The New York Musical Theatre Festival (NYMF) is underway, flooding New York City theatres with fresh, new talent that is sure to satisfy even the most finicky of theatregoers.
As NYMF approaches its 200th musical on October 6th, I spoke to Isaac Robert Hurwitz, NYMF’s Executive Director and Producer, to get the skinny on how best to navigate the Festival.
Here are the Top 5 reasons to get your NYMF on this year!
#1: NYMF has a little something for everyone.
Whether you are a regular theatre-goer or someone who has never seen a professional show, the Festival is a great place to experiment with lots of different types of musical theatre. Hurwitz explains: “We include things that are more traditional musical theatre in scope but we also include things that are more avant-garde with musical styles that range from traditional Broadway to opera to rock to hip-hop. It’s a real opportunity for people to explore new things and we try to make it as easy as possible for people to see multiple shows in a day or a weekend.”
#2: It’s Musical Theatre “A la carte”
The NYMF website is very easy to navigate and lets you hand-pick elements of a show you’re interested in (comedy, drama, political, satire, sci-fi and so on), and then delivers you shows you may be interested in. It’s like a mail order spouse service but without the felony charges! (bada bum)
#3: It’s affordable.
Tickets for individual shows are just $20.
#4: You may be witnessing magic in the making!
Shows like [title of show], Next to Normal and Altar Boyz all got their start at NYMF. “Of the 176 shows that have premiered [at NYMF], over 50 of them have gone on to further production in theatres all around the country and around the world,” say Hurwitz. ”There are a lot of different trajectories for our shows. We create the opportunity for more people to have opportunities. It’s what the festival is all about.”
#5: 200 is the magic number.
As someone who works for a company that just turned 125, I know how important those “round numbers” can be. Hurwitz was happy to boast that the Festival will be debuting its 200th musical on October 6. Three shows—Academy, F#@king Up Everything, and The Happy Embalmer—are in the running to be crowned the “200th NYMF musical” each debuting at 8pm on October 6th. I guess whoever starts closest to curtain wins!
If you’re in New York and in the market for great theatre for the right price, check out a NYMF production. The festival runs through October 18th. Visit www.nymf.org for more info.
Wanna live forever? Then this Week Ahead is for you! The classic film-turned-TV show-turned-musical Fame will make a return to the theatres this week creating a whole new generation of kids who beg “remember my name!”
Plus…Freewheeling with Freestyle Love Supreme, Shopping at the BC/EFA Flea Market and the fall season gets underway with two big openings.
Learning How to Fly,
Blake
Friday, September 25 GO→ The remake of everyone’s favorite dancing-on-car-tops movie, Fame, will arrive in theatres this Friday. Break out your leg warmers and your “I heart Debbie Allen” T-shirt and remember a time when you wanted to light up the sky life a flame! (info)
Sunday, September 27 GO→BC/EFA’s 23rd Annual Flea Market will take over Shubert Alley this Sunday. Come down to mid-town to see some of your favorite stars in their natural habitat and pick up some great theatre merchandise along the way—all for a great cause. (10am-4pm, Shubert Alley, 44th and 45th Streets, between Broadway and Eighth Avenue, www.bcefa.com)
Monday, September 28 GO→ Way before Lin-Manuel Miranda was rapping on Broadway and winning Tonys he was “Lin-Man”, a member of the rap/improve group Freestyle Love Supreme. Years later, the group is still spitting rhymes. Other familiar faces associated with group are Manuel’s former In The Heights collaborators Chris Jackson and Tommy Kail. (9pm, Comix, 353 W. 14th Street, East of 9th Avenue, tickets)
Tuesday, September 29 OPENING→ Hollywood’s leading action heroes Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig star in Keith Huff’s gritty Chicago cop-drama A Steady Rain, opening this Tuesday in a limited run. (Through December 6, The Schoenfeld Theatre, 236 W. 45th Street, between Broadway and 8th Avenue, tickets).
TOURING→ The Mel Brooks musical Young Frankenstein will hit the road this Tuesday with Roger Bart reprising his role as Dr. Frederick Frankenstein. The tour will kick off in Providence, RI with stops in Chicago, DC, Columbus, Cleveland, Hartford and on. To check out a full schedule, click here.
