GRACE NOTES: Monday, January 3, 2022

 

Today’s Highlights:

  Goodbye New York streaming concert, by Andrew Beall, Evan McCormack & David Don Mmiller, directed by Joel Kirk, featuring Arielle Jacobs, Brad Standley, Ben Jeffrey, Lora Nicolas, Emilio Ramos, Levin Valayil, and Danicah Waldo, at 7 PM ET at 54 Below.

  Little Christmas Miracles, by Ryan Paul James, Pat Denson, David DeVaul, Nathan Demarco Jacobson & Jamie Floyd, directed by Denson, featuring Glauco Araujo, Jackson Ark, Sara Gerding, Tisa Harriott, Skyler Marie, Rachel McAlpine, Sam Neagle, Trinity Posey, Courtney Reece, Jordan Richards, and David Rodriguez, closes at Off-Broadway’s Actors Temple Theatre.

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GRACE NOTES Quiz:  It’s a Gift, by Jim Bernhard

1. In Joeph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, what do Joseph’s brothers do after their father give Joseph the coat of many colors? … get their own even more colorful coats… kill their faterh… sell Joseph into slavery… kill a fatted calf

2.  In Annie, the only thing given to Annie by her parents before she was left at the orphanage was a broken …doll …picture frame with their portrait…promise…locket

3.  In Cabaret ,Herr Schulz presents Fräulein Schneider with the gift of…chocolate truffles…a pineapple…an apple strudel…a bicycle

4.  When Mame Dennis first meets her nephew Patrick in Mame, she gives him…a bicycle…a bugle…a cigar…dance lesson

5.  In the opening scene of King Lear, Lear proposes to give his three daughters…his kingdom…their weight in gold…the husbands of their choice…one-third interest in a gold mine

6.  In Oklahoma!, the peddler Ali Hakim presents Aunt Eller with a gift of…a kaleidoscope…an eggbeater…a new churn…a silk garter

7.  In Kiss Me, Kate, Lilli Vanessi mistakenly thinks a gift from her ex-husband to his new girlfriend is for her. The gift is…a diamond bracelet…a bouquet of flowers…a copy of the Kama Sutra…a puppy

8. In A Streetcar Named Desire, Stanley’s birthday gift to Blanche is…a bottle of French champagne…a negligee…a bus ticket back to Laurel…a box of New Orleans pralines

9. In Hamlet, Ophelia returns gifts that Hamlet has given her, telling him, “Rich gifts wax poor when givers prove”…dishonest…unkind…ridiculous…poor

10.  Mme. Armfeldt, in A Little Night Music, recollects the liaisons of her youth, in one of which the King of the Belgians deeded her…a duchy…a grape orchard…a castle…his kingdom

Scroll down for the answers…

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  Reviews for Once Upon a One More Time at DC’s Shakespeare Theatre Company:

NY Times (Maya Phillips):  With its blatant messaging about female empowerment and revisionist approach, not unlike two recent Broadway musicals – Six and Diana, both of which recast famous women from history as self-possessed and self-reliant feminist icons – Once Upon a One More Time reflects the broad strokes of modern-day feminism but shies away from anything too hefty or complex. That includes the pink-pigtailed elephant in the room: Spears herself, who has documented what she has called years of exploitation in her quest to end her conservatorship. So particularly the Britney faithful will most likely be disappointed to find the pop star absent from a show largely based on the products of her career…

Washington Post (Peter Marks): …While it lacks finesse, lead performer Briga Heelan brings out the show’s potential…The big difficulty at this point in the musical’s evolution — a production with Broadway on its agenda — is that no song gets the space and time necessary to truly break out… This frustratingly rushed sensation is emblematic of a production that packs in too many competing conceits and devices. The numbers are set off here in little explosions, courtesy of the Madrids’ rat-a-tat tutting moves. Their dances are sharp but abbreviated: mere quotes, where an audience wants full sentences… Justin Guarini as a comically preening and eternally straying Prince Charming…

