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There are nearly 500 anti-lgbtq+ bills currently advancing through state legislatures. Many bills specifically target drag shows or other public performances–censoring or outright banning them. Of course, there are also plenty of Don’t Say Gay bills, bathroom bills, and other anti-trans bills circulating in this country. It’s a terrifying time to be queer. Such lawmaking creates an atmosphere of fear, hate, and violence, and it’s difficult to find joy. Joy, such an elusive experience these days. But I found the joy I so desperately needed recently with Wesley Taylor and Alex Wyse’s Summoning Sylvia, one of the year’s most important releases.

The film tells the story of a group of gay friends on a weekend retreat to celebrate Larry’s (Travis Coles) upcoming nuptials. Reggie (Troy Iwata), Kevin (Noah Ricketts), and Nico (Frankie Grande) bankroll a three-night stay in a creepy Victorian-style home, where allegedly...

Bad Cinderella, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s updated musical re-telling of the classic fairy tale, will play its final Broadway performance on Sunday, June 4.

The musical, which features lyrics by David Zippel and book by Emerald Fennell, has been struggling at the box office after critical drubbings. The production received no Tony Award nominations last week – the musical will close one week before the scheduled Tony ceremony.

Box office figures for the show took a big hit after the Tony nomination shut-out, tumbling by $188,678 from the previous week to land at a small $326,303. Even with an average ticket price at a barely-there $54.33, the musical could fill only 54% of seats at the Imperial Theatre.

When it closes, Bad Cinderella will have played 33 preview performances and 85 regular performances at Broadway’s Imperial Theatre.

With tonight’s announcement, Bad Cinderella becomes the second Broadway production to announced its closing following a poor showing in...

With 38 productions eligible for this year’s Tony Awards, there were plenty of names missing when nominations were announced on Tuesday morning. Among the most surprising 2023 Tony nominations snubs was “Life of Pi” for Best Play. The production earned nine Olivier Award nominations across the pond, winning Best New Play, Actor (Hiran Abeysekera), Featured Actor, Lighting Design and Set Design. But at the Tonys, it missed out on a Best Play bid and didn’t score a nomination for Abeysekera. The production did perform well in the design categories, though, earning five nominations including for director Max Webster.

See the complete list of 2023 Tony Awards nominees

A duo of play revivals also underperformed. The latest production of Arthur Miller‘s “Death of a Salesman” did earn a significant nomination for Best Actor for Wendell Pierce, but it missed out on major bids for Best Revival of a Play, Featured Actress...

At this year’s Tony Awards, there are three actresses in contention for two separate performances in two separate productions they’ve appeared in this past season. They are Carolee Carmello, Crystal Lucas-Perry, and Phillipa Soo. Will any of them land at least one Tony nomination on May 2? Let’s go over each of the three.

Back in the fall, Carmello played John Dickinson in a limited run of Roundabout Theatre Company’s revival of “1776.” Now she’s playing the wicked stepmother in Andrew Lloyd Webber‘s newest musical, “Bad Cinderella.” Carmello has been nominated three times before. First in 1999 for the original production of “Parade,” then in 2006 for “Lestat,” and in 2013 for “Scandalous.”

As she is on the ballot for Best Featured Actress in a Musical twice, it’s possible she could split her support in the nominating process. However, what could hurt her more from getting nominated...

If there was any indication of how Bad Cinderella’s Broadway run would go, it was apparent during the show’s Oct. 3 announcement. Actress Linedy Genao, who plays the titular Cinderella, addressed a gathered crowd of media, fans, and a ravenous online audience ready to see how the American attempt of the short-lived London musical would work.

“But I do have one thing to tell you,” Genao said into the mic, while composer Andrew Lloyd Weber looked on from the sides. “I’m not your Cinderella. I’m your bad Cinderella.

Some recent Broadway arrivals added both star power and box office receipts to the weekly grosses reports, with both Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street and Parade selling out (the latter despite some loudmouthed neo-Nazi protesters), and A Doll’s House starring Jessica Chastain and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Bad Cinderella coming close.

The musical revival Parade, starring Ben Platt as Leo Frank and Micaela Diamond as wife Lucille Frank, played four preview performances last week – only one of which, the first, drew the antisemitic protesters – and was at standing room only, grossing $587,006 with an average ticket price of $143.24. The Alfred Uhry-Jason Robert Brown musical, directed by Michael Arden, opens at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre on March 16.

Jessica Chastain (Credit: Giampaolo Sgura)

Sweeney Todd, the revival of the acclaimed Stephen Sondheim-Hugh Wheeler musical starring Josh Groban and Annaleigh Ashford at the Lunt-Fontanne, sold out its first preview,...

Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Bad Cinderella and Polydor Records/UMe announced today the release of the new single “I Know I Have A Heart (Because You Broke It)” from the highly anticipated new musical. The song is performed by Linedy Genao, who plays the titular role on Broadway. The single is now available on all global streaming platforms.

Performances of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Bad Cinderella will begin on Friday, February 17, 2023, at the Imperial Theatre (249 W 45th Street), with Opening Night taking place on Thursday, March 23, 2023.

Bad Cinderella features a score by Lloyd Webber with lyrics by Tony Award-winner David Zippel. The single is produced by Brooklyn-based producer and audio engineer Doug Schadt and was recorded at his studio in Brooklyn, New York, in January 2023.

The complete cast of Bad Cinderella includes Carolee Carmello as the Machiavellian Stepmother, Grace McLean as the ever-exacting Queen, Jordan Dobson as the heir-do-well Sebastian,...

We’re now about halfway through the 2022-2023 Broadway season, and there are currently seven productions of musicals set to open this spring. Could we be seeing any of them contend at this year’s Tony Awards? Below, find the plot description of each musical as well as the awards history of its author, cast, creative team, and the opening and (where applicable) closing dates.

“Bad Cinderella” (previews begin February 17; opens March 23)

In this loose adaptation of the classic fairy tale, the fields are idyllic, the prince is charming, and the townsfolk are ravishing in the beautiful kingdom of Belleville. One stubborn peasant stands in the way of absolute perfection: Cinderella. To those in Belleville, the damsel is the distress.

This musical features a book by Oscar winner Emerald Fennell, music by six-time Tony winner Andrew Lloyd Webber, and lyrics by Tony winner David Zippel. The production previously premiered in...

Carolee Carmello, Grace McLean and Jordan Dobson (A Beautiful Noise) will be among the cast of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Bad Cinderella when it arrives on Broadway in February, joining the previously announced Linedy Genao (who plays the title role).

Producers announced the full cast today. Bad Cinderella begins previews on Friday, February 17, 2023 at the Imperial Theatre , with opening night taking place on Thursday, March 23, 2023.

Carmello will play the stepmother, with McLean as the queen and Dobson as the young heir Sebastian. Also in the cast: Morgan Higgins as the stepsister Marie; Sami Gayle as stepsister Adele; and Christina Acosta Robinson as the Godmother.

Also cast: Savy Jackson as the Cinderella alternate, with Raymond Baynard, Michael Baerga, Lauren Boyd, Tristen Buettel, Kaleigh Cronin, Josh Drake, Ben Lanham, Angel Lozada, Cameron Loyal, Mariah Lyttle, Sarah Meahl, Christian Probst, Larkin Reilly, Julio Rey, Lily Rose,...

Near the start of the Roundabout Theatre Company’s Broadway revival of the musical 1776, a cast made entirely of actors who identify as female, transgender and nonbinary, with multiple representations of race and ethnicity, step into the gold-buckled shoes, literally, of the men who would come to be called the founding fathers. We can only imagine how things might turn out differently, both for the musical and in some alternate real-life universe.

In some ways, not much changes. Members of the Continental Congress still bicker, fight and ever so slowly hash out the details of what will become the Declaration of Independence. Slavery will remain enshrined in both the document and the new nation, and the musical’s rousing Sherman Edwards score is as vibrant and pleasing as ever.

What’s different, of course, are the voices singing those songs and hashing those historical details, and in that, at least,...

A new Broadway season has started, and there are currently seven productions of musicals set to open this fall. Could we be seeing any of them contend at next year’s Tony Awards? Below is an overview of the plot of each musical as well as the awards history of its author, cast, creative team, and the opening and (where applicable) closing dates.

“Almost Famous” (previews begin October 3; opens November 3)

In this stage musical adaptation of Cameron Crowe’s 2000 Academy Award-winning film, William Miller is an idealistic 15-year-old aspiring music journalist. When Rolling Stone magazine hires him to go on the road with an up-and-coming band, he is thrust into the rock-and-roll circus, where his love of music, his longing for friendship, and his integrity as a writer collide.

This musical has a book written by Crowe, who also co-wrote the score with Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Tom Kitt.

The winners of the 11th Annual Indie Series Awards were revealed on Thursday, June 18 in a virtual ceremony hosted by Sean Kanan. The ISAs celebrate the best in independently produced scripted entertainment created for the Web.

Top honors went to After Forever and Indoor Boys, named best drama and best comedy series of the year.

Drama series acting honors went to Sean Kanan (Studio City), Chauntae Pink (Poz Roz), Derrell Whitt (A Place Called Hollywood), Patrika Darbo (Studio City) Carolyn Hennesy (Studio City), A Martinez (The Bay) and Meg Foster (A Place Called Hollywood).

