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Sheryl Lee Ralph, Amanda Seyfried, Jennifer Coolidge Are 74th Annual Emmy Award Winners

Awards Sheryl Lee Ralph, Amanda Seyfried, Jennifer Coolidge Are 74th Annual Emmy Award Winners

Ralph, who originated the role of Deena Jones in Dreamgirls, won an Emmy for her work in the new comedy Abbott Elementary.

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Sheryl Lee Ralph

The 74th Annual Emmy Awards were presented September 12, and a number of Broadway artists and artists with theatre connections took home top prizes.

Sheryl Lee Ralph, known for originating the role of Deena Jones in Dreamgirls, received the first major performance award of her career. A stalwart of stage and screen, Ralph was Tony- and Drama Desk-nominated for her role in the original Broadway cast of Dreamgirls and has received many NAACP Award nominations throughout her career, but her Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series Emmy win for the role of Barbara Howard in the comedy Abbott Elementary marks the first time Ralph has taken home the prize.

Ralph was visibly moved by the milestone and chose to perform a selection from Dianne Reeves’ soul song “Endangered Species” in lieu of a traditional speech. Ralph received a standing ovation from the assembled crowd and capped off her acceptance with the following quote.

“To anyone who has ever, ever had a dream, and thought your dream wasn’t, wouldn’t, couldn’t come true. I am here to tell you that this is what believing looks like. This is what striving looks like. And don’t you ever, ever, ever give up on you, because if you get a Quinta Brunson in your corner, if you get a husband like mine in your corner, if you get children like mine in your corner, and if you’ve got friends like everybody who voted for me, cheered for me, loved me. Thank you, thank you, thank you.”

Ralph is now the second Black woman in the history of the Emmy Awards to take home the Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. The first was Jackée Harry, who received the top honor for 227 in 1987. Ralph’s speech is available to view below.

In addition to Ralph, movie musical favorite Amanda Seyfried (Mamma Mia! film) received the Best Actress, Limited Series or TV Movie Emmy for her portrayal of Elizabeth Holmes in The Dropout, Jennifer Coolidge (The Women) received the Supporting Actress, Limited Series or a Movie Emmy for her work on The White Lotus, and Jean Smart (The Man Who Came to Dinner) received the Best Actress, Comedy Emmy for Hacks.

Winners of the Creative Arts Emmys were announced last week, including Schmigadoon! and Annie Live!

For a complete list of this year’s winners of the Emmy Awards, click here.

The Public’s Free Shakespeare in the Park’s As You Like It Completes Run September 11

Off-Broadway News The Public’s Free Shakespeare in the Park’s As You Like It Completes Run September 11

The Public Works musical adaptation by Shaina Taub and Laurie Woolery featured a community ensemble of every day New Yorkers.

The Public Works production of As You Like It, a musical adaptation of Shakespeare’s comedy by Shaina Taub and Laurie Woolery, completes its run September 11, wrapping up the 2022 season of The Public’s Free Shakespeare in the Park. As You Like It officially opened August 30 following a preview period which began August 10 at Central Park’s Delacorte Theater.

In the Shakespeare comedy, the exiled Orlando, Duke Senior, his daughter Rosalind, and niece Celia find a welcoming community filled with love in the Forest of Arden.

The adaptation, directed by Woolery, premiered for a five-night run in the 2017 Public Works program. It was scheduled to return for the summer season in 2020, but postponed due to the pandemic. Similar to the original Public Works production, the summer staging features two rotating ensembles of 127 New Yorkers representing all five boroughs.

Returning to As You Like It Post Pandemic Through Darius de Haas’ Lens

The cast includes Damion Allen as William, Tristan André as De Boys/Attendant, Ato Blankson-Wood as Orlando, Lori Brown-Niang as Agent/Puppet-deer, Brianna Cabrera as Silvia, Darius de Haas as Duke Senior, Bianca Edwards as Phoebe, Pierre Harmony Graves as De Boys/Arden Dancer/Young Orlando Dad, Rebecca Naomi Jones as Rosalind, Jonathan Jordan as Andy, Bobby Moody as De Boys/Arden Dancer, Renrick Palmer as Oliver, Eric Pierre as Duke Frederick, Idania Quezada as Celia, Christopher M. Ramirez as Touchstone, Edwin Rivera as De Boys/Attendant, and Shaina Taub as Jaques. De Haas, Perez, and Taub are all reprising their roles from the 2017 Public Works production.

Serving as understudies and standbys are Amar Atkins, Sean-Michael Bruno, Danyel Fulton, Emily Gardner Xu Hall, Trevor McGhie, Mike Millán, Kevin Tate, and Claudia Yanez.

The creative team also features scenic designer Myung Hee Cho; costume designer Emilio Sosa; lighting designer Isabella Byrd; sound designer Sun Hee Kil; hair, wig, and makeup designer Leah Loukas; and puppet designer James Ortiz. Original choreography is by Sonya Tayeh, with choreography restaging and additional choreography by Billy Griffin. Prop management is by Corinne Gologursky, with Delacorte 2022 sound system design by Daniel Lundberg, orchestrations by Mike Brun, music direction by Andrea Grody, music coordination by Dean Sharenow, and fight direction by Lisa Kopitsky. Kristen Gibbs serves as production stage manager, joined by Anaïs Bustos and Jessie Moore as stage managers.

