BWW Morning Brief December 1st, 2017: BWW Goes Live with Michael Arden, Jane Krakowski in Bryant Park, and More!

Good morning, BroadwayWorld! Because we know all our readers eat, sleep and breathe Broadway, what could be better than waking up to it? Scroll down for the latest news, and click HERE to learn more about how we've revamped our morning brief for 2017! Want our morning reports delivered via email? Subscribe here!

1) Barbra Streisand Named All-Time Queen of the Billboard 200
by Emily Bruno - November 30, 2017

Billboard is currently celebrating women's achievements in the music industry. To celebrate women, Billboard has released Greatest of All Time lists to honor the females who have continuously topped the Hot 100 and the Billboard 200 with their amazing songs and albums.. (more...)

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2) Angela Lansbury Says Sexual Harassment Comments Taken 'Out of Context'
by TV News Desk - November 30, 2017

Following a great deal of backlash, the actress issued a statement Wednesday evening, defending her comments and expressing her belief that there is no excuse for men to sexually abuse women.. (more...)

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3) Playwright Israel Horovitz Accused of Sexual Misconduct by Nine Women
by BWW News Desk - November 30, 2017

Nine allegations of sexual misconduct have been leveled against prolific playwright Israel Horovitz, according to an in-depth article published today in The New York Times.. (more...)

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4) VIDEO: Lin-Manuel Miranda Writes Original GREAT COMET Lyrics in Honor of Malloy and Chavkin's Smithsonian Award
by Stephanie Wild - November 30, 2017

Lin-Manuel Miranda took to Twitter to post the original lyrics he wrote to 'Sonya Alone' from Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812. He wrote the lyrics in honor of Dave Malloy and Rachel Chavkin winning Smithsonian's 2017 Ingenuity Award, and he performed the song at the ceremony last night.. (more...)

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5) David Alan Grier, Ken Jeong & PRETTYMUCH Join FOX's A CHRISTMAS STORY LIVE!
by BWW News Desk - November 30, 2017

Ken Jeong, David Alan Grier and PRETTYMUCH have joined the cast of A CHRISTMAS STORY LIVE!, airing Sunday, Dec. 17 (7:00-10:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed), on FOX.. (more...)

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Today's Call Sheet:

-BroadwayWorld Live Will Chat with ONCE ON THIS ISLAND's Michael Arden tonight! Submit your questions!

-Jane Krakowski narrates the TREE LIGHTING SKATE-TACULAR tonight at Bryant Park!

-Stage Couple Jarrod Spector and Kelli Barrett and more carol for Broadway's Babies at Macy's tonight!

-Tony Yazbeck brings his one man evening of song and dance tonight at The Green Room 42!

-James Lecesne reprises his role for an EXTRAORDINARY MEASURES benefit tonight at Abingdon!

-FunkiJam HOLIDAY BEAT, DE NOVO, and BELIEVE IN MAGIC all open off-Broadway tonight!

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BWW Exclusive: Check out our exclusive video and photos from opening night of METEOR SHOWER

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What we're geeking out over: Check out this brand new production footage from ONCE ON THIS ISLAND!

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What we're watching: A first look trailer has been released for Kristen Bell's theatre-themed ABC special, ENCORE!

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And a Happy Birthday shout-out to Bette Midler, who turns 72 today!

In a legendary career spanning five unbroken decades of matchless cultural relevance, Bette Midler is a performer who thrillingly continues to defy categorization. She is a recording artist who has sold more than 35 million albums and won four Grammy Awards. She is a stage performer who has, year after year and in show after show, sold out the largest venues around the globe across more than a dozen tours. She is a Tony Award, three-time Emmy, three-time Golden Globe-winning and twice Academy Award-nominated actress who made her Broadway debut in the original Broadway production of Fiddler on the Roof in 1967, and went on to star in dozens of blockbuster films, creating some of the most iconic screen performances in cinematic history.

Throughout the 1970's, she brought to Broadway three well-loved concert events: Bette Midler (in 1973, and for which she received a special Tony Award), Bette Midler's Clams on the Half Shell Revue (in 1975), and Bette! Divine Madness (in 1979). In 2013, Midler returned to the Broadway stage, after a nearly 40-year absence, to star in the one-woman play I'll Eat You Last: A Chat with Sue Mengers in which she played the legendary Hollywood agent, wowing critics and selling out performance after performance in a run that broke the house record at the Booth Theatre. In addition to being one of the best-loved, most versatile, and instantly recognizable entertainers in the world, Midler is also a great and abiding New Yorker and one of its most generous and tireless citizens. In 1994, she started the New York Restoration Project, a non-profit organization devoted to bringing abandoned and neglected parks, gardens and open spaces in all five boroughs back to abundant life.

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See you bright and early on Monday, BroadwayWorld!