The Reviews Are In: Mamet is a ‘Sexist’

Last night, David “I’m No Longer a Brain-Dead Liberal” Mamet’s “Oleanna” opened on Broadway.  The production (a transfer from Los Angeles’ Mark Taper Forum) stars Bill Pullman and Julia Stiles.  As discussed on these pages Friday, this play was originally produced off-Broadway 18 years ago and is now receiving its first, official Broadway production. “Oleanna” and the upcoming “Race” are two opportunities for Mr. Mamet’s work to be evaluated by the heavily-left-leaning theatre critics.

The play received quite positive reviews.  Here are some interesting things I read in the reviews…

In Elysa Gardner’s positive review in USA Today, she refers to the contrasting times in which the play is now produced versus the original production:

When David Mamet’s Oleanna premiered in 1992, it was widely perceived as a response to the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, in which Thomas was accused of sexual harassment by former assistant Anita Hill.  It has been 18 years since that real-life drama played out. But as the very different controversy now surrounding David Letterman reminds us, the debate over what constitutes an abuse of power between a male authority figure and a female subordinate isn’t going away. (more…)

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Tags: anita hill, backstage, ben brantley, bill pullman, broadway
Posted Oct 12th 2009 at 4:34 pm in Featured Story, Politics, Theatre | 24532231 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/10/12/the-reviews-are-in-mamet-is-a-sexist/The+Reviews+Are+In%3A+Mamet+is+a+%27Sexist%272009-10-12+23%3A34%3A05Stage+Right

‘Non-Liberal’ Mamet In For Big Year on Broadway

“I took the liberal view for many decades, but I believe I have changed my mind.” – David Mamet

As I discussed in my very first post here at Big Hollywood, many in the theatre world were surprised to read David Mamet’s amazing article, “Why I am No Longer A Brain-Dead Liberal” in the Village Voice.  In my post, I used the play “Oleanna” as an example of a conservative lean that I recognized in Mamet’s work when it premiered off-Broadway in 1992.  I concluded with a couple of questions: (more…)

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Tags: broadway, david mamet, NY Times, oleanna, race
Posted Oct 9th 2009 at 2:55 pm in Politics, Theatre | 24145440 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/10/09/non-liberal-mamet-in-for-big-year-on-broadway/%27Non-Liberal%27+Mamet+In+For+Big+Year+on+Broadway2009-10-09+21%3A55%3A02Stage+Right

Honoring September 11th: I’m Just Pissed

I’m not sad today. I’m not melancholy. I’m not remembering the first time I saw a sunset reflected off the west-facing side of the towers.  Today doesn’t elicit any of those feelings in me.

This day makes me pissed off.

And I’m not just pissed at the terrorists.  I’m pissed at the panty-waist theatre community I am a member of.

Case in point:  ”One of the first plays about Muslim life in the United States debuts in a time and place fraught with symbolism: Sept. 11th, in New York City.”

The two-act play which the playwright likens to a Muslim-American “Death of a Salesman” opens tonight at the Nuyorkian Poets Cafe, about 2 miles from ground zero. (more…)

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Tags: 9/11, broadway, muslim-american, September 11, the domestic crusaders
Posted Sep 11th 2009 at 6:41 pm in Politics, Theatre | 22289876 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/09/11/honoring-september-11th-im-just-pissed/Honoring+September+11th%3A+I%27m+Just+Pissed2009-09-12+01%3A41%3A12Stage+Right

Broadway Too PC for ‘Bye, Bye, Birdie’ ‘Rape’ Scene?

