Broadway To Vegas

Copyright: July 16, 2023
By: Laura Deni
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PEDDLING AROUND: THE 2023 TOUR DE FRANCE

The Tour de France, an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race is currently taking place. It is the oldest of the three Grand Tours (the Tour, the Giro d'Italia, and the Vuelta a España) and is generally considered the most prestigious. The last wheel rotation takes place on July 23, 2023 in France.

Millions of people have lined the route, some having camped for a week to get the best view.

For 23 days, 171 riders compete against each other, wheel-to-wheel, for nearly 2,100 miles of mountains, hills, sprints, and cobblestones, through rain and blistering heat. Each team has eight riders. The race alternates between clockwise and counterclockwise circuits.

What keeps these peddle happy professional rotating? Food.

When people say the riders are "putting on the feedbag" they aren't kidding. It's called muaetees, a bag the riders carry with them. It's named after the feed bag put around a horses' neck.

Riders will have breakfast around three and a half hours before the race, with carbohydrate-rich foods such as bread, muesli, cereal, pancakes, rice pudding, smoothies, orange juice - and even noodles - to help top up glycogen stores.

Riders will get their first dosage of caffeine of about 80mg from their morning coffee/espresso. Then, most will do a second espresso shot on the team bus en route to the start. At this point, their total consumption is 160mg. Many riders will also have a pre-workout drink, an additional 150mg of caffeine.

While on the bike, riders are eating about 400 to 500 calories an hour in the form of gels, bars, drinks, and food, That's a minimum of 5,000, 6,000 calories on every stage.

During the race, on average, a rider will consume two to three energy bars, three or four rolls or rice cakes, and about six 500ml bottles of isotonic mixes during a stage. Depending on the individual, an energy gel or two may be added to this, with caffeine-based gels generally preferred, especially during the closing stages of a race.

Many professional cyclists will put electrolyte (Sodium, Potassium, Calcium and Bicarbonate) powder into a 500ml bottle of water, to keep their levels topped up. This will be predominantly sodium based powder, as this is what is lost through sweating.

Most team nutritionists would rather the riders didn't drink Coca-Cola, and some teams even forbid it. Coke is high in calories thanks to its sugar content, and it contains virtually no electrolytes or minerals. It's acidic and carbonated, both of which can increase the risk of stomach problems during exercise.

Never-the-less, there's always one small can of coke in the musettes provided by Trek-Segafredo.

Cyclists enjoy Coke because of the taste and the sugar - one of the main sources of carbohydrates, which provides energy for longer endurance efforts.

The sugar in Coca-Cola is either sucrose or fructose-glucose syrup, depending on whether it is made in Europe or America.

In addition to relying on food, many riders wear religious medals around their necks for luck or "magic bracelets."

If music has charms to soothe, that's a problem for endurance peddlers who need to stay sharp and focused. Listening to music can also be a dangerous distraction. Cyclists will listen to music on long transfers from one hotel to another, when warming up before stages and while cooling down after. But never during a race. In fact they are forbidden to do so. For bikers, listening to music while riding is one of the most dangerous things to do.

That doesn't mean music hasn't played a part in racing.

The Tour de France has inspired several popular songs in France, notably P'tit gars du Tour (1932), Les Tours de France (1936) and Faire le Tour de France (1950). German electronic group Kraftwerk composed Tour de France" in 1983 – described as a minimalist "melding of man and machine" – and produced an album, Tour de France Soundtracks in 2003, celebrating the centenary of the Tour.

Books and films have also used the race.

The Tour and its first Italian winner, Ottavio Bottecchia, are mentioned at the end of Ernest Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises.

In films, the Tour was background for Five Red Tulips (1949) by Jean Stelli, in which five riders are murdered. A burlesque in 1967, Les Cracks by Alex Joffé, with Bourvil et Monique Tarbès, also featured it. Footage of the 1970 Tour de France is shown in Jorgen Leth's experimental short Eddy Merckx in the Vicinity of a Cup of Coffee. Patrick Le Gall made Chacun son Tour (1996). The comedy, Le Vélo de Ghislain Lambert (2001), featured the Tour of 1974.

In 2005, three films chronicled a team. The German Höllentour, translated as Hell on Wheels, recorded 2003 from the perspective of Team Telekom. The film was directed by Pepe Danquart, who won an Academy Award for live-action short film in 1993 for Black Rider (Schwarzfahrer). The Danish film Overcoming by Tómas Gislason recorded the 2004 Tour from the perspective of Team CSC.