DC Metro (Nicole Hertyik): Somehow, Once Upon a One More Time and its improbable storyline featuring Britney Spears, Betty Friedan, and fairy tale princesses works. The incongruous musical…is as thought-provoking as it is toe-tapping, as clever as it is hilarious, as bold as it is shiny. It sounds like the world’s wackiest idea for a musical until you’ve seen it, but by golly, it works… People have been scratching their heads over the peculiar mashup of subject matter … a full-fledged, grade A, gold star success and exactly the party we need after 21 months of COVID… Jon Hartmere crafted the show’s successfully bonkers storyline…. what propels this show from good to great is Hartmere’s 21st-century re-examination of fairy tales that girls have grown up with for centuries…

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  Michael R. Jackson’s A Strange Loop will open in Spring 2022 (dates TBA) at the Lyceum Theatre, directed by Stephen Brackett, with choreography by Raja Feather Kell, and music direction by Rona Siddiqui. Casting, and additional information TBA.

Meet Usher: a Black, queer writer writing a musical about a Black, queer writer writing a musical about a Black, queer writer…

The current production continues through Jan. 9 at DC’s Woolly Mammoth Theatre.

  Trailer.

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  Saturday Night Fever will run Feb. 4 – Mar. 26 at the Peacock Theatre, directed by Bill Kenwright, with choreography by Bill Deamer.

  Richard Winsor (Tony Manero), Olivia Fines (Stephanie), Kevin O’Dwyer (Bobby C), James Brice (Gus), Paul French (Double J), Michael Cortez (Joey), Jasmin Colangelo (Annette), Tosca Fischer (Connie), Lydia Bradd (Linda), Philip Aiden (Frank Senior), Marios Nicolaides (Frank Junior), Melody Jones (Flo Manero), and Faizal Jaye (DJ Monty), with Celeste Zollino,, Ashley Luke Lloyd, Luca Rapisarda, James Wilkinson-Jones, Helen Gulston, and James Cohen.  A feature of this new production will be the onstage appearance, high above the stage, of Jake Byrom, Oliver Thomson and James Hudson playing and singing the Bee Gees’ soundtrack.

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. Mrs. Doubtfire will take an extended hiatus from Jan. 10 – Mar. 14 at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre.  The production will continue as scheduled through Jan. 9.

Producers hope the break will allow the show to avoid a full closure as the company battles breakthrough COVID-19 cases.

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  “Booze Over Broadway: 50 Cocktails for Theatre Lovers,” by Michael Groff.  Available now here. 

. “The Ballerina Mindset: How to Protect Your Mental Health While Striving for Excellence,” by Megan Fairchild. Available now here.

  “Lorraine Hansberry: The Life Behind A Raisin in the Sun,” by Charles J. Shields. Available Jan. 18 here.

. “I Was Better Last Night,” a memoir by Harvey Fierstein. Learn the personal tales of the struggles, romance, and Fierstein’s career from his roots in Brooklyn. Available Mar. 1. here.

  “Jagged Little Pill: The Novel,” by Eric Smith with Alanis Morissette, Diablo Cody, and Glen Ballard. Available Apr. 26 here.

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. North Hollywood’s Road Theatre has announced its 2022 season:

The Lonely Ape reading (Jan, 17 at 7:30 PM at the Magnolia Stage). This reading is open to the public and by donation only. Janine is a stuck poet who works in the admissions office of a back-up choice liberal arts college in the Northwest. As her husband, Hal, is a bout to publish the book on early humans that he’s been working on for 20 years, Janine finds herself falling into an affair with a strange, young plumber. Then Bigfoot shows up.

The Play You Want (Feb. 8 – Mar. 27), by Bernardo Cubria, directed by Michael John Garcés.

 Bright Half Life (Mar. 14 – May 1), by Tanya Barfield, directed by Amy K. Harmon.

Beloved (Apr. 18 – May 29), by Arthur Holden, directed by Cameron Watson.

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Video: A tribute to understudies: “At This Performance: Liza Minelli,” with Christine Pedi.

