By Jenna I had loved the show If/Then since it first opened at the Richard Rodgers Theater about a year ago. The show captivated me with the realism in the plot and characters, and how it explored the limits of what we know about the future. Idina Menzel headlines the
Shirley Jones: (Partridge Family, Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, Elmer Gantry, Me and Juliet, Oklahoma, Music Man, Carousel) Shirley Jones grew up in Pennsylvania, singing in church and coached by a vocal instructor from the age of five, however she was utterly inexperienced in the theater when she auditioned
By Jenna Bawer Honeymoon in Vegas, based off of a movie of the same name, is a fresh face this Broadway season. The musical comedy is a collaboration between Andrew Bergman, the movie’s original writer and director, and Tony-winning composer Jason Robert Brown, starring Rob McClure and Brynn O’Malley as
Photo of Isaac’s King of New York iPhone case. by Isaac Grivett Last weekend, I had the privilege to attend our local theatre festival at Fullerton College. Although I have been heavily involved in theatre for a while, somehow I’ve never found myself at a festival until this year. After going to one
By Emma Filosa We’ve all heard directors request that actors “get into character”. For a number of actors and actresses, a character begins on stage and ends off stage. However, some performers use the technique commonly known as “method acting” to not only get into character, but to literally become
By Hailie Gold I have been involved in theatre for as long as I can remember, but last year was the first time I was highly involved in backstage happenings. I quickly realized, it’s not only the actors that make the show happen, it’s the crew too! Actors are wonderful,
By Sami DeSocio One of the greatest things about seeing a musical is getting the unforgettable songs stuck in your head for days at a time. Sometimes those songs even become audition songs for those of us that are pursuing theater as a career. There are some that take no
By Harley Ann Kulp Who hasn’t heard of Book of Mormon? It won the 2011 Tony Award for Best Musical (and eight other Tony’s) and it truly deserved it! Book of Mormon is a hilarious musical with the most clever – and inappropriate – lyrics possibly ever written. Though
Peter Pan: The Boy Who Wouldn’t Grow Up. By Sami DeSocio When you hear the name Peter Pan, images of a young boy with a sword who flies through the night sky and into Neverland flash across one’s imagination. But with so many tellings of the story, it seems that
By Sami DeSocio A great theater tradition is the giving and receiving of gifts for opening and closing nights! But what if you have no clue what to get everyone? Who gets a gift? How much is this going to cost? Here’s some ideas and guidelines to help you out.
By Harley Ann Kulp Every theater-lover out there has that one show that just makes our heart flutter in excitement whenever we think about it. Mine is Disney’s Newsies. I’ve always had a special connection to the show since the very beginning. I discovered Newsies when the cast performed on the
Broadway is a job and like all jobs, it has to come to an end. However, there is a little bit more to the story in this case. Most jobs require you to apply via a form and normally an interview – whereas Broadway requires auditions, a measure of your
by Maison Kelly There is no denying it, movie musicals have seen a huge revival recently. Yet, this genre still seems to be completely hit-or-miss in quality, and the movie production of a theatre goer’s favorite show offers no guarantees to meet his or her standards. While more light-hearted musicals,
by Maison Kelly I have been an Annie super-fan since I was five-years-old. I have every single line memorized, and I could probably (definitely) sing even the overture in my sleep. I absolutely adore this show. So naturally, when I heard there was a modern update coming out in theaters, I was
Spending the holidays in a show By Sami DeSocio The holidays are about getting together with friends and family, going over to someone’s house or having people over and being together. But if you’re in a show, its not always possible to be with your family. While that leads to
Hair on Broadway is essential; it’s seriously one of the biggest parts in some actors and actresses’ transformations into their character. Imagine Lesli Margherita as Mrs. Wormwood in Matilda without her signature golden locks, or Ariel in the Little Mermaid without her iconic red hair? Hair is a larger part
The first show of the inaugural season for the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts has Orlando, Florida buzzing. The newly reworked Phantom of the Opera tour made it’s way into Downtown Orlando and into the Floridians hearts. After hearing about the show nonstop for the past week, I
by Eric Gelb Flying in theatre is absolutely magical. Just imagine, as Mary Poppins sings her last few words as she lifts off the ground and into the haze-filled stage rafters. But imagine if she leaped off the lip of the stage and flew over the heads of the audience?
Christmas is fast approaching (6 days!), and we couldn’t be more excited! Lights adorn almost every building, holiday movies are always playing on television, and Christmas music is constantly on the radio! But, for the theatre lover, this presents the question: Should I actually be festive and listen to holiday
by Sami DeSocio There are few things that put a bigger smile on my face than the smile of walking into a Broadway theater. There’s just something about it, like walking into another time and another place. Some of these theaters have been around since the early 1900s (whether they
by Maison Kelly New shows on Broadway are always incredibly exciting! We all feel the elation of an amazing up-coming season, full of shows of great depth, talent, and vibrant! Prepare to be elated, because this Broadway season is making itself out to be spectacular! Here are five of Broadway’s
In theatre, we use scenery and costumes to help tell our story. Backdrops can tell us where we are in the story. Lighting tells us the mood of the story or maybe what time of day. Costuming tells us the time period and maybe a little more about what the
As someone who walks around a lot, I find that I always need to have a good playlist of songs with a good rhythm to walk to. I have discovered that, unsurprisingly, songs about work, or songs that are sung while the characters on stage are working, always set a
By Brenna Corporal Croquet mallets. Scrunchies. Shoulder pads. All these things, plus more, can be found in Heathers The Musical. This off-Broadway show is based on the 1988 cult classic film of the same name. The musical has been long-coming: there was a reading in 2010 with Kristen Bell as
We’ve all seen the How to Be a Newsie for Halloween video put out by the wonderful Broadway cast of Newsies two years ago. They had some great ideas for cheap, easy costumes that were still amazing! I’ve come up with several more theatre Halloween costumes from different Broadway shows
The sun’ll come out tomorrow! At least – that’s what the producers of the latest revival of Annie told themselves. Closing at a financial loss after a mostly unsuccessful at the Palace Theatre. Lilla Crawford received mostly positive reviews for her earnest but gritty “Annie”, donned a thick “New Yawk”
By Sami DeSocio All actors have certain tools to make them successful. Whether it be certain acting techniques, your audition book or something else, the actor has many tools. However, those tools mean absolutely nothing without a great head shot to sell you! Why is a head shot so important?
Nothing is better than a group number! Whether it’s a stellar opening, and heart-racing eleven o’clock number, or an intense closing, a group number is everybody’s favorite. These are our top ten group numbers from Broadway. 10. “Circle of Life” from Lion King This number is absolutely breathtaking! While
Hailed as “Crackling with sweetness and freshness” and “Brightly colored, high spirited and well-sung”, Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella has arrived on Broadway 56 years after Julie Andrews enchanted audiences in the original TV musical. With dazzling dance sequences, ridiculously fun wigs and a wide appeal from it’s witty but profound
An interesting thing has been occurring in New York City. On the Great White Way, the lights are dimmed for one minute before returning to their brilliant glow. It’s not a random electricity problem, but actually a long-standing honor that has been around for (some say) over a hundred