NBC has renewed its critically acclaimed musical drama "Smash" (Mondays, 10-11 p.m. ET) for a second season, it was announced today by Robert Greenblatt, Chairman of NBC Entertainment.

Next week on SMASH, the team deals with the aftermath of the workshop. Ivy (Megan Hilty) remains in the dark about her fate, while Derek (Jack Davenport) recruits Karen (Katharine McPhee) to help him steal the musical from Tom and Julia (Christian Borle and Debra Messing). Eileen (Anjelica Huston) must face up to her ex-husband, Jerry (guest star Michael Cristofer), when their daughter Katie (guest star Grace Gummer) pays a surprise visit from India. Check out a sneak peek of the upcoming episode below! This upcoming episode marks the first time that we hear Tony nominee Brain d'Arcy James sing on the series, and you can check out a preview below!

Today we are continuing BroadwayWorld's extensive coverage of NBC's hit musical drama series SMASH with a new entry in our ever-expanding collection of interviews with the cast, creative team and guest stars of the Broadway-based show - don't forget to check out the previous InDepth InterView with songwriters Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, as well (available here) - by talking to the leading lady of the show-within-the-show on SMASH itself all about her role on the series; the blonde bombshell of BOMBSHELL, Megan Hilty. In this candid conversation, Hilty and I discuss portraying a musical Marilyn Monroe and the volatile Broadway star playing her, Ivy Lynn, as well as her own personal experiences working on SMASH as we look ahead to the upcoming episodes which will feature the biggest musical sequence on the series so far and will also include guest appearances by Norbert Leo Butz, Marc Kudisch, Uma Thurman and more as BOMBSHELL heads towards its long-awaited big Boston tryout for the season finale. Additionally, Hilty and I take a look back at her prior musical theatre appearances, winning hearts the country over in her starring roles in WICKED and 9-TO-5 on Broadway, in LA and on tour - both under the direction of master director Joe Mantello - and, also, take a look ahead to the forthcoming Encores! GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES, which she will be headlining later this Spring. Plus, Hilty shares her experiences working with this week's SMASH guest star and Tony-winning legend Bernadette Peters and reflects on her forthcoming Disney animated film in the TINKER BELL series that features another dynamic diva, her SMASH co-star and fellow participant in this column, Oscar-winner Anjelica Huston (our interview coming up next week) - as well as touching on DOROTHY OF OZ (co-starring Lea Michele), her new animated TV project for Nickelodeon - ROBOTS & MONSTERS - and first news of a solo album coming soon. All of that and much, much more!

Last night on SMASH, everything came to a head as Eileen (Anjelica Huston), Derek (Jack Davenport) and the team presented 'Marilyn The Musical' to would-be investors. Ivy (Megan Hilty) was under pressure to perform, while her mother, Broadway star Leigh Conroy (special guest Bernadette Peters), undermined her at every turn. Karen (Katharine McPhee) had to decide between the workshop and a meeting with a big-time music producer. Julia (Debra Messing) and Michael (guest star Will Chase) had to face up to the consequences of their actions. Miss the episode? Catch up below.

Next week on SMASH, the team deals with the aftermath of the workshop. Ivy (Megan Hilty) remains in the dark about her fate, while Derek (Jack Davenport) recruits Karen (Katharine McPhee) to help him steal the musical from Tom and Julia (Christian Borle and Debra Messing). Eileen (Anjelica Huston) must face up to her ex-husband, Jerry (guest star Michael Cristofer), when their daughter Katie (guest star Grace Gummer) pays a surprise visit from India. Check out a sneak peek of the upcoming episode below!

The new featured song from tonight's episode of NBC's musical drama series SMASH (Mondays, 10-11 p.m. ET) is now available from NBCUniversal Television Consumer Products and Columbia Records on the iTunes store at http://www.itunes.com/NBCSmash. NBC also provides episode recaps, games, photos, videos, musical performance highlights and even fan challenges each week at http://www.nbc.com/smash/.

Tonight on SMASH, everything comes to a head as Eileen (Anjelica Huston), Derek (Jack Davenport) and the team present 'Marilyn The Musical' to would-be investors. Ivy (Megan Hilty) is under pressure to perform, while her mother, Broadway star Leigh Conroy (special guest Bernadette Peters), undermines her at every turn. Karen (Katharine McPhee) must decide between the workshop and a meeting with a big-time music producer. Julia (Debra Messing) and Michael (guest star Will Chase) must face up to the consequences of their actions. In the video below, special guest star Bernadette Peters visits 'The Today Show,' where she chats about her upcoming appearance. Click below to check it out!

Broadway veteran Brian d'Arcy James stopped by NBC's New York Live to discuss SMASH. Find out what he has to say about what's to come this season and about his upcoming films in the interview below!

Yesterday, I had the exceptional privilege of talking to Oscar-winning stage and screen star Anjelica Huston and Broadway sensation Megan Hilty all about the new NBC musical series SMASH and their roles in it, and, while both their complete Spotlight On SMASH InDepth InterViews will be coming in full next week, we have some breaking news to share with you now that is certain to excite the many SMASH fans here on BroadwayWorld and beyond!

Next week on SMASH, Everything comes to a head as Eileen (Anjelica Huston), Derek (Jack Davenport) and the team present 'Marilyn The Musical' to would-be investors. Ivy (Megan Hilty) is under pressure to perform, while her mother, Broadway star Leigh Conroy (special guest Bernadette Peters), undermines her at every turn. Karen (Katharine McPhee) must decide between the workshop and a meeting with a big-time music producer. Julia (Debra Messing) and Michael (guest star Will Chase) must face up to the consequences of their actions. Check out a sneak peek of Peters singing 'Everything's Coming Up Roses' from the episode below!

