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Andre Bishop will retire from Lincoln Center Theater in June 2025 Sep 22
2023, 12:31:05 PM
Call_me_jorge said: "It says the board is conducting a search for his replacement, but they might as well just bump Bart Sher up to the position."
Dear gods, no!
His directing is getting worse, he has an ego the size of the planet, and his behavior in rehearsal is a lawsuit waiting to happen - I've seen it.
But maybe that's the job description...
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Nah. Aug 11
2023, 07:17:57 AM
Saying "Aye" to to both HogansHero who said: "Please let this be gossip that proves untrue. What a sad, pathetic reflection on the state of LCT if it is true." and Sutton Ross who said "If true, they need to stop doing tired revivals with the same director."
I would add to it and say "tired revivals with the same tired director..."
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Stage adaptation of BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN set for London bow? May 19
2023, 12:08:27 PM
I thought there would some negative reviews with some writers either comparing it to or, complaining that it isn't, the film. There were also a number of pre-opening pieces calling it Brokeback Mountain: the Musical which, if they had bothered to read the PR for the show or read the interviews with the creatives, it definitely is not.
I can't read the Telegraph or (London) Times reviews as they are behind a paywall but wouldn't be surprised if they are negative. The Daily Mail has the agenda-disclosing line: "The night I went, there was no queue for the ladies loo. The house was packed with gay men of a certain age, expecting something special. But I watched as yawns set off yawns, like mouse traps setting off mouse traps. Adapting a much-loved film is no safe bet." https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-12101103/Steamy-cowboy-encounter-mountaintop-yawnfest-LUKE-JONES-reviews-Brokeback-Mountain.html
However, there were a number of thoughtful and positive reviews:
https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2023/may/19/brokeback-mountain-review-sohoplace-london
https://www.thestage.co.uk/reviews/brokeback-mountain-review-sohoplace-mike-faist-lucas-hedges-ashley-robinson-dan-gillespie-sells-annie-proulx-london The star ratings for The Stage are a little weird, in my opinion. Three stars for this show but the reviewer clearly liked it and wrote a thoughtful piece.
https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/reviews/brokeback-mountain-review-soho-place
https://www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/review-of-brokeback-mountain-sohoplace/
https://www.westendbestfriend.co.uk/news/review-brokeback-mountain-sohoplace
I hope to see it soon. Word of mouth is excellent and I haven't been to @sohoplace. It's the first new-build theater in the West End for fifty years.
edit:
plus the Evening Standard
https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/theatre/brokeback-mountain-sohoplace-review-mike-faist-lucas-hedges-b1082228.html
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Mike Faist, Lucas Hedges to star in BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN stage play in London May 10
2023, 06:24:06 AM
Thanks for the link.
This is a poor article that says more about the writer's agendas than the piece itself.
The headline itself "cuddling cowboys"??? "Brokeback Mountain Musical"??? is enough to deter some potential ticket buyers. Irresponsible writing by the journalist.
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Matilda! Dec 30
2022, 04:13:25 AM
Owen22 said: "I remember thinking this when I saw the show: When relating the story she would eventually find out to be Miss Honey's, was Matilda just psychically "knowing" Miss Honey's history, or was she specifically, telekinetically knitting together a new reality for herself?"
A verse from Quiet may give the answer:-
"I’M NOT SURE, BUT I WONDER IF INSIDE MY HEAD
I’M NOT JUST A BIT DIFFERENT FROM SOME OF MY FRIENDS<
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What is the lowlight of your theatre going experiences? Sep 15
2022, 07:50:55 AM
Small Mouth Sounds at the Signature Center. I have never been so cold in a theater and couldn't appreciate what most reviewers thought was a very good piece.
Not so much a low light but a contrast to the above. Elmina's Kitchen in the West End - the theatre was so hot, it made following the play hard but it was well worth the sweat!
As others have mentioned productions that they found awful...
For me, and in my opinion only:
Lady in the Dark a
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Transgender Performers on Broadway Oct 26
2021, 07:04:52 AM
quizking101 said: "
In terms of Broadway, the first trans actress in a straight play was Alexandra Billings in THE NAP in 2018, slightly preceded by Peppermint, the first transgender actress in a musical."
