Broadway To Vegas

Copyright: May 22, 2022
By: Laura Deni
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BLACK MAGICIANS MATERIALIZE

Magic has traditionally been an occupation for white males who perform before white audiences.

Ran'd Shine

"Magic is the last thing in society to change," declared magician Ran'd Shine who shocked friends and family when he informed them that he was leaving Drexel University where he was pursuing a doctorate in public health to become a professional magician. "They thought I bumped my head and went crazy."

"Finding an African American magician is like finding a needle in haystack. We are out there, but it's hard to find us"

Shine prides himself on being an historian and 'educator of magic'. He has lectured on campuses throughout the Unites States as well as military bases in Japan, Guam, and Korea.He also loves performing before his most adoring fans as a fixture at numerous hospital wards where he entertains children with terminal illnesses.

Kenrick "Ice" McDonald made history when he became the first black president of the Society of American Magicians, the world's oldest and most prestigious magic organization. The member roster includes David Copperfield, Houdini and Harry Blackstone.

Most booking agents present a head shot of the person they are pitching.

"Our face is our calling card," declared McDonald who was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico when his mother Bernice was driving from Texas to a new home in California. "If you have a problem with black people, then we don't even get to present our material."

McDonald's performance is nothing short of jaw dropping amazing. He developed his skills mostly in secret. While his father, a pastor, is the person who gave him his first magic kit, his interest in the "black arts" soon became a source of family annoyance. McDonald had to please his religion as well as the audience.

"Most people feel that magic is on the dark side. I'm of the belief that our God is bigger, and he has some light in all the dark places. And so I consider myself, as far as in magic, and being in the church and being a Christian - I believe that I'm that light, to those who feel that is dark. So I was able to illustrate that as I performed down the years," he has been quoted as saying about redefining black magic.

Last January 17th at the Golden Nugget Hotel in Las Vegas the Society of American Magicians hosted a screening of McDonald's Masters-The-History-And-Relevance-Of-The-Black-Magical-Artist.

Both men recently guested on WHYY's podcast hosted by Dr. Amy Dean who is WHYY’s Community Curator for Willingboro, a township of roughly 30,000 individuals located in Burlington County, New Jersey, and a suburb of Philadelphia. The Township has British roots going back to the 17th century.

Shine complained that there isn't a TV show on a major network which features magic. "A glass ceiling to be broken."

Television is a powerful influencer.

Harry Anderson on the Night Court set performing a card trick.

The late Harry Anderson started out as a street magician. He had a most enjoyable magic act, starring at the Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas, with his first wife, who was part of the act. When she became pregnant with their first child her doctor advised her to give up the act, which required her to be bound to a chair and required violent. energetic athletic moves. Without her in the act the performance was just never the same. Harry went to Hollywood and became famous with Night Court in which, while sitting at his desk pondering a case, he performed card tricks, which inspired many little white boys to take up magic.

The close up magic didn't detract from the story line. It merely was part of his character's personality.

Therefore - If a major television show such as the recently ended Blackish or The Neighborhood or The Wonder Years had any reoccurring role actor who engaged in any form of magic, that could have encouraged young back boys to take up magic. Harry Anderson on Night Court was the only actor who incorporated close up magic into a traditional show. In this era of "inclusion" should casting agents, writers, producers be encouraged to consider having a character who sometimes engages in close up magic?

Even today - in this era of "inclusion" - black magicians face racism.

When Shine had a booking at a small college in Iowa he flew to the Corn State and then drove an hour-and-a-half to the performance location. Hungry, he went into a local restaurant only to receive a frozen reception. Backing out of the eatery he found another cafe which was more receptive.

That night at the performance he quipped: "When I landed the black populations increased by 100%. People laughed. You have to find a way to break the ice," he reasoned referring to a state which is 91.3% white.

"Not a lot of magic clubs are welcoming," admitted McDonald. That begs the question as to why there aren't magic clubs aimed to attract middle and high school black students.

Middle school and high schools have camera clubs, debate clubs, stamp clubs, etc. Some have magic clubs, which don't discourage black students from joining - they just don't encourage them.

Could Black churches help in forming such clubs? - Providing a safe meeting space - knowing who and how to contact individuals/companies for magic kit donations, even used ones. Could/should magicians be encouraged to mentor youth magic clubs - such as offering a web presentation geared towards turning black boys away from crime and towards magically amazing others?

