Robert Diamond - Page 3

It's Tony Sunday! The greatest day of the year has finally arrived. If you're like me (and if you're reading this, you are) - you're up early, and following BroadwayWorld.com for what's going to be a FULL day of fun, excitement and TONYS TONYS TONYS! Warning! SPOILERS follow below! Warning!

I wasn't surprised when the reaction to the announcement that Michael Crawford would return to the stage, immediately started to trend on Twitter in the UK and to generate internet traffic across the globe. Here, in his own words Michael Crawford, brings us up to date.

Matt Farnsworth is an accomplished voice teacher, actor, and pianist living and working in NYC. He has been teaching voice since 1995 when he became the consulting coach on Broadway's production of Rent. Since then, Matt has taught hundreds of Broadway actors, film stars and recording artists which include Sara Bareilles, Carly Rae Jepsen and American Idol finalists Constantine Maroulis and Pia Toscano.

As BroadwayWorld reported yesterday, Serino/Coyne, the nation's leading live-entertainment marketing agency, today announced that Angelo Desimini, currently chief operating officer, will assume the role of CEO, effective immediately. Nancy Coyne, founder and current CEO, will become chairman. Greg Corradetti continues as president of the firm. This planned transition builds on the 15-year working relationship between the leaders.

Now, we are excited to give the entire BroadwayWorld.com readership the same opportunity as we introduce her today as our official 'Teen Correspondent' where she will be reporting for the site, and on social media @BWWFanGirl.

It's Tony Sunday! The greatest day of the year has finally arrived. If you're like me (and if you're reading this, you are) - you're up early, and following BroadwayWorld.com for what's going to be a FULL day of fun, excitement and TONYS TONYS TONYS!

It's Tony Sunday! The greatest day of the year has finally arrived. If you're like me (and if you're reading this, you are) - you're up early, and following BroadwayWorld.com for what's going to be a FULL day of fun, excitement and TONYS TONYS TONYS!

As we're gearing up for a slew of celebrations for the site's 10th Anniversary (watch this space for some more VERY exciting news), earlier this year decided that it was time for a long-needed makeover to the design.

The big day is here! Follow our LIVE coverage starting from Tony Rehearsals starting at approximately 10am. Want to know who's performing what? What order to expect the awards in and other tidbits? Spoil yourself!

Forget 'defying gravity' … Kristin Chenoweth defies everything, including the laws of nature, in a brand new show conceived specially for Lincoln Center Presents THE AMERICAN SONGBOOK.

Sara Fitzpatrick is the Director of Interactive for SpotCo, a leading full-service entertainment advertising and branding agency, working with Broadway and film productions to oversee the development and strategy of their interactive operations. We last spoke to her about the 'State of Broadway on the Web' back in 2010 so with two years having gone quickly by -- it seemed the perfect time to check back in for her latest take. We last spoke back in early 2010, what have been the biggest changes in the online theatre world since then?

So, with stomachs happily full, we headed over to the Shubert Theater on a rainy night. The mood in the lobby and the audience though was fantastically upbeat for this beloved show. I'm happy to report that MEMPHIS, which I originally saw in previews, is in great shape, with performances, choreography, scenic elements, lighting and costumes in as sharp of shape as any show on Broadway could ever hope to be. Interestingly enough, the US national touring production of MEMPHIS opened October 16th at the Orpheum Theater in Memphis, TN. For more information on the Broadway and Tour productions, visit www.MemphisTheMusical.com. (Click here to check out the cast visiting Elvis Presley's house at Graceland).

It takes a lot to get me to below 42nd Street, but this weekend, the treck down to the Abrons Arts Center was worth it - and then some! Our evening began with one of the best New York city meals that I've ever had, at the uber-hip Beauty & Essex on the Lower East Side with amazing sharing plates of delicious food prepared by chef Chris Santos (also of the equally wonderful Stanton Social restaurant). The cocktails weren't bad either. After being extremely well fed, with spot-on service and unexpected glamour we made our way on over to the Abrons Arts Center, just a few blocks away, for a night to remember.