GO→ Rent star Anthony Rapp will take to the stage at Joe’s Pub for a musical adaptation of his memoir, Without You, a story about the early years with the Tony Award Winning tuner and his mother’s painful battle with cancer. The set also includes songs from Rent. (7pm, Joe’s Pub, 425 Lafayette Street, 212.539.8777)
Wednesday, September 30 TOURING→ Perennial funnyman Robin Williams hits the road with his one-man show Self Destruction which launches in Bloomington, Indiana. Other stops on the tour include Chicago, Atlanta, Louisville, Oklahoma City, Orlando, Knoxville, Washington and Atlantic City (Through November 28, Info and full tour schedule)
GO→ Cindy Adams will open up her heart and home to dish about her life as one of New York’s most well-known gossip columnists. Only in New York (a nod to Miz Adams’ famous tagline) will be performed in Adams’ own apartment. Proceeds will benefit the ASPCA. (Through October 2, info/tickets)
GO→ Two-time Tony Award Winner Matthew Broderick will join forces with his childhood chum Kenneth Lonergan for a production of The Starry Messenger, which will begin performances in late October. Broderick and Lonergan join host Leonard Lopate at the 92nd Street Y this Wednesday to discuss the project. (8pm and 9:15pm, 92 Street Y, Lexington Ave and 92nd Street, tickets)
Thursday, October 1 GO→ Tony Award Winner Tracey Letts brings his genius back to New York with Superior Donuts starring Broadway vet, Michael McKean and newcomer, Jon Michael Hill. (Music Box Theatre, 239 W. 45th Street, Between Broadway and 8th Avenue, tickets)
GO→ Ephron sisters, Nora and Delia, have adapted the best selling novel Love, Loss and What I Wore for the stage. The show officially opens this Thursday and will kick-off with an all-star cast including Rosie O’Donnell, The Daily Show’s Samantha Bee, Natasha Lyonne and Tyne Daly. (Westside Theatre Downstairs, 407 West 43rd Street Between 9th and 10th Avenues, tickets)
As both an avid theatre-goer and shopper (aka theatre “nut” and shopping “addict”) this annual event is one of my favorites—a one-stop-shop of all my favorite things. Add in the cheesecake I’m sure to order from Junior’s and this is my version of heaven!
The entire theatre community will be there supporting BC/EFA, including the Playbill Store whose table will be set up directly across from Shubert Alley on 44th Street.
They’ll have tons of discount souvenirs from Broadway shows including T-shirts, baseball caps, coffee mugs, posters, souvenir programs, Broadway cast recordings, DVDs, etc. Plus, Playbill collectibles like Playbill cocktail glasses from the past 13 years, rare Playbills, t-shirts, Playbill Yearbooks, etc.
And finally, don’t miss the “Recession Bin” full of tokens for just $1.
Tomorrow is National Punctuation Day, which I guess is like Christmas for Editors! Yep, it’s true…a whole day to celebrate the period, comma, semi-colon, exclamation point and my personal favorite, the question mark.
In celebration of National Punctuation Day, here’s a clip of Dean Martin and Victor Borge performing one of Borge’s signture routines “Musical Phonetic Punctuation”.
What do Hugh Laurie and Alexander Hamilton have in common? They both hold a special place in the heart of Tony Award winner, Lin-Manuel Miranda.
Tonight, Lin will make his way from the stage to the small screen when he co-stars on the season premiere of Fox’s House.
Lin-Manuel Miranda with Hugh Laurie on the set of HOUSE. (Mike Yarish/Fox)
I caught up with Lin as he prepares for his big premiere and talks about a project he debuted at another House…the White House.
How did this opportunity to work on House come about?
My manager got a call from Katie Jacobs, an Executive Producer on the show and the director of my episodes, saying she was a fan of In The Heights and the writers were working on a character with me in mind.
I’m such a fan of the show, so I said yes and we immediately got to work on clearing my summer so I could go out to LA and film it. I’m immensely proud to be a part of it, and I can’t wait to see it. I hope I did right by them!
Can you give us any clues as to what we’ll see from you tonight?
Well, when they said they wrote the part with me in mind, they weren’t kidding. I play House’s roommate in the psych ward, and the best way of putting it is I play Tigger to his Eeyore. That’s Hugh’s analogy, not mine, but it’s apt.
Any memorable moments from the taping?
My dream came true one day, when we were filming this fight scene. This incredibly muscular dude came on set, my height, with my exact hairline and goatee. His name was Walker and he was my stunt double. I’ve always wanted a stunt double. I actually wanted to be a stuntman when I was a kid, before I discovered my aversion to anything remotely dangerous.
Do you want to continue acting or do some more stuff behind the scenes?