Comedy winners included Alex Wyse (Indoor Boys), Lee Garlington (Before We Go), Wesley Taylor (Indoor Boys), Carolee Carmello (Indoor Boys), Frankie Grande (Indoor Boys) and Jonée B Shady (Poor Us).

Since 2009, the Indie Series Award has honored the most creative and progressive talent in independent web series. In all, 33 series were nominated from around the globe.

BroadwayCon, the annual three-day fan convention that was held virtually earlier this year due to the Covid pandemic, will return to in-person programming for the 2022 edition.

The 2022 BroadwayCon is set for February 18–20, 2022, at the Manhattan Center and the New Yorker Hotel. Event organizers announced the return to in-person programming today.

The event’s initial slate of anticipated participants include Anthony Rapp, BroadwayCon’s Co-Founder and original cast member of Rent, Andrew Barth Feldman, and Carolee Carmello, Erin Quill, Fredi Walker-Browne, Ilana Levine, Jacqueline B. Arnold, Jennifer Ashley Tepper, Judy Kuhn, Lesli Margherita, Nik Walker, Ryann Redmond, and Thayne Jasperson. Additional guests will be announced at a later date.

Rapp said in a statement, “After the last year and a half, we are thrilled to have the opportunity to come together to honor the passionate community of Broadway fans,...

Paul Huntley, the celebrated wigmaker for film, stage and television who provided Dustin Hoffman with the coif that transformed the actor into Tootsie and did the same decades later for when Santino Fontana originated the role in a Broadway musical, died this morning at his London home following a short illness. He was 89.

His death was announced in a post today on his Instagram page.

During his more than five-decade career, he helped give the felines of Cats their sheen, topped Patti LuPone’s Evita with the now famous blonde bun and styled the signature black and white job Glenn Close wore as Cruella de Vil in 101 Dalmations.

Huntley, who moved back to his native London recently from his longtime Manhattan home, retired earlier this year when Broadway’s Covid pandemic shutdown halted his professional opportunities, and after becoming bedridden following a fall at his Upper West Side home. His...

Exclusive: Law & Order: Special Victims Unit has a warrant out, in a manner of speaking, for Broadway actors. Next week’s episode features Tony-nominated Hadestown actor Eva Noblezada and Beetlejuice himself Alex Brightman, and showrunner Warren Leight tells Deadline that’s just the beginning.

Last night, after the episode casting was announced, Leight tweeted, “We are trying to hire every Broadway actor we can while we and they wait for the curtains to rise again.” And he wasn’t joking.

“We know how hard the community has been hit here,” Leight said in an interview. “The goal is to get as many jobs to as many theater actors as we possibly can.”

The offer couldn’t come at a more opportune time. The National Endowment for the Arts recently released figures indicating that while the overall unemployment rate has averaged 8.5 percent, the average among actors was 52 percent.

The NBC New York-based L&o franchise has long been known as a steady source of employment for the city’s theater performers – rare is the stage actor whose Playbill credits don’t include at least one of the L&o series – but the pandemic has pushed Leight’s team to ramp up even those efforts for the current Season 22.

Stage actors already cast in parts for this season include the Tony-winning Adriane Lenox, Elizabeth Marvel, Jane Bruce (Jagged Little Pill), Jelani Alladin (Disney’s Frozen), Michael Mastro (Love! Valour! Compassion!), and Betsy Aidem (Steel Magnolias).

Even Raúl Esparza, a four-time Tony nominee known to the wider TV audience for his six-season Svu run as Assistant D.A. Rafael Barba, is making a temporary franchise comeback to reprise the role for this week’s episode “Sightless in a Savage Land.”

Leight says the Broadway-filled roles range in scope from one-day parts to more substantial turns, but have an important practical impact for the actors, adding to the work day minimums required for Actors Equity-Broadway League health insurance.

The casting offers a significant logistical benefit to the show as well: casting New York actors is the more practical and efficient option during the Covid-19 pandemic, when the prospect of long-distance flights from Hollywood and required quarantine protocols can complicate using Los Angeles-based actors.

“In the past we’ve done what you could call Hollywood stunt casting,” Leight says, “but a lot of those players aren’t going to be willing to get on a plane and quarantine right now. We realized early on that we’ll have to cast locally much more.”

The Broadway shutdown also allows the show to get around the planning issues that Broadway’s usual performance schedule demands: Coordinating a shoot around the identical eight-performance weeks of working stage actors like Noblezada and Brightman (who Leight says enact “a horribly failed virtual romance” in the Jan. 14 episode) is daunting. There’s only so much guest-starring that can be crammed into a dark Broadway Monday.

Yet another plus for the production: Stage actors, accustomed to the tightrope walk of eight shows a week, are what Leight calls “money players,” guest stars who “hit their marks and can do it over and over” quickly. With pandemic safety precautions enforced on set – minimal personal contact, Covid testing, noisy stop-and-start ventilation, among other things – the production, he says, “doesn’t have time for actors who need to find it.”

