News

Lupita Nyong'o to Star in Bilingual Romeo y Julieta Audio Play for the Public Theater

Source: Broadway.com | Posted: November 23 2020 @ 3:23 pm

The Public Theater has announced a bilingual audio adaptation of Romeo y Julieta, starring Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o and Drama Desk Award winner Juan Castano as the star-crossed lovers. Adapted by Saheem Ali and Ricardo Pérez González and based on the Spanish translation by Alfredo Michel Modenessi, Romeo y Julieta is directed by Saheem Ali. It will debut on March 18, 2021.

The complete cast includes Carlo Albán, Karina Arroyave, Erick Betancourt, Michael Braugher, Carlos Carrasco, Ivonne Coll, John J. Concado, Hiram Delgado, Guillermo Diaz, Sarah Nina Hayon, Kevin Herrera, Modesto Lacen, Florencia Lozano, Irene Sofia Lucio, Keren Lugo, Benjamin Luis McCracken, Julio Monge, Javier Muñoz and David Zayas.

This marks the second collaboration between the Public Theater and WNYC Studios on an audio theater production. The four-part radio play Free Shakespeare on the Radio: Richard II, also directed by Ali and featuring Nyong'o, launched earlier this year and is currently available as a podcast series.

The Public Theater also announced its continued support of digital programing with the world premiere of a visual EP by creative trio The HawtPlates, concerts on the Joe's Pub digital stage, an exciting series of one-night discussions with Public Shakespeare Initiative and …

Odds & Ends: Dear Evan Hansen and Come From Away Set for CBS Thanksgiving Day Special & More

Source: Broadway.com | Posted: November 23 2020 @ 1:35 pm

Here's a quick roundup of stories you might have missed recently.

Dear Evan Hansen and Come From Away to Perform on CBS Thanksgiving Day Special
Thanksgiving will have an extra boost of Broadway this year. The 60th annual Thanksgiving Day Parade on CBS will feature performances from Dear Evan Hansen and Come From Away which were previously taped and aired during the 2018 parade. Fans will get to hear Taylor Trensch lead the Dear Evan Hansen cast with "You Will Be Found" while Come From Away will show a mashup of "38 Planes" and "Somewhere in the Middle of Nowhere." Hosted by Entertainment Tonight's Kevin Frazier and Keltie Knight, the special will be broadcast from 9AM-noon ET on November 26.

Florida Georgia Line Working on Country Movie Musical
Grammy-nominated country music duo Florida Georgia Line are teaming up with director TK McKamy and Monarch Media on a movie musical. Deadline reports that Florida Georgia Line’s Tyler Hubbard and Brian “BK” Kelley will create both original music and reimagined country music classics for the untitled project. Watch this space!

Diary Entries of Tony Nominee Alan Rickman to Be Published as Book
Fans of two-time Tony nominee Alan Rickman will be able …

The Inheritance Scribe Matthew Lopez to Write Screenplay About Tennessee Williams

Source: Broadway.com | Posted: November 23 2020 @ 1:02 pm

Matthew Lopez, who garnered a 2020 Tony nomination for The Inheritance and whose play The Legend of Georgia McBride is getting the Ryan Murphy/Netflix treatment, has another exciting project lined up. According to Variety, Lopez will write a feature film adaptation of the novel Leading Men, which centers on legendary playwright Tennessee Williams and his longtime partner Frank Merlo. The Searchlight Pictures project will be produced by Call Me By Your Name's Luca Guadagnino and Peter Spears.

Williams, who wrote acclaimed works like The Glass Menagerie, A Streetcar Named Desire, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and more, met Merlo in the 1940s. The film, which does not yet have a director, will set in Italy and New York the 1950s as Williams balances the burden of fame with his personal life.

This will be Lopez's first feature film writing credit. He was a staff writer on HBO's The Newsroom, which had a cast of stage and screen luminaries, including three-time Tony nominee Jeff Daniels and Tony winner John Gallagher Jr.

Casting, a creative team and a production timeline will be announced later.

We'll Drink to That! Company's Greg Hildreth Likens 2020 to Riding a Mechanical Bull

Source: Broadway.com | Posted: November 23 2020 @ 10:32 am

Living near the theater district during the Broadway shutdown, photographer and performer Matthew Stocke has been haunted walking past the empty palaces sitting in repose, waiting for the lights and stars to return. In this new Broadway.com photo feature, he reunites members of the theater community with their Broadway home #AwayFromHome.

GREG HILDRETH
COMPANY

After concluding a run in Disney's Frozen on Broadway last year, Greg Hildreth had plans to appear in Moscow Moscow Moscow Moscow Moscow Moscow. From there, he would head back to Broadway in The Rose Tattoo, starring Oscar winner Marisa Tomei. At the time of the Broadway shutdown, he was days away from opening night of the eagerly anticipated revival of Company. Here, Hildreth recounts his last drop-in to Patti LuPone's dressing room and shares what he misses most about the "merry band of freaks" that make up the theater community.

"I think so many of us move to the city or pursue the arts because growing up, we felt like a kid from Mars. The thing that really made me want to pursue acting was the sense of community. I belonged to a children’s theater company when I was …

What To Do (Without Broadway!): A Day-to-Day Schedule

Source: Broadway.com | Posted: November 23 2020 @ 10:00 am

Even with Broadway on hold, there's plenty to do. Trust the Broadway.com editors to get you in on the best online events, theater-centric films, TV shows and more!

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 24
The Liz Swados Project Celebration @ 8PM ET
Celebrate the new tribute album to four-time Tony nominee Liz Swados with this free event. The night will also feature the world premiere of a new music video produced, directed and starring Beetlejuice's Sophia Anne Caruso. Broadway favorites Damon Daunno, Amber Gray, Stephanie Hsu, Tony winner Ali Stroker and more also appear.
Watch Online.

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25
Raising Arizona Premieres
Alison Pill and Zachary Levi headline Joel and Ethan Coen's Raising Arizona as part of the Pandemic Players' series of streamed charity “table reads” of classic films, TV shows, radio plays and more. This first production benefits Covenant House.
Watch Online.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26
Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas! Premieres @ 3PM ET
San Diego’s The Old Globe’s 23rd annual production of Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas! will be presented by KPBS Radio in San Diego as a free audio-only production. Starring Edward Watts for the fourth time, the show will play for four nights: November 26, …