Kelli O’Hara, Jesse Green, More Will Celebrate Late Mary Rodgers at Symphony Space

US/Canada Kelli O’Hara, Jesse Green, More Will Celebrate Late Mary Rodgers at Symphony Space

Green co-wrote Shy: The Alarmingly Outspoken Memoirs of Mary Rodgers, which was released earlier this summer.

Kelli O'Hara
Kelli O’Hara Emilio Madrid

Symphony Space will present a one-night-only celebration of the late Mary Rodgers and her just-published memoir—Shy: The Alarmingly Outspoken Memoirs of Mary Rodgers, co-written with New York Times Chief Theater Critic Jesse Green—September 18.

The program of readings and music will feature Green, actors Deborah S. Craig and Tony winner Kelli O’Hara, and author Meg Wolitzer. 

Mary Rodgers, the daughter of famed composer Richard Rodgers, composed the music for Once Upon a Mattress, and her writing credits also included the children’s novel Freaky Friday. Reviewing Shy for The New York Times, Daniel Okrent wrote, “I’ve never read a more entertaining (and more revealing) book about Broadway. Rodgers’s voice careens between intimate, sardonic, confessional, comic. The book is pure pleasure—except when it’s jaw-droppingly shocking.”

For more information on the event, visit SymphonySpace.org.

American (Tele)visions Begins World Premiere Run Off-Broadway at New York Theatre Workshop September 9

Off-Broadway News American (Tele)visions Begins World Premiere Run Off-Broadway at New York Theatre Workshop September 9

The co-production with Theater Mitu is written by Victor I. Cazares and directed by Rubén Polendo.

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New York Theatre Workshop’s world premiere of american (tele)visions, a co-production with Theater Mitu, begins performances Off-Broadway September 9 ahead of a September 29 opening night, with the limited engagement set to continue through October 16. Written by NYTW Playwright-in-Residence Victor I. Cazares, the production is directed by Rubén Polendo.

Featured in the cast are Clew (Angels in America), Raúl Castillo (Looking), Ryan J. Haddad (Hi, Are You Single?), Elia Monte-Brown (New Amsterdam), and Bianca “b” Norwood (Seven Deadly Sins).

The memory play follows “Hero of Ages Lost” Erica as she pushes her shopping cart through a ’90s Walmart, telling the story of an undocumented Mexican family. The production features live performance, live camera feeds, and pre-recorded video.

The show also has scenic and costume design by Bretta Gerecke, specialty costumes by Project Runway star Mondo Guerra, lighting design by Jeanette Yew, and technology design by Justin Nestor, Alex Hawthorn, and Kelly Colburn. The production is cast by David Caparelliotis, with J. David Brimmer serving as fight director, Andy Arden-Reese as intimacy director, Dawn-Elin Fraser as voice and text coach, and Shelley Miles as stage manager.

The Off-Broadway company’s upcoming season also includes Stephen Sondheim and George Furth’s Merrily We Roll Along, set to star Daniel Radcliffe; Clare Barron’s adaptation of Chekhov’s Three Sisters, directed by Sam Gold; Liliana Padilla’s How to Defend Yourself, co-directed by Rachel Chavkin (Hadestown) and Steph Paul (The Last Match); and Inua EllamsThe Half-God of Rainfall. Performance dates for the remainder of the season are to be announced.

Visit NYTW.org.

Muriel’s Wedding the Musical to Receive NYC Industry Lab

Industry News Muriel’s Wedding the Musical to Receive NYC Industry Lab

The private presentation will star Elle McLemore, Khamary Rose, Leanne Antonio, Sam Gravitte, and more.

Elle McLemore, Khamary Rose, Leanne Antonio, and Sam Gravitte

Muriel’s Wedding The Musical, based on the film, will have a New York City lab September 15–16 directed by Simon Phillips. Global Creatures, producer of Moulin Rouge! The Musical, presents the invitation-only lab.

The cast will include Daniel Stewart ShermanDavid Michael GarryElle McLemoreJake SwainKathy DeitchMary Claire KingMichael BarraNatalie Charle EllisPascal PastranaSam Gravitte, and Scarlett Walker. Joining them are Leanne Antonio, Samuel Cadieux, Hilary Cole, Emma Degerstedt, Tyler Joseph Ellis, Sam Gravitte, Mary Claire King, Maggie McKenna, Dariana Mullen, Claire Neumann, Steve Raymond, Khamary Rose, Kiaya Niccolle Scott, and Aaron Tsindos.

Featuring a book by P.J. Hogan—who wrote and directed the original 1994 Australian film—with music and lyrics by Kate Miller-Heidke and Keir Nuttall, Muriel’s Wedding follows Muriel, a socially awkward woman who heads to Sydney in pursuit of the wedding—and the dress—she’s always dreamed of. Additional songs, originally written for ABBA by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus, and Stig Anderson, also feature in the dark comedic musical.

