A Broadway musical version of a cheesy 1980 movie about a painter and a Greek muse who rollerskate their way to love in L.A.? What would the theatre gods say? But because "Xanadu" is a spoof, it works brilliantly. Think tube socks, leg warmers, over-the-top choreography, breathy Australian accent, disco balls and hilarious performances all around: you get 90 minutes of pure, silly fun. Anybody who's as beautiful, funny and as great a singer as Kerry Butler is deserves to be a demigoddess. Ms. Butler(who reminded me of Sarah Michelle Gellar from where I sat), plays Clio/Kira, who sets out to inspire Sonny, a struggling artist. Cheyenne Jackson was absent so we saw Curtis Holbrook (he's in the Broadway in Bryant Park footage). Mary Testa and Jackie Hoffman as Melpomene and Caliope respectively, chewed up the scenery as expected. The only weak spot I found was the flashback to real estate bigwig Danny Maguire's (played by Tony Roberts) failed romance. So to writers Douglas Carter Beane, Jeff Lynne, John Farrar and director Christopher Ashley, thanks for "A place where nobody dared to go, The love that we came to know
They call it Xanadu."
September 30, 2007
Fanadus!
September 26, 2007
Broadway's baritone bar none
Pinky and I first saw Norm Lewis in the Actors' Fund "Chess" and "Hair" benefit concerts and heard his voice on the "Side Show" cast recording. Only Norm could have played God in the "Children of Eden" concert. I watched the Les Miz revival mainly to see his Javert. He will be playing King Triton in the upcoming "The Little Mermaid", opening 03 November. (Thanks to color-blind casting.) Needless to say we have tickets to see Disney's newest Broadway show already. Initial reviews haven't been favorable but because I love the movie that inspired the musical, I'm sure I will not be disappointed.If you haven't heard him sing, here's Norm and the inimitable Seth Rudetsky at the latter's Broadway 101 Master Class.
September 24, 2007
The Plays The Thing....
Author! Author!
Ms. Lynne Truss
For me!
Sticklers unite!September 23, 2007
Broadway Flea Market 2007
Check it out! HERE
The time is now, the place is here
To read more about genocide, pick up a copy of "A Problem from Hell: America and the Age of Genocide" by Samantha Power or Lieutenant-General Romeo Dallaire's "Shake Hands With The Devil: The Failure Of Humanity In Rwanda" . The latter has also been adapted into a movie scheduled to open in the U.S. on 28 September. A documentary version was released in 2004. If you're horrified enough by man's inhumanity, find a local Save Darfur group and take action.
September 21, 2007
Promises promises