I would add to this Bianca Leigh, also in THE NAP, who was the understudy for Alexandra Billings' character as well as Stella Spokes, a cis-gendered character.
I missed the thread first time round and came
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Fired Color Purple actress sues for religious discrimination Mar 31
2021, 10:22:57 AM
Here's the BWW article https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Seyi-Omooba-Ordered-to-Pay-Over-300000-Following-Legal-Action-Against-Curve-Leicester-For-Removal-From-THE-COLOR-PURPLE-20210330
This is the Stage article for those who can't use the link at the bottom.
"Seyi Omooba has been ordered to pay the full costs incurred by Curve and Global Artists during her unsuccessful tribunal claim against them, which could exceed £300,000.
Leicester’s Curve has welcomed the news, which followed an application by the theatre and Omooba’s former agency that she pay their costs of responding to the claim.
Curve chief executive Chris Stafford and artistic director Nikolai Foster said in a joint statement that they felt the case "lacked any merit from the outset", but they had been forced to defend themselves at a tribunal "irrespective of facts" and as part of a wider campaign initiated by Omooba’s backers Christian Concern.
The actor now faces a cost order of £259,356 for Curve’s bills and £53,839 for Global’s costs, totalling £313,195. Both sums are subject to "detailed assessment" by the tribunal, meaning a judge will inspect the details of the amounts submitted.
Omooba is supported by Christian Concern’s legal arm, the Christian Legal Centre.
Last month, Omooba lost a two-year legal battle against Curve and Global after she was dismissed from a production of The Color Purple in 2019, and later dropped by the agency. It followed the emergence of a Facebook post, written by Omooba, in which she claimed that homosexuality was not "right" and that she did not believe that people could be born gay.
She brought an employment tribunal case against both parties on grounds of religious discrimination and breach of contract, which was rejected.
According to a judgement published this week, Curve and Global have been successful in applying for their costs to be covered by Omooba.
The judgement agreed with both respondents’ arguments that Omooba’s claims had "no reasonable prospects of success".
At a hearing held on March 18, which Omooba herself did not attend, Curve’s representative Tom Coghlin QC described the litigation as a "hopeless claim" that should never have been brought to tribunal. He said Omooba and her advisers had wanted to "pursue a point of principle in a public forum".
The tribunal’s ruling said Christian Legal Centre was "deeply invested in both bringing the claim and in continuing with it", and that while there was nothing wrong in publicising cases because of their social issues, "it is however wrong to promote and use a weak case, especially when… overlooking or mis-stating the facts in the claimant’s own evidence".
"The theatre and the agency, in facing allegations of unlawful discrimination, risked their good reputations in the theatre world, and [Curve] was especially at risk when dependent on public funds. Using the case as a publicity opportunity, rather than fighting it on its merits to redress wrong, transferred Christian Concern’s public relations budget to the respondents," it said.
The tribunal concluded that the "threshold tests were met" as to the claims having no reasonable prospect of success, and that Omooba "should bear the whole cost of the respondents’ defence, subject to detailed assessment by a costs-trained judge of the amounts claimed".
When costs exceed £20,000, it is common practice for the tribunal to make an order for a detailed assessment of the bills.
Stafford and Foster’s statement said: "Unfortunately, Curve, Global Artists and the tribunal process have been used as part of a wider campaign orchestrated by Christian Concern which has resulted in significant human and financial cost, and we have had to suffer inaccurate and false reporting on this case by Seyi Omooba’s own representatives."
During the hearing it was revealed that Omooba’s legal team did not provide any evidence as to her ability to pay, as requested by Curve and Global’s representatives.
The judgement said: "The tribunal cannot assume that a party is impecunious because they have not supplied any evidence. Indeed, if that were the case, no one would provide evidence."
Omooba’s representative, Pavel Stroilov, suggested during the hearing that if she were forced to pay costs, either the Christian Legal Centre or Christian Concern would campaign for donations towards the amount.
The ruling said it believed "from the number of cases that [CLC] have supported, and the range of services offered, that there are substantial resources or access to them".
