Category: theatre

Broadway’s On Golden Pond will close this week because of James Earl Jones’ serious bout of pneumonia. “Jones’ doctors determined on June 23 that “the seriousness of recuperating from pneumonia would prevent his return until sometime in August,” according to a press statement. The show was to have run through Labor Day. Jones is expected to eventually fully recover from his illness.”

Off-Broadway’s Signature Theatre slashes ticket prices to all its shows to $15 (the deal is underwritten by Time Warner). “At $15 the Signature tickets will run about the price of a movie and soda. (And a small soda at that.) Most Off Broadway companies, looking at declines in corporate, public and private giving, have steadily raised prices in recent years, with seats now regularly going for $50 or more. (The Signature generally charges $55.) On Broadway, orchestra seats commonly go for $100, while premium tickets can reach nearly $500.”

“In the four weeks since Center Theatre Group’s new artistic director Michael Ritchie announced that he would eliminate most of the company’s formal programs for developing new plays — including the annual New Work Festival as currently constituted and labs for Latino, Asian, black and disabled writers — his actions have been the talk of the theater community.”

Catherine Tate has an unlikely new project. “I’ve been approached by a man who wants to know if I’d be interested in writing Baywatch: the musical. The idea is so off the wall that I agree to meet him to discuss it further. Presuming that if the show were to happen it would be a camp extravaganza, I fully expect to find an equally camp extravaganza waiting for me at a bar in Soho. But the man looked surprisingly like a supply teacher. He talked about his vision with such confidence that Baywatch: the musical didn’t seem like such a ridiculous idea after all. I left feeling quite buoyant.”

“The original Python was a creative force that chewed up whatever medium tried to contain it—a Broadway show in that spirit could only exist off-off-off-Broadway, under an awning somewhere and would probably never find its way to the main stage. As a Python fan, I wanted to love Spamalot, but it wouldn’t let me. It is choreographed, safe Broadway subversion, decked out in gaudy makeup, camping it up for the folks in the balcony. It replaces Python’s subtlety with glitter and shouting. Even when it’s making fun of Broadway, it’s still only Broadway.”

An English town considers censoring comedians who perform blue material. “Councillors in Newcastle upon Tyne are to be asked to consider banning performers whose acts are branded offensive, racist, sexist or homophobic. It followed calls from the public sector union Unison to ban the comedian Roy Chubby Brown from playing the City Hall, where he has appeared regularly for 20 years.”

It was a good year for theatre in Boston – two new theatres, a couple of Tony-nominated plays… But is Boston a great theatre town? Depends on how you mean it…

“Musicals attracting large mother-daughter audiences have long been a staple on Broadway but have been on the rise in the last decade. Interestingly, the most popular shows have themes that explore some aspect of prejudice — not exactly light, youth-oriented fare.”

“Is it too English? Will it be too expensive? Can they cast it? Will it resonate with Americans? These are the questions confronting the producers and creators of Billy Elliot as they contemplate a Broadway production of what critics [in London] are calling the best British musical ever… [The show] probably can’t be done for less than $12 million to $14 million and, with its large cast and crew, will surely have a weekly running cost of $600,000 or more… Casting is another issue. Child labor laws aren’t as strict in the United States as they are in England, but because of the physical demands of the show, [the UK director] says it’s essential to have three, ‘ideally four,’ Billy Elliots. Where to find them?”

An Edinburgh theatre is turning to eBay to try to find a sponsor for this summer’s Fringe Festival. “The Bedlam Theatre, in the city centre, needs £1,600 to pay for the cost of printing 8,000 programmes after an increase in pages due to an extended list of shows. The eBay entry was started at 99p yesterday, with ten days until the close of auction.”