Kelli O’Hara is Going on Hiatus

South Pacific star Kelli O’Hara is taking a leave of absence from the show…but for a very exciting reason. As most of us know, Kelli O’Hara married her husband Greg Naughton in a charming little ceremony on top of a mountain back in 2007. The couple, who will celebrate their two-year anniversary in July, are now expecting their first child. The South Pacific star is excited to be leaving to have her first child, but hopes to be returning to the musical at a later date. The actress was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical for her performance in South Pacific.

South Pacific is a story set in the the South Pacific during WWII, and tells the romantic story of two couples who find unlikely love on the island. One couple is US Navy Nurse Nellie Forbush and French plantation owner Emile de Becque, the other is Navy Airman Joe Cable and a young native gilr named Liat. The musical begins on a very light hearted note, but gains more and more depth through the story as the pairs of lovers are challenged by their prejudices and the realities of war. Be sure to get your South Pacific tickets to see Kelli O’Hara before she goes on leave from the stage.

Permalink - Posted in General on January 16, 2009 - Post a comment

A Phantom Birthday

If the musical Phantom of the Opera was a person, then as of the 26 it will be of legal age. That’s right! The famous musical Phantom of the Opera is going to be celebrating its 21 birthday on Broadway on Monday, January 26, 2009. On that date the musical will play performance number 8,732 and will be the first Broadway production to have run for 21 years. The musical passed up Cats! as the longest running musical in 2006 and today it has far outlasted all other contenders for the position. Like the book, which is always available in bookstores worldwide, this musical is now one of the establishments of the stage. In total the show has grossed $715 million dollars, also making it the most lucrative show in Broadway history.

The musical tells the story of a man known only as The Phantom of the Opera, who hides himself away from site and only comes out to inspire the young vocalist Christine. He may be a madman, he may be the cause of many mysterious and ominous happenings in the opera house, but he is above all else a musical genius. If you have not seen this musical, then you most certainly must as this is one of the classics of theater. Be sure to get your Phantom of the Opera tickets today!

Permalink - Posted in General on January 15, 2009 - Post a comment

Westside Story Starts in February

West Side Story, a musical based in part on Shakespear’s famous drama Romeo and Juliet is going to be starting previews on Monday, February 23, 2009 at 8pm. The musical will be on stage at the Palace Theater on Broadway. The musical is written by three leading lights of the theater world: Arthur Laurents, who wrote the book; Leonard Berstein, who wrote the music; and Stephen Sondheim, who wrote the lyrics.

West Side Story is about two warring gangs on the streets of New York, one is a group of self-proclaimed “Americans” and the other is a group of young Puerto Rican immigrants. Both sides are fighting to make the streets their own with little understanding or regard for what their battles could cost them. It is also a story of love, as one member of the American gang, Tony, falls in love with a young Puerto Rican woman, Maria. Despite the obvious hatred between their respective groups the two young people are inexplicably and irresistably drawn to each other which fuels the gang war, with disastrous results. This beautiful musical is one that you will not want to miss, especially as it is retold for today’s theater audience. Be sure to get your West Side Story tickets today!

Permalink - Posted in General on January 14, 2009 - Post a comment

Brandi Burkhardt Joins Mama Mia!

Brandi Burkhardt is going to be the new Sophie in the hit Broadway musical Mama Mia! and will begin performances at the Winter Garden Theater on Tuesday, January 27th. The role of Sophie is currently being played by Allison Case, who will play her final performance on the 25th. Mama Mia! is the story of a young woman, Sophie, who is about to be married and decides that she wants to have her father at the wedding, however this could prove to be a problem. It seems that Sophie could be the daughter of any one of three men.

This daring young woman decides that she will invite all three of these gentlemen to her wedding, in the hopes that at some point it will become clear which one is actually her father. Not only is this musical entertaining, but it is also a great entertainment for mothers and daughters as it celebrates to special bond that they have for one another. Mama Mia!tickets are a great way to experience an exciting event that has been seen and loved by more than 32 million people across the globe.

Permalink - Posted in General on January 13, 2009 - Post a comment

Hedda Gabler Starring Mary-Louise Parker

Mary-Louise Parker is now playing Hedda Gabler in Henrick Ibsen’s play by the same title which he published in 1890. The play was performed for the first time in Munich, Germany on January 31, 1891. Its English premier took place in London on April 20 that same year. Despite its quick spread across Europe the play did not receive good reviews but its reputation rose as it entered the 20th Century. It is now considered to be one of Ibsen’s premier works.

Recently actresses such as Cate Blanchett, Kate Burton, Annette Bening, Eve Best and Elizabeth Marvel have all played the title role of Hedda. Mary-Louise Parker is the current Hedda Gabler, and is determined to leave her own mark on the character.  The play has been adapted for contemporary audiences by playwright Christopher Shinn and attempting to dislodge to encumbering historic theatrical dust that often surrounds older theatrical works. Shinn’s goal has been to return to the original understanding of the script as much as possible in the vein that it was written by Henrick Ibsen. To enjoy this newly revitalized historical work, be sure to get your Hedda Gabler tickets today!

