Have a wonderful holiday.
GRACE NOTES will return Tues. Sept. 3
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Holiday Highlights:
Friday, August 30
West Fest, offering new theater works, opens at LA’s Theatre West.
An Intimate Evening with Jennifer Holliday concert, opens at Hollywood’s Catalina Jazz Club.
Jane Eyre, by Paul Gordon & John Caird, directed by Megan McGinnis, featuring Julie Benko (Jane Eyre), Matt Bogart (Rochester), Soraiah Williams (Jane’s Mother/Abbot/Sophie/Blanche Ingram), Stacia Fernandez (Mrs. Reed/Mrs. Fairfax, Anne Scaramuzzo as Scatcherd/Grace Poole/Lady Ingram), Ella Frederickson (Agnes/Helen Burns/Bessie/Mary Ingram), Chanda Branch (Leah/Bertha Mason), Ada Manie Williams (Young Jane/Adèle), Tedd Szeto (John Reed/Robert/Vicar), Rob Adelman Hancock (Brocklehurst/Thomas/Lord Ingram/St. John Rivers), and Elliot Lane (Jane’s Father/Mason), with Allie Jessee, Florence Owen, and Chandler Vance, begins streaming at South Carolina’s Raleigh Theatre.
Forbidden Broadway: Merrily We Stole a Song, created, written & directed by Gerard Alessandrini, featuring AJ Holmes, Sasha Hutchings, Jenny Lee Stern, and Chris Collins-Pisano, with special guest Christine Pedi, begins previews at Off-Broadway’s Theatre 555.
The Marriage of Figaro, a 90 minute remix, directed by Dustin Wills, featuring Anthony Roth Costanzo, Avery Bayani, Kai Gelber-Higgins, Xavier Griffin, Noic Nguyen, Dean Riley-Driver, Nicholas Tanner, and Oliver Tanner, with the Young People’s Chorus of New York City, begins previews at NYC’s Little Island.
Saturday, August 31
Romeo and Juliet, directed by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, featuring Terence Archie (Lord Capulet) Jason Bowen (Prince), Sharon Catherine Brown (Nurse), Bradley Dean (Lord Montague/Friar John), Brandon Dial (Benvolio) Adi Dixit (Paris), Terrence Mann (Friar Laurence), Abiola Obatolu (Lady Montague, Rudy Pankow (Romeo), Alex Ross (Tybalt), Will Savarese (Abraham), Adam Shaukat (Sampson,), Clay Singer (Mercutio), Emilia Suárez (Juliet), and Nicole Villamil (Lady Capulet), begins previews at Cambridge’s A.R.T.
The Civility of Albert Cashier, by Jay Paul Deratany, Coyote Joe Stevens & Keaton Wooden, directed by Richard Israel, featuring Josh Adamson, Cameron J. Armstrong, Tanner Berry, Evan Borboa, John Bucy, Cid Bullens, Brett Calo, Gabrielle Dahlen, Andrea Daveline, Lisa Dyson, Fatima El-Bashir, Michael Guarasci, Blake Jenner, Phillip J. Lewis, Jonah Robinson, and Dani Shay, begins previews at Burbank’s Colony Theatre.
Sister Act, directed by Bill Buckhurst, featuring Beverley Knight (Deloris Van Cartier), Ruth Jones (Mother Superior), Lesley Joseph (Mother Superior at certain performances), Lesley Joseph (Sister Mary Lazarus), Lemar (Curtis Jackson), Clive Rowe (Eddie Souther), Lizzie Bea (Sister Mary Robert), Alison Jiear (Sister Mary Patrick), and Carl Mullaney (Monsignor O’Hara), with Caroline Bateson, Natalia Brown, Damian Buhagiar, Tricia Deighton, Lori Haley Fox, Lauren Hall, Chloe Hopcroft, Tom Hopcroft, Bradley Judge, Claudia Kariuki, Graham MacDuff, Castell Parker, Emma Ralston, Anne Smith, Michael Ward, and Jermaine Woods, closes at London’s Dominion Theatre.
Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York), by Jim Barne & Kit Buchan, directed by Tim Jackson, featuring Dujonna Gift and Sam Tutty, closes at the West End’s Criterion Theatre.
Pipe Dream, by Rodgers & Hammerstein II, directed by Kat Yen, featuring Noa Luz Barenblat (Suzy), Mike Cefalo (George), Wes D’Alelio (Pancho/ Sonny Boy/ Dr. Dormody), Elijah Dawson (Hazel), Pierre Jean Gonzalez (Joe), Joe Joseph (Doc), Jackson Mattek (Eddie/ Jim), Benj Mirman (Ray), Sharone Sayegh (Fauna) Lael Van Keuren (Emma and Millicent), Hennessy Winkler (Mac), and Sumi Yu (Agnes), closes at MA’s Berkshire Theatre Group.
Isaac Mizrahi: A Brief History concert closes at NYC’s 54 Below.
Hershey Felder: Rachmaninoff and The Tsar, world premiere by Hershey Felder & Jonathan Silvestri, featuring Felder (Sergei Rachmaninoff) and Jonathan Silvestri (Tsar Nicholas II), closes at Santa Monica’s Broad Stage.