Wired to Win chronicles Française des Jeux riders Baden Cooke and Jimmy Caspar in 2003. By following their quest for the points classification, won by Cooke, the film looks at the working of the brain. The film, made for IMAX theaters, appeared in December 2005. It was directed by Bayley Silleck, who was nominated for an Academy Award for documentary short subject in 1996 for Cosmic Voyage.

A fan, Scott Coady, followed the 2000 Tour with a handheld video camera to make The Tour Baby! which raised $160,000 to benefit the Lance Armstrong Foundation, and made a 2005 sequel, Tour Baby Deux!>

Vive Le Tour by Louis Malle is an 18-minute short of 1962. The 1965 Tour was filmed by Claude Lelouch in Pour un Maillot Jaune. This 30-minute documentary has no narration and relies on sights and sounds of the Tour.

In fiction, the 2003 animated feature Les Triplettes de Belleville (The Triplets of Belleville) ties into the Tour de France.

Netflix partnered with the organizer Amaury Sport Organisation, has produced a documentary series about the eight major teams across the 2022 Tour de France named Tour de France: Unchained. It was released in June 2023. If you're an "it's all about the money" person - riders can earn money from all the main prizes, as well as on categorised climbs, intermediate sprints and even just finishing within the first 160 classified riders in the race.

And, if you're wondering 'where are the women?' They aren't in this race.

A similar race for women was held under various names between 1984 and 2009. Following criticism by campaigners and the professional women's peloton, a one/two day race (La Course by Le Tour de France) was held between 2014 and 2021, and the first Tour de France Femmes was held in 2022.

Women's bike racing events include the "Kasteelcross" cyclocross cycling event, which took place in January, 2023 in Zonnebeke, Belgium and USA Cycling's Pro Road National Championship took place in Knoxville, Tennessee, on Sunday, June 25, 2023.

Transgenders have additional pedal problems. Last Friday, July 14, 2023 Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) announced that trans cyclists will be banned from competing in all international women’s events. The UCI, the world governing body for sports cycling, released a lengthy statement updating their policy which will now bar any trans cyclist from competing in women’s events if they "\"transitioned after (male) puberty."

"In this context, the UCI Management Committee concluded, considering the remaining scientific uncertainties, that it was necessary to take this measure to protect the female class and ensure equal opportunities." The rule change, which goes into effect on July 17, will now enter those who do not meet the guidelines for the women’s category into the men’s category which will now be renamed "Men/Open."

"First of all, the UCI would like to reaffirm that cycling – as a competitive sport, leisure activity or means of transport – is open to everyone, including transgender people, whom we encourage like everyone else to take part in our sport," UCI President David Lappartient said in a statement.

"I would also like to reaffirm that the UCI fully respects and supports the right of individuals to choose the sex that corresponds to their gender identity, whatever sex they were assigned at birth. However, it has a duty to guarantee, above all, equal opportunities for all competitors in cycling competitions. It is this imperative that led the UCI to conclude that, given the current state of scientific knowledge does not guarantee such equality of opportunity between transgender female athletes and cisgender female participants, it was not possible, as a precautionary measure, to authorize the former to race in the female categories."

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This is not your typical, totally boring textbook.

In the pages of How To Earn A Living As A Freelance Writer (the first to be lied to and the last to be paid) you'll find sex, celebrities, violence, threats, unethical editors, scummy managers and lawyers, treacherous press agents, sex discrimination; as well as a how-to for earning money by writing down words.

ART AND ABOUT

DESERT RIDER: DREAMING IN MOTION

Desert Rider is on view through September 24, 2023. Photo: Denver Art Museum.

explores the connections between transportation, landscape, and identity in our nation’s Southwest desert region.

The west is a landscape of constant motion—a place of unbroken horizons, staggering views, and changing borders. Certain modes of transportation have become linked to this region. Images of horses roaring across the land, cars cruising on busy streets and forgotten roads, and skaters gliding on pavement elicit feelings of freedom, power, and rebellion.

Desert Rider: Dreaming in Motion focuses on self-identified Latinx and Indigenous artists who express identity, pride, and a sense of community by transforming vehicles associated with the Southwest. These transformations both challenge stereotypes and embody hope.

Customization and creation can tie together ideas of history, place, resistance, discovery, and empowerment in a single object. This exhibition acknowledges the urgent need to make space for voices deeply connected to and reflective of the region’s complicated past and its future. Whether you are from Denver, Los Angeles, or Española, New Mexico, your ride is not just an activity, it’s a way of life.