Kenrick Ice McDonald performing with his macaw.

"We're not whining," stressed McDonald. "We're speaking of relate-ability. I'd just like the Black magicians to be included in Black History."

The International Association of Black Magical Artists (IABMA) is attempting to do just that.

Their motto is: Culture Community Conjuring.

Created on February 2, 2016 by five African-American magicians, from five different states, and nearly 90 years of performance experience, who decided to formally create an organization to promote the art of magic entertainment through the fellowship and showcasing of magicians of the African Diaspora and beyond.

The IABMA 2022 Summit is currently taking place in Atlanta, Georgia. It began last Thursday continuing though today, May 22.

The Summit performers, lecturers and contributors included: Reggie Rice, Matthew Teague, Kenrick "Ice" McDonald, Phillip Anthony, Victoria "A Star" Bey, Kevin Bethea, Donald Camp, Rory Rennick, Ran'D Shine, Richard Kaufman, Wayne "Warlock" Watson, and Michael Vincent.

"We have a rich history that a lot of people don't know about," stressed McDonald. "We have Richard Potter, the first American-born magician, and he happened to be black," he said referring to the man born in New Hampsire in 1738. "We have Henry Box Brown, (1815-1897) who was born into slavery, and he actually mailed himself out of slavery in a (wooden) box. He mailed himself to Philadelphia, and then from that point on he started lecturing and performing magic on tour."

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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

THOSE ROYAL WOOLLY DOPPELGANGERS

Rosemarie Peloquin alongside the wool busts she created of Prince Charles and Queen Elizabeth II as Prince Charles looks at them in amazement. Reportedly, he burst out laughing when he first saw them. Photo:twitter

move over Rodin and Michelangelo. Franco-manitoban fibre artist Rosemarie Péloquin has some statement making creations. Iowa fair butter artist Sarah Pratt creations can either melt into a puddle or be spread on toast. Peloguin's creations have no downside, Unless, of course, you're allergic to wool.

In anticipation of Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla the Duchess of Cornwall's visit to Canada last week the Campaign for Wool Canada commissioned Peloguin to create a bust of their Patron, Prince Charles, out of wool.

The "woolly Doppelganger" is an incredible work of art, a life-sized, hand sewn-felted bust of his own likeness. The heir to the throne more or less met himself as he conferred with Canadian wool enthusiasts in St. John's on the first leg of his thee day tour along with his wife Camila. Matthew Rowe, CEO of the Campaign for Wool in Canada stated that the non profit industry association will also present its royal patron with a wool sculpture of his mother, the Queen.

The Campaign for Wool is an organization founded by the Prince of Wales with the simple goal of promoting this natural and highly sustainable fiber.

Peloguin said she spent hundreds of hours on each bust using a barbed needle to sculpt the fine detail of the royal faces.

"I was pleased and honored to be asked by Campaign For Wool Canada to make a wool bust of their patron, HRH The Prince of Wales, in honor of the 10th anniversary celebrations of their global initiative.

"Making these faces feels like an intimate dance. Taking the mounds of soft wool into my hands, moving and guiding, pushing and pulling the small barbed wands teasing the fibres into denser folds. I step back, pause, circle, listen with my hands and eyes, drink in the knowledge of traditions, approach, and slowly start again, and again till their essence is revealed."

The artist from Ste. Rose-du-Lac Manitoba said she "made the decision to trade in my jobs for a tiny toolbox of barbed needles that fits in my pocket.

"Using barbed wands, I sculpt portraits that represent character rather than physical likeness, fragile moments intended to tug at remembrances. The artwork comes alive through our individual experiences. Viewers come face to face with their own stories, memories, relationships, wishes, and fears, as they interpret the expression and their connection to it."

SOTHEBY'S CELEBRATES ROYAL HEAD TOPPERS Noting is more spectacular that the bling in royal tiaras. Sotheby's will display 40 Historic Tiaras. The exhibit includes Princess Diana's wedding tiara known as the Spencer Tiara and Queen Victoria's emerald tiara.

Queen Victoria's emerald and diamond tiara. Photo: Sotheby's.

This exhibit of royal and aristocratic jewels goes on display at Sotheby's in London from May 28 to June 15 and open for free to the public in honor of Queen Elizabeth's Platinum Jubilee next month.

Sotheby is using each piece to highlight the evolution of jewelry design from the 18th century forward.

