This Weekend’s Highlights:
Friday, July 18
Dolly Parton’s Dolly: A True Original Musical, by Dolly Parton & Maria S. Schlatter, directed by Bartlett Sher, featuring Katie Rose Clarke (Dolly Parton), John Behlemann (Carl Dean), Carrie St. Louis (Dolly), and Quinn Titcomb (Little Dolly), Johan Zdorjeski (Porter Wagoner), Jacob Fishel (Sandy Gallin), Tabitha Lawing (Little Judy Ogle), Beth Malone (Judy Ogle, and Danny Wolohan (Uncle Bill), with Peri Barnhill, Klea Blackhurst, Sarah Bockel, Jonathan Butler-Duplessis, Joe Carroll,Donald Corren, Ryan Demoville, Olivia Donalson, Sarah Hunt, Ruchir Khazanchi, James Moye, Cole Ragsdale, Maddie Robert, and Alex Ross. Swings and understudies for the Nashville company include Josh Canfield, Tiffany Engen, Todd A. Horman, Norah Nunes, and Kathlynn Rodin, opens at the Fisher Center for the Performing Arts on the campus of Nashville’s Belmont University.
Billie Jean, world premiere by Lauren Gunderson, directed by Marc Bruni, featuring Chilina Kennedy (Billie Jean King), with Julia Antonelli (Young Billie), Dan Amboyer (Larry King), and Elena Hurst (Rosie Casals), with Courtney Rikki Green, Wynn Harmon, Carolyn Holding, Jürgen Hooper, Callie Rachelle Johnson, Lenne Klingaman, Nancy Lemenager, and Murphy Taylor Smith, opens at at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre.
Evita, directed & choreographed by Josh Rhodes, featuring Katerina McCrimmon (Eva Perón), Paulo Szot (Perón), Omar Lopez-Cepero (Che), Daniel Torres (Magaldi), and Sabrina Santana (Perón’s Mistress) with Andrés Acosta, Leyla Ali, Marissa Barragán, Leah Berry, Patrick Blindauer, Jordan Casanova, Marilyn Caserta, Junior Cervila, Devin Cortez, Nicholas Cunha, Kyle de la Cruz Laing, Daniel Alan DiPinto, Kylie Edwards, Noelia Guerrero, Natalia Nieves-Melchor, Zibby Nolting, Arnie Rodriguez, Leann Schuering, Trevor Michael Schmidt, Sharrod Williams, and Noah Van Ess, opens at the St. Louis Muny.
Fire Island Dance Festival, in support of BCEFA, featuring Matthew Bourne, Braylon Browner, James Kinney, Masterz At Work Dance Family, Christopher Wheeldon, Ashton Edwards, and more, opens at Fire Island Pines harbor.
Frozen, directed by Michael Hietzman, featuring Cate Hayman (Elsa), Daisy Wright (Anna), Matthew Hydzik (Kristoff), Jordan Barron (Sven), Michael Brian Dunn (Weselton), Kevin Hack (Hans), Kyle Kemph (Olaf), Allan Snyder (Sir Dinadin), Hallie Camacho (Young Anna), Hailey Kenyon (Young Elsa), Bellamy Kelly (Young Anna), and Kailey Kenyon (Young Elsa), with Ryan Cavanauth, Lance T Barker, Brett Barthelemy, Bella Bilandzija, Jordon T. Elelon, Matthew Regorek, Laura Culey, Carly Haig, Hom Henke, Liz Leclerc, Justin Mock, Justin O’Brien, Maile Oravitz, Brittany Pent Rohm, Brittany Pend Rhom, Madsen Piper, Michaela Plummer, Kai Sachon, BB Stone, and Jasmine G. Swaby, opens at Pittsburgh CLO.
Tchaikovsky Spectacular with Fireworks concert, opens at 6 PM at the Hollywood Bowl.
Menage À Quatre, by Peter Léfcourt, directed by Ryan O’Connor, featuring Carly J. Casey (Jeannie,) Matthew Downs (Reuben), Daniel Montgomery Walter/Darren/Ezra Pound), Jeremy S. Walker (Gary), and Sarah Wolter (Meg), previews at LA’s LGBT Center.
Wesley, by Scott Steidl and Mark Hantoot, directed by Mary Duncan, featuring Andrianna Ayala (Casey) and Daniel Sanchez (Wesley) with Christa Lisette Beveridge , Tara Dougherty, Ashley Huber, Jack Kehoe, Christopher Kirby Saunders, Nathan Myers, and Maya Pierce, closes at Off-Broadway’s Times Square Theatre Center.
