Broadway posts larger takings for past season

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Patrons wait in line at the box office of the Foxwoods Theater, home to the Broadway play ''Spiderman: Turn Off The Dark'' in New York March 9, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Brendan McDermid

NEW YORK | Tue May 31, 2011 6:56pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Broadway theaters increased gross revenues in the 2010/11 season, as the U.S. economy emerged from recession, while attendance figures have stayed relatively steady in the past five years.

The Broadway League said on Tuesday in the 52-week period ending May 22, gross takings were $1.06 billion, compared to $1.02 billion for the previous 52 weeks.

The number of people attending shows in the same period was 12.26 million, up three per cent compared to last year's figures, according to the trade association representing theater owners, operators and producers.

Several years ago showed similar attendance figures, with the 2007/2008 season producing 12.27 million in attendance. The 2009/10 season produced 11.89 in attendance.

The Broadway League attributed a diversity of shows to the continued increase in grosses. It said shows yielded an official gross of more than $1.08 billion for the 2010/11 season and 12.53 million in attendance, but those figures included adding an extra week, a 53rd week, that happens every seven years to maintain an end-of-May season.

Producers have increased revenue in the past several years aided by premium front-of-house and last-minute seats, which can sell for as much as $400.

The season, which saw previews for the accident-prone yet so far profitable blockbuster new musical, "Spider-Man: Turn off the Dark" by U2's Bono and the Edge, saw the opening of 42 shows opened including 14 musicals, 25 plays and 3 specials.

The season included box-office and well-received hits ranging from the Tony-nominated musical, "The Book of Mormon," a spoof about a pair of Mormon men on a mission to Africa from the creators of the TV series "South Park," to "War Horse," a play transferred from London that uses projections and puppets.

Older favorites such as "The Lion King" and "Wicked" continue to pull in the crowds, with both raking in more than $1.65 million for the week ending May 29, many years after they first opened.

Big-name movie stars have continued to flock to Broadway with producers keen to guarantee better sales with Chris Rock, Robin Williams, Al Pacino and Daniel Radcliffe all headlining recent shows.

(Reporting by Christine Kearney, editing by Jill Serjeant)

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Patrons wait in line at the box office of the Foxwoods Theater, home to the Broadway play ''Spiderman: Turn Off The Dark'' in New York March 9, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Brendan McDermid

NEW YORK | Tue May 31, 2011 6:56pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Broadway theaters increased gross revenues in the 2010/11 season, as the U.S. economy emerged from recession, while attendance figures have stayed relatively steady in the past five years.

The Broadway League said on Tuesday in the 52-week period ending May 22, gross takings were $1.06 billion, compared to $1.02 billion for the previous 52 weeks.

The number of people attending shows in the same period was 12.26 million, up three per cent compared to last year's figures, according to the trade association representing theater owners, operators and producers.

Several years ago showed similar attendance figures, with the 2007/2008 season producing 12.27 million in attendance. The 2009/10 season produced 11.89 in attendance.

The Broadway League attributed a diversity of shows to the continued increase in grosses. It said shows yielded an official gross of more than $1.08 billion for the 2010/11 season and 12.53 million in attendance, but those figures included adding an extra week, a 53rd week, that happens every seven years to maintain an end-of-May season.

Producers have increased revenue in the past several years aided by premium front-of-house and last-minute seats, which can sell for as much as $400.

The season, which saw previews for the accident-prone yet so far profitable blockbuster new musical, "Spider-Man: Turn off the Dark" by U2's Bono and the Edge, saw the opening of 42 shows opened including 14 musicals, 25 plays and 3 specials.

The season included box-office and well-received hits ranging from the Tony-nominated musical, "The Book of Mormon," a spoof about a pair of Mormon men on a mission to Africa from the creators of the TV series "South Park," to "War Horse," a play transferred from London that uses projections and puppets.

Older favorites such as "The Lion King" and "Wicked" continue to pull in the crowds, with both raking in more than $1.65 million for the week ending May 29, many years after they first opened.

Big-name movie stars have continued to flock to Broadway with producers keen to guarantee better sales with Chris Rock, Robin Williams, Al Pacino and Daniel Radcliffe all headlining recent shows.

(Reporting by Christine Kearney, editing by Jill Serjeant)

Baloane

Cost aparat dentar

Patrons wait in line at the box office of the Foxwoods Theater, home to the Broadway play ''Spiderman: Turn Off The Dark'' in New York March 9, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Brendan McDermid

NEW YORK | Tue May 31, 2011 6:56pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Broadway theaters increased gross revenues in the 2010/11 season, as the U.S. economy emerged from recession, while attendance figures have stayed relatively steady in the past five years.

The Broadway League said on Tuesday in the 52-week period ending May 22, gross takings were $1.06 billion, compared to $1.02 billion for the previous 52 weeks.

The number of people attending shows in the same period was 12.26 million, up three per cent compared to last year's figures, according to the trade association representing theater owners, operators and producers.

Several years ago showed similar attendance figures, with the 2007/2008 season producing 12.27 million in attendance. The 2009/10 season produced 11.89 in attendance.

The Broadway League attributed a diversity of shows to the continued increase in grosses. It said shows yielded an official gross of more than $1.08 billion for the 2010/11 season and 12.53 million in attendance, but those figures included adding an extra week, a 53rd week, that happens every seven years to maintain an end-of-May season.

Producers have increased revenue in the past several years aided by premium front-of-house and last-minute seats, which can sell for as much as $400.

The season, which saw previews for the accident-prone yet so far profitable blockbuster new musical, "Spider-Man: Turn off the Dark" by U2's Bono and the Edge, saw the opening of 42 shows opened including 14 musicals, 25 plays and 3 specials.

The season included box-office and well-received hits ranging from the Tony-nominated musical, "The Book of Mormon," a spoof about a pair of Mormon men on a mission to Africa from the creators of the TV series "South Park," to "War Horse," a play transferred from London that uses projections and puppets.

Older favorites such as "The Lion King" and "Wicked" continue to pull in the crowds, with both raking in more than $1.65 million for the week ending May 29, many years after they first opened.

Big-name movie stars have continued to flock to Broadway with producers keen to guarantee better sales with Chris Rock, Robin Williams, Al Pacino and Daniel Radcliffe all headlining recent shows.

(Reporting by Christine Kearney, editing by Jill Serjeant)

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Hollywood stars at center of Broadway backlash

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Actress Scarlett Johansson poses with her Tony for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play for her work in ''A View from the Bridge'' at the American Theatre Wing's 64th annual Tony Awards ceremony in New York, June 13, 2010.

Credit: Reuters/Lucas Jackson

By Suzy Evans

Mon May 30, 2011 9:26am EDT

NEW YORK (Back Stage) - Every year, Hollywood celebrities head to Broadway where they get plenty of attention for their headlining efforts.

