Stage Notes...and all that jazz

50 golden years of "The Sound of Music"

2009-11-10T01:03:00.005-05:00

I'm not ashamed to admit that The Sound of Music is one of my most favorite...things of all time. Of course, I didn't see the musical, but I've seen the movie dozens and dozens of times. It turns out that The Sound of Music is celebrating its 50th anniversary on November 16 and that a special anniversary edition of the recording will be released, featuring three bonus tracks.

To celebrate the musical's opening night 50 years ago, there will be a presentation and signing of the new CD and The Sound of Music: A Classic Collectible Pop-Up at Lincoln Center Barnes & Noble, 5:00 p.m. Sam von Trapp will also be present to share stories about his grandmother, Maria von Trapp.

Kelli O'Hara Sings God Bless America

2009-11-10T00:17:00.000-05:00

Kelli O'Hara (South Pacific, Light in the Piazza) sings God Bless America at Game 6 of the World Series last Wednesday.

Rounding out the cast of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

2009-11-10T00:15:00.005-05:00

I go on a Harry Potter surfing spree from time to time, and tonight, I found out who else will be appearing in the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, coming out in 2010 and 2011.

Bill Nighy (do I even have to say where he appeared?) - Rufus Scrimgeour

Rhys Ifans (Little Nicky, Elizabeth: The Golden Age) - Xenophilius Lovegood

Rade Šerbedžija (The Eye, Mission Impossible: II) - Gellert Grindelwald

Jamie Campbell Bower (Sweeney Todd, New Moon) - the young Grindelwald.

Toby Regbo - the young Albus Dumbledore

Ciarán Hinds (Persuasion, The Phantom of the Opera, There Will Be Blood) - Aberforth Dumbledore

Guy Henry - Pius Thicknesse

David O'Hara (Braveheart, The Departed) - Albert Runcorn

Sophie Thompson (Gosford Park, EastEnders) - Mafalda Hopkirk

Hebe Beardsall - Ariana Dumbledore
Andy Linen - Mundungus Fletcher
Matyelok Gibbs - Aunt Muriel

No word yet on who will be playing the young Severus Snape--and that's something I'd love to see.

The Royal Family

2009-11-09T12:13:00.005-05:00

I saw the play The Royal Family at the Samuel Friedman Theatre last Saturday night (10/31). It stars the genteel Rosemary Harris. I just felt that like Angela Lansbury, she's a stage legend and I had to make sure that I at least saw her live onstage.

The play is about the Cavendish family, an acting dynasty which is said to be patterned after the Barrymores. Rosemary Harris plays the matriarch Fanny. This is Ms. Harris' second time in the play. She played Julie in the 1975 Broadway revival, a role now played by Jan Maxwell . Julie, Fanny's daughter is the current onstage leading lady and mother to the ingenue, Gwen, played by Kelli Barret. They are joined by Reg Rodgers who plays Tony Cavendish, Fanny's son and Julie's brother, the cad; John Glover who plays Herbert Dean, Fanny's uncle, is married to less-than-stellar actress, Kitty Dean (Ana Gasteyer); Tony Roberts as their faithful agent and family friend Oscar Wolf. What a great cast!

The play goes through an ordinary day in life of the Cavendish which include reading scripts, preparing for the theatre as well as dodging tabloids. It's a very funny play with witty dialog. Rosemary Harris is the epitome of grace and refinement on stage. She is captivating to watch her onstage as lines and movement naturally flow out of her body effortlessly entertaining the audience and making them (including me) laugh. It's as if she's not working at all and is really living as Fanny Cavendish right in front of you. Jan Maxwell was also remarkable as Julie. Like Ms. Harris, she is at ease onstage and a natural comic! Her breakdown in the middle of the play is hilarious! Tony Roberts is very charming as Oscar Wolf while John Glover and Reg Rodgers were enjoyable. Kelli Barret was great as the ingenue. The only person I didn't enjoy was Ana Gasteyer who I thought was overly hamming up her lines and gestures. I felt that she didn't need to do that as the dialogue was already quite amusing in itself.

