Broadway To Vegas

Copyright: June 13, 2010
By: Laura Deni
CLICK HERE FOR COMMENT SECTION

HISTORIC PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE BARBICAN AND JAZZ AT LINCOLN CENTER ORCHESTRA

Wynton Marsalis photo by Clay Patrick McBride

'England swings,' sang The Beatles. They'll be no doubt about that when Wynton Marsalis along with a stellar group of Jazz at Lincoln Center musicians offer audiences at the Barbican in East London the opportunity to experience some of the best big band music in the world, played by a selection of Americas finest jazz musicians.

This major concert series - known as the first International Residency Series - is augmented by a program of Creative Learning in London schools and at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama.

This includes workshops, masterclasses, professional development and a keynote address by Wynton Marsalis. There will also be performances in a variety of East London partner venues including a swing dance evening at Stoke Newington Town Hall, jam sessions at the Vortex in Dalston, and a special family concert at Hackney Empire.

The three main Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra concerts will tell the story of the American jazz orchestra, celebrating 80 years of great big band music, from Jelly Roll Morton to the present day, curated by Wynton Marsalis.

The August 20, 1956 cover of Time featured Duke Ellington.

The down beat begins Thursday June 17 with Swinging Beginnings. A roaring celebration of the 1930s and 1940s, the years when the big bands were king, and their bandleaders were beginning to acquire the status of pop stars.

Behind the most successful bands was the genius of the great arrangers and composers.

This concert will feature some of the immortal works by Don Redman, Jelly Roll Morton, Fletcher Henderson and Eddie Durham - as well as by the doyen of bandleaders and composer/arrangers, Duke Ellington.

On Friday, June 18, it's Bebop and Beyond. Taking the history of the big band forward, this concert explores the startling music of the mid-1940s to 1960s, when arrangers began to incorporate the revolutionary musical discoveries of bebop and cool jazz into writing for large ensembles.

This concert ranges across Neil Hefti’s music for Count Basie’s second great band, the astonishing bebop charts of Dizzy Gillespie and the cooler sounds of Gerry Mulligan. Also featured are charts by Charles Mingus, Ernie Wilkins, and later works by Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn.

Saturday's event is Inspirations and Collaborations.

Sir John Dankworth

Eight decades of British big band music are celebrated by a specially-assembled big band led by renowned composer, arranger and trumpeter Guy Barker. This unique program, linked to the JLCO International Residency, digs into a wonderful heritage of Anglo-American musical exchanges, from the days when Coleman Hawkins and Benny Carter galvanized the big band of Jack Hylton and the BBC Dance Orchestra, tracing the story through the music of Ted Heath, to Kenny Baker, Tubby Hayes, Stan Tracey and Kenny Wheeler, through to the Brotherhood of Breath and up to the present day.

The evening will also feature a special tribute to the pre-eminent figure in British big band jazz, the late Sir John Dankworth. A stellar range of special guests from successive generations will include Stan Tracey, Peter King, Bobby Wellins, Soweto Kinch and Jason Yarde.

On Sunday, June 20, the program salutes Modern Jazz Masters. Bringing the big band story up to date in the gorgeous and intimate setting of the Hackney Empire, Wynton Marsalis leads his stellar orchestra through the music that took jazz from the 1960s to present. Expect dazzling renditions of originals by Marsalis and the members of JLCO – as well as their arrangements of great compositions by Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter and Jackie McLean.



Broadway To Vegas is supported through advertising and donations. Priority consideration is given to interview suggestions, news, press releases, etc from paid supporters. However, no paid supporters control, alter, edit, or in any way manipulate the content of this site. Your donation is appreciated. We accept PAYPAL.

Thank you for your interest.

ART AND ABOUT

THE SHERMAN JAZZ MUSEUM

Maynard Ferguson

which houses one of the largest private collections of jazz trumpets, jazz records (vinyl) and other jazz related memorabilia ever assembled in one place, has opened to the public.

Located in Sherman, Texas, the jazz memorabilia centers around the fantastic collection of the Maynard Ferguson estate.

Ferguson (May 4, 1928 – August 23, 2006) was a Canadian jazz musician and bandleader who came to prominence playing in Stan Kenton's orchestra, before forming his own band in 1957. He was noted for being able to play accurately in a remarkably high register, and for his bands, which served as stepping stones for up-and-coming talent.

In 1969, Ferguson relocated to Manchester, England, manufacturing personally-designed trumpets and mouthpieces and performing with a variety of ensembles in Europe. He relocated to New York in 1973.

The museum itself has a mission of "jazz education and preservation of our American musical art form by exhibiting a unique collection of jazz LPs, videos, music playback machines, and jazz memorabilia."

