VJM: Thank you both for giving of your time to answer my questions. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of two Choreographers being hired for the same Broadway show, not even a revival, that I can think of. How did that come about for both of you?
Ellenore Scott: Funny Girl was my Broadway debut as a choreographer. I was so happy when I got a call from Michael Mayer (the director) asking me to work on this revival with him. He knew I was NOT a tap dancer and was aware of the multiple tap routines in the show and asked if I would be down to share the billing with Ayodele Casel. Ayo is an extraordinary artist so I was thrilled to be by her side as she made her Broadway debut as well. Michael first met me initially at Head Over Heels on Broadway where I was an associate choreographer to Spencer Liff. In 2019, he asked if I would choreograph the Off-Broadway revival of Little Shop of Horrors and we opened the show October 17th, 2019. I have loved working with Michael and feel as though he keeps his people close and I’m grateful he thought of me for this historic revival.
Ayodele Casel: I met Michael Mayer in 2016 when he directed a New York City Center Encores! show I performed in. Later that fall he invited me to perform that piece in a Broadway for Hillary fundraiser he was also directing. We'd kept in touch over the years and in 2019, after seeing a show I’d premiered at The Joyce Theater, he asked if I would be interested in providing the Tap choreography for a revival he was working on. Like Ellenore shared, Michael wanted to work with us both to deliver the full choreographic vision of the show. I believe it was a very progressive vision on his part and I’m really thankful that I was able to make my Broadway debut with this team.
This time, the reader question was: How often are people Tony Award-nominated for different shows in the same season?
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The national tour of MY FAIR LADY opens October 7th in Los Angeles at the Dolby Theatre, running through October 31st. Bartlett Sher directs this timeless story of Professor Henry Higgins’ experiment to transform the social standings of Eliza Doolittle, a lowly flower girl, to one fitting comfortably in high society. MY FAIR LADY, brimming with familiar musical standards, stars Laird Mackintosh as Professor Higgins and Shereen Ahmed as Eliza Doolittle. Had the chance to catch Laird during his offstage time before his evening performance.
Alberta Bair Theater announces its lineup for the highly anticipated 2021-22 season featuring performers of the highest caliber to showcase the historic $13.6 million renovation and expansion.
This week (June 14-20) in live streaming: Rita Moreno visits Backstage Live, Show of Titles on demand, a Kerry Butler master class, a Guys and Dolls reunion, and so much more!
In this interview, I am lucky to uncover some new facts about the legendary funny lady, Marilyn Michaels.
BWW Reviewer Peter Nason chooses the 101 greatest protest songs from 1939-2020. See if your favorite songs or artists made the list!
BWW Reviewer Peter Nason chooses the 101 greatest Motown songs from 1960-1994. See if your favorite songs or artists made the list!
BWW Reviewer Peter Nason chooses the 101 greatest Beatles songs, including some of the fab four's solo works. They're all here: 'Twist and Shout,' 'In My Life,' 'Helter Skelter,' 'Imagine,' 'Something,' 'Maybe I'm Amazed,' 'Let It Be.' See if your favorites made the grade!
BWW Reviewer Peter Nason chooses the best musical theatre characters from 1940-2020; see if your favorites are on our list of the best characters from Broadway musicals.
BWW Reviewer Peter Nason chooses the best TV episodes from the 1950's to 2020; see if your favorites made the list!
This week the new national tour of The Lincoln Center Theater Production of My Fair Lady opened at Syracuse's Landmark Theatre and it is a moving, powerful, and beautiful production under the superb direction of Bartlett Sher. It is in fact the classic My Fair Lady you are probably used to seeing but it does offer a fresh take on the classic musical in this new and breathtaking production.
Lorna Luft... and The Beatles? That's right. Lorna Luft, famous for her Broadway belt and her concerts that pay tribute to The American Songbook and the musical legacy of a legendary Lady with whom she shares a special bond has a brand-new show, and it's an extremely personal one because it's all hers.
Over the course of each Broadway season, unexpected and unique storylines inevitably pop up. This morning, with the announcement of the 2019 Tony Award nominations, a number of new narratives have come to life.
The film is called, 'WAIT FOR YOUR LAUGH' and is directed by Jason Wise and produced by Christina Wise, Jason Wise, and co-produced by Jackson Myers. To get right to the point, the documentary is utterly fantastic. But the 33 minutes and 42 seconds I spent on phone with Rose Marie will be forever unforgettable.
As previews begin for Home Truths, a season of new plays exploring the state of housing in the UK from the award-winning theatre company Cardboard Citizens who are celebrating 25 years of making work with and for homeless people, the company has announced a wide-ranging additional programme of free events supported by the National Lottery Fund (HLF).
The award-winning theatre company Cardboard Citizens has today announced casting for its season of new work at The Bunker in London this April. Celebrating 25 years of making work with and for homeless people, the company will continue its exploration of the state of housing in nine new plays commissioned by Cardboard Citizens from some of the UK's most exciting playwrights.
Anything Barbra Streisand-related is well worth attending (are you kidding?!), and on Friday, October 5, there was an invited dress rehearsal on the Temple University campus in the Liacouras Center as Barbra Streisand: BACK TO BROOKLYN got its feet wet for the first time in front of about a thousand people.
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