Today’s Highlights:
Brian Stokes Mitchell: Songs and Stories opens at NYC’s 54 Below.
Doing time with Lavinia: The Musical benefit presentation, by Susan Campanaro & Lunn Portas, directed by Christopher Scott, starring Susan Campanaro, at 7 PM ET at NYC’s Stonewall Inn.
Night of Madonnas benefit concert, directed by Richard Amelius, featuring Miss Peppermint, JJ Niemann, Orfeh, Kathryn Allison, J. Harrison Ghee, Nicole Kyoung-Mi Lambert, Tomás Matos, Wren Rivera, and more, at 8 PM ET at NYC’s Sony Hall.
Beyond the Stars benefit concert, featuring Amanda Lindgren, Brady Isaacs Pearce, Cameron Bernard Jones, Emma Hatton, Emma Lindars, Evie Rose Lane, Gracie McGonigal, Hannah Lowther, Kelly Agbowu, Natalie Green, Rob Madge, Ruth Brown, and Shekinah McFarlane, at 7:30 PM GMT London’s The Other Palace.
Chita Rivera Awards ceremony, hosted by Charlotte d’Amboise & Bianca Marroquín, featuring Ben Vereen, Wayne Cilento, Desmond Richardson, Ashley Blair Fitzgerald, Dylis Croman, Rachel Zatcoff, Bebe Neuwirth, Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish, American Dance Machine for the 21st Century, the cast of STOMP, and dancers from the Pace University Commercial Dance BFA Program, at 7:30 PM ET at the NYU Skirball Center.
The Witches of Eastwick concert, by John Dempsey & Dana P. Rowe, directed by Maria Friedman, featuring John Partridge (Darryl Van Horne), Carry Hope Fletcher (Sukie), Natasha J Barnes (Alexandra), Laura Pitt-Pulford (Jane), Claire Moore (Felicia Gabriel), Nathan Amzi (Clyde Gabriel), Alfie Friedman (Michael Spofford), and Chrissie Bhima (Jennifer Gabriel), with Lydia Bannister, Isabel Canning, Aoife Dunn, Christopher Howell, Emma Knudsen, Martin McCarthy, Benjamin Mundy, Emily Ooi, Joshua Robinson, Rachel Spurrell, and Rafe Watts, at 7 PM GMT at London’s Sondheim Theatre.
Broadway Advocacy Coalition’s Broadway VS livestream benefit concert, celebrating Norm Lewis and Joshua Henry, hosted by Amber Iman, at 7:30 PM ET at Off-Broadway’s New World Stages.
Seth Rudetsky’s Broadway concert, with special guest Vanessa Williams, at 8 PM ET at NYC’s Town Hall.
Isn’t This Bliss? Sondheim on Love concert & discussion, conceived, directed, hosted & music directed by Ted Sperling, featuring Ben Davis, Jordan Donica, Solea Pfeiffer, and Scarlett Strallen, concludes at NYC’s 92Y.
Antaeus Theatre Company‘s Hamlet, directed by Elizabeth Swain, featuring Ramón de Ocampo (Hamlet), Gregg T. Daniel (Claudius), Veralyn Jones (Gertrude), Jeanne Syquia (Ophelia), Peter Van Norden (Polonius), Michael Kirby (Laertes), and Adam J. Smith (Horatio), with Sally Hughes, Lloyd Roberson II, and Joel Swetow, closes at Glendale’s Gindler PAC.
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GRACE NOTES Quiz: Up in the Air, by Jim Bernhard
These questions all deal with aircraft in shows:
1. In My One and Only, set in 1927, the great ambition of Captain Billy Buck Chandler, barnstorming pilot, is to fly…from New York to Los Angeles in 4 hours…solo across the Atlantic Ocean…to the moon…to his best friend’s birthday party
2. In Guys and Dolls, Sky Masterson and Sarah Brown fly from New York City to have dinner in…Chicago…Albany…Mexico City…Havana
3. In All My Sons, Joe Keller sells defective airplane parts to the military, resulting in numerous plane crashes in… World War I…World War II…the Korean War…the Viet Nam war
4. Come From Away is a musical dealing with transatlantic flights that were forced to land on September 11, 2001, in…Halifax, Nova Scotia…Gander, Newfoundland… Iceland…the Azores
5. Take Flight is a musical about the history of aviation, in which characters include all but one of the following:…the Wright Brothers….Charles Lindbergh…Amelia Earhart…Chuck Yeager
6. In Shaw’s Misalliance, a plane crash-lands in the garden carrying a passenger, Lina Szczepanowska, who is a…concert violinist…psychiatrist…circus acrobat…ballerina
7. In The Drowsy Chaperone, Trix, the pilot, agrees to fly eight people to Rio and do what while in the air?…fly the plane in loop-de-loops…allow the passengers to sky-dive…marry the four couples using her authority as captain of the plane…teach them to speak Portuguese
8. Coffee, Tea, or Do Re Mi is a musical about flight attendants in the 1960s, when they were called…stewardesses…hostesses…pursers…second mates
9. In Miss Saigon Americans are evacuated in a…glider…helicopter…seaplane…747
10. Sweetwater is a musical about women Air Force pilots in World War II who were known as…Hornets…WACS…WASPS…aviatrixes
Scroll down for the answers…
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Casting has been announced for Elton John, Shaina Taub & Kate Wetherhead’s The Devil Wears Prada, to run July 19 – Aug. 21 at Chicago’s Nederlander Theatre, directed by Anna D. Shapiro, with choreography by James Alsop, and music supervision by Nadia DeGiallonardo.
