This Weekend’s Highlights:
Friday, October 8
Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, featuring Adrienne Warren (Tina Turner), Daniel J. Watts (Ike Turner), Myra Lucretia Taylor (Gran Georgeanna), Dawn Lewis (Zelma), and Nkeki Obi-Melekwe (Tina Turner at some performances), with Juliet Benn, Steven Booth, Nick Rashad Burroughs, Gerald Caesar, Julius Chase, Ayla Ciccone-Burton, Holli’ Conway, Kayla Davion, Leandra Ellis-Gaston, Charlie Franklin, Judith Franklin, Matthew Griffin, Ari Groover, Sheldon Henry, David Jennings, Ross Lekites, Robert Lenzi, Rob Marnell, Jhardon DiShon Milton, NaTonia Monet, Phierce Phoenix, Justin Schuman, Allysa Shorte, Eric Siegle, Carla Stewart, Jayden Theophile, Sky Dakota Turner, and Katie Webber, re-opens at Broadway’s Lunt-Fontanne Theatre.
The Fever, by Wallace Shawn, directed by Scott Elliott, starring Lili Taylor, opens at Off-Broadway’s Minetta Lane Theatre.
Hudson Stage Company‘s October Storm, world premiere by Joshual Allen, directed by Cezar Williams, featuring Yvette Ganier, Patricia R. Floyd, Trevor Latez Hayes, Philipe D. Preston, and Courtney Thomas, opens at the Whippoorwill Theatre.
Dear Mr. Wilson, written by & starring Bryan Batt, directed by Michael Wilson, opens at New Orleans’ Le Petit Theatre.
Caroline, or Change, by Tony Kushner & Jeanine Tesori, directed by Michael Longhurst, featuring Sharon D. Clark (Caroline Thibodeaux), Cassie Levy (Rose Stopnick Gellman), John Cariani (Stuart Gellman), Samanthan Williams (Emmie Thibodeaux), Joy Hermalyn (Grandma Gellman), Arica Jackson (The Washing Machine), Tamika Lawrence (Dotty Moffett), Kevin S. McAllister (The Dryer/The Bus), Harper Miles (Radio 3), N’Kenge (The Moon), Nya (Radio 2), Nasia Thomas (Radio 1), Stuart Zagnit (Grandpa Gellman), Chip Zien (Mr. Stopnick), Alexander Bello (Jackie Thibodeaux), Jayden Theophile (Joe Thibodeaux), Richard Alexander Phillips (Joe and Jackie Thibodeaux alternate), begins previews at Broadway’s Studio 54.
Autumn Royal, by Kevin Barry, directed by Ciarán O’Reilly, featuring Maeve Higgins and John Keating, begins previews at Off-Broadway’s Irish Rep.
Celia and Fidel, by Eduardo Machado, directed by Molly Smith, featuring Marian Licha (Celia Sánchez), Andhy Mendez (Fidel Castro), Liam Torres (Manolo Ruiz), and Heather Velaquez (Consuelo), begins previews at DC’s Arena Stage.
Grateful: The Songs of John Bucchino concert, featuring Leslie Odom, Jr., Stephen Schwartz, Corey Cott, Ann Hampton Callaway, David Campbell, Toni Tenille, and Amanda McBroom, streams here.
“A Very Darren Crissmas” album released here.
What Happened?: The Michaels Abroad, world premiere written & directed by Richard Nelson, featuring Jay O. Sanders, Maryann Plunkett, Charlotte Bydwell, Haviland Morris, Matilda Sakamoto, Rita Wolf, and Yvonne Woods, closes at NY’s Hunter College.
Saturday, October 9
Ensemble Theatre Company‘s Tenderly: The Rosemary Clooney Musical, by Janet Yates Vogt & Mark Friedman, directed by Jenny Sullivan, featuring Linda Purl and David Engel, opens at Santa Barbara’s New Vic.
Savage, by Tim Alderson, Mark Heard, Pat Terry & Randy VanWarmer, directed by Damian D. Lewis, featuring David Atkinson, Natale Llerena, Sam O’Byrne, and Leonard Earl Howze, opens at Hollywood’s Hudson Theatre.
“Brick By Brick, Putting It Together” The Broadway Set Miniatures of Henry Lee,” which displays the iconic sets of Company, Follies, The Phantom of the Opera, A Little Night Music, and Sweeney Todd , in miniature for re-created with LEGO bricks, opens its display at 9 AM ET at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts in Lincoln Center (through Dec. 10).
