All stories by Richard Sandomir on BroadwayStars

Saturday, June 22, 2024

Ron Simons, Who Brought Black Stories to Broadway, Dies at 63 by Richard Sandomir

He left a career in tech and found success as a producer, winning four Tonys. His mission: staging productions about underrepresented communities.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 10:32AM
Monday, February 5, 2024

Inger McCabe Elliott, Who Famously Became Con Man’s Victim, Dies at 90 by Richard Sandomir

She was a successful designer. But she was probably best known for being duped in a scheme that inspired the play “Six Degrees of Separation.”

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:24PM

Hinton Battle, Three-Time Tony Winner in Musicals, Dies at 67 by Richard Sandomir

He won awards for his roles in “Sophisticated Ladies,” “The Tap Dance Kid” and “Miss Saigon” — the most ever in the category of best featured actor in a musical.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 03:36PM
Sunday, January 7, 2024

Joan Acocella, Dance Critic for The New Yorker, Dies at 78 by Richard Sandomir

She wrote about the leading figures in ballet and modern dance for more than 40 years. One of her books was about the brash choreographer Mark Morris.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 06:44PM
Saturday, December 30, 2023

Mbongeni Ngema, Playwright Best Known for ‘Sarafina!,’ Dies at 68 by Richard Sandomir

Before the fall of apartheid, his plays, which also included “Woza Albert!” and “Asinamali,” challenged the South African government’s racial policies.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 03:36PM
Monday, November 13, 2023

Shirley Jo Finney, 74, Dies; Addressed the Black Experience Onstage by Richard Sandomir

After an acting career that included playing the Olympic sprinter Wilma Rudolph in a TV movie, she became known as a director for her work at regional theaters.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:32PM
Saturday, October 28, 2023

Joanna Merlin, Known for Her Work Both Onstage and Off, Dies at 92 by Richard Sandomir

Soon after appearing in the original Broadway production of “Fiddler on the Roof,” she began a new career as a prominent casting director.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:19PM
Friday, October 20, 2023

Alan Eisenberg, Longtime Actors’ Union Head, Dies at 88 by Richard Sandomir

In his 25-year tenure at Actors’ Equity, he helped build Equity Fights AIDS and challenged the casting of the top roles in the hit musical “Miss Saigon.”

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 04:19PM
Wednesday, October 18, 2023

Steven Lutvak, Whose Darkly Comic Show Won a Tony, Dies at 64 by Richard Sandomir

He wrote several musicals without attracting much notice. Then he struck Broadway gold with “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder.”

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 12:37PM
Monday, October 2, 2023

Echo Brown, Young Adult Author and Performer, Dies at 39 by Richard Sandomir

A one-woman show that used her date with a white hipster to talk about life, race, love and sex, led an editor to sign her to write two novels.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 03:37PM
Sunday, September 3, 2023

Nathan Louis Jackson, Writer for the Theater and TV, Dies at 44 by Richard Sandomir

He wrote plays that tackled big issues like the death penalty and gun violence. He also wrote for series including the superhero saga “Luke Cage.”

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 02:55PM
Friday, July 28, 2023

Pamela Blair, an Original ‘Chorus Line’ Cast Member, Dies at 73 by Richard Sandomir

As Val, one of the dancers in the hit Broadway musical, she sang a memorable song explaining how she got work by enhancing her body through cosmetic surgery.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 06:04PM
Thursday, July 6, 2023

Jack Goldstein, a Savior of Broadway Theaters, Dies at 74 by Richard Sandomir

He helped secure landmark status for more than two dozen theaters in the 1980s, then initiated the design competition that led to a new TKTS booth.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 04:55PM
Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Robin Wagner, Set Designer Who Won Three Tony Awards, Dies at 89 by Richard Sandomir

He created sets for more than 50 of Broadway’s most celebrated productions, including “Hair,” “A Chorus Line,” “On the Twentieth Century” and “The Producers.”

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 08:02PM
Sunday, May 7, 2023

Adam Brace, Director of Ambitious One-Person Shows, Dies at 43 by Richard Sandomir

He worked with stand-up comedians to develop shows — one of which is headed for Broadway — that were more than just collections of jokes.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 01:36PM
Thursday, January 19, 2023

Arthur Duncan, Barrier-Breaking Tap Dancer, Is Dead at 97 by Richard Sandomir

One of the first Black regulars on a TV variety show, he brought tap to millions of viewers on “The Lawrence Welk Show” after Betty White gave him his first big break.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 02:49PM
Wednesday, August 31, 2022

Robert LuPone, Actor Who Became a Behind-the-Scenes Force, Dies at 76 by Richard Sandomir

After playing a critical Broadway role in “A Chorus Line,” he helped start the vibrant Off Broadway MCC Theater. TV watchers knew him from “The Sopranos” and “Law and Order.”