The show, titled Power & Image: Royal and Aristocratic Tiaras, will feature 40 striking pieces of fine jewelry rarely loaned out for public display, including the Spencer Tiara on loan to Sotheby's from Diana's brother, Earl Spencer.

The Spencer Tiara has been in their family for over a century, but was assembled slowly over a matter of years. The central part of the circlet shaped like a heart was given to Lady Cynthia Hamilton in 1919 as a wedding present upon her marriage to Albert, Viscount Althorp, the future 7th Earl Spencer and grandfather of Princess Diana.

This gift came from another member of her new husband's family, Lady Sarah Spencer, the unmarried daughter of the fourth earl. The ends of the tiara are also said to be from Lady Sarah's collection and, in the 1930s. the fine jewelry company Garrard assembled and embellished those pieces with the addition of a diamond floral diadem. While Diana's mother wore a tiara from her own family's collection for her wedding, her three daughters all wore the Spencer Tiara on their big days. And, most recently, it was worn by Celia McCorquodale, the daughter of Diana’s sister, Lady Sarah McCorquodale, for her wedding in 2018.

Visitors will also be able to pay a visit to one of Queen Victoria's favorite and most ostentatious crowns. The royal's emerald and diamond tiara, which features a huge 15-carat emerald at its center, was designed by her husband Prince Albert in 1845. According to Sotheby's the piece “is widely seen as one of the most elegant and sumptuous colored gemstone tiaras ever created anywhere in the world.” Three tiaras worn to Queen Elizabeth's 1953 coronation will also be on display.

"Representing a rare and historic gathering of fine jewels, this exhibition draws together over 40 outstanding tiaras including examples with British and European royal provenance. The assembled exemplars, most handed down through families for generations and seldom loaned for public display.

Also on display a spectacular 1830s tiara that acknowledges the classical styles of ancient Rome - brought back into fashion in the early 1800s by Napoleon Bonaparte and Empress Joséphine's gold, enamel and cameo tiara. Even more unusual? A Van Cleef & Arpels creation from the ’60s, which nods to dazzling Indian jewellery with its turquoise cabochons.

"Their range reflects successive design evolutions in the format, prompted by monarchic taste, societal shifts and the influence from other art forms, through to contemporary jewelers redefining tiaras today," states Sotheby's

If you're all bent out of shape because you don't own a tiara, now is your chance.

There is an option to purchase select tiaras including an i880s fringe diamond tiara and necklace and contemporary designs by Kiki McDonough and Christopher Thompson-Royds.

“The sourcing of these jewels has been a labor of love, resulting in an exhibition that showcases the best iterations within the tiara style register, through some of its most famous incarnations—including the much-loved and photographed Spencer Tiara,” Kristian Spofforth, the head of jewelry at Sotheby’s London, said in a statement. “This is also a wonderful moment for us to shine a special light on the dazzling craftsmanship delivered by generations of mainly British-based jewelers across several centuries of tiara making.”

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SWEET CHARITY

WHAT DO YOU DO WITH OLD GUITAR STRINGS? 1,543,235 lbs. of guitar strings metal ends up in landfill each year.

Stunning bracelet from guitarwrist/Gibson. Photo: guitarwrist

Luke Combs' strings have become this beautiful ring. Photo: guitarwrist

The guitarwrist is doing something about that - fashionably.

Founded in 2017 by UK music industry executive, Ian Rendall, the guitarwrist is a not for profit, sustainability, and charity fund raising initiative which gets artists to donate their played strings, when they come to restring, and upcycles these into handmade items of jewelry with 100% of the profits going to the artist’s charity of choice.

The guitarwrist has three main aims:

1) To reduce the estimated 700,000 kg/1,543,235 lbs. of guitar strings metal that ends up in landfill each year.

2) To raise awareness and funds for charities and worthy causes.

3) To give fans a great piece of memorabilia.

To date the guitarwrist has raised over £100,000 for over 50 charities and saved over 9,000 sets of strings from ending up in landfills. Within a short space of time over 275 musicians have joined the initiative including Guns N’ Roses, Iron Maiden, Stereophonics, Luke Combs, and Sam Fender, to name but a few. Many of the leading guitar strings companies donate strings including Ernie Ball, Rotosound Strings, and GHS. Gibson is the latest partner and creations from their strings are lovely.

