All stories by Jeff Lunden on BroadwayStars

Saturday, February 24, 2024

The Second City, named for its Chicago location, opens an outpost in New York by Jeff Lunden

The improv and comedy organization that famously shuns New York City has just opened in Brooklyn — with a 200-seat mainstage, a 60-seat second stage, classrooms and a restaurant.

SOURCE: npr.org at 10:06AM
Wednesday, February 14, 2024

British star Glenda Jackson has died at age 87 by Jeff Lunden

Jackson was one of the finest British actors of her generation, winning Oscar, Emmy and Tony Awards. Fiercely political, she also served as a member of Parliament for decades.

SOURCE: npr.org at 01:54PM
Tuesday, January 30, 2024

Chita Rivera, Broadway's 'first great triple threat,' dies at 91 by Jeff Lunden

The three-time Tony Award-winning Broadway legend created indelible roles: Anita in West Side Story, Rose in Bye Bye Birdie and Velma Kelly in Chicago.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 07:18PM
Monday, January 29, 2024

'Days of Wine and Roses,' a film about love and addiction, is now a spirited musical by Jeff Lunden

The classic 1962 movie tells the story of a relationship buckling under the weight of addiction. The new Broadway adaptation stars Kelli O'Hara and Brian d'Arcy James.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 06:48AM
Tuesday, December 5, 2023

'How to Dance in Ohio' is a Broadway musical starring 7 autistic actors by Jeff Lunden

The musical is an adaptation of a Peabody award-winning HBO documentary — it follows seven young people at a group counseling center in Columbus as they get ready for a big dance.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 05:32AM
Saturday, November 25, 2023

An early boy band was world famous — until the Nazis took over by Jeff Lunden

Long before The Backstreet Boys, a vocal sextet in Weimar Germany was silenced because three memebrs were Jewish. A new Broadway musical with a score by Barry Manilow tells their story.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 07:36AM
Monday, October 23, 2023

The task? Finish Stephen Sondheim's last musical. No pressure. by Jeff Lunden

When the composer/lyricist died in 2021 at age 91, he left behind a partly finished show called Here We Are. But his collaborators say Sondheim loved a puzzle — and he left them all the pi…

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 06:49AM
Wednesday, September 27, 2023

A Jim Crow satire returns to Broadway after 62 years — and it's a romp, not a relic by Jeff Lunden

In 1961, actor and Civil Rights activist Ossie Davis wrote the blistering play Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch. Now, Leslie Odom Jr. stars in the revival.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 07:33PM
Wednesday, August 30, 2023

1985 sci-fi comedy 'Back to the Future' and its famous DeLorean are now on Broadway by Jeff Lunden

The star of the Back to the Future: The Musical may be the car. The show's design team created a DeLorean that flies over the audience.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 08:55PM
Friday, August 25, 2023

How 'Back to the Future: The Musical' created a DeLorean that flies by Jeff Lunden

It flies over the audience and flips over — but that's not all that it does.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 06:55AM
Saturday, July 22, 2023

You can immerse yourself — literally — in this Broadway show by Jeff Lunden

Is "Here Lies Love" the future of Broadway? The immersive musical about Imelda and Ferdinand Marcos is a $22 million gamble. (Story first aired on Morning Edition on Julu 18, 2023.)

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 10:33AM
Tuesday, July 18, 2023

You can immerse yourself — literally — in this Broadway show by Jeff Lunden

Here Lies Love tells the story of Imelda and Ferdinand Marcos' rise and fall in the Philippines. The $22 million immersive musical production is a big Broadway gamble.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 08:13AM
Friday, June 23, 2023

Broadway lyricist Sheldon Harnick, who wrote 'Fiddler on the Roof,' dies at 99 by Jeff Lunden

The Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winning lyricist was one of the last masters of Broadway's Golden Age. His career extended over 60 years.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 10:25AM
Thursday, June 15, 2023

British star Glenda Jackson has died after a shimmering life on stage and in politics by Jeff Lunden

Glenda Jackson has died. One of the finest British actresses of her generation, Jackson won Oscar, Emmy, and Tony Awards. Fiercely political, she also served as a member of Parliament for de…

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 09:19AM
Sunday, June 11, 2023

We ask 3 Broadway photographers: How do you turn a live show into a still image? by Jeff Lunden

Only a handful of theater photographers work on Broadway and their challenge is to capture the essence of live performance. Ahead of the Tony Awards, we ask three about their craft.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 06:33AM
Saturday, June 3, 2023

After years of ever-shrinking orchestras, some Broadway musicals are going big by Jeff Lunden

Producers have been saying for years that large Broadway orchestras are not financially feasible. In fact, the issue led to a strike 20 years ago. So why are some shows bringing them back?