“Our directors need to know that [guest actors] can do two scenes with Olivia and not be nervous,” he adds, referring to star Mariska Hargitay’s Olivia Benson character.

Leight himself has an extensive stage background, including his 1998 Tony-winning Best Play Side Man, a Pulitzer finalist that starred the Tony-winning Frank Wood.

And yes, Wood will be popping up on Svu this season. Leight says Svu‘s medical examiners office has been “augmented” to include a role for his old friend.

Leight’s Tuesday night tweet was met with a quick response from New York stage actors. Jennifer Mudge, whose Broadway and Off Broadway credits include Into The Woods, Rocky and The Philanthropist, tweeted, “Warren, I feel like now is the time to tell you that only Svu is missing from my L&o trifecta completion. (Mothership twice!),” to which Leight responded, “On it.”

Three-time Tony nominee Carolee Carmello tweeted a simple, “Much appreciated,” while West Side Story actor Danny Wolohan wrote, “Broadway’s Officer Krupke says thank you!”

And Chris Orbach – actor, writer, musician and, as the son of the late Jerry Orbach, a member of an L&o royal family – weighed in. “God love you,” he responded to Leight’s tweet. “You cats are good like that.”

Law & Order: Svu, from Wolf Entertainment and Universal Television, airs Thursdays at 9 pm on NBC.

Thank you, @warrenleightTV! My last L&o stint was an episode staring John Ritter! I think it's time I came back for a visit! ❤️

— Erin Leigh Peck (@ErinLeighPeck) January 6, 2021

God love you, you cats are good like that ❤️

— Chris Orbach (@chrisorbach) January 6, 2021...

Exclusive: “You thought you knew Scrooge,” an ominous voice intones. “You don’t know this Scrooge.” So get acquainted with Estella Scrooge, the upcoming world premiere streaming musical with a heavy-hitting Broadway pedigree.

This first-look trailer (watch it above) features Betsy Wolfe (Waitress) singing the show’s “Never Look Down” as clips and characters from the cleverly filmed production take us through this new musical spin on Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. References and storylines from other Dickens classics — including Great Expectations, Little Dorrit and Bleak House — are incorporated into the mix.

Estella Scrooge will premiere Friday, November 27 at EstellaScrooge.com. Tickets go on sale Tuesday for $24.99 at Ticketmaster.com.

As Deadline reported in September, Estella Scrooge utilizes greenscreen technology and virtual sets along with individually recorded performances. Billed as “the first fully-realized musical to be filmed in virtual production,” Estella Scrooge uses hundreds of images, animations and digital environments blended...

Exclusive With a roster of Broadway actors from such recent or on-pause productions as Waitress, Hadestown, The Play That Goes Wrong and Moulin Rouge!, a new musical inspired by A Christmas Carol and other works of Charles Dickens will make its streaming debut before Christmas utilizing technology to combine socially distanced performances.

Estella Scrooge, with a book and direction by Tony Award winner John Caird and music and lyrics by Paul Gordon (Tony-nominated for 2001’s Jane Eyre), will star Betsy Wolfe (Waitress) as the title character, the niece of Carol‘s Ebenezer Scrooge. Clifton Duncan (The Play That Goes Wrong) will costar as her childhood sweetheart Philip “Pip” Nickleby.

Also featured are Patrick Page (Hadestown), Carolee Carmello (Mamma Mia) and Danny Burstein (Moulin Rouge!) as Ebenezer Scrooge.

Those actors and others will film their performances – separately, live, and one at a time – this week, with...

Cast members from Broadway’s Moulin Rouge! The Musical, Jagged Little Pill, Company, Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, Chicago, Diana, Mean Girls, Girl from the North Country, Six, and Mrs. Doubtfire will take part in Sunday’s Broadway Does Mother’s Day, a digital variety benefitting Broadway Cares’ Covid-19 Emergency Assistance Fund.

The show is designed to replace some of the funds usually raised by Broadway’s annual Easter Bonnet Competition, an event that was canceled this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The digital sketch show will include Broadway stars, their children and their mothers, with musical numbers, comedy and special guests planned. Scheduled guests, so far, include Jill Abramovitz, Kate Baldwin, Jenni Barber, Laura Benanti, Betty Buckley, Carolee Carmello, Victoria Clark, Chuck Cooper, Claybourne Elder, Eden Espinosa, Beanie Feldstein, Harvey Fierstein, Mandy Gonzalez, Celia Rose Gooding, Molly Griggs, James Monroe Iglehart, Judy Kaye, Celia Keenan-Bolger, Raymond J. Lee,...

The 11th Annual Indie Series Awards nominations in 28 categories were revealed on Wednesday via Twitter. The ISAs celebrate the best in independently produced entertainment created for the Web.