It was March 12, 1994 when a young, 15 year-old Rob Diamond saw THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA on Broadway for the first time, and came home on 'cloud nine', my life forever changed. I still remember vividly falling asleep that night listening to and discovering Michael Crawford, Sarah Brightman, Steve Barton and more on the show's original cast recording. I did this listening to a cassette tape that my parents had (which I had of course never before listened to), on my Walkman.

Veteran humorist and playwright, Justin Moran, launches 'Spiderman Smackdown', a guerilla theatre project to write, rehearse, and perform a fully realized musical based on the character Spiderman in under 30 days with a budget of $0. Set to open one day before the $65 Million Broadway musical 'Spiderman: Turn Off the Dark', Moran's musical will be the first Spiderman Musical to officially open in New York City.

Update: The New York Times has now weighed in on the early reviews of SPIDER-MAN, in which they spoke to Manuela Hoelterhoff, the Executive Editor of Bloomberg News about their decision to review the show early. 'I worried that by the time the show opened,' Ms. Hoelterhoff wrote, 'I might be in a rest home with Jeremy. You know, in India, they teach elephants to fly in less time, while painting pictures and humming a capella.' Jonathan Landman, the Culture Editor of the Times weighs in as well saying that 'It's easy to see why they did it and completely understandable and I admit that we've been tempted. After all, these guys are raking in the cash, charging some people more than $200 a ticket. Still, it's clear that the producers really are making significant changes and a review that's out of date when the show opens isn't all that useful. So we'll wait, but not forever.'

Well, last night Newsday, which normally hides Linda Winer's reviews behind a pay-wall, but made an exception for the sure traffic grabbing piece, published their critics take on SPIDER-MAN, in which she didn't so much express many of her own opinions, as she did talk to audience members. As to why she was not respecting the status quo of waiting for the show to be frozen and to invite critics, as is normal, she cited both the full-price cost of tickets being sold during previews, the multiple delays to opening night and the press attention.

Here's a story I wasn't expecting to see, but as Newsday critic Linda Winer writes 'After four premiere push-backs (now to Feb. 7), four high-profile injuries, 19 previews at full price ($75-$150, almost double through brokers), and public investigations by state and federal safety agencies, it seems that critics are now the only interested parties who can't see the bride before the wedding.'

All anyone in the theatre world is talking about so far this morning is last night's first preview of the highly anticipated SPIDER-MAN: Turn Off the Dark. I was there and it was certainly a night to remember. Message boards and Twitter were abuzz throughout the show, as audiences sat through 4 technical stops in Act 1, and 1 in Act 2 as well as an elongated intermission (and one heckler), but the show as performed from beginning to end.

Juggling both film and stage careers, Michael Crawford had established himself as one of theatre's finest leading men long before he opened as 'the Phantom' in Andrew Lloyd Webber's THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, beginning one of the most widely acclaimed and memorable performances in theatre history. Few stars are as widely connected to a single role as Crawford is to 'the Phantom.' His Los Angeles and Broadway performances earned an astonishing catalogue of critical recognition including the Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards, and the Los Angeles Dramalogue Award and Drama Critics Award. Since leaving PHANTOM after nearly four years in the role in London, New York and Los Angeles; Crawford has become a multi-platinum recording artist and one of the world's most sought after concert and stage performers, playing to sold-out venues around the globe. In addition to his recent concert work, stage credits in London and on Broadway include Billy, Flowers for Algernon, Black Comedy, Dance of the Vampires, The Woman in White, and Barnum. It was announced late last night that he will make his eagerly awaited return to the stage alongside Danielle Hope, winner of the BBC's smash hit Over The Rainbow, when the show opens at the LONDON PALLADIUM next year. We checked in with the star to get the first scoop!