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| Last update: August 22, 2010 |
With direction and choreography by Barrymore Award winner Richard Stafford, the show with a score by John Kander and Fred Ebb, and a book by Rupert Holmes and Peter Stone, will officially open Sept. 15. Hess appeared in WST's “Born Yesterday” and “Grand Hotel” and Broadway's “Sweeney Todd”. The original musical comedy is set in Boston in 1959. A murder in the company of a Broadway-bound musical arouses the interest of a detective who loves musicals. David Hyde Pierce won a Tony Award for his work in the Broadway show. The cast of CURTAINS also includes WST vets Joey Abramowicz, J. David Anderson, Maggie Anderson, Anne Connors, Jeffrey Coon, Ben Dibble, Mindy Dougherty, Dann Dunn, David Elder (Broadway's "42nd Street"), Laurent Giroux, Mollie Hall, Fran Prisco, Kerri Rose, Peter Schmitz, Jonathan Stahl, Ryan James Stauffer, Bill Van Horn, Denise Whelan and Toni Elizabeth White, plus WST newcomers Julie Reiber as Niki Harris and Nancy Lemenager (Broadway's "Never Gonna Dance") as Georgia Hendricks. Ensemble members making their Walnut debut include Drew Franklin, Jena Vanelslander and Kimberly Wolff. The creative team includes music and vocal director Douglass G. Lutz, scenic designer Robert Andrew Kovach, lighting designer Paul Black, costume designer Colleen Grady and sound designer David Temby. For tickets and information, call (215) 574-3550 or (800) 982-2787 or visit www.WalnutStreetTheatre.org or Ticketmaster. in Playbill On-Line by Thomas Peter / photo © Joseph Marzullo |
August 15, 2010 - Kander and Ebb Tribute at Gonpachi Restaurant - "A slew of Broadway and cabaret performers will take part in an evening paying tribute to the songs of John Kander and Fred Ebb Aug. 16 at Gonpachi Restaurant in Beverly Hills. Ryan Black's 88's Cabaret AIDS Walk fundraiser is scheduled to begin at 8 PM. The evening will feature the talents of Cortes Alexander, Gina Coconato, Paulette Ivory, Jenn Korbee, Tom Korbee, Jeffrey Landman, Sharon Lawrence, Jerry Sharell, Jennifer Shelton, Pam Trotter, Jennifer Leigh Warren, Brooke Wilkes, Ruth Williamson, Sammy Williams and the cast of [title of show] that is now playing the Celebration Theatre (Jennifer R. Blake, Jeffrey Landman, Micah McCain and Carey Peters). The evening will also include a question-and-answer session with original A Chorus Line cast member Sammy Williams that will be led by Ryan Black. Gonpachi is located at 134 N. La Cienega Blvd in Beverly Hills. A limited number of seats can be purchased for $15 at the door and are only available to those with a dinner reservation, which is available by calling (310) 659-8887. There will also be standing-room tickets for $10 cash at the door. in Playbill On-Line by Andrew Gans |
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The Guthrie engagement at McGuire Proscenium Stage continues through Sept. 25 and features refinements and changes since the show's spring world-premiere run at Off-Broadway's Vineyard Theatre. Susan Stroman again directs and choreographs. The libretto is by David Thompson (Steel Pier). Music is by Kander, lyrics are by the late Fred Ebb, with some additional lyrics by Kander. Commercial producers Fran and Barry Weissler plucked up the property in the spring and are carrying it to Broadway, with a few cast changes since the Vineyard. "We're really tweaking it," producer Fran Weissler said of the Guthrie run. "We added a song, we took away a song. Susan [Stroman] and John [Kander] and Tommy [librettist David Thompson] have a chance now to do it again. You look at what you've done and think, 'I did it. Now I have the time to really look at it, and maybe I can do more.' Every day, something new happens. We have a few new actors on top of that, so it's very exciting." Most notably, Joshua Henry, who created the "Favorite Son" military hero in Broadway's “American Idiot”, now stars as one of the central figures in the case: He plays Haywood Patterson, one of nine young men wrongly accused of rape in Depression-era Alabama. Patterson is a focal point in the musical, and (at least Off-Broadway) got to sing the plaintive jail cell number "Go Back Home." Henry was featured in the original Broadway cast of “In the Heights” and in the City Center production of “The Wiz”. He also appeared in Paper Mill Playhouse's “Godspell”. Also joining the company at the Guthrie are Jeremy Gumbs as Eugene Williams and David Anthony Brinkley as The Interlocutor. On Broadway, Tony Award winner John Cullum will return to role of The Interlocutor, which he created at the Vineyard. Ken Billington is the new lighting designer. According to producers, "Based on the notorious 'Scottsboro' case in the 1930s (in which nine African-American men were unjustly accused of a terrible crime) this daring and wildly entertaining musical explores a fascinating chapter in American history with