Stage Right is a veteran of the Broadway theatre industry. With a career dating back to the mid-80's, he was involved in management on Broadway as well as a major US city. He also worked for a very prominent non-profit theatre company in New York, has sat on non-profit theatre boards, as well as theatrical union boards. He has been involved with Broadway, Off-Broadway, and touring productions.
Stage Right posts at Big Hollywood and Big Government in anonymity not for professional reasons, but out of deference to his spouse who still maintains deep friendships with many members of the theatrical industry.
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Stage Right
Andrew Lloyd Webber and His Amazing Technicolor Tax Logic
by Stage Right
I’ve already risked losing any credibility I might have in the theatre community by defending Andrew Lloyd Webber and his conservative politics, but I have to go back to that well once again because Webber has written an op-ed piece for London’s Daily Mail that received international attention and a surprising lack of criticism within the theatrical community. The hardest part of writing this post is condensing his article down to just a few pull quotes so I encourage you to follow the link and read the entire piece. He starts off by confronting the typical banal argument he is so used to getting when he raises concerns over the Labour Party’s confiscatory taxation: (more…)
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Tony Award Nominations 2009
by Stage RightIn what is becoming an annual rite of self-destruction, Broadway has once again chosen to snub many of the big-name stars who have put their film careers on hold to trudge onto the boards eight times a week, take a significant pay cut, and run the risk of being ridiculed for being unable to cut the mustard as a theatre actor (As Alan Swan famously said before having to appear on live television in “My Favorite Year”: ‘I’m not an actor, damn you, I’m a movie star!’). This week’s announcement of nominees for Broadway’s top prize, the Tony Award, was more newsworthy for the names left off the list than for the relatively unfamiliar names singled out for the honor.
Nathan Lane and John Goodman are selling tickets hand over fist for their revival of “Waiting for Godot” but neither received the honor of a nomination. Same with David Hyde Pierce, Frank Langella, Mary Louise Parker and Matthew Broderick.
It was no surprise that Jeremy Piven was included out of the Best Actor category after his famous sushi defense for missing performances in David Mamet’s “Speed-the-Plow,” but not honoring John Lithgow’s brilliant turn in “All My Sons” in the same category is a crime against humanity! It ranks up there with the snub of Dustin Hoffman as Willy Loman in the 1984 revival of “Death of a Salesman.” Brian Dennehy was honored with the Best Actor award when he did Willy Loman in 2000, but that goodwill did not anoint him worthy of a nomination this year for his turn in “Desire Under the Elms.” (more…)
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Sunday Matineé: ‘Sunday in the Park with George’
by Stage Right
1984’s landmark musical “Sunday in the Park with George” was one of the most polarizing and debated shows to reach Broadway in the past thirty years. It marked Stephen Sondheim’s first collaboration outside of the watchful artistic and commercial gaze of his long-time director and producer Harold Prince. It also served as the inspiration for a whole new genre of introspective concept musicals which are hated and loved by theatre-goers and theatre professionals alike. (more…)
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A View From Stage Right; Part 2
by Stage RightPart 1 of what I half-jokingly called my “Manifesto.”
In a fiscal conservative’s utopian dreamworld, there would be no federal funding for the arts (or so many other government agencies or programs for that matter). This has been our position since the inception of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) in the early 1970’s. We’ve been saying that if elected, we would abolish these misguided programs and departments and bring our government back to the bare-bones constitutionally described role that it has and leave everything else to the states.
We’ve held the influential bully pulpit of the presidency for twenty of the past twenty-eight years, and what has happened to the NEA? It has grown. While we have stood on principle, we have also stood on the sidelines. The founding fathers would be outraged that the federal government is funding art with taxpayer money, but because we are on the sidelines standing on our principles, all of that money is going to the people creating art with messages that undermine our very existence. (more…)
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Sunday Matineé: 1776
by Stage Right
March 16 will mark the 40th anniversary of the Broadway opening of “1776.” Written by Sherman Edwards and Peter Stone, it went on to run for 1,217 performances. It’s hard to believe that forty years ago it was still popular to write an unabashedly patriotic musical that openly celebrated American Exceptionalism and painted the founding fathers not just as humans but as the intellectual and moral giants that they were. Because the 1972 film version is tantamount to a filmed version of the play rather than a Hollywood re-interpretation, its original intent and form is easily accessible to today’s audience. It deserves a good look and therefore, is this week’s Sunday Matineé. (more…)
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A View From Stage Right; My Manifesto.
by Stage Right
There is a problem with the American Theatre.
The vast majority of plays produced on our stages are intimidating, antagonistic and often downright offensive to 50% of Americans. I know this because I am one of them and I see that half of the country votes like I do.
