Broadway By Design: David Rockwell & Jeff Mahshie Bring SHE LOVES ME from Page to StageMarch 27, 2016Who is Annie without her red dress? Or Eva with out her balcony? It is the charge of the Broadway designer to transport the audience into the world of a show, whether it be Great Depression-era New York City or outside of the Casa Rosada.
In our new series, Broadway by Design, BroadwayWorld will be shining a spotlight on the stellar designs of this Broadway season, show by show. Today, we kick off the series with David Rockwell and Jeff Mahshie, who acted as scenic and costume designers for Roundabout's glorious revival of SHE LOVES ME.
STAGE TUBE: On This Day for 3/27/16- GYPSYMarch 27, 2016Today in 2008, the fourth Broadway revival of Gypsy opened at the St. James Theatre, where it ran for 332 performances. Gypsy is a musical with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. It follows the dreams and efforts of Rose to raise two daughters to perform onstage and casts an affectionate eye on the hardships of show business life. The musical contains many songs that became popular standards, including 'Small World,' 'Everything's Coming up Roses', 'Some People', 'Let Me Entertain You', and 'Rose's Turn'.
STAGE TUBE: On This Day for 3/26/16- ANNIEMarch 26, 2016Today in 1997, Annie opened at the Martin Beck Theatre (now the Al Hirschfeld Theatre), where it ran for 239 performances. Annie is a Broadway musical based upon the popular Harold Gray comic strip Little Orphan Annie, with music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Martin Charnin, and the book by Thomas Meehan. The original Broadway production opened in 1977 and ran for nearly six years, setting a record for the Alvin Theatre (now the Neil Simon Theatre). It spawned numerous productions in many countries, as well as national tours, and won the Tony Award for Best Musical. The musical's songs 'Tomorrow' and 'It's the Hard-Knock Life' are among its most popular musical numbers.
STAGE TUBE: On This Day for 3/25/16- MY FAIR LADYMarch 25, 2016Today in 1976, the first Broadway revival of My Fair Lady opened at the St. James Theatre, where it ran for 377 performances. My Fair Lady is a musical based upon George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion and with book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe. The story concerns Eliza Doolittle, a Cockney flower girl who takes speech lessons from professor Henry Higgins, a phoneticist, so that she may pass as a well born lady. The musical's 1956 Broadway production was a hit, setting what was then the record for the longest run of any major musical theatre production in history. It was followed by a hit London production, a popular film version, and numerous revivals.
STAGE TUBE: On This Day for 3/24/16- ALL SHOOK UP!March 24, 2016Today in 2005, All Shook Up opened at the Palace Theatre, where it ran for 213 performances.All Shook Up is a jukebox musical with Elvis Presley music, with a book by Joe DiPietro. The story is based on William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. Directed by Christopher Ashley, with choreography by Ken Roberson, the original Broadway cast included Cheyenne Jackson (Chad), Jenn Gambatese (Natalie Haller/'Ed'), and Jonathan Hadary (Jim Haller).
TV: CHICAGO Stars Reunite to Celebrate Two Decades of Razzle Dazzle!March 23, 2016CHICAGO, Broadway's longest running American musical, just held a celebratory cocktail reception yesterday at New York City's The Palm Restaurant West Side location to officially launch the show's 20th anniversary year. Lead producer Barry Weissler addressed the crowd to toast the occasion and announce initiatives taking place over the next year in the lead-up to the official anniversary celebration and performance this November. BroadwayWorld was there for the special celebration and you can check out interviews with CHICAGO stars of past and present below!
TV: Telly Leung, Chita Rivera, Tony Yazbeck, Danielle Brooks & More Switch Things Up at BROADWAY BACKWARDS!March 23, 2016The sold-out audience at Broadway's Al Hirschfeld Theatre was dazzled Monday, March 21, 2016, by this year's stirring edition of BROADWAY BACKWARDS. The annual celebration, where men sing songs originally written for women and vice versa offering this audience the chance to see LGBT stories told through the great songs of musical theatre, set a new fundraising record. The evening raised an incredible $480,287 to benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center in New York City. broadwayWorld was there for the special occasion and we're taking you backstage with the stars below!
TV: Past CHICAGO Stars Usher, Brooke Shields, Jennifer Nettles & More Send 20th Anniversary LoveMarch 23, 2016CHICAGO, Broadway's longest running American musical, just held a celebratory cocktail reception yesterday at New York City's The Palm Restaurant West Side location to officially launch the show's 20th anniversary year. Lead producer Barry Weissler addressed the crowd to toast the occasion and announce initiatives taking place over the next year in the lead-up to the official anniversary celebration and performance this November.
Below watch as current Broadway casts and some of CHICAGO's own celebrity alumni send birthday wishes to the production!