Writing is just what I do when I’m not doing anything else. It’s my default state. I will keep acting as long as I can find interesting roles that I think I’ll be good at.
Speaking of writing, you’re currently working on a rap concept album based on the life of Alexander Hamilton (a work you just debuted at The White House, of all places). Where did that idea come from?
After In the Heights finished Off-Broadway, I went on vacation and brought with me a biography of Hamilton. Something about it just grabbed me. I picked up the book thinking maybe I’ll get a funny song out of it—some jokey-rap thing about the Hamilton/Burr duel. But as I read it, I realized Hamilton’s whole life was about the power of words and wouldn’t it be great to hear a hip-hop album about how we created this country? (more…)
Neil Patrick Harris will dust off his tux this weekend to host the Emmy Awards. I have no doubt Neil will once again hit it out of the park! Break a leg!
Plus, a jazzy side of Secada…Karaoke under the stars…and Aretha has entered the building!
R-E-S-P-E-C-T,
Blake
Friday, September 18
GO→If last night’s Divas Live concert got you jonesing for more divaliciousness, head over to Radio City Music Hall tonight where Her Holiness of Diva, Aretha Franklin, will perform (8pm, Radio City Music Hall, 1260 Avenue of the Americas and 50th street, tickets)
Saturday, September 19
GO→ Jon Secada will be wrapping up his engagement at Feinstein’s this Saturday. No stranger to the Broadway stage, Secada starred in shows like Cabaret and Grease. The Grammy Award winner will perform songs off his new jazz album that boasts a collection of standards and Secada hits. (Feinstein’s at the Loews Regency, 540 Park Avenue at 61st Street, for tickets call 212-339-4095, info)
Sunday, September 20
WATCH→ Following his wildly successful stint as host of the Tony Awards, Neil Patrick Harris will host the 61st Annual Primetime Emmy Awards this Sunday. (8/7pmC on CBS)
Monday, September 21
GO→ Nine-time Tony Award winner Tommy Tune will bring his autobiographical musical, Steps in Time, to New York’s Gerald Lynch Theatre at John Jay College for a one-night-only benefit for Friends In Deed. (8pm, Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College, 899 Tenth Avenue, tickets)
Tuesday, September 22
GO→ Kerry Butler, a Tony nominee for her work in Xanadu, will trade her roller-skates for hairspray when she assumes the role of Sherrie in Broadway’s ode to the 80’s Rock of Ages (Brooks Atkinson Theatre, 256 West 47th Street, tickets)
Thursday, September 24
GO→ This Thursday, the Broadway League will continue their Back2Broadway month with an evening of open-air karaoke. If you’re one of the millions of people who has always dreamed of singing on Broadway (ummm…like ME), come to Duffy Square on Thursday, step up to the mic and actually get to sing on Broadway! (5-6pm, sign-up begins at 4pm, Duffy Square, Broadway and 7th Avenue between 46th and 47th Streets, info)
Sometimes in life, two is better than one. For instance, two dollars is better than one dollar. Two Oreos are better than one Oreo. And, if their pending debut at New York’s famed Feinstein’s at the Loews Regency on Monday Night is any indication, two Nunziatas are better than one.
I first heard Will and Anthony Nunziata sing at a karaoke bar of all places. We were just messing around at a friend’s birthday party and while I was busy butchering a Funny Girl medley, these two got up and silenced a very crowded room with their booming voices that came seemingly out of nowhere!
So when I heard these guys were gearing up for a big night at Feinstein’s, I thought I’d get the skinny on the show and share it all with you! Here’s what I found out…
Anthony (left) and Will (right) pictured with the legendary Alan Menken. Last Sunday, the pair sang the Menken/Jack Feldman tune SEIZE THE DAY at a benefit concert for Premier Performing Arts.
How and when did you first hear that you’d be performing at Feinstein’s?
Will: Feinstein’s John Iachetti saw us perform and thought we’d be a good match for the room and their Monday Night Series.
Anthony: He also told Richard [Jay-Alexander, the show’s director] about us and Richard had also heard about us from our entertainment lawyer, Mark Sendroff, and a meeting was arranged. The rest, as they say, is history, or, if “luck” is on our side, will be. (more…)
This Week Ahead marks the unofficial start of fall and the start of the fall theatre season. Plus, a Tony Award winner plays its final performance.
So put on a chunky sweater and get thee to the theatre!
