Hairspray Sequel?
The word is circulating that John Waters is planning to pen a sequel to the popular movie-musical Hairspray. Hairspray has become a popular musical onstage and became an even bigger sensation when the film hit theaters, starring John Travolta. The movie Hairspray grossed more than $200 million worldwide and New Line Cinema hopes that a sequel will be wrapped up and ready to go by mid-July 2010.
Hairspray, the movie, took huge inspiration from the musical currently running on Broadway, and takes most of its inspiration from the stage production, which in turn is based on the 1988 John Waters film of the same name. The speculation thus far is that the sequel to Hairspray will likely pick up where the first film left off, in 1962 Baltimore. All fans of the show and of the movie will likely want to keep their eyes open for an future developments in the project. Be sure to also get your Hairspray tickets from Stubhub.com.
Avenue Q to Celebrate Fifth Birthday!
The Tony Award winning musical, Avenue Q is gearing up to celebrate its fifth birthday at Broadway’s John Golden Theater on July 31. The puppet friendly musical also recently celebrated its 2,000th performance on Broadway, which occurred on June 3. The musical is now recognized as the 25th longest running production in Broadway history. Avenue Q features music and lyrics by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx as well as a book by Jeff Whitty.
Avenue Q made it to Broadway after a much acclaimed off-Broadway run at the Vineyard Theater. It officially opened on July 31, 2003 and has been attracting fans since then. The musical won the 2004 Tony Awards for Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical and Best Original Score. Be sure not to miss this hilariously quirky puppets when they take the stage to entertain you! Get your Avenue Q tickets as soon as possible.
Bailey Is the New Shining Star in Legally Blonde!
Actress Bailey Hanks has been recently named the winner of the MTV reality casting competition called “Legally Blonde The Musical: The Search for Elle Woods.” Hanks will make her Broadway debut in the musical on July 23 at 8PM. Hanks was confirmed the winner of the reality show on March 18 and she succeeds Legally Blonde’s original Elle Woods, Laura Bell Bundy. Bundy played her final performance on June 20.
Legally Blonde is based on the film of the same name, originally starring Reese Witherspoon. It has music and lyrics by Laurence O’Keefe and Nell Benjamin. The show centers around the blonde Elle Woods who decides to follow her boyfriend to Harvard to prove to him that she has the intelligence to go along with her girlie good looks. Be sure to check out Bailey in Legally Blonde on Broadway. Get your own pair of Legally Blonde tickets from Stubhub.com.
The Film Mamma Mia is Second Highest Grossing Film of Weekend
The musical film, Mamma Mia! just recently became the second highest grossing film of the weekend, coming in second to The Dark Knight, which features the late Heath Ledger. The Dark Knight is the highest grossing opening of any film to date. Mamma Mia! though also made an impressive showing pulling in $27,605,000 for its first weekend in U.S. theaters. The film made its world premiere in London and did exceptionally well, prompting a great showing in the United States.
The film, according to press notes posted on Playbill.com is described as such: “An independent, single mother who owns a small hotel on an idyllic Greek island, Donna is about to let go of Sophie, the spirited daughter she’s raised alone. For Sophie’s wedding Donna has invited her two lifelong best girlfriends-practical and no-nonsense Rosie and wealthy, multi-divorcee Tanya. Sophie, though is on the quest to find the identity of her father so that he may walk her down the aisle. She brings back three men from Donna’s past and over 24 magical hours, new love will bloom and old romances will be rekindled on this lush island full of possibilities. Get your Mamma Mia! tickets from Stubhub.com.
Mamma Mia is Here (In Movie Form)!
Today is opening day for the movie, Mamma Mia! which has already made a splash as the popular show on Broadway. The film was an extremely popular hit in the U.K. and is also expected to do very well in the United States. The film stars Academy Award winner Meryl Streep as mom Donna Sheridan. The film itself follows another large list of other Broadway musicals that have been made into films, including Chicago, Dreamgirls, The Producers and Hairspray. The soundtrack to the film is currently the seventh best selling recording, according to the numbers on the Billboard charts.
The cast of the movie also features Pierce Brosnan, Amanda Seyfried, Colin Firth, Christine Baranaki, Julie Walters, Stellan Skargard and Dominic Cooper. The film, according to press notes posted on Playbill.com is described as: “An independent single mother who owns a small hotel on an idyllic Greek Island is about to let go of the spirited daughter that she has raised alone. Sophie, the daughter is on a quest to find the identity of her father to walk her down the aisle. She brings back three men from Donna’s past to the Mediterranean paradise and over 24 chaotic, magical hours new love will bloom and old romances will be rekindled.” Get your Mamma Mia! tickets today!