brilliant originality." The critically acclaimed production follows the lead of the script and borrows elements of the now-dead American theatrical form of a "minstrel show" — to make its social-justice points (and its theatrical ones, too). For much of the history of the form (which dates to the early 19th century), performances were acted by white men in blackface. All but one actor in Scottsboro Boys is black. THE SCOTTSBORO BOYS will open on Broadway Oct. 31 at the Lyceum Theatre. Previews will begin Oct. 7. Also at the Guthrie are ten cast members from the Vineyard production, who will re-create their performances on Broadway: Sean Bradford as Ozie Powell and Ruby Bates, Josh Breckenridge as Olen Montgomery, Derrick Cobey as Andy Wright, Colman Domingo as Mr. Bones, Rodney Hicks as Clarence Norris, Kendrick Jones as Willie Roberson, Forrest McClendon as Mr. Tambo, Julius Thomas III as Roy Wright, Sharon Washington as The Lady and Christian Dante White as Charles Weems and Victoria Price. A cast album was recorded in recent weeks; a fall release from JAY Records is expected. The Scottsboro Boys is the winner of the 2010 Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Musical and the 2010 Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Off-Broadway Musical and a 2010 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics. The Broadway creative team includes set designer Beowulf Borritt, costume designer Toni-Leslie James and sound designer Peter Hylenski, orchestrator Larry Hochman, musical arranger Glen Kelly and music director David Loud. THE SCOTTSBORO BOYS will be produced on Broadway by Barry and Fran Weissler, Jacki Barlia Florin and The Vineyard Theatre." For information about the Guthrie run, visit guthrietheater.org. Broadway tickets ($39.50 - $131.50; Premium $251.50) are available by calling Telecharge.com at (212) 239-6200 or online at www.telecharge.com.. Performances will be Tuesday through Sunday at 8 PM, with matinees Saturday and Sunday at 3 PM. For more information, visit www.ScottsboroMusical.com. in Playbill On-Line by Kenneth Jones / photos © Paul Kolnik |
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"When the hapless star of Boston's newest musical dies during her opening night curtain call, the real show begins," according to CLO. "Can a stage-struck police detective solve the murder without getting himself killed, or will the lure of the theater prove too irresistible? After an unexpected backstage romance blooms, Lieutenant Frank Cioffi finds himself just as intent on making the show a hit as he is on solving the case." Gets and Struthers are joined onstage by David Elder as Bobby Pepper, Danette Holden as Georgia Hendricks, Daniel Krell as Johnny Harmon, Stuart Marland as Christopher Belling, Kirsten Scott as Bambi, Ashley Spencer as Nikki Harris, James Stellos as Daryl Grady and Rob Sutton as Aaron Fox. Here is a look at the show, which concludes its week-long run June 27. For tickets visit PittsburghCLO, or phone (412) 456-6666. in Playbill On-Line by Adam Hetric / photos © Matt Polk |
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Kander, who received a special award from the Drama Desk in 2007 and an Outstanding Music Award for “Kiss of the Spider Woman” in 1993, accepted on behalf of himself and Ebb, whose lyrics he helped finish after Ebb's 2004 death and before the show's opening this spring at the Vineyard Theatre. Kander joked, "Fred Ebb is so mad at me right now!" before saying that the uncompromising show "meant more to us than anything that we'd probably ever done." in Playbill On-Line by Thomas Peter / photo © Joseph Marzullo |
May 22, 2010 - THE SCOTTSBORO BOYS Wins Outer Critics Circle Award - The Vineyard Production of the new musical by John Kander and Fred Ebb, THE SCOTTSBORO BOYS sharde the Outer Critics Circle Awards for Outstanding New Off-Broadway Musical with ”Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson” by Jorge |
A representative for the production confirmed to Playbill.com what Banderas hinted at in an interview with WENN.com. "I'm going to have a meeting here (in New York) in order to establish a date for me to come back to Broadway. And I hope that if everything goes right, I cross my fingers, that may happen in September 2011 and it will be with the musical ZORBA," Banderas said. ZORBA will reunite Leveaux and Banderas, who previously collaborated on the Tony Award-winning revival of Maury Yeston's “Nine” in 2003. “Chicago” and “La Cage aux Folles” producers Barry and Fran Weissler are behind the project. Based on the Nikos Kazantzakis novel "Zorba the Greek," John Kander and Fred Ebb collaborated with book writer Joseph Stein on the dark 1968 musical that was staged by Hal Prince. Herschel Bernardi originated the title role, which was later performed by Anthony Quinn in a more upbeat 1983 revival of the musical. (Quinn also starred in the 1965 film based on the novel.) Banderas made his Broadway debut in the revival of “Nine”. On screen, he appeared in "Evita," as well as "Philadelphia," "Interview with the Vampire," and "Frida." He is well known for his works in the Pedro Almodovar films "Labyrinth of Passion," "Matador," "Law of Desire" and "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown." Leveaux has staged the Broadway productions of “A Moon for the Misbegotten”, “Anna Christie”, “Electra”, “The Real Thing”, “Betrayal”, “Nine”, “Fiddler on the Roof”, “Jumpers”, “The Glass Menagerie” and “Cyrano de Bergerac”. in Playbill On-Line by Adam Hetric |