Wuthering Heights, world premiere adapted & directed by Emma Rice, featuring Lucy McCormick (Cathy) Sam Archer (Lockwood/Edgar Linton), Nandi Bhebhe (The Moor), TJ Holmes (Robert), Ash Hunter (Heathcliff), Craig Johnson (Mr. Earnshaw/Dr. Kenneth), Jordan Laviniere (John), Kandaka Moore (Zillah), Katy Owen (Isabella Linton/Linton Heathcliff), Tama Phethean (Hindley Earnshaw/Hareton Earnshaw), and Witney White (Frances Earnshaw/Young Cathy), with Mirabelle Gremaud, begins previews at the UK’s Bristol Old Vic.
Ayodele Casel: Chasing Magic, directed by Torya Beard, featuring Ayodele Casel, Amanda Castro, Naomi Funaki, John Manzari, Anthony Morigerato, and Kurt Csolak, closes at Cambridge’s A.R.T.
Sunday, October 10
Chicken and Biscuits, by Douglas Lyons, directed by Zhailon Levingston, featuring Norm Lewis (Reginald Mabry), Michael Urie (Logan Leibowitz), Cleo King (Baneatta Mabry), NaTasha Yvette Williams (Brianna Jenkins), Devere Rogers (Kenny Mabry), Ebony Marshall-Oliver (Beverly Jenkins), Aigner Mizzelle (La’trice Franklin), and Alana Raquel Bowers (Simone Babry), with Dean Acree, Jennifer Fouché, Michael Genet, Miles G Jackson, and Camille Upshaw, opens at Broadway’s Circle in the Square Theatre.
1-2-3 Manhunt, by Tony DiMurro, directed by William Roudebush, featuring Ilene Kristen, Anthony Barile, Chris Paul Morales, and Santo Fazio, opens at Off-Broadway’s Theater for the New City.
Ann Kittredge: Movie Nite with Alex Rybeck and Sean Harkness concert, at 8:30 PM ET at NYC’s Birdland.
“The Tragedy of Macbeth,” world premiere film, written & directed by Joel Coen, starring Denzel Washington (Macbeth) and Frances McDormand (Lady Macbeth), closes at Lincoln Center‘s Alice Tully Hall.
Laura Benanti in concert closes at 54 Below.
The Wolfe & The Bird, world premiere by Rachel Parker, directed by Alina Phelan, featuring Rachel Parker, with the voices of James Heaney, Dagney Kerr, Ivory Tiffin, Madeleine Townsend, Phil Ward, and Silvie Zamora, closes at LA’s Matrix Theatre.
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Reviews for Manhattan Theatre Club’s Lackawana Blues at Broadway’s Samuel J. Friedman Theatre:
New York Times (Maya Phillips): …Ruben Santiago-Hudson’s tender and vibrant autobiographical one-man show. It proves to be a winsome performer’s master class in storytelling, despite a few flat notes… You might think it would also take a village to animate these characters — at least 25 — for the stage, but Santiago-Hudson manages just fine on his own… seeing Santiago-Hudson take command of the Broadway stage is delightful to watch — and listen to. He slips into a slow, self-consciously genteel purr for Small Paul, a piping soprano for Mr. Lucious, and a warble and growl for Freddie Cobbs… The alternatively soulful and upbeat jazz music also serves as a kind of dialogue… He grounds us in the details, which brings not just these characters, but also a whole town to life…
Broadway News (Charles Isherwood): All great blues songs have a timeless quality, so it’s entirely fitting that Ruben Santiago-Hudson’s solo show “Lackawanna Blues” still gleams like a newly minted coin some 20 years after it was first produced… reprises his vibrantly virtuosic performance, guaranteeing that this memoir of his youth in a boarding house retains all the lively humor and radiant feeling of the original production at the Public Theater… Among the more affecting scenes is one in which Ruben’s mother, clearly ashamed, gently dances around the question of Nanny helping take responsibility for her son, an almost-asked question that Nanny forestalls by making the offer practically before it is asked.
Daily News (Chris Jones): …Santiago-Hudson, now 64 and recovering from a back injury, reveals that what started out as a lively homage to a community of resilient eccentrics and abandoned souls has now become an older man’s elegy for the lost characters of his youth. Lackawanna Blues is now a celebration of those who loved him and taught him how to become a successful man. Simply put, he makes the case that the older you are when you play this role, the better… few will be prepared for the emotional undercurrent present in Santiago-Hudson’s self-directed performance, which often feels like it is being interrupted by a well of feelings so strong that the actor struggles to process them in the moment. Maybe to his surprise. Either way, it’s this show’s secret sauce.
