Today’s Highlights:
King of the Yees, by Lauren Yee, directed by Jennifer Chang, featuring Grant Chang (Larry), Silvia Kwan (Actor 2), Ashley D. Nguyen (Lauren), Jacob Yeh (Actor 1), and Nicholas Yenson (Actor 3), opens at DC’s Signature Theatre.
The Half-God of Rainfall, by Inua Ellams, directed by Taibi Magar, featuring Jason Bowen (Sàngó), Kelley Curan (Hera), Mister Fitzgerald (Demi), Patrice Johnson Chevannes (Osún), Russell G. Jones (Elegba), Michael Laurence (Zeus), and Jennifer Mogbock (Modúpé), opens at Cambridge’s A.R.T.
Manhattan Theatre Club‘s Jaja’s African Hair Braiding, by Jocelyn Bioh, directed by Whitney White, featuring Brittany Adebumola, Maechi Aharanwa, Rachel Christopher, Kalyne Coleman, Somi Kakoma, Lakisha May, Nana Mensah, Michael Oloyede, Dominique Thorne, and Zanai Williams, begin previews at Broadway’s Samuel J. Friedman Theatre.
On the Flip Side industry-only reading, by Gary Apple, directed by Christopher Scott,featuring Christopher Sutton, Lyn Philistine, and Zak Risinger, with Lance Roberts, Honey Davenport, Joel Blum, Iris Beaumier, Kara Arena, Jack Herholdt, and Shadia Rairuz, at 7:30 PM at Off-Broadway’s York Theatre Company. 
: boxoffice@yorktheatre.org.
Broadway Sings Celine Dion encore concert, directed by Corey Mach, featuring Lorna Courtney, Eden Espinosa, Jessica Vosk, Eleri Ward, DeMarius Copes, Natalie Joy Johnson, Tamika Lawrence, Corey Mach, Gracie McGraw, Veronica Otim, Dee Roscioli, Talia Suskauer, Marty Thomas, Raena White, Sasha Allen, Bella Coppola, Marcus Paul James, Jade Jones, John Riddle, Mia Gerachis, Stephanie Torns, Courtney Bassett, Dimitri Moïse, and Carrie St. Louis, at 8 PM at NYC’s Sony Hall.
LIVIN’ IT! — The Music of Julie Mandel FREE concert, conceived by Denise Puricelli, directed by Hannah Ryan, featuring Cassondra James, Sydney Borchers, Erica Spyres, and Nikita Burshteyn, closes at Off-Broadway’s Theater 555. (required) boxoffice@theater555.com
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GRACE NOTES Quiz: The Heart of the Matter by Jim Bernhard
Provide the missing word in these show tunes, all of which contain the word “heart.”
| 1. “I Let A ____ Go Out of My Heart” – Sophisticated Ladies | A. Strings |
| 2. “In the Heart of the ____” – Very Warm for May | B. Eye |
| 3. “Love from a Heart of ____” – How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying | C. Raining |
| 4. “____ in My Heart” – Dames at Sea | D. Light |
| 5. “The ____ Garden of My Heart” – Pal Joey | E. Song |
| 6. “The Heart Is Quicker Than the ____” – On Your Toes | F. Love |
| 7. “The ____ Heart” – Once On This Island | G. Human |
| 8 . “Zing! Went the ____ of My Heart” – Thumbs Up | H. Dark |
| 9. “There’s A Broken Heart for Every ____ on Broadway” – Bullets Over Broadway | I. Gold |
| 10. “A Heart Full of ____” – Les Miserables? | J. Flower |
Scroll down for the answers…
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Manhattan Theatre Club will present Amy Herzog’s Mary Jane, which will begin previews Apr. 2, 2024 (opening date TBA) at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, directed by Anne Kauffman.
Rachel McAdams, and more TBA.
The new play follows a single mom raising a child battling a difficult illness and the community of women around her that become a makeshift family.
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Cabaret continues through Oct. 8 at San Diego’s Old Globe, directed & choreographed by Josh Rhodes.
Lincoln Clauss (Emcee), Joanna A. Jones (Sally Bowles), tAlan Chandler (Clifford Bradshaw), Abby Church (Fräulein Kost/Fritzie), Christian Douglass (Max), Alex Gibson (Ernst Ludwig), Yoni Haller (Herman), Brandon Halvorsen (Victor), Leeds Hill (Hans), Karma Jenkins (Texas), Celeste Lanuza (Frenchie), Kelly Lester (Fräulein Schneider), Trina Mills (Helga), Natalia Nieves-Melchor (Lulu), Bruce Sabath (Herr Schultz), Michael Seltzer (Bobby), and Amy Smith (Rosie), with Christine Hewitt,John Rosen, Emily Bordley and John Viso.
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Steve Ross Sings Cole Porter: From List to Lust will run Oct. 13-15 at London’s The Pheasantry.