The new Gibson Gives Collection contains a range of jewellery made from strings donated by Gibson - the leading iconic American instrument brand - through the use of their guitars from the Gibson London Showroom.

Each item is handmade and encompasses various styles of bracelet, ring, necklace, and earrings with a Gibson tag attached to each. The items are packaged in a luxury hardshell presentation case in the classic Gibson guitar case colors of brown and pink crushed velvet.

Associated with each item is a Certificate of Authentication including a unique serial number. The Gibson Gives Collection from the guitarwrist is available exclusively online via: https://www.theguitarwrist.co.uk/gibson-guitars.

The new range marks the guitarwrist's first collaboration with Gibson and all profits will benefit Gibson Gives, which is Gibson's philanthropic arm supporting the global community. .

The mission of Gibson Gives is to create, develop, and support non-profit organizations in their efforts to advance musicians, youth-focused education, music, and health and wellness initiatives across the globe .

A SOULFUL HEART to support the city of Buffalo and the shooting victims and their families with this lst annual George Floyd Memorial Concert.

A Soulful Heart will be donating a portion of the proceeds from this 1st Annual George Floyd Memorial Concert, which will be held on May 24, 2022 at The Town Hall in New York City.

This star-studded concert will include Melba Moore, Karen Clark Sheard, Pastor Kim Burrell, Jessica Reedy, Bobby Sanabria, Tenishia Toussaint and Demarcus Hughes, Juggernaut War Party, Mike & Aleksi Glick, Nan O’Brien, the Repertory Company High School for Theatre Arts, and the Paul Robeson School For Freedom.

Honorees for their outstanding contributions to the community include Ms. Melba Moore; Ms. Irene Gandy; Bishop James Pullings, Jr.; Rev. Clinton Miller; Ms. Elinor Tatum; Mr. Rome Neal; and AB Money, Easy Mo Bee, and JR (“RIF”).

Streaming tickets for a livestream of the show are also available.

5th ANNUAL WOMEN WHO ROCK BENEFIT CONCERT presented by Gibson Guitars takes place Sunday, May 22, at the Novo in Los Angeles.

The concert will feature a headlining performance from four time Grammy winner Aimee Mann and performances from Flor de Toloache, Emily Wolfe, Daisy O'Dell and Graciela.

Grammy nominated, multi-platinum singer-songwriter Jordin Sparks will emcee.

All proceeds from the benefit will support Magee-Womens Research Institute (MWRI)--the nation's largest research institute dedicated only to vital and life-saving women's health research.

Last Thursday a special panel honoring women in the music industry ahead of the 5th Annual Women Who Rock Benefit Concert took place.

Hosted by Gibson at the Gibson Showroom in West Hollywood, the panel was led by Melinda Colaizzi (Founder, Women Who Rock), and feature Qiana Conley (Executive Director, Recording Academy, Los Angeles), Elizabeth Heidt (Vice President Cultural Influence, Gibson Brands-Global), Mini Bear (Producer/DJ Vocalist and Chief Education Officer, FEMME HOUSE), and moderator Marisa Sullivan (People, US Weekly Journalist, and Triple Negative Breast Cancer Survivor).

Topics included women in music, women's health, and the under representation both face in the current cultural climate. The importance of women's health research, being an advocate for your own health, and the impact it has on the lives of women around the world and more, was discussed.

SPREADING THE WORD

THE BROADWAY MASK MANDATE has been extended through June, according to the Broadway League. All patrons will be requires to wear masks unless they are actively eating or drinking. Broadway To Vegas would like to point out ( especially to older men, it seems) that wearing a mask over your chin does not count as wearing a mask.

PLATINUM PARTY AT THE PALACE Queen Elizabeth's Platinum Jubilee concert taking place on June 4, outside Buckingham Palace with hosts Kirsty Young and Roman Kemp. Performers include Diana Ross, Duran Duran, opera singer Andrea Bocelli, Rod Stewart, Queen, with frontman Adam Lambert. George Ezra, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Britain's Eurovision star Sam Ryder are also on the bill.

Headliners will entertain 22,000 spectators (including 10,000 allocated in a public drawing and 5,000 tickets for ket workers) on an elaborate stage outside the palace, though it's not yet clear whether the Queen will watch the performances live as she has previous jubilee concerts.

WYONNA JUDD has announced that the previously announced "The Judds: The Final Tour" will move forward after the tragic passing of her mother and musical partner Naomi Judd.

