Today, songwriting duoBarlow Bear, Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear,announcedthe September 10, 2021 release of their highly-anticipated concept album,The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical.
1921 Composer Richard Adler is born. Alongside Jerry Ross, he writes two of the most influential musicals of the 1950s: The Pajama Game and Damn Yankees. He also writes the score to 1961’s Kwamina.
1943 Martin Vale‘s melodrama The Two Mrs. Carrolls opens on Broadway at the Booth Theatre. Elisabeth Bergner stars as a woman who finds out her husband (played by Victor Jory) is attempting to murder her. During the run, Bergner befriends a fan who waits for her nightly at the stage door, but turns out to be lying in an attempt to advance her own career. When Bergner tells her experience to Mary Orr, fiancée of the play’s director Reginald Denham, Orr uses it as the basis for her short story “The Wisdom of Eve,” which is later adapted into the classic movie All About Eve.
1973 In one of the greatest disasters in Off-Broadway history, the 1870-vintage Broadway Central Hotel at 240 Mercer Street collapses, taking with it the honeycomb of eight theatre spaces known as the Mercer Arts Center. Among the shows left homeless by the collapse are the long-running One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, The Proposition, and El Coca Cola Grande.
1978 Sammy Davis, Jr. stars as Littlechap in a Broadway revival of the Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley musical Stop the World - I Want to Get Off.
1998 For the first time since a Times Square construction accident shut down business on July 21, the Off-Broadway musical Smoke On The Mountain performs. The production, first produced Off-Broadway in 1990 at the Lamb’s Theatre, returns to its home, this time on the upstairs mainstage. Connie Ray and Alan Bailey’s musical starring Robert Olsen tells of a humble, religious family who make music for local church groups and socials.
2002 Avenue Q is presented as one of three in-development musicals at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center’s Music Theater Conference in Connecticut. Within a year, it gets an Off-Broadway production that leads to a Broadway transfer and the Tony Award for Best Musical.
2013 The world premiere of Jason Robert Brown and Marsha Norman‘s musical The Bridges of Madison County opens at the Williamstown Theatre Festival. Bartlett Sher directs the Broadway-bound production, starring Elena Shaddow as Francesca and Steven Pasquale as Robert. Kelli O’Hara steps into the role of Francesca when the production opens on Broadway in 2014.
2017 The Off-Broadway debut of Bobby Goldman and Drew Brody’s musical comedy Curvy Widow opens at the Westside Theatre. In the lead role is Tony nominee Nancy Opel, who plays a widowed, 50-something woman who immerses herself in the modern dating scene.
2018 The stage adaptation of Baz Luhrmann‘s 2001 film Moulin Rouge! has its world premiere engagement at Boston’s Emerson Colonial Theatre. The production, directed by Alex Timbers with a book by John Logan, combines songs from the movie with newer pop hits like Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” and Beyoncé’s “Single Ladies.” Aaron Tveit and Karen Olivo star as poet Christian and courtesan Satine. The production opens on Broadway the following year.
More of Today’s Birthdays: Francis Byrne (1876–1923), Larry Haines (1918–2008), Maria Karnilova (1920–2001), Tony Bennett (b. 1926), Martin Sheen (b. 1940), Mamie Gummer (b. 1983)
Flip through photos from Curvy Widow Off-Broadway:
Playwright Donja R. Love has announced the first annual WIO Prize for playwrights living with HIV. In its inaugural year, the 5,000 award will be funded by Emmy Award-winning actor Billy Porter, known for his roles on the hit TV show Pose and the musical Kinky Boots, and the LGBTQ media nonprofit GLAAD. National Queer Theater, The Lark, Mobilizing Our Brothers Initiative MOBI, and The Each-Other Project have partnered to coordinate the submission process.
Next on Stage Dance Edition is back with season 2 of our online dancing competition Miss the announcement of our college top 10 Check out the episode here
Summer continues with lots of favorites ready to cue up while escaping the heat. From nostalgia-inducing Center Stage and Annie to the new animated musical from Lin-Manuel Miranda and the second season of The Other Two finally arriving, there’s plenty for everyone.
Plus, Andrew Rannells makes his directorial debut with an episode in Season 2 of Modern Love based on his essay published in The New York Times. The season premieres August 13 on Amazon Prime Video.
All titles are available to stream August 1 unless otherwise noted.
Annie
This 1982 film adaptation of the Broadway musical brings everyone’s favorite “Tomorrow”-singing orphan to the big screen with a supporting cast full of theatre stars, including Carol Burnett as Miss Hannigan, Bernadette Peters as Lily, Tim Curry as Rooster, Ann Reinking as Grace, Albert Finney as Daddy Warbucks, and Geoffrey Holder as Punjab (a character from the musical’s source material added for the film).
Catch Me If You Can
Another stage musical inspiration, the true story of Frank Abagnale Jr. comes to life thanks to fun performances by Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks (played by Aaron Tveit and Norbert Leo Butz on stage in 2011). Steven Spielberg directs.
Center Stage
This dance-centric film follows students enrolled at the fictitious American Ballet Academy in New York City. Helmed by two-time Tony-winning director Nicholas Hytner (Carousel, The History Boys), Center Stage features performances from such theatre favorites as Peter Gallagher, Debra Monk, Donna Murphy, and Priscilla Lopez.