The set was grand. It was the living room of an NY Upper East Side apartment complete with stairs and foyer. I felt I was a fly in their living room that night. On a side note, I've never been to the Friedman Theatre before. It's a beautiful theatre! With it's lounge on the mezzanine and basement filled with photos of their past productions. It's wonderful to get to look at production stills of Mary-Louise Parker in Proof, Cynthia Nixon in the Rabbit Hole and even Andrew Lippa's The Wild Party. Oh and another bonus that night, Donna McKechnie, the original Cassie in A Chorus Line, was sitting across the aisle from me. It was so cool!

Some photos I took that night:

The poster

Wishful Drinking

2009-11-08T00:37:00.004-05:00

I've always enjoyed Carrie Fisher's sense of humor so Lani and I couldn't resist seeing her show, Wishful Drinking last Saturday (Oct. 31). Ms. Fisher details her life from birth, to her stint in Star Wars and it's effect on her life, to her drinking days, to being diagnosed as bipolar and to the present where she has embraced her follies. It was hilarious and comical but at the same time specially poignant. I admire her wit and her courage with which she candidly embraces her disorder and openly relays so much details of life. Specially funny were the segments of Hollywood Inbreeding 101, where she discusses her family tree and reveal their dysfunctions, and the saga of Star Wars and it's forever lasting effects on her life. If you get a chance go see it. She's quite a character.

I love the Wishful Drinking poster. It just sets up the kind of humor you'll experience in the show.

Yankee Pride

2009-11-06T21:05:00.002-05:00

The New York Yankees paraded through the Canyon of Heroes today to celebrate their 27th World Series championship. They were given keys to the city by newly re-elected Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Congratulations once again!

(photo from NYTimes)

Glee Inside The Casting Process

2009-11-05T01:03:00.004-05:00

Check out this casting video for Glee. It includes a cameo of Next To Normal's Aaron Tveit!

(photo from EW.com)

We are the Champions!

2009-11-05T00:39:00.005-05:00

The New York Yankees won their 27th World Series title, their first since 2000. And to do it at the new stadium in front of the home crowd was even better. Congratulations to Hideki Matsui, the first Japanese-born player to become World Series MVP.

Can you tell me how to get to 4-0?

2009-11-04T22:59:00.006-05:00

Sesame Street is turning 40 on 10 November! Even First Lady Michelle Obama will be joining the celebration.

(Cookie Monster's from Philippine Google. Photo of Google's doodle from Huffington Post)

How Wonderful A Sound Can Be

2009-11-03T22:41:00.012-05:00

(Photo from CastleOnTheHudson.com)

Last Sunday night I joined 3 other girls to drive out to Tarrytown NY to see Julia Murney at Cabaret at the Castle. It's a series of concerts with Broadway actors held at the Castle on the Hudson. The drive itself was so much fun and the concert, enjoyable.

Yes, it was a real castle which was beautiful in itself. The concert venue was set in this space that seemed to be a chapel which was part of the complex. Very elegant and intimate.

Her song list was the same as her Feinstein's concert in May '09 (read about that concert here) give or take one or two songs. She even had the same music director, Tony winner Tom Kitt and cellist Mairi Dorman-Phaneuf who played beautiful music. Julia was in great voice that night and her rendition of So Anyway (from Next To Normal) and Good Thing Going/Not A Day Goes By never fails to move me. But that night I thought her rendition of Maria (from West Side Story) was very memorable. She sung it with a subtext of seeing her child for the first time. I thought it was more beautiful this time but I don't know why. It just was.

Another treat from where I was seated was to watch Tom Kitt tinker those piano keys during the concert. His fingers were so nimble and lithe it was fascinating to watch.