The musical, which received its 2017 world premiere at Sydney Theatre Company, delayed its North American premiere in Toronto in 2018 but went on to play an encore run in Sydney and an engagement in Melbourne in 2019. The original film features Toni Colette, Rachel Griffiths, Jeanie Drynan, Sophie Lee, and Bill Hunter. Colette’s performance as the title character earned her a Golden Globe nomination.

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Take a First Look at the World Premiere of Muriel’s Wedding The Musical

Schedule of Upcoming and Announced Broadway Shows

This list is updated regularly. It is organized by start of previews.

Playbill will update these listings when new information is made available. For a list of all Broadway-related COVID-19 protocols, please click here.

2022-2023 SEASON

COST OF LIVING
Theatre: Samuel J. Friedman Theatre
First Preview: September 13, 2022
Opening: October 3, 2022
Starring: Gregg Mozgala, Katy Sullivan, Kara Young, David Zayas
Writer: Martyna Majok
Director: Jo Bonney
About: Eddie, an unemployed truck driver, reunites with his ex-wife Ani after she suffers a devastating accident. John, a brilliant and witty doctoral student, hires over-worked Jess, a caregiver. As their lives intersect, Martyna Majok’s play delves into the chasm between abundance and need and explores the space where bodies — abled and disabled — meet each other.

LEOPOLDSTADT
Theatre: Longacre Theatre
First Preview: September 14, 2022
Opening: October 2, 2022
Starring: David Krumholtz, Caissie Levy, Seth Numrich, Anthony Rosenthal, Brandon Uranowitz
Writer: Tom Stoppard
Director: Patrick Marber
About: Set over several decades in Vienna, Austria, and following the lives of a singular extended family, the play explores the human condition and its resilience in the face of traumatic history before and after World War II.

1776
Theatre: American Airlines Theatre
First Preview: September 16, 2022
Opening: October 6, 2022
Starring: Crystal Lucas-Perry, Carolee Carmello, Elizabeth A. Davis, Patrena Murray
Writers: Sherman Edwards (music and lyrics), Peter Stone (book)
Directors: Jeffrey L. Page and Diane Paulus
About: This musical retelling of the American Revolutionary War will be produced in partnership between the Roundabout Theatre Company and the American Repertory Theater at Harvard University.

DEATH OF A SALESMAN
Theatre: Hudson Theatre
First Preview: September 19, 2022
Opening: October 9, 2022
Starring: Wendell Pierce, Sharon D Clarke, André De Shields, Khris Davis, and McKinley Belcher III
Writer: Arthur Miller
Director: Miranda Cromwell
About: Olivier Award nominee Wendell Pierce and 2022 Tony nominee Sharon D Clarke reprise their roles as Willy and Linda Loman in a revival-told for the first time on Broadway-from the perspective of an African American family. This powerful interpretation of Arthur Miller’s classic drama illuminates the dark underbelly of the American Dream and its elusive promise of equality and opportunity for all.

THE PIANO LESSON
Theatre: Ethel Barrymore Theatre
First Preview: September 19, 2022
Opening: October 13, 2022
Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, John David Washington, Danielle Brooks
Writer: August Wilson
Director: LaTanya Richardson Jackson
About: The play is the fourth in Wilson’s Century Cycle, which explores the Black experience in every decade of the 20th century with such works as Fences, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, and Jitney, among others. The Piano Lesson is set in Pittsburgh’s Hill District in 1936, with a brother and sister embroiled in a battle over a family heirloom piano carved with the faces of their ancestors.

TOPDOG/UNDERDOG
Theatre: John Golden Theatre
First Preview: September 27, 2022
Opening: October 20, 2022
Starring: Corey Hawkins, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II
Writer: Suzan-Lori Parks
Director: Kenny Leon
About: A 20th anniversary revival of Suzan-Lori Parks’ Pulitzer-winning work about two brothers playing three card monte who discover the true nature of their history.

ALMOST FAMOUS
Theatre: Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre
First Preview: October 3, 2022
Opening: November 3, 2022
Starring: Chris Wood, Anika Larsen, Solea Pfeiffer, Drew Gehling, Rob Colletti, Casey Likes
Writers: Tom Kitt (music), Cameron Crowe (book and lyrics)
Director: Jeremy Herrin
About: Based on the 2000 film of the same name, the musical features a score by Tony and Pulitzer winner Kitt and a book and lyrics by Crowe, who earned an Oscar for penning the original film based on his own teenage experience. The coming-of-age story tracks a 15-year-old music fan named William who lands a Rolling Stone assignment following the emerging band Stillwater on tour.

KIMBERLY AKIMBO
Theatre: Booth Theatre
First Preview: October 12, 2022
Opening: November 10, 2022
Starring: Victoria Clark, Justin Cooley, Steven Boyer, Alli Mauzey, Bonnie Milligan
Writers: Jeanine Tesori (music), David Lindsay-Abaire (book and lyrics)
Director: Jessica Stone
About: Kim is a bright and funny Jersey teen, who happens to look like a 72-year-old lady. And yet her aging disease may be the least of her problems. Forced to maneuver family secrets, borderline personalities, and possible felony charges, Kim is determined to find happiness in a world where not even time is on her side.

