Highlights From Stephen Sondheim's Passion Off-Broadway Classic Stage Company presents a freshly conceived staging of Passion, the 1994 Tony-winning musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine. Based on the 19th-century Italian novel "Fosca" (and a subsequent film), Passion tells the story of army captain Giorgio (Ryan Silverman) separated from his beloved Clara (Melissa Errico) by the call of duty. When Giorgio meets Fosca (Judy Kuhn), the ill cousin of his commanding officer, he begins to grow fascinated by her, coming to realize no one has ever loved him as deeply. John Doyle directs the production, using an all-male cast except for Kuhn and Errico. Musical direction is by Rob Berman. Read more about the production.
Highlights From Ann on Broadway Known for her strong, salty roles on TV's "Two and a Half Men" and "Bosom Buddies," actress Holland Taylor was inspired to write about a personal hero and subsequently wound up on Broadway with her first play, the one-woman show Ann. Taylor stars as outspoken Texas Governor Ann Richards, a woman known for her sense of humor and down-home logic. Rising to national prominence after giving the keynote address at the 1988 Democratic National Convention, Richards became a voice for women's rights in the American political landscape. Benjamin Endsley Klein directs the production at the Vivian Beaumont Theater. Read the Playbill interview with Taylor.
Highlights From Old Hats Off-Broadway First collaborating 20 years ago in Fool Moon — a show that made three separate stops on Broadway in the 1990s — veteran stage clowns Bill Irwin and David Shiner reunite with Old Hats, a nouveau-Vaudevillian collection of comedic sketches and musical numbers. Joined by London-born musician and performer Nellie McKay as well as a four-person band, the pair employ the traditional (baggy pants, oversized shoes) and the modern (iPods, iPads and digital projections) for routines involving escape from giant boulders, the world of business and the modern political landscape. Read the Playbill story about the show.
Highlights From Newsies Starring Corey Cott and Kara Lindsay Disney's Broadway hit Newsies is the Alan Menken-Jack Feldman-Harvey Fierstein adaptation of the 1992 movie musical that became a cult hit despite lackluster box office numbers. Broadway newcomer (and recent college grad!) Corey Cott stars as Jack Kelly, the leader of a gang of orphaned newsboys who strike against publishing magnate Joseph Pulitzer in 1899 New York. Kara Lindsay is Katherine Plumber, a young reporter struggling to be taken seriously, who finds a story in the newsboys' plight — and takes a slightly more personal interest in Jack Kelly. Directed by Jeff Calhoun and with choreography by Christopher Gattelli (who won a 2012 Tony for his work on the show), the production plays Broadway's Nederlander Theatre. Read the Playbill "The Leading Men" column with Corey Cott.
Highlights From The Madrid Starring Edie Falco Tony Award nominee and Emmy Award winner Edie Falco plays a mother and teacher who sheds her life and moves to a rundown apartment building in the world premiere of Liz Flahive's The Madrid, now playing Off-Broadway at New York City Center Stage I. Directed by Leigh Silverman, the cast of the Manhattan Theatre Club production also includes Phoebe Strole, two-time Tony Award winner Frances Sternhagen and Tony nominee John Ellison Conlee, among others. For more information on The Madrid, click here.
Highlights From Talley's Folly Starring Danny Burstein and Sarah Paulson Roundabout Theatre Company's new production of Lanford Wilson's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Talley's Folly, the delicate study of two disparate souls, played by Danny Burstein and Sarah Paulson, is now playing Off-Broadway at the Laura Pels Theatre. The funny and heart-warming play shows Jewish immigrant Matt Friedman (Burstein) returning to the small town where he first met Protestant nurse Sally Talley (Paulson), to ask for her hand and convince her that they belong together. For more information on Talley's Folly, click here.
Highlights From Really Really Off-Broadway MCC Theater's New York premiere of the Paul Downs Colaizzo college-set drama Really Really, starring David Hull, Matt Lauria, Zosia Mamet and Evan Jonigkeit, is now playing at the Lucille Lortel Theatre. Obie Award winner David Cromer helms the play about a bit of ugly gossip that reveals a vicious jungle of sexual politics, raw ambition, and class warfare. For more information, click here.
Highlights From All in the Timing Off-Broadway Primary Stages presents the 20th anniversary revival of Tony-nominated David Ives' collection of six one-act comedies under the umbrella title All in the Timing. John Rando directs the production, which includes plays Sure Thing,Words, Words, Words, The Universal Language, Philip Glass Buys a Loaf of Bread, The Philadelphia and Variations of the Death of Trotsky. Matthew Saldivar, Carson Elrod, Liv Rooth, and Jenn Harris star in the first major New York City revival since its original run. The production plays 59E59 Theaters, and has been extended through April 14.
Highlights Driving Miss Daisy starring Angela Lansbury and James Earl Jones James Earl Jones, Angela Lansbury and Boyd Gaines star in Alfred Uhry's Pulitzer Prize-winning classic about a friendship that crosses lines of class and race. Sparks fly when Boolie Werthan (Gaines) hires Hoke Colburn (Jones) as a driver for his elderly but still feisty and independent mother Daisy (Lansbury). Set in the south between the late 1940s and early '70s, the relationship between Daisy and Hoke grows into a true friendship as the world changes around them. See the Playbill from the 2010 production featuring Jones and Gaines at Playbillvault.com.