The Tony Awards, being presented on June 12, are the ultimate judge of the skills of any stage actor, famous or not, and many lesser-known performers worry that the value of the award diminishes as film stars continue to take them home.

Last year's star-studded broadcast disheartened many New York actors, including Hunter Foster, who started the Facebook group Give the Tonys Back to Broadway!! in an effort to combat the Tinseltown effect. With the now almost 9,000-member group, Foster hopes to restore the ceremony as a beacon of hope for the next generation of stage performers.

Whether stage actors like his sister, Sutton Foster -- nominated this year for her performance in "Anything Goes" -- will disappear from Broadway's future if the Tonys continue to focus on Hollywood stars is debatable. Many actors appearing on Broadway -- including Al Pacino, a nominee this year for "The Merchant of Venice" -- began their careers on stage, but their mass appeal comes from their films.

"I have worked my ass off to get to where I am, so I understand that struggle," Scarlett Johansson -- who was one of four Hollywood actors to win a Tony in 2010 -- told BroadwayWorld.com last year. "If somebody is cast because they are a name but they're not right for the job, well, it's very frustrating."

Experts and actors agree, however, that celebrities are necessary for some producers to bankroll productions, and a famous headliner brings more stable jobs for New York actors.

This year's list of nominees lacks many of the Broadway season's big names -- including Chris Rock, Robin Williams, Ben Stiller, and Daniel Radcliffe. David Sheward, executive editor of Back Stage and a Tony voter, blogged about how the dearth of well-known nominees could be a response by the nominating committee to last year's backlash.

However, Charlotte St. Martin, executive director of the Broadway League, which presents the awards with the American Theater Wing, said there is no correlation between last year's response and this year's nominees.

"If you look at the shows, most of the people who got good reviews are nominated," said St. Martin, who is also on the awards' administration committee, which oversees the nominating process. "People whose reviews were not as good, either for the show or the individual, perhaps are not."

A star can be an economic necessity for a Broadway show, and Michael Riedel, New York Post theater columnist and host of PBS's "Theater Talk," does not think Hollywood stars take jobs away from New York actors. "If you didn't have these celebrities, a lot of these shows wouldn't be produced," he said. "All of these shows have people in them who are not movie stars and they're all working."

CRUSADERS

A Tony represents the Holy Grail for a stage actor and can significantly boost a performer's career, whereas film and television actors are already honored with awards like Oscars and Emmys. Having widely recognized actors swoop in and secure a Tony nomination can be upsetting to some, said Garrett Eisler of the blog The Playgoer, as there are limited spots.

According to Eisler, stars have driven Broadway ticket sales throughout history, but "what changed is the definition of who is a star." In the 1950s and '60s, the box office names were Robert Preston, Rex Harrison, and Zero Mostel, who had some fame from film but whose main medium was the stage. "A Broadway star could really be a star," Eisler said, recognizing that Patti LuPone is one of the few who fits this bill today. "Now you can't be a star unless you're a Hollywood star."

The Internet democratizes entertainment, and a stage performer will never receive the same size audience for a Broadway show that another actor will receive for a film or a television series.

"There's been a generational shift," Eisler explained, noting that today's generation of young people is the first to come of age with the Internet. "Certain stars can't become household names without appearing on multiple platforms."

Tony winner and New York stage veteran Victoria Clark acknowledged her win for "The Light in the Piazza" in 2005 helped launch her career and turned her into more of a "known quantity." Her role as Mother Superior in this year's "Sister Act," for which she is nominated, came to her in part because of her name and the connections she made through her past work.

"Jerry Zaks could have gone after anybody between the ages of 45 and 80 for this part," she said, referring to the show's director. "There's a message to our directors: Support the people that supported you when you first started your career and go back to those people and give them a shot."

Celebrities coming to Broadway take work away from New York theater actors, according to Clark, but she also says the industry should not separate actors into film, TV, and stage categories. "It's our culture that segregates us," she argued. "If we were actors in any other country, we'd all be doing everything, no questions asked."

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Baloane

Actress Scarlett Johansson poses with her Tony for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play for her work in ''A View from the Bridge'' at the American Theatre Wing's 64th annual Tony Awards ceremony in New York, June 13, 2010.

Credit: Reuters/Lucas Jackson

By Suzy Evans

Mon May 30, 2011 9:26am EDT

NEW YORK (Back Stage) - Every year, Hollywood celebrities head to Broadway where they get plenty of attention for their headlining efforts.

The Tony Awards, being presented on June 12, are the ultimate judge of the skills of any stage actor, famous or not, and many lesser-known performers worry that the value of the award diminishes as film stars continue to take them home.

Last year's star-studded broadcast disheartened many New York actors, including Hunter Foster, who started the Facebook group Give the Tonys Back to Broadway!! in an effort to combat the Tinseltown effect. With the now almost 9,000-member group, Foster hopes to restore the ceremony as a beacon of hope for the next generation of stage performers.

Whether stage actors like his sister, Sutton Foster -- nominated this year for her performance in "Anything Goes" -- will disappear from Broadway's future if the Tonys continue to focus on Hollywood stars is debatable. Many actors appearing on Broadway -- including Al Pacino, a nominee this year for "The Merchant of Venice" -- began their careers on stage, but their mass appeal comes from their films.

"I have worked my ass off to get to where I am, so I understand that struggle," Scarlett Johansson -- who was one of four Hollywood actors to win a Tony in 2010 -- told BroadwayWorld.com last year. "If somebody is cast because they are a name but they're not right for the job, well, it's very frustrating."

Experts and actors agree, however, that celebrities are necessary for some producers to bankroll productions, and a famous headliner brings more stable jobs for New York actors.

This year's list of nominees lacks many of the Broadway season's big names -- including Chris Rock, Robin Williams, Ben Stiller, and Daniel Radcliffe. David Sheward, executive editor of Back Stage and a Tony voter, blogged about how the dearth of well-known nominees could be a response by the nominating committee to last year's backlash.

However, Charlotte St. Martin, executive director of the Broadway League, which presents the awards with the American Theater Wing, said there is no correlation between last year's response and this year's nominees.

"If you look at the shows, most of the people who got good reviews are nominated," said St. Martin, who is also on the awards' administration committee, which oversees the nominating process. "People whose reviews were not as good, either for the show or the individual, perhaps are not."

A star can be an economic necessity for a Broadway show, and Michael Riedel, New York Post theater columnist and host of PBS's "Theater Talk," does not think Hollywood stars take jobs away from New York actors. "If you didn't have these celebrities, a lot of these shows wouldn't be produced," he said. "All of these shows have people in them who are not movie stars and they're all working."

CRUSADERS

A Tony represents the Holy Grail for a stage actor and can significantly boost a performer's career, whereas film and television actors are already honored with awards like Oscars and Emmys. Having widely recognized actors swoop in and secure a Tony nomination can be upsetting to some, said Garrett Eisler of the blog The Playgoer, as there are limited spots.