"I am humbled, once again, by the loyalty of the fans who have been with us for 38+ years, who continue to show up for me when I need them the most. I am grateful that we will continue to honor The Judds legacy, together," Wynonna shared. Larry Strickland, Naomi’s longtime husband adds, "I am so happy that in this time of grief for us all, Wynonna has agreed to move forward with this tour as my sweet wife Naomi would have wanted her to do."

Country music icon Martina McBride will kick off select nights with a full set of her own classic hits before Wynonna takes the stage to sing some of her own hits and songs by The Judds.

The tour has added a final stop in Lexington, KY at Rupp Arena on October 29th, a homecoming celebration where it all began. Superstar Faith Hill will join Wynonna onstage at Rupp Arena to perform some of the classic songs and honor one of Country music’s most important catalogues. Wynonna has chosen to honor her mother’s legacy by inviting some of music’s biggest stars to join her onstage to perform some of the timeless hits that earned The Judds multiple Grammy, CMA, and ACM awards over a span of 30+ years. Each night, Wynonna will welcome a selection of special guests onstage, including Brandi Carlile, Faith Hill, Little Big Town, McBride, Ashley McBryde, Trisha Yearwood, and others.

The 11-date arena tour, produced by Sandbox Live and Live Nation, will commence this Fall in Grand Rapids, MI at Van Andel Arena on September 30th and run through October, wrapping up with the newly announced performance in The Judd's home-state of Kentucky - Lexington, KY on October 29th at the Rupp Arena.

L.A. THEATRE WORKS the world’s leading producer of audio theater, has commissioned and recorded an audio adaptation by the BBC’s Kate McAll of The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway.

The Sun Also Rises is a poignant look at the disillusionment and angst of the post-World War I "lost" generation. A group of friends decamp from 1920s Paris for the Festival of San Fermin in Pamplona. Jake loves the aristocratic Brett Ashley but Brett’s wandering eye lands on a young toreador. In the week of drinking, bullfighting and jealousy that follows, friendships are upended and hopes for love dashed.

"Kate’s adaptation adeptly sets the tone of life in the aftermath of World War I for the listener," says L.A. Theatre Works producer Anna Lyse Erikson, who directs the recording. "She captures Hemingway’s voice, and clarifies the parallels he draws of bullfighting to war, and to life."

Originally published in 1926, and inspired by actual events, The Sun Also Rises was Hemingway's first novel, and many consider it to be his best. In 1924, Hemingway traveled from Paris to Pamplona with his wife, Hadley Richardson, and the American writer John Dos Passos. He returned in 1925 with another group of American and British expats, and their experiences and complex romantic entanglements became the basis of the book. According to Everybody Behaves Badly: The True Story Behind Hemingway’s Masterpiece The Sun Also Rises by Lesley M.M. Blume, the characters were modeled closely enough on Hemingway’s own circle of friends that "the portraits would haunt [them] for the rest of their lives." Bringing the L.A. Theatre Works recording to life are actors Patrick Heusinger as Jake Barnes, an American ex-patriot living in Paris and Hemingway’s alter-ego; Rhian Rees as Lady Brett Ashley; Geoffrey Arend as Robert Cohen; Seamus Dever as Bill Gorton; André Sogliuzzo as Mike Campbell and the Count; Devon Sorvari as Frances and Georgette; Herbert Sigüenza as Spanish hotelkeeper Montoya; and newcomer Derrick Kemp as the young toreador, Pedro Romero.

L.A. Theatre Works' radio theater series broadcasts weekly on public radio stations across the U.S. and daily in China on the Radio Beijing Network.

The L.A. Theatre Works audio recording of The Sun Also Rises is available for digital download.

THE 2022 DUBLIN DANCE FESTIVAL includes lives performance on the Abbey Stage in Dublin, Ireland.

They include: any attempt will end in crushed bodies and shattered bones? directed by Jan Martens, running at the Abbey Theatre May 27-28, 2022.

Ranging in age from 17-70, a seventeen-strong dance ensemble champions the fundamental right to protest and demonstrate and the unique power that lies in being out of step.

Fallen From Heaven (Caída Del Cielo) in which boundary-breaking star of the flamenco world, Rocío Molina expertly fuses the traditional dance form with a contemporary feminist aesthetic to create the explosive, theatrical and fiercely provocative Fallen From Heaven (Caída Del Cielo), running May 24-25, 2022.

