Today’s Highlights:
A Picture of Autumn filmed production, by N.C. Hunter, directed by Gus Kaikkonen, featuring Helen Cespedes, Christian Coulson, Barbara Eda-Young, Mark Emerson, Katie Firth, Jonathan Hogan, George Morfogen, Paul Niebanck, and Jill Tanner, begins FREE streaming at Off-Broadway’s Mint Theatre.
“Tell The Story: Celebrating Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman’s Assassins” event, featuring (from the upcoming production) Adam Chanler-Berat, Eddie Cooper, Tavi Gevinson, Brad Giovanine, Andy Grotelueschen, Bianca Horn, Judy Kuhn, Whit K. Lee, Rob Morrison, Steven Pasquale, Ethan Slater, Will Swenson, Wesley Taylor, Brandon Uranowitz, and Katrina Yaukey…… along with (from the 1990 world premiere at Playwrights Horizons) with Patrick Cassidy, Victor Garber, Greg Germann, Annie Golden, Lyn Greene, Jonathan Hadary, Eddie Korbich, Terrence Mann, Debra Monk, William Parry, and Lee Wilkof from the 1990 world premiere at Playwrights Horizons…… as well as (from the 2004 Broadway production at Studio 54) Becky Ann Baker, Mario Cantone, Michael Cerveris, Mary Catherine Garrison, Alexander Gemignani, Ken Krugman, Marc Kudisch, Anne L. Nathan, Denis O’Hare, Chris Peluso, and Sally Wilfert…… directors Jerry Zaks and Joe Mantello, who will share memories from helming the Off-Broadway premiere and 2004 Broadway ….. (from the 2004 Broadway production at Studio 54) Becky Ann Baker, Mario Cantone, Michael Cerveris, Mary Catherine Garrison, Alexander Gemignani, Ken Krugman, Marc Kudisch, Anne L. Nathan, Denis O’Hare, Chris Peluso, and Sally Wilfert …… directors Jerry Zaks and Joe Mantello, who will share memories from helming the Off-Broadway premiere and 2004 Broadway productions, respectively; director Doyle and music director Greg Jarrett of the upcoming CSC revival; and alumni of CSC and previous Doyle productions, including Quincy Tyler Bernstine, André De Shields, Raúl Esparza, Ann Harada, Audra McDonald, Mary Beth Peil, George Takei, and Tony Yazbeck, concludes FREE streaming at Off-Broadway’s Classic Stage Company.
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GRACE NOTES Quiz: Where Are You Going? by Jim Bernhard
1. In Peter Pan, where does Peter take Wendy, John, and Michael? —Kensington Gardens… the sweet shop… Neverland… Disneyland?
2. In 42ndStreet, where does the cast of Pretty Lady go for an out-of-town tryout? ….New Haven…Philadelphia…New Orleans…Allentown.
3. Sophocles’ last play is set in the village where the blinded Oedipus goes with his daughters. The title is Oedipus at….Colonus…Corinth…Ithaca…Thebes.
4. In Mame ,where do Mame and Beauregard go on their honeymoon and Beauregard has a fatal accident? …the Grand Canyon…Niagara Falls…the Himalayas…the Alps.
5. In Hamlet, where is Laertes going when Polonius tells him “to thine own self be true”? …France…prison…Sweden.…Wittenberg.
6. In Death of a Salesman, where did Willy Loman go on a business trip when he was discovered by his son Biff with a woman in his hotel room? ….Omaha…Peoria…Boston…Toronto.
7. In Fiddler on the Roof, where are Tevye, Golde, and their two youngest daughters going when they leave Anatevka? …Moscow…America…Poland…Paris.
8. In the song “Adelaide’s Lament” in Guys and Dolls, where is the train headed when “they get off at Saratoga for the fourteenth time”?…Buffalo…Yonkers…New Rochelle…Niagara.
9. In the song “I’m On My Way” in Paint Your Wagon, what is the next lyric after “Where am I goin’?”—which answers the question? …California…the last roundup…Sutter’s Mill…I don’t know.
