Dan On Broadway

The best and brightest of the Great White Way -- shows, personalities, recordings, books, the latest news, dining and accommodations.

Thursday, May 11, 2017

Doing Great Business Right Now On Broadway!



'Charlie' is off to a fantastic start -- virtually selling out (95%) with tickets going for as high as $223. Business is expected to get even better after school lets out with heavy demand over the summer.
Posted by Dan Cirucci at 2:46 PM No comments:
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Natasha, Pierre Scoops Up Theatre World Awards

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Tuesday, May 9, 2017

At Opposite Ends Of B'Way, Two Great, Shining Star Turns!

On opposite ends of Broadway two leading men are giving standout performances that have the Great White Way reaching for superlatives.
One is a relative Broadway newcomer while the other is a veteran of the stage and screen; one stars in a musical while the other dominates the stage in a play and one creates a characterization in a new production while the other recreates a striking personality in a sparkling new revival of a beloved comedy.
Let's start with the younger performer and the new musical first.



Would you believe we knew nothing about Groundhog Day before we went to see the new musical concocted by most of the team surrounding Matilda and starring Andy Karl? That's right, we never saw the movie with Bill Murray (now a cult classic) and knew nothing about the story except that it involved Groundhog Day in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania.
It wasn't very long into the show before we could see that the musical's biggest challenge was how to repeat the same scenes and lines over and over and over again as Karl's character (TV weatherguy Phil Connors) relives the same day, moment-for-moment endlessly.
In a movie, this is a simple matter of good, quick editing. But the stage is a far different beast. Doesn't it get monotonous, you might ask? Isn't it boring and/or tedious? And the answer, thanks to Karl and the entire Groundhog Day team is no, no, no, and no. That's because Karl makes Connors' growing frustration not only palpable but remarkably believable. What he gives us is a three-dimensional portrait of Connors that is more vulnerable, less acerbic, more reachable and more worthy of our concern. Karl doesn't play the role merely for laughs or use the characterization just to be snarky. He's no paper thin wise guy. Instead, he gives us a full-blown, more complex character -- a guy we might want to know better or even become friends with. And, because we can understand Connors' frustration with daily life, we connect with the story in new and more meaningful ways.
We'll be honest with you. When we heard that this production was cooked up at Britain's Old Vic by the director, orchestrator and lighting designer for Matilda, we feared the show might be dark, brooding, menacing and shrill. Matilda was certainly not a favorite of ours.
But while Groundhog Day has some edgy, slightly scary and even philosophical moments it avoids the almost gothic impulses and morbid curiosities of Matilda. And that's all to the better because this show manages to ask meaningful questions about what really does make one day significantly different from another and how we can truly live in and take joy in the moment and some of the "ordinary" people we share it with. It all comes together when Karl sings the beautiful Seeing You with costar (and love interest) Barrett Doss and the memorable If I Had My Time Again, which is a question we've all faced somewhere along life's journey.
Still, don't expect lush orchestrations here or a classic Broadway sound as the music borrows from several genres (including country) and can seem over amplified and even tinny at times. But the show overcomes all that.
In addition to the young, energetic and spot-on cast, much of Groundhog Day's appeal stems from its staging which is clever without being distracting and tongue-in-cheek without being overly cutesy. Kudos to director director Matthew Warchus, choreographer Peter Darling, lighting designer Hugh Vanstone and scenic designer Rob Howell.
But it is Andy Karl who makes Groundhog Day an irresistible hit again and again and again. Karl is simply a charming performer and to see him live and witness the joy he takes in his craft is one of the great pleasure of this or any other season.




At the other end of Broadway, the venerable Kevin Kline (an Oscar and Tony Award winner) has taken on the role of Garry Essendine in Noel Coward's classic Present Laughter. This is one of the most demanding and coveted roles in the Coward galaxy and the portrayal was originated by Coward himself in 1942. In subsequent productions, it was played by Peter O'Toole, Albert Finney, Ian McKellen, Tom Conti, Frank Langella, George C. Scott and Victor Garber, among others.
So, anybody who takes on the challenge of playing the overly-dramatic, over-the-top Essendine had better be damned good, which Kline certainly is.
The play's title comes from a song in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, which urges carpe diem ("present mirth hath present laughter"), and so the word present in the title should be pronounced as the adjective and not the verb.
The plot follows a few days in the life of the successful and self-obsessed light comedy actor Essendine as he prepares to travel for a touring commitment in Africa. Amid a series of events bordering on farce, Garry has to deal with women who want to seduce him, placate both his long-suffering secretary and his estranged wife, cope with a crazed young playwright, and overcome his impending mid-life crisis (since he has recently turned forty). The story was described by Coward as "a series of semi-autobiographical pyrotechnics".
Well, obviously Kline (who will be 70 later this year) can hardly pass for 40 so, in this production we're led to believe that he's just turned 50 or 60 or whatever. It hardly matters since all these years later (and in the age of Viagra) 70 is the new 40, right?
Anyway, Kline is on stage practically the whole time in an old-fashioned three-act play that's condensed to two acts with two one-minute pauses within each act. Fortunately he's superbly supported by Kate Burton as his all-knowing former wife and Kristine Nielsen as his ever-loyal secretary. You'll find many other Broadway favorites dotted among this fine cast and they'll all marvelous, in part because they're perfectly directed by Moritz Von Stuelpnagel.
The timing in this fast-paced production will take your breath away and the comic turns and clever lines zing (and sting!) as if they were written yesterday. 
Just as an example, here are some lines from the show:

Garry: You ought never to have joined the Athenaeum Club, Henry: it was disastrous.
Henry: I really don’t see why.
Garry: It’s made you pompous.
Henry: It can’t have. I’ve always been too frightened to go into it.

Garry: Beryl Willard is extremely competent. Beryl Willard has been extremely competent, man and boy, for forty years. In addition to her extreme competence, she has contrived, with uncanny skill, to sustain a spotless reputation for being the most paralysing, epoch-making, monumental, world-shattering, God-awful bore that ever drew breath...I will explain one thing further - it is this. No prayer, no bribe, no threat, no power, human or divine, would induce me to go to Africa with Beryl Willard. I wouldn't go as far as Wimbledon with Beryl Willard.
Liz: What he's trying to say is that he doesn't care for Beryl Willard.

Morris: I'll never speak to you again until the day I die!
Garry: Well, we can have a nice little chat then, can't we?

As you can see, Garry (Kline) has almost all of the great zingers and he delivers them deftly (and with a perfectly effete British accent) in a manner that will keep your ear cocked for the next round and laughing all the way. 
But don't let this lead you to believe that the show is just a bunch of punch-lines delivered like some round of standup. Far from it. This is the story of a man who sees his life passing by and is wildly conniving to squeeze every drop out of it. He delights in the moment and in drink and women and every bit of carnal pleasure he can still find. He doesn't want to care what others think of him but he's an actor, so he's vain and self-absorbed and overly conscious of his every word, thought and action. And therein lie not just the nature of the human condition in all too many situations but the seed of great comedy as well.
Present laughter, indeed!


Posted by Dan Cirucci at 9:30 PM No comments:
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Karl, Middler, Kline, Dolly Grab Outer Critics Honors

Outer Critics Circle 2016-2017 Award winner have been announced on Broadway:

OUTSTANDING NEW BROADWAY PLAY
Oslo

OUTSTANDING NEW BROADWAY MUSICAL
Come From Away

OUTSTANDING NEW OFF-BROADWAY PLAY
If I Forget

OUTSTANDING NEW OFF-BROADWAY MUSICAL
The Band’s Visit

OUTSTANDING BOOK OF A MUSICAL
(Broadway or Off-Broadway)
Irene Sankoff & David Hein Come From Away

OUTSTANDING NEW SCORE
(Broadway or Off-Broadway)
David Yazbek The Band’s Visit

OUTSTANDING REVIVAL OF A PLAY
(Broadway or Off-Broadway)
Jitney

OUTSTANDING REVIVAL OF A MUSICAL
(Broadway or Off-Broadway)
Hello, Dolly!

OUTSTANDING DIRECTOR OF A PLAY
Rebecca Taichman Indecent

OUTSTANDING DIRECTOR OF A MUSICAL
Christopher Ashley Come From Away

OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHER
Warren Carlyle Hello, Dolly!

OUTSTANDING SET DESIGN
(Play or Musical)
Mimi Lien Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812

OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN
(Play or Musical)
Catherine Zuber War Paint

OUTSTANDING LIGHTING DESIGN
(Play or Musical)
Bradley King Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812

OUTSTANDING PROJECTION DESIGN
(Play or Musical)
Aaron Rhyne Anastasia

OUTSTANDING SOUND DESIGN
(Play or Musical)
Gareth Owen Come From Away

OUTSTANDING ORCHESTRATIONS
Larry Hochman Hello, Dolly!

OUTSTANDING ACTOR IN A PLAY
Kevin Kline Present Laughter

OUTSTANDING ACTRESS IN A PLAY
Laura Linney The Little Foxes

OUTSTANDING ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
Andy Karl Groundhog Day

OUTSTANDING ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL
Bette Midler Hello, Dolly!

OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTOR IN A PLAY
Danny DeVito The Price

OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTRESS IN A PLAY
Cynthia Nixon The Little Foxes

OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
Gavin Creel Hello, Dolly!

OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL
Jenn Colella Come From Away

OUTSTANDING SOLO PERFORMANCE
Simon McBurney The Encounter

JOHN GASSNER AWARD
(Presented for an American play, preferably by a new playwright)
Bess Wohl Small Mouth Sounds

The Off-Broadway productions of “Dear Evan Hansen,” “In Transit,” “Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812” and “Significant Other” were evaluated, nominated and/or received awards from Outer Critics Circle in previous seasons and therefore were not considered for this year. In the case of the Broadway musical “Sunset Boulevard,” Glenn Close won the Outstanding Actress Award in a Musical for her original performance. Any new elements for these current productions were assessed for this year’s awards. In addition, due to OCC’s nomination deadline last season, the producers of the Broadway musical “Shuffle Along,” asked to be included with this year’s entries.

Posted by Dan Cirucci at 5:45 PM No comments:
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Thursday, May 4, 2017

One Of The Splashiest B'way Openings EVER!

Bette Midler taking the stage on opening night for the return of "Hello, Dolly!" On Broadway! The show is a complete sellout and is leading the way in awards nominations.
Posted by Dan Cirucci at 5:06 PM No comments:
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Tuesday, May 2, 2017

Just Four; Only Four; That's All!



Only four musicals were nominated for Best Musical Tony Awards this season even though more than a dozen new musicals were in contention. You would have thought the Tony nominators wouldm have at least come up with five musicals, the normal number considered. What happened to A Bronx Tale or War Paint or Anastasia or Amelie or In Transit?
Anyway, above you'll find clips from each of the four nominees: Dear Evan Hansen, The Great Comet, Come From Away and Groundhog Day. Among these four only Groundhog Day comes even close to being a classic Broadway musical. The rest are all somewhat out-of-genre.
Posted by Dan Cirucci at 10:19 PM No comments:
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Dolly, Groundhog, Natasha, Evan Get Tony Nods!

The 2016-17 season Tony Award nominations have just been announced. Here they are:

Best Musical
Come From Away
Dear Evan Hansen
Groundhog Day
Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812
Best Play
A Doll’s House, Part 2 by Lucas Hnath
Indecent by Paula Vogel
Oslo by J.T. Rogers
Sweat by Lynn Nottage
Best Revival of a Musical
Falsettos
Hello, Dolly!
Miss Saigon
Best Revival of a Play
August Wilson’s Jitney
The Little Foxes 
Present Laughter
Six Degrees of Separation
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical
Christian Borle, Falsettos
Josh Groban, Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812
David Hyde Pierce, Hello, Dolly!
Andy Karl, Groundhog Day
Ben Platt, Dear Evan Hansen
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical
DenĂ©e Benton, Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812
Christine Ebersole, War Paint
Patti LuPone, War Paint
Bette Midler, Hello, Dolly!
Eva Noblezada, Miss Saigon
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play
Denis Arndt, Heisenberg
Chris Cooper, A Doll’s House, Part 2
Corey Hawkins, Six Degrees of Separation
Kevin Kline, Present Laughter
Jefferson Mays, Oslo
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play
Cate Blanchett, The Present
Jennifer Ehle, Oslo
Sally Field, The Glass Menagerie
Laura Linney, The Little Foxes
Laurie Metcalf, A Doll’s House, Part 2
Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical
Gavin Creel, Hello, Dolly!
Mike Faist, Dear Evan Hansen
Andrew Rannells, Falsettos
Lucas Steele, Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812
Brandon Uranowitz, Falsettos
Best Performance by an Actress in Featured Role a Musical
Kate Baldwin, Hello, Dolly!
Rachel Bay Jones, Dear Evan Hansen
Stephanie J. Block, Falsettos
Jenn Colella, Come From Away
Mary Beth Peil, Anastasia
Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play
Michael Aronov, Oslo
Danny DeVito, Arthur Miller's The Price
Nathan Lane, The Front Page
Richard Thomas, Lillian Hellman's The Little Foxes
John Douglas Thompson, August Wilson's Jitney
Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play
Johanna Day, Sweat
Jayne Houdyshell, A Doll's House, Part 2
Cynthia Nixon, Lillian Hellman's The Little Foxes
Condola Rashad, A Doll's House, Part 2
Michelle Wilson, Sweat
Best Score
Come From Away, David Hein and Irene Sankoff
Dear Evan Hansen, Benj Pasek and Justin Paul
Groundhog Day, Tim Minchin
Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, Dave Malloy
Best Book of a Musical
Come From Away, David Hein and Irene Sankoff
Dear Evan Hansen, Steven Levenson
Groundhog Day, Danny Rubin
Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, Dave Malloy
Best Direction of a Musical
Christopher Ashley, Come From Away
Rachel Chavkin, Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812
Michael Greif, Dear Evan Hansen
Matthew Warchus, Groundhog Day
Jerry Zaks, Hello, Dolly!
Best Direction of a Play
Sam Gold, A Doll's House, Part 2
Ruben Santiago-Hudson, August Wilson's Jitney
Bartlett Sher, Oslo
Daniel Sullivan, Lillian Hellman's The Little Foxes
Rebecca Taichman, Indecent
Best Choreography
Andy Blankenbuehler, Bandstand
Peter Darling and Ellen Kane, Groundhog Day
Kelly Devine, Come From Away
Denis Jones, Holiday Inn
Sam Pinkleton, Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812
Best Orchestrations
Bill Elliott and Greg Anthony Rassen, Bandstand
Larry Hochman, Hello, Dolly!
Alex Lacamoire, Dear Evan Hansen
Dave Malloy, Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812
Best Costume Design of a Musical
Linda Cho, Anastasia
Santo Loquasto, Hello, Dolly!
Paloma Young, Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812
Catherine Zuber, War Paint
Best Costume Design of a Play
Jane Greenwood, Lillian Hellman's The Little Foxes
Susan Hilferty, Present Laughter
Toni-Leslie James, August Wilson's Jitney
David Zinn, A Doll's House, Part 2
Best Scenic Design of a Musical
Rob Howell, Groundhog Day
David Korins, War Paint
Mimi Lien, Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812
Santo Loquasto, Hello, Dolly!
Best Scenic Design of a Play
David Gallo, Jitney
Nigel Hook, The Play That Goes Wrong
Douglas W. Schmidt, The Front Page
Michael Yeargan, Oslo
Best Lighting Design of a Musical
Howell Binkley, Come From Away
Natasha Katz, Hello, Dolly!
Bradley King, Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812
Japhy Weideman, Dear Evan Hansen
Best Lighting Design of a Play
Christopher Akerlind, Indecent
Jane Cox, August Wilson's Jitney
Donald Holder, Oslo
Jennifer Tipton, A Doll's House, Part 2
Productions with multiple nominations:
Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 – 12
Hello, Dolly! – 10
Dear Evan Hansen – 9
A Doll's House, Part 2 – 8
Come From Away – 7
Groundhog Day – 7
Oslo – 7
August Wilson's Jitney – 6
Lillian Hellman's The Little Foxes – 6
Falsettos – 5
War Paint – 4
Indecent – 3
Present Laughter – 3
Sweat – 3
Anastasia – 2
Bandstand – 2
The Front Page – 2
Miss Saigon – 2
Six Degrees of Separation – 2
Posted by Dan Cirucci at 1:08 PM No comments:
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Broadway, baby!