Indoor Boys led all series with 15 total nominations. The show is joined in the Best Comedy Series category by Before We Go, FabUless, F#Cking 40, La règle de (3), The Ninth, Poor Us and Three Year Letterman.

Poz Roz and Studio City earned 12 nominations apiece to lead the dramas. They are joined in the Best Drama Series field by After Forever, The Bay, Bronx Siu, People Like Us, A Place Called Hollywood and Save Me.

In all, there are 33 nominated series from around the globe. Crystal trophies will be presented to the winners during a gala ceremony on April 1 at The Colony Theatre in Burbank, California. The two-day celebration includes a launch party, red carpet reception, press walk, presentation ceremony and official after party.

In this episode, Ben and Daniel talk to three-time Tony nominee Carolee Carmello about the soundtrack to the 1973 film adaptation of 'Godspell.' They also discuss Julie Andrews, 'The Sound of Music,' Lesley Ann Warren, Marni Nixon, 'West Side Story,' 'Evita,' Mary Testa, 'Oliver,' 'Gypsy,' Barbra Streisand, Barbara Cook, Comden and Green, 'Falsettos,' 'Kiss Me Kate,' Marin Mazzie, and 'Parade.' They talk about Carolee's secret, closeted soprano past and the fact that she has never taken a voice lesson. Carolee is currently starring as America's coast-to-coast Dolly Levi in the national tour of 'Hello, Dolly'...

Exclusive: Carolee Carmello, following up an acclaimed Off Broadway performance in Sweeney Todd, will be playing another musical theater icon, taking over the lead role from the departing Betty Buckley in the national tour of Hello, Dolly!

Carmello will be the production’s latest Dolly: Bette Midler won a 2017 Tony Award in the role; she was followed on Broadway by Donna Murphy and Bernadette Peters, with Buckley topping the national tour.

Carmello will join the production, now in its second year, on Sept. 24 at Starlight Theatre in Kansas City, Missouri. The casting was announced today by producer Scott Rudin.

The entire Broadway creative team of Hello, Dolly! returned for the tour, including director Jerry Zaks, choreographer Warren Carlyle, Santo Loquasto (Scenic & Costume Design), Natasha Katz (Lighting Design), Scott Lehrer (Sound Design), Andy Einhorn (Music Direction), Larry Hochman (Orchestrations), Don Pippin (Vocal Arrangements), David Chase (Dance Arrangements).

In all,...

BroadwayWorld has an inside look at Pamela's First Musical Carolee Carmello took over the Bww Instragram this past Saturday, and gave followers a behind the scenes look into the show's first preview performance. Carmello is currently starring in 'Pamela's First Musical' at Two River Theater. Enjoy highlights of her takeover below and to watch all her videos and much, much more follow BroadwayWorld on Instagram here...

Indie Series Award-winning comedy series Indoor Boys launched its second season on Monday with two uproarious new episodes.

In the premeire episode, "Jonesin,'" Nate follows his best friend and former roommate, Luke, to New York under the guise of a family reunion. Having previously shared a Los Angeles apartment, the guys consummated their relationship at the end of the first season. Five months later, both are dating other guys but their chemistry is undeniable.

Watch below as these homebody roommates take on New York City as they try to figure out the boundaries of their no-boundaries friendship.

The story continues in "All My Sons," which introduces Luke's boyfriend, Rusty (Kyle Harris). Meanwhile, Nate's mother, Ellen (Carolee Carmello), joyously embraces Luke, much to her own son's chagrin.

This week we're preparing ourselves for the biggest weekend of the Broadway season Tony Weekend by sitting down with Tony-nominated powerhouse performer Carolee Carmello We're making Adam Rippon proud by pouring out Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc while Carolee spills about her impressive musical theatre career, howParadealmost passed her by Reviveparade, and the water bottle that drove her bonkers inMamma Mia 'What Have You Seen This Week' finds us raving aboutKatrina Lenk inThe Band's Visitand sharing our love for William Finn from the Press Preview ofThe Royal Family of Broadwayat Barrington with FriendsoftheShow Hayley Podschun, Kathy Fitzgerald, and A.J. Shively...

Alex Wyse and Wesley Taylor star in Indoor Boys.Indie Series Award-winning series Indoor Boys, created, directed, and starring Broadway's Wesley Taylor ("SpongeBob SquarePants"; NBC's Smash) and Alex Wyse ("Spring Awakening"; CBS' The Bold and the Beautiful), will return later this month for its second season. With a total of eight new chapters, Season Two premieres June 25 on HuffPost Queer Voices, with two episodes released each Monday for 4 weeks.

