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Saturday , June 1
GO→ Tony-nominated "Glee" star Matthew Morrison returns to New York with an intimate concert at 54 Below. Morrison promises songs off his new album, "Where It All Began," which features an eclectic mix of Broadway and jazz standards including songs like "Singin' in the Rain," "The Lady Is a Tramp," "Luck Be a Lady" and "Send in the Clowns." Can't make it to Manhattan? You can still get your Morrison fix when PBS airs his solo concert taped last November in Hartford, CT. (Through June 4, 54 Below, 254 W. 54th St., btwn. Broadway & 8th Ave. Info/tickets.)
WATCH→ Playbill and yours truly will be joining the good folks at NY1's "On Stage" to present a national version of the 15-year-old theatre mainstay called "On Stage Across America"! I'll be serving as the show's co-host alongside NY1 theatre reporter Frank DiLella. This next episode promises a visit with Aaron Tveit, a look at this year's Tony nominees, a peek at the contenders for the high school Tonys (otherwise known as the Jimmy Awards) and more! (Check your local listings and on Time Warner Cable On Demand. Info.)
Sunday, June 2
LAST CHANCE→ Bobby Cannavale stars in his second revival of the season in Clifford Odets' The Big Knife. In the 1949 drama about the often-corrupt studio system that ran Hollywood during its Golden Age, Cannavale plays Charlie Castle, the star of Hoff-Federated studio. Hoff's kingpin (Tony-nominated Richard Kind) threatens to divulge a very sinister secret of Charlie’s in order to retain his prize possession, and Charlie's estranged wife (Marin Ireland) and confidant (Chip Zien) get caught in the crossfire. (American Airlines Theatre, 227 W. 42nd St., btwn. 7th & 8th Aves., Click here for Playbill Club discount tickets)
OPENING→ Kelli O'Hara stars in the nearly sold-out engagement of Far From Heaven, a new musical adaptation of the film starring Julianne Moore. The story of a suburban housewife trying to keep up appearances in 1950s Connecticut, despite a closeted husband and a developing relationship with an African-American man, receives the musical treatment courtesy of playwright Richard Greenberg and Grey Gardens scribes Scott Frankel and Michael Korie. (Through July 7, Playwrights Horizons, 416 W. 42nd St., btwn. 9th & 10th Aves. Info/tickets.)
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| photo by Andrew Eccles |
GO→ A limited amount of tickets remain for the star-studded tribute to the late Marvin Hamlisch, marking the centennial of the American Cancer Society. On the starry roster of presenters and performers are Bernadette Peters, Michael Douglas, Stephanie J. Block, Lilla Crawford, Joel Grey, Matthew Morrison and more. (8 PM show, Hudson Theatre, 145 W 44th St., btwn. 6th & 7th Aves. Info/tickets.)
GO (FREE)→ The League of Professional Theatre Women hosts an oral history and interview with two-time Tony winner Patti LuPone, kicking off several events celebrating women in theatre. Following the LuPone talk will be a Sardi's luncheon honoring Peggy Eisenhauer, Judith Malina, Mia Katigbak and Ashley Marinaccio (June 5) and a suffragette-inspired parade and march on Broadway (June 11). (6 PM, New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, 65th and Amsterdam, first-come, first-serve. Info.)
Tuesday, June 4
GO→ Tony-winning South Pacific star Paulo Szot joins the New York Philharmonic and some special Broadway friends in An Enchanted Evening with Paulo Szot. Joining Szot and conductor Ted Sperling onstage at Avery Fisher Hall will be Megan Hilty and Marin Mazzie. Expect Broadway standards from Rodgers and Hammerstein, Stephen Sondheim and Lerner and Loewe mixed in with some flavor from Szot’s native Brazil. (7:30 PM, Avery Fisher Hall, 10 Lincoln Center Plaza, 64th St. and Broadway. Info/tickets.)
Wednesday, June 5
OPENING→ "I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell," the New York Times best-selling book by perennial misogynist Tucker Max, will get the stage treatment with I Hope They Serve Beer on Broadway. Max has nothing to do with the stage adaptation (thankfully), but he will be at some performances and, of course, they will be serving beer. I can't say I recommend this one (the book is a field guide on awful behavior), but if your boyfriend is a real "dude" and you've been dying for a theatre date-night, this might be something of interest. Just drink a lot of said beer! (777 Theatre, 777 8th Ave., btwn. 47th & 48th Sts. Info/tickets.)
Thursday, June 6
OPENING→ The life and work of writer Susan Sontag is explored in New York Theatre Workshop's Sontag: Reborn. Created by and starring Moe Angelos, the multi-media solo show draws from Sontag's journals and famous essays to trace her life from a teenager to a world-renowned essayist and activist. (New York Theatre Workshop, 79 E. 4th St., btwn. Bowery and 2nd Ave., click here for Playbill Club discount tickets.)
Friday, June 7
GO→ Writer, producer and director Joss Whedon (of "Avengers" fame) takes a decidedly more theatrical turn with the film adaptation of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing. The black-and-white film, shot in 12 days at the director's home, is a modern retelling of the famous romantic comedy and stars Amy Acker, Alexis Denisof, Tom Lenk, Clark Gregg, Reed Diamond, Nathan Fillion, Sean Maher, Fran Kranz, Jillian Morgese, Ashley Johnson, Spencer Treat Clark and Riki Lindhome. (Info.)
Blake Ross is the editor of Playbill magazine. Follow her on Twitter @PlaybillBlake.
Watch highlights of Broadway's The Big Knife:
