Cameron Mackintosh News

Not only did Hugh Jackman and producer Cameron Mackintosh give Les Misérables movie fans a Friday treat with this picture, taken on the Les Mis set, they have also revealed that the first movie teaser trailer will be available next Wednesday, May 30! (more...)

Festival Of Chaos opens tonight with BLOOD WEDDING, directed by Royal & Derngate's Artistic Director, Laurie Sansom. Festival of Chaos is part of the London 2012 Festival. We have an advance photo of Ery Nzaramba and Seline Hizli, who are performing as Leonardo and The Bride. Check back for more production photos later! (more...)

Due to popular demand, Cameron Mackintosh’s acclaimed new production of Les Misérables returns to Seattle’s 5th Avenue Theatre for a spectacular two-week engagement, June 27-July 8, 2012. (more...)

Tuacahn Amphitheatre has announced that it has been granted the rights by Disney Theatrical Group to produce Mary Poppins in 2013. (more...)

Broadway Across Canada and producers Thomas Schumacher of Disney Theatrical Productions and Cameron Mackintosh announced today that tickets for the long-awaited production of MARY POPPINS will go on sale to the public on Monday, June 4 at 10 a.m. CalgaryÂ’s most eagerly awaited stage production will begin performances at the Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditoriumon Tuesday, July 31 for a limited engagement of one week through Sunday, August 5. The opening night is Tuesday, July 31 at 8pm. (more...)

Als Kind sieht Tommy Walker einen Mord mit an – mit verheerenden Auswirkungen. Durch dieses Trauma wird Tommy blind, taub und stumm. Er wird von vermeintlichen Freunden und sogar seiner Familie über Jahre misshandelt. Schließlich wird Tommy wie durch ein Wunder zum "Pinball Wizard" (Flipperkönig) und versammelt bald als Heilsbringer eine große Anhängerschaft um sich. Doch auch als Star nutzt man ihn aus. Als er das erkennt, beschließt er, alles radikal zu ändern... (more...)

In honor of this week’s US release of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA AT THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL on DVD/Blu-ray - PHANTOM 25 for short - today we are focusing on the multitude of attributes that have made Andrew Lloyd Webber’s unforgettable gothic musical the most successful entertainment of all time, now in its 25th year onstage and about to reach 10,000 performances on Broadway, where it is the reigning longest running show of all time. The gargantuan excitement generated by and the enthusiastic reception enjoyed by PHANTOM for audiences worldwide is unprecedented, yet, the new ultimate presentation of the show - PHANTOM 25 - is even more spectacular and thrilling than any iteration of PHANTOM on any stage or screen thus far. Bringing together the cast of a lifetime with the electricity of a live audience, the HD preservation of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA AT THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL is positively peerless in its sleekness, precision and polish of presentation. Never before - not even in the vaunted hands and cords of original show stars Sarah Brightman and Michael Crawford - has the show been this contemporary, sexual and hypnotizing. Ramin Karimloo as the Phantom brings a rawness and austerity to the role that commands attention and Sierra Boggess is, in a word, supreme, as the young ingénue under the Phantom’s watchful musical tutelage. So, too, does Hadley Fraser’s perfectly painted Raoul hit the right mark, as do the rest of the exceptional cast in their commitment to making clear-cut, strong and colorful impressions in their roles. The LED-enhanced set is an imaginative reworking of the designs by Maria Bjornson and the musical staging is smooth and assured thanks to original show choreographer Gillian Lynne. Yet, the star of PHANTOM 25 is, unquestionably, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s rapturous, rich and enveloping score. Bringing together an impressive and inspired assortment of genres in creating the quintessential pop opera, Lloyd Webber employs elements of grand opera, opera bouffe, operetta and musical theatre, as well as incorporates a diverse range of musical styles - even a little heavy metal guitar in the title song, as we shall see (and hear). The score of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA is one of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s finest achievements and stands tall alongside his other classic scores for JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR, EVITA, CATS, SUNSET BOULEVARD among many other international hit shows. Indeed, the story and score of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA is so very complex and decadent as to allow for a continuation of the story, score, characters and overall themes in the form of the new musical, LOVE NEVER DIES, which premiered in a new version in Australia last year and whose story traces the relationship of the Phantom, Christine and Raoul from the end of the original show all the way from Paris to Coney Island ten years later where PHANTASMA is the show everyone must experience thanks to a mysterious figure lurking in the shadows beyond the carousel. In today’s celebration of PHANTOM 25, we will take a look at the original music videos, the legendary Hal Prince production on Broadway and in the West End, the forthcoming LOVE NEVER DIES - coming to Fathom-equipped theaters nationwide later this month - all with a special spotlight on the most phantastic anniversary concert of all time, THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA AT THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL. (more...)

