Today’s Highlights
Between the Lines, by Timothy Allen, Elyssa Samsel & Kate Anderson, directed by Jeff Calhoun, featuring Arielle Jacobs (Deliah), Jake David Smith (Prince Oliver), Vicki Lewis (Ms. Winx/Jessamyn Jacobs/Mrs. Brown/Kyrie), Hillary Fisher (Allie/Princess Seraphima), Will Burton (Frump/Ryan), Jerusha Cavasos (Janice/Marina), John Rapson (Dr. Ducharme/Rapskulio), Wren Rivera (Jules/Ondine), Sean Stack (Martin/Troll/Dad/Delivery Person), and Julia Murney (Grace/Queen Maureen), with Heather Ayers, Dan Hoy, Martin Landry, and Aubrey Matalon, opens at Off-Broadway’s Tony Kiser Theatre.
Mister Miss America, world premiere written & performed by Neil D’Astolfo, opens at Off-Broadway’s Rattlestick Playwrights Theater.
Jamie de Roy & Friends benefit concert, in support of TECF (The Entertainment Community Fund), directed by Barry Kleinbort, with special guests Harolyn Blackwell, Ben Jones, Daisy Jopling, Robert Klein, and Jason Kravits, at 7 PM ET at NYC’s Birdland.
Red Bull Theater‘s Short New Play Festival 2022, at 7:30 PM ET at NYC’s Sheen Center.
Seth Rudetsky’s Seth’s Big Fat Broadway Show, at 7:30 ET at Rhode Island’s Theatre by the Sea.
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GRACE NOTES Quiz: Numbers, Please by Jim Bernhard
What do the numbers in these titles of plays and musicals refer to?
| 1. Five Guys Named Moe, musical by Clark Peters, Louis Jordan et al | A. Animals on Noah’s Ark |
| 2. My Three Angels, play by Sam and Bella Spewack | B. Age of the protagonist |
| 3. Six, musical by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss | C. Army commanders |
| 4. Nine, musical by Arthur Kopit and Maury Yeston | D. Inmates of a French colonial prison |
| 5. Two by Two, musical by Peter Stone, Richard Rodgers and Martin Charnin | E. Number needed for a minyan in Jewish worship |
| 6. The Tenth Man, play by Paddy Chayefsky | F. Gamblers |
| 7. Twelve Angry Men, play by Reginald Rose | G. Singers who emerge from the radio to sing songs of the 1930s |
| 8. 13, musical by Dan Elish, Robert Horn and Jason Robert Brown | H. Films credited to a director |
| 9. Seven Against Thebes, play by Aeschylus | I. Jurors |
| 10. Three Men on a Horse, play by George Abbott and John Cecil Holm | J. Wives of Henry VIII |
Scroll down for the answers…
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Reviews for Into The Woods at Broadway’s St. James Theatre:
NY Times (Alexis Soloski): …“Nice,” Little Red concludes, “is different than good.” True. But isn’t it splendid when a work of musical theater is absolutely both? Lear deBessonet’s superb production… Despite some cast changes, its humor, wonder and humanity have arrived intact… Indeed, they may glimmer even more brightly at the St. James Theater than they did at City Center… So if you saw that recent staging, should you go into the woods again?… Wishes come true, not free… If the production’s style is minimal, it is never austere and on this mostly blank canvas, deBessonet, aided by Lorin Latarro’s playful choreography, paints in rich and plentiful tones.
Daily News (Chris Jones): …All great musicals rely on metaphors. But Broadway never has come up with a more pliable one than Into the Woods…the beloved masterpiece by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine that uses a fairytale mash-up to explore the universe… That’s why audiences are leaning into this show right now with a hunger that must be lifting a starry cast… The cast spends most of their time downstage, front and center. This works spectacularly well because the material is spectacularly good and, frankly, the show avoids the typical “Into the Woods” trap of layering a director’s invasive conceit atop the already fragile conceit dreamed up by the writer and composer…
Variety (Naveen Kumar): …The revival that opened on Broadway Sunday night is not just a glorious lifeline for fans reawakening to the wonders of live performance after a long, dark hiatus. It’s a crystalline showcase for sensational performances from an all-star cast of marquee veterans, and a testament to the enduring genius of the beloved musical… Into the Woods leaves generous room for interpretation, and this prodigious ensemble is making an absolute feast of the possibilities… Rather than squirreled out of sight, the musicians occupy a generous portion of the stage while the action unfolds mostly down front.