Beath Leavel (Miranda Priestly), Taylor Iman Jones (Andy Sachs), Javier Muñoz (Nigel Owens), Christiana Cole (Lauren), Megan Masako Haley (Emily Charlton), Tiffany Mann (Kayla), Michael Tacconi (Nate Angstrom), and Christian Thompson (Christian Thompson), with Kyle Brown, JoJo Carmichael, Olivia Cipolla, Tyrone Davis Jr., Audrey Douglas, Hannah Douglass, Madiso Fendley, Cailen Fu, Michael Samarie George, Henry Gottfried, Marya Grandy, Jessie Jooker-Bailey, Liana Hunt, Amber Jackson, Chris Jaroz, Carlos A. Jimenez, Nikka Graff Lanzarone, Anthony Murphy, Jim Ortlieb, Jonathan Rice, Sawyer Smith, Terrance Spencer, and CJ Tyson.
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Mark Saltzman’s Romeo & Bernadette: A Musical Tale of Verona and Brooklyn, directed & choreographed by Justin Ross Cohen, has been extended through July 31 at Off-Broadway’s Theater 555.
Nikita Burshteyn, Anna Kostakis, Carlos Lopez, Michael Marotta, Judy McLane, Michael Notardonato, Ari Raskin, Troy Valjean Rucker, Zach Schanne, and Viet Vo.
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Video: Vanessa William, LaChanze, Andrew Rannells, James Monroe Iglehart, and more, sing Showstoppers in 50 Years of Broadway at the Kennedy Center. (5:16)
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Rebekah Greer Melocik & Jacob Yandura’s How to Dance in Ohio will run Sept. 21 – Oct. 9 at Syracuse Stage, directed by Sammi Cannold, with choreography by Mayte Natalio.
Wilson Jermain Heredia (Dr. Emilio Amigo), Haven Burton (Teresa), Darlesia Cearcy (Johanna), Carlos L. Encinias (Kurt), Desmond Edwards (Remy), Amelia Fei (Caroline), Nick Gaswirth (Michael), Gaelen Gilliand (Amy), Madison Kopec (Marideth), Liam Pearce (Drew), Marina Pires (Ashley Amigo), Imani Russell (Melissa), Conor Tague (Tommy), and Ashley Wool (Jessica).
Based on Alexandra Shiva’s documentary of the same name, the musical follows the challenges faced by a group of autistic young adults at a counseling center in Ohio. With the support of clinical psychologist Dr. Emilio Amigo, the center arranges a spring formal dance, and encourages them as they encounter love, fear, stress, excitement, and hope, along the path to human connection.
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Mathew Spangler’s The Kite Runner will run July 6 – Oct. 30 (opening July 21) at the Hayes Theater, directed by Giles Croft.
Amir Arison (Amir), Faran Tahir (Baba), Danish Farooqui (Wali/Doctor), Azita Ghanizada (Soraya), Joe Joseph (Merchant/Russian Soldier), Dariush Kashani (Rahim Khan), Beejan Land (Kamal/Zaman), Amir Malaklou (Assef), Eric Sirakian (Hassan/Sohrab), Houshang Touzie (General Taheri), and Ali Farid), with Demosthenes Chrysan, Dea Julien, Chritine Mirzayan, Haris Pervaiz, and Alex Purcell.
A haunting tale of friendship spanning cultures and continents, that follows one man’s journey to confront his past and find redemption. Afghanistan is a divided country on the verge of war and two childhood friends are about to be torn apart. It’s a beautiful afternoon in Kabul and the skies are full of the excitement and joy of a kite flying tournament. But neither of the boys can foresee the terrible incident which will shatter their lives forever.
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Audio: George Abud performs “Perfection” from Lempicka, currently running at La Jolla Playhouse.
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Broadway by the Year will present Almost on Broadway June 27 at 8 PM ET at NYC’s Town Hall, created, hosted & directed by Scott Seigel.
Christine Andreas, Jason Graae, Ed Staudenmayer, Kelli Rabke, Crystal Joy, Brian Charles Rooney, Pedro Coppeti, and Danny Gardner.
Hear tunes from Forever Plaid, Forbidden Broadway, Beehive, The World Goes Round, The Last Five Years, Jacques Brel I Alive and Well and Living in Paris, The Fantasticks, the Baker’s Wife, Children of Eden, the Hunchback of Notre Dame, Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah, and more…
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Suzan-Lori Parks’ Topdog/Underdog will begin previews Sept. 27 and open Oct. 20 at the Golden Theatre, directed by Kenny Leon.