The presentation, organized by Phoenix Art Museum, opened last week with a lowrider car show and arts celebration, and is on view through September 24, 2023 at the Denver Art Museum in Denver, Colorado.

LITERATE DRUMMER CHARLIE WATTS

A first edition of The Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie. Photo: Christie's Auction House.

had a passion for books, American Civil War, antique silverware, vintage cars, and a wardrobe of Edward VIII's Savile Row suits.

Some of those items are now being sold by the late musician's estate, with a particular focus on his favorite saxophonist, Charlie Parker. Among the lots are Parker's Associated Musicians Membership Card, his contracts for the Alto Break sessions and a pair of Down Beat awards from 1952.

However, expected to win the gavel down money prize is a signed copy of Gatsby with an estimated price of £200,000-300,000.

Fitzgerald dedicated the book to MGM Screenwriter Harold Goldman, with whom he worked on the 1938 Robert Taylor and Vivien Leigh comedy A Yank In Oxford.

The inscription reads: "For Harold Goldman, the original 'Gatsby' of this story, with thanks for letting me reveal these secrets of his past".

Also for sale is a proof copy of Evelyn Waugh's Brideshead Revisited, which the author sent to friends for their comments in 1944. Waugh later made several changes to the novel, including rewriting the ending and changing some names.

The first edition of the Sherlock Holmes' adventure Hound Of The Baskervilles is signed with the comment: "I perambulated Dartmoor before I wrote this book," a reference to the book's setting.

Other highlights include rare and first editions of books by Agatha Christie, PG Wodehouse and James Joyce.

George Gershwin's annotated score for Porgy and Bess will also be showcased, with an estimated price of £10,000-15,000.

Further Jazz lots include two scores by Irving Berlin - Songs from Top Hat and Songs from Follow the Fleet - inscribed to Ginger Rogers; and two inscribed piano scores by the influential cornetist Leon 'Bix' Beiderbecke.

Christie's, which is hosting the auction, will display the highlights in New York, Los Angeles and London ahead of the two part sale, a live sale at Christie's headquarters in London on September 28, and an online sale that runs from September 15 to 29, 2023.

MUSEUM FINE ARTS BOSTON (MFA) HAS ANNOUNCED that in March 2024, the MFA will host the US debut of Hallyu! The Korean Wave. This is the first major exhibition to celebrate the colorful and dynamic pop culture of South Korea, tracing the country’s meteoric rise from a nation ravaged by war in the 1950s to a leading cultural powerhouse by the dawn of the 21st century.

Are you a fan of BTS and aespa? Have you seen the Oscar-winning film Parasite? Do you know every move to the "Gangam Style" dance? From K-pop costumes to K-drama props and posters, photography and sculpture to fashion and video, delve into the phenomenon known as "hallyu"—meaning "Korean Wave" Hallyu emerged as a sensation in the late 1990s, rippling across Asia before reaching all corners of the world and challenging the current of global popular culture today.

This exhibition will explore the makings of the Korean Wave through cinema, drama, music, and fandoms, and underlines its impact on the beauty and fashion industries. See close to 200 objects alongside pop-culture ephemera across four thematic spectrums—technology, cinema and drama, music, and fashion—engage with some of the biggest crazes to come out of hallyu through interactive displays, and discover the colorful and dynamic popular culture of South Korea in all its expanse.

Created by the V&A in London—touring the world.

CLOTHESLINE ART SALE one of the Hamptons’ most beloved and affordable art traditions since 1946, is back. For 77 years, Clothesline has provided accessible artwork to the community while supporting the artists who live in the community. Over 300 artists enter the sale, and art lovers everywhere flock to Guild Hall in the Hamptons, New York to find something special.

Works range in price from $75 to $5,000, with all proceeds split 50/50 between the artists and Guild Hall.

Throughout history, great artists such as Alfonso Ossorio, James Brooks, John Little, Jackson Pollock, Lee Krasner, and Elaine and Willem de Kooning have shared their talents to support Guild Hall in this annual fundraising event. Who knows, maybe you’ll find the next masterpiece.

The 2023 Clothesline Art Sale is dedicated in memory of Barbara McClancy, a longtime volunteer who was the heart and soul of this event.

Saturday, July 22, 2023 at Guild Hall, the Hamptons, New York.

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SWEET CHARITY

IN SUPPORT OF UNICEF the iconic story of The Little Match Girl, by Hans Christian Anderson, comes to life in this new musical adaptation. As theatre offers escapism, so does the enchanted imagination of the little match girl, alluringly captured in this retelling of her tale.