The museum building is a former Masonic Lodge, completed in 1924 and considered an excellent example of Neo-Classic Revival Architecture.

Al Hirt's Firebird

Harry James' King

A trumpet is not a trumpet, is not a trumpet.

There appears to be almost as many configurations as there are players and each horn blower had his signature instrument.

The exhibit of over 3,000 jazz albums emphasizes the LP format. While that format is still available today, it was only pressed in large quantities for only about 40 years (1949–1989).

The front of each album cover, different and unique in its own way, is a work of art that reveals something about the era in which it and the music was produced - including photographs of the performers. The back cover contains the history of the album: the date, names of composers and arrangers for the album, as well as personnel and other important information. Visitors have the opportunity to sit down with the LPs and immerse themselves in the valuable history found on each jazz album.

What brought jazz music into the home was the invention of the gramophone replacing Edison's cylinder phonograph, which was initially intended to be used as a voice recording medium, typically for office dictation.

A display room at The Sherman Museum

Lateral-cut disc records were invented by Emile Berlinger in 1888 and were used exclusively in toys until 1894, when Berliner began marketing disc records under the Berliner Gramophone label. Berliner's records had poor sound quality; however, work by Eldridge R. Johnson improved the fidelity. Johnson's and Berliner's separate companies merged to form the Victor Talking Machine Company, whose products would come to dominate the market.

Early recordings were made entirely acoustically, the sound being collected by a horn and piped to a diaphragm which vibrated the cutting stylus. Sensitivity and frequency range were poor, and frequency response was very irregular, giving cylinder recordings an instantly recognizable - bad - tonal quality. A singer practically had to put his face in the recording horn. Cellos and double basses were completely unrecordable. Standard violins were barely recordable.

If properly positioned, what came across were drums and horns. Thus, jazz was introduced to the masses who immediately took to the beat.

In 1917 jazz outsold all other forms of music. The rapid evolution of the music form known as jazz was directly related to the ability of people to have record players in their own homes.

The exhibit at The Sherman Jazz Museum contains a variety of musical equipment dating from 1905 to the present.

Also on display are larger-than-life portraits of America's major jazz trumpet players of the LP era, created by Sherman artist Pat Pierce.

THE PORTLAND MUSEUM OF ART in Portland, ME is pleased to announce that it has received a major gift of approximately $3 million from the family of Emily Eaton Moore, a trustee and longtime supporter of the Museum, who passed away in March. One of the largest gifts made to the Museum in the last 10 years, this gift will support the Museum’s mission and vision.

HOMELAND SECURITY QUESTIONS CD COVER SHOOT

Homeland Security says this photo is a no-no

It's not easy doing a cover shoot for your upcoming CD. Make-up, lighting, props - being questioned by security on behalf of Homeland Security.

The way jazz musician Slim Man explains it - "Last week, we went to Penn Station in Baltimore, MD, to do some photos. I was with David Wilson, world-famous photographer, and his lovely assistant. We went down to the train platform to try and capture some action photos of a train passing by."

"We were waiting for the 9:28 pm northbound train, when I saw a southbound train approaching the station. We grabbed our gear, went to the other side of the platform, and got set-up just in time. We grabbed some shots, and then went back to the other side."

"We set up the tripod, and started shooting, waiting for the 9:28. I saw a couple of Amtrak police walking toward us. They said - 'You can't be down here without tickets.'"

"So, I whipped out the three tickets I had bought. The cops looked at the tickets, and said - 'Well, you can't take photos down here.'"

"So, I asked them - 'Why not?' and the Amtrak police said - 'Homeland Security.'"

"Are you effing kiddin' me? I mean, we had tickets, we were taking photos in the open, and I was in all the photos. So, if anybody were to see these photos, they would plainly see my ugly mug. "

"If we were terrorists, wouldn't we be a little more secretive? Use a telephoto lens? A hidden camera? And - would we include ourselves in the photos?"

"I explained this to the cops, and asked what threat we posed to homeland security - and they said - 'You can't take photos down here. Homeland Security.'"

"I know police in general have a really tough job. But this was ridiculous, and I said so. They escorted us upstairs, and let us go. Didn't even check our IDs."

SCENE STEALING JOHN GOODMAN FROM HULK TO HUNK

Scene stealing John Goodman - the hunk. Getty press image for AFI.

John Goodman - the hulk - on the red carpet at the Emmys, September 11th, 1994

It's not often that a guy almost old enough to collect early Social Security retirement benefits can take the spotlight away from a bevy of Hollywood hotties.

That's exactly what happened when John Goodman showed up at Friday night's AFI salute to Mike Nichols at Sony Pictures Studio in LA.

Goodman who celebrates his 58th birthday on June 20, looked suave and sexy.