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 06:43PM
Tuesday, August 9, 2022

Chase Mishkin, Tony-Winning Producer of ‘Dame Edna,’ Dies at 85 by Richard Sandomir

She was nearly 60 when she began producing shows on Broadway. In 19 years, she had a hand (and her money) in 30 plays and musicals.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 06:18PM
Wednesday, June 15, 2022

Shauneille Perry Ryder, Pioneering Theater Director, Dies at 92 by Richard Sandomir

As a Black woman, she blazed a path Off Broadway with an intuitive grasp of “how a story should be told, particularly a Black story,” Giancarlo Esposito said.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:54PM
Monday, May 2, 2022

David Birney, Who Starred in TV’s ‘Bridget Loves Bernie,’ Dies at 83 by Richard Sandomir

The sitcom, about an interfaith marriage, drew criticism from Jewish groups and was canceled after one season. He fared better onstage than in television.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 08:18PM
Friday, April 8, 2022

Rae Allen, Tony Winner and TV Mainstay, Dies at 95 by Richard Sandomir

In a varied career, she had memorable roles in “Damn Yankees” and on “Seinfeld” and was nominated for three Tonys. She later became a director.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 02:54PM
Saturday, March 5, 2022

Tony Walton, Award-Winning Stage and Screen Designer, Dies at 87 by Richard Sandomir

He worked with the directors Mike Nichols, Bob Fosse and Jerry Zaks, winning three Tony Awards and an Oscar for “All That Jazz.”

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 02:33PM
Wednesday, August 25, 2021

Micki Grant, Groundbreaking Broadway Composer, Dies at 92 by Richard Sandomir

With “Don’t Bother Me, I Can’t Cope,” she became the first woman to write the book, music and lyrics of a Broadway musical.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:32PM
Monday, July 26, 2021

Elliot Lawrence, Award-Winning Conductor, Dies at 96 by Richard Sandomir

He led a big band, conducted on Broadway, collected Emmys and for nearly 50 years led the orchestra on the annual Tony Awards broadcast.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 06:06PM
Thursday, April 29, 2021

Anthony Powell, Oscar-Winning Costume Designer, Dies at 85 by Richard Sandomir

He was honored for “Travels With My Aunt,” “Death on the Nile” and “Tess.” He was also renowned for the outlandish outfits he created for Glenn Close as the evil Cruella de Vil.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:42PM
Thursday, February 25, 2021

Florence Birdwell, Singing Teacher to Broadway Stars, Dies at 96 by Richard Sandomir

She was a tough yet empathetic voice professor at Oklahoma City University for 67 years. Two of her students, Kelli O’Hara and Kristin Chenoweth, won Tony Awards.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 03:18PM
Friday, August 14, 2020

Billy Goldenberg, TV, Movie and Stage Composer, Dies at 84 by Richard Sandomir

He worked with Steven Spielberg, Barbra Streisand and Elvis Presley, wrote the theme music to many familiar series and accompanied Nichols and May and Bea Arthur on Broadway.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 07:48PM
Friday, May 1, 2020

Zev Buffman, 89, Prolific Producer From Broadway to Florida, Dies by Richard Sandomir

In his long career, he persuaded Elizabeth Taylor to make her Broadway debut in “The Little Foxes” and produced a memorable flop starring Muhammad Ali.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:32PM
Thursday, December 12, 2019

William Luce, Playwright, Dies at 88; Wrote ‘Belle of Amherst’ by Richard Sandomir

He specialized in one-character dramas, portraying luminaries like Emily Dickinson, John Barrymore, Lillian Hellman, Zelda Fitzgerald and Isak Dinesen.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 06:18PM
Monday, July 8, 2019

Martin Charnin, Who Helped Create ‘Annie,’ Dies at 84 by Richard Sandomir

He turned the comic strip “Little Orphan Annie” into a long-running Broadway musical and wrote the memorable lyrics to a score that included “Tomorrow.”

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 10:03PM
Wednesday, May 29, 2019

Roger Hirson, Who Wrote the Book for ‘Pippin,’ Dies at 93 by Richard Sandomir

For more than a decade, Mr. Hirson was known for writing for television, but meeting the composer Stephen Schwartz led to the hit musical “Pippin.”

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 04:48PM

All that Chat

2024-2025 BROADWAY SEASON
Jun 05, 2024: Home - Todd Haimes Theatre
Jul 11, 2024: Oh, Mary! - Lyceum Theatre
Jul 30, 2024: Job - Hayes Theater
Sep 12, 2024: The Roommate - Booth Theatre
Nov 14, 2024: Tammy Faye - Palace Theatre
Dec 12, 2024: Cult of Love - Hayes Theater
Dec 19, 2024: Gypsy - Majestic Theatre
Mar 15, 2025: Purpose - Hayes Theater
Apr 01, 2025: Glengarry Glen Ross
TBA: Titanic