Mamma Mia! Soundtrack a Big Hit!
There is a new musical movie coming out and if you are a fan of the show on Broadway, you might want to check out this film adaptation of Mamma Mia! Most recently, the soundtrack to the film found itself among the top ten highest sellers in the current Billboard 200 Chart. The soundtrack first arrived in stores on July 8 and the movie itself is scheduled to open on July 18. Some of the well known songs that are featured on the tracklist include: “Honey, Honey,” “Mama Mia,” “Dancing Queen” and “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!”
The film is based on the widely popular musical and according to press notes posted on playbill.com is about “an independent, single mother who owns a small hotel on an idyllic Greek island. Donna (the mother) is about to let go of Sophie, the spirited daughter she’s raised alone. For Sophie’s wedding, Donna has invited her two lifelong best girlfriends - practical and no nonsense Rosie and wealthy, multi-divorcee Tanya. Sophie though has secretly invited three guests of her own: in her quest to find the identity of her father so he may walk her down the aisle, she brings back three men from Donna’s past to the Mediterranean paradise. Over 24 chaotic, magical hours, new love will bloom and old romances will be rekindled on this lush island full of possibilities. Get your pair of Mamma Mia! tickets to see the movie and the theater production.
Rent Cast to Perform at Bloomingdales
The cast of the Broadway production of Rent is scheduled to perform and sign autographs at Bloomingdale’s on 59th Street in Manhattan tomorrow night. Some of the songs that will sung include: “Seasons of Love,” “What You Own,” “Take Me Or Leave Me” and “I’ll Cover You.” This is a great opportunity for all fans of the popular musical to see and hear these talented stage actors and actresses live. From July 9-20 Bloomingdale’s is featuring Rent window displays containing costume items from the Broadway production.
Rent is scheduled to play its final performance on September 7 and is expected to draw in thousands of fans before the final curtain closes on Broadway. Rent is set in the East Village in New York City and is a rock musical about artists and lovers struggling to be heard and connect not only with each other, but with the outside world. Don’t miss out on this phenomenal production, be sure to get your own pair of Rent tickets from Stubhub.com before it closes for good.
Complete Casting For Billy Elliot - The Musical
According to Playbill.com complete casting for the musical, Billy Elliot has been announced. The show will officially begin previews at the Imperial Theatre on October 1 with an official opening set for November 13. David Alvarez, Kiril Kulish and Trent Kowalik will all alternate in the musical’s title role. A plethora of other actors has also been recently cast for the production, all of which can be seen on Playbill.com. Stephen Daldry will be directing and the music is by Elton John with a book and lyrics by Lee Hall.
According to press notes posted on Playbill.com, “the tale is set in England’s Northeast against the background of a miners’ strike. The musical concerns a working class boy’s dream of becoming a ballet dancer - and the obstacles and advocates that he encounters.” The London production of Billy Elliot won Best New Musical at the 2006 Olivier Awards and it is expected to do exceptionally well in New York City as well. Be sure to get your own pair of Billy Elliot tickets from Stubhub.com.
Whoopi!
A big name star is getting ready to join the cast of the Broadway company Xanadu. The announcement was made on an episode of “The View” on July 14. Whoopi Goldberg is a co-host of the ABC talk show and apparently she will be making her own entrance onto the Broadway stage as the muse Calliope/Aphrodite, who is currently played by Jackie Hoffman. Goldberg is Acamdemy-Award winning actress, she has appeared on Broadway in Whoopi, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum and Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.
Xanadu, according to press notes posted on Playbill.com, “tells the story of one of the nine muses of ancient Greece who comes to earth to inspire the greatest of artistic achievements - a roller disco. Along the way she falls in love, bumps into an old acquaintance and for the first time, feels the desire to create herself.” The production is a great show to see with the whole family or with friends, get your own pair of Xanadu tickets from Stubhub.com and don’t miss the show!
Passing Strange Set to Close
The Tony nominated Broadway production of Passing Strange that combines the electricity of a rock concert with the storytelling of musical theater is scheduled to play its final performance at the Belasco Theatre on July 20. A statement released by Gerald Schoenfeld of The Shubert Organization was released on Playbill.com said, “We are extremely proud of Passing Strange and its many accomplishments on Broadway. That Spike Lee will film the show is a crowning achievement and represents a milestone in the American musical theater.”
Passing Strange has been a huge success on Broadway and and currently the producers are looking to start a national tour. The musical’s live original Broadway cast recording is currently available on the Ghostlight Records label, for all fans that are interested in hearing the magical sounds of the incredible show. Make sure to get all of your friends and family members together to get your own pair of Passing Strange tickets.