ELLEN DeGENERES after 19 years a hosting the Ellen talk show begins her final week. She will be missed.

OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY

TILMAN FERTITTA has donated $50 million to the University of Houston's Medical School which will be renamed after him.

The Fertitta family made the announcement. A state of the art $80 million building is expected to open this summer.

Tilman Fertitta is the owner of the Landry's Inc. hospitality empire and the Houston Rockets.

Tilman is cousin to Frank Fertitta, Jr. who died August 21, 2099 at age 70 and is buried in Las Vegas. Frank Fertilla, Jr's children are second cousins to Tilman Fertitta.

Lorenzo Fertitta is chairman of Fertitta Capital, director of Red Rock Resorts, Inc in Las Vegas and former CEO of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. His brother is Frank III, a graduate of Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas and the USC Marshall School of Business. He is CEO of Stations Casinos in Las Vegas.

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FOREST WHITAKER was awarded the prestigious Palme d'or d'honneur at the Cannes Film Festival. "My gratitude goes to Pierre Lescure and Thierry Fremaux f granting me this award, and for their commitment to cinem as a universal art," Whitaker posted on his Twitter account.

In addition to receiving the award, Whitaker was at Cannes to celebrate the screening of the documentary For the Sake of Peace. Whitaker is producer of Christopher Castagne and Thomas Sametin's South Sudan set documentary.



BELFAST GIRLS by Jaki McCarrick.

Directed by Nicola Murphy.

Featuring Aida Leventaki, Labhaoise Magee, Mary Mallen, Caroline Strange, and Sarah Street.

“Who knows what dreams were born on the Inchinnan, huh? If it’s not us who will have those freedoms you talked of…then maybe our daughters will. That’s the important thing.”

1850, on board a ship bound from Belfast to Sydney. Five young women seek to become “mistresses of their own destiny.” But some find they cannot escape the nightmare of the lives they are leaving behind. As they draw nearer to the promised land, their connection to the past grows ever more powerful, eliciting rage, love, despair, and above all, hope.

A New York Premiere through June 26, 2022 on the Francis J. Greenburger Mainestage of the Irish Rep in New York City.

WOMEN OF A CERTAIN AGE: THE MUSICAL a score by Jeff Thomson (Music) and Jeremy Desmon (Lyrics). Book by Desmon.

Directed by Natalie Nucci.

"After putting their dreams on hold to raise families and build careers, Bev (Andrea Canny), Max (Fredricka Meek), and Lulu (Sheri Sanders) are ready to grab life by the mic, reclaim their college dreams of being singing sensations, and compete for glory on the hit TV singing competition American Starmaker! They’ve rehearsed for weeks and nothing is going to stand in their way -- except, apparently, the show's age limit. Turned away for being too old, they take matters into their own hands to capture the attention of the show's brutally honest judge: one way or another! Armed with nothing more than a few arcade game guns, some cookies, and new-found voices, hilarity ensues as the madcap characters of Women of a Certain Age: The Musical go to outrageous lengths to prove there's no age limit on taking a shot at your dreams. Especially when karaoke night is so easy to take hostage."

Abe Goldfarb plays six different lovers, foils, accomplices, and one extremely British television singing competition judge. Goldfarb is joined by the Andrea Canny, Fredericka Meek, and Sheri Sanders.

Shirley Johnston and Doña Oxford join as off-stage singers and understudies and T.J. Mannix stand-bys for Goldfarb.

Choreography by four-time Ovation Award-winner Lee Martino. The design team features multiple Emmy Award-winner set designer Andy Walmseley, sound design by Steve Shapiro, and lighting by Ryan A. Patridge. The tour features vocal direction by Andrew David Sotomayor and Adam MacDonald and band arrangements and performances by Tony and Grammy-nominee August Eriksmoen.

Performances May 28-June 19, 2022 at the Herberger Theater in Phoenix, AZ.

BERNHART/HAMLET by Theresa Rebeck.

Directed by Lee Lewis.

Influencers have always been around, even back in the 1880s. Fashion icon and star of the stage Sarah Bernhardt was once spotted wearing a rather nifty modern felt hat during her heartbreaking performance in the show Fédora.

. Everyone in attendance was besotted by the design and the style took off. It was the equivalent of spandex in the 80s, every young lady had to have the look! The design was named after the title of the show, which is how the fedora came into popularity.