Hollywood Reporter (David Rooney): …a mix of superlative original cast and sparkling new additions… this ensemble of some of New York’s finest musical-theater talents has a ball playing up the comedy. But the merriment is never at the expense of the characters’ fragile humanity or the material’s poignancy… deBessonet and her cast balance the light and dark, the playful and thoughtful sides of the material with pleasing delicacy, ultimately offering restorative evidence of how we take tragedy on board and grow from it by learning to forgive ourselves and care for one another.
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Reviews for the Pre-Broadway run of &Juliet at Toronto’s Princess of Wales Theatre:
Globe and Mail (J. Kelly Nestruck): …unabashed theatrical fun of the kind that encourages dancing in your seat and sets off confetti cannons over your head… What if Juliet lived, instead?…And so, the Shakespeare spouses begin to co-write a new show… Everything is gleefully anachronistic… and the supporting characters are all vividly drawn… There is a problem with & Juliet, however, and it lies with its ill-defined title character, who gets buffeted about by both the writer of the musical (Read) and the writers in it…
Toronto Star (Karen Fricker): … fully commits to the task of entertainment… the plot is built around one of the best-known stories in world literature, updating it with a strong feminist twist and an embrace of sexual and gendered diversities. And finally, it features multiple central characters of various ages falling in and out of love and bed… The music was orchestrated and arranged… Those moments where the pace slows and the music goes into power-ballad mode felt like sweet respite..
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The London production of Anthony McCarten’s The Collaboration will transfer to Broadway, with previews beginning Nov. 29 and an opening set for Dec. 20 at Manhattan Theatre Club‘s Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, directed by Kwame Kwei-Armah.
Jeremy Pope and Paul Bettany.
In the summer of 1984, the longtime international superstar Andy Warhol and the art scene’s newest wunderkind, Jean-Michel Basquiat, agree to work together on what my be the most talked about exhibition in the history of modern art. But can these two creative giants co-exist, or even thrive?
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Steve Ross: Cole Porter and Beyond will take place Mon. July 18 at 7 PM ET at NYC’s Birdland.
David Maiocco
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Video: Rupert Holmes on the journey of The Nutty Professor, currently at Maine’s Ogunquit Playhouse.
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Second Stage Theater has announced complete casting for the world premiere of Johnny G. Lloyd’s Patience, to run Aug. 2-28 (opening Aug. 16) at the McGinn/Cazale Theater, directed by Zhailon Levingston.
Justin Davis (Daniel), Jonathan Burke (Jordan), Nemuna Ceesay (Nikita), Zainab Barry (Ella), and Mary E. Hodges (Mother).
Daniel is a gay, Black, professional solitaire player looking ahead to his final, career-defining match before retirement, when he’ll be able to settle down with his husband-to-be, Jordan.
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Video” Mykal Kilgore and the company of FAT Ham perform “Kill the Lights.“
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LA’s Mark Taper Forum has announced it 2022-23 season:
The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe (Sept. 21 – Oct. 23), by Jane Wagner, directed by Leigh Silverman, starring Cecily Strong.
Clyde’s (Nov. 15 – Dec. 18), by Lynn Nottage, directed by Kate Whoriskey
Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 (Mar. 8 – Apr. 9, 2023), conceived, written & revised by Anna Deavere Smith.
A Transparent Musical (May 20 – June 25), world premiere by Joey Soloway, MJ Kaufman & Faith Soloway, directed by Tina Landau, with choreography by James Alsop. Based on the Amazon Prime series. =
Fake It Until You Make It (Aug. 2 – Sept. 3), world premiere by Larissa FastHorse. A satire which examines Native American perspectives on contemporary life and be the first Native writer. This though-provoking comic play asks what happens when you don’t believe your are the race you want to be?
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David West & Max Martin’s & Juliet will begin previews Oct. 28 and open Nov. 17 at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre, directed by Luke Sheppard, with choreography by Jennifer Weber.
Lorna Courtney (Juliet), Paulo Szot (Lance), Betsy Wolfe (Anne Hathaway), Stark Sands (Shakespeare), Justin David Sullivan (May), Melanie La Barrie (Nurse), Ben Jackson Walker (Romeo), and Philippe Arroyo (Francois), with Brandon Antonio, Nico DeJesus, Nicholas Edwards, Virgil Gadson, Katy Geraghty, Bobby “Pocket” Horner, Joomin Hwang, Michael Iván Carrier, Alaina Vi Maderal, Daniel J. Maldonado, Joe Moeller, Brittany Nicholas, Veronica Otim, Jasmine Rafael, Matt Raffy, Tiernan Tunnicliffe, and Rachel Webb.