His wife has probably raced out to buy lingerie and perfumed candles.

The 6-foot-2 actor, who reportedly weighted just under 400 pounds in 2007, has lost a lot of weight.

It doesn't really matter which diet he used to drop the tonnage, the fact is he did. Michelle Obama could use him as a poster boy for getting fit.

As Father's Day approaches, the weight loss also becomes a nice gift to his daughter, who soon turns 20.

Goodman now has a better chance of living to see any grandchildren grow up.

THE MUSIC GOES ROUND AND ROUND

STAR WARS: THE CORELLIAN EDITION Featuring music from all six episodes. Composed and conducted by John Williams.

Performed by the London Symphony Orchestra and London Voices.

The Corellian Edition was initially a promotional CD packaged with some copies of the Revenge of the Sith soundtrack. However, it was later re-packaged and sold on its own. It contains a selection of music from each of the six Star Wars films

For Star Wars addicts - those who not only know the names of each and every character, but feel a personal kinship to them, have their costume and attend conventions - then this CD might be considered demeaning to their knowledge of each note of every song that has ever been imbedded in any Star Trek episode, simple because there are only 13 tracks.

For the ordinary person who has enjoyed Star Trek, minus a conviction that they have been beamed up by the Force, this CD offers memorable scores, with excellent arrangements executed by one of the world's greatest orchestras.

Williams' symphonic music was intrinsic to the script providing the emotional strength and drama to each scene. While background music can be important in any movie, without the Star Wars music, the productions would have been nothing more than just run-of-the-mill science-fiction plotlines.

Music supervisor for the tracks was Lionel Newman. The Recording Engineer was Eric Tomlinson and the Supervisor Music Editor was Kenneth Wannberg. Album produced by Nick Redman

Tracks 1-3 were recorded at Abbey Road Studios, London on February 5-18, 1999, produced by John Williams. Tracks 4-5 were recorded at Abbey Road. Unfortunately the recording dates were not documented through available sources. Tracks 6-7 were recorded at Abby Road in 2005. Tracks 8-9 were recorded at Anvil Studio in Denham, England on March 5, 8-12, 15 &16, 1977, produced by George Lucas. The orchestrations were by Herbert W. Spencer. The Recording Supervisor was Lionel Newman.

Tracks 10-11 were recorded at Anvil Studios in Denham, England and at EMI/Abbey Road, London on December 17-29, 1979 and January 7-10, 17 &18, 1980. Tracks 12-13 were laid down at the EMI/Abbey Road Studio, London on January 17, 21, 22 & 31 and February 1, 3, 4 & 10, 1983.

Star Wars Main Title And The Arrival At Naboo
The Flag Parade
Qui-Gon's Noble End
Jango's Escape
Yoda And The Younglings
General Grievous
Anakin's Dark Deeds
Imperial Attack
Ben Kenobi's Death/TIE Fighter Attack
Yoda And The Force
The Clash Of Lightsabers
Sail Barge Assault
End Title From Star Wars Episode VI

SWEET CHARITY

APOLLO THEATER TO REMEMBER A KING AND CELEBRATE A QUEEN

Michael Jackson

2010 Annual Spring Benefit Concert and Awards Ceremony Monday, June 14, 2010.

Hosted by Jamie Foxx, this year’s Concert & Awards Ceremony will feature the induction of two royal new honorees into the Apollo Legends Hall of Fame: the undisputed King of Pop Michael Jackson, and the one and only Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin.

The awards ceremony will continue with the Ruby Dee & Ossie Davis Arts and Humanitarian Award presented to superstar couple Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony. The Theater’s annual corporate will be presented to JP Morgan Chase for its ongoing commitment to the Apollo and the Harlem community.

The evening will begin with a star-studded red carpet, followed by the Benefit concert and awards ceremony and culminating with a grand tented after-party, the Apollo Supper Club.

THE PUBLIC THEATER'S 2010 SUMMER GALA on Monday, June 21, will include a dinner under the stars, an exclusive performance of Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice featuring the one and only Al Pacino as Shylock, and an after-party at the Belvedere Castle. The event will honor Lincoln Center Theater Executive Producer and former Public Theater Associate Producer Bernard Gersten and Bank of America.

This year’s season of Shakespeare in the Park features The Winter’s Tale and The Merchant of Venice. The performances run through August 1st. Although tickets for most of these shows are free and are given out on a first come, first served basis, tickets to the gala and opening night of The Winter’s Tale have a price tag ranging from $300 to $50,000.