According to Eisler, stars have driven Broadway ticket sales throughout history, but "what changed is the definition of who is a star." In the 1950s and '60s, the box office names were Robert Preston, Rex Harrison, and Zero Mostel, who had some fame from film but whose main medium was the stage. "A Broadway star could really be a star," Eisler said, recognizing that Patti LuPone is one of the few who fits this bill today. "Now you can't be a star unless you're a Hollywood star."

The Internet democratizes entertainment, and a stage performer will never receive the same size audience for a Broadway show that another actor will receive for a film or a television series.

"There's been a generational shift," Eisler explained, noting that today's generation of young people is the first to come of age with the Internet. "Certain stars can't become household names without appearing on multiple platforms."

Tony winner and New York stage veteran Victoria Clark acknowledged her win for "The Light in the Piazza" in 2005 helped launch her career and turned her into more of a "known quantity." Her role as Mother Superior in this year's "Sister Act," for which she is nominated, came to her in part because of her name and the connections she made through her past work.

"Jerry Zaks could have gone after anybody between the ages of 45 and 80 for this part," she said, referring to the show's director. "There's a message to our directors: Support the people that supported you when you first started your career and go back to those people and give them a shot."

Celebrities coming to Broadway take work away from New York theater actors, according to Clark, but she also says the industry should not separate actors into film, TV, and stage categories. "It's our culture that segregates us," she argued. "If we were actors in any other country, we'd all be doing everything, no questions asked."

Baloane

Cost aparat dentar

Actress Scarlett Johansson poses with her Tony for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play for her work in ''A View from the Bridge'' at the American Theatre Wing's 64th annual Tony Awards ceremony in New York, June 13, 2010.

Credit: Reuters/Lucas Jackson

By Suzy Evans

Mon May 30, 2011 9:26am EDT

NEW YORK (Back Stage) - Every year, Hollywood celebrities head to Broadway where they get plenty of attention for their headlining efforts.

The Tony Awards, being presented on June 12, are the ultimate judge of the skills of any stage actor, famous or not, and many lesser-known performers worry that the value of the award diminishes as film stars continue to take them home.

Last year's star-studded broadcast disheartened many New York actors, including Hunter Foster, who started the Facebook group Give the Tonys Back to Broadway!! in an effort to combat the Tinseltown effect. With the now almost 9,000-member group, Foster hopes to restore the ceremony as a beacon of hope for the next generation of stage performers.

Whether stage actors like his sister, Sutton Foster -- nominated this year for her performance in "Anything Goes" -- will disappear from Broadway's future if the Tonys continue to focus on Hollywood stars is debatable. Many actors appearing on Broadway -- including Al Pacino, a nominee this year for "The Merchant of Venice" -- began their careers on stage, but their mass appeal comes from their films.

"I have worked my ass off to get to where I am, so I understand that struggle," Scarlett Johansson -- who was one of four Hollywood actors to win a Tony in 2010 -- told BroadwayWorld.com last year. "If somebody is cast because they are a name but they're not right for the job, well, it's very frustrating."

Experts and actors agree, however, that celebrities are necessary for some producers to bankroll productions, and a famous headliner brings more stable jobs for New York actors.

This year's list of nominees lacks many of the Broadway season's big names -- including Chris Rock, Robin Williams, Ben Stiller, and Daniel Radcliffe. David Sheward, executive editor of Back Stage and a Tony voter, blogged about how the dearth of well-known nominees could be a response by the nominating committee to last year's backlash.

However, Charlotte St. Martin, executive director of the Broadway League, which presents the awards with the American Theater Wing, said there is no correlation between last year's response and this year's nominees.

"If you look at the shows, most of the people who got good reviews are nominated," said St. Martin, who is also on the awards' administration committee, which oversees the nominating process. "People whose reviews were not as good, either for the show or the individual, perhaps are not."

A star can be an economic necessity for a Broadway show, and Michael Riedel, New York Post theater columnist and host of PBS's "Theater Talk," does not think Hollywood stars take jobs away from New York actors. "If you didn't have these celebrities, a lot of these shows wouldn't be produced," he said. "All of these shows have people in them who are not movie stars and they're all working."

CRUSADERS

A Tony represents the Holy Grail for a stage actor and can significantly boost a performer's career, whereas film and television actors are already honored with awards like Oscars and Emmys. Having widely recognized actors swoop in and secure a Tony nomination can be upsetting to some, said Garrett Eisler of the blog The Playgoer, as there are limited spots.

According to Eisler, stars have driven Broadway ticket sales throughout history, but "what changed is the definition of who is a star." In the 1950s and '60s, the box office names were Robert Preston, Rex Harrison, and Zero Mostel, who had some fame from film but whose main medium was the stage. "A Broadway star could really be a star," Eisler said, recognizing that Patti LuPone is one of the few who fits this bill today. "Now you can't be a star unless you're a Hollywood star."

The Internet democratizes entertainment, and a stage performer will never receive the same size audience for a Broadway show that another actor will receive for a film or a television series.

"There's been a generational shift," Eisler explained, noting that today's generation of young people is the first to come of age with the Internet. "Certain stars can't become household names without appearing on multiple platforms."

Tony winner and New York stage veteran Victoria Clark acknowledged her win for "The Light in the Piazza" in 2005 helped launch her career and turned her into more of a "known quantity." Her role as Mother Superior in this year's "Sister Act," for which she is nominated, came to her in part because of her name and the connections she made through her past work.

"Jerry Zaks could have gone after anybody between the ages of 45 and 80 for this part," she said, referring to the show's director. "There's a message to our directors: Support the people that supported you when you first started your career and go back to those people and give them a shot."

Celebrities coming to Broadway take work away from New York theater actors, according to Clark, but she also says the industry should not separate actors into film, TV, and stage categories. "It's our culture that segregates us," she argued. "If we were actors in any other country, we'd all be doing everything, no questions asked."

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Old friends Stoller, Butler make new Broadway musical

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By Frank Scheck

NEW YORK | Thu May 26, 2011 5:29pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - It took more than half a century, but composers Mike Stoller and Artie Butler have finally managed to cross the street.

W. 54th Street in Manhattan, to be exact. That's where the duo first met, at a recording studio where Stoller and his songwriting partner Jerry Leiber -- responsible for such 1950S classics as "Hound Dog," "Jailhouse Rock," "Yakety Yak," "Poison Ivy" and countless others -- were producing a record. Butler was working there as a lowly "button pusher" who started the tape machines rolling.

Now they've collaborated on the music for a new Broadway musical, "The People in the Picture," playing at Studio 54, located just diagonally across the street.

It stars Donna Murphy, a two-time Tony Award winner for "Passion," and "The King & I", who won nominations again for her role a Jewish grandmother who is struggling to share her legacy.

The veteran songwriting duo began their friendship in the 1960s when a piano player couldn't manage a particular passage during a session.