After last year's award-winning, critically-acclaimed first season in Los Angeles, Wesley Taylor and Alex Wyse are at it again. But this time we find our duo in the Big Apple... as they continue to explore the boundaries of their no-boundaries friendship. Watch the two homebody millennials as they navigate a family reunion in New York City.

The critically-acclaimed first season of Indoor Boys premiered on HuffPost Queer Voices and received four 2018 Indie Series Award nominations, including Best Comedy Series.

Another all-star cast has been assembled for the third concert in this landmark 18th season of Town Hall's signature series, Broadway by the Year. The next concert in the series is on May 21st at 8pm amp will star Tony-nominee Carolee Carmello, 4-time Grammy-winner John Easterlin, Drama Desk nominee Cheryl Freeman, Luke Grooms Jerry Springer The Opera, Douglas Ladnier Jekyll amp Hyde, Maxine Linehan South Pacific, Kyle Selig Mean Girls, Oakley Boycott Bells Are Ringing, Joshua Israel Annie and more to be announced soon...

Donna Summer was the queen of the disco, remembered for her pulsating music and soaring voice. Broadway veteran Lachanze has stepped into the diva’s platform shoes in “Summer: The Donna Summer Musical” on Broadway. The actress is having so much fun in the role that she could well be adding another Tony to her mantle.

“Summer” utilizes a “concert of a lifetime” conceit to incorporate the entirety of the singer’s life and song catalogue. Three actresses play the singer at varying stages of her life: Duckling Donna (Storm Lever), Disco Donna (Ariana DeBose) and Diva Donna (Lachanze). Lachanze’s Diva Donna looks back on a life of triumphs and misfortunes, and at times even plays Summer’s mother Mary Gaines. The audience bops along to one disco chart topper after another as the singer’s often traumatic life unfolds.

Predict the Tony Awards nominees and winners now; change...

Manhattan Concert Productions McP has announced casting for Broadway Classics in Concert, on Tuesday, February 20, 800 Pm, in Stern AuditoriumPerelman Stage at Carnegie Hall. The concert will feature Michael Arden Ragtime, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Sierra Boggess The Secret Garden, Carolee Carmello Broadway Classics 2013, Allan Corduner Titanic, Quentin Earl Darrington The Secret Garden, Ramin Karimloo Parade, The Secret Garden, Norm Lewis Ragtime, Laura Osnes Crazy For You, Lea Salonga Ragtime, Ryan Silverman Titanic, and Tony Yazbeck Crazy For You.

On Broadway and beyond, a curtain can rise as quickly as it can fall; a star can be swapped as easily as Bernie Telsey can say, “That’s enough.” Theater is the beating heart of New York show business and, if you want to make it here, it’s crucial you’re up to date on incoming projects, latest castings, and other industry news. Don’t worry, Broadway baby, Backstage has your back. Every week, we’re rounding up the can’t-miss stories no thespian should live without, so you can focus on important matters like hitting your high F. Curtain up and light those lights! The pie shop gets new management.Off-Broadway’s immersive production of Stephen Sondheim’s “Sweeney Todd” has announced that Thom Sesma and Sally Ann Triplett will take over the tuner’s respective leading roles beginning Feb. 27. They replace current stars Hugh Panaro and Carolee Carmello,...

Below, get a first look at Hugh Panaro and Tony Award nominee Carolee Carmello in the Tooting Arts Club production of Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, now playing at the Barrow Street Theatre 27 Barrow Street, NYC...

As BroadwayWorld previously reported, the Tooting Arts Club production of Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street will welcomeHugh Panaro as Sweeney Todd with Jake Boyd as Anthony, Eryn LeCroy as Johanna, Michael James Leslie as Judge Turpin and John Rapson as The Beadle will join the cast including Tony Award nominee Carolee Carmello as Mrs. Lovett, Stacie Bono as Pirelli amp Beggar Woman and John-Michael Lyles as Tobias this weekat the Barrow Street Theatre 27 Barrow Street.Check out a first look at Panaro and Carmello in action below...

Jenna has the sweets and Nellie has the meats. Between Joe's Diner and Mrs. Lovett's Pie Shop, theatre-goers are getting pie in abundance this season atthe Brooks Atkinson and Barrow Street Theatres. Just yesterday,two of the theatre community's most beloved pie makers -Jenna Hunterson and Mrs. Nellie Lovett played by Betsy Wolfe and Carolee Carmello met and BroadwayWorld was there...

You might not know this man but you sure will know this woman, the effervescent Carolee Carmello. Carolee swings by to discussFALSETTOS, Parade, Lestat, The Addams Family, Scandalous, Tuck Everlasting,and so much more Carolee pulls back the curtain on her career to discuss how a business major went on to become a three time Tony nominee, what song did she hear in someone else's dressing room that gave her a panic attack , and why she is not a fan of the rehearsal process...