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New York Rep will present the world premiere of Michelle Kholos Brooks’ War Words Nov. 10 – Dec. 17 (opening Nov. 14) at A.R.T., directed by Sarah Norris.
Maggie Bofill, John Concado, Bethany Geraghty, Brandon Jones, Kevin Loreque, Jakob Von Eichel, Stephen Tyrone Williams, and more TBA.
A docu-play in the words of the men and women who served in the U.S. Military during the Afghanistan and Iraq wars. Based on the playwright’s interviews with veterans of the 20-year Long War and their families, War Words is composed of heroic and heartbreaking stories of the veterans, families, and allies of people who served: those who came home, and those who were left behind. The playwright and NewYorkRep have felt that there was always a need for civilians to better understand the motivation and sacrifice one makes to serve.
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Heidi Schreck’s What the Constitution Means to Me will run Sept. 15 – Oct. 8 (opening Sept. 19) at Albany’s Capital Rep, directed by Kristen van Ginhoven.
Kim Stauffer, with Izzy Brown.
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Listen to the cast album of Douglas J. Cohen & Douglas Carter Beane’s The Big Time, starring Santino Fontana, Debbie Gravitte, Raymond Bokhour, Bradley Dean, Jackie Hoffman, Michael McCormick, Diane Phelan, and Will Swenson.
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A Tectonic Cabaret will take place Mon. Oct. 2 at 6:30 PM at NYC’s Sony Hall, directed by Timothy Koch, with music direction by Anna Ebbesen.
Cynthia Nixon and Kevin Jennings.
Jauaquina Kalukango, Jelani Remy, Meghan Picerno, John McGinty, Chloe Davis, Nick Lehane, Grace McLean, Donna Carnow, and more…
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Audio: Listen to the cast recording of Broadway’s Sweeney Todd (2023), starring Josh Groban and Annaleigh Ashford.
The CD will be released later this Fall (date TBA)
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A revised script & score of Bobby Cronin’s Daybreak in concert will take place Sun. Oct. 8 at NYC’s Laurie Beechman Theatre, directed by L Morgan Lee.
TBA.
Inspired by real life events, the musical tells the story of two couples in two different time periods, both connected by The Golden Gate Bridge, a wonder of the modern world and notorious suicide destination.
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Complete casting has been announced for Kait Kerrigan, Jason Howland & Nathan Tysen’s The Great Gatsby, to run Oct. 12 – Nov. 12 (opening Oct. 22) at NJ’s Paper Mill Playhouse, directed by Marc Bruni, with choreography by Dominique Kelley, and music direction by Daniel Edmonds.
Jeremy Jordan (Jay Gatsby), Eva Noblezada (Daisy Buchanan), Stanley W. Mathis (Meyer Wolfsheim), Samantha Pauly (Jordan Baker), Noah J. Ricketts (Nick Carraway), Paul Whitty (George Wilson), and John Zdrojeski (Tom Buchanan), with Lauryn Adams, Raymond Edward Baynard, Ayla Ciccone-Burton, Austin Colby, Colin Cunliffe, Natalie Charle Ellis, Curtis Holland, Brianna Kim, Dariana Mullen, Pascal Pastrana, Mariah Reives, Julio Rey, Dan Rosales, Maya Sistruck, Jake Trammel, Jake Urban, Tanairi Vazquez, and Katie Webber.
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Wladyslaw Szpilman’s The Pianist will run Sept. 26 – Oct. 22 (opening Sept. 29) at NJ’s George Street Playhouse, adapted & directed by Emily Mann.
Daniel Donskoy (Wladyslaw Szpilman),Claire Beckman (Mother), Austin Pendleton (Father), Paul Spera (Henryk), Arielle Goldman (Regina), Georgia Warner (Halina/Woman), Charlotte Ewing (Magda/Boy), Tina Benko ((Janina and others), Robert David Grant (Majorek and others), and Jordan Lage (Jaworski).
A new stage adaptation of Wladyslaw Szpilman’s harrowing account of the annihilation of Jewish life in Warsaw during World War II and his remarkable survival through the transcendent power of music. Szpilman was the most acclaimed young musician of his time until his promising career was interrupted by the onset of World War II. He played the last live music heard over Polish radio airwaves before Nazi artillery hit. Though he escaped deportation, Szpilman was forced to live in the heart of the Warsaw ghetto. The play follows Szpilman’s heroic and inspirational journey of survival with the unlikely help of a sympathetic German officer.
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Twelfth Night will run Oct. 25 – Nov. 26 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, directed by Tyrone Phillips.
Jaeda LaVonne (Viola), Paul Oakley Stoball (Malvolio), Christiana Clark (Olivia), Ronald L. Conner (Sir Toby Belch), Yao Dogbe (Orsinio), Danielle Davis (Maria), Alex Goodrich (Sir Andrew Aguecheek), Adam Poss (Antonio), Israel Erron Ford (Feste), Justen Ross (Sebastian), Shelby Lynn Bias (Fabian), and Arielle Leverett (Gentlewoman), with Christian Andrews.