I bet that headline got your attention!  But, as you’ll see a little later in this post, the scene in question is not really a “rape” at all.  But that didn’t keep the NY Daily News from running this headline yesterday:

‘Bye Bye Birdie’ revival on Broadway drops scene for ‘gang rape’ concern

“Just a copy editor trying to get attention by over-exaggerating a story,” you think?  That’s what I thought, too.  But here is the story with Gina Gershon’s quote: (more…)

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Tags: "Annie Get Your Gun", broadway, bye bye birdie, chita rivera, dancing with the stars
Posted Aug 25th 2009 at 6:51 am in Culture, Politics, Theatre | 21053441 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/08/25/broadway-too-pc-for-bye-bye-birdie-rape-scene/Broadway+Too+PC+for+%27Bye%2C+Bye%2C+Birdie%27+%27Rape%27+Scene%3F2009-08-25+13%3A51%3A46Stage+Right

Top 10 Things for Conservatives to Look for in the Upcoming Broadway Season

Summer is the slow time on Broadway as theatre pros recover from their Tony Award hang-overs and try to rush out to the Island for a few days of R & R before the new season begins.  This year it seems there are a few plays aiming for early fall openings hoping to ride a crest of popularity into the always-lucrative holiday season.

Just as last season brought a record number of plays as well as stellar gross sales (despite doom-sayers in the industry) this season already looks locked and loaded with a huge number of shows scheduled to open between October 1st and the first week of May (the traditional Tony nomination cut-off).  So to help the readers of Big Hollywood plan their trip to the Great White Way (we can still say that, can’t we?), I submit the top 10 things to look for from the center/right perspective:

10.  ”Superior Donuts” – A transfer from Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre (one of my personal favorite regional houses in America), the play stars “Spinal Tap”’s Michael McKean as an aging hippie who owns a donut shop in a largely black neighborhood and Jon Michael Hill (do all young Broadway actors HAVE to go by three names now?) as a 21-year-old from the neighborhood who talks his way into a job at the shop.  From the New York Times review:  ”In one of the play’s most amusing exchanges Franco challenges Arthur to name 10 black poets. Arthur names a few, then stands dumb, a look of deep concentration on his face. “It’s like watching George Bush on ‘Jeopardy!’ ” Franco cracks.” (more…)

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Tags: a steady rain, Ana Gasteyer, anita hill, barrymore, bebe neuwerth
Posted Aug 16th 2009 at 9:14 am in Entertainment, Featured Story, Politics | 20520626 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/08/16/top-10-things-for-conservatives-to-look-for-in-the-upcoming-broadway-season/Top+10+Things+for+Conservatives+to+Look+for+in+the+Upcoming+Broadway+Season2009-08-16+16%3A14%3A15Stage+Right

Broadway Rejects Conservative Plays

The New York Post ran a story this weekend with a very encouraging headline: RIGHT TURN ON B’WAY? Michael Riedel’s article revolves around two new plays that are being shopped around for a home.  One is a one-man play about Ronald Reagan.

“Reagan” is a one-man play that doesn’t portray the 40th president as a fascist. It’s by Lionel Chetwynd, whose scripts for television and film include “The Hanoi Hilton,” “Color of Justice,” “Kissinger and Nixon” and “DC 9/11: Time of Crisis.” ….  Chetwynd declined to comment on “Reagan,” except to say with a laugh, “It will change lives and the course of history.” A copy of an early script portrays Reagan as thoughtful, determined, sly (when necessary) and winning. Talking to the audience from the main room of his California ranch, Reagan explains his journey from FDR Democrat to conservative Republican. Along the way, he offers a spirited defense of conservative principles. At least three top directors have passed on the play because, says a source, “They can’t stand Ronald Reagan.”

The other play cited is “Girls in Trouble (Formerly Three Abortions)” by Jonathan Reynolds.

In “Girls in Trouble,” Reynolds presents a balanced view of pro-lifers while taking some swipes at the NPR crowd. The play ends with a harrowing confrontation between two women — one pro-life, the other pro-choice — that’s not for the squeamish. “Thus far, its claim to fame is that it’s been turned down by all the theaters in New York,” Reynolds says of his play. “It was commissioned by the Long Wharf, but they wouldn’t put it on. There was a theater in the suburbs of Washington, DC, that said they wanted to present the ‘other side’ of the abortion debate. But when they read it, they said it would “infuriate our audience.” Oskar Eustis, the head of the Public Theater, told Reynolds that his staff “didn’t go for it,” but that he would take a look at it himself.