Kander and Ebb new musical, THE SCOTTSBORO BOYS got 9 nominations: The Drama Desk is an organization of theatre critics, writers and editors that honors excellence in all areas of New York theatre: Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway and not-for-profit. by Jorge and in Playbill On-Line by Andrew Gans |
In production categories, THE SCOTTSBORO BOYS by David Thompson, John Kander and Fred Ebb was named Outstanding Musical, and Susan Stroman won Outstanding Choreographer. That show was also nominated for Outstanding Lead Actor for Brandon Victor Dixon. The Lucille Lortel Awards are produced by the Off-Broadway League by special arrangement with the Lucille Lortel Foundation. The Lortel Awards ceremony is a benefit for The Actors Fund. Additional support provided by Theatre Development Fund." For more information, visit www.LortelAward.com. in Playbill On-Line by Kenneth Jones |
"Based on the true story of nine men falsely accused of raping two white women on a train traveling through Alabama in 1931, the inventive, consistently thought-provoking musical is performed as if it were a traveling minstrel show, presided over by the white Interlocutor (a winningly smarmy John Cullum), who has at his disposal an 11 member African-American ensemble. The company is led by Mr. Bones (Colman Domingo) and Mr. Tambo (Forrest McClendon), who play a variety of the Caucasian men who figure prominently in the Scottsboro case. The balance of the company members play the accused men as well as the ancillary characters during their ordeal... “The production, guided with elegant simplicity by director-choreographer Susan Stroman, unfolds with rapid fluidity on a stage that scenic designer Beowulf Boritt outfits with a dozen chairs and a few boards, which are inventively rearranged to represent a variety of locations. And, as lit by designer Kevin Adams, the illusion of shifting from boxcar to jail cell to sun-filled courtroom is complete. |
The minstrel-flavored routines that propel the narrative tend to lack the sharp, savvy ear of Kander and Ebb’s period pastiche numbers in earlier musicals (or the wit of Ms. Stroman’s winking choreography for “The Producers”). And you may find yourself thinking of more trenchant and imaginative use of minstrel-show devices by other artists, including the Wooster Group (with its black-face “Emperor Jones”) and Kara Walker (whose cut-out paper silhouettes are brought to mind by a shadow-play sequence)... With “Scottsboro” it is as if the events on which it is based are still too raw and upsetting to be treated with too much panache. Though it features some high-kicking dancing from its personable and industrious ensemble, this production gives the impression of always treading carefully, with furrowed brow, stooped shoulders and an accusatory glare.” |
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Every song has a purpose, and even in the most buoyant explosions of Stroman’s period-flavored choreography, dance is fully integrated into narrative in a show that packs dazzling physicality onto a small stage... Styled in a brassy 1930s musical vernacular and played by a band of eight, the songs are the catchiest bunch to come along in a new tuner in years. “Commencing in Chattanooga” simulates the propulsive rhythm of train travel; “Southern Days” plasters a subversive smile over its paean to a lopsided world of white privilege and black subservience; “Electric Chair” combines tap and sizzle to macabre effect; “Shout!” is a sadly hollow celebration of freedom; and “Financial Advice” is a hilariously un-PC vamp about the convenience of “Jew money.” The latter number is among the high points as performed by the marvelous Domingo.” |
In a statement executive artistic director Bradford Kenney said, "This year every one of the shows we are producing is a Tony Award winner! Best Musical, Best Script, Best Score, Best Costumes, Best Sets – each of these shows have won some or all (or more) of these accolades! We are extremely fortunate to have the rights to these great titles and look forward to presenting a great season at Ogunquit!" The new season will kick off June 9 with the award-winning “The Drowsy Chaperone”. The feel-good story about the Man in Chair will run through June 26. The season will also include “The Sound of Music” (June 30-July 24), “Sunset Boulevard” (July 28-Aug. 14), “Monty Python's Spamalot” (Aug. 18-Sept. 11) and “Chicago” (Sept. 15-Oct. 24). Casting and creative teams will be announced at a later date. Main Stage tickets go on sale March 29; prices range $47-$67 per show. Gift certificates, flex-passes and season subscriptions are on sale now. For more information visit www.ogunquitplayhouse.org or call (207) 646-5511." in Playbill On-Line by Andrew Gans |