SPREADING THE WORD

AN EVENING WITH STEPHEN SCHWARTZ

Stephen Schwartz

Journey to Broadway with a spectacular night of music and conversation with Stephen Schwartz, the man behind the smash Broadway hit Wicked. See the Academy and Grammy Award winner live on stage during the 2010 Festival of Broadway, hear his music and share the behind-the-scene stories that span four decades of Broadway brilliance.

Follow the progression of Stephen Schwartz's life and music, from New York beginnings, via Juilliard and into musical theatre history.

Like a musical itself, songs will pave the way. Renditions of all Schwartz's greatest hits will be performed by the star-studded Tasmania Discovery Orchestra, with the Emmy Award winning voice of Hollywood heroines Anastasia and Princess Jasmine - Liz Callaway. Presented by the University of Tasmania, Conservatorium of Music.

Sunday, June 20, 2010. City Recital Hall Angel Place in Sydney, Australia.

SPIRIT OF PRIDE 2010 takes place Monday, June 21, at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. Each year, the Cathedral brings together people from the arts, education and government along with other advocates in support of the LGBT community in New York. This year, the focus is on theater. Admission is free for this special program.

Slated to appear are; Brian Childers, Mildred Dred Gerestant, Donnetta Lavinia Grays, Jeremy Lawrence, and Bobby Steggert. In addition to the performances, the event will include a panel discussion about the evolution of gay theater and its emergence on Broadway and Off-Broadway. Among those schedule to participate are Jon Marans, James Morgan, Geoffrey Nauffts, Jonathan Silverstein, Stacy Shane, David Zellnik and Joe Zellnik.

SHE STOOPS TO CONQUER Oliver Goldsmith's classic comedy of disguise will be recorded by LA Theatre Works June 16-20. James Marsters, Emily Bergl, and Theatre World Award winner and three-time Olivier Award nominee Adam Godley head the cast. Also in the cast are Rosalind Ayres, Julian Holloway, Christopher Neame, Paula J. Newman, Ian Ogilvy, Darren Richardson and Moira Quirk. Martin Jarvis directs Oliver Goldsmith's bad and bawdy comedy of manners at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles.

First performed in 1773, She Stoops to Conquer has been entrancing audiences for over two centuries and stands as one of the most frequently-performed and well-received plays of the 18th Century. Goldsmith disliked the plays of the time which promoted morality and virtue, maintaining that human follies were much more amusing and more suitable to the theater. He defied convention to craft this hilarious comedy of manners, a boisterous satire of class, courtship and dysfunctional families that parodies English social conventions and plays like an 18th century episode of Fawlty Towers.

The plot follows the misadventures of Charles Marlowe (Marsters), a young man painfully shy, awkward, and tongue-tied in the presence of his prospective fiancée, Kate Hardcastle (Bergl). When deceived by the mischievous Tony Lumpkin (Godley) into believing the house of Kate's father to be an inn, complications accrue and misconceptions increase exponentially. The resulting mess combines slapstick with perfectly-phrased wit to create a uniquely comedic brew.

Each of the five performances will be recorded in front of a live audience, and the final CD will broadcast on L.A. Theatre Works' nationally syndicated radio theater series.

Performances of She Stoops to Conquer take place June 16-20 at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles.

FASHION ALERT wrist splints and animal costumes. Kate Hudson's adorable six-year-old son, Ryder, enjoys wearing a splint on his arm. While guesting on The David Letterman Show Hudson explained that there is absolutely nothing wrong with the boy's arm.

"The bandage is an interesting subject because it's more of like a cool thing," Kate explained. "He's not hurt. It's more like a prop for storytelling."

Willow Smith is the delightful, nine-year-old daughter of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith. The child donned an unusual, almost King of Siam inspired outfit - a leopard print cropped moto jacket and harem pants paired with an oversize gold chunky chain necklace, huge cool black shades and knee-high combat boots, to attend the Karate Kid premiere with her parents.The press described her bouffant Mohawk as "animal kingdom meets Brit punk" When questioned about their daughter's outfit, Jada rolled her eyes and said that Willow had picked out what to wear herself.

These are six and nine year olds! Hopefully neither of these situations will ever be twisted, turned, and attempted to be used against them. Vicious and moronic strategy implied to others that what was worn as a child was worn yesterday. Or, an odd jump that the costume would translate into low morality as an adult, and anyone with an unnecessary bandage has more than a vivid imagination. What's cute as a child, if twisted and thrown back on the person as an adult, can become odd and scary. I once experienced a situation where, in my mid-40s, lawyers insulted, ridiculed, embarrassed, badgered and taunted me because I could not recall a costume I don't remember ever wearing to a party I don't remember attending - while in kindergarten. I was five.

RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN'S CINDERELLA 45th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION in person Lesley Ann Warren.