TV: Original CHICAGO Stars Pose for 20th Anniversary Campaign!March 23, 2016CHICAGO, Broadway's longest running American musical, just held a celebratory cocktail reception yesterday at New York City's The Palm Restaurant West Side location to officially launch the show's 20th anniversary year. Lead producer Barry Weissler addressed the crowd to toast the occasion and announce initiatives taking place over the next year in the lead-up to the official anniversary celebration and performance this November. Click here to check out out those initiatives -- plus some killer new promo shots for the show!
STAGE TUBE: On This Day for 3/23/16- AIDAMarch 23, 2016Today in 2000, Aida opened at the Palace Theatre, where it ran for 1852 performances. Aida is a musical with music by Elton John, lyrics by Tim Rice, and book by Linda Woolverton, Robert Falls, and David Henry Hwang. Aida was nominated for five Tony Awards and won four Tony Awards in 2000, including Best Musical Score and Best Performance by a Leading Actress. Aida was also named by Time Magazine in 2000 as one of the top ten theatre productions of the year. The First National tour was nominated for nine National Broadway Theatre awards (now 'Touring Broadway Awards') and won five awards, including Best Musical, Best Direction, Best Actor, and Best Actress.

STAGE TUBE: On This Day for 3/22/16- Stephen Sondheim & Andrew Lloyd Webber!March 22, 2016Sondheim is the winner of an Academy Award, eight Tony Awards, including the Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre, multiple Grammy Awards, a Pulitzer Prize and the Laurence Olivier Award. Described by Frank Rich of the New York Times as 'the greatest, and perhaps best-known artist working in musical theatre', his most famous scores include (as composer/lyricist) A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Company, Follies, A Little Night Music, Sweeney Todd, Sunday in the Park with George, Into the Woods, and Assassins. He also wrote the lyrics for West Side Story and Gypsy.
Lloyd Webber has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of variations, two film scores, and a Latin Requiem Mass. He has also gained a number of honours, including a knighthood in 1992, followed by a peerage from the British Government for services to Music, seven Tony Awards, three Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, fourteen Ivor Novello Awards, seven Olivier Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and the Kennedy Center Honors in 2006. Several of his songs, notably 'The Music of the Night', 'I Don't Know How to Love Him', 'Don't Cry for Me, Argentina' and 'You Must Love Me', 'Any Dream Will Do' and 'Memory' have been widely recorded and were hits outside of their parent musicals.
STAGE TUBE: Go Inside the Mind of Patrick Bateman in New AMERICAN PSYCHO TV Spot; Previews Begin ThursdayMarch 21, 2016AMERICAN PSYCHO, the American premiere of a new musical based on the novel by Bret Easton Ellis -- which celebrates the 25th anniversary of its publication this March -- will begin performances on Broadway at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre (236 West 45th Street) on Thursday, March 24, 2016. The Opening Night is scheduled for Thursday, April 21, 2016. Below check out the just-released TV spot for the show, as well as a behind the scenes look!
AUDIO: Glenn Close Reveals Hopes that ENO's SUNSET BOULEVARD Will Lead to a MovieMarch 21, 2016Rehearsals began just last month for Andrew Lloyd Webber's Sunset Boulevard at the English National Opera. Since then, star Glenn Close stopped by Graham Norton to chat about the production and revealed her hopes that it will lead into something more. She said, 'I'm hoping very much that this will lead directly to making a movie... this like a revving up. It's a very elaborate rehearsal.'
Check out the full interview below!
AUDIO: First Listen- Carmen Cusack Sings BRIGHT STAR Anthem, 'Sun Is Gonna Shine'March 21, 2016With direction by Tony Award winner Walter Bobbie and choreography by Josh Rhodes, Bright Star began performances on Thursday, February 25th, 2016 at the Cort Theatre (138 West 48th Street), with an official opening night set for Thursday, March 24th, 2016. Below, check out the track for the single version of 'Sun Is Gonna Shine,' performed by Carmen Cusack.
TV: Watch Performances from FUN HOME, GIGANTIC & More at the Vineyard Theatre Gala!March 21, 2016Just last week, Vineyard Theatre presented its 2016 Gala honoring award-winning actress and Vineyard Board President Kathleen Chalfant and New York theatrical press agent Sam Rudy, hosted by Michael Urie and Ryan Spahn. BroadwayWorld was on hand at the Edison Ballroom for the special event and you can check out highlights from inside the event below!
STAGE TUBE: On This Day for 3/21/16- OKLAHOMA!March 21, 2016Today in 2002, Oklahoma! opened at the Gershwin Theatre, where it ran for 388 performances. Oklahoma! is the first musical written by the team of composer Richard Rodgers and librettist Oscar Hammerstein II. The musical is based on Lynn Riggs' 1931 play, Green Grow the Lilacs. Set in Oklahoma Territory outside the town of Claremore in 1906, it tells the story of cowboy Curly McLain and his romance with farm girl Laurey Williams. The original Broadway production opened on March 31, 1943. The 2002 revival featured Josefina Gabrielle as Laurey, Shuler Hensley as Jud, Patrick Wilson as Curly and Andrea Martin as Aunt Eller.