Broadway, baby!
"L.A., it's nice, but I think of sunshine and people on rollerblades eating sushi. New York, I think of Broadway and nightlife and the city that never sleeps." -Jimmy Fallon
Dan Cirucci, the founder and editor-in chief of the Dan Cirucci Blog and Dan On Broadway, is one of the most widely honored public relations professionals in his field and a public relations consultant to numerous organizations and individuals.

He's also indulged a lifelong passion for New York, Broadway, the theatre and the musical stage.

Over a period of more than five decades he's seen more than 240 Broadway shows and has witnessed some of the greatest performances by Broadway's legendary stars including Ethel Merman, Mary Martin, Bernadette Peters, Rex Harrison, Richard Burton, Angela Lansbury, Raoul Julia, Kelli O'Hara, Lena Horne, Julie Andrews, Nathan Lane, Matthew Broderick, Julie Harris, Carol Channing, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Patti Lupone, James Earl Jones, Tommy Tune, Elaine Stritch, Kevin Kline, Audra McDonald, Chita Rivera, Bette Midler and many, many others.

For many years he served as a Lecturer in Corporate Communication at Penn State University. A former President of the Philadelphia Public Relations Association (PPRA) he has lectured at Rowan University, Temple University, The College of New Jersey and Arcadia University. He has conducted workshops on public relations for thousands of participants throughout the nation and has taught countless others the art of public speaking. He has also advised numerous lawyers, judges, public officials and political candidates. Cirucci is a prolific writer and his op-ed pieces have appeared in the Philadelphia Daily News, Philadelphia Inquirer, Courier-Post and other publications.

A native of Camden NJ, Cirucci is a former President of the Philadelphia chapter of the International Association of Business Communicators. Cirucci served as Associate Executive Director of the Philadelphia Bar Association for nearly 30 years. He currently serves as Chair of Penn State University's Professional Advisory Board for the Corporate Communication major at Penn State Abington.

He received his MA degree from Rowan University and his BA from Villanova University. He has been named a Distinguished Alumnus of Rowan's public relations program and was inducted into the Philadelphia Public Relations Hall of Fame in 2003. He received the E. A. "Wally" Richter Leadership Award from the National Association of Bar Executives' Communications Section. The Award is the Section's highest honor. He has also been honored by numerous other local, state and national groups.

Cirucci's other passions include politics, the popular culture, books and authors, art, communication, music, movies, dining and travel.

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