in Playbill On-Line by Andrew Gans |
Asking this question of the Tony Award-winning composer, who lost his longtime lyricist Fred Ebb less than three years ago, is a little like asking a widow if she'll marry again anytime soon. Kander and Ebb — who penned songs for CABARET, CHICAGO, KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN and Broadway's current CURTAINS — had a 42-year collaboration that launched hits and misses, helped punctuate the chapter in musical theatre history known as "the concept musical," and were responsible for not a few pop songs ("My Coloring Book," "The Theme From 'New York, New York.'") K&E mattered. So the question is a natural one: What's next for the 80-year-old Kander? The short answer, he told Playbill.com, is that he's in a shepherding phase in which he's working toward giving life to the last four — or, now that CURTAINS has a commercial life, three — shows he and Ebb were working on before the lyricist died Sept. 11, 2004. CURTAINS is now open on Broadway. Waiting in the wings are ALL ABOUT US, their musical of "The Skin of Our Teeth" (with book writer Joseph Stein), which will play April 10-28 at Westport Country Playhouse; their musical THE VISIT (with Terrence McNally), getting a revised production in the fall at Virginia's Signature Theatre; and THE MINSTREL SHOW, their "vicious" (his term) musical take on a slice of Depression-era American injustice, which is in limbo, but has collaborators David Thompson and Susan Stroman attached. "Those shows were unfinished, just as [CURTAINS] was," Kander said. "[CURTAINS] has five new songs…since Fred died. And there will be some changes in the score of ALL ABOUT US and I haven't visited the THE VISIT yet, but I know there are at least two chunks that need to be rewritten." THE MINSTREL SHOW, a musical that uses blackface to tell the story of the "Scottsboro Boys," black men in Alabama wrongly accused of raping white women, "was almost complete at Fred's death," Kander said. "I've added a couple songs to it." CURTAINS has songs by Kander and Ebb, with additional lyrics by Kander and Rupert Holmes. Will revisions and additions to ALL ABOUT US and THE VISIT have new lyrics by Kander? "At the moment, yeah," Kander said. "I mean, I have no pride about all this. I'm enjoying the lyric writing that I'm doing — that I do with much less confidence [than the music], of course. I would have no compunctions about asking somebody for help." Is there a future writing partner for Kander, a future show beyond those already conceived? Kander observed, "I've said this before, and to myself also: 'I have to get these four pieces done.' When they are done, I will be very curious to find out what I feel like writing. This is a commitment now — it's where my energies are going." The path could be lonely, but Kander said he knows he's part of a community of other theatre artists — collaborators — who bring shows to life. "On CURTAINS I've had this incredible support from both [director] Scott [Ellis] and Rupert," Kander said. "We function as a collaboration. I try not to think back a lot. This is now. Fred is omnipresent, God knows, in this piece. In terms of the work that has to be done, you just have to do it. You can't grieve or become self-pitying, or anything like that. Whether he would've liked what I've written or not, he would have approved of the idea of us proceeding and proceeding this seriously." He mimics the salty Ebb's tone of voice: "Do it or not! Are we gonna do this or not?" in Playbill On-line by Kenneth Jones / photo © Joan Marcus |
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“It is a sad but certain truth that for pure entertainment value guilt nearly always trumps innocence. Should you require incontrovertible evidence of this basic law of show business, take a look at the new musical from the fabled songwriting team of John Kander and Fred Ebb, which opened Wednesday night at the Vineyard Theater. This solemn, virtuous enterprise is called “The Scottsboro Boys,” and it wears its halo like a barbed-wire hat...
“Director and choreographer Susan Stroman, who learned about staging a taste-challenged musical with “The Producers,” is in top form here. “The Scottsboro Boys” is framed as a minstrel show, with Cullum playing the supercilious Interlocutor and a company of extraordinary dancer-singers telling the story, written by David Thompson.
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