Julia Murney singing So Anyway from Next To Normal. This video courtesy of mspt47 was from her Feinstein's concert in May '09

Photos I took that night:

Entrance to the Castle

The entrance to the concert venue

The venue - what an intimate space! I took these photos before the show started.

The Ceiling.....doesn't it make you feel that you're in the court of Henry VIII?

Oh Say Can You Glee.....

2009-11-02T23:29:00.001-05:00

The cast of Glee singing the National Anthem at Game 3 of the World Series. Thanks to Lani for the link.

It's time we Met

2009-11-01T18:40:00.008-05:00

No photography was allowed at the special exhibit, Johannes Vermeer's The Milkmaid.

The New American Wing
New York Marathoners in Central Park
Study for Degas's The Little Fourteen year old Dancer

Temple of Dendur

I wish I could say I came up with this post's title, but the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art beat me to it. The Milkmaid is visiting the Big Apple as part of the celebrations for the 400th anniversary of Henry Hudson's voyage. Here are some photos from our visit.

Carbs For A Cause

2009-10-30T00:41:00.001-04:00

Join Broadway's Kate Shindle for dinner as she raises funds for Broadway Impact by running the NYC Marathon! According to press notes:

"Broadway star and former Miss America Kate Shindle is running the 2009 NYC marathon to raise money for Broadway Impact!
To help Kate get ready for Sunday's run, we're serving up an all-you-can-eat Carb Fest the evening before the run.
Join us on Saturday, Oct. 31 at Vlada Bar, to load up on carbs and help support Kate and Broadway Impact.
A generous buffet of carbilicious food will be provided by Tony's DiNapoli Restaurant.
And you never know what other Broadway Impact celebs might stop by too!
Tickets are only $20! All proceeds go to Broadway Impact."

For more information about donating and tickets please click here.

(photos from BWW)

Deconstructing Glee with Ryan Murphy

2009-10-29T13:16:00.002-04:00

If you were like me, I missed Glee last night. So here you go, Glee's creator Ryan Murphy talks about the casting, choice of song and what makes Glee......well, Glee!

I'm a Believer

2009-10-28T21:53:00.003-04:00

With the most recent announcement that Shrek will close on Jan. 3, 2010, the cast goes to the recording studio to lay down the tracks to their curtain call song I'm A Believer. Check them out rocking to the song from this video from Broadway.com

P.S. I Love You

2009-10-28T08:29:00.004-04:00

,
Elena Desserich was a brave little 6 year old who battled inoperable brain cancer. She passed away in August 2007. In the time she had left, she made drawings and wrote notes to her parents and little sister. Elena left them around the house for her family to find. Her parents Keith and Brooke share these and their personal memories in a book called Notes Left Behind. Proceeds from the book go to The Cure Starts Now.

Josh Perfect

2009-10-27T22:07:00.004-04:00

Josh Groban confirmed that he will be returning to Glee this season. He told Access Hollywood:
“I think I’m going to come back and do one more episode. We’ll see what happens... I had a great time with that cast, coming from a theater background... being a member of the choir club as a kid, just to see that group of people being represented in mainstream culture is really, really so great.”

New episodes return on 11 November 2009.

(photo from Broadwayworld)

Everything's Alright

2009-10-26T08:03:00.004-04:00

Andrew Lloyd Webber has been diagnosed with prostate cancer and was admitted to the hospital this weekend for treatment.

Our best wishes to Mr. Webber during this difficult time.

(photo from Guardian .co.UK)

Here's the thing...

2009-10-24T21:06:00.007-04:00

With a heavy heart, I finished reading Official Book Club Selection: A Memoir by Kathy Griffin. Ms. Griffin is a controversial comic: you either hate her or you love her. I happen to be a Kathyshipper. I've seen her television specials, seen her act live at the Madison Square Garden, and am a regular viewer of her Bravo series. Nice to see that she is as honest and as fearless as she is in her book as in other media . I was expecting the usual book by comedians filled with jokes that they never got to use, but instead found an uncensored version of Kathy Griffin's life. With many laugh-out-loud segments. We get to know her family (I love her parents Maggie and John even more.). She even discusses her disturbed older brother. She chronicles her eating disorder, her harrowing plastic surgeries. We get an intimate look at the life of a struggling comic and a failed marriage. The only weak link was the over-long chapter on her email exchanges with Steve Wozniak. I loved the interview with Random House at the end, the reading guide and the hilarious index.