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Long Island’s Bay Street Theater (see link below) has announced its 10th Annual Title Wave: 2024 New Works Festival. Submissions will be accepted beginning Oct. 21. The festival will introduce 4 new full-length plays.
Each festival is a valuable opportunity for playwrights to see their work through a rehearsal and into a public presentation with the help of a professional director and actors. Bay Street Theater is proud to support this work and to engage our audiences in the process through readings, talkbacks, and open discussions with the artists.
Click here for submission details. Submission will open Oct. 1 and close when a maximum of 300 plays have been submitted (or no later than Oct. 31).
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Complete casting has been announced for John Logan & The Avett Brothers’ Swept Away, to run Nov. 25 – Dec. 30 (opening Dec. 6) at DC’s Arena Stage, directed by Michael Mayer, with choreography by David Neumann.
John Gallagher, Jr., Stark Sands, Adrian Blake Enscoe, Wayne Duvall, Hunter Brown, Matt DeAngelis, Taurean Everett, Cameron Johnson, Brandon Kalm, Michael Mainwaring, Orville Mendoza, Tyrone L. Robinson, John Sygar, and Jamari Johnson Williams.
Set in 1888, the piece follows four survivors – a young man in search of adventure , his big brother who has sworn to protect him, a captain at the end of a long career at sea, and a worldly first mate who has fallen from grace – after a violent storm sinks their whaling ship off the coast of New Bedford, Massachusetts. How far will they go to stay alive? And can they live with the consequences?
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Chicago’s Porchlight Music Theatre has announced its 2024 season:
The Cole Porter Festival — A Celebration of the Man and his Music (Jan. 13 – Feb. 25)
Anything Goes (Jan. 13 – Feb. 25, opening Jan. 18), with a new libretto by Timothy Crouse & John Weidman, directed by Michael Weber, choreography by Tammy Mader, and music direction by Nick Sula. Meghan Murphy stars as Reno Sweeney.
Chicago Sings Broadway Pop II (Apr. 15)
Porchlight in Concert: Sunday in the Park with George (May 11 & 12)
Chicago Sings Broadway Pop II (April 15) at The House of Blues
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Initial casting has been announced for Marco Pennette, Julia Mattison & Noel Carey’s Death Becomes Her, to run Apr. 30 – June 2, 2024 at Chicago’s Cadillac Palace Theatre, directed & choreographed by Christopher Gattelli.
Megan Hilty (Madeline Ashton) and Jennifer Simard (Helen Sharp), with more TBA.
Madeline Ashton is the most beautiful actress (just ask her) ever to grace the stage and screen. Helen Sharp is the long-suffering author (just ask her) who lives in her shadow. They have always been the best of frenemies…until Madeline steals Helen’s fiancé away. As Helen plots revenge and Madeline clings to her rapidly fading star, their world is suddenly turned upside down by Viola Van Horn, a mysterious woman with a secret that’s to die for. After one sip of Viola’s magical potion, Madeline and Helen begin a new era of life (and death) with their youth and beauty restored…and a grudge to last eternity.
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You Will Be Found — A Benefit Concert for Nami Clac will take place Sun. Oct. 15 at 1 PM at Hollywood’s Catalina Jazz Club, with music direction by Brad Ellis, and hosted by Kevin Symons and Nita Whitaker.
Eydie Alyson, Keith David, Carolina Garcia, Bill A. Jones, Damon Kirsche, Natalie Lander, Ashley Fox Linton, Jane Lynch, and Jeffrey Polk.
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Freya Catrin Smith & Jack Williams’ Ride will run Mar. 30 – Apr. 28 (opening Apr. 5), 2024, at San Diego’s Old Globe, directed by Sarah Meadows.
Casting TBA.
Ready, set, ride! It’s 1895, and Annie Londonderry wants to discover if a woman can ride a bicycle around the world. The problem? She’s only ridden one twice! As Annie and her unwitting secretary Martha share unbelievable adventures across four continents, they learn that no matter how far we ride, our past is always right behind us. With a high-energy score and a wildly versatile cast, this fresh and funny show is what Theatre Weekly called “an amazing piece of theatre and a must-watch for everyone.”
Listen to the London cast album here.
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GRACE NOTES Quiz: The Heart of the Matter
1-E. “I Let A Song Go Out of My Heart” – Sophisticated Ladies
2-H. “In the Heart of the Dark,” – Very Warm for May
3-I. “Love from a Heart of Gold” – How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
4-C. “Raining in My Heart” – Dames at Sea
5-J. “The Flower Garden of My Heart” – Pal Joey
6-B. “The Heart Is Quicker Than the Eye” – On Your Toes
7-G. “The Human Heart” – Once On This Island
8-A. “Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart” – Thumbs Up
9-D. “There’s A Broken Heart for Every Light on Broadway” – Bullets Over Broadway
10-F. “A Heart Full of Love” – Les Miserables?