All stories by Michael Paulson on BroadwayStars

Sunday, July 23, 2023

A Crisis in America’s Theaters Leaves Prestigious Stages Dark by Michael Paulson

As they struggle to recover after the pandemic, regional theaters are staging fewer shows, giving fewer performances, laying off staff and, in some cases, closing.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 07:13AM
Thursday, July 20, 2023

‘How to Dance in Ohio,’ a Musical, Plans a Fall Broadway Opening by Michael Paulson

A teenage ritual takes on deeper significance as a setting where autistic young people can blossom — and exercise their social skills along the way.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 09:13AM
Friday, July 14, 2023

New York’s Public Theater Lays Off 19 Percent of Its Staff by Michael Paulson

The institution, a titan among nonprofit theaters, is suffering from the combined effects of falling revenue and rising costs plaguing the arts world.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 09:49AM
Tuesday, July 11, 2023

Award-Winning ‘Cabaret’ Revival Plans Spring Broadway Bow by Michael Paulson

The production opened in London with Eddie Redmayne in a starring role; the New York cast has not yet been announced but he is expected to join it.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 08:13AM
Tuesday, July 4, 2023

School Plays Are the Latest Cultural Battleground by Michael Paulson

At a time when lawmakers and parents are seeking to restrict what can and cannot be taught in classrooms, many teachers are seeing efforts to limit what can be staged in their auditoriums.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 03:25AM
Wednesday, June 28, 2023

Victoria Bailey Wants Bigger and Broader Theater Audiences by Michael Paulson

The Theater Development Fund’s departing director reflects on two decades of work expanding access to theater and the paths that lie ahead for Broadway.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 09:04AM
Thursday, June 22, 2023

Josh Gad and Andrew Rannells to Reunite in ‘Gutenberg! The Musical!’ by Michael Paulson

The pair, who were the original co-stars of “The Book of Mormon,” will return to Broadway this fall in a two-man musical comedy.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 09:55AM
Tuesday, June 20, 2023

Tony Awards Give a Box Office Boost to Prize-Winning Shows by Michael Paulson and Christopher Kuo

“Leopoldstadt,” which was named best play, and “Kimberly Akimbo,” which won best musical, saw considerable increases in ticket sales.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 06:33PM
Thursday, June 15, 2023

Branden Jacobs-Jenkins and Paula Vogel Are Broadway Bound by Michael Paulson

Second Stage, a nonprofit with a focus on living American dramatists, said it will present works by the playwrights on Broadway this season.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 01:07PM
Monday, June 12, 2023

At Tony Awards, ‘Kimberly Akimbo’ Wins Best Musical and ‘Leopoldstadt’ Best Play by Michael Paulson

The Tony Awards went off with out a hitch despite a screenwriters’ strike. Among the highlights: The first acting awards for out nonbinary performers, and prizes for two shows about antise…

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 12:25AM
Sunday, June 11, 2023

‘Kimberly Akimbo’ Wins Best Musical Tony and ‘Leopoldstadt’ Best Play by Michael Paulson

The Tony Awards went off with out a hitch despite a screenwriters’ strike. Among the highlights: The first acting awards for out nonbinary performers, and prizes for two shows about antise…

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 11:49PM

In Historic Night for Nonbinary Performers, J. Harrison Ghee and Alex Newell Win Tony Awards by Michael Paulson

Ghee became the first out nonbinary performer to win a Tony for best leading actor in a musical, for ‘Some Like It Hot.’

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 10:43PM

Alex Newell Becomes First Out Nonbinary Performer to Win a Tony by Michael Paulson and Sarah Bahr

“Thank you for seeing me Broadway,” the performer said of winning the award for best featured actor in a musical.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 10:03PM
Saturday, June 10, 2023

The Tony Awards Are Sunday. Here’s How to Watch. by Michael Paulson

Here is all the information you’ll need to tune in on Sunday to the annual ceremony honoring Broadway’s top productions and performers.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:04AM
Friday, June 9, 2023

David Byrne’s ‘Here Lies Love’ Reaches Deal With Broadway Musicians by Michael Paulson

After the musicians’ union raised objections to the show’s plans to use recorded music instead of a live band, the show agreed to use 12 musicians.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 06:13PM

Tony Predictions: Expect Wins for ‘Kimberly Akimbo’ and ‘Leopoldstadt’ by Michael Paulson