For many a Baby Boomer too young to have seen Julie Andrews in the 1957 Rodgers & Hammerstein television musical Cinderella, this 1965 color remake - which was rebroadcast eight times over the next decade - became a childhood favorite. A teenage Lesley Ann Warren was cast as Cinderella after playing a supporting role in Broadway’s 110 in the Shade the previous season; her Prince was Stuart Damon, and the stellar supporting cast included Ginger Rogers, Walter Pidgeon, Jo Van Fleet, Pat Carroll, Celeste Holm, and Barbara Ruick. A special anniversary screening and panel discussion. Tuesday, June 15, The Paley Center for Media, Los Angeles.

GOVERNOR ATTENDS FLAT ROCK PLAYHOUSE REHEARSAL

Gov. Bev Perdue of North Carolina

according to WTZQ-AM, Governor Bev Perdue of North Carolina, who serves as the Honorary Chairman of the Flat Rock Playhouse Board of Trustees, attended one of the final dress rehearsals of For The Glory.

Governor Perdue is the first incumbent governor since 1984 to attend a performance at the State Theatre.

For The Glory, with a book and lyrics by Frank Wildhorn, Gregory Boyd and Jack Murphy, and music by Frank Wildhorn, the Tony nominated musical is based on actual letters and diaries written by individuals of the time of the Civil War.

Directed by Flat Rock Playhouse's Executive Director Vincent Marini, the production runs through July 4th at the Flat Rock Playhouse in Flat Rock, NC.

OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY

JOHN LENNON'S HANDWRITTEN LYRICS FOR A DAY IN THE LIFE go up for auction on June 18, 2010. Sotheby’s New York will gavel down Lennon’s autograph lyrics for A Day In The Life - the revolutionary song that marked the Beatles transformation from pop icons to artists. The double-sided sheet of paper in Lennon’s hand is complete with cross-outs, corrections, reworkings, and chronicles the evolution of one of the most famous pop masterpieces from conception to the lyrics presumably used in the recording studio.







KEVIN EUBANKS returns home to Philadelphia to receive a pair of honors. On June 17, the former band leader and sometimes foil for The Tonight Show With Jay Leno will receive a plaque on the Philadelphia Music Alliance Walk of Fame on South Broad Street, putting him in the sidewalk alongside such notables as Frankie Avalon , Dick Clark, John Coltrane, and Teddy Pendergrass.

The next night, Eubanks will join Billy Paul (Me and Mrs. Jones), the Intruders (I'll Always Love My Mama), and Joe "Butter" Tamburro (WDAS-FM, 105.3) as this year's honorees at the annual Phillies Sound of Philadelphia Night. They'll all get the 2010 Phillies Gamble & Huff Community Partnership Award.

TONY AWARDS take place this evening, June 13. ( For a list of nominees and winners )



AFTER THE DANCE by Terence Rattigan. Directed by Thea Sharrock.

First staged in 1939, the play now often thought to be Terence Rattigan's masterpiece offers a subtle, witty unmasking of the hedonistic 20s generation and a devastating study of repression and the human heart.

When you know something is going to happen, it makes it seem further off to joke about it.

Set in Mayfair in 1938, After the Dance trains a witty but compassionate eye on the 1920s generation of Bright Young Things at a point when, no longer young or bright, they persist in partying on, their conversation nostalgically obsessed with yesteryear. The hedonism that was their attempt to obliterate the traumas of the Great War is now desperately harnessed as a bid to blank out the horrors of the forthcoming conflict.

As the world races towards catastrophe, a crowd of Mayfair socialites party their way to oblivion. At its centre is David, who idles away his sober moments researching a futile book until the beautiful Helen decides to save him, shattering his marriage and learning too late the depth of both David's indolence and his wife's undeclared love. But with finances about to crash and humanity on the brink of global conflict, the drink keeps flowing and the revelers dance on.

Why do you all talk of nothing but the old days and the old parties and the things you all used to do and say? Why?

It's the bright young people over again, only they never were bright and now they're not even young.

The cast includes: Nancy Carroll, Faye Castelow, Pandora Colin, Giles Cooper, Benedict Cumberbatch, Jenny Galloway, Daniel gosling, John Heffeman, Juliet Howland, Nicholas Lumley, Lachlan Nieboer, Adrian Scarborough, Leo Staar, Hannah Stokely, Giles Taylor, Richard Teverson, Natalie Thomas and Charlotte Thornton.

Designer is Hildegard Bechtler. Lighting by Mark Henderson. Sound by Ian Dickinson. Music by Adrian Johnston.

Scheduled platforms include: Thea Sharrock on After the Dance slated for Thursday June 17. In Conversation with Benedict Cumberbatch takes place Monday June 21. In Conversation with Adrian Scarborough is set for Monday June 28. In Conversation with Nancy Carroll slated for Monday July 5.