KPOP
Theatre: Circle in the Square
First Preview: October 13, 2022
Opening: November 20, 2022
Starring: Luna, Bo Hyung Kim, Min Young Lee, Kevin Woo
Writers: Helen Park and Max Vernon (music & lyrics), Jason Lim (book)
Director: Teddy Bergman
About: A musical concert set inside the world of a KPOP record label. An Off-Broadway production played Ars Nova, Ma-Yi Theater, and the Woodshed Collective in 2017, going on to win the 2018 Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Musical.

WALKING WITH GHOSTS
Theatre: Music Box
First Preview: October 18, 2022
Opening: October 27, 2022
Starring: Gabriel Byrne
Writer: Gabriel Byrne
Director: Lonny Price
About: Internationally renowned actor and writer Gabriel Byrne will return to Broadway in his acclaimed solo show, adapted from his best-selling memoir of the same name.

& JULIET
Theatre: Stephen Sondheim Theatre
First Preview: October 28, 2022
Opening: November 17, 2022
Starring: Lorna Courtney, Melanie La Barrie, Paulo Szot, Betsy Wolfe, Stark Sands, Justin David Sullivan, Ben Jackson Walker, Philippe Arroyo
Writers: Max Martin (music and lyrics), David West Read (book)
Director: Luke Sheppard
About: Created by the Emmy®-winning writer from “Schitt’s Creek,” this hilarious new musical flips the script on the greatest love story ever told. & Juliet asks: what would happen next if Juliet didn’t end it all over Romeo? Get whisked away on a fabulous journey as she ditches her famous ending for a fresh beginning and a second chance at life and love—her way.

SOME LIKE IT HOT
Theatre: Sam S. Shubert Theatre
First Preview: November 1, 2022
Opening: December 11, 2022
Starring: Christian Borle, J. Harrison Ghee, Adrianna Hicks, Kevin Del Aguila, NaTasha Yvette Williams, Adam Heller, Mark Lotitio
Writers: Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman (music and lyrics), Matthew Lopez and Amber Ruffin (book)
Director: Casey Nicholaw
About: A musical adaptation of the classic Billy Wilder film, which starred Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon, and Marilyn Monroe. A world premiere in Chicago was recently scrapped in favor of a direct-to-NYC production.

A BEAUTIFUL NOISE, THE NEIL DIAMOND MUSICAL
Theatre: Broadhurst Theatre
First Preview: November 2, 2022
Opening: December 4, 2022
Writer: Anthony McCarten
Director: Michael Mayer
About: The story of the legendary Neil Diamond comes to life on stage in a new musical featuring his hit songs “Sweet Caroline”, “America”, and “Cracklin’ Rosie”.

AIN’T NO MO’
Theatre: Belasco Theatre
First Preview: November 3, 2022
Opening: December 1, 2022
Starring: Jordan E. Cooper
Writer: Jordan E. Cooper
Director: Stevie Walker-Webb
About: The comedy imagines what would happen if the U.S. government offered Black Americans one-way plane tickets to Africa. The work played a world-premiere run at Off-Broadway’s The Public Theater in 2019.

OHIO STATE MURDERS
Theatre: James Earl Jones Theatre
First Preview: November 11, 2022
Opening: December 8, 2022
Starring: Audra McDonald
Writer: Adrienne Kennedy
Director: Kenny Leon
About: When writer Suzanne Alexander returns to her alma mater as a guest speaker, in which she explores the violence in her works, a dark mystery unravels. Adrienne Kennedy’s Ohio State Murders is an intriguing and unusual suspense play, as well as a social pertinent look at the destructiveness of racism in our society.

THE COLLABORATION
Theatre: Samuel J. Friedman Theatre
First Preview: November 29, 2022
Opening: December 20, 2022
Starring: Paul Bettany, Jeremy Pope
Writer: Anthony McCarten
Director: Kwame Kwei-Armah
About: New York, 1984. Fifty-six-year-old Andy Warhol’s star is falling. Jean-Michel Basquiat is the new wonder-kid taking the art world by storm. When Basquiat agrees to collaborate with Warhol on a new exhibition, it soon becomes the talk of the city. As everyone awaits the ‘greatest exhibition in the history of modern art’, the two artists embark on a shared journey, both artistic and deeply personal, that re-draws both their worlds.

SWEENEY TODD
Theatre: Lunt-Fontanne Theatre
First Preview: February 26, 2023
Opening: March 26, 2023
Starring: Josh Groban, Annaleigh Ashford
Writers: Stephen Sondheim (music and lyrics), Hugh Wheeler (book)
Director: Thomas Kail
About: Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler’s musical thriller will return to Broadway with a full 26-person orchestra playing Jonathan Tunick’s original orchestrations.

CAMELOT
Theatre: Vivian Beaumont Theatre
First Preview: March 9, 2023
Opening: April 13, 2023
Writers: Frederick Loewe (music), Alan Jay Lerner (original book and lyrics), Aaron Sorkin (additional book)
Director: Barlett Sher
About: Lincoln Center Theater will bring the world of Lerner & Loewe’s Camelot to vibrant life once again when it produces a new version of the classic tale, reimagined for the 21st century.