Sunday, September 1
Reefer Madness The Musical, by Kevin Murphy & Dan Studney, directed & choreographed by Spencer Liff, featuring Anthony Norman (Jimmy Harper), Darcy Rose Byrnes (Mary Lane),J. Elaine Marcos (Sally De Bain,), Nicole Parker (Mae Coleman), Thomas Dekker (Ralph Wiley), and Bryan Daniel Porter (The Lecturer/Jack/Jesus), with ”Andre Aultman, Claire Crause, Jane Papageorge, and Alex Tho, with David T. Crane and Natalie Holt MacDonald, opens at Hollywood’s Whitley Theatre. 
Rory O’Malley will play Jesus Aug. 21-25 and Aug. 28-Sept. 1.
N/A, world premiere by Mario Correa, directed by Diane Paulus, featuring Holland Taylor (N) and Ana Villafane (A), with Peggy J. Scott and Jamie Ann Romero, closes at Off-Broadway’s Mitzi E. Newhouse Theatre.
Penguin Rep’s The Sabbath Girl, by Cary Gitter & Neil Berg, directed by Joe Brancato, featuring Marilyn Caserta, Diana Dimarzio, Rory Max Kaplan, Lauren Singerman, and Max Wolkowitz, closes at Off-Broadway’s 59E59 Theaters.
Young Frankenstein, directed & choreographed by Gerry McIntyre, featuring Sean Bell (The Monster), Aaron Choi (Hermit), Veanne Cox (Frau Blücher), Matthew Hydzik (Dr. Frederick Frankenstein), James Romney (Igor), Kyla Stone (Inga, and Aléna Watters (Elizabeth Benning), with Savannah Cooper, Bradley William Gibbins, Brady Miller, Linda Neel, Christina Emily Jackson, and Cullen J. Zeno, closes at Sag Harbor’s Bay Street Theatre.
The Lord of the Rings – A Musical Tale, by Shaun McKenna, Matthew Warchus, A.R. Rahman, Värttinä & Christopher Nightingale’s, directed by Paul Hart, featuring Spencer Davis Milford (Frodo Baggins), Tom Amandes (Gandalf), Lauren Zakrin (Galadriel), Rick hall (Bilbo Baggins), Tony Bozzuto (Gollum), Michael Kurowski (Hobbit), Ben Mathew (Hobbit), and Eileen Doan (Hobbit), with Justin Albinder, Tom Amandes, Tony Bozzuto, Eileen Doan, Joey Faggion, Rick Hall, Suzanne Hannau, Mia Hilt, Will James, Jr., Michael Kurowski, Ian Maryfield, Ben Mathew, James Mueller, Jarais Musgrove, Hannah Novak, Jeff Parker, Adam Qutaishat, Laura Savage, Bernadette Santos Schwegel, Alina Jenine Taber, Arik Vega, and Matthew C. Yee, closes at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre.
An Intimate Evening with Jennifer Holliday closes at Hollywood’s Catalina Jazz Club.
No Desire to Suffer Twice, by Cris Eli Blak, directed by Matt Lorenzo, featuring Antwan Alexander II, Xanxan Beneche, Madylin Sweeten Durrie, Harry Fakoura, Leah Haile, Andre Lamone, Thando Skwatsha, and Esteban Vasquez, closes at North Hollywood’s Loft Ensemble.
Monday, September 2
West Fest, offering new theater works, concludes at LA’s Theatre West.
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Don’t Dress for Dinner, adapted by Robin Hawdon, will run Sept. 4-22 (opening Sept. 8) at Laguna Playhouse, directed by Christopher M. Williams.
Brian Robert Burns (Bernard), Kim Morgan Dean (Jacqueline), Veronica Dunne (Suzette), Brandon J. Pierce (Robert), Katy Tang (as “Suzanne), and Jared Van Heel (George).
This outrageous farce has all the right ingredients for a delicious night of
laughter. There’s a married couple with sexy secrets, a cook mistaken for a mistress, a
mistress who can’t cook, and enough mistaken identities and confused alibis to have audiences in stitches!
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Hugh Panaro: Man Without a Mask will take place Thurs. Dec. 5 at 8:30 PM at Hollywood’s Catalina Jazz Club., directed by Richard Jay-Alexander, with music direction by Joseph Thalken.
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Video: Highlights from Maggie, which continues through Oct. 20 at CT’s Goodspeed.
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The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee will run Oct. 11-20 at the Kennedy Center, directed & choreographed by Danny Mefford, with music direction by Roberto Sinha.
Philippe Arroyo (Chip Tolentino), Beanie Feldstein (Logan Schwartzandgrubenierre), Noah Galvin (Leaf Coneybear), Alex Joseph Grayson (Mitch Mahoney), Taran Killam (Vice Principal Douglas Panch), Kevin McHale (William Barfee), Bonnie Milligan (Rona Lisa Peretti), Nina White ( Olive Ostrovsky, and Anna Zavelson (Marcy Park).