September 20, 2007
The Understudy Website
Usually understudies and standbys are a very under appreciated group of people......remember my Slip of Doom posting a few months back? Well, some of the understudies before are the broadway stars and Tony winners of today. A list of which can be seen here.
And for those of you who would like to lessen the devastation of a slip of doom, BroadwayUnderstudy.com has a good listing of announced understudy performances for shows on Broadway. Check it out before you buy your ticket.
CURTAINS: THE MUSICAL
This is an overdue review because I saw this show end of June. I saw this show without any expectations and came out really liking the show! It's one of the more enjoyable shows I've seen this summer.
It's a combination of a murder mystery whodunit and a musical within a musical. It starts with a musical Robin Hood of the West having an out of town tryout in Boston and on opening night the leading lady is murdered. David Hyde Pierce of Fraser fame is Lt. Frank Cioffi is called on to investigate the murder. The twist in this musical is that the Leutenant is a huge musical theatre fan too!
Some delicious moments of this show were:
> David Hyde Pierce's comedy as his character digresses from the murder investigation and being more involved in the musical itself
> Debra Monk and her brassy performance of the show's producer....and her one liners!
> Karen Ziemba's voice
> the lovely song I Miss the Music sung by Jason Daniely....which echos as an ode to Fred Eb by his writing partner composer John Kander
> amazing amazing dancing courtesy of Noah Racey and Megan Sikora and the ensemble
Curtains has been labeled as an old fashioned musical. I've heard people say that....like it's a bad thing but I will say that Curtains is indeed a straight forward musical....songs and dances. It doesn't try to succumb to providing spectacles such as turntables, falling chandeliers, flying bubble machines or songs that are belted to the stratosphere; nor does it have a gimmick like breaking the 4th wall, actors playing instruments onstage or having cuss words on the songs lyrics. In our world today...with plasma tv, jumbotrons, imax films it's so easy to fall into all the spectacle and gimmick....but that's just what it is....all fluff. This show, is down to bare bones good singing and dancing which we rarely get these days. I love the Tough Act to Follow sequence where David Hyde Pierce and Jill Paice dances in a Fred Astaire-Ginger Rogers kind of way....you don't get that kind of dancing and footwork anymore on stage. I love the overture where you get to hear the orchestra....the brass section, woodwinds, strings and the rhythm section and not a pop sound coming from a synthesizer. But I think the best part is seeing a cast that enjoys and relishes being onstage together performing this show....it's very palpable!
September 18, 2007
It always pays to raise the roof
The 8 PM performance of "Wicked" on 07 October 2007 is a benefit show for the New York Restoration Project. It also marks the farewell performances of Julia Murney and Kendra Kassebaum as the witches of Oz. Proceeds go towards a maintenance fund for the Friendship Community Garden on Amsterdam Avenue and West 150th st. The garden was designed by Edward Pierce, Wicked's associate set designer, and features a yellow brick road and likenesses of the show's characters. The garden is set to open 28 October at a ceremony to be hosted by Bette Midler, founder of the NY Restoration Project. Tickets are $150 to $500.
September 17, 2007
Broadway flea market
The annual Broadway Flea Market will be held this Sunday, 23 September in Shubert Alley from 10 AM to 7 PM. Cast members from Broadway, off-Broadway and daytime television shows will be selling memorabilia to raise funds for BCEFA. You can get autographs and have pictures taken with stars like Sir Ian McKellen, Bebe Neuwirth, David Hyde Pierce, Tyne Daly, Vanessa Redgrave at the Celebrity Table. Grand Auction highest bidders can snag Tony Awards tickets, onstage appearances at Broadway shows, walk-on roles in TV shows and backstage tours, among others. Come one, come all!September 16, 2007
Broadway on Broadway



Lea Salonga's heartbreaking "I Dreamed a Dream" from "Les Miserables". Great audience response before and after her performance. I spotted some Filipinos in the crowd.
Cast assembled onstage for the traditional "New York, New York" finale.
Sing-along on Broadway!
Confetti!
"The Drowsy Chaperone" Beth Leavel held the last note of "As we stumble along" interminably! This Tony winner has lungs of steel.
Chazz Palminteri coming soon to Broadway in "A Bronx Tale".
Seth Rudetsky announcing Broadway's biggest fan. Wattup with the hair oh ahmaazing one?!
The winner Ryan Haddad got to introduce...
Former American Idol contestant Tamyra Gray from "Rent" who sang "Out Tonight".
Our favorite green witch Julia Murney with her stirring "The Wizard and I" from "Wicked".
Marin Mazzie urging King Arthur to "Find your Grail" from "Spamalot".
Debra Monk from "Curtains" reiterating that "It's a Business".
Happy crowd
Times Square, the cross roads of the world.
Lance Bass, currently Corny Collins on "Hairspray". He made us do the Wave twice, allegedly something that hasn't been done in Times Square.
My point of view. why do I have to be so short?ADDENDUM (by Pinky): Broadway.com photo coverage here.
September 15, 2007
Hodge-podge
On Monday 17 September, a portion of 53rd st. at 8th Avenue will be christened Jerry Orbach Way. The renowned star of stage and screen passed away in December 2004.
Jerry Springer the Opera is coming to New York by way of Carnegie Hall. The performances are scheduled for 29 and 30 January 2008. The show won the 2004 Olivier Award for Best Musical.
The 59th annual Emmy Awards will be telecast on FOX at 8 PM ET on 16 September. Elaine Stritch was already announced as the Outstanding guest actress in a comedy series for her hilarious appearance on "30 Rock". Lots of other theatre folk are nominated. The national touring company of the 2006 Tony Award-winning Jersey Boys, currently playing at the Curran Theatre in San Francisco, will sing songs as part of a tribute to HBO's "The Sopranos," which ended this past season.
Also in downtown LA on the afternoon of 16 September, "Asian Americans On Broadway: Heart and Music" at the Aratani/Japan America Theatre. Scheduled to perform: Grease's Christine Toy Johnson, Rent's Telly Leung, Beauty and the Beast's Deborah Lew, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee's Jose Llana and Avenue Q's Hazel Anne Raymundo.
September 14, 2007
What can men do against such reckless hate?
September 13, 2007
Hippie cabs

September 11, 2007
In memoriam
September 10, 2007
Last six years
My sister Lynn was here in New York on 11 September 2002. She drew these as I watched television coverage of that day's observances. Six years later, I think my feelings would still be best expressed by these drawings.
To find organizations providing assistance to 9-11 victims and their families , click here.
September 9, 2007
It was a dark and stormy night...
Madeleine L'Engle. Ms. L'Engle died of natural causes at a Litchfield, Connecticut nursing facility this past week. She was 88. Rest in peace.The Economics of Marriage

It was a stormy day yesterday, perfect for movie marathons. I first went to see "Becoming Jane", an imagining of a romance between author Jane Austen and Thomas Lefroy. It even suggests that he may have been the inspiration for Pride and Prejudice's Mr. Darcy. The film unfolds as if it was an Austen novel, complete with the pastoral scenes, although purists may frown upon certain scenes and dialogue. Still, it is a must-see for Austenites. (Sidenote: They showed a trailer for "The Jane Austen Book Club" movie. I read the book a few years ago and wasn't even aware there was going to be a film adaptation. I didn't particularly care for the book but I will see the movie only because Emily Blunt and Hugh Dancy are in it.)
So after watching the problems faced by poor yet genteel unmarried Englishwomen, I finally watched my DVD of "Water". This is Deepa Mehta's controversial film about the plight of poor widowed Indian women. Set in 1938, it starts with 8 year old Chuyia becoming widowed and sent to an ashram. She is told that with her husband dead, she is half dead. Chuyia's head is shaved, eats once a day and is forced to beg in the streets. She is befriended by Shakuntula and by Kalyani, a widow forced into prostitution by the house matriarch. The film sparked protests, riots, and production was shut down in India because it was viewed as anti-Hindi. Deepa puts forth the idea that 2000 year old religious texts have been misinterpreted, resulting in the degradation of these women. By law, when the husband dies, the widow can be cremated with him, marry his younger brother, or live with other widows as an ascetic. They cannot remarry and are viewed as impure. Narayan, a law student who falls in love with Kalyani, tells Shakuntula that this is their fate because of economics. Sending them away, their husbands' families have no obligation to feed, clothe or shelter them, keeping the inheritance for themselves. It is thought-provoking and moving. Seema Biswas as the caring and devout Shakuntula is the film's moral center and gives a tremendous performance. It is a gorgeous film, beautifully lit and has a haunting score. "Water" is not as depressing as it sounds. With Mahatma Gandhi rising to power, the movie ends on a hopeful note. That last shot of Seema lingers with you.
September 7, 2007
Dining with the stars



September 6, 2007
The Maestro
Think opera and the name Luciano Pavarotti comes to mind. He has taken his final bow at age 71 after losing his battle with pancreatic cancer. Farewell Maestro!
September 5, 2007
Playbooks