(more…)

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Tags: "Girls in Trouble (Formerly Three Abortions)", "Tales of an Urban Indian", "The Good Negro", abortion, and the People Who Love Them"
Posted Jun 28th 2009 at 6:57 am in Entertainment, Featured Story, Politics, Religion | 1667425 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/06/28/conservative-plays-get-noticed-in-new-york/Broadway+Rejects+Conservative+Plays2009-06-28+13%3A57%3A38Stage+Right

This Just In: Broadway Not Dead

Back in January you couldn’t watch any entertainment “news” show or read any Arts & Culture section of a newspaper without seeing something about the death of Broadway.  There were so many shows closing all at once that the imminent death of our industry was whined about not just from spineless actors, but from producers as well.  It was so pervasive that Saturday Night Live utilized Neil Patrick Harris’ musical theatre ability to present a skit starring the characters of popular Broadway shows having a meeting at Sardi’s to try to save the industry.

Somewhere, out in the wilderness, on the pages of Big Hollywood, there was a lone voice of reason.  A pragmatic and practical man laying out the facts for you, the ever-interested and conservative reader.  That man, one Stage Right, was shrewd enough to label the producers as “panty-waste industry folk” and explained that their propensity to panic and pull the emergency brake is partly attributed to their liberal tendencies.

(more…)

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Tags: Arts & Culture section, broadway, health insurance, neil patrick harris, Philip J. Smith
Posted Jun 21st 2009 at 6:52 am in Entertainment, Featured Story | 164190One Commenthttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/06/21/this-just-in-broadway-not-dead/This+Just+In%3A+Broadway+Not+Dead2009-06-21+13%3A52%3A00Stage+Right

Sammy Davis Jr. — Black and White On the Silver Screen?

The life story of a Black star in a White world, a man who arguably was the world’s greatest entertainer, will not be coming to a theater near you anytime soon. If ever.

During a recent interview on my radio program “The Andrea Shea King Show”, Hollywood conservative Burt Boyar, longtime friend and biographer of the late great Sammy Davis, Jr., said he’s concerned that the true story about the talented entertainer who fought and broke through racial barriers will never be seen on the silver screen. Two years ago, Boyar had negotiated a deal to sell his two biographies to filmmakers who were all set to tell the story on celluloid.

Reflection: Sammy Davis Jr. snaps a photo of himself and Jerry Lewis posing in the reflection of a mirror.

What entanglements are keeping the former member of the Rat Pack’s compelling life from being made into a movie?  A life studded with Tinseltown’s glittering constellation of stars whose orbits intersected his?   Luminaries like Sinatra, Peter Lawford, Joey Bishop, Dean Martin, Tony Curtis, Jerry Lewis, Liz and Burton, Paul Newman, Berle, Bacall, Bennett, Damone… when Hollywood was at its most glamorous?

Who is Burt Boyar? And why does he care?

(more…)

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Tags: Al Jolson, Bacall, Bennett, Berle, broadway
Posted Jun 14th 2009 at 7:04 am in Entertainment, Featured Story | 1584142 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/asking/2009/06/14/sammy-davis-jr-black-and-white-on-the-silver-screen-2/Sammy+Davis+Jr.+%E2%80%94+Black+and+White+On+the+Silver+Screen%3F2009-06-14+14%3A04%3A43Andrea+Shea+King

Tony Award Aftermath

I’m tempted to brag about how close I was with my Tony Award Predictions and make that the biggest story coming out of Sunday’s Tony Award Show, but instead I’ll stay humble.