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  Hudson Stage will present a staged reading of Barbara Dana’s What Keeps Us Going on Sat. Jan. 29 at 7:30 PM ET at Armonk’s Whippoorwill Hall Theatre, directed by Austin Pendleton.

Anthony Arkin, Amelia Campbell, and Joel Rooks.

A well-known veteran actress can’t remember her lines. A middle-aged woman who sacrificed her creative life to secure her marriage is left by her husband. When the women meet to collaborate on a precarious project an unexpected friendship is born.

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Ain’t Too Proud – The Life and Times of the Temptations will close Jan. 16 at the Imperial Theatre, after 488 performances (pending any additional COVID cancellations) and 21 previews.

Nik Walker (Otis Williams), James Harkness (Paul Williams), Jawan M. Jackson (Melvin Franklin), Matt Manuel (David Ruffin), and Jelani Remy (Eddie Kendricks), with Esther Antoine, Saint Aubyn, Shawn Bowers, E. Clayton Cornelious, J. Daughtry,  Tiffany Francés, Ta’Nika Gibson, Taylor Symone Jackson, Jahi Kearse, Darius Jordan Lee, Jarvis B. Manning Jr., Morgan McGhee, Joshua Morgan, Aaron Patterson, Christian Thompson,  Sir Brock Warren, Correy West, Drew Wildman Foster, Curtis Wiley, and Candice Marie Woods.

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 A Little Night Music will run Jan. 21 – Feb. 27 (opening Jan. 22) at the Greenway Court Theatre, directed by Ryan O’Connor, with music direction by Anthony Zediker.

  Zoe Bright (Madame Armfeldt), Peyton Crim (Frederick Egerman), Amanda Kruger (Henrik Egerman), Andrea Lara (Anderssen), Meredith Pyle (Linquist), Emma Rose (Fredrika Armfeldt), Alexa Rosengaus (Petra), Christopher Robert Smith (Count Carl-Magnus), Dekontee Tucrkile (Erlansen), Catherine Wadkins (Desiree Armfeldt), and Sarah Wolter (Charlotte Malcolm), with Lux Amaya and Ronni Paige.

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Video:  Patti Lupone‘s new backstage video at Company.

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  Upcoming streaming options through January on Broadway on Demand:

  Les Miserables 25th Anniversary Concert (now available)

  Ziegfeld Follies (now available), featuring Fred Astaire, Lucille Ball, Gene Kelly, Judy Garland, Fanny Brice, Lena Horne and more.

  “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” film (begins Jan. 4), starring Dustin Hoffman and John Malkovich.

  Camelot, starring Richard Harris (begins Jan. 13)

  Death of a Salesman (begins Jan. 18),with Dustin Hoffman and John Malkovich.

  Lee Mead in Concert (begins Jan. 20), a 40th birthday concert, with special guests Kerry Ellis, Marisha Wallace, Dalton Harris, and Steve Balsamo.

  “Every Act of Life” (begins Jan. 25), a 2018 documentary profiling Terrence McNally.

  “Golda’s Balcony” film (begins Jan. 27), starring Valerie Harper, focusing on the life of Golda Meir.

   Bluebird” documentary (begins Jan. 31), focusing on the discovery and rise to fame of megastars like Garth Brooks and Taylor Swift, while following emerging singer-songwriters as they chase their dreams inside The Bluebird Cafe, the Nashville landmark that has altered the course of music history.

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 Cast changes have been announced for To Kill a Mockingbird  at the Shubert Theatre:

Jan. 2:  Jeff Daniels (Atticus) and Celia Keenan-Bolger (Scout) concluded their runs.
Jan. 5: Greg Kinnear begins his run as Atticus Finch.
Jan. 5: Baize Buzan begins her run as Scout.
Jan. 9: Mariah Lee begins her run as Mayella Ewell.