Saturday, July 19
Menage À Quatre, by Peter Léfcourt, directed by Ryan O’Connor, featuring Carly J. Casey (Jeannie,) Matthew Downs (Reuben), Daniel Montgomery Walter/Darren/Ezra Pound), Jeremy S. Walker (Gary), and Sarah Wolter (Meg), opens at LA’s LGBT Center.
Bay Street Theater‘s Summer Gala, hosted by Richard Kind, honoring Christie Brinkley and Donna Karan, featuring Adam Dannheisser (Tevye), Lara Pulver (Golde), Beverley Klein (Yente.), Natasha Jules Bernard (Tzeitel), Georgia Bruce (Hodel), Hannah Bristow (Chava), Ashleigh Schuman (Shprintze), Georgia Dixon as Bielke), Matthew Woodyatt (Alternate Tevye / Mordcha /Innkeeper), Dan Wolff (Motel), Daniel Krikler (Perchik), Gregor Milne (Fyedka), Michael S. Siegel (Lazar Wolf), Mark Faith (Rabbi), Toby Turpin (Mendel), Gareth Davies (Avram), Ed Bruggemeyer (Nachum), Sue Appleby (Shandel), Susannah van den Berg (Rifka), Carys McQueen (Mirila), Raphael Papo (The Fiddler), Karl Wilson (Constable), Simon Anthony (Sasha), Jack Osmond (Russian #1), and Alex Pinder (Russian #2), with Dylan Saffer, Chris Drapher, and Maya Kristal Genenberg, at 5 PM at the theatre.
Fiddler on the Roof, directed by Jordan Fein, featuring Adam Dannheisser (Tevye), Lara Pulver (Golde), Beverley Klein (Yente.), Natasha Jules Bernard (Tzeitel), Georgia Bruce (Hodel), Hannah Bristow (Chava), Ashleigh Schuman (Shprintze), Georgia Dixon as Bielke), Matthew Woodyatt (Alternate Tevye / Mordcha /Innkeeper), Dan Wolff (Motel), Daniel Krikler (Perchik), Gregor Milne (Fyedka), Michael S. Siegel (Lazar Wolf), Mark Faith (Rabbi), Toby Turpin (Mendel), Gareth Davies (Avram), Ed Bruggemeyer (Nachum), Sue Appleby (Shandel), Susannah van den Berg (Rifka), Carys McQueen (Mirila), Raphael Papo (The Fiddler), Karl Wilson (Constable), Simon Anthony (Sasha), Jack Osmond (Russian #1), and Alex Pinder (Russian #2), with Dylan Saffer, Chris Drapher, and Maya Kristal Genenberg, closes at London’s Barbicon Theatre.
Laura & Linda Benanti: Mother Knows Best concert closes at NYC’s 54 Below.
My First Ex-husband, by Joy Behar, featuring Joy Behar, Susan Lucci, Veanne Cox, and Jackie Hoffman, closes at Sag Harbor’s Bay Street Theatre.
Sorry, by Melissa R. Randel, directed by Melissa R. Randel & Larry Biederman, featuring Lea Floden (Lillian), Anna Giannotis (Fury), Jeffrey Johnson (The Men), Denise Leitner (Fury), Melissa R Randel (Persephone), Denise Scheerer (Fury), and Jacqueline Wright (Francine), closes at LA’s Moving Arts Theater.
Sunday, July 20
JOY: A New True Musical, by Ken Davenport & Ann Marie Milazzo, directed by Lorin Latarro, featuring Betsy Wolfe (Joy Mangano), Jill Abramovitz (Toots), Honor Blue Savage (Christie), Charl Brown (Dan), Adam Grubber (Rudy), and Mauricio Martínez (Tony), opens at Off-Broadway’s Laura Pels Theatre.
Boomerang Theatre Company‘s FREE Richard II gender-bending production, directed by Aimee Todoroff, featuring Sophia Aranda, Emily Ann Banks, Jordan Allen Bell, Isabella Chang, Nicholas-Tyler Corbin, Will DeVary, Allison Fletcher, Chris Harcum, Tasha Milkman, Dave Quiñones, Coleman Shu-Tung, Tarantino Smith, Shannon Stowe, and Mark Eugene Vaughn, with Maleni Chaitoo, Thaddeus Fitzpatrick, Skyler Gallun, Sarah Nina Hayon, Matthew Jeffers, Matt Monaco, Xavier Pacheco, Marcus Raye Pérez, Grace Porter, and N’yomi Stewart, closes at NYC’s Central Park. RSVP on the link above.
