“Bare” Comes to Broadway

The fantastic pop rock musical Bare is finally coming to Broadway this month. I saw one of the first incarnations of the show almost a decade ago in Los Angeles and now years later a revised and beautifully realized new version with added music hits the Great White Way on November 19th. Bare takes place at a co-ed Catholic school where the students wrestle with questions of identity, sexuality and religion. The show is raw, emotional and real, not to mention incredibly relevant to the issues facing teens today; yet it’s also universal in its message of love. I highly recommend the show which is directed by Stafford Arima (Carrie, Altar Boyz, Ragtime) and featuring choreography by the Emmy nominated dynamo Travis Wall of So You Think You Can Dance. Check out the great music of Bare writers Damon Intrabartolo and Jon Hartmere from various versions of the show on youtube, and iTunes as well, and head to the Broadway Bare site here for more information and tickets. Then scroll down and watch the trailers for Bare.

What is Bare?

Bare on Broadway trailer

“Once” Dominates the Tony Awards

Tonight, the best of Broadway was celebrated on the 66th Annual Tony Awards hosted by the always brilliant Neil Patrick Harris. He, and the show, were excellent with wonderful performances from all the nominated musicals (big ups to Newsies, Once, Ghost, Follies, Porgy & Bess and Ricky Martin with Evita for my favorite numbers) and clips from the nominated plays. The musical adaptation of the Oscar-winning film Once was the big winner with 7 trophies included Best Musical and Best Actor for Steve Kazee who had the best and most emotional speech of the night. Audra MacDonald also gave a very emotional and lovely speech as she won her 5th Tony for Porgy which also won best Revival of a Musical. Taking the Featured Actor in a Musical wins were Nice Work if You Can Get It stars Judy Kaye and Michael McGrath… On the play side, Clybourne Park took home best play while best revival went to Death of a Salesman and its lauded director Mike Nichols. Other big winners included the wonderful Judith Light for Featured Actress in a Play, Smash’s Christan Borle for Featured Actor in a Play, Nina Arianda for Lead Actress in a Play and the hilarious James Corden for Lead Actor in a Play. Take a look at all the winners below and head to the Tony website for more on this fantastic show and the wonderful theatre of Broadway.

2012 Tony Award Winners~

Best Musical
Nominees: Leap of Faith; Newsies; Nice Work if You can Get it; Once
WINNER: Once

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical
Nominees: Audra McDonald (The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess); Cristin Milioti (Once); Kelli O’Hara (Nice Work If You Can Get It); Laura Osnes (Bonnie & Clyde)
WINNER: Audra McDonald (The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play
Nominees: Nina Arianda (Venus in Fur); Tracie Bennett (End of the Rainbow); Stockard Channing (Other Desert Cities); Linda Lavin (The Lyons); Cynthia Nixon (Wit)
WINNER: Nina Arianda (Venus in Fur)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play
Nominees: James Corden (One Man, Two Guvnors); Philip Seymour Hoffman (Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman); James Earl Jones (Gore Vidal’s The Best Man); Frank Langella (Man and Boy); John Lithgow (The Columnist)
WINNER: James Corden (One Man, Two Guvnors)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical
Nominees: Danny Burstein (Follies); Jeremy Jordan (Newsies); Steve Kazee (Once); Norm Lewis (The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess); Ron Raines (Follies)
WINNER: Steve Kazee (Once)

Best Revival of a Musical
Nominees: Evita; Follies; The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess; Jesus Christ Superstar
WINNER: The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess

Best Play
Nominees: Clybourne Park, Other Desert Cities, Peter and the Starcatcher; Venus in Fur

WINNER: Clybourne Park
Best Revival of a Play
Nominees: Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman; Gore Vidal’s The Best Man; Master Class; Wit
WINNER: Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman

Best Original Score
Nominees: Bonnie & Clyde (music by Frank Wildhorn and Lyrics by Don Black; Newsies (Music by Alan Menken and Lyrics by Jack Feldman); One Man, Two Guvnors (Music & Lyrics by Grant Olding); Peter and the Starcatcher (Music by Wayne Barker and Lyrics by Rick Elice)
WINNER: Newsies (Music by Alan Menken and Lyrics by Jack Feldman)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical
Nominees: Elizabeth A. Davis (Once); Jayne Houdyshell (Follies); Judy Kaye (Nice Work If You Can Get It); Jessie Mueller (On a Clear Day You Can See Forever); Da’Vine Joy Randolph (Ghost the Musical)
WINNER: Judy Kaye (Nice Work If You Can Get It)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play
Nominees: Michael Cumpsty (End of the Rainbow); Tom Edden (One Man, Two Guvnors); Andrew Garfield (Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman); Jeremy Shamos (Clybourne Park)
WINNER: Christian Borle (Peter and the Starcatcher)
Best Direction of a Play

Nominees: Nicholas Hytner (One Man, Two Guvnors); Pam MacKinnon (Clybourne Park); Mike Nichols (Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman); Roger Rees and Alex Timbers (Peter and the Starcatcher)
WINNER: Mike Nichols (Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman)

Best Direction of a Musical
Nominees: Jeff Calhoun (Newsies); Kathleen Marshall (Nice Work if You Can Get It); Diane Paulus (The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess); John Tiffany (Once)
WINNER: John Tiffany (Once)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play
Nominees: Linda Emond (Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman); Spencer Kayden (Don’t Dress for Dinner); Celia Keenan-Bolger (Peter and the Starcatcher); Judith Light (Other Desert Cities); Condola Rashad (Stick Fly)
WINNER: Judith Light (Other Desert Cities)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical
Nominees: Phillip Boykin (The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess); Michael Cerveris (Evita); David Alan Grier (The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess); Michael McGrath (Nice Work If You Can Get It); Josh Young (Jesus Christ Superstar)
WINNER: Michael McGrath (Nice Work If You Can Get It)

Best Choreography
Nominees: Rob Ashford (Evita); Christopher Gattelli (Newsies); Steven Hoggett (Once); Kathleen Marshall (Nice Work If You Can Get It)
WINNER: Christopher Gattelli (Newsies)

Best Orchestration
Nominees: William David Brohn and Christopher Jahnke (The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess); Bill Elliott (Nice Work If You Can Get It); Martin Lowe (Once); Danny Troob (Newsies)
WINNER: Martin Lowe (Once)

Best Book of a Musical
Nominees: Newies (Harvey Fierstein); Nice Work if You can Get it (Joe DiPietro); Once (Edna Walsh); Lysistrata Jones (Douglas Carter Beane)
WINNER: Once (Edna Walsh)

Best Costume Design of a Play
Nominees: William Ivey Long (Don’t Dress for Dinner); Paul Tazewell (A Streetcar Named Desire); Mark Thompson (One Man, Two Guvnors); Paloma Young (Peter and the Starcatcher)
WINNER: Paloma Young (Peter and the Starcatcher)

Best Scenic Design of a Play
Nominees: John Lee Beatty (Other Desert Cities); Daniel Ostlin (Clybourne Park); Mark Thompson (One Man, Two Guvnors); Donyale Werle (Peter and the Starcatcher)
WINNER: Donyale Werle (Peter and the Starcatcher)

Best Scenic Design of a Musical
Nominees: Bob Crowley (Once); Rob Howell and Jon Driscoll (Ghost the Musical); Tobin Obst and Sven Ortel (Newsies); George Tsypin (Spider-Man Turn off the Dark)
WINNER: Bob Crowley (Once)

Best Costume Design of a Musical
Nominees: Gregg Barnes (Follies); ESosa (The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess); Eiko Ishioka (Spider-Man Turn Off the Dark); Martin Pakledinaz (Nice Work If You Can Get It)
WINNER: Gregg Barnes (Follies)

