Profile for Ravenclaw

When you say "updated" do you mean modern dress or does the text make contemporary allusions as well? In Jamie Lloyd's A Doll's House, for example, the actors all wore contemporary clothing but text was projected on the back wall reading "1879"--implying that while the actors were dressed in modern clothing, the show was still set in another period (like how nobody in Chicago wears period-appropriate attire but we understand very clearly

Speaking from the regions, I want to throw two names in the mix that have done exceptional work, in my opinion, again and again.

First is Dennis Jones. Who, of course, has choreographed a couple of Broadway shows (quite impressively, in my opinion). I find his movement creative, original, exciting, and deeply based in story. He was a protegee of Stroman, and the influence is clearly felt. He's a person whose work I always seek out, and I'm surprised his Broad

But Lookingglass HAS given audiences good nights out, and presented shows that people would want to see--

"Lookingglass Alice" and "The Steadfast Tin Soldier" were remounts of some of their most financially and critically successful productions, the former of which has been regularly revived to sold out crowds for decades. Both are delightful, creative, inventive, accessible, and just plain fun.

"Vilette" was a new production, and therefore riskier,

Subscriptions have been dying a slow death only accelerated by the pandemic. It used to be a show with mixed reviews could play to decent houses because of loyal subscribers, but now the gap between the hits and the flops is bigger than ever. People don't want to lock down dates a year in advance. Add to that Lookingglass's slow return from the pandemic (they didn't return to live production until November of '21 and then delayed due to the omicron cancellations, so they sat d

Take a look at James Shapiro's book Shakespeare in a Divided America. There's a lengthy chapter about Kiss Me Kate, detailing the particulars of the development of the show, the story of how Bella Spewack's work became diluted by contributions from her ex-husband, all the stuff mentioned in that American Theatre article shared earlier in this thread, just with more information and depth. Suffice it to say, there were absolutely differences in opinion am

jacobsnchz14 said: "To those who have seen the film and the musical, is their introductory scene at the reception desk and elevator still there? Lemmon and Remick play off of each other very well there and was curious whether it's a scene or song in the show."

I haven't seen the film, but the two characters meet on a boat (a cruise ship?) in this version. Introduces a water motif that runs throughout the play (and there''s a little pool downstage that

It feels a little disingenuous to me when I hear people say "how many gay actors have won oscars for straight roles?" in this context because this is a play, not a movie. If the question were how many gay actors have won Tonys for straight (or sexuality-unspecified) roles, it's a different list--off the top of my head, Simon Russell Beale, Ben Platt, Gavin Creel, Billy Porter (I know there's disagreement about this character's sexuality), David Hyde Pierce, Andre de Shie

jkcohen626 said: "I wonder if the orchestrations for this count as new? I'm pretty sure JRB said that they have more instruments than they originally had. Not really so familiar on what counts as new orchestrations or if they fulfilled that."

I'm pretty sure that they just added more string players to the same parts, the orchestrations themselves didn't change. Except for the new numbers that weren't part of the original Broadway production (i.e. &quo

At a talkback, someone asked Pam McKinnon if she would bring the play at ACT (where she is artistic director), and she said that she would like to, with this cast again, but made it clear that there weren't any plans yet.

I would love for this to transfer to Broadway so that everyone can win Tonys. Maybe a Pulitzer win in the spring could lead to a transfer next fall? A Strange Loop, Fat Ham, and Cost of Living all announced their Broa

I think there's a path to success for this show based on word-of-mouth and good critical reception (both of which this show already has). Everyone in this thread is pointing to intimate, serious drama musicals or big musical comedies, but this show is much more along the lines of a ...Spelling Bee or Urinetown, a small, off-beat/quirky musical comedy. It doesn't have broad name-recognition right now, but the fans are deeply enthusiastic. I've recommende

OlBlueEyes said: "BIG BALONEY said: "I don't think this idea for a revival is a good plan because I see little interest in actual paying customers."

No what would make you think that? The Prince revival played just short of 1000 performances before taking off on a long tour."

That production (and its tour) were not the sell-out hits Garth Drabinsky tried to convince the public they were. The Broadway production played to half-empty a