Theatermania (David Gordon): …In a world of increasing evil, sometimes all you need to strengthen your belief in humanity is a story that reminds you that goodness exists… Lackawanna Blues is that story, a tale of a kind woman taking care of her community, and how those actions inspired her young ward to try and change the world himself… What he does over the course of 90 minutes is a real feat of acting,…he transforms himself into more than two dozen figures simply through subtle shifts in body language, physicality, and vocal patterns… Hudson’s words are soul-filling, and his performance is one of the more amazing solo turns I’ve seen… I’m glad Santiago-Hudson decided to bring Nanny back to reopen the Friedman Theatre.
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To Kill a Mockingbird has announced in-person rush tickets, which may be purchased on the day-of performance at the Shubert Theatre Box Office.
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Complete casting has been announced for Oklahoma!, which will begin performances Nov. 9 at Minneapolis’ Orpheum Theatre, directed by Daniel Fish, with choreography by John Heginbotham, and music direction by Andy Collopy.
Sasha Hutchings (Laurey), Sean Grandillo (Curly), Christopher Bannow (Jud Fry), Sis (Ado Annie), Hennessy Winkler (Will Parker), Benj Mirman (Ali Hakim), Barbara Walsh (Aunt Eller), Hannah Solow (Gertie Cummings), Patrick Clanton (Mike), Ugo Chukwu (Cord Elam), Mitch Tebo (Andrew Carnes), and Gabrielle Hamilton (Lead Dancer), with Gillian Hassert, Cameron Anika Hill, Hunter Hoffman, Scott Redmond, Gwynne Wood and Jordan Wynn.
Click here for the complete tour schedule.
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John Leguizamo, Tony Tacone, Benjamin Velez & David Kamp’s Kiss My Aztec! will run June 2-26, 2022 at Hartford Stage, directed by Tacone.
Casting TBA.
Loosely based on Latin American history… very loosely… we travel back to the 16th century as a group of Aztecs lead the resistance against Spanish invaders. With a fierce female warrior at the help and a not-so-fierce clown in tow, they mount a scrappy attack… and get entangled with royalty, colonizers, pop stars, and puppets.
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As of Oct. 11, Lana Gordon will become the alternate for the role of Persephone in Hadestown, and will perform the role twice a week at the Walter Kerr Theatre, to allow Amber Gray to spend more time with her young family.
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Al Smith’s Rare Earth Mettle will run Nov. 10 – Dec. 18 (opening Nov. 16) at the Royal Court Theatre, directed by Hamish Pirie.
Carlo Alban, Marcello Cruz, Arthus Darvfill, Jaye Griffiths, Lesle Lemon, Rachael Ofori, Genevieve O’Reilly, and Ian Porter.
A leading British doctor with a radical plan to save the NHS and a Silicon Valley billionaire with a radical plan to halt climate change, meet outside an abandoned train on a salt flat in Bolivia. A landscape so bright in its whiteness that it isn’t easy to look at, and so interrupted in its flatness there’s no echo. For Kimsa and his daughter who live there, the arrival of these strangers initially seems like an opportunity. Until they both stake their claim on the land, each following their ruthless pursuit of “the greater good.”
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“Brick By Brick, Putting It Together Broadway Set Miniatures of Henry Lee,” which display the iconic sets of Company, Follies, The Phantom of the Opera, A Little Night Music, and Sweeney Todd , in miniature for re-created with LEGO bricks, are now available at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts in Lincoln Center (through Dec. 10).
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The New Group has announced the world premiere of John Ridley & Tariq Trotter’s Black No More will run Jan. 11 – Feb. 27, 2022 (opening Feb. 8) at the Signature Center, directed by Scott Elliott, with choreography by Bill T. Jones, and music direction Zane Mark.
Jennifer Damiano, Brandon Victor Dixon, Tamika Lawrence, Theo Stockman, Tracy Shayne, and Walter Bobbie, with more TBA.
Set during the Harlem Renaissance, the play tells the story of Max Disher, who is eager to try a mysterious machine invented by Dr. Junius Crookman that guarantees to “solve the American race problem”— by turning Black people white.
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George C. Wolfe & Dustin Lance Black’s “Rustin” is currently in development for Netflix, with a release date TBA.
Colman Domingo (Roy Wilkins), Audra McDonald (Ella Baker), Glen Turman (A. Philip Randolph), and more TBA.
The film focuses on gay civil rights activist Bayard Rustin.