The ruling acknowledges that, unlike in civil courts, the "normal" procedure for employment tribunals is that both sides pay their own costs, and there is no automatic expectation for the losing side to pay the costs of the other, except when a claim has no reasonable prospect of success and/or when a party has acted "abusively, destructively or otherwise unreasonably".
Global Artists and Christian Concern have been contacted for comment."
https://www.thestage.co.uk/news/seyi-omooba-facing-300k-bill-following-unsuccessful-tribunal
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Fired Color Purple actress sues for religious discrimination Feb 4
2021, 11:46:10 AM
I won't weigh in on the religious discrimination issue. I would just post an article in The Stage who are covering the tribunal. It may provide some clarity for some of the posters in this thread.
The Stage Feb 3, 2021 by Georgia Snow - Full link below.
Seyi Omooba has denied that appearing in a concert production of The Color Purple meant she was aware of the lesbian storyline in the show, a tribunal has heard.
The actor, who was dropped from a production of the musical at Curve in 2019 after anti-gay comments she made on Facebook were reshared online, said that in hindsight she now appreciates the sexual themes in the play but did not understand them as such at the time.
She is suing Curve and her former agency Global Artists, who also dropped her in 2019, for £128,000.
Prior to being cast as Celie in Curve’s production, Omooba had performed the role of Nettie – Celie’s sister – in a concert version at London’s Cadogan Hall in 2017.
During virtual proceedings at the Central London Employment Tribunal, Omooba reiterated comments made yesterday (February 2) that her understanding of Celie’s character was drawn from reading the novel – which the musical is based on – while at school, and from performing as Nettie in the concert version.
She said that from these experiences, she had concluded that Celie "is a complicated woman, who has a distorted view because of rape and finds solace in a woman who shows her she can be loved", but maintained that she did not believe this love was sexual.
Omooba was questioned by Christopher Milsom QC, representing Global Artists, who asked how she could have performed as part of a production in which the character of Celie kisses another female character on stage, and not recognise the lesbian theme of the story.
Omooba initially replied that she was not on stage at the time of the kiss, but later said she was "at the side but wasn’t watching the whole time" and did not remember a kiss. This was after Milsom said he had spoken to several members of the concert’s creative team who claimed that Omooba did not leave the stage during the performance.
Earlier in the day during questioning by Curve’s representative Tom Coghlin QC, she said that she now accepts that there is a romantic relationship between the two female characters but this was not the case previously.
"In rereading it now it was evident that there was some lesbian attraction there, and I didn’t reread the script when taking the role," she said.
Omooba has already claimed that she did not read the script before being cast in Curve’s production, and only did so recently, which meant that she interpreted the character in a different way.
"Whether or not you find a different way of rationalising it, it is obvious, if you know this script from rehearsals, if you know the book, it is obvious that there is a real likelihood that this would be interpreted by many people in the theatre that this is a lesbian relationship," Coghlin said, to which Omooba replied: "No. If it was I wouldn’t have been able to play it."
Omooba has indicated that she would have refused to play the role had the show’s creative team insist that she play the character as a lesbian.
She was later asked about the circumstances surrounding her dismissal, and the tribunal heard how Omooba drafted several versions of a statement to be released when social media criticism of her post was growing. No personal statement from Omooba was shared at the time.
According to evidence released alongside the tribunal, earlier versions of Omooba’s planned statement said her intention "was not to cause offence" but to describe her views as a Christian, however these were omitted in later iterations. In all versions she said she would stand firm in her beliefs.
Emails submitted as evidence said Curve did not release the final statement sent to them because "it is not a retraction and so we cannot do any joined up response at this stage". Omooba did not release the statement herself either.
It reads: "The law protects my freedom of expression as well as freedom of thought, conscience and religion. With regard to the role of Celie, I will not disregard that Celie falls in love with Shug or that Celie believes in God and is black. There is so much to Celie. The role of an actor is to play characters different from myself. As for the personal faith, I will stand firm."
In questioning about this statement, Omooba said she understood that Celie falling in love was "a different kind of love" than her feelings towards her mother or sister, but rejected the suggestion she thought it was sexual love.
