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Irving Berlin’s I Love a Piano

January 31, 2009 By Steven McKnight 28 Comments

iloveapiano1Irving Berlin’s I Love a Piano
Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin
Conceived by Ray Roderick & Michael Berkeley
Direction & Choreography by Ray Roderick
Musical Supervision by Stephen Purdy
Presented by Arena Stage in association with Maximum Entertainment, Off Broadway Booking, & Mazel Musicals
Reviewed by Steven McKnight

Arena Stage has such a distinguished history of outstanding theatre that one normally trusts any of its productions will meet a certain standard of excellence. After Arena’s true artistic triumph with Next to Normal, it is disappointing that the Arena brand has been loaned to a lackluster work like Irving Berlin’s I Love a Piano. [Read more...]

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Broadway stars gather for free Kennedy Center performance

January 30, 2009 By Lorraine Treanor Leave a Comment

Celebrating 12 years of free performances on Millennium Stage,  the Kennedy Center opens its Opera  House for a free evening of performances titled Broadway Today. on Saturday, January 31st at 6 pm. The match-up of Broadway composers and stars includes Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens (Ragtime), Scott Frankel and Michael Korie (Grey Gardens), and Jeanine Tesori (Shrek the Musical). Vocalists, including Tony winner Brian Stokes Mitchell, Liz Callaway (Merrily We Roll Along, Miss Saigon, Cats), Capathia Jenkins (Caroline, or Change; Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me), and KT Sullivan, will perform alongside the composers at the piano. [Read more...]

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Shrek’s Brian d’Arcy James

January 29, 2009 By Richard Seff 1 Comment

Brian d’Arcy James Talks with Richard Seff
Recorded by Joel Markowitz

Sixteen years ago Richard Seff met Brian d’Arcy James when the two performed in Lend Me AaTenor at the Players Theatre in Columbus, Ohio. A bond was formed, and Richard has watched Brian grow from the Bellboy in Tenor to Shrek The Ogre in Shrek The Musical, now in its Broadway run. [Read more...]

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 Brian d'Arcy James talks to Richard Seff [24:36m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (546)

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Filed Under: Interviews, Podcasts Tagged With: Interviews, musicals, new york

Next to Normal Cast Album

January 29, 2009 By Lorraine Treanor Leave a Comment

As announced in BroadwayWorld, Sh-K-Boom Records will be recording the cast album of Next to Normal in mid-February.  [Read more...]

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Cody Green from West Side Story

January 28, 2009 By Joel Markowitz 3 Comments

CODY GREEN ON PLAYING RIFF IN WEST SIDE STORY
By Joel Markowitz

Canadian-born dancer/actor/singer Cody Green is used to taking big risks.  He left The Juilliard School to join the ensemble of  the Mama Mia! national tour. Playing Eddie in the tour of Movin’ Out led to joining the Broadway cast in its last few months, and then the London cast. He took a leave of absence from the revival of Grease to compete in BRAVO’s “Step It Up and Dance” competition and came away the winner.  Then he turned down a show for the chance he might get to work with Arthur Laurents in West Side Story. [Read more...]

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Filed Under: Theatre Schmooze Tagged With: Interviews, musicals

Zomo the Rabbit

January 28, 2009 By Debbie Jackson Leave a Comment

Zomo the Rabbit-A Hip-Hop Creation Myth
Written and Directed by Psalmayene 24
Produced by Imagination Stage
Reviewed by Debbie Minter Jackson

With some artists, you can purchase a ticket on trust, knowing that they will deliver quality goods.  Psalmayene 24 is quickly becoming such an artist.  Renown in the metro area for his uniquely personal and creative flair, poetry slams, and hip-hop infused productions, Psalmayene 24 is now bringing a bippity bop beat to children’s theater [Read more...]

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Filed Under: Our Reviews Tagged With: imagination stage, Kids Stages

The American Plan and Leaves of Glass

January 27, 2009 By Richard Seff Leave a Comment

The American Plan and Leaves of Glass
by Richard Seff

Lynne Meadow and her Manhattan Theatre Club have been extremely loyal to playwright Richard Greenberg, mounting play after play of his, regardless of their merit. No question, Greenberg is a fine writer, as witness his Take Me Out and his current adaptation of John O;Hara’s book to Pal Joey, but he’s delivered some clinkers too (The Violet Hour,  The House in Town). His comedy A Naked Girl on the Appian Way served to offer roles that stretched Richard Thomas and Jill Clayburgh, but the play itself fell far short of its attempt to offer an incisive look into modern American family life, to promote the author’s theory that we must pursue and protect love wherever we may find it. [Read more...]

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Filed Under: NY Theatre Buzz Tagged With: new york

Rooms Set for Off-Broadway Run

January 27, 2009 By Lorraine Treanor 3 Comments

The long anticipated announcement came yesterday: Rooms, a rock romance, which made its World Premiere here at MetroStage last season, debuts in New York next month at New World Stages. Doug Kreeger continues the role of recluse 1970′s Glasgow musician Ian Wallace, and Leslie Kritzer replaces Natascia Diaz  in the role of Scottish/Jewish princess Monica P. Miller, who dreams of becoming a rock star. [Read more...]

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The Marriage of Figaro

January 27, 2009 By Debbie Jackson 1 Comment

The Marriage of Figaro
Written by Beaumarchais, adaptation by Allison Arkell Stockman
Directed by Allison Arkell Stockman
Produced by Constellation Theatre Company
Reviewed by Debbie Minter Jackson

Constellation Theatre Company has mounted The Marriage of Figaro, a “physical comedy about class,” with all the sophistication, wit, and zeal of a seasoned ensemble.  There just seems to be no end in sight for this young dynamic company that has tackled Greek drama, political allegory with Vaclav Havel, Szechwan and Arabian tales in its two year history, and now they can add French farce to their amazing history. [Read more...]

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The Little Dog Laughed

January 25, 2009 By Gary McMillan 4 Comments

The Little Dog Laughed
By Douglas Carter Beane
Directed by Michael Baron
Produced by Signature Theatre
Reviewed by Gary McMillan

Signature’s The Little Dog Laughed is a sparkling tonic for the winter blahs. Douglas Carter Beane is a sly little dog of a playwright who has tossed together several plot lines which should feel tired, but instead are refreshingly funny. This is largely due to the razor wit and “take no prisoners” determination of talent agent Diane (Holly Twyford), a character who does for agents [Read more...]

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