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An industry-only workshop of Robin Schiff, Gwendolyn Sanford & Brandon Jay’s Romy and Michele: The Musical will take place Oct. 14 & 15 at NYC’s New 42 Studios, directed by Kristin Hanggi, with choreography by Peggy Hickey.
Brittney Johnson (Romy), Leana Rae Concepcion (Michele), Jordan Kai Burnett (Heather Mooney), Michael Starr (Billy Christianson), Chad Burris (Toby Walters), Telly Leung (Sandy Frink), and Tess Soltau (Christie Masters), with Zuri Washington, Erin Ramirez, Anju Cloud, Shea Gomez, Shina Ann Morris, Sissy Bell, Louis Williams Jr., Sam Hamashima, and Jorrel Javier.
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Hocus Pocus: The Sanderson Variant Halloween concert will stream Thurs. Oct. 28 at 8 PM ET here, directed by Jay Armstrong Johnson, in support of BC/EFA.
Jay Armstrong Johnson (Winifred), Allison Robinson (Sarah), and Amanda Williams (Mary), with Jonathan Burke, Nick Rashad Burroughs, Gavin Creel, J. Harrison Ghee, Todrick Hall, Robyn Hurder, Eva Noblezada, Heath Saunders, and Ahmed Simmons, Will Swenson. with Jasha Benedicto, Jimmy Brewer, Brittany Bohn, Cemiyon, Hayden Clifton, Jai’Quin Coleman, Cara Diaz, Brian Duke, Tyler Eisenreich, Taurean Everett, Zachary Flores, Zuri Noelle Ford, Lilli Froehlich, Taylor Isaac Gray, Allison Griffith, Gabriel Hyman, Brittany Jenkins, Karma Jenkins, Erin Kei, Sarah Kleist, Kourtni Lind-Watson, Danny Marin, Emilio Ramos, Jennifer Reed , Austin Reynolds, Ana Riley-Portal, Kellie Rodriguez, Sydnie Roy, Alanna Saunders, Claire Saunders, Cassy Surianello, Michael Sylvester, and Kris Ward.
This year, the beloved sisters attempt to spread their variant while recruiting some of pop culture’s most iconic villains to fulfill their delightfully devious plot.
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Patsy Kline” Sings Again, featuring Carter Calvert, will run Oct. 14-24 at PA’s Bucks County Playhouse.
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A limited run of David Mamet’s American Buffalo will begin previews the week of Mar. 22, 2022 (exact date TBA) and open Apr. 14 at Circle in the Square, directed by Neil Pepe.
Sam Rockwell, Darren Criss, and more TBA.
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A re-imagined version of Stephen Sondheim & James Lapine’s Passion will run in May 5 – June 5, 2022 (opening May 10) at Manchester’s Hope Mill Theatre, directed by Michael Strassen, with music supervision by Paul Schofield.
Ruthie Henshall (Fosca) and more TBA.
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A 60-minute version of Next to Normal will run in Summer 2022 (dates TBA) in an immersive production at Barcelona’s IDEAL Center (link TBA), directed by Simon Pittman.
Alice Ripley (Diana) and more TBA.
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Casting has been announced for the national tour of Beautiful – The Carole King Musical, which will open Nov. 2-7 at Chicago’s CIBC Theatre.
Sara Sheperd (Carole King), James D. Gish (Gerry Goffin), Sara King (Cynthia Weil), Ryan Farnsworth (Barry Mann), Matt Loehr (Don Kirshner), and Rachel Coloff (Genie Klein), with Isaiah Bailey, Edwin Bates, Kaitlyn Nicole Davis, Rosharra Francis, Jamary Alexandra Gil, Kevin Hack, Danielle Herbert, Torrey Linder, Nick Moulton, Nurney, Teshomech Olenja, Monet Sabel, Paul Scanlan, Sarah Sigman, and Ben Toomer.
Click here for the complete tour schedule.
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After 16 months of negotiations, stagehands at The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts unanimously voted on Oct. 7 to authorize a strike. The vote by the members of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local 22 gives the Local 22 executive board the authority to call a strike and for members and supporters of the union to set up picket lines outside the famed performing arts center.
Among contentious issues are cut wages for backstage workers and others related to health and safety protocols.
The potential strike could lead to the cancellation or postponement of the Hadestown tour at the D.C. venue, which is scheduled for Oct. 13–31 at the Opera House, as well as other Kennedy Center events.
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The London production of Anything Goes starring Sutton Foster, has been filmed and will be released in 450 cinemas Nov. 28 and Dec. 1 in the UK.
Click here for UK tickets additional information.
News on international screenings is TBA.