Theater actor, writer, and director Gerard AlessandriniÂ’s brainchild, the 30-year-old Off-Broadway hit parody series FORBIDDEN BROADWAY, finally premiered at Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza in Makati City last weekend. Joel Trinidad, Upstart ProductionsÂ’ president and the showÂ’s director, had picked FORBIDDEN BROADWAY'S GREATEST HITS, which has two volumes to date, and features some of the more popular spoofs of Broadway musicals and theater legends culled from more than a dozen FORBIDDEN BROADWAY editions. (more...)

Chairman of Stage Entertainment, Joop van den Ende and Producer and President of Disney Theatrical Productions, Thomas Schumacher announce two premiere productions of THE LITTLE MERMAID. The Holland production is currently in previews in Groningen and opens on June 16th, 2012 in Rotterdam. The Moscow production of THE LITTLE MERMAID will make its debut on October 6th, 2012. (more...)

Albuquerque Theatre Guild announces its summer calendar of exciting plays and musicals, including LES MISERABLES, MARY POPPINS, 1776 and more. (more...)

West End leading man and recording artist Jeremiah James will join the cast of The Fantasticks on Tuesday, May 8, 2012. He succeeds Edward Watts in the role of El Gallo. (more...)

Cameron Mackintosh announced today full casting for the spectacular new production of Andrew Lloyd WebberÂ’s THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. (more...)

If you're looking for a good example of what great hidden gems are being produced at Southern California regional theaters these days, then look (and listen) no further than the enjoyable revival of the smash musical MISS SAIGON currently playing at the La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts through May 6 (with three additional shows at the Fox Performing Arts Center in Riverside, CA starting May 11). Produced by McCoy Rigby Entertainment, this surprisingly full-scale production of the West End/Broadway hit is not only a feast for those with a penchant for big, grandiose theatrics, it will also please those seeking to hear a lovely, euphoric score performed by a talented ensemble. (more...)

Kravis Center Caps Sensational 20th Anniversary Season in May & June With Fun-Filled Shows for Entertainment Fans of All Ages + Spotlight on Young Musicians – May 3 + CLIFFORD THE BIG RED DOG LIVE! – May 5 + The Gipsy Kings – May 9 + Straight No Chaser – May 11 + The New 25th Anniversary Production of LES MISÉRABLES – May 16-26 + Katie Couric’s THE BRAND NEW KID – June 19-22 (more...)

