Today’s Highlights:
Darknights & Daydreams developmental reading, a pre-Broadway’ play based on “The Boy who Loved Batman,” featuring Michael Uslan, takes place at 6:30 PM PT at LA’s TCL Chinese Theatre.
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They’ve Got Religion, by Jim Bernhard
Match these characters in plays and musicals with their correct religious group:
| 1. Elder Kevin Price | A. Lutheran |
| 2. Jacob Yoder | B. Congregationalist |
| 3. Georg von Trapp | C. Jewish |
| 4. Tuptim | D. Baptist and later Methodist |
| 5. Pastor Manders | E. Anglican (Church of England) |
| 6. Elmer Gantry | F. Catholic |
| 7. Jessica | G. Amish |
| 8. James Morell | H. Muslim |
| 9. Emily Webb | I. Mormon |
| 10. Col. Tewfiq Zakaria | J. Buddhist |
Scroll down for the answers…
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Article: 30 theatre books for your Summer reading.
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Catskill, NY’s Forestburgh Playhouse has announced its new In the Works ~ In the Woods, a new annual arts festival to run Sept. 9-12.
By Any Other Name, by Deborah Zoe Laufer & Daniel Green, directed by Noah Himmelstein. 
In this new bluegrass romantic comedy, nine of Shakespeare’s young lovers find themselves magically transported to the same forest, where together they grapple with love, loss, identity, and the constraints of gender roles.
This Happened Once at the Romance Depot Off the I-87 in Westchester, by Gina Femia, directed by Taylor Reynolds. Kevin owns a Romance Depot. Beth needs a vibrator. The two of them form an unlikely relationship that straddles the line between friendship and romance. What happens when two lonely people find one another?
El Otro Oz: La Maravillosa Adventure of Dora Garza, (The Other Oz: The Marvelous Adventure of Dora Garza), a new bi-lingual musical by Mando Alvarado, Tommy Newman & Jaime Lozano, directed by Rebecca Aparicio. On the day of her quinceañera, Dora Inez Garza gets swept up by a gran tornado that drops her (and her little chihuahua, too) in a strange and magical world where she must slip on the ruby zapatillas and journey down the yellow brick road to find that true power comes from embracing who you truly are.
Catskills Cab Lab, featuring no solo cabaret artists Belinda Allyn and Frank James Johnson, directed by Alan Muraoka, with music direction by Steven Cuevas.
Holding My Own: Journey to the Ring, Part 1. A new play written & performed by Didi Conn, with music by David Shire.
“Off the Cuff” Creative Conversations with Artists, offering prominent theatre professionals in impromptu discussions about their careers and the creative process.
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“WICKED IN CONCERT: A Musical Celebration” will air Sun. Aug. 29 at 9 PM on PBS, directed by Baayork Lee, with music direction by Luke Frazier, with members of the American Pops Orchestra, and filmed in multiple locations including Washington, DC, Los Angles, and New York City.
Performers TBA.
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Lincoln Center‘s filmed production of Sarah DeLappe’s The Wolves will stream for FREE July 22 (at 7 PM ET) – Aug. 15, directed by Lila Neugebauer. Link TBA.
Paola Sanchez Abreu, Mia Barron, Brenna Coates, Jenna Dioguardi, Samia Finnerty, Midor Francis, Lizzy Jutila, Sarah Mezzanotte, Tedra Millan, and Susannah Perkins.
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Magic Goes Wrong will return Oct. 21 – Feb. 27, 2022 at the Apollo Theatre, directed by Adam Maggido.
Casting TBA.
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The world premiere of Richard Nelson’s What Happened?: The Michaels Abroad will run Aug. 28 – Oct. 8 at NYC’s Hunter College, directed by Nelson.
Charlotte Bydwell, Haviland Morris, Maryann Plunkett, Jay O. Sanders, Matilda Sakamoto, Rita Wolf, Yvonne Woods, and more TBA.
This 12th and final work of the Michaels’ family, follows them on a post-pandemic trip to France to attend a student dance festival.
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The world premiere of Mac Rogers & Jordana Williams’ God of Obsidian will premiere in 3 parts Aug. 7, Sept. 3, and Sept. 10 on all major podcast platforms. 
here.
Rebecca Comtois and Mac Rogers.
You have to cross a bridge to get to Nathan’s house. Crossing in is easy. But crossing out – as Alice is about to discover – is almost impossible. This is a dark fairy tale about a gaslighting relationship as one woman desperately seeks the story that will take her back across the narrow, dangerous bridge to freedom.
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RIP: Elliot Lawrence, composer/conductor/music director has died at the age of 96.
Lawrence is best known for musical directing the Broadway production of Bye, Bye Birdie (1953), for which he was nominated for a Tony Award. He later won the award for How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.
Additional Broadway shows include Golden boy, Here’s Love, The Apple Tree, Golden Rainbow, La Strada, Sugar, and Georgy.
Lawrence also conducted the TV specials for Placido Domingo, Anita Baker, Ann Margaret, Anne Bancroft, Joel Grey, Patti LaBelle, Burt Bacharach, and Dionne Warwick. In addition, he also served as music director for the Tony Award shows from 1967-2013. He is a recipient of 10 Tony Awards.