Butler, then just 17 years-old, piped up that he could play it, much to the annoyance of his employer who berated him for talking to the clients. But Leiber and Stoller were intrigued enough to give the brash kid a shot, and when he pulled it off they immediately offered him a job as a session musician.

Stoller and Butler have different recollections as to which artist they were recording. Stoller says Johnny Maestro; Butler insists it was Jay Black and the Americans. But they agree that it was the beginning of a lifelong friendship.

"It was my college degree," recalls Butler. "It was the Leiber/Stoller magic show, and every day I got to watch! I learned by osmosis."

Eventually, Butler went off on his own, becoming a leading producer, arranger and composer responsible for over 40 gold and platinum records. Among his songwriting credits is "Here's to Life," a modern classic that has been recorded by such artists as Shirley Horn and Barbra Streisand.

Stoller's music has been heard on Broadway in "Smokey Joe's Cafe," the hit musical revue of classic Leiber and Stoller songs.

But he had never composed directly for the musical theater until he was approached by novelist Iris Rainer Dart, the author of "Beaches," who asked him to work on a show she had written about a Jewish grandmother and her days as a Yiddish theater star in 1930s Warsaw.

Stoller invited Dart to his home, where she read the script aloud to him. "By the time she finished I had tears running down my face," he recalls. "It's such a moving story."

Dart then began looking for an arranger for the demo recordings necessary to attract backers. Someone recommended Butler, so she contacted Stoller to ask if he knew him, and if so, did he like him?

"Yes, I know him," Stoller replied. "And I don't like him. I love him!"

The two composers wound up collaborating on the score, with Dart writing the lyrics. Although the show opened to mixed reviews, all three received Drama Desk Award nominations for their efforts.

For Butler, it's the fulfillment of a lifelong goal.

"All my life I've chased my dreams," he says. This is one of the biggest dreams I've ever had. I don't understand why people take drugs. They should write a Broadway show and get it on. Because nothing gets you more high."

"The People in the Picture" runs at Studio 54 until June 19.

(Editing by Jill Serjeant)

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By Frank Scheck

NEW YORK | Thu May 26, 2011 5:29pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - It took more than half a century, but composers Mike Stoller and Artie Butler have finally managed to cross the street.

W. 54th Street in Manhattan, to be exact. That's where the duo first met, at a recording studio where Stoller and his songwriting partner Jerry Leiber -- responsible for such 1950S classics as "Hound Dog," "Jailhouse Rock," "Yakety Yak," "Poison Ivy" and countless others -- were producing a record. Butler was working there as a lowly "button pusher" who started the tape machines rolling.

Now they've collaborated on the music for a new Broadway musical, "The People in the Picture," playing at Studio 54, located just diagonally across the street.

It stars Donna Murphy, a two-time Tony Award winner for "Passion," and "The King & I", who won nominations again for her role a Jewish grandmother who is struggling to share her legacy.

The veteran songwriting duo began their friendship in the 1960s when a piano player couldn't manage a particular passage during a session.

Butler, then just 17 years-old, piped up that he could play it, much to the annoyance of his employer who berated him for talking to the clients. But Leiber and Stoller were intrigued enough to give the brash kid a shot, and when he pulled it off they immediately offered him a job as a session musician.

Stoller and Butler have different recollections as to which artist they were recording. Stoller says Johnny Maestro; Butler insists it was Jay Black and the Americans. But they agree that it was the beginning of a lifelong friendship.

"It was my college degree," recalls Butler. "It was the Leiber/Stoller magic show, and every day I got to watch! I learned by osmosis."

Eventually, Butler went off on his own, becoming a leading producer, arranger and composer responsible for over 40 gold and platinum records. Among his songwriting credits is "Here's to Life," a modern classic that has been recorded by such artists as Shirley Horn and Barbra Streisand.

Stoller's music has been heard on Broadway in "Smokey Joe's Cafe," the hit musical revue of classic Leiber and Stoller songs.

But he had never composed directly for the musical theater until he was approached by novelist Iris Rainer Dart, the author of "Beaches," who asked him to work on a show she had written about a Jewish grandmother and her days as a Yiddish theater star in 1930s Warsaw.

Stoller invited Dart to his home, where she read the script aloud to him. "By the time she finished I had tears running down my face," he recalls. "It's such a moving story."

Dart then began looking for an arranger for the demo recordings necessary to attract backers. Someone recommended Butler, so she contacted Stoller to ask if he knew him, and if so, did he like him?

"Yes, I know him," Stoller replied. "And I don't like him. I love him!"

The two composers wound up collaborating on the score, with Dart writing the lyrics. Although the show opened to mixed reviews, all three received Drama Desk Award nominations for their efforts.

For Butler, it's the fulfillment of a lifelong goal.

"All my life I've chased my dreams," he says. This is one of the biggest dreams I've ever had. I don't understand why people take drugs. They should write a Broadway show and get it on. Because nothing gets you more high."

"The People in the Picture" runs at Studio 54 until June 19.

(Editing by Jill Serjeant)

Baloane

Cost aparat dentar

By Frank Scheck

NEW YORK | Thu May 26, 2011 5:29pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - It took more than half a century, but composers Mike Stoller and Artie Butler have finally managed to cross the street.

W. 54th Street in Manhattan, to be exact. That's where the duo first met, at a recording studio where Stoller and his songwriting partner Jerry Leiber -- responsible for such 1950S classics as "Hound Dog," "Jailhouse Rock," "Yakety Yak," "Poison Ivy" and countless others -- were producing a record. Butler was working there as a lowly "button pusher" who started the tape machines rolling.

Now they've collaborated on the music for a new Broadway musical, "The People in the Picture," playing at Studio 54, located just diagonally across the street.

It stars Donna Murphy, a two-time Tony Award winner for "Passion," and "The King & I", who won nominations again for her role a Jewish grandmother who is struggling to share her legacy.

The veteran songwriting duo began their friendship in the 1960s when a piano player couldn't manage a particular passage during a session.

Butler, then just 17 years-old, piped up that he could play it, much to the annoyance of his employer who berated him for talking to the clients. But Leiber and Stoller were intrigued enough to give the brash kid a shot, and when he pulled it off they immediately offered him a job as a session musician.

Stoller and Butler have different recollections as to which artist they were recording. Stoller says Johnny Maestro; Butler insists it was Jay Black and the Americans. But they agree that it was the beginning of a lifelong friendship.

"It was my college degree," recalls Butler. "It was the Leiber/Stoller magic show, and every day I got to watch! I learned by osmosis."

Eventually, Butler went off on his own, becoming a leading producer, arranger and composer responsible for over 40 gold and platinum records. Among his songwriting credits is "Here's to Life," a modern classic that has been recorded by such artists as Shirley Horn and Barbra Streisand.

Stoller's music has been heard on Broadway in "Smokey Joe's Cafe," the hit musical revue of classic Leiber and Stoller songs.