The Off-Broadway cast will be joined by a talented group of young student artists who are traveling from China to perform exclusively in this special limited engagement. Each of these young performers has been specifically chosen to collaborate in a professional NYC theatre environment alongside Broadway talent. "Armed with matchsticks and music these young performers will return home with confidence, hope, and an experience of a lifetime."

The Little Match Girl brings us along in her discovery of a better place in this timeless classic. The Little Match Girl is you; she is me; she is all of us. Her experience reminds us of where we started, what truly matters, and that we are all family. The Chinese children joining the cast truly embody the spirit of the story and believe completely in its message. This artistic and cultural exchange will provide a magical theatre experience in support of UNICEF; helping children in crisis around the world. Every child deserves a chance.

July 20-23, 2023 off-Broadway at Theatre Row in New York City.

SPREADING THE WORD

THE ROYAL SHAKESPEARE COMPANY will stage a special performance on Tuesday in the presence of several senior members of the royal family. The renowned guest list has been invited to Windsor Castle for a reception hosted by the King and Queen to honor the Bard and mark 400 years since the publication of the first Shakespeare folio.

The First Folio is widely considered the most important collection of literature in the English language. First published in 1623 by two of Shakespeare's friends – John Heminges and Henry Condell – just seven years after his death, it is an assembly of 36 of his cherished works. It contains 18 works that had not previously appeared in print and would otherwise have been lost to history, including Macbeth and Twelfth Night.

A copy of the First Folio is held in the Royal Library at Windsor Castle and will be on display during the reception.

Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester will join Charles and Camilla in hosting the celebration. Other guests include Jake Murray, the artistic director of the Elysium Theatre Company. The Elysium along with Durham Fringe Festival and Durham University present Durham’s Summer of Shakespeare which runs from July 8–30.

The Elysium Theatre Company brings a variety of Shakespeare’s plays to life to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the first publication of The Bard’s First Folio.

Actors including Dame Harriet Walter, Sir Simon Russell Beale, and Ray Fearon will perform extracts from the plays that would have been lost including Macbeth, Julius Caesar, As You Like It, Antony & Cleopartra and The Tempest.After the performance, Their Majesties and Their Royal Highnees will met the actors and musicians in the Grant Reception Room, as well as other members of the Royal Shakespeare Company including new Co-Artistic Directors Daniel Evans and Tamara Harvey. Their Majesties and Their Royal Highnesses will then join a larger reception at St. George's Hall.

Shakespeare has a long list of fans. Queen Victoria in particular delighted in Shakespeare's plays, discussing them in her journal. King Charles is known to have a keen interest in Shakespeare, and even performed in plays during his college years. He became president of the RSC in 1991 and has often invoked his words in some of his speeches over the years. One of the most recent examples was when he paid tribute to his "beloved mother" in his first televised address as sovereign and said "may flights of angels sing thee to thy rest" – drawn from a line in Hamlet.

WILLIAMSTOWN 2023 MAIN STAGE READING SERIES will feature Occupied Paris, 1944 by By Hamish Linklater, featuring Hamish Linklater & Lily Rabe.

"Real life celebrity Nazi Werner Krauss is between projects. But the Party, desperate for a propaganda extravaganza in the City of Lights, has arranged a remount of his notorious Merchant of Venice produced by a French theater teeming with family secrets. Paris, ACTORS! is "The Last Metro" if Truffaut were unavailable to direct, but the Marx Brothers were."

The creatives are: Se Hyun Oh Scenic Design and Emily Schmit Lighting Design.

July 22 - July 23 on the 2023 Festival Stage of the Williamstown Theater Festival in Williamstown, MA.

IAMA THEATRE COMPANY presents staged readings of six new plays written by members of the company’s 2022-23 Emerging Playwrights Lab. Readings will take place over the course of two weekends, July 21 through July 30, at Atwater Village Theatre in Los Angeles.

Making up the Lab’s Class of ’23 are Amanda L. Andrei, Xavier Clark, Peter Pasco, Jasmine Sharma, Mak Shealy and Thomas Daníel Valls. The six met on a monthly basis during their one-year residency to share and develop work in a peer-guided format led by program director Nicholas Pilapil.

The schedule of public readings is as follows:

• Friday, July 21: El exorcismo de Georgie Garcia by Peter Pasco.
Growing up in the Bronx is complicated. The struggle gets real when your parents are devout Catholics from Peru, and you are a first generation agnostic child — whose imaginary best friend is White Jesus.