10. In The Importance of Being Ernest, where does Miss Prism go and absent-mindedly leave a baby boy in a handbag? …Westminster Abbey…Victoria Station….the House of Lords…Buckingham Palace.
Scroll down for the answers…
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2021 Artios Awards: Casting Society of America winners. Click here for the complete list.
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PA’s Bucks County Playhouse has announced a world premiere workshop production of Is There Still Sex in the City?, written by & starring Candance Bushnell, to stream June 22 – July 18.
From her arrival in NYC alone with $20 in her pocket, to working her way up the ladder, to secrets behind the creation of “Sex and the City” and finding her single again in her 50’s … the always provocative Candace Bushnell has a lot to say about sex, feminism, fashion, Cosmopolitans, Manolos, girlfriends, men and New York City.
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The Kennedy Center has announced its 2021-22 season:
Shear Madness (ongoing — returns Oct. 5)
Hadestown (Oct. 13-31)
Ain’t Too Proud (Dec. 14 – Jan. 16, 2021)
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical (Dec. 14 – Jan. 2, 2022)
The Prom (Jan. 4-16)
Jesus Christ Superstar (Feb. 22 – Mar. 13)
Riverdance – The 25th Anniversary Show (Mar. 15-27)
Mean Girls (Apr. 5-24)
Oklahoma! (Apr. 50-10)
Freestyle Love Supreme (May 10-15)
A Monster Calls (May 25 – June 12)
Jersey Boys (June 14-16)
To Kill A Mockingbird (June 21 – July 10)
The Band’s Visit (July 5-17)
Hamilton (July 12 – Oct. 2)
Blue Man Group (July 19-31)
Dear Evan Hansen(Aug. 31 – Sept. 25)
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Take Me Back to Manhattan, a virtual tribute concert filmed at NYC’s Carlyle Hotel, will stream on demand May 1-7 here, hosted by Frank DiLella.
Alysha Umphress, Kyle Taylor Parker, Peter Cincotti, Champian Fulton, Molly Ryan, Isaac Mizrahi, Catherine Russell, and Peter Cincotti.
The program celebrates the special affinity the American Songbook has had with NYC. For almost 50 years, the American Songbook narrated life in New York and spoke to everyone who had made the city their home.
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“Broadway Jukebox: The Greatest Musicals of the 1950s” is now available on Spotify and many other listening platforms, offering songs from 100 musicals.
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John Cullum: An Accidental Star benefit solo show has been extended through May 6 at CT’s Goodspeed Musicals.
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In the wake of allegations of longstanding abuse — both physical and emotional—and intimidation, producer Scott Rudin has announced that he will step away from his Broadway productions, effective immediately.
“After a period of reflection, I’ve made the decision to step back from active participation on our Broadway productions, effective immediately,” Rudin wrote in a statement provided to The Washington Post. “My roles will be filled by others from the Broadway community and in a number of cases, from the roster of participants already in place on those shows.”
He added: “Much has been written about my history of troubling interactions with colleagues, and I am profoundly sorry for the pain my behavior caused to individuals, directly and indirectly,” I am now taking steps that I should have taken years ago to address this behavior.”
Rudin declined to comment further on the specifics of his future involvement or lack thereof, including the financial implications of his departure from the productions (which include Aaron Sorkin’s adaptation of To Kill a Mockingbird and the upcoming revival of The Music Man.
Video: Sutton Foster‘s statement (scroll down)
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Tales From the Wings: A Lincoln Center Theater Celebration will stream May 13-17 here.
Patti LuPone (Anything Goes), Audra McDonald (Carousel), Rosemary Harris (A Delicate Balance), Steven Pasquale (A Man of No Importance), Paulo Szot (South Pacific), Seth Numrich (War Horse), Ruthie Ann Miles (The King and I), Jordan Donica (My Fair Lady), Bartlett Sher (Oslo), and Lileana Blain-Cruz (2021-22 upcoming season).