But he had never composed directly for the musical theater until he was approached by novelist Iris Rainer Dart, the author of "Beaches," who asked him to work on a show she had written about a Jewish grandmother and her days as a Yiddish theater star in 1930s Warsaw.

Stoller invited Dart to his home, where she read the script aloud to him. "By the time she finished I had tears running down my face," he recalls. "It's such a moving story."

Dart then began looking for an arranger for the demo recordings necessary to attract backers. Someone recommended Butler, so she contacted Stoller to ask if he knew him, and if so, did he like him?

"Yes, I know him," Stoller replied. "And I don't like him. I love him!"

The two composers wound up collaborating on the score, with Dart writing the lyrics. Although the show opened to mixed reviews, all three received Drama Desk Award nominations for their efforts.

For Butler, it's the fulfillment of a lifelong goal.

"All my life I've chased my dreams," he says. This is one of the biggest dreams I've ever had. I don't understand why people take drugs. They should write a Broadway show and get it on. Because nothing gets you more high."

"The People in the Picture" runs at Studio 54 until June 19.

(Editing by Jill Serjeant)

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Woody Allen, Ethan Coen, make Broadway debut

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Director John Turturro poses during a photocall for the movie ''Passione'' at the 67th Venice Film Festival September 4, 2010.

Credit: Reuters/Tony Gentile

By David Rooney

Wed May 18, 2011 3:02pm EDT

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - John Turturro will make his Broadway directing debut next fall with an evening of three one-act comedies by Ethan Coen, Elaine May and Woody Allen, collectively titled "Relatively Speaking."

The production also marks the first foray into Broadway for Coen, whose two programs of one-acts, "Almost an Evening" and "Offices," were hits Off Broadway for the Atlantic Theater Company.

Julian Schlossberg and Letty Aronson will produce "Relatively Speaking," which is slated to begin previews in September for an October opening.

Turturro has a long association with the Coen Brothers, having appeared in "Miller's Crossing," "Barton Fink," "The Big Lebowski" and "O Brother, Where Art Thou?"

Allen's latest feature, "Midnight in Paris," premiered last week at the Cannes Film Festival and will open domestically May 20 through Sony Classics.

(Editing by Zorianna Kit)

Birou Notarial Bucuresti

Baloane

Director John Turturro poses during a photocall for the movie ''Passione'' at the 67th Venice Film Festival September 4, 2010.

Credit: Reuters/Tony Gentile

By David Rooney

Wed May 18, 2011 3:02pm EDT

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - John Turturro will make his Broadway directing debut next fall with an evening of three one-act comedies by Ethan Coen, Elaine May and Woody Allen, collectively titled "Relatively Speaking."

The production also marks the first foray into Broadway for Coen, whose two programs of one-acts, "Almost an Evening" and "Offices," were hits Off Broadway for the Atlantic Theater Company.

Julian Schlossberg and Letty Aronson will produce "Relatively Speaking," which is slated to begin previews in September for an October opening.

Turturro has a long association with the Coen Brothers, having appeared in "Miller's Crossing," "Barton Fink," "The Big Lebowski" and "O Brother, Where Art Thou?"

Allen's latest feature, "Midnight in Paris," premiered last week at the Cannes Film Festival and will open domestically May 20 through Sony Classics.

(Editing by Zorianna Kit)

Baloane

Cost aparat dentar

Director John Turturro poses during a photocall for the movie ''Passione'' at the 67th Venice Film Festival September 4, 2010.

Credit: Reuters/Tony Gentile

By David Rooney

Wed May 18, 2011 3:02pm EDT

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - John Turturro will make his Broadway directing debut next fall with an evening of three one-act comedies by Ethan Coen, Elaine May and Woody Allen, collectively titled "Relatively Speaking."

The production also marks the first foray into Broadway for Coen, whose two programs of one-acts, "Almost an Evening" and "Offices," were hits Off Broadway for the Atlantic Theater Company.

Julian Schlossberg and Letty Aronson will produce "Relatively Speaking," which is slated to begin previews in September for an October opening.

Turturro has a long association with the Coen Brothers, having appeared in "Miller's Crossing," "Barton Fink," "The Big Lebowski" and "O Brother, Where Art Thou?"

Allen's latest feature, "Midnight in Paris," premiered last week at the Cannes Film Festival and will open domestically May 20 through Sony Classics.

(Editing by Zorianna Kit)

Cost aparat dentar

London hit "War Horse" makes thrilling Broadway bow

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By David Rooney

Mon Apr 18, 2011 5:14am EDT

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - It's easy to see what attracted Steven Spielberg to British children's author Michael Morpugo's novel "War Horse."

But it's hard to imagine how the screen version, due in December, can improve upon the thrilling experience of this stage adaptation, which is as emotionally stirring, visually arresting and compellingly told as anything on the filmmaker's resume.

Produced by London's National Theater, the play premiered in 2007 and went on after two sell-out engagements to become a smash in the West End, where it's still running. This Broadway transfer makes tremendous use of the deep stage and various aisles of Lincoln Center's Vivian Beaumont Theater, creating a spectacle both intimate and epic. The limited run is scheduled through June 26, but rapturous word of mouth seems certain to change that to an open-ended stay.

Adapted by Nick Stafford in association with the Handspring Puppet Company, the play is specific in its historic setting of World War I, yet any concerns about American audiences' distance from that conflict are unfounded. The writer and creative team make this story universal in its reflections on war, its consideration of how we define courage and cowardice, and its portrayal of the purest kind of love.

Comparisons to "The Lion King" are inevitable but also facile. While the puppetry designs of South African company Handspring and its founders Adrian Kohler and Basil Jones are the undisputed stars here, this is an entirely different, far more emotionally immersive experience than the Disney show. It belongs to a rich tradition of British story-theater that favors artisanal craftsmanship over technology. When it works, as it does so exquisitely here, this can be as transporting for adults as it is for children.

Operated onstage by teams of three or more puppeteers, the life-size horses are breathtaking in their detail. The designs eschew naturalism for constructions of leather, cloth, cane and wire that share every secret of the mechanisms involved. Yet, in every way -- their breathing, their flaring nostrils, twitching ears and soulful eyes, their powerful flanks and movements that can be skittish or graceful -- these are not cute facsimiles but flesh-and-blood creatures. What's remarkable is how quickly the puppeteers, who also provide vocal sounds for the horses, vanish through sheer force of imagination.

Directed by Marianne Elliott and Tom Morris with a fluid narrative grasp and seamless cohesion between design and performance elements, the show follows the life of a horse named Joey from birth. As a foal, Joey appears to grow before our eyes before being purchased by Ted Narracott (Boris McGiver), a Devon farmer. Ted pays a ridiculous amount for the horse merely to outbid his brother Arthur (T. Ryder Smith), their bitter rivalry shared by their respective sons, Albert (Seth Numrich) and Billy (Matt Doyle). When Ted's feisty wife Rose (Alyssa Bresnahan) learns that the mortgage money has gone on a horse not even bred for farm work, she orders 16-year-old Albert to raise the animal until it's healthy enough to fetch a good price.

