Shirley Jones after dark….The Palace gets a new Queen… John Leguizamo klowns around...and Matt Stone and Trey Parker attempt to proselytize Broadway.
Amen!
Blake
Saturday, March 19 
LAST CHANCE? Everyone’s favorite TV mom, Shirley Jones, will make her nightclub debut at the famous cabaret haunt Feinstein’s. "The Partridge Family" and Oklahoma! star will recount stories from her 60-plus years in showbiz. (8 PM and 10:30 PM, Feinstein’s at Loews Regency, 540 Park, at 61st St., info/tickets)
Sunday, March 20 
OPENING? Broadway’s newest Queen begins her reign at the Main Stem’s Palace — and this gal is hell-bent on having a good time. Priscilla Queen of the Desert, Broadway’s newest jukebox musical, features dance floor faves like “I Will Survive,” “Shake Your Groove Thing” and “Say a Little Prayer.” Starring Tony Sheldon, Will Swenson and Nick Adams as three drag queens who embark on a road trip through the Australian outback on a bus named Priscilla. Produced by Bette Midler. (Palace Theatre, 1564 Broadway, btwn. 46th & 47th St., Click here for Playbill Club discount tickets.)
Monday, March 21 
PREVIEWS? Alice gets a modern makeover in Frank Wildhorn’s new musical Wonderland. Based on Lewis Carroll’s classic tale, Wonderland finds Alice (played here by Janet Dacal) all grown up and living in the big city. But this new world found down the rabbit hole is darker than the original — Alice is now an unhappy divorcee with an estranged daughter — but the wonderment of life through the lookingglass remains. (Marquis Theatre, 1535 Broadway, btwn. 45th & 46th St. Click here for Playbill Club discount previews tickets. Officially opens April 17.)
GO? Tovah Feldshuh hosts The 5th Annual Broadway Beauty Pageant, featuring the cutest chorus boys the Rialto has to offer. Contestants in this year’s all-male competition include La Cage’s Matt Anctil, Chicago’s Mikey Cusamano, Anything Goes’ Ray Lee, Spider-Man’s Brandon Rubendall, and Mary Poppins’ James Tabeek. Judges include Bruce Vilanch, Rachel Dratch and Carson Kressley. Proceeds benefit The Ali Forney Center, a housing center for homeless LGBT youth. (8 PM, Peter Jay Sharp Theatre at Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway, at 95th St., $25-$150, info/tickets)
Tuesday, March 22 
OPENING? John Leguizamo’s newest one-man offering, Ghetto Klown, opens on Broadway. Klown has Leguizamo exploring the many characters that have crossed his path from growing up in Queens, NY, to living the life of a movie star in Hollywood. Directed by Oscar winner Fisher Stevens. (Lyceum Theatre, 149 W. 45th St., btwn. 6th & 7th Ave., info/tickets)
Wednesday, March 23 
GO? Double Falsehood — Lewis Theobald’s 18th-century adaptation of what is supposedly Shakespeare’s last creation — has had its authenticity debated by scholars for some time now. Classic Stage Company’s artistic director Brian Kulick will stage what they call “the ‘holy grail’ of the Shakespeare canon” featuring Clayton Apgar, Jon DeVries, Bryce Gill, Helen Hayes Award winner Philip Goodwin, Slate Holmgren, Mackenzie Meehan and Hayley Treider. (Through April 3, Classic Stage Company, 136 E. 13th St., btwn. 3rd & 4th Ave., info/tickets)
Thursday, March 24 
OPENING? The bad boys of Comedy Central, Matt Stone and Trey Parker, join Bobby Lopez (a bad boy in his own right; see Avenue Q), to turn the good book very, very bad (and very funny) for the new musical, The Book of Mormon. Josh Gad (“The Daily Show”) stars as a naive Mormon missionary whose faith is tested when he and a fellow apostle go to Uganda to spread the gospel. (Eugene O’Neill Theatre, 230 W. 49th St., btwn. Broadway & 8th Ave., info/tickets)
PREVIEWS? Alan Menken and Glenn Slater team up with producer Whoopi Goldberg to bring Sister Act to the states. Newcomer Patina Miller dons the habit of nightclub singer Deloris Van Cartier who, after witnessing a murder, must hide out in a convent. There she must win over the Mother Superior (Victoria Clark) and the rest of the nuns the only way she knows how — with disco music! Jerry Zaks directs. (Broadway Theatre, 1681 Broadway, at 53rd St. Click here for Playbill Club discount previews tickets. Officially opens April 20.)
Friday, March 25 
PREVIEWS? Writer Matthew Lombardo (Looped) explores addiction and faith in his new play High. Starring Kathleen Turner as a former addict turned nun whose faith and sobriety is tested when she is tasked with treating a teenage junkie (played by Evan Jonigkeit). Also starring Stephen Kunken as an enabling priest. (Booth Theatre, 222 W. 45th St., btwn. Broadway & 8th Ave., Click here for Playbill Club discount previews tickets, Officially opens April 19.)
GO? Funny gal Leslie Kritzer joins the Off-Broadway revue Newsical: Full Spin Ahead, stepping in for a few weeks for injured Christine Pedi (who returns on April 24). The show features musical sketches based on the hot topics of the day. With the recent meltdowns of Charlie Sheen and Christina Aguilera, they certainly won’t want for material! (The Kirk at Theatre Row, 410 W. 42nd St., btwn 9th & 10th Aves. Click here for Playbill Club discount tickets)