• Saturday, July 22: Hijo, Madre by Thomas Daníel Valls
Her son doesn't want to be here anymore, and his mother isn't really all there anymore.

• Sunday, July 23: Peacy: a sorta Chekhovian traumedy, written by Jasmine Sharma, directed by Lavina Jadhwani.
In 2022, the owner of a Los Angeles-based, family-run, Indi-Mex restaurant has the opportunity to franchise. In 1962, a Mexican woman and Punjabi peach farmer enter a "Mexidu" marriage in order to circumvent California's stringent miscegenation laws. Jasmine Sharma's Peacy is a sorta chekhovian traumedy about cooking with love...and family.

• Friday, July 28: Victorian Psychedelic Sleepover Play by Mak Shealy.
After their writing is rejected by the school newspaper, four best friends meet on the eve of Sybil’s 16th birthday to create a literary zine of their own. Seeking editorial guidance, they conjure the ghosts of writers past and find themselves possessed by the spirit, chaos and conflict of the Victorian Era radicals they have long admired.

• Saturday, July 29: Brancusi v. United States, written by Amanda L. Andrei, directed by Nikki DiLoreto.
An English translation of Tatiana Niculescu's Brâncu?i contra SUA, a surreal comedic drama based on the 1926 court case of Romanian French sculptor Constantin Brâncui (1876-1957), who sued the United States for not categorizing his famous sculpture, "Bird in Space," as art. The result: US courts legally changed the definition of art in America.

• Sunday, July 30: Icons. Written by Xavier Clark, directed by H. Adam Harris.
When an established icon of a writer selects a younger Pulitzer Prize-winning author to interview him for a milestone newspaper article, lines between interviewer and interviewee get blurred, and the interview spirals into a nauseating loop of chaos. Icons grapples with the meaning of legacy, loving and letting go, while still in the pursuit of peace, perfection and (im)mortality.

COLORADO DRAGON BOAT FESTIVAL the largest Dragon Boat festival in the United States takes place July 22 and 23rd at Sloan's Lake in Denver, Colorado.

Colorado's annual celebration of Asian and Asian American heritage has 400 volunteers, 170,000 attendees and 180 performers and vendors.

RENT SYMPHONIC WORLD PREMIERE Experience the iconic music of Rent like never before—performed live with stellar vocalists and the raw power of the National Symphony Orchestra (NSO). Steven Reineke, Principal Pops Conductor. Sammi Cannold, Concert Director. Original orchestrations by Sean O’Loughlin.

Witness the symphonic world premiere of the musical that defined a generation as the NSO performs the complete score, featuring favorites like Seasons of Love; Light My Candle; La Vie Bohème; Out Tonight; Take Me or Leave Me, and more.

Tony winner Ali Stroker sings Maureen;Tony winner Alex Boniello sings Roger; Tony winner Myles Frost sings Benny; 2021 finalist on NBC’s America’s Got Talent, and vocalist with Pink Martini Jimmie Herrod sings Angel; actor, musician, and breakout star of 2023’s No Hard Feelings Andrew Barth Feldman sings Mark.

July 26–28 Concert Hall, Kennedy Center in Washington, DC.

OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY

RADIO is expected to attract $400M in ads for 2024 election. Political spending for the 2024 election cycle could conservatively reach $11.5 billion, Vivvix/CMAG predicts. Radio is set to take in $400 million but could increase that figure by tapping into local races, the firm says, noting local and network broadcast television will see around $5 billion of the total -- up from $4.5 billion for the 2020 race.

SINGLE CARROT THEATER in Baltimore, Maryland has permanently closed. The socially relevant theatre, which opened in 2007, produced vibrant, experiential performances in traditional and non-traditional stagings.

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THIS YEAR'S THEATER HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES HAVE BEEN ANNOUNCED The inductees, selected through the ballots of over 250 voters are: actors Judd Hirsch, Laurie Metcalf and Bebe Neuwirth; director JoAnne Akalaitis; librettist John Weidman; composer Maury Yeston; and, posthumously, playwright Amiri Baraka. Also to be honored will be Mandy Patinkin who was unable to attend the induction when he was selected last year.

They will be inducted in a ceremony at the Gershwin Theatre in New York on November 6. It will be hosted by director/choreographer Susan Stroman.

GIBSON BRANDS, INC. the world’s most iconic instrument brand, today announced that its Board of Directors has confirmed Cesar Gueikian to the role of President and CEO of Gibson Brands.