Corey Hawkings (Lincoln) and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Booth).
A darkly comic fable of brotherly love and family identity, tells the story of two brothers, names (Lincoln and Booth) given to them as a joke by their father. Haunted by the past and their obsession with the street con game, three-card monte), the brothers come to learn the true nature of their history.
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Video: Bea Arthur throws epic shade at Tallulah Bankhead.
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A reading of Sean P. Pallatroni, Mark Mozzarella & Darren Butler’s Out of the Blue will take place June 24 at 2 PM ET & June 25 at 3 PM at NYC’s Ripley Grier Studios, directed by Jessica Wu, with music direction by Pallatroni & Dan Sater.
Kevin McGuire, July Abueva, Grace Capeless, Max Bartos, Darron Hayes, Gary Littman, Rebecca Lee Lerman, and Megan Colton, with Evie Rose Butler, Julia Lawson, Sami Millerick, Kendall Raymond, and Kirsten Ward.
Based on true events, the musical follows 17-year-old visual art student Sienna, who begins to lose her eye sight during her senior year. With the help of her friends and tutor, she learns to navigate her diagnosis and the loss of the her mother.
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Video: Highlights of the 50 Years of Off Broadway concert at the Kennedy Center, featuring James Monroe Iglehart, Stephanie J. Block, Sierra Boggess, Gavin Creel, LaChanze, Beth Leavel, Norm Lewis, Andrew Rannells, Frances Ruffelle, Vanessa Williams, and Tony Yazbeck. (5:16)
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Broadway Barks will return Sat. July 9 from 3-6:30 PM ET in Broadway’s Shubert Alley, for its annual dog and cat adoption event, hosted by Sutton Foster, in support of New York City animal rescue groups.
Celebrity participants and additional information TBA.
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Complete casting has been announced for the UK tour of the Chichester Festival production of South Pacific, directed by Daniel Evans. The musical will July 16-27 at the Manchester Opera House, with another run July 27 – Aug. 28 run at London’s Sadler’s Wells. A 10-week tour will follow.
Julian Ovenden (Emile de Becque), Gina Beck (Nellie Forbush), Rob Houchen (Lieutenant Joseph Cable), Joanna Ampil (Bloody Mary), Sera Maehara (Liat), Lee Ross (Luther Billis), David Birrell (Captain George Brackett), Stephen John Davis (Commander William Harbison), Antoine Murray-Straughan (Stewpot), Charlie Waddell (Professor, and Olly Christopher (Seargeant Johnson), with Iroy Abesamis, Feline Andersson, Charlotte Coggin, Annabel Edwards, Leslie Garcia Bowman, Sergio Giacomelli, Ellie Jane Grant, Josh Kiernan, Matthew Maddison, Rachel Jayne Picar, Kate Playdon, George Renshaw, Pierce Rogan, Charlotte Scott, Trezel Seargeant, Nikhil Singh Rai, James Wilkinson-Jones, and Eleanor Wright.
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FULL OUT! An Evening with Jerry Mitchell will take place Thurs. June 23 at 7 PM at Burbank’s Garry Marshall Theatre, with music direction by Rachael Lawrence, and hosted by Joseph Leo Bwarie.
Billy Porter, Marissa Jaret Winokur, Jackie Seiden, and Sabrina Sloan.
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Video: Highlights from “Matilda The Musical” film, to be released this Fall on Netflix (date TBA), starring Emma Thompson (Miss Trunchbull), Alisha Weir (Matilda), Lashana Lynch (Miss Honey), Stephen Graham (Mr. Wormwood), Andrea Riseborough (Mrs. Wormwood), and Sindhu Vee (Mrs. Phelps).
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(Audi0): George Abud performs “Perfection” from the new musical Lempika, by Carson Kreitzer & Matt Gould, now playing at La Jolla Playhouse.
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GRACE NOTES Quiz answers: Up in the Air
1. In My One and Only, the great ambition of Captain Billy Buck Chandler is to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean.
2. In Guys and Dolls, Sky Masterson and Sarah Brown fly from New York City to have dinner in Havana.
3. In All My Sons, Joe Keller sells defective airplane parts to the military, resulting in numerous plane crashed in World War II.
4. Come From Away is a musical dealing with transatlantic flights that were forced to land on Sept. 11, 2001 in Gander, Newfoundland.
5. Take Flight is a musical about the history of aviation, in which characters do not include Chuck Yeater.
6. In Shaw’s Misalliance, Lina Szczpanowska is a circus acrobat.
7. In The Drowsy Chaperone, Trix, the pilot, agrees to fly four engaged couples to Rio and while in the air marry them, using her authority as captain of the plane.
8. Coffee, Tea, or Do Re Me is a musical about flight attendants in the 1960s, when they were called stewardesses.
9. In Miss Saigon, Americans are evacuated in a helicopter.
10. Sweetwater is a musical about women Air Force pilots in World War II who were known as WASPS.