Joey's speed and strength attract Arthur's attention, resulting in a bet with Ted that the horse cannot be trained to pull a plow. When Albert's perseverance wins his father the bet, he also becomes Joey's owner, nixing any plan to sell. But when Britain goes to war, and large sums are being paid for cavalry horses, Ted sells Joey to the army behind his son's back.

Word reaches Albert that the officer riding Joey has been killed, so he runs off to France, lies about his age and enlists, determined to find the animal. Joey, meanwhile, has been captured by the Germans and put to work pulling an ambulance cart in a casualty clearance station in the Somme Valley.

The battle scenes are stylized, almost balletic at times, yet charged and visceral. The horror of horses being ridden into barbed wire and machine-gun fire yields particularly distressing moments. One striking stage picture, in which a horse and a tank rear up in each other's paths, provides a wrenching illustration of the conflict of nature with the machine age. But despite its penetrating sorrows, the overriding tenderness of this story of how a boy and his horse endure the brutality of war will leave few in the audience unmoved.

One could nitpick that the directors overuse the folk songs and battle anthems that punctuate the action, or that Stafford's writing is at times simplistic in explicating its themes, notably in a face-to-face encounter between a British and a German soldier. But overall, the presentation and writing are sentimental in the noblest possible way.

While the actors can't quite compete with the majestic beauty of the puppets (which include ravens and an ornery goose), the American cast all contribute vivid characterizations and total commitment to the illusion that these animals are real.

Numrich brings heartbreaking conviction to Albert's love of Joey and his almost unwavering faith that the horse has survived. In a uniformly strong ensemble, Peter Hermann also makes a deep impression as a German who assumes a medical officer's identity to avoid returning to the front. This character typifies the play's refusal to break down antagonists into villains and heroes, but rather to show that everyone is a victim in war.

It's impossible to overstate the effectiveness of Rae Smith's gorgeous design work. Its most evocative element is the torn page of a sketchbook overhead, which maps the shifting action and changing atmosphere with a mix of pencil drawings and projections.

In its blending of modern and traditional storytelling, its poetic imagery and primal emotion, this is the kind of magical theater event that comes along only rarely. As an introduction to the stage for young audiences, "War Horse" has the uplifting power to make lifelong converts. For more seasoned theatergoers, it has the elegance and inventiveness to erase the jaded memories of dozens of more cynical entertainments.

Birou Notarial Bucuresti

Baloane

By David Rooney

Mon Apr 18, 2011 5:14am EDT

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - It's easy to see what attracted Steven Spielberg to British children's author Michael Morpugo's novel "War Horse."

But it's hard to imagine how the screen version, due in December, can improve upon the thrilling experience of this stage adaptation, which is as emotionally stirring, visually arresting and compellingly told as anything on the filmmaker's resume.

Produced by London's National Theater, the play premiered in 2007 and went on after two sell-out engagements to become a smash in the West End, where it's still running. This Broadway transfer makes tremendous use of the deep stage and various aisles of Lincoln Center's Vivian Beaumont Theater, creating a spectacle both intimate and epic. The limited run is scheduled through June 26, but rapturous word of mouth seems certain to change that to an open-ended stay.

Adapted by Nick Stafford in association with the Handspring Puppet Company, the play is specific in its historic setting of World War I, yet any concerns about American audiences' distance from that conflict are unfounded. The writer and creative team make this story universal in its reflections on war, its consideration of how we define courage and cowardice, and its portrayal of the purest kind of love.

Comparisons to "The Lion King" are inevitable but also facile. While the puppetry designs of South African company Handspring and its founders Adrian Kohler and Basil Jones are the undisputed stars here, this is an entirely different, far more emotionally immersive experience than the Disney show. It belongs to a rich tradition of British story-theater that favors artisanal craftsmanship over technology. When it works, as it does so exquisitely here, this can be as transporting for adults as it is for children.

Operated onstage by teams of three or more puppeteers, the life-size horses are breathtaking in their detail. The designs eschew naturalism for constructions of leather, cloth, cane and wire that share every secret of the mechanisms involved. Yet, in every way -- their breathing, their flaring nostrils, twitching ears and soulful eyes, their powerful flanks and movements that can be skittish or graceful -- these are not cute facsimiles but flesh-and-blood creatures. What's remarkable is how quickly the puppeteers, who also provide vocal sounds for the horses, vanish through sheer force of imagination.

Directed by Marianne Elliott and Tom Morris with a fluid narrative grasp and seamless cohesion between design and performance elements, the show follows the life of a horse named Joey from birth. As a foal, Joey appears to grow before our eyes before being purchased by Ted Narracott (Boris McGiver), a Devon farmer. Ted pays a ridiculous amount for the horse merely to outbid his brother Arthur (T. Ryder Smith), their bitter rivalry shared by their respective sons, Albert (Seth Numrich) and Billy (Matt Doyle). When Ted's feisty wife Rose (Alyssa Bresnahan) learns that the mortgage money has gone on a horse not even bred for farm work, she orders 16-year-old Albert to raise the animal until it's healthy enough to fetch a good price.

Joey's speed and strength attract Arthur's attention, resulting in a bet with Ted that the horse cannot be trained to pull a plow. When Albert's perseverance wins his father the bet, he also becomes Joey's owner, nixing any plan to sell. But when Britain goes to war, and large sums are being paid for cavalry horses, Ted sells Joey to the army behind his son's back.

Word reaches Albert that the officer riding Joey has been killed, so he runs off to France, lies about his age and enlists, determined to find the animal. Joey, meanwhile, has been captured by the Germans and put to work pulling an ambulance cart in a casualty clearance station in the Somme Valley.

The battle scenes are stylized, almost balletic at times, yet charged and visceral. The horror of horses being ridden into barbed wire and machine-gun fire yields particularly distressing moments. One striking stage picture, in which a horse and a tank rear up in each other's paths, provides a wrenching illustration of the conflict of nature with the machine age. But despite its penetrating sorrows, the overriding tenderness of this story of how a boy and his horse endure the brutality of war will leave few in the audience unmoved.

One could nitpick that the directors overuse the folk songs and battle anthems that punctuate the action, or that Stafford's writing is at times simplistic in explicating its themes, notably in a face-to-face encounter between a British and a German soldier. But overall, the presentation and writing are sentimental in the noblest possible way.

While the actors can't quite compete with the majestic beauty of the puppets (which include ravens and an ornery goose), the American cast all contribute vivid characterizations and total commitment to the illusion that these animals are real.

