By Michael Buckley
08 May 2005

Not in any order, Berinstein cites some of the things that had to be excluded: "The Fiddler on the Roof sitzprobe, which was so emotional; the sword-fight training in Henry IV, with Ethan Hawke and Michael Hayden; interviews with Liza Minnelli, Brian Dennehy, Antonio Banderas, Patrick Stewart, John Lithgow . . .; costume fittings for King Lear; building the set for Wonderful Town; rehearsals for Never Gonna Dance; lots of stories on the four shows we chose. I wish people would watch 400-hour movies.

"A lot of people wondered why the whole Avenue Q campaign [requesting that Tony voters vote with their hearts] was missing. It will be on the DVD." Why was The Boy from Oz not included? "The truth is that it was the one show to which we were not given access. I would have loved to have been able to chronicle and celebrate that show — and Hugh [Jackman]! But they wouldn't allow us."

The filmmaker plans to use part of the leftover footage "to create educational programs for kids in high schools and colleges who are thinking about show business careers — and not just acting. I'm working on how to create something valuable for schools." Currently "diving into some other film projects," Dori Berinstein is also planning a Broadway production of "Legally Blonde." Observes Berinstein, "Broadway will always remain my passion!"

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Following the screening that I attended, there was a Q&A session with Berinstein, John Tartaglia (representing Avenue Q), Carpathia Jenkins (the Washing Machine in Caroline, or Change), and Stephen Schwartz, who was visibly upset about Riedel and Company. He was incensed with them "making jokes about what they were going to say about things before they even saw them." He wondered aloud, "Do they realize what they look like?"

Noted Schwartz, Wicked marked his first time working on Broadway in 20 years. He claimed that, because of the five commentators, "I'll never do it again." Later, he added, "For me, Broadway is not a hospitable environment to work in," and said that he was "fortunate to have earned enough not to have to write for Broadway again. Some people seem to thrive in it, but God knows how." At one point, Berinstein interjected that, since a screening a few nights earlier, "Some critics [in the film] apologized to people they spoke about."

Tartaglia commented that he'd been present at that screening and that people "booed and hissed" when Riedel (who was also there) appeared on screen. The actor said that, at the soiree that followed, Riedel was preening, like "'Oh, I'm Captain Hook!'" Tartaglia recalled thinking that, if he were Riedel, "I wouldn't be here; I'd be home crying." (Old columnists never cry; they just flay away.)

There's no way that Michael Riedel might be up for an Oscar, is there?

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Michael Buckley also writes for TheaterMania.com, and is the author of the book "Between Takes (Interviews with Hollywood Legends)," to be published later this year.