From the perspective of the Broadway industry (the people and companies that represent the institution of Broadway and who work in the industry tend to think in terms of studios rather than production companies), the Shubert Organization was the big winner.  The Shuberts are the happy landlord to Best Musical winner “Billy Elliot” and Best Play winner “God of Carnage.”  The Shuberts also serve as co-producer of “God of Carnage.”

From an individual show’s perspective, certainly “Billy Elliot” was the big winner with a total of 10 awards.  One major award they didn’t win was the Best Score of a Musical that seemed like a shoe-in for Elton John.  Instead it went to Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey for “Next to Normal” that show also won the Best Actress award for its star, Alice Ripley. (more…)

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Tags: "You're Welcome America: A Final Evening with George W., alice ripley, billy elliot, bret michaels, brian yorkey
Posted Jun 11th 2009 at 6:43 am in Entertainment, Video | 1558624 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/06/11/tony-award-aftermath/Tony+Award+Aftermath2009-06-11+13%3A43%3A35Stage+Right

‘Nine’ Opens November 25th

Here at Big Hollywood, the film folks get all the fun by previewing film trailers in their posts.  But, since the upcoming “Nine” is a film adaptation of a Broadway musical, I’m claiming this one! 

Directed by Rob Marshall, who did a pretty good job adapting a little show called “Chicago” to film, “Nine” is set for a Fall opening which usually means the studio has Oscar hopes.  “Nine” was a musical adaptation of Federico Fellini’s masterpiece “8 1/2″ and was staged by Tommy Tune in 1982 starring Raul Julia as Italian film director Guido Contini.  For that incredibly demanding role in the film, we get Oscar winner Daniel Day Lewis.  The cast includes Penelope Cruz, Kate Hudson, Nicole Kidman, Fergie, Judy Dench and none other than Sophia Loren! (more…)

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Tags: 8 1/2, broadway, daniel day lewis, federico fellini, fergie
Posted Jun 9th 2009 at 8:23 am in Entertainment | 153510No Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/06/09/nine-trailer/%27Nine%27+Opens+November+25th2009-06-09+15%3A23%3A18Stage+Right

Tonight’s Tony Award Predictions

Join Gary Graham, Tim Slagle, Moxie X. Cathedra, Stage Right and many more as Big Hollywood live-blogs the West Coast feed of the Tony Awards.

Tonight, 8:00 PM Pacific Time, Telecast on CBS.

It’s often said during Oscar season that there are two sets of predictions:  Who WILL win, and who SHOULD win.  It’s the same with Broadway’s Tony Awards but I often like to add a third prediction:  What would be the best for business.  Believe it or not, often times the Tony Awards seem to take into account the shows that “need” the award for marketing purposes.  Even though one show stands out and seems to be the obvious choice to win the top prize, a surprise occurs and a David beats a Goliath thus ensuring a longer run for David.  I will list a few examples for Best Musical travesties from the past that many might quarrel with in terms of the validity of the show that won, but the commercial outcome of the shows involved can’t be argued.  You have a right to your own opinion, but not to your own facts.

1991: “Miss Saigon” has a multi-million-dollar advance, leads nominations with 11, wins Best Actor and Best Actress.  Best Musical that year?  “The Will Rogers Follies.”  Without the award, “Will Rogers” would have not made it another six months. After winning the prize, it ran for two more years, had a successful tour and might still be running in Branson, MO.  “Saigon” ran for a decade. (more…)

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Tags: 33 variations, alice ripley, allison janney, billy elliot, brian d'arcy james
Posted Jun 7th 2009 at 11:03 am in Entertainment, Featured Story, Politics | 152962No Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/06/07/tony-awards-predictions/Tonight%27s+Tony+Award+Predictions2009-06-07+18%3A03%3A09Stage+Right

Think Pink

YouTube Dave Konig Roasts George Takei

As usual, Dick Cheney is right and Barack Obama is wrong.

It’s time to wave the pink flag and drop opposition to gay marriage.