The cast also features Portia (Calpurnia), Hunter Parrish (Jem Finch), Michael Braugher (Tom Robinson), Russell Harvard (Link Deas), Neal Huff (Bob Ewell), Erin Wilhelmi (Mayella Ewell), Noah Robbins (Dill Harris), Zachary Booth (Horace Gilmer), Gordon Clapp (Judge John Taylor), Patricia Conolly (Mrs. Dubose), Christopher Innvar (Sheriff Heck Tate), Ted Koch (Mr. Cunningham), and Amelia McClain (Miss Stephanie), with Scout Backus, Ian Bedford, Rosalyn Coleman, Anne-Marie Cusson,  Michael Bryan French, Steven Lee Johnson, Tyler Lea, Geoffrey Allen Murphy, Luke Smith, Yaegel T. Welch, and William Youmans.

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  Lloyd J. Schwartz’s Classic Couples Counseling will run Mar. 4 – Apr. 10 at Theatre West (link TBA), directed by Nick McDow Musleh.

  Rick Simone-Friedland, Deanna Gandy, Cecil Jennings, Amelia Vargas, Robert Christophe, Mary Elisabeth Somers, Joe Nassi, Barbara Mallory, Bill Sehres, Anne Leyden, Ashley Taylor, and Constance Mellors.

Dr. Patricia Cataldo is a psychotherapist with a special celebrity clientele: They’re all couples from Shakespeare! She analyzes Kate and Petruchio, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, Othello and Desdemona, and Hamlet and Ophelia. She also has them all come in for group sessions. They all trust her with their tender psyches. However, she has a few kinks of her own.  Dr. Cataldo’s case load is occasionally reduced by attrition. If you know any of Shakespeare’s plays, you’ll know how that happens.

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Video:  Christine Pedi as Liza Minnelli in a tribute to Broadway understudies.

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The Bridges of Madison County will run Mar. 11-27 (opening Mar. 12) at NJ’s Axelrod Performing Arts Center, directed by Hunter Foster.

Kate Baldwin (Francesca Johnson) and Aaron Lazar (Robert Kincaid).

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 Due to COVID outbreaks with the company, the Hamilton national tour continues its temporary closure through Jan. 25 at LA’s Pantages Theatre.

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  Over the holidays, Claybourne Elder celebrated his post-COVID return (on Jan. 1) to the Broadway revival of Company by giving away 38 free tickets to the show.

Originally the offer was only for a total of 2 tickets, but generous donors quickly chipped in, and the number of tickets increased to 38

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& &  “Andrew Garfield & Annette Insdorf: tick, tick…Boom!” will take place in person and virtually on Thurs. Jan. 13 at  7 PM ET at NYC’s 92Y.

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. John Lloyd Young: Mostly Soul will run Jan. 7-8 at 8:30 PM PT at Hollywood’s Catalina Jazz Club, with music direction by Tommy Faragher.

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“Reopening Night,” chronicling opening night of NYC’s Public Theater’s Merry Wives in Summer 2021, is now available on HBO Max.

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 Mark Saltzman’s Romeo & Bernadette: A Musical Tale of Verona and Brooklyn has postponed its Off-Broadway engagement until further notice.

The musical was to have begun previews Feb. 1 and opened Feb. 14 at Off-Broadway’s Theater 555.

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Cat McKay’s Plaid as Hell will run Jan. 29 – Mar. 5 (opening Feb. 4) at Chicago’s Blades Theatre Company, directed by Christina Casano. Select performances will also be livestreamed.

Gabriela Diaz (Jessica), Aleandria Moorman (Emilie), McKenzie Wilkes (Cass), and Alice Wu (Kelly), with Alexandra Alontaga, Debbie Baños, Reagan James, and Song Marshall.

Cass is hoping her annual camping trip will go well this year. But with her best friend Emilie sniping at Cass’s new girlfriend Jessica, not to mention the serial killer on the loose, the weekend is off to a rocky start.

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  Video:  from Jay Falzone, Trent Jeffords & Marc ERdahi’s  How to Repair a Mechanical Heart, featuring Troy Iwata and Chris Medina, with Trey Harrington, Maria Habeeb, Lily Talevski, Stephen Smith, Mara Jill Herman, Ben Roseberry, Ben Bogen, John Jeffords, Katelyn Lauria, Pilar Martinez, and John Rodney Turner.