The new Off-Broadway production of Sweeney Todd just got a whole lot meatier. No, the chef hasn't been adding more filling to the tasty meat pies audience members can enjoy before the performance. The new reason for checking into the Barrow Street Theater is a chance to see two top shelf singeractors, Norm Lewis and Carolee Carmello, transform a production that opened in March as an amusing Grand Guignol melodrama into a deeply moving and gorgeously sung evening of thrilling musical theatre.

In May, June amp July the NPR Program Broadway to Main Street hosted by Laurence Maslon which airs Sundays at 3Pm on NYLong Island NPR-member station WPPB88.3Fm will feature interviews with Tony Award-nominee amp Sweeney Todd star Carolee Carmello May 28 a retrospective of The 1967 Tony Awards June 4 a 2017 Tony Awards Special on Tonys Sunday 611 with recordings of all the top nominees for Best Musical and the best musical performer nominees including Bette Midler, Josh Groban, Ben Platt and more a centennial tribute to Ella Fitzgerald 618 a Hello, Dolly themed show 625 with musical selections from Carol Channing, Pearl Bailey, Ethel Merman, as well as selections from the new Bette Midler recording and for a special July 4 holiday weekend show with original 1776 star William Daniels July 3.

The Tooting Arts Club production of Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street welcomes Tony Award nominee Norm Lewis as Sweeney Todd, Tony Award nominee Carolee Carmello as Mrs. Lovett, Stacie Bono as Pirelli amp Beggar Woman, Jamie Jackson as Judge Turpin and John-Michael Lyles as Tobias to the cast beginning tonight, Tuesday, April 11.Left, seea sneak peek at Lewis and Carmello in costume...

Tony Award nominees Carolee Carmello Parade, Scandalous, Mary Testa Xanadu, 42nd Street, On the Town, Robert Cuccioli Jekyll amp Hyde, Spider Man Turn Off the Dark, with Beth Malone Fun Home and Jill Paice An American in Paris, starred in Town Hall's Broadway by the Year Series last night, February 27, in 'The Broadway Musicals of the 1920s.' BroadwayWorld went backstage with the cast and you can check out photos below...

The York Theatre Company James Morgan, Producing Artistic Director Evans Haile, Interim Executive Director David McCoy, Chairman of the Board, dedicated to the development of new musicals and preserving musical gems from the past, has announced Robert Creighton Cagney, and Christine Ebersole Grey Gardens will join some of Broadway's best - Carolee Carmello Finding Neverland, Sutton Foster Anything Goes, Bebe Neuwirth Chicago, Rory O'Malley The Book of Mormon, and Bernadette Peters George M all subject to change - scheduled to appear as guest performers to honor legendary Oscar and Tony Award-winner Joel Grey with the 25th Oscar Hammerstein Award for Lifetime Achievement in Musical Theatre at the 2016 Oscar Hammerstein Award Gala on Monday, December 5, 2016 at The Asia Society 725 Park Avenue.

The York Theatre Company, dedicated to the development of new musicals and preserving musical gems from the past, has announced that several of Broadway's best - Carolee Carmello Finding Neverland, Sutton Foster Anything Goes, Bebe Neuwirth Chicago, Rory O'Malley The Book of Mormon, and Bernadette Peters George M all subject to change - are scheduled to appear as guest performers to honor legendary Oscar-and TonyAward-winner Joel Grey with the 25th Oscar Hammerstein Award for Lifetime Achievement in Musical Theatre at the 2016 Oscar Hammerstein Award Gala on Monday, December 5, 2016 at The Asia Society 725 Park Avenue.

The Kinsey Report looks back at the troubled history of early 80s sensation Gene Anthony Ray (aka "Leroy" from Fame)

Variety Director Fred Schepisi (Six Degrees of Separation, Roxanne, Plenty) is lining up an all star cast for his new dramatic thriller Andorra: Vanessa Redgrave, Guy Pearce, Toni Collette, Clive Owen and more. Can he regain some of his 80s/90s heat? None of his films have had much impact in the last 20 or so years

/Film Lin-Manuel Miranda is working on a secret Disney project with Zootopia's director. Guess he liked that Moana experience

 

Towleroad an interview with Martha Plimpton on The Real O'Neals and becoming a new gay icon  

Metro Michael Shannon is not afraid to speak his mind on the current political climate. Also he has a bajillion movies coming out 

Av Club why Moana will be named Oceania in Italy

Av Club Beauty & The Beast...

BroadwayWorld has reunited the original cast Michael Rupert, Stephen Borgardus, Carolee Carmello, Heather MacRae, Chip Zien and Jonathan Kaplan to reminisce about all things Falsettos. In Part 2, watch as they recall the long road to Broadway- from March of the Falsettos, to Falsettoland and beyond.Click here to watch Part 1 and check back Friday, September 16, to watch the final edition...