Our theater reporter talked to one-fifth of the Tony voters ahead of Sunday’s ceremony. Here’s hoping they steered him right.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 03:25AM
Wednesday, June 7, 2023

Smoke Leads to Cancellations of ‘Hamilton’ on Broadway and ‘Hamlet’ in Central Park by Michael Paulson

The poor air quality sent a star offstage mid-play and forced the cancellation of one of Broadway’s most popular musicals and the first two performances of Free Shakespeare in the Park.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 07:13PM
Monday, June 5, 2023

39 Tony-Nominated Performers on Why They Act: ‘It’s Intoxicating’ by Thea Traff, Michael Paulson, Julia Jacobs and Amanda Webster

Each year we photograph Tony nominees, and talk with them about their craft. This year we focused on actors.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:18AM
Friday, June 2, 2023

American Airlines Theater on Broadway to Be Renamed for Todd Haimes by Michael Paulson

Roundabout Theater Company’s flagship theater will honor Haimes, the transformational leader who died in April.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 09:24AM
Thursday, June 1, 2023

Alicia Keys Is Making a Musical. Her Own Life Inspired the Story. by Michael Paulson

The show is a highlight of the Public Theater’s new season, which will also include plays by Suzan-Lori Parks, Itamar Moses, Mary Kathryn Nagle and Ife Olujobi.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 02:18PM

Tyne Daly and Liev Schreiber to Lead Broadway ‘Doubt’ Revival by Michael Paulson

The production, presented by the nonprofit Roundabout Theater Company, is to begin performances in February.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 10:18AM

‘Prayer for the French Republic’ Heads to Broadway by Michael Paulson

The play, which is scheduled to open in January 2024, joins a string of Broadway shows that confront antisemitism in the U.S. and abroad.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 09:42AM
Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Broadway Musicians Object to David Byrne’s ‘Here Lies Love’ by Michael Paulson

The show plans to use recorded music instead of a live band, but a labor union says its contract for the theater requires musicians for musicals.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 01:06PM
Tuesday, May 23, 2023

How America’s Playwrights Saved the Tony Awards by Michael Paulson

The screenwriters’ strike threatened next month’s broadcast, a key marketing moment for the fragile theater industry. That’s when leading dramatists sprang into action.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 12:12PM
Tuesday, May 16, 2023

Tony Awards broadcast can proceed after striking writers’ union agrees by Michael Paulson and John Koblin

The Tony Awards ceremony had been in doubt ever since Hollywood’s screenwriters went on strike earlier this month.

SOURCE: www.seattletimes.com at 11:45AM
Monday, May 15, 2023

Tony Awards Broadcast Can Proceed After Striking Writers’ Union Agrees by Michael Paulson and John Koblin

The Tony Awards, a key marketing opportunity for Broadway, can go ahead in an altered form after the striking screenwriters’ union said it would not picket this year’s broadcast.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 10:02PM

Tony Awards Officials Ask Striking Writers to Reconsider Broadcast by Michael Paulson

The strike by the Writers Guild of America is endangering the June 11 broadcast of the Tony Awards, one of the biggest marketing opportunities for an industry recovering from the pandemic.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:54PM
Friday, May 12, 2023

Jeremy Strong to Star in Broadway Revival of ‘An Enemy of the People’ by Michael Paulson

The production, with a new script by Amy Herzog and directed by Sam Gold, will begin early next year.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 01:32PM

Hollywood Writers’ Strike Puts the Tony Awards in Jeopardy by Michael Paulson and John Koblin

The Tonys, set to be telecast on June 11, are Broadway’s biggest marketing moment. But the strike by the Writers Guild of America means the show might not go on.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 09:24AM
Thursday, May 11, 2023

‘Bad Cinderella’ Had a Not Good Run on Broadway. It Will Close June 4. by Michael Paulson

The show features music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, who arrived on Broadway in 1971 and has had an unbroken streak of shows since 1979.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 09:48AM
Wednesday, May 10, 2023

5 Tony-Nominated Broadway Shows, 5 Stagecraft Secrets by Michael Paulson

What’s on Jessica Chastain’s mind as she spins onstage? Plus: Ben Platt’s silence, the “Fat Ham” ghost, the “Shucked” corn dance and all that “Sweeney” blood.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:32AM

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