Cesar Gueikian joined Gibson in 2018, merging his business background with his lifelong passion for music and guitars. He has been instrumental in the resurgence of Gibson, setting a successful new strategy centered around instruments and sound, relaunching the portfolio of brands, shaping a new portfolio architecture, creating Gibson Media, launching Gibson TV, and securing partnerships with Gibson artists to bring their music to the world and keep Gibson culturally engaged and connected to music.

An accomplished musician, guitarist and songwriter, Cesar has performed with and recorded alongside artists spanning an eclectic range of music genres, such as Mana, Kirk Hammett, and Rob Trujillo (Metallica), Rex Brown (Pantera), Dave Mustaine (Megadeth), Snake Sabo (Skid Row), Jared James Nichols, Richie Faulkner (Judas Priest) and Fito Paez.

Cesar earned a B.A. in Business from Universidad de San Andres, Buenos Aires, Argentina and an M.B.A. from The University of Chicago focused on Analytic Finance and Economics.



LIE LOW by Ciara Elizabeth Smyth.

Directed by Oisín Kearney.

Lie Low follows the terrified Faye, who can't sleep, doesn't trust ducks, and has eaten nothing more than a single box of dry Rice Krispies over a week. After a doctor recommends a form of exposure therapy, Faye enlists the help of her brother, Naoise. But Naoise has a devastating secret that's about to explode. Described as "a dark, funny, and surreal theatrical exploration into the human brain."

"A darkly funny new monologue by Ciara Elizabeth Smyth, Lie Low is a theatrical exploration into the human brain via the genitals."

Featuring Faye: Charlotte McCurry - Naoise: Michael Patrick - Duckman/Naoise: Thomas Finnegan - Voice over: Rory Nolan.

The creatives are: Set and Lighting Designer: Ciaran Bagnall. Sound Designer: Denis Clohessy. Movement Director and Intimacy Co-ordinator: Paula O'Reilly. Combat Director: Phillip Rafferty.

Performances on the 200-seat Peacock stage of the Abbey Theatre in Dublin, Ireland July 17-29, 2023.

AGATHA CHRISTIE'S THE MURDER OF ROGER ACKROYD adapted for the stage and directed by Mark Shanahan.

One of Agatha Christie’s best-known novels and voted the best crime novel ever by the British Crime Writers’ Association is turned into this murderous mystery for the stage. This twisty whodunit features extraordinary characters who holds secrets about blackmail and murder that only the detective Hercule Poirot can solve in the all-new adaptation.

The cast includes Alley Theatre’s Resident Acting Company members Elizabeth Bunch as Caroline Sheppard, Dylan Godwin as Ralph Paton, Shawn Hamilton as Roger Ackroyd, Melissa Molano as Flora Ackroyd, Melissa Pritchett as Miss Helen Russell, David Rainey as Inspector Raglan, Christopher Salazar as Dr. James Sheppard, and Todd Waite as Parker.

Joining them are Brandon Hearnsberger as Gertrude Ackroyd, David Sinaiko as Hercule Poirot, and Skyler Sinclair as Ursula Bourne.


World Premiere July 21 – August 27 at the Alley Theatre in Houston, Texas.

AND A NIGHTINGALE SANG... by C.P. Taylor.

Directed by Bonnie J. Monte.

This endearing play about a working-class family in England during the Blitz of WWII is, at turns, hilarious, romantic, moving, and inspiring; a celebration of life in the midst of the destructive forces wreaking havoc in the world.

An earnest homage to the bonds of family, humor, and the wonderful music from the era that is sprinkled throughout; Featuring: Marion Adler will play the mother of the family, Peggy Stott; Sarah Deaver, in the role of the younger sister, Joyce; Benjamin Eakeley plays the love interest, the solider Norman; Christian Frost plays the young soldier Eric, the suitor to fellow company member Sarah Deaver’s Joyce. John Little as George Stott, the father of the story who also provides the live piano music that is played and sung throughout the show; Monette Magrath in the role of Helen Stott, the narrator of the play; Sam Tsoutsouvas will play the role of Andie, the family’s grandfather.

The creative team includes: Set Designer Brittany Vasta, Costume Designer Brian Russman, Lighting Designer Matthew E. Adelson, Sound Designer Drew Sensue-Weinstein, Dialect Consultant Julie Foh, and Music Supervisor Doug Oberhamer. The Production Stage Manager is Alison Cote.