Numrich brings heartbreaking conviction to Albert's love of Joey and his almost unwavering faith that the horse has survived. In a uniformly strong ensemble, Peter Hermann also makes a deep impression as a German who assumes a medical officer's identity to avoid returning to the front. This character typifies the play's refusal to break down antagonists into villains and heroes, but rather to show that everyone is a victim in war.

It's impossible to overstate the effectiveness of Rae Smith's gorgeous design work. Its most evocative element is the torn page of a sketchbook overhead, which maps the shifting action and changing atmosphere with a mix of pencil drawings and projections.

In its blending of modern and traditional storytelling, its poetic imagery and primal emotion, this is the kind of magical theater event that comes along only rarely. As an introduction to the stage for young audiences, "War Horse" has the uplifting power to make lifelong converts. For more seasoned theatergoers, it has the elegance and inventiveness to erase the jaded memories of dozens of more cynical entertainments.

Baloane

Broadway to dim lights for Elizabeth Taylor on Friday

birou notarial

A pedestrian walks by today's newspaper front pages with the late Elizabeth Taylor obituary on display in front of the Newseum in Washington, March 24, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Hyungwon Kang

NEW YORK | Thu Mar 24, 2011 7:37pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Broadway's lights will darken on Friday in tribute to actress Elizabeth Taylor, who died in Los Angeles aged 79 on Wednesday.

"The Broadway community mourns the loss of Elizabeth Taylor, legendary stage and screen star," The Broadway League said in a statement.

In Taylor's honor, Broadway's theater marquees will be dimmed at exactly 8 p.m., the traditional curtain time for shows, for one minute.

The actress, best known for her starring roles in Hollywood and Europe during the 1950s and 1960s, appeared on Broadway in a revival of Lillian Hellman's "The Little Foxes," for which she won rave reviews and a Tony award nomination.

Taylor returned in 1983 as producer and star of Noel Coward's "Private Lives" opposite her former husband, Richard Burton, and produced "The Corn is Green" that year as well.

"With her remarkable talent and extraordinary beauty, Elizabeth Taylor lit up the Broadway stage the same way she lit up the silver screen," League chairman Paul Libin said.

"Off stage, her tireless commitment to fighting AIDS as a co-founder of amfAR and founder of The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation added yet another meaningful role to the story of her life. Our thoughts go out to her friends, family, and fans."

(Reporting by Christopher Michaud; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)

Birou Notarial Bucuresti

Baloane

A pedestrian walks by today's newspaper front pages with the late Elizabeth Taylor obituary on display in front of the Newseum in Washington, March 24, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Hyungwon Kang

NEW YORK | Thu Mar 24, 2011 7:37pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Broadway's lights will darken on Friday in tribute to actress Elizabeth Taylor, who died in Los Angeles aged 79 on Wednesday.

"The Broadway community mourns the loss of Elizabeth Taylor, legendary stage and screen star," The Broadway League said in a statement.

In Taylor's honor, Broadway's theater marquees will be dimmed at exactly 8 p.m., the traditional curtain time for shows, for one minute.

The actress, best known for her starring roles in Hollywood and Europe during the 1950s and 1960s, appeared on Broadway in a revival of Lillian Hellman's "The Little Foxes," for which she won rave reviews and a Tony award nomination.

Taylor returned in 1983 as producer and star of Noel Coward's "Private Lives" opposite her former husband, Richard Burton, and produced "The Corn is Green" that year as well.

"With her remarkable talent and extraordinary beauty, Elizabeth Taylor lit up the Broadway stage the same way she lit up the silver screen," League chairman Paul Libin said.

"Off stage, her tireless commitment to fighting AIDS as a co-founder of amfAR and founder of The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation added yet another meaningful role to the story of her life. Our thoughts go out to her friends, family, and fans."

(Reporting by Christopher Michaud; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)

Baloane

"South Park" creators score raves on Broadway

birou notarial

South Park creators Matt Stone (R) and Trey Parker pose for a photo in New York March 18, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Jessica Rinaldi

By Christine Kearney

NEW YORK | Fri Mar 25, 2011 1:23pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A satirical Broadway show about Mormons who travel from Utah to Uganda by the creators of "South Park" scored rave reviews on Friday from critics who called it the best musical comedy since "The Producers."

"The Book of Mormon," which was seven years in the making for Trey Parker and Matt Stone, opened on the Great White Way on Thursday night to reviews that said it balanced clever, humorous songs and lyrics with heartfelt reflections on faith.

For Broadway doubters, "the ones who say that heaven on Broadway does not exist, that it's only some myth our ancestors dreamed up, I am here to report that a newborn, old-fashioned, pleasure-giving musical has arrived," the New York Times said.

The Times said it perfectly balanced a sharp, irreverent tone, which is "blasphemous, scurrilous and more foul-mouthed than David Mamet on a blue streak," with themes that test the ideals of faith and has a heart "as pure as that of a Rodgers and Hammerstein show."

The newspaper also highlighted several catchy numbers, including about repressed Mormons, some with gay longings, called "Turn It Off" and "Joseph Smith American Moses" about the church's founder, Joseph Smith Jr.

Showbiz trade publication Variety said "Book of Mormons" surpassed musical comedy Tony winners "Spamalot" and "Avenue Q" and applauded lead actors Andrew Rannells playing an uptight, overachieving Mormon and Josh Gad as his bumbling companion, as well as actress Nikki M. James as an African local.

"Broadway hasn't seen anything like it since Mel Brooks came to town with 'The Producers,' only 'Mormon' has better songs," Variety said. "

While the show sends up the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Mormon leaders have avoided returning fire, saying in a statement: "The production may attempt to entertain audiences for an evening, but the Book of Mormon as a volume of scripture will change people's lives forever."

Creators Stone and Parker told Reuters recently that rather than setting out to "bash Mormons," they preferred to make a "very traditional, classic musical."

The New York Post seemed to agree, saying the show "is less about religion than (about) credulity and the need to believe, as well as the singular American gift for dreaming up great stories and enduring symbols -- and selling them to everyone on the planet."

The Wall Street Journal was among the few publications extending a sharp critique, saying while it had cheery songs, it was "slick and smutty" and "flabby, amateurish and very, very safe."

(Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)

Birou Notarial Bucuresti

Baloane

South Park creators Matt Stone (R) and Trey Parker pose for a photo in New York March 18, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Jessica Rinaldi

By Christine Kearney

NEW YORK | Fri Mar 25, 2011 1:23pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A satirical Broadway show about Mormons who travel from Utah to Uganda by the creators of "South Park" scored rave reviews on Friday from critics who called it the best musical comedy since "The Producers."

"The Book of Mormon," which was seven years in the making for Trey Parker and Matt Stone, opened on the Great White Way on Thursday night to reviews that said it balanced clever, humorous songs and lyrics with heartfelt reflections on faith.

For Broadway doubters, "the ones who say that heaven on Broadway does not exist, that it's only some myth our ancestors dreamed up, I am here to report that a newborn, old-fashioned, pleasure-giving musical has arrived," the New York Times said.