I’ve changed my thinking on this one. Personally, I admit my opposition to gay marriage has always been on the same level as my opposition to the death penalty: I understand and appreciate the arguments against both intellectually – but in actual practice, I simply don’t lose any sleep over either. With the death penalty, I sympathize with moral opposition – but when a Ted Bundy takes that final ride on “Old Sparky” (or that final big sleep on “Old Lethal Injectiony”), my only real objection is that it isn’t televised. (more…)

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Tags: Bab Ba Booey, Big pussy, Brad altman, broadway, Cory Kahaney
Posted Jun 5th 2009 at 4:58 pm in Entertainment, News, Political Humor, Politics | 149462No Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/dkonig/2009/06/05/think-pink/Think+Pink2009-06-05+23%3A58%3A02Dave+Konig

42nd Street: Too Big to Fail?

- Summer, 1987:  In a stunning and unprecedented move, President Walter Mondale has stepped in and saved the Broadway musical “42nd Street” from eviction at the Majestic Theatre.  The theatre’s owners had earlier announced that they were using a standard clause in the production’s booking agreement and had given an eviction notice to the show due to low ticket sales.  Subsequently, the theatre owners have also announced that in January of next year, the Majestic will be the new home to British import “The Phantom of the Opera.”

But, in an effort to “save American jobs” and keep an American musical from having to make way for an imported show, President Mondale has deemed “42nd Street” “too big to fail”: “This show has been running since 1980 and has been providing jobs for hundreds of working families in New York.  My administration is determined to keep this production running and to keep these long-suffering, union workers on the job,” the President said. (more…)

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Tags: "Chorus Line", 42nd street, Bill Clinton, broadway, Carter
Posted Jun 5th 2009 at 6:34 am in Political Humor | 149718No Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/06/05/42nd-street-too-big-to-fail/42nd+Street%3A+Too+Big+to+Fail%3F2009-06-05+13%3A34%3A25Stage+Right

Come Fly With Me

We do admit to being conflicted, sometimes, when writing about the politics of Global Warming hysteria.

It is hilarious that Al Gore’s electricity bill is ten times the national average. However, our idea of a perfect world is when everyone in Africa and the developing world is so wealthy they are using the same amount of electricity as the former vice-president.

If the world were that wealthy it would mean the end of the scourge of needless child mortality. It would mean that people in Africa would live long and healthy lives and get to know the joy of their grandchildren.  It would mean that children would know how wonderful it is to see their parents live to an old age. (more…)

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Tags: Africa, Al Gore, broadway, carbon footprint, climate change
Posted Jun 4th 2009 at 6:31 am in Entertainment, News, Politics | 15148618 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/amcelhinney/2009/06/04/come-fly-with-me/Come+Fly+With+Me2009-06-04+13%3A31%3A51Phelim+McAleer+%26%2338%3B+Ann+McElhinney%E2%80%8F

The Pop Underground Strikes Back

Few shows illustrate how low the state of popular music has fallen than “American Idol.”  While AI regularly finds singers of talent, the songs they feature are mostly chestnuts.  The show also encourages the type of singing that is more at home on Broadway than in small smoky clubs.  The judges put an inordinate amount of focus on vocal pyrotechnics encouraging contestants to test the outer limits of their ranges.  The most exciting news to come out of the most recent season is the possibility that Adam Lambert might join Queen, replacing the ill-considered Paul Rogers.

I would love to see Adam Lambert join Queen.  I already know all the songs.  And that’s a problem.  Singer/songwriters have been moving off-grid since the nineties.  With the demise of the major music conglomerates, innovative talent understands it’s up to them to record and release their own material.  The internet makes this possible.  No one knows the extent of the effect downloading has had on the music industry, but if we are to judge from the reaction, it has been devastating.  The Recording Institute Association of America has brought suits against parents whose children illegally download songs. (more…)

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Tags: "American People", Adam Lambert, Andy Morten, Bat for Lashes, Big Music
Posted Jun 2nd 2009 at 6:40 am in Music | 1479662 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/mbaron/2009/06/02/the-pop-underground-strikes-back/The+Pop+Underground+Strikes+Back2009-06-02+13%3A40%3A04Mike+Baron

A Love Letter to Broadway

The magic of Broadway and off-Broadway theatre is intoxicating to me.  From the actual theatre houses to the performers to the behind the scenes mechanics of putting up and running a show, the whole experience affects me to my very core.