Presented through July 30, 2023 by the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey on the F.M. Kirby Shakespeare Theatre in Madison, NJ.

THE HALF GOD OF RAINFALL written by Hay Festival Medal for Poetry winner Inua Ellams.

Directed by Obie Award winner Taibi Magar.

When Demi, the half Nigerian-mortal, half Greek-god, is angry, rain clouds gather. When he cries, rivers burst their banks. And the first time he takes a shot on a basketball court, the deities of the land wake up.

A new myth that spans continents and millennia. The Half-God of Rainfall is a contemporary epic that weaves poetry and storytelling in a majestic journey that transports us from a tiny village in South West Nigeria to an NBA arena in the United States to the hallowed halls of Mount Olympus, where the mothers, daughters and goddesses take a stand against the fragile, furious and entitled gods.

The Half-God of Rainfall details but does not depict sexual violence.

The cast includes Jason Bowen as Sàngó, Kelley Curran as Hera, Mister Fitzgerald as Demi, Patrice Johnson Chevannes as Osún, Michael Laurence as Zeus, Lizan Mitchell as Elegba, and Jennifer Mogbock as Modúpé.

The creatives are: scenic design by Riccardo Hernández, costume design by Linda Cho, lighting design by Stacey Derosier, sound design by Mikaal Sulaiman, and projection design by Tal Yarden. Ann James serves as Intimacy Director with Dawn-Elin Fraser as Voice and Dialect Director, and Caroline Englander as Stage Manager.

The Half-God of Rainfall began performances Friday July 14, 2023, with an opening night set for Monday July 31, for a limited run through Sunday August 20, 2023 at New York Theatre Workshop in New York City.

HELLO DOLLY! by Jerry Herman. Starring Jessica Sheridan as Dolly Levi.

"It’s so nice to have her back where she belongs!" Matchmaking meddler Dolly Levi seeks a match of her own – Yonkers very own half-a-millionaire, Horace Vandergelder. Now, if only she could take her nose out of everyone else’s business long enough to land her man! This delightfully romantic and hilarious show features one of the most memorable musical scores ever written.

Shenandoah Summer Music Theatre's production of Hello, Dolly! has performances through July 23, 2023 at the Shenandoah Conservatory in Winchester, VA.

WEST SIDE STORY book by Arthur Laurents. Music by Leonard Bernstein. Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Based on a Conception of Jerome Robbins.

Directed by Rob Ruggiero.

Original Choreography reproduced by Parker Esse.

James Moore Music director/conductor.

One of the greatest and most powerful musicals of our time. Loosely based on Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, West Side Story is a love story that has endured the test of time. Tony and Maria find themselves in each other’s arms in a dance of romance, but can they escape the tensions in the streets? The classic Sharks and Jets rivalry leaps onto the Muny stage for the first time in a decade. With the memorable Maria; Tonight and I Feel Pretty this is your chance to fall in love with this story all over again!

Starring Christian Douglas as Tony, Kanisha Feliciano as Maria, Jerusha Cavazos as Anita, Yurel Echezarreta as Bernardo, Kyle Coffman as Riff, Ken Page as Docm Drew Battles as Gladhand, James A. Butz as Officer Krupke, Cedric Leiba, Jr. as Chino, Michael James Reed as Lt. Schrank, Ethan David Zeph as Action, Caylie Rose Newcome as Anybodys, Ethan Van Slyke as Baby John, Daniel Assetta as A-Rab, Tanner Ray Wilson as Big Deal, RJ Higton as Snowboy.

Ensemble: Gabriel Amato, Angelica Maria Beliard, Jonathan Bryant, Veronica Sofia Burt, Devin Cortez, Daniela Delahuerta, Abbey Friedmann, Henry Julian Gendron, Yoni Haller, Eloise Kropp, Francis Lawrence, Macy McKown, Natalia Nieves-Melchor, Tatiana Nuñez, Courtney Ortiz, Daniel Pahl, Daniel Powers, Grace Marie Rusnica and Ronan Ryan.

Performances through July 21, 2023 at The Muny in St. Louis, MO.

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Broadway To Vegas is a solely owned website. Nobody has been given permission to access, distort or destroy any Broadway To Vegas column.

Examples:
In 1999 Broadway To Vegas ran a favorable review and commentary regarding the dramatic musical Parade. See Broadway To Vegas column of December 28, 1998. Week after week, month after month, year after year, that column could easily be called up on Google and other search engines. This Spring that column suddenly, without warning, disappeared. It is impossible to find it on Google and thus other search engines who traffic off of Google. "Parade" concerns an event involving a Jewish man.