Performances at The Lyttelton Theatre, London.

CHiPS THE MUSICAL written by Rick Batalla & Henry Phillips. Directed by Matt Walker.

Take a journey down the 405 Freeway circa the 1970s when highways were hopping and surface streets were for sissies - when you could get from Downtown to the Westside in Los Angeles in 20 minutes, and not just in a Toyota. There you'll find those super-flashy stewards of safety and suave-ness, Ponch and John, in CHiPS the Musical. Rest assured, Ponch and John are still wearing their well-starched uniforms, packin’ the heat, and looking fine enough to cause a fender-bender while battling criminals of the worst kind: female eco-terrorists sporting roller skates and short shorts! The boys on bikes are back...and this time, they're singing!

June 17 - July 25 at the Falcon Theatre in Burbank, CA.

IT'S A BIRD . . . .IT'S A PLANE . . . .IT'S SUPERMAN music by Charles Strouse and lyrics by Lee Adams and a revised book by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, working from the original by David Newman and Robert Benton.

Kevin Moriarty will direct the production, which will feature choreography by Joel Ferrell.

Starring Patrick Cassidy as Max Mencken , Jenny Powers as Sydney Sharp and Matt Cavenaugh as Superman/Clark Kent.

The cast will also include Zakiya Young as Lois Lane, Andrew Keenan-Bolger as Torchy, Bob Hess as the Court Jester, Julie Johnson as Scarlet Widow, Matthew Kilgore as Kazam, Cara Serber as Marilyn Nessbit, Paul Taylor as Jack-in-the-Box, Kate Wetherhead as Blackbird, Kent Zimmerman as Jupiter James, Hassan El-Amin as Perry White, Sean Hennigan as Mayor Siegel, Cedric Neal as Cadabra, along with Chris Klink, Addie McDaniel, McKenzie Warren, and Steven Wenslawski and featuring Diane and Hal Brierley Resident Acting Company members.

In this production the comic book-based musical has a hip updated script. There will be nothing mild-mannered about this high-voltage revival, when Superman flies in to help Clark Kent and Lois Lane face off against a team of super villains.

Set Design by Beowulf Boritt. Costume Design by Jessica Caprio. Lighting Design by Jeff Croiter. Sound Design by Rob Kaplowitz. Music Director Elaine Davidson. Music Supervisor Kimberly Grigsby. Revised Orchestrations & Arrangements Eugene Gwozdz.

The Dallas Theater Center's revival runs June 18 - July 25, at the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre at the AT&T Performing Arts Center in Dallas, TX.

THE DROWSY CHAPERONE

Carson Kressley stars as Man in Chair

Music and Lyrics by: Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison. Book By: Bob Martin and Don McKellar. Original Broadway Direction and Choreography by: Casey Nicholaw. Direction and Choreography Re-created by: Casey Hushion. Musical Direction by: Jason Wetzel.

Be transported to a magical, wonderful world in this new musical comedy that was the darling of the Tony Awards, winning the most statues in 2006, including Best Sets and Costumes, which will be featured in this production.

The hilarious show-within-a-show begins when a die-hard musical fan - Man in Chair - plays his favorite cast album, a 1928 smash hit called “The Drowsy Chaperone” and the show magically bursts to life. Audiences are instantly immersed in the glamorous, hilarious tale of a celebrity bride and her uproarious wedding day, complete with thrills and surprises that take both the cast and the audience soaring into the rafters.

Emmy-winning television star, celebrity stylist, author and fashion designer, Carson Kressley - who graduated from Gettysburg College with a degree in management and fine art in 1991, with Phi Beta Kappa and magna cum laude honors - will be making his theatrical debut as the Man in Chair in this production, alongside twice-Emmy nominated actress Georgia Engel reprising the role of Mrs. Tottendale, the role she created for the original Broadway production.

Officially opened June 9 with performances through June 26 at the Ogunquit Playhouse in Ogunquit, ME.

ALL CAKE, NO FILE The Johnny Cash Prison Tribute Comedy Cooking Show/Concert Written and Performed by Donna Jo Thorndale. Directed by Shira Piven.

Live Music by With A Bible and A Gun: Corby Gallegos-vocals/rhythm guitar, Jim Vitale-electric guitar, Mike Salazar-bass, Alex Carlisle-drums.

Thorndale's Jewell Rae is a celebrity chef, home economist, and host of the popular syndicated live cooking show, "Tastes Like Home." Her love of music, boxed cake mixes, and convicted felons inspired her favorite project, All Cake, No File, during which she bakes and serves guests of the California state prison system - all the while accompanied by Johnny Cash tribute band With A Bible And A Gun. This summer, Actors' Gang audiences have the chance to see her Amoeba Records endorsed prison show - and to taste a different Jailbreak Cake every weekend.