Next week on SMASH, Everything comes to a head as Eileen (Anjelica Huston), Derek (Jack Davenport) and the team present 'Marilyn The Musical' to would-be investors. Ivy (Megan Hilty) is under pressure to perform, while her mother, Broadway star Leigh Conroy (special guest Bernadette Peters), undermines her at every turn. Karen (Katharine McPhee) must decide between the workshop and a meeting with a big-time music producer. Julia (Debra Messing) and Michael (guest star Will Chase) must face up to the consequences of their actions. In the video below, Peters chats about her upcoming guest spot. Click below to hear what she has to say!

Joshua Bergasse, choreographer of NBC's musical drama SMASH, has found an outlet for the sort of work inspired by the old MGM musicals he grew up watching. "Those old shows used dance as part of the story,' he said, 'and I try to make the dance sequences part of the SMASH story."

Next week on SMASH, Everything comes to a head as Eileen (Anjelica Huston), Derek (Jack Davenport) and the team present 'Marilyn The Musical' to would-be investors. Ivy (Megan Hilty) is under pressure to perform, while her mother, Broadway star Leigh Conroy (special guest Bernadette Peters), undermines her at every turn. Karen (Katharine McPhee) must decide between the workshop and a meeting with a big-time music producer. Julia (Debra Messing) and Michael (guest star Will Chase) must face up to the consequences of their actions. Check out photos from the episode below!

According to published reports, NBC's SMASH, which aired its fourth episode last night, got a slight ratings boost with almost 6.9 million viewers. Last week's audience was 4% smaller at 6.5 million viewers. The series premiere earned the show a whopping 11.5 million tuning in on February 6.

On last night's episode of the NBC musical drama series SMASH entitled 'Chemistry', Ivy (Megan Hilty) faced major problems as her voice began to fail her. Julia (Debra Messing) struggled to avoid Michael (guest star Will Chase) - but she couldn't. Eileen (Anjelica Huston) explored her inner hipster at a downtown dive bar with her new pal Ellis (Jaime Cepero), while Karen (Katharine McPhee) was an even bigger fish out of water, as she booked a side gig at a bar mitzvah on Long Island. Miss the episode? catch up below!

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Nick Jonas will reprise his guest starring role as Lyle West in the May 14 season finale of SMASH on NBC.

Katherine McPhee's character Karen on the NBC hit 'Smash' Karen sings to a group of pre-teens at a bar mitzvah in a clip form the March 12 episode. Check out the sneak peek video here!

On the March 12th episode of the NBC musical drama series SMASH entitled 'Chemistry', Ivy (Megan Hilty) faces major problems as her voice begins to fail her. Julia (Debra Messing) struggles to avoid Michael (guest star Will Chase) - but she can't. Eileen (Anjelica Huston) explores her inner hipster at a downtown dive bar with her new pAl Ellis (Jaime Cepero), while Karen (Katharine McPhee) is an even bigger fish out of water, as she books a side gig at a bar mitzvah on Long Island. Jack Davenport, Christian Borle, Raza Jaffrey and Brian d'Arcy James also star. Will Chase guest stars. The episode airs at 10:00 pm/ET on the NBC network. Check out a clip from the episode below!

According to published reports, NBC's SMASH, which aired its fourth episode last night, got a slight ratings boost with almost 6.9 million viewers. Last week's audience was 4% smaller at 6.5 million viewers. The series premiere earned the show a whopping 11.5 million tuning in on February 6.

Get a first look at next week episode of the Broadway-themed SMASH below! SMASH airs Mondays at 10pm on NBC.

On last night's episode of SMASH, titled 'Let's Be Bad,' Karen discovered a new acting opportunity while attending a government party with Dev. Things got more complicated between Michael and Julia and Eileen decided to team up with Ellis. Miss the episode? Catch up below!

Select songs from tonight's new episode of the NBC musical drama series SMASH (Mondays, 10-11 p.m. ET), will be available today from NBCUniversal Television Consumer Products and Columbia Records on the iTunes store at http://www.itunes.com/NBCSmash.

As BroadwayWorld previously reported, Broadway legand Benadette Peters will guest star on the March 19 episode of SMASH, and the show has just released an official description that reveals some details on her appearance. As described by KSiteTV: 'Everything comes to a head as Eileen (Anjelica Huston), Derek (Jack Davenport) and the team present "Marilyn The Musical" to would-be investors. Ivy (Megan Hilty) is under pressure to perform, while her mother, Broadway star Leigh Conroy (special guest Bernadette Peters), undermines her at every turn. Karen (Katharine McPhee) must decide between the workshop and a meeting with a big-time music producer. Julia (Debra Messing) and Michael (guest star Will Chase) must face up to the consequences of their actions.'

NBC has released two new video previews from the Monday, March 5th episode of the musical drama series SMASH. In the first clip, Karen (Katharine McPhee) discovers what she 'brings to the party' in a sensual performance of James Brown's 'It's a Man's Man's Man's World'. In the second clip, Ivy (Megan Hilty) exudes Marilyn in her performance of 'Let's Be Bad', as rehearsal transforms into a Broadway fantasy.

In this Monday's episode of the NBC musical drama SMASH, guest star Will Chase's character, Michael attempts to win back the affections of his former love Julia, played by Debra Messing and serenades her with his version of Leon Russell's 'A Song For You'.