SUMMER, 1976
Theatre: Samuel J. Friedman
First Preview: April 4, 2023
Opening: TBD
Starring: Laura Linney
Writer: David Auburn
Director: Daniel Sullivan
About: As the Bicentennial is celebrated across the country, two young women in Ohio navigate motherhood, ambition, and intimacy, and help each other discover their own independence.

ANNOUNCED FOR 2022-2023 SEASON WITHOUT CONFIRMED DATE OR VENUE

BETWEEN RIVERSIDE AND CRAZY
Theatre: Hayes Theatre
First Preview: Fall 2022
Opening: TBD
Writer: Stephen Adly Guirgis
Director: Austin Pendleton
About: For ex-cop and recent widower Walter “Pops” Washington and his recently paroled son Junior, the struggle to hold on to one of the last great rent stabilized apartments on Riverside Drive collides with old wounds, sketchy new houseguests, and a final ultimatum in this Pulitzer Prize-winning dark comedy from Stephen Adly Guirgis.

THE THANKSGIVING PLAY
Theatre: Hayes Theatre
First Preview: Spring 2023
Opening: TBD
Writer: Larissa FastHorse
Director: Rachel Chavkin
About: A troupe of really well-meaning theater artists dream of creating something revolutionary: a culturally sensitive, totally inoffensive Thanksgiving school pageant that finally gives a voice to Native Americans. Finding said Native Americans… isn’t so simple. And that’s when things start to get absurd.

HIGH NOON
Theatre: TBD
First Preview: Spring 2023
Opening: TBD
Writer: Eric Roth
Director: Michael Arden
About: Based on Stanley Kramer’s trailblazing 1952 Academy Award-wining film, High Noon is written for the stage by Academy Award winner Eric Roth and directed by Tony Award nominee Michael Arden. High Noon will become the first Western play to premiere on Broadway in over 85 years.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK
Theatre: TBD
First Preview: Spring 2023
Opening: TBD
Writers: John Kander (music), Fred Ebb (lyrics), Lin-Manuel Miranda (additional lyrics), David Thompson and Sharon Washington (book)
Director: Susan Stroman
About: Loosely based on Martin Scorsese’s 1977 movie, this musical will use John Kander & Fred Ebb’s songs, with new ones by Kander & Lin-Manuel Miranda, to depict a post-WWII New York in recovery.

DANCIN’
Theatre: TBD
First Preview: TBD
Director: Wayne Cilento
About: The Bob Fosse musical revue features an eclectic songlist from Neil Diamond to George M. Cohan. Cilento starred in the original 1978 Broadway production.

PAL JOEY
Theatre: TBD
First Preview: TBD
Writers: Richard Rodgers (music), Lorenz Hart (lyrics), John O’Hara (original book), Richard LaGravenese (new book)
Directors: Savion Glover and Tony Goldwyn
About: The primary setting for this classic musical has been re-imagined as a South Side Chicago nightclub in the 1940s; the character of Linda, formerly a stenographer-clerk, is now an aspiring singer.

SING STREET
Theatre: TBD
First Preview: TBD
Writers: Gary Clark and John Carney (music & lyrics), Enda Walsh (book)
Director: Rebecca Taichman
About: The show, based on the 2016 film, explores the power of first love and music against the backdrop of 1980s Dublin.

IN THE WORKS

13 GOING ON 30
Creative Team: Josh Goldsmith and Cathy Yuspa (book), Alan Zachary and Michael Weiner (music and lyrics), Andy Fickman (director)
About: New musical based on the 2004 hit movie of the same title about a gawky teenage girl who uses “wishing dust” to transform herself into a glamorous adult.

17 AGAIN
Creative Team: Marco Pennette (book), music and lyrics by Alan Zachary and Michael Weiner (music and lyrics), Adam Shankman (director)
New musical based on the 2009 Zac Efron fantasy film about a man who gets to relive his youth.
A developmental lab was held in New York November 2016.

AIN’T SUPPOSED TO DIE A NATURAL DEATH
Creative Team: Melvin Van Peebles (book, music, and lyrics), Kenny Leon (director), Lia Vollack (producer), Mario Van Peebles (creative producer)
About: A revival of the 1971 Tony-nominated musical exploring the life of Black Americans in underserved city neighborhoods.

BEACHES
Creative Team: David Austin (music), Iris Rainer Dart (lyrics & book), Thom Thomas (book), Eric Schaeffer (director)
About: Vivacious, outlandish Cee Cee and beautiful, privileged Bertie meet as children and become fast friends. From pen-pals to roommates to romantic rivals, their oil-and-water friendship perseveres through even the most tragic trials.
Latest: Beaches continued its development with a second regional production at Drury Lane Theatre in Chicago in 2015, starring Whitney Bashor and Shoshana Bean

THE BEST LITTLE WHOREHOUSE IN TEXAS
Creative Team: Carol Hall (music & lyrics), Peter Masterson and Larry L. King (book), Rob Ashford (director and choreographer), Jerry Frankel and Jeffrey Richards (producers)
About: Whorehouse recounts the good times and the demise of the Chicken Ranch, known since the 1850s as one of the best pleasure palaces in all of Texas…that is, until the crusading television reporter Melvin P. Thorpe focuses his cameras and his righteous indignation on the institution.