"No, in my mind that’s not what it was" she said.
The tribunal will continue for the remainder of this week.'
https://www.thestage.co.uk/news/seyi-omooba-tribunal-actor-denies-appearance-in-concert-version-meant-she-was-aware-of-gay-storyline
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Actor voice lessons question Aug 15
2020, 10:06:14 AM
Your request is somewhat vague. You need to give us more info. Questions include:
Do you mean speaking voice or singing voice?
Where are you based?
What is your experience- no college or studio actor training, some training,...?
what do you want to get out of the Voice training?
Is there a definite time goal - e.g., an upcoming production, audition etc?
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Macbeth Previews. May 7
2019, 11:38:14 AM
broadwayfan128 said: "Anyone seeing this soon ?
Anyone know the run time ?"
Do you mean "Mac Beth" at Red Bull?
If so, heard that the run time is around 1hr 30m without an interval. Also heard that it's selling well.
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good summer intensives for high schoolers Nov 15
2018, 11:56:58 PM
broadwayboundck said: "anyone know any good summer intensives for high school students wanting to go into theatre?"
Check out the summer intensive at UNC School of the Arts. The college program is one of the top five BFA programs in the country and the summer intensive has a very good reputation.
https://www.uncsa.edu/summer/drama-summer-programs/drama-summer-intensive/index.aspx
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Judi Dench signed on for CATS film Oct 19
2018, 04:40:53 PM
Elfuhbuh said: "Isn’t Old Deuteronomy traditionally played by a black man? I’m sure we’ll be hearing some words about this switch..."
I hope not. The Deuteronomy for the first production, which was in London in 1981, was Brian Blessed. Very white and very loud.
http://catsmusical.wikia.com/wiki/File:London_Deut_Brian_Blessed.jpg
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Is The Nap Problematic? Sep 20
2018, 01:11:40 PM
mamaleh said: "What was problematic for me was the show's publicizing that it was by the playwright of ONE MAN TWO GUVNORS. I probably shouldn't have expected something on that superior level, but I did, which resulted in my being somewhat disappointed at what I saw on stage. It was mildly funny but I was hoping for more physical comedy and a performance or two comparable to the James Corden-level in the earlier show, probably the most laugh-inducing piece I've ever seen
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THE NAP Previews Sep 14
2018, 09:56:29 AM
I saw it last night and have to say that I enjoyed The Nap. No, it isn't One Man Two Guvnors and I wasn't expecting it to be. Two Guvnors is an adaption of a Commedia Dell'arte piece which has stock characters and tends to have a very physical and stylized comedy. The Nap is an original play and I found the humour to be more verbal than physical.
I agree with those who say the timing needs to tighten up but I think that it will do s
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Worse British/American Accent Jul 22
2018, 01:24:22 PM
It's a hard thing as the quality of the accents depend a lot on the writer, director, producers (who often don't want to pay for accent coaching!), and then finally - more rarely than you might think - lazy actors.
The worst accents for me are when they are jarring enough to draw me out of the piece. Inaccurate accents I can take provided they aren't being done self-consciously.
Worst British accents in American productions - Kinky Boots. Even the actors know ho
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The Last Ship To Play Toronto Jul 17
2018, 11:16:07 AM
I'm so glad that they ditched the John Logan book. IMO, it was the weakest part of the Broadway show by far.
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Is that NYT expose still coming out? Jul 8
2018, 12:12:48 PM
Thanks broadwaynerdnewbie
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Is that NYT expose still coming out? Jul 7
2018, 10:10:16 AM
I have a couple of questions.
Does anyone happen to know if the piece is solely about sexual harassment/assault or does it cover bullying as well?
How can I find out the main writer of the piece and their contact info?
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How do I even attempt to audition? Apr 8
2018, 05:28:25 PM
Going to a good training program, be it a conservatory BFA or long-term acting studio course, would be a good step. It will give you new skills and should hone what you already know. It should also prepare for working in the "business" in the US and will hopefully give you an agent showcase - though the showcase is no guarantee of subsequent representation. It's quite possible to have a good and fulfilling acting career and never work in NYC.
NB, it is not easy for Canadi
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