Another theatre season has begun and following close behind is another season of "Theater Talk," the theatre talk show which airs weekly in New York City on Channel 13/WNET and on Cablevision's MSG Metro Guide Channel. The new season gets underway on Friday, Oct. 16, when hosts Michael Riedel, the Broadway columnist of "The Daily News," and Susan Haskins of "The New York Theatre Wire," chat with "New York Times" drama critic Peter Marks and "Newsday" theatre columnist Patrick Pacheco. The following week, on Oct. 23, mega-producer Cameron Mackintosh (Cats, Miss Saigon) will pay a visit. Mackintosh will talk about his career and reflect on the current Broadway scene, offering his assessment of the success of the Disney corporation and the recent problems of Livent.
All shows will air at "Theatre Talk" 's regular time, Fridays at 12 midnight, following "The Charlie Rose Show." The show can also be seen on Cablevision's MSG Metro Guide Channel on Sunday nights at 9PM
The Oct. 16 show will coincide with Playbill On-Line's launch of a "Theater Talk" site and link, as PBOL -- the largest source of theater news and information on the Internet -- takes on the mantle of "Official Website of `Theater Talk' ." “We believe the program’s in-depth interviews complement nicely Playbill On-Line’s up-to-the-minute coverage of live theater,” observed Andrew C. McGibbon, Playbill On-Line’s Director of Online Development. As of October 16, Theater Talk’s website can be found online at http://www.theatertalk.playbill.com.
"Theater Talk" is now in its third season. The show typically includes an interview with a theatre personality and six or seven minutes of banter about the current goings-on in the theatre community.
"We conceived it as a sort of `Meet the Press' of Broadway," said Riedel. "There are a lot of shows out there that don't take a serious and spirited look at theatre and that's what we're trying to do. "We've always tried to keep it informal in tone," he continued. "We like to have a little fun talking about the theatre. The goal of the show is to make people feel they are a part of a conversion with Broadway insiders. Anyone who watches our show is a committed theatregoer"
"Theater Talk" airs weekly on Thirteen/WNET, New York City’s PBS affiliate, on Fridays at midnight. It re-airs Sunday nights at 9 PM on Cablevision’s MSG Metro Guide channel, which is available in Brooklyn, the Bronx, Westchester, Long Island, Fairfield, Connecticut and New Jersey.