A+ for this self-proclaimed D-lister. The book doesn't suck at all.

Broadway Barks Benefit

2009-10-23T11:08:00.000-04:00

See Broadway Barks founder and Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids Trustee Bernadette Peters in a one night benefit "A Special Concert for Broadway Barks because Broadway Cares" on 09 November at the Minskoff Theatre. Visit Broadway Cares to buy tickets, or call (212)840-0770 x 268.

Superb

2009-10-22T09:37:00.000-04:00

After seeing Pulitzer Prize winner Tracy Letts's savagely funny but distressing August: Osage County, I just HAD to see his comedy Superior Donuts, fresh from Chicago's Steppenwolf Theatre.

Michael McKean stars as the unobtrusive Arthur Przybyszewski, the owner of a donut shop in Uptown Chicago started by his immigrant father in the '50s. He is a pony-tailed draft dodger, estranged from his only daughter and mourning the death of his ex-wife, completely oblivious to Officer Randy Osteen's (Kate Buddeke) affection for him. Other shop regulars are Randy's partner Officer James Bailey (James Vincent Meredith), and Lady Boyle (Jane Alderman), the resident kooky lady.

The humdrum of life is broken by the arrival of Franco Wicks (Jon Michael Hill), a brash budding author in search of a job. His character gets the most laughs for his zippy lines, and predictably, he and Arthur become unlikely friends. These two actors have wonderful chemistry. The young man's engaging confidence plays off well against Mr. McKean's understated performance. It was a pleasure to see an actor that I know from Spinal Tap and Laverne & Shirley play such a quiet, disinterested man.

Robert Maffia is Luther Flynn with henchman Kevin Magee(played by Cliff Chamberlain), the play's requisite bad guys. Yasen Peyankov hams it up as Max Tarasov, who owns a DVD store next door. Michael Garvey plays Tarasov's nephew Kiril in a short but unforgettable role.

Mr. Letts's comedy still packs an emotional wallop, but not as brutal as August. This one's caffeinated, cinnamon-flavored and sugar-raised.

By Design

2009-10-21T08:54:00.000-04:00

It is National Design Week at Cooper Hewitt , the National Design Museum. I never knew there were Smithsonian museums outside of Washington, D.C., but the Big Apple is apparently home to two, including Cooper Hewitt and the George Gustav Heye Center National Museum of the American Indian downtown.

The Movie in My Mind

2009-10-21T00:02:00.005-04:00

Breaking News! It has just been announced that a film version of the musical Miss Saigon is headed to the big screen in 2011! The film will be produced by West End and Broadway producer, Cameron Mackintosh and Paula Wagner with Lee Daniels directing. Let the casting begin! Full story is featured here.

(photo from BWW)

He's A Male Diva.....a Miva

2009-10-20T22:19:00.006-04:00

Tony Nominee Jonathan Groff will be re-uniting with his Spring Awakening co-start, Lea Michele for a few episodes in Glee. He'll be playing the vocal lead in Vocal Adrenaline (the rival group) and as a possible love interest of Rachel Barry (Lea Michele). According to the show's producer, Ryan Murphy, Groff will play a male diva, a Miva. Read the full story here.

(photo from NY Daily News)

Joss Giddy with Glee!

2009-10-20T10:49:00.003-04:00

If you saw Buffy the Vampire Slayer's musical episode, "Once More with Feeling", and Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, you know that boy genius Joss Whedon knows his musicals. He confirmed that he will be directing an episode of Fox's Glee!

My heart is full.

(photo from Wikipedia)