La La Land
Broadway vet Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling star in this movie-musical love letter to Hollywood, following the romantic and artistic entanglement of an aspiring actor (Stone) and a jazz composer (Gosling). The film’s Academy Award-winning music includes songs with music by Justin Hurtwitz and lyrics by Dear Evan Hansen writers Benj Pasek and Justin Paul.
Annette (August 20)
Burn This Tony nominee Adam Driver and Marion Cotillard lead this film, about a stand-up comedian and his world-famous soprano wife whose lives are upended after giving birth to a daughter with a special gift. The new movie-musical features songs by Russel and Ron Mael of the band Sparks.
The Birdcage
Directed by Mike Nichols and adapted by Elaine May from the original French play, this 1996 comedy stars Nathan Lane and Robin Williams as a gay couple who run a drag cabaret club in Miami. When their son announces his engagement, the pair are in over their heads as they prepare to meet the fiancée, whose parents are very conservative. Hilarity ensues in this lighthearted look at what happens when two families from opposite sides of the aisle come together to celebrate love. Sound familiar? The same source material inspired the 1983 Jerry Herman-Harvey Fierstein musical La Cage Aux Folles.
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
This is the story of two con men—one elegant and one slovenly—who scheme to bilk rich women out of their money on the French Riviera. Steve Martin, Michael Caine, and Glenne Headly star in this comedy that inspired the musical that opened on Broadway in 2005. Directed by Frank Oz, the film features a screenplay by Dale Launer, Stanley Shapiro, and Paul Henning.
The Other Two (August 26)
After a long wait between Season 1 and 2, the comedy returns for another round of chaos. The series follows two adult siblings navigating their not-quite-thriving careers and personal lives as their 13-year-old brother becomes a viral teen sensation. Broadway alum Heléne Yorke, Josh Segarra, Molly Shannon, Case Walker, and Ken Marino star with Gideon Glick joining for the second season as a love interest for Cary, played by Drew Tarver.
Bagdad Cafe
A woman trapped in an unhappy marriage decides to leave her husband behind during a road trip and start working in a cafe in the middle of nowhere. Working with the tough-as-nails Brenda, the two build a friendship and encounter some unique characters on their way to making the pit stop a place to remember. A stage adaptation of the movie is currently playing in London, with performances set for the Old Vic: In Camera series August 25–28.
Plaza Suite
Check out the 1971 film adaptation of Neil Simon’s comedy ahead of its return to Broadway next year. Instead of two performers playing three different couples, Simon flipped the script by having Walter Mattheau play all of the male characters, but gave Maureen Stapleton, Barbra Harris, and Lee Grant one female role apiece. Arthur Hiller directs.
Only Murders in the Building (August 31)
The new comedy series features Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez as three true crime–obsessed strangers whose lives collide after they witness a murder. As they record a podcast of their own to document the case, the three unravel the complex secrets of the building which stretch back years. Soon, they realize a killer might be living amongst them as they race to decipher the mounting clues before it’s too late. Joining the cast is Nathan Lane, who plays a New York City grocery chain owner in the show, co-created and written by Martin and John Hoffman.
Vivo (August 6)
Hamilton and In the Heights creator Lin-Manuel Miranda wrote songs for this animated movie musical and lent his vocal talent as the main character, a kinkajou who must deliver a letter from his owner in Havana to a long-lost love in Miami. Also in the cast are Gloria Estefan, Juan De Marcos, Zoe Saldaña, Michael Rooker, Katie Lowes, Olivia Trujillo, Lidya Jewett, Brian Tyree Henry, Nicole Byer, Leslie David Baker, and newcomer Ynairaly Simo. The movie, co-directed by Kirk DeMicco and Brandon Jeffords, also features a score by Alex Lacamoire with a script by Quiara Alegría Hudes and DeMicco.
Following its run at the Vineyard Theatre, Avenue Q opened on Broadway at the Golden Theatre July 31, 2003. The musical, featuring music and lyrics by Jeff Marx and Robert Lopez and Jeff Whitty, played 22 previews and 2,534 performances before closing September 13, 2009. The irreverent comedy earned six Tony Award nominations, winning three including Best Musical.
In the style of Sesame Street with humans and puppets interacting, Avenue Q tells the tale of 20somethings learning how to live and love in New York City.
The production starred John Tartaglia as Princeton/Rod, Stephanie D’Abruzzo as Kate Monster/Lucy the Slut, Rick Lyon as Trekkie Monster/Nicky, Ann Harada as Christmas Eve, Jordan Gelber as Brian, Natalie Venetia Belcon as Gary Coleman, Jennifer Barnhart as Mrs. T/Bear, and Jodi Eichelberger and Peter Linz as ensemble members with Carmen Ruby Floyd, Aymee Garcia, and Erin Quill as understudies.
Directed by Jason Moore with choreography by Ken Roberson, Avenue Q featured set design by Anna Louizos, costume design by Mirena Rada, lighting design by Howell Binkley, sound design by Acme Sound Partners, animation design by Lopez, and puppet conception and design by Rick Lyon with stage management by. Visit the Playbill Vault for the complete cast and creative team.