The evening will look back at several LCT productions, featuring performance footage and anecdotes.
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RIP: British actress Helen McCrory has died peacefully at home after a heroic battle with cancer at the age of 52.
Best know for playing Narcissa Malfoy in the “Harry Potter franchise, Helen began her career on stage, and appeared in more than 25 productions during the 1990’s through the mid-2010s, including Macbeth, Pride and Prejudice, As You Like It, Medea, and many more.
During her entire career, McCrory won several awards… Best Actress at the London Film Critics Circle, the Broadcasting Press Guild Awards, the Critics Circle Theater Awards, and theater actress of the year at the Glamour Awards. Helen was also nominated for a Critics Choice Television Award and a Satellite Award for best supporting actress in a drama for “Penny Dreadful.” For her role in “Macbeth” in 1995, she was named most promising newcomer at the Shakespeare Globe Awards.
During her theater, television and film career, McCrory picked up several awards, like best actress at the London Film Critics Circle, the Broadcasting Press Guild Awards, the Critics’ Circle Theater Awards and theater actress of the year at the Glamour Awards. She was nominated for a Critics Choice Television Award and a Satellite Award for best supporting actress in a drama for “Penny Dreadful.” For her role in “Macbeth” in 1995, she was named most promising newcomer at the Shakespeare Globe Awards.
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Listen: Looking back on Broadway’s Camelot. (1:24:14)
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MCC Theater‘s Miscast21 has announced additional performers, which will stream Sun. May 16 at 8 PM ET – Thurs. May 20 at 11:59 PM ET, directed & music directed by Will Van Dyke.
Previously announced: Annaleigh Ashford, Robin de Jesús, Renée Elise Goldsberry, LaChanze, Kelli O’Hara, and Billy Porter.
Newly announced: Melissa barrera, Leslie Grace, Cheyenne Jackson, Jai’Len Josey, Idina Menzel, Kelly Marie Tran, and Patrick Wilson.
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Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo are currently writing a screenplay for a musical comedy that will reimagine the “Cinderella” fairytale from the perspective of the two sisters who didn’t get their happily ever after. Neith Wiig or Mumolo are expected to appear in the film.
Casting, timeline, and additional information is TBA.
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Off-Broadway’s Mint Theater will stream N.C. Hunter’s A Picture of Autumn Apr. 19 – June 13, directed by Gus Kaikkonen.
Helen Cespedes, Christian Coulson, Barbara Eda-Young, Mark Emerson, Katie Firth, Jonathan Hogan, George Morfogen, Paul Niebanck, and Jill Tanner.
A sensitive, intelligent and comic depiction of one family’s attempt to grow old gracefully. Charles and Margaret Denham, live in disarray in the decaying ancestral home with ancient Uncle Harry and senile Nanny. Their son Robert returns to England after several years abroad and finds that both the house and its occupants have faded from past glory. When an opportunity to sell the burdensome property arises, Robert leaps at the chance to help his parents downsize.
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GRACE NOTES Quiz answers: Where Are You Going?
1. In Peter Pan, Peter takes Wendy, John, and Michael to Neverland.
2. In 42ndStreet, the cast of Pretty Lady goes for an out-of-town tryout to Philadelphia.
3. Sophocles’ last play is Oedipus at Colonus.
4. In Mame, Beauregard falls off an Alp.
5. In Hamlet, Laertes is going to France.
6. In Death of a Salesman, Willy Loman was on a business trip to Boston when he was discovered by his son Biff with a woman in his hotel room.
7. In Fiddler on the Roof, Tevye and Golde leave for America.
8. In the song “Adelaide’s Lament” in Guys and Dolls, the train is headed to Niagara.
9. In the song “I’m On My Way” in Paint Your Wagon, the next lyric after “Where am I goin’?” is “I don’t know.”
10. In The Importance of Being Ernest, Miss Prism goes to Victoria Station, where she absent-mindedly leaves a baby boy in a handbag.