Permalink - Posted in General on January 12, 2009 - Post a comment

Dana Ivey to Host 38th Annual Theater Hall of Fame

Dana Ivey is a five-time Tony nominee who will be hosting the 38th Annual Theater Hall of Fame on January 26th at the Gershwin Theater’s North Rotunda at 7.30pm. Last year Ivey was inducted into the Theater Hall of Fame. Ivey was last seen on Broadway in the 2006 revival of Butley, and was nominated for a Tony Award for her performance. Other Tony nominations have been awarded to Ivey for her performances in Heartbreak House, Sunday in the Park with George, The Last Night of Ballyhoo and The Rivals. She won a drama desk award for her work in Ballyhoo and Sex and Longing, she will soon be seen in the Playwright Horizons production of The Savannah Disputation.

As announced in 2008 the inductees will be: actors Nathan Lane and Richard Easton, playwright Alan Ayckbourn, producer Emanuel Azenberg, choreographer Patricia Birch, composer Marvin Hamlisch, orchestrator Jonathan Tunick and, posthumously, actor Roscoe Lee Browne. Browne died on April 11, 2007. These are just some of the great actors and actresses that you might get a chance to see if you buy Broadway tickets today at StubHub.com.

Permalink - Posted in General on January 9, 2009 - Post a comment

Little Mermaind Anniversary

 The story The Little Mermaid first became a part of popular culture in 1836, when it was first published by Hans Christian Andersen. Then, at the beginning of the 20th Century, the story became a famous ballet by Fini Henrique and the character was immortalized as a statue by Evard Erksen in Copenhagen, Denmark. The story told by Andersen was much more tragic than the story told by the Disney annimation, as it ends with the Little Mermaid loosing her prince and being doomed to wander the earth as a spirit for 300 years until she is allowed to ascend to the Kingdom of God.

Saturday, January 10th marks the anniversary of the Broadway musical version of The Little Mermaid. The musical has been on Broadway for one year and is still doing well. The show officially opened on Thursday, January 10 of 2008. In 2008 the musical was the number one seller grossing over $60 million so far. The musical has been receiving rave reviews ever since it opened, and it looks like it’s going to be going strong for years to come. To enjoy the much happier Disney version live on stage, be sure to get your Little Mermaid tickets today!

Permalink - Posted in General on January 8, 2009 - Post a comment

Spring Awakening is Closing January 18th

Spring Awakening tickets are only going to be around for a little while longer as the musical, named “the best musical of a generation” according to the New York Observer, will be closing on the 18th of this month. The musical won eight Tony Awards in 2007 including Best Musical, Best Book, and Best Score. The musical is adapted from Frank Wedekind’s play with the same name. The score is written by Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater who also wrote the book.

The musical is just one of many casualties from the economy’s downward slump. On January 4th alone there were eight shows that closed. On January 11 there are three more shows set to close. Althogether the number of shows clsoing is up by more than half from 2008, almost four times that of 2007 and almost three times more than 2006.

Permalink - Posted in General on January 7, 2009 - Post a comment

Rapp and Pascal Return to Rent

Original cast members Adam Pascal, Anthony Rapp, and Gwen Stewart will be returning to the musical Rent for its new Broadway national tour that will begin at the Palace Theater in Cleveland starting today. Michael Greif will be directing to tour which is produced by Jeffrey Seller, Kevin McCollum and Allan S. Gordon.

The musical was written by Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize winner Jonathan Larson, who died just before the off-Broadway success of his work. Pascal and Rapp will be reprising the roles of Roger and Mark, which they originated at the New York Theater Workshop Off-Broadway, and later played on Broadway. If you wish to buy Rent tickets then be sure to act fast, as this is an incredibly popular musical that is sure to sell out fast.

Permalink - Posted in General on January 6, 2009 - Post a comment

Broadway Millions for Christmas 2008


The week before Christmas there were only a few million-dollar makers on Broadway, but during Christmas week ticket sales rocketed up, at least for a few shows.

  • Billy Elliot: The Musical was one show that had made a million in the previous week but saw a rise in sales of over $100,000. 
  • In the Heights broke made $1,121,695, up more than $300,00 in sales from the previous week.
  • Irving Berlin’s White Christmas once again broke the millions with sales of $1,409,256, but did not do as well as the previous week’s $1,588,859 sales.
  • Jersey Boys was another second-week-in-a-row million dollar maker with sales of $1,338,151 up more than $200,000 from the week before.
  • Mary Poppins also broke a million with sales of $1,176,276, up by more than $400,000 from the week prior.
  • Shrek the Musical made $1,260,282 in sales during the week of Christmas, bringing their sales up by more than $400,000 as well.
  • The Lion King reached sales of $1,535,100, making yet another $400,000+ increase for the week.
  • The Little Mermaid sold $1,168,770 up by more than $350,00 from the week prior.
  • Phantom of the Opera also broke one million with sales of $1,133,303, making another increase of $400,000 in sales.
  • Wicked, of course, broke the million marker with sales of $1,803,262, increasing sales by more than $300,000.

With Wicked back at the top for the week of Christmas, the short-term reign of White Christmas came to an end. But both shows are still doing well, and White Christmas remained as one of the biggest ticket sellers of the week, now at number three behind Wicked and The Lion King. If you are looking for some great shows then be sure to get your tickets while they are still available. Go to StubHub.com for your Broadway Theater Tickets this year.

Permalink - Posted in General on January 5, 2009 - Post a comment


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