Best Sound Design of a Play
Nominees: Paul Arditti (One Man, Two Guvnors); Scott Lehrer (Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman), Gareth Owen (End of the Rainbow), Darron L. West (Peter and the Starcatcher)
WINNER: Darron L. West (Peter and the Starcatcher)

Best Sound Design of a Musical
Nominees: Acme Sound Partners (The Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess); Clive Goodwin (Once), Kai Harada (Follies); Brian Ronan (Nice Work If You Can Get It)
WINNER: Clive Goodwin (Once)

Best Lighting Design of a Play
Nominees: Jeff Croiter (Peter and the Starcatcher); Peter Kaczorowski (The Road to Mecca); Brian MacDevitt (Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman); Kenneth Posner (Other Desert Cities)
WINNER: Jeff Croiter (Peter and the Starcatcher)

Best Lighting Design of a Musical
Nominees: Christopher Akerlind (The Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess); Natasha Katz (Follies); Natasha Katz (Once); Hugh Vastone (Ghost the Musical)
WINNER: Natasha Katz (Once)

Actor’s Equity Association Award
WINNER: Hugh Jackman
Isabelle Stevenson Award
WINNER: Bernadette Peters
Regional Theater Award
WINNER: Shakespeare Theatre, Washington, D.C.
Special Tony Award For Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre
WINNER: Emanuel Azenberg

Broadway Remembers 9/11

While I was out-of-town, the tenth anniversary of 9/11 was marked all across the nation with tributes, performances and dedications honoring those who fell and the ones who have rebuilt our nation… The Broadway community of NY was in the heart of it all and has responded with a wonderful performance saluting the town they love.

Here’s some official info from the event:
To commemorate the 10th anniversary of Sept. 11, Broadway stars sang the Kander and Ebb song “New York, New York” in Times Square on Friday. The event, Broadway Unites: 9/11 Day of Service and Remembrance, was an encore of the performance that occurred a decade ago to inspire New Yorkers.

The singers included Joel Grey, Kara DioGuardi, and the casts of “The Book of Mormon” and “Billy Elliot.” Their performance was in support of the 9/11 Day of Service and Remembrance’s “I Will” campaign, which hopes to encourage millions to perform good deeds and volunteer in honor of the victims and survivors of Sept. 11

Check it out below.

Broadway Remembers 911

My Big Bold 2011 Tony Award Winner Predictions!

Broadway’s biggest night is upon us this Sunday with the 2011 Tony Awards. This year they will be hosted by the brilliant Emmy Award winner (and Broadway vet) Neil Patrick Harris who was fantastic the last time he hosted two years ago (for which he won an Emmy thank you very much). The show will feature performances from all the big musical nominees: Anything Goes, The Book of Mormon, Sister Act, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (featuring snubbed Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe himself!), Catch Me If You Can and Priscilla: Queen of the Desert. There will also be a performance from the most maligned show on Broadway~ Spiderman: Turn Off the Dark and last year’s Best Musical winner Memphis. Plus, the cast of the limited run Broadway reprise of Company featuring Harris, Steven Colbert, Martha Plimpton, Anika Noni Rose, Jon Cryer, Christina Hendricks, Patti LuPone and more will do a number that is sure to be hilarious and fantastic. (FYI~ watch for the taped version of Company to hit movie theatres for a brief run starting next weekend!) For more on the show, head to the Tony website here. And for now, let’s take a look at just who I think is gonna take home the big awards. Hint hint~ if there’s a Mormon involved it’s probably gonna win…

My Big Bold 2011 Tony Award Winner Predictions:

Best Musical:
The Book of Mormon, Catch Me If You Can, Sister Act, The Scottsboro Boys
Will & Should win: The Book of Mormon

Best Play:
Good People, Jerusalem, The Motherfucker with the Hat, War Horse
Will & Should win: War Horse
~spoiler: Jerusalem

Best Musical Revival:
Anything Goes, How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
Will & Should win: Anything Goes