A portion of the ticket sales from All Cake, No File will be used to support The Actors' Gang's Prison Project, which has been helping to reduce recidivism through in-prison theatrical training since 2007.

June 11 through July 31 at The Actors Gang in Culver City, CA.

BOEING-BOEING a French farce by Marc Camoletti, adapted by Beverley Cross.

"One up, one down and one pending!"

The English adaptation of this French farce features self-styled Parisian lothario Bernard juggling three fiancées, each beautiful airline hostesses with frequent layovers in Paris. Bernard's carefully constructed timetable runs like clockwork until unexpected schedule changes bring all three to his apartment at the same time, and his "ideal life" unravels all in one nonstop night.

Boeing-Boeing originally premiered in Paris in 1960. The English language adaptation, translated by Beverley Cross, was first staged in London in 1962. The play was first produced on Broadway in 1965. In 1991, the play was listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the most performed French play throughout the world. Boeing-Boeing was revived in London in 2007. It once again proved to be a hit with critics and audiences alike and received two Olivier Award nominations. The 2008 Broadway revival won both the Tony and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a Play.

Nathan Mitchell directs the cast which features; Matthew David, Stacie Hadgikosti, Michelle Mountain, Rhiannon Ragland, John Seibert, Charlyn Swarthout and Jeff Thinakis.

Set Designer: Bartley H. Bauer Properties Designer: Danna Segrest. Costume Designer: Christianne Myers Lighting Designer: Reid Johnson Sound Designer: Quintessa Gallinat.

June 17-August 28, 2010 at The Purple Rose Theatre in Chelsea MI.

CHICAGO welcomes OBIE, Lortel and GLAAD Award winner Coleman Domingo as Billy Flynn to the New York production at the Ambassador Theatre June 14-July 18, 2010.

THE THREE MUSKETEERS Ellen Geer's world premiere adaptation of Alexandre Dumas' epic, swashbuckling novel. Geer also directs.

When a young dreamer named d'Artagnan leaves home for Paris to become a member of the famed royal guard, The Musketeers, he encounters a trio of comrades who embody the motto, All for one and one for all. Dumas' swashbuckling adventure, replete with political intrigue, scandalous liaisons, murderous espionage and undying love, is set in the 17th century, but its message about upholding one's honor with unwavering devotion to friends and countrymen is never outdated.

Portraying Dumas' colorful cast of characters are Jackson McCord Thompson (d'Artagnan), Jim LeFave (Athos), Kelly C. Henton (Porthos), Melora Marshall (Aramis), Abby Craden (Milady), Aaron Hendry (Duke of Buckingham), Willow Geer (Mme. Constance Bonancieux ), Samara Frame (Queen Anne of Austria), Jeff Wiesen (King Louis XIII), Mike Peebler (Lord de Winter) and William Dennis Hunt (Cardinal Richelieu). Also in the cast are Noelle Adames, Michael Keith Allan, Jane Bacon, Sam Breen, Zach Brown, James Cowan, Daniel Eisner, Anna Leah Eisner, Andrew Fish, Annie Freeman, Lucero Garcia, Ventana Garen, Christopher Greenwood, Cindy Guastaferro, Roman Guastaferro, Rowena Johnson, Nina Kurtz, Matt Little, David Mack, David Marmor, Kaja Martin, Anne Goen Nemer, Eve Neuhart, Nikhil Pai, Christopher Parker, Michael Rahhal, Andrew Ravani, Julian Song, Daniel Tobin, Paul Turbiak, Letty Valladares, Matt Van Winkle, and Dylan Vigus.

Performances June 12 through October 3 at The Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum in Topanga, CA.

WHO'S WHERE

PAUL McCARTNEY will make his first-ever Nashville appearance 2010, when he brings his Up and Coming 2010 Tour to the Bridgestone Arena in downtown Nashville. Although this will be his first concert appearance in Nashville, it is not McCartney’s first visit to Music City. McCartney and his family spent six weeks in Nashville in 1974, a visit – he told the Nashville Banner at the time – to “relax, ride horses and record” his then band, Wings. The McCartney family stayed at a 133 acre Lebanon farm owned by songwriter Curly Putman (Green, Green Grass of Home), and it was that farm that inspired the Wings’ hit, Junior’s Farm.

BON JOVI has a one night stand, Wednesday, June 16, at the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy in Paris, France. On Thursday he begins a multi night engagement at The O2 in London with shows Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.