THE BODYGUARD
Creative Team: Alexander Dinelaris (book), Lawrence Kasdan (source material)
Cast: Deborah Cox
About: Musical adapted from the Whitney Houston film about a pop star who falls in love with her bodyguard.
Latest: Originally presented in London, the stage musical toured North American 2017–2018. Regional productions have been staged across the globe.

BOMBSHELL
Creative Team: Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman (score), Joshua Bergasse (choreographer)
About: Stage incarnation of the fictional Marilyn Monroe-centered musical whose creation was at the center of the TV series Smash.

BORN FOR THIS
Creative Team: Charles Randolph-Wright, BeBe Winans, and Lisa D’Amour (book); BeBe Winans (music and lyrics); Charles Randolph-Wright (director); Ron Gillyard and MyDestiny Productions (producers)
About: A story of family, love and forgiveness told through the incredible true story of BeBe Winans. Born For This is the family-friendly and universal story for anyone who has ever yearned for something—for anyone who is looking to find their purpose in life.

BROADWAY VACATION, A MUSICAL
Creative Team: David Rossmer and Steve Rosen (book, music, and lyrics), Ken Davenport (producer)
About: Based on the characters from the Warner Bros. movie franchise, the musical was scheduled to make its world premiere in Fall 2020 at the 5th Avenue Theatre in Seattle, with direction and choreography by Donna Feore.

CAMP DAVID
Creative Team: Lawrence Wright (playwright), Molly Smith (director), Steve Traxler and Gerald Rafshoon (producers)
About: A drama about President Jimmy Carter’s Nobel Prize-winning efforts to bring the leaders of Israel and Egypt to sign a peace agreement after years of war. The show had its world premiere at Washington D.C.’s Arena Stage in 2014. It played a pre-Broadway engagement at The Old Globe in San Diego May 13–June 19, 2016.

CHASING RAINBOWS
Creative Team: Marc Acito (book), David Libby (additional original music), Tina Marie Casamento (conceiver), Denis Jones (director, choreographer)
About: The musical traces the early life of Judy Garland, from her small-town birth to her starring role in the film classic The Wizard of Oz. The show had a developmental world premiere production in Flat Rock, N.C., in November 2015, and a full production at Goodspeed Musicals in September 2016. A workshop was held in January 2019. A Paper Mill Playhouse production opened October 6, starring Ruby Rakos as Judy Garland, Max von Essen as Frank Gumm, and Lesli Margherita as Ethel Gumm.

DAMN YANKEES
Creative Team: Richard Adler and Jerry Ross (music and lyrics); George Abbott and Douglass Wallop (book); Kathleen Marshall (director); Jeffrey Richards, Scott Landis, Jerry Frankel, and Jay and Cindy Gutterman (producers)
About: Revival of the 1956 musical about a baseball fan who is induced to sell his soul by the devil so his favorite team can win the pennant.

THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA
Creative Team: Elton John (music), with lyrics by Shaina Taub (lyrics) and a book by Paul Rudnick (book), Anna D. Shapiro (director), Kevin McCollum (producer)
About: New musical based on Lauren Weisberger’s 2003 novel and the 2006 film about a woman who becomes assistant to the notorious editor of a topline fashion magazine. A Chicago pre-Broadway tryout, starring Beth Leavel as Miranda Priestley and Taylor Iman Jones as Andy, is scheduled to begin performances July 19, 2022, at the James L. Nederlander Theatre.

DINER
Creative Team: Sheryl Crow (music and lyrics), Barry Levinson (book), Kathleen Marshall (director)
About: It’s Christmas 1959 in Baltimore and six high school buddies, now in their twenties, reunite at their old hangout, The Fells Point Diner—before one of them ties the knot. Diner first postponed its Broadway opening from April 2013 to fall 2013. A staged reading was held in New York December 2013, and a regional premiere ran through January 2015 at Signature Theatre in Virginia. Delaware Theatre Company hosted a second regional tryout in December 2015.

DREAMGIRLS
Creative Team Tom Eyen (book and lyrics), Henry Krieger (music), Casey Nicholaw (director), Sonia Friedman (producer)
About: A New York transfer of the hit London revival.

THE GREAT GATSBY
Creative Team: Florence Welch (lyrics), Florence Welch and Thomas Bartlett (music), Martyna Majok (book), Jeanie O’Hare (story consultant), Rebecca Frecknall (director)
About: A musical adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic novel, which entered the public domain in 2021. A recording of The Great Gatsby, A New Musical will be released on Warner Music.

THE HONEYMOONERS
Creative Team: Stephen A. Weiner (music), Peter Mills (lyrics), Dusty Kay and Bill Nuss (book), and John Rando (director)
About: Ralph Kramden and his buddy Ed Norton are back and still shooting for the moon in this world-premiere musical. After shocking their wives by winning a high profile jingle contest, they are catapulted out of Brooklyn and into the cutthroat world of Madison Avenue. Following a November 2014 industry presentation (from Jeffrey Finn and Goodspeed Musicals) and an April 2016 lab, the musical made its official world premiere at Paper Mill Playhouse September 28–October 29, 2017, starring Michael McGrath, Laura Bell Bundy, Michael Mastro, and Leslie Kritzer.