Forget “Rock Of Ages.” That 21st century musical about the 1980s has nothing on the real thing. “Cats,” the show that set much of the look and tone of musical theater for the next decade or so when it opened in London in 1981 and in New York in 1982 (and began continuous touring in 1984, a record unmatched in theater history) is on display for this week only (sorry, “Now And Forever”) at Chicago’s Cadillac Palace Theatre. Forget “Rock Of Ages.” That 21st century musical about the 1980s has nothing on the real thing. “Cats,” the show that set much of the look and tone of musical theater for the next decade or so when it opened in London in 1981 and in New York in 1982 (and began continuous touring in 1984, a record unmatched in theater history) is on display for this week only (sorry, “Now And Forever”) at Chicago’s Cadillac Palace Theatre. And I, who saw the original Broadway production twice during that heady decade and have not seen the show in any form since then, was eager to go and see what the fuss was, and is, all about. So I went, Tuesday night. If you’ve never seen this show, if you kids have never seen it, or if you want to experience the magic of this unique theatrical masterpiece one more time, then this is a great opportunity to do so, as this is the only remaining North American production to (somewhat) accurately replicate the award-winning, record-setting British musical that took America and the world by storm thirty years ago. This tour of non-Equity performers, with its usual orchestra of five beefed up to eight for a weeklong stand (May 1-6) in a major theatrical market, has enough going for it that I highly recommend it. It’s a little like entering a time machine, and there’s a lot of sleight of hand, but it works. Let me explain. What is “Cats?” Much maligned by insiders, derided as dated by visual artists, underrated by dance teachers and ignored by voice teachers (save for its megahit song, “Memory,” which is heard twice, but never in the sheet music version everything has heard and claims to know), it is in many ways a dichotomy. It’s a dance show (choreography by Gillian Lynne) written by a singer’s songwriter (Andrew Lloyd Webber), as well as a British song cycle based on poems written by a St. Louis-born English poet (T. S. Eliot) who never intended his work (“Old Possum’s Book Of Practical Cats,” and other snippets) to be either musicalized or staged. Its plot, slight though it is, is also the subject of much derision, but to this observer is very reminiscent of “A Chorus Line,” a universally revered work that does include dialogue and more depth of character, but also honors unity of time and place. However, there are indeed works that dispense with plot entirely, and which people unabashedly love (you know, revues--“Ain’t Misbehavin’” comes to mind), and even shows like “Forever Plaid” and Lloyd Webber’s “Starlight Express” feature heaven-going as a climax that is not entirely a surprise. So, enough complaining about there being no dramatic tension, already. But the spectacle! Is it a rock concert with dance, a dance concert with character, a makeup and hair extravaganza with arena-style lighting (still thrilling, the work of David Hersey, as recreated by Rick Belzer), a radio-friendly cast album with a decidedly British keyboard-rock spin, an intellectual set of inscrutable poems with earworm melodies, an environmental theater piece that’s fun for all ages (an unmistakeable set and costume design by the remarkable John Napier)--what exactly is going on? The answer, of course, is all of the above. Oh, and it owes a lot to the English music hall tradition and to contemporary classical music, too, not to mention Puccini. Name another show that encompasses so much. Not to mention that original marketing campaign. Aside from his immature works (the children’s show “Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” and others), Lloyd Webber’s previous shows written with Tim Rice (the two nominated for the Best Revival of a Musical Tony Award this year, “Jesus Christ Superstar” and “Evita,”) were both introduced to the world via record albums and marketing campaigns that featured a logo rather than a star name and image. But “Cats” seemed to take that even further, dispensing with the concept album and zeroing in on the show AS the star. Indeed, this show has no leading roles. Really. But who can forget that moon/cats’ eyes/dancer silhouette logo, and the letters of the title in color-coordinated graffiti (echoing the oversized junkyard scene design). It was exciting and revolutionary at the time, and the only shows that have done it better since then (Lloyd Webber’s “The Phantom Of The Opera” and director Trevor Nunn’s “Les Miserables,” all three produced by wunderkind Cameron Mackintosh) are the only ones that have run longer in London and New York, due to the lessons they learned from the feline juggernaut before us now. It was “the birth of the musical spectacular,” as Broadway In Chicago’s promotional materials tell us. This particular edition of the endless “Cats” tour, directed and choreographed by Richard Stafford and featuring mostly young, recent graduates of top U.S. musical theater and dance schools, is indeed “cut down” from the total makeover that the Winter Garden Theatre in New York displayed for the 18 years it played there (1982-2000). But the “Christmas lights” that once ringed the audience do indeed extend past the proscenium arch, and the cast makes several trips out into the aisles, a nice touch. The back wall of the set does not swing down to reveal the ship’s set needed for the “Growltiger’s Last Stand” sequence--they use drops and a false proscenium downstage center here, and I almost liked it better. The set as a whole is not as detailed and certainly not as deep as it once was, but if you haven’t seen the video of the London production, or the show as it played in the early ‘80s, you would be none the wiser. Sound-wise, I have to give credit to sound designer Duncan Robert Edwards, musical supervisor Kristen Blodgette and music director J. Michael Duff. I swear the show sounds better than ever, even with a smaller orchestra than originally employed. And I could understand the lyrics! The costumes and makeup design look simplified to me, though, but again, a newcomer to the proceedings wouldn’t know. And do I care of part of the set is inflatable, as rumor would have it? I don’t care how they get it from city to city, or how quickly they do it, but somebody does care, and they figured out a way to make it work! The floating tire and the thing that comes down from the fly space (spoiler alert?) look great, absolutely. Absolutely. The cast is led by Melissa Grohowski as Grizabella, the role made famous by Elaine Paige and Betty Buckley and carrying with it, shall we say, a certain expectation of a certain money note. Boy, does Ms. Grohowski deliver! Three people stood during the applause for the number. Bravo to Clemmons/Dewing Casting, I say! The two singing roles for the men, Old Deuteronomy and Gus/Growltiger/Bustopher Jones, are essayed here by Nathan Morgan and Christopher E. Sidori, who both acquitted themselves well and were very effective theatrically, whatever their actual ages. Among the dance roles, Daniel J. Self as the narrator Munkustrap, Chris Stevens as Rum Tum Tugger and especially Chaz Wolcott as Mistoffelees were crowd pleasers: Self with his movement detailing, Stevens with his Elvis impersonation and Wolcott with his amazing fouette turns. The cast of two dozen or so performers dances uniformly well, and sings very well, too, save for a few minor quibbles with single lines here. And there or some missing low notes that older performers would probably have no trouble with. But these are easily forgiven. Who cares if the leading lights of Broadway (Harry Groener, Terrence Mann, Anna McNeely and of course Ken Page) have been replaced in these roles by recent graduates of Wright State, SUNY-Purchase and Oklahoma City University? These energetic, disciplined performers are working their tails off (pun intended), singing like people who can’t dance a lick and are basking in the glow of theater history with every city they visit. Yes, the show has moments that seem a little longwinded, and sure, it doesn’t challenge your intellect as much as it challenges your wallet and your caffeine intake (it takes place at night, and everybody is dressed like a cat!). But I challenge you to remain unmoved when Grizabella begs for physical contact, when old Gus relives his moment of youthful theatrical triumph, when assorted junk becomes the train that Skimbleshanks loves, and when the sopranos of the ensemble soar on the words, “’Round the cathedral rang ‘Vivat!” Come on! It’s “Cats.” It’s eye and ear candy galore. I don’t even like cats, but I do like “Cats.” Very much. “Cats” plays this week only, Tuesday night through Sunday night, with additional matinee performances on Saturday and Sunday, at the Cadillac Palace Theatre, 151 W. Randolph Street in Chicago. Tickets are available at all Broadway In Chicago box offices, the Ticket Kiosk at Water Tower Place, all Ticketmaster retail outlets, by phone (800.775.2000) and online at www.BroadwayInChicago.com. Photos: Melissa Grohowski; The Cast (more...)