Nicole Scherzinger concludes her run as Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard at Broadway’s St. James Theater.
Fire Island Dance Festival, in support of BCEFA, featuring Matthew Bourne, Braylon Browner, James Kinney, Masterz At Work Dance Family, Christopher Wheeldon, Ashton Edwards, and more, concludes at NY Fire Island Pines harbor.
The Reservoir, world premiere by Jake Brasch, directed by Shelley Butler, featuring Adrián González (Hugo / Others), Marin Hinkle (Patricia / Others), Jake Horowitz (Josh), Liz Larsen (Beverly), Carolyn Mignini (Irene), Geoffrey Wade (Hank), and Lee Wilkof (Shrimpy), closes at LA’s Geffen Playhouse.
ç The 16th Annual Summer Playwrights Festival closes at North Hollywood’s Road Theatre Company.
**********************
Kind Stranger…a Memory Play, adapted & directed by Steven Simone-Friedland will run Aug. 24 – Nov. 1 at Theater for the New City.
Rick Simone Friedland
The poignant journey of Tennessee Williams as the legendary playwright recounts his life, art, and love affairs. Witness his wit and unflinching honesty as he writes his last chapter, revealing how his plays were his life and his life was his plays. Adapted directly from his memoir and using only his words, Kind Stranger could be the last original Tennessee Williams play.
**********************
Tennessee Williams’ Kind Stranger, adapted & directed by Rick Steven Simone-Friedland, will run Aug. 24 – Sept. 1 at Off-Broadway’s Theatre for the New City,
Rick Simone-Friedland
Kind Stranger depicts the poignant journey of Tennessee Williams as the legendary playwright recounts his life, art, and love affairs. Witness his wit and unflinching honesty as he writes his last chapter, revealing how his plays were his life and his life was his plays. Adapted directly from his memoir and using only his words, Kind Stranger could be the last original Tennessee Williams play. Steven and Rick Simone-Friedland, a gay married couple, say they both went into the project wanting to use the words and humor of one of the greatest American playwrights as the foundation of this play.
**********************
Showboat, the complete 1989 Paper Mill Playhouse production, is available to stream for free HERE, directed by Kirk Browning.
Eddie Bracken (Captain Andy Hawls, Richard White (Gaylor Ravenal), and Rebecca Baxter (Magnolia Hawks, Sheely Burch (Julie LaVerne), and Ellia English (Queenie), with Lee Roy Reams (Frank Cchulta, P.L. Brown (Joe_ Lenora Nementz (Elly May Chipley), Marsha Bagwell (Parthy Ann Hawks), Larry Grey (Jim Greene), Robert Jensen (Steve Baker), Monte Ralstin (Pete), Lawrence Vincent (Wind McLain), Michael McCarter (Vallon), Lauren Gaffney (Young Him), Logan Jordan (Child), Felicia Hannad (Old Lady), and Wardell Woodard (Charlie), with included Fred Anderson, Henri Leon Baker, Shell Benjamin, Eva Breul, Cheryl Burr, Gregory Butler, Deborah Cole, Sarah Downs, Lothair Eaton, Jeffery C. Ferguson, Harriett D. Foy, Malcolm Gets, Jerry Godfrey, Ruth Gottschall, Allison Gray, David Koch, Kris Koop, Greg Lloyd, Jim Mara, Kenneth Nichols, Ken Shepski, Cynthia Thomas, and Laurie Williamson.
**********************
A Trojan Woman, adapted by starring Sara Farrington, will run July 25 – 27 at Vassar College’s Powerhouse Theatre, directed by Meghan Finn.
A Trojan Woman brings an ancient story into the heart of today’s headlines. Set in the aftermath of war, a woman and her child find themselves alone in a ruined city, echoing the sorrow and devastation of the women of Troy after the city’s fall to the Greeks in the Trojan War.The play follows her journey as she steps into the voices of ten different characters — each one telling a story of loss and survival. At its core, it’s a mother’s grief that shows the lasting cost of war.
**********************
Hadestown will welcome a new principle cast on Tues. Sept. at at the Water Kerr Theatre.
(New): Morgan Dudley (Eurydice), Kurt Elling (Hermes), Rebecca Maomi Jones (Persephone), PaulSzot (Hades),an Jcl wolfe (Orpheus).
**********************
Committed? A Ritual for Robbie, will run Aug. 1-17 at LA’s Beverly Hills Playhouse, directed by Mitch Levine.