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 10:42AM
Thursday, June 1, 2023

Tony Awards have gendered actor categories — where do non-binary people fit? by Jeff Lunden

"We don't gender other people's professions," says actor Alex Newell. "You say ... I'm going to my dentist and I need to hire a plumber." But Broadway's highest honors have male/female disti…

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 09:12AM
Sunday, April 30, 2023

A rarely revived Lorraine Hansberry play comes to Broadway by Jeff Lunden

Playwright Lorraine Hansberry's show, "The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window," opened last week on Broadway, almost 59 years ago since it first opened.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 10:24AM
Saturday, April 15, 2023

'Phantom of the Opera' takes a final Broadway bow after 13,981 performances by Jeff Lunden

On Sunday night the curtain will fall on the longest-running show in Broadway history: Andrew Lloyd Webber's mega hit ran for more than 35 years. "I got the gig of a lifetime," says one cast…

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 11:36AM
Wednesday, March 29, 2023

As 'Sweeney Todd' returns to Broadway, 4 Sweeneys dish about the difficult role by Jeff Lunden

Josh Groban, Michael Cerveris, Norm Lewis and Len Cariou all agree: It's exhausting playing a murderous sociopath, while dealing with stage blood, a mechanical barber chair and singing compl…

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 05:24AM
Thursday, March 9, 2023

Actor Topol, who appeared in 'Fiddler on the Roof' hundreds of times, has died by Jeff Lunden

Topol — the actor who went by a single name and who appeared on stage as Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof hundreds of times — has died.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 04:53PM
Thursday, March 2, 2023

A long-forgotten play by a storied New York novelist proves timely in its world premiere - Gothamist by Jeff Lunden

The central character of “Becomes a Woman,” a play that just opened at Mint Theater Company in Manhattan, is named Francie Nolan – the same name as the protagonist of “A Tree Grows i…

SOURCE: gothamist.com at 05:08PM
Saturday, February 11, 2023

A rarely-revived Lorraine Hansberry play is here — and it's messy but powerful by Jeff Lunden

Hansberry is best known for A Raisin in the Sun — but as she lay dying, she wrote this play about the haplessness of white liberals. Oscar Isaac and Rachel Brosnahan star.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 04:16PM
Wednesday, January 25, 2023

Encore: Look out, Nets rivals! Octogenarian Mr. Whammy is coming for you by Jeff Lunden

For every sports team, there are fans and there are super fans. For the Brooklyn Nets, that's 86-year-old Mr. Whammy — who tries to hex the opposing basketball team into missing their foul…

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 06:14PM
Saturday, January 21, 2023

Look out, Nets rivals! Octogenarian Mr. Whammy is coming for you by Jeff Lunden

Super fan Bruce Reznick, 86, has been a fixture at Nets games since before the team moved to Brooklyn.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 05:01AM
Sunday, January 8, 2023

Who says opera needs a grand stage? This festival is all about intimate productions by Jeff Lunden

The PROTOTYPE festival, now in its 10th year, presents new operas and music-theater works in smaller settings. "We were trying to create a black box opera movement," says co-founder Beth Mor…

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 05:00AM
Monday, January 2, 2023

Here are nine NYC shows we can't wait to see this spring by Jeff Lunden

You never know what'll hit or miss — but you can look at who wrote the script and score, and who's directing and starring. Here's what Jeff Lunden is keeping his eye on, both on and off-Br…

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 07:01AM
Tuesday, December 6, 2022

Three superstar divas power opera 'The Hours' - coming to movie theaters everywhere. by Jeff Lunden

Kelli O'Hara, Renée Fleming, and Joyce DiDonato star in a new opera based on Michael Cunningham's book.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 05:18PM
Friday, December 2, 2022

Encore: At The Museum of Broadway, people learn what it takes to make a show by Jeff Lunden

The Museum of Broadway in New York has lots of history and is also an interactive attraction where you can step inside a set or learn what it takes to make a show.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 10:06PM
Saturday, November 26, 2022

The Museum of Broadway reveals the show behind the show by Jeff Lunden

A new museum celebrating the history of Broadway is now in New York's theater district.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 01:42PM
Monday, November 21, 2022

Korean pop star Luna comes to Broadway in 'KPOP' by Jeff Lunden

The South Korean cultural phenomenon is now a new musical, starring actual K-pop idols.

SOURCE: National Public Radio at 05:36AM

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