#searchforatwitterstar, the online talent competition being run by the Twitter phenomenon @westendproducer, is being brought to the West End stage. With hundreds of entries to the talent search via Youtube and Twitter, 10 Finalists - five male and five female - will battle it out in a live final to become a potential Leading Lady and Leading Man of the West End, at the Lyric Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue, on Monday 9th July. (more...)

The worldÂ’s most famous nanny returns to Los Angeles for four weeks only with MARY POPPINS. Featuring the irresistible story and unforgettable songs from one of the most popular Disney films of all time, plus brand-new breathtaking dance numbers and spectacular stage-craft, Mary Poppins will begin previews on August 9 (2pm and 7.30pm) and open August 10 (7.20pm) through September 2 at Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre at the Music Center, 135 N. Grand Avenue in Downtown L.A. 90012. (more...)

Come celebrate French Week downtown with the hit Broadway musical, Les Misérables! Based on Victor Hugo’s classic novel, Les Misérables plays Jacksonville’s Times-Union Center from May 1st - 6th for eight performances only! (more...)

Hottest Articles on BroadwayWorld.com from this weekend Sunday, April 29, 2012 - Sunday, April 29, 2012. (more...)

Theater League will present the 2012-2013 Broadway at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza Series. The highly anticipated 25th Anniversary Production of LES MISÉRABLES, the enchanting CIRQUE DREAMS HOLIDAZE, the newly staged DREAMGIRLS and Broadway hit HAIR will take the stage as part of the 2012-2013 Broadway in Thousand Oaks Series. (more...)