SOUND OFF Special Edition: I'm Your #1 Fan! Laurie Metcalf & 10 Terrifying MISERY Casting SuggestionsJune 24, 2015The hottest news of the week as far as plays for the new season are concerned is the surprise announcement that the mainstage adaptation of Stephen King's iconic best-selling novel and its subsequent Academy Award-winning feature film adaptation, MISERY, would be coming to Broadway with Hollywood headliner Bruce Willis and a new leading lady in place of the previously announced Elizabeth Marvel - no less than three-time Emmy Award-winning stage and screen notable Laurie Metcalf. Of course, Metcalf will be essaying the operatically dramatic role of the ultimate all-time uber fan Annie Wilkes in the tale of a writer rescued from a horrific car accident by his number one fan only to be trapped and tortured at her secluded cabin in the deep backwoods of Maine. Kathy Bates memorably took home a Best Actress Oscar for her turn in the 1990 film and acclaimed screenwriter William Goldman told me himself in our InDepth InterView about the new stage version of the story that he originally wrote the role in the film explicitly for Bates, as revealed in our exclusive 2012 conversation here. Surely, now is the ideal time to consider some spectacular dramatic actresses who just might be the right replacements should the run of the play extend beyond Metcalf's involvement in the production - and Willis's, too, for that matter.
BWW EXCLUSIVE: HOW I GOT THE JOB... Ellen Greene On LITTLE SHOP Then & Now, HANNIBAL & Much MoreJune 29, 2015Today, BroadwayWorld kicks off a brand new interview series titled HOW I GOT THE JOB shining a special solo spotlight on a performer in which they share candid recollections and revisit the point at which they became involved with a particular project on their resume, whether it be stage piece, film or TV project...
To kick off the series, we are talking to an internationally recognized stage and screen star CELEBRATED for her iconic originating role in the popular stage musical and subsequent feature film adaptation of Alan Menken and Howard Ashman's LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS, the fiercely idiosyncratic Ellen Greene. Opening up about her experiences in landing that unforgettable part, Greene also previews what audiences can expect from her return to the stage as art of the hotly anticipated Encores! Off-Center mounting of the musical co-starring Jake Gyllenhaal at City Center later this week. Additionally, Greene reflects on some of her other standout appearances over the years, such as the acclaimed 1976 New York Shakespeare Festival production of THE THREEPENNY OPERA and David Rabe's IN THE BOOM BOOM ROOM at the Public Theater, not to mention the legendary cult musical RACHAEL LILY ROSENBLOOM (AND DON'T YOU EVER FORGET IT), plus her notable ongoing collaboration with TV mastermind Bryan Fuller on HEROES, PUSHING DAISIES and HANNIBAL and much more.
BWW EXCLUSIVE: 5 SONGS BY... Paul Gordon On DADDY LONG LEGS, JANE EYRE & MoreJune 23, 2015Today we are continuing the 5 SONGS BY... series by talking to a Tony Award nominated composer and lyricist all about his many mainstage musicals, the accomplished Paul Gordon. Sharing insights on his rapturous scores for the period-set classic literature adaptations of JANE EYRE, SENSE & SENSIBILITY and EMMA, Gordon also offers thoughts on his brand new musical ANALOG & VINYL, planned for an Off-Broadway run next year, and also previews his forthcoming Off-Broadway musical adaptation of DADDY LONG LEGS, set to be directed by his JANE EYRE collaborator John Caird and winner of the 2010 Ovation Award for Best Score, beginning performances in September. Also, don't miss THE MUSIC OF PAUL GORDON at 54 Below tonight.
Pat Cerasaro contributes exclusive scholarly columns including InDepth InterViews, Sound Off, Theatrical Throwback Thursdays, Flash Friday and Flash Special as well as additional special features, world premiere clips and extensive news coverage. His work for the site has appeared in The New York Times, The Hollywood Reporter, US Weekly, The Biography Channel, NBC and more. He also wrote and directed two sold-out 2014 BroadwayWorld charity concert events featuring all-star casts, EVERYTHING'S COMING UP BROADWAYWORLD.COM: A JULE STYNE TRIBUTE and THE LORD & THE MASTER: BROADWAYWORLD.COM SINGS THE MUSIC OF ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER & STEPHEN SONDHEIM.