This is my love letter to Broadway.  Join this theatre nerd on my journey into the wonders and joy of the theatre going experience.

Whether you’re coming from Uptown or Downtown, the Eastside or Westside, as you make your way to the theatre, you get swallowed up into the hustle of Times Square and the atmosphere is electric. The streets fill with an eclectic mix of people bustling to their theatres surrounded by a cacophony of street music, bucket drummers, corner evangelists, vendors, excited chatter, car horns, and the occasional argument by someone who just got taken in a game of three-card monte. (more…)

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Tags: "Annie Get Your Gun", "Avenue Q", "Blood Brothers", "Bye, "Long Day's Journey into Night"
Posted Jun 1st 2009 at 6:39 am in Entertainment | 146822No Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jshaffmaster/2009/06/01/a-love-letter-to-broadway/A+Love+Letter+to+Broadway2009-06-01+13%3A39%3A29Jane+Shaffmaster

Ragtime: On Second Thought

Here’s something you don’t hear from bloggers very often:  “I was wrong!” 

Back in January I wrote about the announced revival of “Ragtime” at the Kennedy Center.  I described the extreme leftist views of E. L. Doctorow upon whose novel the musical is based.  I also described the central character’s story arch which follows his path from hopeful, young and talented African-American to spiteful, vengeful domestic terrorist. 

A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to see the production and I was delighted that although the script remains unchanged form the original, some slight nuances in staging, focus and character inter-action has softened the radical nature of Doctorow’s dogmatic cynicism and has illuminated truly hopeful and inspiring visions of an America to be proud of.  (more…)

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Tags: broadway, Canada, cineplex-odeon, doctorow, frank galati
Posted May 15th 2009 at 2:11 pm in Entertainment, Politics | 135350One Commenthttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/05/15/on-second-thought/Ragtime%3A+On+Second+Thought2009-05-15+21%3A11%3A10Stage+Right

Andrew Lloyd Webber and His Amazing Technicolor Tax Logic

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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Tags: andrew lloyd webber, broadway, England, michael caine, Obama
Posted May 12th 2009 at 6:37 am in Entertainment, Politics | 130782No Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/05/12/andrew-and-his-amazing-technicolor-logic/Andrew+Lloyd+Webber+and+His+Amazing+Technicolor+Tax+Logic2009-05-12+13%3A37%3A20Stage+Right

Tony Award Nominations 2009

In 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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Tags: Angela Lansbury, Brian Dennehy, broadway, Christine Ebersol, Daniel Radcliffe
Posted May 9th 2009 at 6:15 am in Celebrity News, Entertainment, Featured Story | 129722No Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/05/09/tony-award-nominations-2009/Tony+Award+Nominations+20092009-05-09+13%3A15%3A30Stage+Right

Sunday Matineé: ‘Sunday in the Park with George’

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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Tags: "Finishing the Hat", A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, Bernadette Peters, Booth Theatre, broadway
Posted Mar 8th 2009 at 1:16 pm in Entertainment | 7326626 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/03/08/sunday-matinee-sunday-in-the-park-with-george-3809/Sunday+Matine%C3%A9%3A++%27Sunday+in+the+Park+with+George%272009-03-08+21%3A16%3A53Stage+Right

Sunday Matineé: 1776

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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Tags: "1776", "Sit Down John", 46th Street Theatre, Abigail Adams, American Exceptionalism
Posted Mar 1st 2009 at 3:44 pm in Entertainment, Video | 6880265 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/03/01/sunday-matinee-1776/Sunday+Matine%C3%A9%3A++17762009-03-01+23%3A44%3A48Stage+Right

A View From Stage Right; My Manifesto.