LAST SUMMER AT BLUEFISH COVE
Creative Team: Jane Chambers (playwright); Cynthia Nixon (director); Harriet Newman Leve, Ellen DeGeneres, Portia de Rossi, Lily Tomlin and Jane Wagner (producers)
About: It’s 1980 at Bluefish Cove: a lesbian beachside haven. Lil Zalinski and her close knit group of friends take refuge here each summer to live and love freely. When a straight woman named Eva wanders unknowingly into their midst, she sends The Cove into a tailspin and knocks Lil off her feet. The play made its world premiere 40 years ago Off-Broadway.

LIKE WATER FOR CHOCOLATE
Creative Team: Book by Lisa Loomer (book), Laura Esquivel (source material), La Santa Cecilia (music), La Santa Cecilia and Quiara Alegría Hudes (lyrics), Michael Mayer (director)
About: An exclusive preview of two songs from the musical debuted during ¡Viva Broadway! Hear Our Voices in October 2020.

MAGIC MIKE
Creative Team: Trip Cullman (director)
About: A stage adaptation of Steven Soderbergh’s film about male strippers. A private workshop was held April 2015 featuring Derek Klena and Taylor Louderman. A December 2019 premiere in Boston was canceled May 23, 2019.

MARIE, DANCING STILL: A NEW MUSICAL
Creative Team: Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty (score), Susan Stroman (director and choreographer)
About: Formerly known as Little Dancer, the musical about Degas and ballerina Marie had a production at Seattle’s 5th Avenue Theatre March 22–April 14, 2019, starring Tiler Peck, Terrence Mann, Karen Ziemba, Louise Pitre, Dee Hoty, and Jenny Powers.

THE NANNY
Creative Team: Fran Drescher and Peter Marc Jacobson (book), Rachel Bloom and the late Adam Schlesinger (score), Marc Bruni (director)
About: A musical based on the popular sitcom series that ran during the ’90s, starring Drescher.

ONCE UPON A ONE MORE TIME
Creative team: Kristin Hangii (director), Keone and Mari Madrid (choregraphers)
About: The Britney Speaks jukebox musical weaving together the pop star’s hits to tell a fictional story about fairy tale princesses who want to change the narrative. The show will now have its world premiere in Washington, D.C. at Shakespeare Theatre Company in November 2021 after a Chicago staging was scrapped during the pandemic.

THE SECRET GARDEN
Creative Team: Lucy Simon (music), Marsha Norman (book and lyrics), Warren Carlyle (director(
About: Revival of the 1991 musical based on Frances Hodgson Burnett’s story about an orphan girl who finds renewal when she discovers a locked, dead garden and brings it back to life. A co-production of Seattle’s 5th Avenue Theatre and Shakespeare Theatre Company in Washington D.C., the Broadway-bound revival also played a stint in Houston October.

SIDEWAYS
Creative Team: Rex Pickett (book), Anthony Adams (composer)
About: A brand-new musical, mounted by EFG-Renascence Productions, based on Pickett’s novel that was adapted into an Oscar-winning film and a play.

A SIGN OF THE TIMES
Creative Team: Bruce Vilanch (writer), Richard Robin (source material), Gabriel Barre (director), JoAnn M. Hunter (choreographer)
About: The musical tells the story of Cindy, a young woman who moves to New York City from the Midwest in 1965 with dreams of making a difference in the world. Set against the backdrop of women’s liberation, the civil rights movement, and the Vietnam War, the musical features the songs of a generation from Grammy Award–winning artist Petula Clark and multiple hit-makers of the day, such as “Downtown,” “You Don’t Own Me,” “Don’t Sleep in the Subway,” “The Shoop Shoop Song (It’s In His Kiss),” and “The Boy From New York City.” Developed at Goodspeed Musicals’ Norma Terris Theatre in summer 2016. A pre-Broadway production played Delaware Theater Company in 2018.

SOUL TRAIN
Creative Team: Dominique Morisseau (book), Kamilah Forbes (director), Camille. Brown (choreographer), Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, Tony Cornelius, Anthony E. Zuiker, and Shawn Gee (executive producers)
About: The story of producer Don Cornelius, who created the long-running TV variety show Soul Train with a score including soul and R&B songs showcased in the series. A world premiere production is scheduled to premiere at ACT in San Francisco in October 2022.

SIDNEY
Creative team: Charles Randolph-Wright (playwright), Ruben Santaigo-Hudson (director)
About: A new play about the life of Oscar winner and Tony nominee Sidney Poitier, based on Poitier’s best-selling autobiography The Measure of a Man.

UNTITLED GIULIA TOFANA MUSICAL
Creative Team: Jennifer Nettles (music), Adam Zotovich (producer)
About: The country star has her eye on bringing another merry murderess to the stage: 17th-century professional poisoner Giulia Tofana.

THE WANDERER
Creative team: Charles Messina (book), Kenneth Ferrone (director), Sarah O’Gleby (choreography), Jill Menza and Charles Messina (producers)
About: New musical based on the life and music of Rock & Roll Hall-of-Famer Dion DiMucci.