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Blood/Love, an new, all-original vampire popera, by Carey Sharpe, Dru DeCaro, Erin Boehme & Adam “Snake” Kobylarz, will run Sept.26 – Nov.2 at The Crimson (6356 Hollywood Blvd.), directed by Daniel LeClaire, with choreography by Jonathan & Oksana Platero.
Cam Anthony, Brennin Hunt, and Daniel Franzese
Fans of vampires (and who isn’t?) will want to see this new incarnation, which speaks as much to human nature as it does to the sultry glamorous lives of the undead. It tells the haunting tale of Valerie Bloodlove (Carey Sharpe), who has lived hundreds of lives across thousands of years. Satan’s former queen, the original vampire, she is condemned to wander Earth for eternity — living in the shadows and forced to survive off of the very humans she has longed to live among.
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Sag Harbor’s Bay Street Theatre will present Madame Butterfly: An Adaptation on Sat. Oct. 19 at 8 PM, directed by J.A. Diaz, with music direction by Sergio Martinez Zangroniz.
Erin Brooks (Pinkerton), Michael Nansel (Sharpless), Anna Tonna (Suzuki,, John Easterlin (Goro), and Ashley Galvani Bell (title role), aloong with members of the Suffolk Symphonic Choir.
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Red Bull Theater: Jacob Ming-Trent and Nathan Winkelstein examine Bottom’s dream from A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act 4 Scene 1: “When my cue comes, call me, and I will answer.” Click here to listen.
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Video: Mia Farrow and Patti LuPone reveal their worst audience stories.
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Off-Broadway’s Acting Company has announced its 2024-2025 Reading Series. These very special events are one-night-only professional staged readings featuring five vivid, insightful stories about the human condition, interpreted by acclaimed Company artists. Casting TBA.
Spell #7 (Mon. Oct. 21 at 7 PM at NYC’s Public Theater), by Notzake Shange, directed by Ann C. James. A striking choreopoem by the playwright of for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf, this bold play examines the irony of Black performers in a white-led entertainment industry. Written in the 1960s, its language and intent are blisteringly relevant to this day.
The Shadow of a Gunman (Mon. Nov. 4 at 7 PM at NYC’s Public Theater), by Seán O’Casey, directed by Ian Belknap. Casting TBA. Set against the backdrop of the Irish War of Independence, this is a tale of a young poet who lets the rumor that he is an IRA assassin run wild as he enjoys the mysterious allure this lends him in the eyes of his neighbors, including a young woman. Moving from the comedic to the tragic, this is one of O’Casey’s Dublin Trilogy, exploring conflict, national identity, and the human cost of revolution.
The Tragedy of Hoffman (Mon. Jan. 27, 2025, at 7:30 PM at Symphony Space), by Henry Chettle, directed by Nathan Winkelstein. The captivating story of a young man seeking to avenge the murder of his father with the help of a diabolical servant. He joins the household of his enemies, enacting convoluted plots of deceit, betrayal, poisoning and violence to pursue his ends. But unchecked vengeance has a way of catching up with you. This is a gripping tale of revenge, and betrayal that sweeps an audience along to a conclusion not to be missed.
Orlando and Virginia (Mon. Feb. 17 at 7 PM at The Public Theater), adapted and Directed by Kevin Kuhlke , Loosely based on Virginia Woolfe’s fictional biography “Orlando,” as well as writing by and about Virginia Woolfe, this openhearted text playfully embraces the fluidity of identify, location, and time as only the theatre can.
A Clockwork Orange (Mon. Mar. 17 at 7 PM at The Public Theater), by Anthony Burgess, directed by Ken Gash. A theatrical adaptation of the controversial and provocative book by the author, Anthony Burgess, himself, this authoritative performance text is filled with “ultra-violence,” capturing the chaotic tone of the novella in a dramatic experience both dystopian and satirical
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Video: Unleash your Disney gay with Rob Madge’s My Son’s a Queer (But What Can You Do?)
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Gingold Theatrical Group will present Shaw’s The Devil’s Disciple Oct. 15 – Dec. 21 at Theatre Row, adapted & directed by David Staller.
TBA.
It’s 1777 in New Hampshire and the future of our country is at stake! What can one determined woman and two confused men do to ensure a Democratic future? In this new adaptation, female ferocity rules as this legendary and almost true historical adventure comedy, told by five power-house women!
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Video: Bradley Jaden performs “Stars” from Les Miserables.
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The new concept album of Lin-Manuel Miranda & Eisa Davis’ “Warriors” will be released Oct. 18 on Atlantic Records. Pre-order here.
Billy Porter (Grander), Michaela Jaé (Yaya), Mykal Kilgore (Élan,) Utkarsh Ambudkar (Sully) Casey Likes (Jesse), Ghostface Killah, RZA Marc Anthony (Tato), Luis Figueroa (Miguel), Flaco Navaja (Jesús), Chris Rivers (The Bronx), Colman Domingo (Masai), Cam’ron (Manhattan), JamesRemar and David Patrick Kelly.
The new musical is based on the cult favorite 1979 film.