need to equivocate: Bill Cain's "Equivocation" at the Geffen Playhouse is one of the most bracingly intelligent, sizzlingly theatrical American plays in a decade. Stuffed -- some will say overstuffed -- with themes, incidents and epigrams purporting to tell one version of William Shakespeare's midlife career crisis, it's an experience no serious theatergoer will want to miss.

    [ THR ]  Equivocation -- Review By Jay Reiner

    An original and often witty play that says less than it wants to say in more words than it needs to use.

    [ LAT ]  Culture Monster
    Theater review: 'Equivocation' at Geffen Playhouse by Charles McNulty

    Cain should be congratulated for the breathtaking boldness of his endeavor here. But rather than equivocate myself, let me say that more playwriting discipline and a stronger directorial hand would have shored up this toppling Shakespearean structure.

    Other Reviews:

    [ TB ]  The Radio City Christmas Spectacular
    Review by Matthew Murray

    This may be the biggest show in town, but in the ways it really counts, it's also the most restrained.

    [ TB ]  65 Years Young On the Town Fresh and Delightful as Ever in Sparkling Paper Mill Revival by Bob Rendell

    [ NYT ]  Theater Review | 'Twelfth Night (or What You Will)'
    Gender Switch in Illyria, With Players 8 Inches Tall By ANITA GATES

    What the Czechoslovak-American Marionette Theater does is improbably fabulous, and they're doing it again in their sublime new production.

    [ TM ]  Post No Bills
    Reviewed by: Andy Propst

    Mando Alvarado's new play about an unlikely romance between a subway musician and a young woman is consistently engaging.

    [ CU ]  Post No Bills

    The title of Mando Alvarado's new play is a location, a performance space, and a way of life - a delicately balanced hub of creativity

    [ V ]  Post No Bills
    Review By SAM THIELMAN

    Alvarado's show eventually drowns in schmaltz, but it fails interestingly enough to make for an encouraging look at his future.

    [ BS ]  Post No Bills - Reviewed by MARK PEIKERT

    Mando Alvarado's new play has a sitcom-worthy premise that's hurt more than helped by the plot's sudden dark turn.

    [ TE ]  Post No Bills - Review by OSCAR E. MOORE

    It is like plodding through a muddy gulf of self pity.

    [ CU ]  My Wonderful Day

    My Wonderful Day is a wonderful play about a less than wonderful day for one very unique character and a group of typical Ayckbournians.

    [ TNO ]  GROWING UP FAST by SANDY MACDONALD

    What fools these adults be! Ayckbourn's latest offers a child's-eye view of a marital fracas.

    [ BS ]  My Wonderful Day - Reviewed by ERIK HAAGENSEN

    Though it's centered on the timeworn cliché of the wise innocent child, Alan Ayckbourn's "My Wonderful Day" is largely entertaining.

    [ LAT ]  Culture Monster
    Theater review: 'The Browning Version' at Pacific Resident Theatre by Philip Brandes

    In Pacific Resident Theatre's intimate revival, Marilyn Fox's pitch-perfect staging nails the emotional delicacy in the descent and resurrection of Andrew Crocker-Harris (Bruce French).

    [ INQ ]  Lovely musical on love and risk By Toby Zinman

    The Light in the Piazza, a lovely chamber musical that just opened at the Philadelphia Theatre Company after major success in New York, gives us the current chick-lit dream come true: Mediterranean men are passionate and tender, and a trip to Italy will solve your problems ("You cannot say 'no' to these people!").

    [ INQ ]  Huge cast, a Fagin with heart in terrific 'Oliver!' By Howard Shapiro

    [ BSR ]  Oliver and Broadway'sunderdog ennoblement schtick BY: Dan Rottenberg

    What is it that attracts Broadway musicals to urban poverty? Great performances can cover a multitude of sins. But with merely competent performances, like those in this production of Oliver, you begin to notice cracks in the show's underlying structure.

    [ V ]  The Habit of Art
    Review By DAVID BENEDICT

    Neither the poet W.H. Auden nor composer Benjamin Britten were exactly famous for knockabout comedy. The surprise of Alan Bennett's new fictionalized bio-drama about their tussles between reputation and sexuality is the high laugh count.

    [ CST ]  Musical takes country singer to 'Lofty' heights BY MARY HOULIHAN

    The House Theatre of Chicago's world premiere production of "All the Fame of Lofty Deeds" is built around a rambunctious visual and aural landscape.

    [ NYT ]  A Bit of Jive Stands Out at a Tribute to Mercer By STEPHEN HOLDEN

    Sheldon Harnick was the only performer able to capture intact the lighthearted glee of Mercer's comic imagination in the tribute at the 92nd St. Y on Wednesday.

    [ V ]  Skylark: Marcovicci Sings Mercer
    Review By STEVEN SUSKIN

    Cabaret queen Andrea Marcovicci kicks off the festivities with "Skylark: Marcovicci Sings Mercer" at the Algonquin, a fine 80-minute tour through two dozen titles.

    [ NYT ]  A Survivor of 'Idol' With Heart By STEPHEN HOLDEN

    The former "American Idol" contestant Melinda Doolittle performed on Thursday evening at Feinstein's at Loews Regency.

    [ NYT ]  Sounding Board for the Dancing That Would Be Music By BEN RATLIFF

    Savion Glover, the tap dancer, has been performing this week at the Blue Note with four major figures in jazz. It's all being recorded for video, but also for audio.