THE WHO’S TOMMY
Creative Team: Des McAnuff (director), Pete Townshend (book and score), John Entwistle and Keith Moon (additional music and lyrics)
About: The musical puts The Who’s original concept album on stage as a rock opera about a “deaf, dumb, and blind” boy who overcomes his disabilities with the help of ace pinball skills. Original Broadway director McAnuff returns to helm this updated production for the 2020 decade.

U.K. Tour of Saturday Night Fever Begins to Boogie September 5

International News U.K. Tour of Saturday Night Fever Begins to Boogie September 5

Bill Kenwright’s West End production takes its disco moves on the road.

Paul Coltas

The previously announced U.K. tour of Bill Kenwright’s Saturday Night Fever brings the disco beat starting September 5. The tour kicks off at Milton Keynes Theatre, with stoops scheduled through November 26.

Following Milton Keynes, the show will perform at Belfast’s Grand Opera House, Manchester’s Palace Theatre, Shrewsbury’s Theatre Severn, Oxford’s New Theatre, Stoke-On-Trent’s Regent Theatre, Edinburgh’s The Playhouse, Bradford’s The Alhambra, Torquay’s Princess Theatre, and Birmingham’s The Alexandra.

Jack Wilcox leads the cast as Tony Manero, joined by Rebekah Bryant as Stephanie and Drew Gerry, Oliver Thomson, and AJ Jenks as The Bee Gees. Completing the cast are Harry Goodson-Bevan as Bobby C, James Brice as Gus, Liam Morris as Double J, Dominic Gore as Joey, Billie Hardy as Annette, Tosca Fischer as Connie, Emily Bolland as Linda, Phillip Aiden as Frank Senior, Marios Nicolaides as Frank Junior, Melody Jones as Flo Manero, and Faizal Jaye as DJ Monty.

Yiota Theo, Ashley Luke Lloyd, Anthony Starr, Joshua Clayton, Helen Gulston, and James Cohen comprise the ensemble.

Based on the 1977 film and adapted by Robert Stigwood with Bill Oakes, Saturday Night Fever tells the story of young Tony Manero, who escapes from the pressures of everyday life by spending his nights dancing disco. It features classic ’70s songs from the Bee Gees and the movie’s soundtrack such as “Stayin’ Alive,” “How Deep Is Your Love,” “Night Fever,” and “Tragedy.”

Serving as both producer and director, Kenwright helms the creative team which includes choreographer Bill Deamer, designer Gary McCann, lighting designer Nick Richings, and sound designer Dan Samson.

U.K. Premiere of Parent Trap-Inspired Musical Identical Ends Run September 3

International News U.K. Premiere of Parent Trap-Inspired Musical Identical Ends Run September 3

Tony and Olivier winner Trevor Nunn directed the musical’s world premiere.

Emme Patrick and Eden Patrick in Identical Pamela Raith

The world premiere of the new musical Identical, based on Erich Kästner’s The Parent Trap novel, ends its run at Salford’s The Lowry September 3. Performances began August 19. 

The new musical made its world premiere July 26-August 14 at the Nottingham Playhouse. Read reviews here.

Directed by Olivier and Tony winner Trevor Nunn, the West End-aimed musical features three sets of identical twins who share the central roles of Lottie and Lisa: Kyla and Nicole Fox from County Armagh, Northern Ireland; Emme and Eden Patrick from Waltham Abbey; and Sienna and Savannah Robinson from Bromley.

The twins are joined by Emily Tierney (Wicked), James Darch (The Rocky Horror Show), Gabrielle Lewis-Dodson (Pippin), Louise Gold (Fiddler on the Roof), and Michael Smith-Stewart (The Lion King) with ensemble members Rico Bakker, David Bardsley, Hannah Cauchi, Paige Fenlon, Rosie Glossop, Dominic Adam Griffin, Jordan Isaac, Rutendo Mushonga, and Ellie Nunn.

Playing the other children are Winter Jarrett Glasspool, Daisy Jeffcoate, Isabelle Larrey, Saffia Layla, Parrine Long, Helena Middleton, Kirsten Muzvuru, and Poppy Pawson, joined by canines Ness and Louby, who share the role of Pepi.

Identical—with music and lyrics by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe and a book by Stuart Paterson—follows Lottie and Lisa, twin girls separated at birth, as they meet at summer camp as 10-year-olds and devise a plan to swap identities and reunite their divorced parents. Kästner’s novel was previously adapted by Disney into a 1961 film starring Hayley Mills and again in 1998 starring Lindsay Lohan.

The creative team also includes choreographer Matt Cole, set designer Rob Jones, costume designer Jonathan Lipman, video designer Douglas O’Connell, lighting designer Johanna Town, sound designer Paul Gatehouse, musical supervisor Caroline Humphris, musical director Tamara Saringer, orchestrator Tom Curran, associate director Martha Geelan, associate choreographer Jane McMurtrie, casting director Anne Vosser, children’s casting director and administrator Jo Hawes, and wig and hair designer Richard Mawbey. The production manager is Digby Robinson with general management and marketing by Kenny Wax Ltd.

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Check Out New Production Photos From U.K. Premiere of Parent Trap-Inspired Musical Identical