HARRY CONNICK, JR on stage Tuesday, June 15, at the Filene Center in Vienna, VA. Wednesday finds him at the Blumenthal Performing Arts Center in Charlotte, NC. Friday the tour stops at the Peace Center in Greenville, SC. On Saturday he's in the spotlight at the Chastain Park Amphitheatre in Atlanta.

SHERYL CROW performs Monday, June 14, at the Kresge Auditorium in Interlochen, MI. On Tuesday the show is at the Fraze Pavilion in Kettering, OH. On Thursday the tour stops at the Filene Center in Vienna, VA. Friday she's on stage at the State Theatre in Cleveland and on Saturday she's in the spotlight at the Music Theatre in Clarkston, MI.

WEDNESDAY NIGHT AT THE IGUANA hosted by the MAC Award winning Dana Lorge and Richard Skipper. Barry Levitt on keyboard & Saadi Zain on bass. Wednesday's guests include: Henry Dee, Gini Dustin, Helena Grenot, Joan Jaffee and Jillian Laurain. Wednesday, June 16, at the Iguana VIP Lounge in NYC.

SUTTON FOSTER beginning Tuesday, June 15 and playing a two-week engagement, through Saturday, June 26, the Tony Award winner will make her Cafe Carlyle, NYC debut.

ELTON JOHN stars at the Ramat Gan Stadium in Tel Aviv, Israel on Thursday, June 17. ON Saturday he performs at the Urfahraner Jahrmarkt in Linz, Austria.

BROOKS AND DUNN entertain at the Giant Center in Hershey, PA on Thursday, June 17. On Friday the show is at the Amphitheater in Virginia Beach, VA. On Saturday the tour stops at Jiffy Lube Live in Bristow, VA.

BRETT MICHAEL AND LYNYRD SKYNYRD on stage Thursday, June 17, at the Verizon Wireless Center Birmingham in Relham, AL. On Friday they star at the Time Warner Pavilion in Raleigh, NC. On Saturday they bring the show to the Verizon Amphitheatre in Charlotte, NC.

JACKSON BROWNE on stage Monday, June 16, at Tradgardsforeningen in Goteborg, Sweden. On Tuesday he's in the spotlight at the Stadtpark in Hamburg, Germany. Thursday finds him at the Palais Des Beaux Arts in Charleroi, Belgium. On Friday the performance is at the Casino de Paris in Paris.

MICHAEL FEINSTEIN returns to his own venue - Feinstein's at Lowe's Regency Hotel in NYC with his Cool Swing show June 15-19.

STING appears at the Hollywood Bowl on Tuesday, June 15. On Wednesday the show is at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Irvine, CA and on Friday he stars in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

JIMMY BUFFETT has his musical party Thursday, June 17, at the Comcast Center in Mansfield, MA and then returns to that location to do it again on Saturday, June 19.

FOREIGNER performs Friday, June 18, at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, CT. On Saturday the show is at the Jones Beach Theater in Wantagh, NY.

FINAL OVATION

CHRISTINE JOHNSON SMITH contralto opera singer and actress died June 9, 2010 at her home in Owensboro, KY. She was 98.

Known professionally as Christine Johnson, she was best known for creating the role of Nettie Fowler in the original Broadway production of Carousel.

Johnson moved to New York City and in 1937 was working with NBC's Radio City Music Hall and Lyn Murray and the Columbia Symphony Orchestra at CBS. In 1941, she sang Dorabella in Cost fan tutte, opening the Tanglewood opera house.

In 1942 she performed role of Mrs. Page in The Merry Wives of Windsor, leading to an opportunity to sing the role of Bess, in Porgy and Bess, under the direction of Leonard Bernstein. Other roles followed. In 1943, Johnson won the Metropolitan Opera auditions, which led to her becoming the youngest person ever to sing the role of Erda in Richard Wagner's Das Rheingold at that opera house.

In 1945, Johnson created the role of Nettie Fowler in Carousel. Rodgers and Hammerstein wrote You'll Never Walk Alone, and June is Busting Out All Over especially for her. She also sang the role on the show's original cast album. Johnson stayed with the show for hundreds of performances and then toured and studied in Italy. She rejoined Carousel during the national tour and continued as Nettie through its Broadway revival in 1949 at City Center.

After Carousel closed, Johnson moved back to Owensboro, where she married surgeon Robert Smith in 1950 and raised two daughters, Robin and Nancy, who survive her.

Next Column: June 20, 2010
Copyright: June 13, 2010. All Rights Reserved. Reviews, Interviews, Commentary, Photographs or Graphics from any Broadway To Vegas (TM) columns may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, utilized as leads, or used in any manner without permission, compensation and/or credit.
Link to Main Page

---

Laura Deni

For the snail mail address, please E-mail your request.
CLICK HERE FOR COMMENT SECTION