Best Play Revival:
Arcadia, The Importance of Being Earnest, the Merchant of Venice, The Normal Heart
Will & Should win: The Normal Heart

Best Director Musical:
Rob Ashford (How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying), Kathleen Marshall (Anything Goes), Casey Nicholaw & Trey Parker (The Book of Mormon), Susan Stroman (The Scottsboro Boys)
Will & Should win: The Book of Mormon
~spoiler: Anything Goes

Best Director Play:
Marianne Elliott & Tom Morris (War Horse), Joel Grey & George C. Wolfe (The Normal Heart), Anna D. Shapiro (The Motherfucker with the Hat), Daniel Sullivan (The Merchant of Venice)
Will & Should win: The Normal Heart
~spoiler: War Horse

Best Actor in a Leading Role, Musical:
Norbert Leo Butz (Catch Me if You Can), Josh Gad (The Book of Mormon), Joshua Henry (The Scottsboro Boys), Andrew Rannells (The Book of Mormon), Tony Sheldon (The Adventures of Priscilla: Queen of the Desert)
Will & Should win: Tony Sheldon
~spoiler: Norbert Leo Butz
-This should be a really tight race between Butz, Gad, and Sheldon by the way. So we could see a surprise.

Best Actress in a Leading Role, Musical:
Beth Levell (Baby It’s You), Sutton Foster (Anything Goes), Patina Miller (Sister Act), Donna Murphy (The People in the Picture)
Will & Should win: Sutton Foster
~spoiler: Patina Miller

Best Actor in a Leading Role, Play:
Brian Bedford (The Importance of Being Earnest), Bobby Cannavale (The Motherfucker with the Hat), Joe Mantanello (The Normal Heart), Mary Rylance (Jerusalem), Al Pacino (The Merchant of Venice)
Will & Should win: Joe Mantello
~spoiler: Mark Rylance

Best Actress in a Leading Role, Play:
Nina Arianda (Born Yesteday), Frances McDormand (Good People), Lily Rabe (The Merchant of Venice), Vanessa Redgrave (Driving Miss Daisy), Hannah Yelland (Brief Encounter)
Will & Should win: Frances McDormand
~spoiler: Nina Arianda

Best Actor in a Featured Role, Musical:
Colman Domingo (The Scottsboro Boys), Adam Godley (Anything Goes), John Larroquette (How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying), Forrest McClendon (The Scottsboro Boys), Rory O’Malley (The Book of Mormon)
Will & Should win: Rory O’Malley
~spoiler: John Larroquette

Best Actress in a Featured Role, Musical:
Laura Benanti (Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown), Tammy Blanchard (How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying), Victoria Clark (Sister Act), Nikki M. James (The Book of Mormon), Patti LuPone (Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown)
Will win: Laura Benanti
Should win: Nikki M. James
~spoiler: Victoria Clark

Best Actor in a Featured Role, Play:
Mackenzie Crook (Jerusalem), Billy Crudup (Arcadia), John Benjamin Hickey (The Normal Heart), Arian Moayed (Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo), Yul Vazquez (The Motherfucker with the Hat)
Will & Should win: John Benjamin Hickey
~spoiler: Yul Vazquez

Best Actress in a Featured Role, Play:
Ellen Barkin (The Normal Heart), Edie Falco (The House of Blue Leaves), Judith Light (Lombardi), Joanna Lumley (La Bete), Elizabeth Rodriguez (The Motherfucker with the Hat)
Will & Should win: Ellen Barkin
~spoiler: Edie Falco

Best Book of A Musical:
Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, The Book of Mormon, The Scottsboro Boys, Sister Act
Will & Should win: The Book of Mormon

Best Original Score (Music and Lyrics):
The Book of Mormon, The Scottsboro Boys, Sister Act, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown
Will & Should win: The Book of Mormon
~spoiler: The Scottsboro Boys

Best Choreography:
Anything Goes, The Book of Mormon, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, The Scottsboro Boys
Will win & Should win: Anything Goes
~spoiler: The Scottsboro Boys

Broadway sings for Spirit Day~ It Gets Better

Today, October 20, 2010, is National Spirit Day which honors the teenagers who had taken their own lives in recent weeks. But just as importantly, it’s also a way to show the hundreds of thousands of LGBT youth who face the same pressures and bullying, that there is a vast community of people who support them. And we who support them have been sharing our messages of support with the It Gets Better Project with videos on youtube and messages across the web. We’re also wearing purple today in solidarity. For more on Spirit Day, click here.

