Fox News Gets it Wrong: Rosie O'Donnell Variety Show Finds a Home

FoxNews.com columnist Roger Friedman is reporting this morning about Rosie O'Donnell's upcoming live variety show on Novermber 26, 2008 on NBC, noting that the show will play "the Shubert."

In actuality, it's the Little Shubert, a little-known jewel box of a theatre (499 seats) at the end of 42nd street on theatre row. It opened in 2002 with Tommy Tune's White Tie and Tails and has yet to find a long-standing, reliable tenant. This could be the perfect fit.

With a little bit of research, they would have known that the Shubert was incorrect, as it currently houses Monty Python's SPAMALOT and the schedule shows, that on November 26th (the live air date), a performance of the hit (and soon to be closed) musical at 8pm.

The most recent use of the Little Shubert was for the soon to be blockbuster hit, Billy Elliot, where the cast rehearsed on stage, with their full set.

The Little Shubert is the first Off-Broadway theatre in New York built from the ground up, and the first to be owned by the Shubert Organization. Built as part of a residential tower and opened in 2002, the Little Shubert has the honor of being the first new theatre built by the Shubert Organization in New York City since 1928, when the Ethel Barrymore opened on West 47th Street.

In its short lifetime, the Little Shubert has been home to : Tommy Tune White Tie and Tails (2002), Hank Williams: Lost Highway (2003), Fame on 42nd Street (2003), Shockheaded Peter (2005), My Mother's Italian, My Father's Jewish, and I'm in Therapy! (2006) and Three Mo' Tenors (2007).

Notable features of the Little Shubert Theatre include an exceptionally well-configured auditorium with stadium seating providing excellent sightlines and proximity to the stage. The stage itself and the orchestra pit are comparable in size to the dimensions of many Broadway theatres. The interior décor blends exposed technical infrastructure with warm, rich colors, and includes reproductions of artwork from the Shubert Archive collection. On the exterior of the building, the marquee consists of an ornamental canopy in architectural metal and glass.

Rosie O'Donnell is returning to television in an attempt to revive the variety genre with "Rosie's Variety Show". A special will air live from New York on the night before Thanksgiving on November 26 at 8pm and is believed to be the kickoff for a 2009 regular launch.

The show, which is said to be modeled after traditional variety shows like Carol Burnett, Ed Sullivan and Sonny and Cher will include "celebrity guests, musical acts, comedy skits and a contest both for in-studio and at-home auds."

David Friedman will act as executive producer along with Rosie.

Rosie O'Donnell is a 13-time Emmy Award-winning American comedienne, talk show host, television personality, celebrity blogger, gay rights activist, film, television, and stage actress. She has appeared on Broadway in Fiddler on the Roof and Seussical! She also produced Taboo. Rosie O'Donnell is an often-advocate for New York theatre, featuring Broadway performances on her Emmy Award-winning talk-show "The Rosie O'Donnell Show," which ran 1996 to 2001. She was last seen as a co-host on the tenth season of ABC's "The View. She recently released her second book entitled "Celebrity Detox" with Warner books.

Photo Credit: Linda Lenzi