What would happen next if Juliet hadn’t ended it all over Romeo, and got a second chance at life and love – on her terms.
Video: Highlights from the London production.
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Afterglow, written & directed by S. Asher Gelman has been extended through Aug. 28 at Hollywood’s Hudson Theatre.
Noah Bridgestock (Josh), James Hayden Rodriguez (Alex), and Nathan Mohebbi (Darius).
A raw one-act play exploring the emotional, intellectual, and physical connections between three men and the broader implications within their relationships.
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Abigail Barlow & Emily Bear’s The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical in concert will take place Tues. July 26 at 8 PM ET at The Kennedy Center, directed by Sammi Cannold and conducted by Steven Reineke.
Solea Pfeiffer, Micaela Diamond, Jason Gotay, Darlesia Cearcy, and more TBA.
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Ragtime The Musical will run Aug. 2-28 (opening Aug. 6) at Sag Harbor’s Bay Street Theater, directed by Will Pomerantz, with choreography by Christopher Grant & Lauren Grant, and music direction by James Bassi.
Kyrie Courter (Sarah), Derrick Davis (Coalhouse), Lora Lee Gayer (Mother, Zachary Prince (Tateh), Daniel Jenkins (Father), Harrison Bryan (Younger Brother), Davon Williams (Booker T. Washington), Clyde Voce (Matthew Henson), Rachel Parker (Sarah’s Friend), Taylor Jackson (Harlem Woman), Cathryn Wake (Evelyn Nesbit), Victoria Huston-Elam (Emma Goldman), Ryan Hunt (Willie Conklin), Cecelia Ticktin (Kathleen), Will Hantz (The Boy), and Sonnie Betts (The Girl), with Ian Lowe and Brianna Kaleen.
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Video: “It’s On” from Season 3 of “High School Musical” on Disney+
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Tom Kitt’s Almost Famous has announced new dates for its Broadway premiere. The musical will now begin previews Oct. 3 and open Nov. 3 at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, directed by Jeremy Herrin, with choreography by Sarah O’Gleby, and music direction by Bryan Perri.
Chris Wook, Anika Larsen, Solea Pfeiffer, Drew Gehling, Rob Colletti, and Casey Likes, with Matt Bittner, Chad Burris, Gerard Canonico, Julia Cassandra, Brandon Contreras, Jakeim Hart, Van Hughes, Jana Djenne Jackson, Katie Ladner, Danny Lindgren, Erica Mansfield, Alisa Melendez, Emily Schultheis, Daniel Sovich, Libby Winters, and Matthew C. Yee.
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This year’s Fire Island Dance Festival will run July 15-17 in Fire Island Pines, hosted by James Whiteside. 
here
Alvin Aily American Dance Theater, #QueerTheBallet, The Verdon Fosse Legacy, Caleb Teicher, and more..
Check out the special daytrip package here.
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Steve Ross: Allons Enfants: Encore une Fois! will run July 14-16 at NYC’s Pangea, with music direction by Jean Brassard.
Karen Akers and Greta
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“The Last Movie Stars,” a 6-part documentary that chronicles Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward‘s careers and. marriage, will debut Thurs. July 21 on HBO Max.
Through long-lost transcriptions of interviews with the stage and screen stars and those close to them, brought to life by voices of contemporary actors, Ethan Hawk’s documentary offers an intimate look into the lives and careers of the famed couple, including their dedication to art, philanthropy, and each other.
Video: Trailer
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The 14th Annual Broadway’s Rising Stars, the national showcase event for recent graduates of Performing Arts schools from across the country, will take place Mon. July 18 at 8 PM ET at NYC’s Town Hall, written, directed & hosted by Scott Siegel, with choreography by Danny Gardner.
Twenty-two up and coming students will participate.
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GRACE NOTES Quiz answers: Numbers, Please
1-G. Five Guys Named Moe – Singers who emerge from the radio to sing songs of the 1930s
2-D. My Three Angels – Inmates of a French colonial prison
3-J. Six – Wives of Henry VIII
4-H. Nine – films credited to a director
5-A. Two by Two – Animals on Noah’s Ark
6-E. The Tenth Man – number needed for a minyan in Jewish worship
7-I. Twelve Angry Men – Jurors
8-B. 13 – Age of the protagonist
9-C. Seven Against Thebes – Army commanders
10-F. Three Men on a Horse – Gamblers