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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Tags: artistic director, broadway, Craig Wright, dramaturg, funding
Posted Feb 26th 2009 at 3:33 pm in Entertainment, Politics | 65966114 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/02/26/who-picks-these-plays-a-manifesto/A+View+From+Stage+Right%3B+My+Manifesto.2009-02-26+23%3A33%3A03Stage+Right

Sunday Matinee: Oscar Special… “The Sound of Music”

This week’s Sunday Matinee is dedicated to Hollywood.

Because it’s Oscar Sunday and the whole world is focused on the Kodak Theatre and the red carpet parade about to happen, it seems fitting that Broadway throws Hollywood a bone today.  Also, considering every other Broadway show these days seems to be a staged version of a popular movie, (”Shrek”, “Wedding Singer”… Really?) it seems appropriate to shine a little light on a Broadway Musical that has been adapted to film.  (more…)

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Tags: Andy Griffith, anne bancroft, broadway, Carol Burnett, chicago
Posted Feb 22nd 2009 at 11:40 am in Entertainment | 5707016 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/02/22/sunday-matinee-oscar-special-the-sound-of-music/Sunday+Matinee%3A++Oscar+Special...+%22The+Sound+of+Music%222009-02-22+19%3A40%3A56Stage+Right

Broadway Street With Two Left Sides: ‘Avenue Q’

My friend Jane Shaffmaster gave me a call. Jane’s loved musicals since she was young enough to play the lead in “Annie” and spends a greater percentage of her annual income on Broadway than most heavy-duty Christians tithe every year. She was perusing the latest news on Playbill and was quite dismayed that political satire wasn’t affected by The Change. Like most on our side, Jane is fairly good humored about Republicans being the butt of jokes, but she expects those jokes to be distributed evenly across partisan lines.  A play called “Avenue Q” was rewriting its script to reflect the new administration but like most satirists*, they refuse to mock the new President.

“Avenue Q” is a puppet show for adults.  A song called “For Now” has the puppets reassure each other that most things in life are temporary, like hair and sex. Until recently, one of those temporary things was “George Bush.” Knowing that Obama was to be shortly inaugurated, the producers and writers were perplexed for a replacement. I know it should be obvious to everyone else, but Broadway producers don’t think like you and I. So they threw a contest to decide a better verse. (more…)

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Tags: "Avenue Q", Barack Obama, broadway, Lyric Contest
Posted Feb 16th 2009 at 8:23 am in Entertainment, Politics | 4663435 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/tslagle/2009/02/16/avenue-q-the-street-with-two-left-sides/Broadway+Street+With+Two+Left+Sides%3A+%27Avenue+Q%272009-02-16+16%3A23%3A47Tim+Slagle

Sunday Matinee: Les Miserables

Sunday matinee will be a weekly post focusing on an individual Broadway show.  I’ll discuss some of its history, trivia and little-known anecdotes as well as analyze the political, social or cultural ramifications of the piece.  In fact, let me start with a little-known theatre fact:  Did you ever wonder why Saturday matinees on Broadway are at 2:00 and Sunday matinees are at 3:00?  My understanding is that years ago, the Sunday matinee was scheduled for 3:00 so the actors would have time to go to a late church service on Sunday morning.  Because of the late hour of the prior night’s performance, actors tend to sleep in rather late on Sunday mornings.  The Noon Mass is sometimes the only option for church and then a nice lunch after church would have made a 1:30 call way too tight.  I wonder how many actors on Broadway these days take advantage of that schedule. (more…)

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Tags: broadway, Les Mis, Les Miserables, review, Stage Right
Posted Feb 8th 2009 at 7:27 am in Politics, Reviews | 4274632 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/02/08/sunday-matinee-les-miserables/Sunday+Matinee%3A+Les+Miserables2009-02-08+15%3A27%3A15Stage+Right

Critics Say: “Ferrell is right, Bush is stupid.”