    [ ND ]  'Free for All: Joe Papp . . .' by Kenneth Turan
    Review By LINDA WINER

  • Posted by Tim Dunleavy at 8:59 AM | Item Link


      • News:

      [ TNO ]  LET A SMILE BE YOUR UMBRELLA by ROGER B. HARRIS

      Sedaka's Laughter in the Rain to tour U.K. next year

      [ TM ]  Neil Sedaka Bio-Musical Laughter in the Rain to Tour U.K.

      [ TM ]  American Idiot Cast to Record New Version of "21 Guns" With Green Day

      [ P ]  Green Day to Record New Version of Hit Song with American Idiot Cast

      [ P ]  "Nine" Soundtrack to Receive Dec. 15 Digital Release; Track Listing Announced

      [ TM ]  Nine Movie Soundtrack to Be Released Digitally December 15, Complete Track List Announced

      [ TM ]  Glory Days Cast to Hold November 30 Reunion Concert at Signature Theatre

      [ STAGE ]  NT confirms details of £50 million 'Master Plan' by Lalayn Baluch

      The National Theatre has confirmed the initial details of its £50 million plan to modernise its Grade II-listed London home.

      [ LAT ]  Culture Monster
      The Theatre@Boston Court's 2010 season to promote new work, and sharing by Mike Boehm

      [ CT ]  'Billy Elliot' Chicago tickets go on sale by Chris Jones

      [ P ]  New Dreamgirls Will Be Mounted Internationally

      [ TM ]  Jenn Colella, Tom Kitt, Kacie Sheik, et al. Set for Broadway Sings for Outreach Concert

      [ P ]  Chanler-Berat, Colella, Cooper, Dixon, Doyle, Kitt and More Set for Holiday Benefit Concert

      [ TM ]  Brian D'Arcy James, Celia Keenan-Bolger, Steven Pasquale, et al. Set for Broadway Celebrates dre.dance Concert

      [ TM ]  Julianna Margulies to Be Honored at New York Stage and Film Gala

      [ TM ]  Jesse L. Martin, Christopher Meloni, Julia Roberts, et al. Set for LAByrinth's Celebrity Charades

      [ P ]  Horman and Serafini Will Join Jones, Cassidy and Luker for "The Music of The Music Man" Concert

      [ TM ]  London Peter Pan Spectacle Set for U.S. Premiere in San Francisco in April

      [ P ]  Marino, Tolivar, Arnold and Lemmler to Star in New Orleans' White Christmas

      [ P ]  ABC & SOAPnet Salute Broadway Cares Benefit Set for March 2010

      [ P ]  Elizabeth Marvel Is "Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women" in PBS Documentary

      [ P ]  Tony Administration Committee to Assemble in December

      [ P ]  Off-Broadway-Aimed Baseball Musical National Pastime to Receive NYC Reading

      [ P ]  ActorCrafts! Fair of Broadway Goodies Will Return Nov. 21

      [ P ]  PLAYBILL.COM'S THEATRE WEEK IN REVIEW, Nov. 14-20: It's All Good

      [ P ]  Night Devine: An Audience with Loretta Devine to Play Upright Cabaret

      [ P ]  "Oprah Winfrey Show" to End Run in 2011

      [ P ]  Chase and Hart to Offer Final Performances of Shells at Joe's Pub

      [ P ]  Today In Theatre History: NOVEMBER 21

      [ P ]  Jarcho Uncovers U.S. History in American Treasure, the Latest From 13P, Nov. 21-Dec. 12

      [ P ]  Sweet Charity Begins Performances at London's Menier Chocolate Factory Nov. 21

      [ P ]  Blackhurst's Merman Tribute Returns to Snapple Theater Nov. 21

      [ P ]  Best of Both Worlds, A Soulful Winter's Tale, Begins A.R.T. Run Nov. 21

      [ P ]  :nv:s:ble Play, a Workplace Comedy, Premieres in Philly

      [ P ]  "You'll Shoot Your Eye Out!": A Christmas Story, The Musical! Begins World Premiere Run

      [ P ]  LaCause Is El Gallo in Arena Fantasticks, Set in an Amusement Park, Starting Nov. 20

      [ P ]  Simon Burke Will Play Sound of Music's Final Four Weeks in Toronto

      [ P ]  Callaway, Strouse, Winther and More Will Perform at Kaufman Center Benefit

      [ B ]  Marin Ireland and Josh Hamilton to Headline Ethan Hawke-Helmed A Lie of the Mind

      [ NYT ]  Arts, Briefly: Cast Is Set for 'Lie of the Mind'
      Compiled by DAVE ITZKOFF

      [ TM ]  Keir Dullea to Star in Keen's I Never Sang for My Father

      [ P ]  Intiman Will Stage Ruined, Paradise Lost and Scarlet Letter in 2010

      [ NYT ]  Arts, Briefly: A Seattle Premiere for 'ruined' Next Year
      Compiled by DAVE ITZKOFF

      [ TM ]  Kate Whoriskey to Direct Ruined as Geffen Playhouse's 2010-2011 Season Opener

      [ NYT ]  Arts, Briefly: Footnotes
      Compiled by Dave Itzkoff

      [ B ]  The Brother/Sister Plays Extend at the Public Theater

      [ P ]  Baayork Lee Will Stage Flower Drum Song Revision in Chicago; DC and Shanghai Visits Planned

      [ P ]  Jeff McCarthy to Star in Barrington's Sweeney Todd

      [ NYT ]  Theater Listings: Nov. 20 - 26

      Selective listings from theater critics of The New York Times.

    • Posted by Tim Dunleavy at 8:35 AM | Item Link


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