The new musical centers on two guys who meet in a fan fiction chat group and plan a road trip to a television show convention.

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 January concerts at Chicago’s Davenport’s  Piano Bar & Cabaret:

  Gabrielle Winter: A Musical Night with Gabi Winter and Friends (Jan. 8 at 8 PM CT).

  Nicky Mendelsohn: Be My Friend?!? (Jan. 14 & 15, both at 8 PM CT)

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  A UK tour of Jack Weinstock & Willie Gilbert’s Catch Me If You Can will launch Feb. 18 at Theatre Royal Windsor, directed by Bob Tomson.

Patrick Duffy (Daniel Corban), Linda Purl (Elizabeth Corban), Gray O’Brien (Inspector Levine), and Ben Nealon (Father Kelleher), with more TBA.

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 Mark Clements’ Piano Men will run Jan. 7 – Feb. 27 at Milwaukee Rep, directed by Steve Watts.

  Steve Watts and Nygel D. Robinson.

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  Assassins will run Feb. 17 – Mar. 20 (opening Feb. 20) at East West Players, directed by Snehal Desai, with music direction by Marc Macalintal.

  Gedde Watanabe (Charles Guiteau), Joan Almedilla (Sara Jane Moore), Adam Kaokept (Balladeer/Lee Harvey Oswald), Trance Thompson (John Wilkes Booth), Max Torrez (The Proprietor), Christopher Chen (Samuel Byck), George Xavier (Leon Czolgoz), Astoncia Bhagat (Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme), Arvin Lee (John Hinckley, Jr), ARic Martin (Giuseppe Zangara), and Kym Miller (Emma Goldman), with Andrea Somera, Jalen Lum, and Michael Cavinder.

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  The Dare To Be Different festival of new musicals will run Jan. 27 – Feb. 18 at Off-Broadway’s A.R.T./New York Theatre.

Click here for the complete schedule of events.

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  Ada Vox & Jeremiah Lloyd Harmon in concert will take place Thurs. Mar. 3 at 8:30 PM PT at Hollywood’s Catalina Jazz Club.

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 Cat On A Hot Tin Roof, newly adapted by Ruth Stage, originally scheduled to begin performances Jan. 14 at Off-Broadway’s Theater at St. Clements, has been postponed until Summer 22 (dates TBA), directed by Joe Rosario.

. Sonoya Mizuno (Maggie), Matt de Rogatis (Brick), Christian Jules Le Blanc (Big Daddy), Alison Fraser (Big Mamma), Austin Pendleton (Doc Baugh), Milton Elliott (Rev. Tooker), Tiffan Borelli Mae), Carly Gold (The No Neck Monsters), and Spencer Scott (Gooper).

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GRACE NOTES Quiz answers:  It’s a Gift

1. In Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Joseph’s brothers sell Joseph into slavery.

2.  In Annie, the only thing given to Annie by her parents before she was left at the orphanage was a broken locket.

3.  In Cabaret, Herr Schulz presents Fräulein Schneider with the gift of a pineapple.

4. When Mame Dennis first meets her nephew Patrick in Mame, she gives him a bugle.

5. In the opening scene of King Lear, Lear proposes to give his three daughters his kingdom.

6. In Oklahoma!, the peddler Ali Hakim presents Aunt Eller with a gift of a silk garter.

7.  In Kiss Me, Kate, Lilli Vanessi mistakenly thinks a gift from her ex-husband to his new girlfriend is for her.  The gift is a bouquet of flowers.

8. In A Streetcar Named Desire, Stanley’s birthday gift to Blanche is a bus ticket back to Laurel.

9.  In Hamlet, Ophelia returns gifts that Hamlet has given her, telling him, “Rich gifts wax poor when givers prove unkind.”

10.  Mme. Armfeldt, in A Little Night Music, recollects the liaisons of her youth, in one of which the King of the Belgians deeded her a duchy.