I know what’s going on in the advertiser’s office for “You’re Welcome America, A Final Night With George Bush“.  Every morning after a show opens the producers assemble with the agency and dissect the reviews pulling out the best quotes to be used in ads, posters and banners on the theatres doors and marquee.  Based on the raves, I’m sure they’re having a pretty fun time. 

But, as your trusted, center/right theatre observer here at Big Hollywood, I read the same reviews and pulled out my own quotes.  You see, the content of the reviews I’ve been reading reveal less to me about what’s going on up on the stage at the Cort, it’s says more to me about the bias of the critics.  They are taking the opportunity of this show to send their own, gratuitous shots at “W.”  (more…)

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Tags: bias, broadway, bush on broadway, critics, will ferrell
Posted Feb 7th 2009 at 11:03 am in Media Criticism | 4387454 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/02/07/critics-say-ferrell-is-right-bush-is-stupid/Critics+Say%3A+%22Ferrell+is+right%2C+Bush+is+stupid.%222009-02-07+19%3A03%3A20Stage+Right

Trickle Down Economics on Broadway

It’s no secret that Broadway theatre owners are generally members of the Democratic Party. The late Gerald Schoenfeld, long-time Chairman of the Shubert Organization had the honor of certifying the ballot for then-Gov. Clinton at the 1992 DNC in New York. Rocco Ladesman of the Jujamcyn Theatre chain is a big contributor to Democratic nominees as is James Nederlander (although he has spread a little bit out to some GOP causes). (more…)

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Tags: broadway, ronald reagan, Tax on Broadway tickets, trickle down economics
Posted Feb 6th 2009 at 2:15 pm in Entertainment, Politics | 4135815 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/02/06/trickle-down-economics-on-broadway/Trickle+Down+Economics+on+Broadway2009-02-06+22%3A15%3A24Stage+Right

NEA Grantees Should “Spread the Wealth”

Although Broadway - and by extension National Tours of Broadway shows - tend to be the showcase for the American theatre industry, the vast majority of the works that end up in that showcase are born and nurtured in the vast network of non-profit theatres stretched across the country. 

New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco as well as smaller cities like Minneapolis, Houston San Diego and beautiful Costa Mesa (!) have major producing organizations that act as feeders for Broadway and the road.  New playwright programs designed to nurture writers and their works are a staple of most non-profit and institutional theatres.  And these theatres are funded, in part, by federal grants from the National Endowment of the Arts (NEA).  (more…)

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Tags: a chorus line, broadway, national endowment for the arts, taxpayer money, Theatre
Posted Feb 3rd 2009 at 6:25 am in Entertainment, Politics | 3919425 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/02/03/nea-grantees-should-spread-the-wealth/NEA+Grantees+Should+%22Spread+the+Wealth%222009-02-03+14%3A25%3A41Stage+Right

The Musical: You Feeling Lucky, Punk?

The recent trend of converting hit movies into Broadway musicals (”Shrek,” “Billy Elliott,” etc.) may have reached the point of ridiculous with today’s news that a stage musical of the Clint Eastwood film “Magnum Force” is in the works:

Magnum Force, the 1973 sequel to the Clint Eastwood thriller Dirty Harry, is getting a musical makeover and may even be Broadway bound, according to The Guardian. English singer-songwriter Robyn Hitchcock, an admitted Magnum Force obsessive, will compose the score and intends to produce the show with MTV executive Bill Flanagan. (more…)

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Tags: broadway, dirty harry musical, magnum force
Posted Jan 31st 2009 at 9:45 am in Entertainment, Politics | 3744623 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/01/31/are-you-feeling-lucky-punk/The+Musical%3A+You+Feeling+Lucky%2C+Punk%3F2009-01-31+17%3A45%3A12Stage+Right