Touch and Go 1950 - Articles Page 4

BroadwayWorld.com is very excited to kick off a brand new partnership with THE SONDHEIM REVIEW. Each month we'll be bringing you special, and exclusive archives from the quarterly magazine dedicated to the work of the musical theatre and Broadway's foremost composer and lyricist, Stephen Sondheim. Each issue contains news, interviews, features, reviews, historical information, upcoming productions in your area, puzzles, and more. Our correspondents in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, London, and all over the world bring you the latest, most accurate information and insights.

The 18th Long Island Al Jolson Festival coming up on August 16 is a whole-day affair featuring film presentations, lectures, memorabilia displays and sales, and a performance--'The Heart of Al Jolson'--by singer and Staten Island native Tony Babino (photo below), who can sing Jolson songs like, well, you ain't heard nothin' yet. The other day, like clockwork, I received my yearly invitation to attend from Oceanside, LI resident Jan Hernstat, who for the past 10 years has been the President of the 62-year-old International Al Jolson Society (which was formed in early 1950, a few months before Jolson died), an organization with a worldwide membership hovering around 1,000. I am proud to say that for 30 years, I've been one of them. I'm even prouder to say that I've been an Al Jolson fanatic for much longer. Here's my story about how it happened.

PINKALICIOUS, at the Adventure Theatre - Musical Theater Center, in Glen Echo Park, directed by Carl Menninger, based on Victoria and Elizabeth Kann's children's novel, and adapted by the authors, with music and lyrics by John Gregor, is a winner. Although it is aimed at young children, it has plenty to delight parents and older kids as well.

Rock your face off at Joe's Pub at the Public this summer. Scroll down for this year's lineup!

For some months, I had been hearing strong, positive comments about a previous stage reading of actor/singer Justin Asher's original HAINT, and finally, tonight, after mounting publicity (including a spot on WKNO's Checking on the Arts and an article in The Commercial Appeal's GO MEMPHIS), I was able to attend the first, complete performance of the play, staged by New Moon Theatre at Theatre Works. Not since Jerre Dye's original CICADAS have I left a theatre in such a state of excitement; like Mr. Dye's play, which recently had a highly successful production in Chicago, this is a play born of a region and time - in this case, the isolated Ozarks of Arkansas in 1953.

Artistic Director Bill Rauch announced the Oregon Shakespeare Festival's 2015 playbill today. The 2015 season is sponsored by U.S. Bank.

Boise Little Theater is continuing their 66th season with BUS STOP by William Inge. BUS STOP is a story that takes place in a diner in Kansas during the late winter ('in like a lion' is mentioned a few times early in the play) in 1955. The era of bobby socks, Happy Days and Rock n' Roll. It is a story of the passengers on the bus who are stranded overnight due to a storm. There are 4 passengers, not including the bus driver, and none of them are happy to be stranded at Grace's Diner.

Yoshi's San Francisco has announced its upcoming lineup, now through March 9, 2014. Details below!

Truly one of the most elegant, though underrated musicals of the new century, THE LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA---now on stage in a lovely new production at South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa through February 23---follows the uneasy journey that a loving, though over-protective mother must embark on when her daughter discovers the wonderfully vulnerable world of adult love. Filled with a gorgeously sweeping score by Adam Guettel and an insanely talented cast, this Italian journey surely ranks as one of the best, most attractive musicals SCR has mounted in recent years.

The Cabaret Showdown is a monthly game show that offers a unique mixture of live karaoke and Jeopardy. Contestants are asked to sing selections from various musical categories listed on the Official Game Board with no knowledge of what the song will be until right before they sing. To level the playing field all songs are popular standards, each contestant is given a copy of the sheet music and accompanied by a live pianist. The winner receives a free booking at UNDER St. Marks for their very own showcase. Whether you are a contestant or in the audience you are guaranteed to have a blast!

NBC Sports Group's coverage of the NHL Stadium Series begins this weekend with coverage from both Chavez Ravine and the home of the Bronx Bombers

The ABC Television Network and the PEANUTS gang will ring in the new year with the animated PEANUTS special, “Happy New Year, Charlie Brown,” created by late cartoonist Charles M. Schulz

Surflight Theatre, the landmark summer theatre on the Jersey Shore, celebrates its 65th Anniversary of "Broadway at the Beach" in 2014 with a season of musicals from June through September.

A new CD, The Hours Begin to Sing, with songs by American composers performed by soprano Lisa Delan, has just been released on the PentaTone Classics label (PTC 5186 459).

The classic, Emmy-nominated springtime special, 'It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown' (OAD 3/25/05), along with 'Charlie Brown All Stars' (OAD: 4/7/09) - back on network television for the first time since 1982 - will air as a one-hour 'PEANUTS' special, TODAY, MARCH 31 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network.

The classic, Emmy-nominated springtime special, "It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown" (OAD 3/25/05), along with "Charlie Brown All Stars" (OAD: 4/7/09) - back on network television for the first time since 1982 - will air as a one-hour "PEANUTS" special, SUNDAY, MARCH 31 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network.

The Columbus premiere of John Logan's, 'Red' fell on Valentine's Day, but the 2010 Tony Award winning play's only lover's obsession is that of artist Mark Rothko's relationship with his own art. The intensely intellectual two-man play stars Kevin McClatchy as the mid 20th Century painter, and Tim Simeone as Ken, his recently hired assistant. 'Red' details the two year span of Rothko's career in which he was working on a commissioned series of paintings for the new Four Seasons Restaurant in the posh Park AvenueSeagramBuilding. 'What do you see?' begins Rothko, and as such, the audience gets an extraordinary opportunity to see an artist seeing his own work, a perspective that proves entrancing, profound, and deeply heart-wrenching.

The ABC Television Network and the PEANUTS gang will ring in the new year with the animated PEANUTS special, 'Happy New Year, Charlie Brown,' created by late cartoonist Charles M. Schulz, along with 'She's a Good Skate, Charlie Brown,' airing with Spanish audio via SAP THURSDAY, DECEMBER 27 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET), on the ABC Television Network.

Check out what the critics are saying below!

The movie premiered earlier this week in New York City, and you can check out what the critics are saying below!

The movie premiered last night in New York City, and you can check out what the critics are saying below!

The Film Society of Lincoln Center and Dance Films Association today announced the lineup for the 41st edition of Dance on Camera. Taking place February 1-5, the dance-centric film festival returns to the Film Society for the 17th consecutive year with an exciting and diverse array of dance films, including several premieres.

The 2013 Lincoln Center American Songbook series has just been announced via the New York Times.

Beginning this month, the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) will celebrate the iconic work and enduring legacy of composer Kurt Weill with an unprecedented series of events. Opening on Friday, Oct. 19, and running through Tuesday, March 12, CCM's Kurt Weill Festival will incorporate the renowned theatre composer into a broad range of both public performances and classroom exercises.

In preparation for the All-Day Long Island Al Jolson Festival (in Oceanside, NY) on Saturday, August 18, BroadwayWorld.com cabaret columnist Stephen Hanks offers his take on what made the 'World's Greatest Entertainer' so great, and muses about the reasons as to why he is such a devotee of the man who once owned Broadway and starred in the first talking picture.