Normally, Broadway To Vegas columns appear on Google search engines anywhere from minutes to a few hours after launch and then remain on the Google search engine.

Since June 4th, through the month of June Broadway To Vegas columns go up as usual on Google are easily located for approximately 40 hours and then suddenly disappear, not to be found on a search engine, no matter how they are searched.

All columns can be located through the Broadway To Vegas website.

In those columns the subject matter concerned: 1) favorable reporting on a world renowned artist who happens to be black, (2) positive reporting on an event involving nationally known individuals participating in a major Juneteenth celebration in Las Vegas. Juneteenth concerns celebrating black people no longer enslaved, and (3) positive reporting on The Lost Story of Emmett Till.

Columns favorably regarding Jewish people and/or Blacks suddenly disappear. That begs the question if deleting those Broadway To Vegas columns is part of somebody committing a hate crime.

Google has the ability to deliberately hide columns. Google can't remove content from a person's website, but they can hide content so that nobody can find it. That is suppose to take place based upon proof of a wrongful act - such as a judge granting a removal order based upon copyright infringement or the webpage encouraging illegal activity.

Google's website indicates that this is manually done. A person goes into the site, reads it and determines if the page has violated any Google rules and can, at their discretion, block the page.

Broadway To Vegas has been on the web since 1998 and, until now, there has never been a problem with Google.

Broadway To Vegas is NOT implying that Google is involved in a hate crime or that Google has instructed any of their employees to help in sabotaging any website. Respectfully, we point out that Google has thousands of employees, some of whom are part time and also involved in the public relations business. PR firms, especially those based in NYC, represent entertainment websites, individuals and causes and an isolated few have made it known that they will commit illegal acts to boost their own clients, harming other sites, and will continue to do so until legally stopped.

It is a felony to attempt to enter, hijack, block, destroy, any website or contents thereof owned by anyone other than yourself. Preventing a website column to be seen is a crime unless there is a substantial reason, generally backed up by court order. You can't have a search engine block a web page simply because you don't like it. That's restraint of trade and censorship.

In case you've missed them: See Broadway To Vegas column of June 4, 2023. Broadway Cast Recording of & Juliet: See Broadway To Vegas column of June 11, 2023. ART IMITATES LIFE IN OPERATION MINCEMEAT: See Broadway To Vegas column of June 18, 2023. LAS VEGAS HAS BECOME A SPORTING TOWN AND SPORTS HAVE LONG PLAYED ON BROADWAY: See Broadway To Vegas column of July 9, 2023. NATO SUMMIT COULD LEARN FROM APRIL FOOLS DAY JOKE:

Also, hijacking (stealing) a column, posting it on a website that deliberately misleads the reader to think they have clicked into Broadway To Vegas when it is a different website with no Broadway To Vegas affiliation is a crime.

In searching Google for Parade on Broadway To Vegas, a website comes up that misleads the reader into thinking it is Broadway To Vegas. When clicking on the link the ENTIRE column is seen, not just the "Parade" review and there is no link to Broadway To Vegas. It is a "fake" website which has stolen a Broadway To Vegas column which can only be located on this strange site; headlined with an incorrect spelling of Broadway To Vegas. In the real Broadway To Vegas the "T" is capitalized and I have never called myself "theatre chick".

Who Is reports that theatre_chick.tripod.com ownership is hidden and was first indexed by Google more than 10 years ago.

When looking up theatre_chick.tripod.com Google brings up a website headlined Broadway to Vegas - The Theatre Chick's Life, deliberating misleading people.

Information is sought regarding any attempt to interfere with Broadway To Vegas from anyone, anywhere in any capacity. Confidentiality will be provided to the extent to which the law permits.

Broadway To Vegas thanks those who have provided information. Based upon information received, further information is sought regarding two California based men who have worked as techs in a ISP Broadway To Vegas once used and info regarding a West coast and Midwest based female who reportedly has made comments that she has friends in New York City and can cause her (Laura Deni) trouble. The Google press office was provided a copy of this in case they wished to comment. They have not replied.

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This is not your typical, totally boring textbook.

In the pages of How To Earn A Living As A Freelance Writer (the first to be lied to and the last to be paid) you'll find sex, celebrities, violence, threats, unethical editors, scummy managers and lawyers, treacherous press agents, sex discrimination; as well as a how-to for earning money by writing down words.

Next Column: July 23, 2023
Copyright: July 16, 2023 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.
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Laura Deni

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