It's Paris in 1899, and star of the stage Sarah Bernhardt has set her sights on playing Hamlet. Too old to play the ingenue and too bored to play the stale roles written for women, the diva needs a genuine crowd-pleaser to save her debt-ridden theatre. What better work than Shakespeare's finest play? And who better to take on the greatest part ever written than the greatest actress of the century?

Traditionalists are horrified — a woman playing the sacred role of the Prince of Denmark? It's at best a gimmick, and at worst an unnatural upending of the status quo. As Sarah and her players delve into what makes Hamlet tick, the whole city is watching and waiting to see whether this bold plan will be her legacy, or her folly.

A vivid real-life backstage story by American playwright Theresa Rebeck, Bernhardt/Hamlet is a fast-moving, audacious comedy about a 19th century woman issuing a challenge to the system that still resonates today.

The creatives are: Set/costume design by Simonr Romaniuk - Composer/Music Supervisor Max Lambert - Sound designer Brady Watkins - Stage Manager Khym Scott Assistant stage manager Natalie Callaghan Rehearsal Observation Mikayla Hosking, Bonte Locke. Flight Direct NJ Price.

The cast: Sarah Bernhardt Angie Milliken - Constant Coquelin Hugh Parker - Edmond Rostand Nicholas Brown - Alphonse Mucha David Valencia - Maurice Julian Curtis - Louis Anthony Gooley - Rosamond Wendy Mocke - Lysette Amy Ingram - Raoul Gareth Davies - Francois/Worker Leon Cain - Offstage Swing Performer Thomas Larkin - Offstage Swing Performer Rachel Nutchey.

Performances begin May 28 at the Bille Brown Theatre of Queensland Theatre in South Brisbane, Australia.

SNOW IN MIDSUMMER written by Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig who adapted the thrilling murder mystery from the classical Chinese drama The Injustice to Dou Yi That Moved Heaven and Earth by Guan Hanqing.

Directed by Zi Alikhan.

When a wealthy businesswoman takes ownership of a factory in a remote drought-devastated town, she learns of a curse placed on the town by a woman executed for a crime she did not commit. Weaving together parallel stories in a community torn apart by injustice and ecological disaster, Snow in Midsummer is a spellbinding ghost story that explores the weight of generational trauma and restorative justice.

The cast of Snow in Midsummer features Tommy Bo, Wai Ching Ho, Paul Juhn, Kenneth Lee, Julian Leong, Dorcas Leung, Teresa Avia Lim, Fin Moulding, Alex Vinh and John Yi.

The creative team includes dots (Scenic Design), Johanna Pan (Costume Design), Jeanette Yew (Lighting Design), Fan Zhang (Sound Design), Brittany Hartman (Hair and Makeup Design), Sunny Min-Soon Hitt (Movement Director), Judi Lewis Ockler (Fight and Intimacy Director), Caitlin Murphy (Prop Supervisor), The Telsey Office, Karyn Casl (Casting), Jonathan Castanien (Production Stage Manager), Fatimah Amill (Assistant Stage Manager).

Performances began on Friday May 20, 2022 and is set to open on Wednesday June 8 for a limited run through Saturday July 9, 2022 at the Classic Stage Company in New York City.

E-Book

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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.

FINAL OVATION

MARNIE SCHULENBERG Emmy nominated actress who played Emily Stewart on As The World Turns died at a hospital in Bloomfield, New Jersey from breast cancer on May 17, 2022, four days after her 38th birthday.

In May 2020, Schulenburg revealed that she had been diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer, which doctors mistook for a mastitis diagnosis that is common to new mothers. She described her cancer as the "most insidious kind, inflammatory breast cancer which doesn’t look like typical breast cancer, more aggressive, affects younger women, and disguises itself as a breastfeeding infection." "How does one celebrate a birthday after a stage four breast cancer diagnosis in the middle of a global pandemic while raising a 5 month old?", she wrote in an Instagram post.

She began her career by joining Dramatists Guild of America where she took part in play reading and participated in The Flux Theatre Ensemble.

In 2006, Schulenburg was cast in the role of Alison Stewart on As The World turns. She remained with the soap until its final episode on September 17, 2010, becoming the longest-tenured actor in the role of Alison.

She is survived by her husband Zack Robidas and their daughter, Coda Jones, who was born on December 12, 2019.

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Laura Deni

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