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Complete casting has been announced for On Your Feet!, to run Aug. 21-27 at the St. Louis Muny, directed by Maggie Burrows, with choreography by William Carlos Angulo, and music direction by Lon Hoyt.
Arianna Rosario (Gloria), Omar Lopez-Cepero (Emilio), Natascia Diaz (Gloria Fajardo), Alma Cuervo (Consuelo), and Lee Zarrett (Phil), Isabella Iannelli (Little Gloria), and Jordan Vergara (Nayib/Young Emilio/Jeremy), with Karmine Alers, Ryan Alvarado, Dhanny Burgos (Emilio Standby), Alexander Cruz, Tami Dahbura, Gina de Pool, Ruben Flores, Henry Julián Gendron, Stephanie Gomérez, Rebecca Kritzer, Tomás Matos, Natalia Nievers-Melchor, Marina Pires (Gloria Standby), Matthew Rivera, Cristina Sastre, Sarah Sigman, Martín Solá, Alora Tonielle, and Julien Valme.
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LA’s Geffen Playhouse is now accepting applications for The Writer’s Room. The next group of playwrights chosen will begin their residency in November, 2021 at the Playhouse.
The Geffen is committed to supporting new plays and specifically to fostering bold, relevant works by the vibrant artistic community in Los Angeles. During the on-year residency, playwright members gather monthly to share their work and receive feedback from their peers, facilitated by Rachel Wiegardt-Egel.
* Applications are now open to all playwrights who currently reside in Los Angeles.
* Submission deadline: Aug. 16, 2021 at 9 PM PT.
* Additional information here.
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“Fly Away,” from Tom Kitt’s debut studio album “Reflect,” will be released Aug. 13, and is available to pre-order here.
The song was written in the late 1990s, and features Kitt and his 16-year-old son Michael.
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Video: Sutton Foster performs the title number in London’s Anything Goes.
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A new documentary about Liza Minnelli, as yet untitled, is currently in development, executive produced by Michael Feinstein. The release date and additional information are TBA.
The film will reportedly begins following the death of Minelli’s mother, and then follow Liza on her rise to fame, beginning in the 1970s, and chronicling her various accolades, including her Oscar for “Cabaret,” an Emmy for “Liza with a Z,” and a Tony for Broadway’s The Act.
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Charles Kirsch (host of theater podcast Backstage Babble) & John Sefakis (president of Dancers Over 40) will present an evening of Broadway trivia on Tues. July 20 at 7 PM ET here, hosted by Michael Lavine.
Lee Roy Reams, Brad Oscar, Gerard Alessandrini, Lawrence Leritz.
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“Rise of the Pink Ladies,” a 10-episode prequel to “Grease,” is in development by Paramount+.
The series takes place four years before the events of the original film. The show’s premise will focus on the period “before rock ‘n’ roll rules, before the T-Birds were the coolest in the school, four fed-up, outcast girls dare to have fun on their own terms, sparking a moral panic that will change Rydell High forever.
A “Grease” film prequel is also still in the works under the title “Grease Summer Lovin’, directed by Brett Haley.
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A re-imagined Kismet, adapted by Charles Lederer & Luther Davis, with lyrics & music adapted by Robert Wright & George Forrest, will run in October at Santa Barbara’s Granada Theatre (link TBA), directed by Lonny Price.
Dates, creative team, casting, and additional information TBA.
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Video: Nan McNamara performs a monologue from August Osage County.
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Hollywood’s Blank Theatre‘s 29th Annual Young Playwrights Festival has announced casting for Week 3 of its digital shorts, by young playwrights aged 16-19. The Festival will stream July 23-30.
Le Me In, by Zander Pryor, directed by Kila Kitu, featuring Parvesh Cheena, Alex Blue Davis, Abe Farrelly, and Toks Olagundoye. Two trans roommates identify and navigate the differences in their experiences with the world while their animal companions ruminate on how to help heal human wounds.
Living With It, by Libby Eick, directed by Jully Lee, featuring Khaleesa Alexander, Tabyana Ali, and Felice Heather Monteith. For Harriet, Covid isn’t the scariest thing about returning to school. While her sis Maya can’t wait to go back and their superintendent mom has her sights on bigger public office, Harriet must figure out how to navigate her fear without destroying everything.
A House With a Broken Swing, by Isabel Tongson, directed by Clint Sears, featuring Alisa Allapach, and Ash Etedali. Two teenage strangers meet on an online platform: one is trapped inside, and the other is an expert on escape. When unexplained things start to happen inside, will they find the key to get out of a house that has a mind of it’s own?
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Facebook: Orfeh performs a mashup of “Yesterday,” “Time After Time,” and “Shallow.”
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They’ve Got Religion answers:
1-I. Elder Kevin Price – Mormon –The Book of Mormon
2-G. Jacob Yoder – Amish – Plain and Fancy
3-F. Georg von Trapp – Catholic – The Sound of Music
4-J. Tuptim – Buddhist – The King and I
5-A. Pastor Manders – Lutheran – Ghosts
6-D. Elmer Gantry – Baptist and later Methodist – Gantry
7-C. Jessica – Jewish – The Merchant of Venice
8-E. James Morell – Anglican (Church of England) – Candida
9-B. Emily Webb – Congregationalist – Our Town
10-H. Col. Tewfiq Zakaria – Muslim – The Band’s Visit