And here’s a wonderful message of hope and support in a new song recorded by a group of Broadway veterans singing about how “It Gets Better”. The proceeds from the song which is available on iTunes go to the Trevor Project which is a leader in the fight against lgbt teen suicide.

Broadway sings “It Gets Better”

I’m off to Broadway!

I’m off on vacation this week headed to NYC and Broadway. I thought I’d give you a taste of at least two of the shows I’m seeing, the Tony Award winning revival of La Cage Aux Folles and the Tony Award winning Green Day musical American Idiot. I will be seeing something else while I’m there (hopefully Billy Elliott or Promises, Promises) and will update ya when I’m back. Not sure what I can get in to see yet… Nonetheless, after you watch these vids, I bet you’ll want to head to the Great White Way for a little vacay yourself!

La Cage Aux Folles on the Tonys…

Green Day and the American Idiot Cast “21 Guns”

Melissa Etheridge rocks Broadway’s Million Dollar Quartet

Grammy and Oscar winner Melissa Etheridge is currently touring around the country to support her fantastic latest album Fearless Love. However, she still managed to squeeze in a little time on the Great White Way. After the June 23 performance of Million Dollar Quartet, Melissa joined the “band” onstage for an impromptu jam session. This was a tradition that started with the show’s Chicago run as well known artists would join the characters in the show Elvis Presley (Eddie Clendening), Carl Perkins (Robert Britton Lyons), Johnny Cash (Lance Guest) and Jerry Lee Lewis (played by my friend and recent Tony Award winner Levi Kreis) and play some rock n’ roll classics together. Check out Melissa’s Broadway debut below and catch Million Dollar Quartet on Broadway. For more info and tix, click here.

Melissa Etheridge and the Million Dollar Quartet

Green Day Rocks MTV AND Broadway!

Multiple Grammy winning music superstars Green Day have been a staple of MTV going back to the early 90′s when they actually played videos and not dreck like Jersey Shore. Now, Green Day is collaborating with MTV again to trumpet their latest venture, the Broadway debut of their fantastic sure-to-be Tony nominated new musical American Idiot. The show combines music from Green Day albums American Idiot and 21st Century Breakdown in a story about disenchanted youth searching for identity and meaning in a post 9/11 world. After a successful tryout at the Berkeley Rep, Idiot opens on Broadway on April 20th featuring a great ensemble cast including Tony award winner John Gallagher Jr. (Spring Awakening) and Tony nominee Stark Sands. MTV will be highlighting the show with a behind-the-scenes special about the making of American Idiot called “Green Day Rocks Broadway” premiering April 16. For more info on the MTV special, click here.

For a preview of this rockin’ new musical, check out the following link:

And here’s the special performance of “21 Guns” the cast of American Idiot performed with Green Day on this year’s Grammy Awards:

Brilliant Broadway smash “Next To Normal” to tour!

One of the most wonderful, emotional and brilliant shows I’ve ever seen on Broadway, “Next to Normal“ is headed out on tour including a stop at the Ahmanson here in LA! The show which nabbed two Tony Awards including one for Lead Actress for the incredible Alice Ripley as a mother suffering from mental illness features a rocking score reminiscent of “Rent” and will have you laughing and crying. I can’t recommend it enough. Check out the tour dates and information here.
And here are some clips to get you more familiar with this amazing musical.
The Tony Awards performance:

Alice Ripley doing “I Miss the Mountains” on The View:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAjwT900ggw