Blake
Friday, September 11 GO→The Big Gay Musical will make its New York debut this Friday before it hits the festival circuit. The indie flick, written and produced by Fred Caruso, boasts a great soundtrack courtesy of Rick Crom. The film’s website calls it a story of “coming out, coming to terms, and the occasional tap dancing angel!” (info)
Saturday, September 12 GO→ Oscar winner Philip Seymour Hoffman will return to the stage with frequent collaborator and LABrynth cohort, John Ortiz, for a new production of Shakespeare’s Othello, directed by Peter Sellars. (Through October 4, NYU’s Skirball Center, 566 LaGuardia Place at Washington Square South, for tickets call 212.352.3101)
Sunday, September 13
BEFORE IT CLOSES→ The Tony Award winning, beloved puppet musical, Avenue Q, will close on Sunday after six years of keeping Broadway from taking itself too seriously. I’ll sure miss those hysterically inappropriate puppets! (The John Golden Theatre, 252 W. 45th Street, between Broadway and 8th Avenue, tickets)
Monday, September 14 GO→ Friends and colleagues of the late Bea Arthur will gather at the Majestic on Monday to honor the Tony and Emmy Award winner. Arthur’s Mame co-star and good friend Angela Lansbury will serve as host. Those participating in the memorial include Adrienne Barbeau (Maude co-star), Zoe Caldwell, Billy Goldenberg (Arthur’s longtime accompanist), Sheldon Harnick (Fiddler on the Roof lyricist), Charlie Hauck (Maude head writer), Norman Lear (Maude producer), Clinton Leupp, Anne Meara, Rosie O’Donnell, Chita Rivera, Daryl Roth (Bea Arthur on Broadway producer), Jerry Stiller and Rue McClanahan (The Golden Girls). (1pm, open to the public on a first-come first-served basis, Majestic Theatre, 247 W. 44th Street, between Broadway and 8th Ave., info)
GO→ Who ever thought a spicy tuna roll could be so scandalous!? You have no-doubt heard all about the fishy tale that followed Jeremy Piven’s abrupt exit from Speed-the-Plow last year. Well hold on to your chopsticks because this Monday, Joe’s Pub will host an evening dedicated to the drama called The Piven Monologues. (Joe’s Pub, 425 Lafayette Street, between Astor Place and E 4th Street, for table reservations call 212.539.8778, info)
Tuesday, September 15 GO→ The LA-based dance team Groovaloo will bring their show (aptly titled Groovaloo) on the road this Tuesday. The show combines Groovaloo’s thrilling form of hip-hop/freestyle dancing with personal stories of the troupe’s members to form a show they liken to “A Chorus Line with the energy of Stomp.” (Through September 27, Joyce Theatre, 175 8th Avenue, between 18th and 19th Streets, tickets)
Wednesday, September 16 GO (FREE)→ The New York Philharmonic is letting us get a sneak peak at the upcoming season with a free-to-the-public dress rehearsal this Wednesday. Go watch how soprano Renée Fleming, Music Director Alan Gilbert and the Philharmonic prepare for the show that evening. (9:45am, seating stars at 8am and is on a first come, first-served basis, Avery Fisher Hall, 132 W 65th Street, between Columbus and Amsterdam Aves., info)
Thursday, September 17 WATCH→ VH1’s Divas Live special to benefit Save the Music is back! This time, the show will be filled with some Diva-ettes including Kelly Clarkson, Jennifer Hudson, Miley Cyrus, Adele, Leona Lewis, and Jordin Sparks. The night will be hosted by Paula Abdul. (9/8c on VH1, info)
On the day that Michael Feinstein announced he’d be making a comeback on Broadway, myself and a few dozen other “Fansteins” turned up at the house that Michael built to see him and Christine Ebersole put on (and this is no exaggeration) one of the best shows I’ve ever seen at Feinstein’s. Together or solo, there was something about this pairing that made the whole room hum with energy.
For today’s Webway Wednesday, some vintage Feinstein and Ebersole to sustain you until you make the trip over to the Regency!
Through September 12th at Feinstein’s at Loews Regency, 540 Park Avenue at 61st Street. For tickets call (212) 339-4095 or click here.
This Week Ahead marks the unofficial end of summer, so make sure to send it out with a bang! Surf, Sun and Stokes this weekend in the Hamptons…Remind yourself how work could always be worse and go see 9 to 5…And shake a tail feather at the International Dance and Music Festival.