Have you ever had a day so beautiful you wish it could last forever Inspired by the moving number sung by Carolee Carmello's character, Mae Tuck-and to celebrate the show's themes-Tuck Everlasting wants you to share the story of your special day. Submit photos, videos, stories, poems and more for a chance to be featured on the official Tuck Everlasting Most Beautiful Day Tumblr collection, as it grows and blooms over 2016.

Today in 1998, Parade opened at the Vivian Beaumont Theatre, where it ran for 85 performances. Parade is a musical with a book by Alfred Uhry and music and lyrics by Jason Robert Brown. The production was directed by Harold Prince and starred Brent Carver as Leo Frank, Carolee Carmello as Lucille Frank, and Christy Carlson Romano as Mary Phagan.The musical won Tony Awards for best book and best score out of nine nominations and six Drama Desk Awards. The show has enjoyed a U.S. national tour and numerous professional and amateur productions in both the U.S. and abroad.

Recently, NBC released the new,official synopsis/spoilers for their upcoming "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" episode 8 of season 17. The episode is entitled, "Melancholy Pursuit," and it turns out that we're going to see some pretty dramatic and interesting stuff go down when a missing teenage girl, prompts the Svu team to investigate. Sgt. Dodds is heavily affected by the case, and more! In the new, 8th episode press release: The hunt for a missing teenage girl will take an emotional toll on Sgt. Dodds (Andy Karl), and DNA evidence will become a crucial lead in finding the girl's abductor. Starring Mariska Hargitay, Ice T and Peter Scanavino. Guest starring Tamara Tunie, Brian Avers, Jonathan Judge-Russo, Nick Cordero, Carolee Carmello and Ali Wentworth. Episode 8 is set to air on Wednesday night, November 11th at 8pm central time on NBC.

Finding Neverland, starring Matthew Morrison, Kelsey Grammer, Laura Michelle Kelly, and Carolee Carmello, will begin previews on Sunday, March 15, 2015 at Broadway's Lunt-Fontanne Theatre 205 West 46th Street, and will open on Wednesday, April 15. With the first performance just over two months away, the shows leads gathered for their first group shot, which debuted on Finding Neverland's official website this afternoon - check it out below...

Today in 1998, Parade opened at the Vivian Beaumont Theatre, where it ran for 85 performances. Parade is a musical with a book by Alfred Uhry and music and lyrics by Jason Robert Brown. The production was directed by Harold Prince and starred Brent Carver as Leo Frank, Carolee Carmello as Lucille Frank, and Christy Carlson Romano as Mary Phagan.The musical won Tony Awards for best book and best score out of nine nominations and six Drama Desk Awards. The show has enjoyed a U.S. national tour and numerous professional and amateur productions in both the U.S. and abroad.

We reported earlier this week that Laura Michelle Kelly was headed back to Broadway in Finding Neverland, via a NY Times scoop. Today, producer Harvey Weinstein confirmed that Olivier Award winner Laura Michelle Kelly Mary Poppins and three-time Tony Award-nominee Carolee Carmello Parade, who played the roles of Sylvia Llewelyn Davis and Madame du Maurier, respectively, in Finding Neverland when it premiered at the American Repertory Theatre earlier this year, will reprise their roles on Broadway.

The Drama Desk and Obie Award-winning Keen Company today announced that the Special Guests for the 14th Annual Benefit The Understudy's Evening - Tomorrow's Stars Today will be F. Murray Abraham, Carolee Carmello and Euan Morton who will serve as the evening's Auctioneer. The gala will take place on Monday May 19th from 630pm at Manhattan Penthouse 80 Fifth Avenue at 14th Street.

Last night, 54 Below celebrated some of the most memorable show-stopping musical moments from Broadway. The show featured some of Broadway's greatest stars, including Tony nominee Carolee Carmello Parade, Mamma Mia, Kiss Me, Kate, The Addams Family, Sister Act, Scandalous, Mandy Gonzalez Wicked, In the Heights, Dance of the Vampires, Aida, Telly Leung Godspell, Wicked, Rent, Flower Drum Song, Glee, Robert Creighton Little Me, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Anything Goes and Kissy Simmons The Lion King.Check out photos from the concert below...

On April 10, celebrate some of the most memorable show-stopping musical moments from Broadway at 54 Below.The show will feature some of Broadway's greatest stars, including Tony nominee Carolee Carmello Parade, Mamma Mia, Kiss Me, Kate, The Addams Family, Sister Act, Scandalous, Mandy Gonzalez Wicked, In the Heights, Dance of the Vampires, Aida, Telly Leung Godspell, Wicked, Rent, Flower Drum Song, Glee, Robert Creighton Little Me, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Anything Goes and Kissy Simmons The Lion King.