The Times said it perfectly balanced a sharp, irreverent tone, which is "blasphemous, scurrilous and more foul-mouthed than David Mamet on a blue streak," with themes that test the ideals of faith and has a heart "as pure as that of a Rodgers and Hammerstein show."

The newspaper also highlighted several catchy numbers, including about repressed Mormons, some with gay longings, called "Turn It Off" and "Joseph Smith American Moses" about the church's founder, Joseph Smith Jr.

Showbiz trade publication Variety said "Book of Mormons" surpassed musical comedy Tony winners "Spamalot" and "Avenue Q" and applauded lead actors Andrew Rannells playing an uptight, overachieving Mormon and Josh Gad as his bumbling companion, as well as actress Nikki M. James as an African local.

"Broadway hasn't seen anything like it since Mel Brooks came to town with 'The Producers,' only 'Mormon' has better songs," Variety said. "

While the show sends up the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Mormon leaders have avoided returning fire, saying in a statement: "The production may attempt to entertain audiences for an evening, but the Book of Mormon as a volume of scripture will change people's lives forever."

Creators Stone and Parker told Reuters recently that rather than setting out to "bash Mormons," they preferred to make a "very traditional, classic musical."

The New York Post seemed to agree, saying the show "is less about religion than (about) credulity and the need to believe, as well as the singular American gift for dreaming up great stories and enduring symbols -- and selling them to everyone on the planet."

The Wall Street Journal was among the few publications extending a sharp critique, saying while it had cheery songs, it was "slick and smutty" and "flabby, amateurish and very, very safe."

(Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)

Baloane

Broadway to dim lights for Elizabeth Taylor on Friday

birou notarial


A pedestrian walks by today's newspaper front pages with the late Elizabeth Taylor obituary on display in front of the Newseum in Washington, March 24, 2011.
Credit: Reuters/Hyungwon Kang
NEW YORK | Thu Mar 24, 2011 7:37pm EDT
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Broadway's lights will darken on Friday in tribute to actress Elizabeth Taylor, who died in Los Angeles aged 79 on Wednesday.
"The Broadway community mourns the loss of Elizabeth Taylor, legendary stage and screen star," The Broadway League said in a statement.
In Taylor's honor, Broadway's theater marquees will be dimmed at exactly 8 p.m., the traditional curtain time for shows, for one minute.
The actress, best known for her starring roles in Hollywood and Europe during the 1950s and 1960s, appeared on Broadway in a revival of Lillian Hellman's "The Little Foxes," for which she won rave reviews and a Tony award nomination.
Taylor returned in 1983 as producer and star of Noel Coward's "Private Lives" opposite her former husband, Richard Burton, and produced "The Corn is Green" that year as well.
"With her remarkable talent and extraordinary beauty, Elizabeth Taylor lit up the Broadway stage the same way she lit up the silver screen," League chairman Paul Libin said.
"Off stage, her tireless commitment to fighting AIDS as a co-founder of amfAR and founder of The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation added yet another meaningful role to the story of her life. Our thoughts go out to her friends, family, and fans."
(Reporting by Christopher Michaud; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)
Birou Notarial Bucuresti

"South Park" creators score raves on Broadway

birou notarial

South Park creators Matt Stone (R) and Trey Parker pose for a photo in New York March 18, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Jessica Rinaldi

By Christine Kearney

NEW YORK | Fri Mar 25, 2011 1:23pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A satirical Broadway show about Mormons who travel from Utah to Uganda by the creators of "South Park" scored rave reviews on Friday from critics who called it the best musical comedy since "The Producers."

"The Book of Mormon," which was seven years in the making for Trey Parker and Matt Stone, opened on the Great White Way on Thursday night to reviews that said it balanced clever, humorous songs and lyrics with heartfelt reflections on faith.

For Broadway doubters, "the ones who say that heaven on Broadway does not exist, that it's only some myth our ancestors dreamed up, I am here to report that a newborn, old-fashioned, pleasure-giving musical has arrived," the New York Times said.

The Times said it perfectly balanced a sharp, irreverent tone, which is "blasphemous, scurrilous and more foul-mouthed than David Mamet on a blue streak," with themes that test the ideals of faith and has a heart "as pure as that of a Rodgers and Hammerstein show."

The newspaper also highlighted several catchy numbers, including about repressed Mormons, some with gay longings, called "Turn It Off" and "Joseph Smith American Moses" about the church's founder, Joseph Smith Jr.

Showbiz trade publication Variety said "Book of Mormons" surpassed musical comedy Tony winners "Spamalot" and "Avenue Q" and applauded lead actors Andrew Rannells playing an uptight, overachieving Mormon and Josh Gad as his bumbling companion, as well as actress Nikki M. James as an African local.

"Broadway hasn't seen anything like it since Mel Brooks came to town with 'The Producers,' only 'Mormon' has better songs," Variety said. "

While the show sends up the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Mormon leaders have avoided returning fire, saying in a statement: "The production may attempt to entertain audiences for an evening, but the Book of Mormon as a volume of scripture will change people's lives forever."

Creators Stone and Parker told Reuters recently that rather than setting out to "bash Mormons," they preferred to make a "very traditional, classic musical."

The New York Post seemed to agree, saying the show "is less about religion than (about) credulity and the need to believe, as well as the singular American gift for dreaming up great stories and enduring symbols -- and selling them to everyone on the planet."

The Wall Street Journal was among the few publications extending a sharp critique, saying while it had cheery songs, it was "slick and smutty" and "flabby, amateurish and very, very safe."

(Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)

Birou Notarial Bucuresti

Neil LaBute's "Fat Pig" delayed on Broadway

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By Lindsay Powers

Thu Mar 17, 2011 2:54pm EDT

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Neil LaBute's stage play "Fat Pig" will be delayed a year on Broadway after investors unexpectedly pulled out, the production company announced Thursday.

The comedy, which stars Dane Cook, Josh Hamilton, Julie Stiles and Heather Jane Rolff, was slated to begin previews April 12 at the Belasco Theater. Instead, it will premiere in spring 2012, with LaBute slated to make his Broadway directing debut. Ticket holders will be given refunds or allowed to exchange for a different date.

"The postponement is due to the last-minute fallout of a key investment," the production's press representative, The Hartman Group, said in a statement. "This did not leave the producers enough time to reacquire the necessary capital and begin rehearsals on schedule to open prior to the Tony Awards cutoff date."

Producers Aldo Scrofani and Heather Provost said in a joint statement: "It's our dream to keep this terrific cast and stunning creative team intact as we work to reschedule 'Fat Pig' for next season. The current financial situation did not leave adequate time to maintain the integrity of the show and its marketing campaign. This play deserves to be seen on Broadway and we remain very much committed to that goal.

(Editing by Zorianna Kit)

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