Speculation continues about chances for a Broadway transfer for the recent New York Theatre Workshop's (NYTW) production of Dirty Blonde. A production source has told Playbill On-Line that some decision may be forthcoming, possibly within a few days.
Sources close to the situation say that Dirty Blonde could go into the Helen Hayes Theatre if Squonk were to close. According to weekly statistics from the League of American Theatres and Producers, Squonk is running at roughly 50 percent capacity. While not the lowest percentage of capacity for a running show in recent memory, it is the lowest percentage of capacity currently reported by the League.
Despite mixed-to-negative reviews, a Squonk spokesperson has indicated the show will weather the storm and continue its run.
Press reports last month indicated that producers were also discussing such possibilities as the reopening of Criterion Center's Stage Right, or finding either an unnamed Off-Broadway house or a suitable Broadway house such as the Helen Hayes or the Golden.
As reported earlier, the NYTW production of Claudia Shear's Dirty Blonde had a busy preview period and full houses beginning with its Jan. 10 opening. Originally scheduled to close Feb. 6, the show was extended to Feb. 13, when it closed to make way for the next production at NYTW, the Christopher Ashley directed production of playwright Jean Marie Besset's What You Get and What You Expect. Dirty Blonde was conceived by playwright Shear together with director James Lapine. The story involves two single New Yorkers who meet at Mae West's grave site. The play then goes on to trace the couple's changing relationship while simultaneously tracking West's career.
The NYTW production of Dirty Blonde featured Kevin Chamberlin, playwright Claudia Shear and Bob Stillman. The play marked Shear's return to NYTW, where she triumphed in 1993 with her one-woman "tour de résumé" Blown Sideways , a 64-job search for employment. That earned her an Obie Award and a Drama Desk Award nomination. The NYTW production was helmed by James Lapine.