This is not to say these plays aren’t entertaining; many of them are. The actors are often terrific–one of this country’s rich artistic resources is its acting community. Ditto for our directors, designers and the crews who execute these artists’ visions. (more…)
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Gary Graham and I will do this…
by Stage Rightfor the Tony Awards in June…. right?
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Could someone please pass Sean a note backstage…
by Stage Rightand let him know that President Obama is AGAINST same-sex marriage?
Will someone from the Hollywood Press Corps bring this up to him?
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Shame Shame Shame
by Stage RightShame on you people who did not want to change the millenia old definition of marriage…
SHAME!
You all deserve to lose your jobs!
http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/01/09/im-spartacus-no-im-scott-eckern/
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by Stage Right
Oh Boy… here comes Prop 8 the musical all over again.
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by Stage Right
I want Langella to win for “Those Lips, Those Eyes” 1980.
Anyone ever see that? http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0081625/
The most wonderful depiction of real Summer Stock theatre…
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by Stage Right
I think the line-up of men is a little more impressive than the women’s line-up…
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by Stage Right
She told Streep to suck what?
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by Stage Right
My wife wants everyone out there to know that Kate Winslet’s eyebrows are driving her nuts! Anyone else? Winslet eyebrows… anyone?
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by Stage Right
Leave it to Hallie Barrie to make it all about herself…
Does anyone else feel a little uncomfortable watching these very personal face-to-face tributes? They are a little squirm-worthy I think… I just don’t feel comfortable watching one actress praising another actress in such a personal way…
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by Stage Right
Oh God… Shirley MacLaine!!! Broadway Actress… ugh.
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It’s Hard Out Here For a Pimp.
by Stage Right… just sayin’
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Jude…
by Stage RightIt;s a recent trend… i remember in 1991, “Beauty and the Beast” had the title song, “Belle”, “Be Our Guest” AND “Gaston” all nominated…. It’s not really fair in a year where a musical is popular because they really dominate…. bback when this category first came about.. (I think it was “The Continental” from a Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers movie) musicals were so common that they would pick the best song from five of that years musicals and that would be the category. now, if you’ve got one good musical written specifically for film you’re lucky.
Remember that movies like “Chicago” or “Phantom” or “Hairspray” were not originally written for film, so their songs are not eligible.
Usually when a musical is adapted for film from the stage, they purposely write a new song or two so it can get a nomination. Like with “Evita” the song “You Must Love Me” was writeen solely to give Madonna a chance to sing at the Oscars and maybe get an oscar for ALW.
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by Stage Right
Taiko Drums are Japanese, not Indian, right?
Domo arrigato, Mr. Roboto.
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by Stage Right
I thin the show flowed much better back when they would intersperse the songs every 20 minutes or so… rather than one big chunk of songs.
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by Stage Right
I’m surprised they didn’t play “You’ll Never Walk Alone” from Carousel. It’s Jerry’s signature song that he sings at the end of every telethon. Instead the played “Smile” which was Charlie Chaplain’s song…
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Why would you build a set…
by Stage RightThat looks like a back stage.. Why not just turn the worklights on and show everyone the backstage?
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I hate to keep bringing up excessive budget issues…
by Stage RightBut, have you noticed how the slear facades on all of the railings in the interior of the Kodak match the podium and elements of the set design? That’s right they have replaced all of the railings and partitions in the seating area of the theatre just to keep a continuos look from stage to theatre… not only did the design and construction cost a bundle, but the labor to install and strike all of that stuff for ONE USE! This will all be in a dumpster in the back of the Kodak by Tuesday…
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by Stage Right
Visual effects for an IMPORTANT film wins out over visual effects for an ENTERTAINING film.
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by Stage Right
Will Smith: NOT a Broadway actor.
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Just curious…
by Stage RightFOr these exterior shots, how did they clear away the guy in the spangled thong who roller blades up and down the sidewalk in front of the Kodak…? Oh, that’s right, Gutfeld is here with us.
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Let’s see….
by Stage Rightit’s 7:15 and already my children have seen men kissing on the lips, an award winner saying his mother was pressured not to love him because he is gay, and now a midget challenge their belief in God.
Thank you Hollywood! You wonder why we say you’re not in touch with us….
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Bill Maher…
by Stage Rightyeah yeah … it’s all about you Bill.
Goog Lord how did this half-talent get up on the stage?
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Jude…. I’ve said it before..
by Stage RightI’ll say it again…
it’s time for you to write a rock musical!
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Ooooo If Kevin Kline is there…
by Stage RightThat means Phoebe might be there….. Oh…. Phoebe….. Phoebe……
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