Showing Its Roots: Megan Hilty and Cast of Encores! Gentlemen Prefer Blondes Uncover a Gem
With its mission to spotlight musicals that have fallen off the popular theatre's radar, New York City Center Encores! brings Gentlemen Prefer Blondes into the light May 9-13. Best known for its film version featuring iconic performances by Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell, the 1949 Broadway show with a score by Jule Styne and Leo Robin ("Bye Bye Baby," "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend") made a star of Carol Channing and spawned a cast album, but is little-known today (a Broadway revival flopped in 1995). Stars Megan Hilty (playing gold-digger Lorelei Lee) and Rachel York (party girl/chaperone Dorothy Shaw) joined castmates Aaron Lazar, Clarke Thorell and Stephen R. Buntrock, as well as Tony Award-winning director John Rando, to talk about the process of working in the Encores! setting. To see choreographer Randy Skinner rehearsing the show's latest dance numbers, click here.
Songs From Megan Hilty and Rachel York Remind Us Why Gentlemen Prefer Blondes In the hit NBC series "Smash," Megan Hilty plays a struggling Broadway actress looking for her big leading lady break in a musical about Marilyn Monroe. In real life, Hilty will take to the Encores! stage at City Center to play gold-digger Lorelei Lee in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes — a role made famous by Monroe herself in the film version, and by Carol Channing in the original 1949 Broadway musical. In rehearsal, Hilty and co-star Rachel York (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Les Misérables) were joined by dancers Jared Grimes and Phillip Attmore to give Playbill a musical glimpse of the upcoming performance directed by John Rando. Songs included "A Little Girl From Little Rock," "Mamie is Mimi" and "I Love What I'm Doing." For a Playbill Diva Talk with Hilty, click here.
"Mad Men" and Lovely Ladies on Nice Work John Hamm, Tony Bennett, Martin Short, Chelsea Clinton and Sarah Jessica Parker were just a few of the stars on hand at the opening night of Nice Work If You Can Get It. Following the curtain call, Matthew Broderick and his Tony-nominated leading lady Kelli O'Hara, along with fellow 2012 Tony nominees Michael McGrath and Judy Kaye, chat about the new musical based on the Gershwins' Oh, Kay!. To hear from the Tony nominees, click here.
2012 Tony Nominees Roger Rees and Rick Elice Imagine the Possiblities of Peter and the Starcatcher Roger Rees (Best Direction of a Play, sharing the nom with co-director Alex Timbers) and Rick Elice (Best Play) were nominated for 2012 Tony Awards for their work on the imagination-fueled ensemble piece Peter and the Starcatcher. Elice unfolds the tale of the how the Dave Barry-Ridley Pearson novel came to the stage, while Rees describes the process of creating onstage magic by taking cues from improv and the kind of "plays where words are the scenery." To hear thoughts from fellow nominees Celia Keenan-Bolger click here, and for Christian Borle, click here.
How Once Renewed 2012 Tony Nominee Enda Walsh's Faith in Theatre When Once librettist Enda Walsh was asked to adapt the indie film for the musical stage, he was skeptical of the venture. Flash forward to 2012, and the musical is nominated for 11 Tony Awards, including one for his script. The Irish
playwright talks about getting hooked on the "It's a Wonderful Life" nature of the tale, the generosity of the producers and his appreciation for what the audience brings to the
theatrical experience. For more information on Enda Walsh, click here.
2012 Tony Nominee Christopher Gattelli Gets Newsies Moving Nominated for Best Choreography, Christopher Gattelli grew up as a fan of the Disney film "Newsies." When it came time to create choreography for the Newsies stage musical, he looked back at the film for inspiration only. He wanted to tell story through his own lens, making the boys' moves more rough-and-tumble at the top of the show — and more refined and disciplined as they grew into men later in the story. Gattelli also reflects on perhaps the most memorable number in the show — when the newsboys tear up their "papes" to prove a point to publishing magnate Joseph Pulitzer. For thoughts from fellow Tony nominees Alan Menken, Jack Feldman and Harvey Fierstein, click here.
2012 Tony Nominee Jessie Mueller Jazzes Up A Clear Day Jessie Mueller — "shocked" to be a Tony nominee for her featured
performance as 1940s jazz singer Melinda Wells in On A Clear Day You Can See Forever — talks about wrapping her voice around the Burton Lane-Alan Jay Lerner score, and reminisces about performing in the short-lived revival. For more
information on Jessie Mueller, click here. And to see a
video of her singing "Ev'ry Night at Seven" in On A Clear Day You Can See Forever, click here.
2012 Tony Nominees Kelli O'Hara, Judy Kaye and Michael McGrath Grab Onto Gershwin, Chandeliers and Pillows in Nice Work 2012 Tony nominees Kelli O'Hara, Judy Kaye and Michael McGrath — all celebrated for their performances in Nice Work If You Can Get It — talk about singing beloved George and Ira Gershwin songs, and working with inventive director-choreographer Kathleen Marshall and comedy writer Joe DiPietro to refine the musical's high-flying bits and low-comedy business. For more on Nice Work If You Can Get It, including the opening night Playbill and video highlights, click here.
2012 Best Featured Actor in a Play Tony Nominees Break Down Clybourne Park, One Man, Two Guvnors and End of the Rainbow Clybourne Park's Jeremy Shamos , One Man, Two Guvnors' Tom Edden and End of the Rainbow's Michael Cumpsty joined Playbill to reflect on the work that earned each of them a 2012 Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Play. Shamos talks about the thrilling and often "unsettling" experience of his politically-incorrect dual roles in the play's two acts, set 50 years apart; Edden, a 33-year-old playing an octogenarian waiter, describes playing with high-energy leading man James Corden — as well as the many bruises he's earned ; and Cumpsty chats about how the heart of his fictional character may have been able to save the real Judy Garland.
2012 Tony Nominee Celia Keenan-Bolger and the Starstuff Dreams Are Made Of Playing Molly, the spunky self-declared leader of a group of misfit orphaned boys, Peter and the Starcatcher's Celia Keenan-Bolger earned a 2012 Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Play. Keenan-Bolger talks about how this tiny Off-Broadway show made the big Broadway leap — and was rewarded handsomely for its efforts. To see an interview with fellow Peter and the Starcatcher Tony nominee Christian Borle, click here.