Oh…Those Su-hmer Niiights,
Blake
Friday, September 4 GO→ If Burn the Floor has you burning and yearning to hit the dance floor, then the New York International Salsa Congress’ Dance Festival might be for you! Learn to shake your groove thang at dozens of different workshops all weekend long. (info)
Saturday, September 5 GO→ Tony Award winner Brian Stokes Mitchell will be taking his magical baritone out to the Hamptons this weekend for a performance at the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center. He is (as Tina Turner once said) simply the best. If you haven’t yet witnessed the splendor that is Stokes, do yourself a favor and go see this show! (8:30pm, WHBPAC, 76 Main Street, Westhampton Beach, tickets)
Sunday, September 6 BEFORE IT CLOSES→ 9 to 5 will drink its last cup of ambition this Sunday. Dolly Parton’s score is infectious and the performances are superb! (The Marquis Theatre, 1535 Broadway @ Broadway, tickets)
Joan Marcus
BEFORE IT CLOSES→ Lynn Nottage’s Pulitzer Prize winning masterpiece, Ruined, will finally close after eight record-breaking extensions. This immensely important play shows the harsh reality of life in the war-torn region of the Congo. This story of one group of women and their struggle to survive amidst brutal conflict, ongoing sexual assault and displacement is a heartbreaking one, but one that must be told. (New York City Center, 131 West 55th Street, tickets)
BEFORE IT CLOSES→The Tin Pan Alley Rag will play its final performance this Sunday. The fictional story of a meeting between real-life Ragtime kings, Irving Berlin and Scott Joplin, is underscored by the music that made both these men legends. (Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre, 111 West 46th Street between 6th & 7th Aves, tickets)
Monday, September 7 GO (TOUR)→ The touring company of The Color Purple is launching a fundraising effort with the New Orleans-based group St. Bernard Project to help build homes for displaced families in New Orleans. Audience members will have the opportunity to contribute to the effort for the remainder of the Tour’s 2009 stops. Writer Alice Walker and TheColor Purple creative team will kick-off the show’s efforts by contributing three houses on behalf of the production. (information on tickets and contributions)
BACK IN BUSINESS→Next to Normal will welcome back Aaron Tveit when he returns to the show after headlining the West Coast premiere of Catch Me If You Can. (Booth Theatre Box Office, 222 West 45th St. between Broadway & 8th Ave., tickets)
Tuesday, September 8 GO (BACK IN BUSINESS)→ After a summer hiatus, the fighting families of God of Carnage are back on the Main Stage ready to duke (and puke) it out! (Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, 242 W. 45th St, tickets)
GO (BACK IN BUSINESS)→ The musical Blind Lemon Blues will return to Off-Broadway this Tuesday. The score combines the soulful sound of country blues singer Blind Lemon Jefferson with the contemporary sounds of soul, doo-wop and even rap. (Through October 4, The Theatre at St. Peter’s Church, 619 Lexington Ave, tickets or call 212.935-5820)
Wednesday, September 9
GO→ Michael Feinstein and Christine Ebersole will perform at the 9th Annual Music Has Power Awards at the house that Feinstein Built, Feinstein’s at Loews Regency. (Feinstein’s at the Loews Regency, 540 Park Avenue at 61st Street, info)
Thursday, September 10 GO (OPENING)→ Pulling inspiration from her own military family, playwright Bekah Brunstetter will debut a new play, OOHRAH!, at Atlantic Stages this Thursday. It explores the lives of Marines fighting in the war and the people they leave behind. (Through September 27, Atlantic Stage Two, 330 W. 16th St, tickets)
Friday, September 18
Monday, September 21
Thursday, September 24
GO→ The Big Gay Musical will make its New York debut this Friday before it hits the festival circuit. The indie flick, written and produced by Fred Caruso, boasts a great soundtrack courtesy of Rick Crom. The film’s website calls it a story of “coming out, coming to terms, and the occasional tap dancing angel!” (
GO→ Who ever thought a spicy tuna roll could be so scandalous!? You have no-doubt heard all about the fishy tale that followed Jeremy Piven’s abrupt exit from Speed-the-Plow last year. Well hold on to your chopsticks because this Monday, Joe’s Pub will host an evening dedicated to the drama called The Piven Monologues. (Joe’s Pub, 425 Lafayette Street, between Astor Place and E 4th Street, for table reservations call 212.539.8778, 
Thursday, September 17
GO→ Tony Award winner Brian Stokes Mitchell will be taking his magical baritone out to the Hamptons this weekend for a performance at the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center. He is (as Tina Turner once said) simply the best. If you haven’t yet witnessed the splendor that is Stokes, do yourself a favor and go see this show! (8:30pm, WHBPAC, 76 Main Street, Westhampton Beach, 
