'The Showtune Mosh Pit' for September 8th, 2009

THE LATEST IN UNAUTHORIZED GOSSIP AND BUZZ

FROM THE HEART OF CHICAGO'S SHOWTUNE VIDEO BARS,

AND MUSICAL THEATER NEWS FROM CHICAGO TO BROADWAY

by Paul W. Thompson 

Overheard last weekend under the

Sidetrack and Cattle Call showtune video screens:

It's all about "Glee" this week! Well, isn't it? We are all "gleeks" right now, I think! After a summer of teasers, tweets, pilots, mall appearances and hype, the series premiere of this TV series about a high school glee club takes place Wednesday night, September 9th, at 8:00 pm (Central) on FOX. You know you're gonna watch it! Fans of Matthew Morrison and Lea Michele can finally stop hyperventilating. "Don't stop believin'!"

http://www.fox.com/glee/ 

Once the broadcast is over (or if you have a really good TiVo, so much the better), run over to the ComedySportz Theatre on Belmont Avenue, right next to the new red and brown line station, to catch the last installment of the summer "Improv Open Mike" show by ComedySportz. As the 10:00 pm portion of the troupe's Wednesday night "Free Night of Comedy," theater types know it's an opportunity for young acting and improv students to hone their skills, while having a good time helping cheer each other along. A new schedule of shows starts there next Monday, the 14th (five nights a week). Funny-bone types can't get enough of it. 

http://www.comedysportzchicago.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=243&Itemid=168

Speaking of "Glee," that other child of 'High School Musical" (the film remake of the 1980 hit film musical "Fame") opens in theaters on September 25th.  Starring a fresh-faced new cast of students, and with Debbie Allen, Charles S. Dutton, Kelsey Grammer, Megan Mullally and Bebe Neuwirth on board as teachers, we are loving the idea of this film. We say, bring it on. Will it be as good as the original?  It could be fabulous-we can't wait! 

http://generationfame.com/

There was great news this week regarding "Million Dollar Quartet." It's heading to Broadway this season! Hopefully the full Chicago cast will make the transfer-or at least Levi Kreis will. He got such great reviews, didn't he? It isn't known if the show now at the Apollo Theater in Chicago will close before the Main Stem bow of the show in 2010, but it is rumored that MDQ will stay pretty much as we now know it. Why mess with proven success? Good for them. 

/article/MILLION_DOLLAR_QUARTET_To_Open_On_Broadway_Spring_2010_20090901 

Beginning performances this week at Chicago's American Theater Company (1909 W. Byron Street) is a new rock musical from the pen of Mark Hollmann and Greg Kotis, author/composers of "Urinetown." And it is probably hoping to follow MDQ to New York at some point, too, we imagine! It is called "Yeast Nation (the triumph of life)," and is eagerly awaited by observers of new works. Rumor has it that this is a high profile project, and it could get even higher!

http://www.atcweb.org/onstage/yeast.html

Chicago is a key to New York's success, no matter how you look at it. In addition to shows heading to there from here, two shows have made Chicago their first place for remounts following New York engagements.  The first is the hardy "High Fidelity," reportedly packing them in on weekends at Piper's Alley. The second is last season's still-running Off-Broadway success, "The Marvelous Wonderettes," which is beginning performances September 17th at the Northlight Theatre in Skokie, directed once again by its author, Roger Bean. A girl-group jukebox musical from the 1950s and 60s pop catalog, with a fun cast album to boot, this production seems to be quite a coup for Northlight.

http://www.northlight.org/pages/the_marvelous_wonderettes/78.php

And, lest we forget the traditional Broadway National Tour, there was so much news this past week, wasn't there? First off, "The Color Purple" cut its two-week run at the Arie Crown Theatre down to one week, reportedly so that it could play a week in Greensboro, North Carolina. How do you sell tickets that quickly in North Carolina, people here want to know? Even with Fantasia and Felicia P. Fields aboard. Hmmmm.

/article/THE_COLOR_PURPLE_Reduces_Their_Chicago_Engagement_By_Eight_Performances_Now_Runs_926_20090717

We also learned this week that Chicago will be the first stop for the national tour of "Shrek," for seven weeks next summer at the Cadillac Palace Theatre.  YAY!

/article/SHREK_THE_MUSICAL_To_Launch_National_Tour_At_Chicagos_Cadillac_Palace_Theatre_In_July_2010_20090904

And two other major tours will also stop here:  the award-winning Lincoln Center Theatre production of "South Pacific," starring Rod Gilfry, will play the cavernous Rosemont Theatre for a week in November. And the new revival tour of "Dreamgirls" will play the Cadillac Palace for two weeks at the end of January, with Columbia College graduate Chester Gregory aboard as James "Thunder" Early. NIce To know that road producers think of us in the first tier, isn't it? Cause we are totally first tier, right?

http://southpacificontour.com/ 

http://chicago.broadwayworld.com/article/DREAMGIRLS_National_Tour_Announces_CitiesDates_Opens_at_NYCs_Apollo_117_20090820

In personal news this week, we are all excited to hear that Idina Menzel and Taye Diggs (both mosh pit faves!) welcomed a new baby boy into their family. The circle of life, indeed. The only rumored problem is that this will keep Idina out of the hoped-for New York revival of "Chess." Only time will tell.

/article/Idina_Menzel_and_Taye_Diggs_Welcome_New_Son_20090903

And lastly, this week we had some sad news in the passing of orchestral pops conductor Erich Kunzel, at the age of 74. While some younger showtune fans may not be familiar with his work, we older types remember that he was slated to conduct the concert version of "Camelot" with George Hearn, Sylvia McNair and Rod Gilfry that opened the Ravinia Festival this very summer (Paul Gemignani stepped in to replace Kunzel). And among his many CDs of orchestral pops standards are versions of all the well-known orchestral excepts and arrangements from classic Broadway musicals, like Richard Rodgers' "The Carousel Waltz" and the "Slaughter on Tenth Avenue" ballet, for example. He also recorded a fine 1988 version of "The Sound of Music" for Telarc Records, starring American opera star Frederica von Stade, which included all the music from the stage and film versions, interwoven wonderfully together.  And all this while based in Cincinnati! R.I.P., Maestro.                                                                                                  

/article/Erich_Kunzel_Cincinnati_Pops_Conductor_Dead_At_74_20090901

So, with another week of news and speculation, we look forward to settling into the patterns of fall-school and theater openings galore.  I'll see you under the video screens.....--PWT

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