ABOUT LAST NIGHT: BEAUTIFUL BOYS (& GIRLS) OF BROADWAY

On Thursday February 21, Ben Cameron presented Broadway Sessions - Beautiful Boys of Broadway featuring Will Taylor (A Chorus Line, La Cage Aux Folles), Frankie James Grande (Mamma Mia!), Jake Boyd (Rock of Ages, Carrie), and (my roommate) Alex Quiroga (Wicked, Taboo). 

Up-and-comer Zurin Villanueva, looking absolutely flawless in a bright red crop-top and pleated black leather mini-skirt, was also on hand to kick of the evening.

The battle of the sexes hit fever pitch when Frankie James Grande invited his little sister, Ariana Grande (www.arianagrande.info), on-stage for a incestuous version of "Suddenly Seymour/Frankie" that actually turned out to be very cute. 

However, when Cameron invited the younger Grande to remain in the spotlight for one more song, Whitney Houston's immortal classic "I Have Nothing", she completely won the audience over, proving perhaps that this 'boys' night out was really all about the girls after all.

Broadway Sessions Presenter and Host, Ben Cameron (L) asks Wicked's Alex Quiroga (R) five of the evening's 20 questions.

Zurin Villanueva starts the show with her killer versions of "Wizard and I" and "No Good Deed" from Wicked.  

CLICK HERE FOR A VIDEO TEASER

UPDATE: Things Get K-K-Kinky On Broadway

File this under "WTF Were They Thinking" :

Kinky Boots, the new musical from Cindi Lauper and Harvey Fierstein based on the 2005 indie film, recently moved into it's home on the great white way at the Al Hirschfeld theater on West 45th Street. Producers were quick to decorate the theater's facade with the show's marketing, but perhaps they were a little too quick. 

The show's branding is really cute-- the letter "K" formed by two knee-high booted legs. However, no one seemed to realize that the iconic logo created a different message all together.  When they wrapped these large columns, didn't anyone catch the giant "K-K-K" ?????

#inapproriate

Broadwayworld featured the show in their "Up On the Marquee" column, but were kind enough to leave this questionable shot out.


UPDATE: Apparently, the producers came to their senses. The day after I originally posted this, a change was made to the center column, eliminating the cultural faux pas.

LEAF ME ALONE

Thanksgiving - November 22, 2012
New Haven, CT
Logan Keslar, Lauren Gibbs, and Alex Quiroga

Don't Feed the Plants

The alternate ending to the 1986 cult film "Little Shop of Horrors" based on the Broadway musical (based on the original 1960 movie) is a disaster... in the best way possible.

CHAPLIN: the musical

Had the chance to see an early preview of this new musical thanks to my friend Sunny Naughton at Camp Broadway. Didn't know much about the production going into the show, but was pleasantly surprised by the performance overall. Rob McClure is really, really impressive as the title character-- an iconic persona that we all (even us Millennials) have (at least) some reference on.

If you're into new musical theatre, than I suggest you check it out. If you like spectacle, hi-tech effects, and memorable pop music-- then I suggest you stick with Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark. 

OWS Marches Through the Streets of Soho

The scene right now as hundreds (thousands?) of protesters march up Broadway at the corner of Houston.

Where are they heading?

What will happen next?

 If they occupy the MTA and I don't get home on the subway, I'mona be pissed.

The Rest of Baltimore

Here's a quick gallery of the rest of my time in Baltimore:

 

 

 

 

Day By Day

The scene at intermission, as the audience is invited on-stage to take part in Holy Communion (wine flavored jell-o shots?) at the Circle In The Square Theater-- home of the new Broadway revival, GODSPELL.

Interesting note-- fresh from his appearance next door at Wicked Day, composer Stephen Schwartz was in the audience in a few rows back.

My Run In with Occupy Wall Street

Saturday September 24 - New York City

 

My boyfriend and I had just had our hair cut in Astor Square, and after he headed back uptown to rehearsal I went south into SoHo for some light shopping. The sidewalks were crowded with the typical herds of tourists, but because I had no where else I needed to be I casually, patiently strolled among them.

The gentle din of urban life, the hum of food trucks, the bad euro dj music emerging from the nearest mega-chain retailer were all interrupted by the sudden roar of a large, angry crowd. My pedestrian haze was quickly jolted back real life as I turned to see what I would later come to know as the Occupy Wall Street group.

They were aggressively protesting in the middle of the street fighting against traffic up Broadway. There seemed to little-to-no police presence in what seemed to be a spontaneous, unorganized riot-in-the-making... save for a few sweaty looking cops tailing the group at a safe distance.

That being said, a few hours later as I was crossing University at 12th street just south of Union Square, less than a block away from my boss's loft, and literally in the epicenter of a collision between the #OccupyWallSt kids (who were now running full bore) and a much larger contingent of NYPD that had planted themselves in a barricade mid intersection.

Seconds after I cleared the cross walk, the two groups met. Elbows hooked into heads, necks were clothesline-clipped by extended forearms, bodies mounded on the black pavement in piles of wrestling.

I had honestly never seen anything like it. The small group of spectators that had joined me on the street corner watched in silent shock for a moment before quickly continuing west, away from the brawl.

I ran into a couple of hipster girls from the New School who looked totally clueless. Without stopping, I said "you'd better just turn around and go the other way."


Read the rest of the story here at NYDAILY

TWO THINGS

 

The building across the street from MKG at Broadway and Houston, Soho - New York City.

Danger sign on the sidewalk below.

VACATION: On The Plane

 Not flying on Delta was physically painful for me, and easily one of the hardest parts about the trip. Luckily Juan Carlo, the first-class flight attendant, was kind enough to sneak complimentary cocktails (in real glassware nonetheless) back to us young queens in coach. After our first round-- served in plastic cups by these troll ladies, he magically appeared with these in his hands: "It just tastes better from a glass," he said.

It tastes better when it's free, I thought. 

Later, reading the current issue of Vanity Fair, we spotted a piece on "Catch Me If You Can",  saw these lovely ladies and both asked "who do these legs belong too?!?!".

I'm just hoping Rak is one of 'em..... If not at least gimme a Katie Webber, please.

Folles In Love All Over Again

La Cage aux Folles and it's new stars were featured on this week's episode of NY1 On Stage with Roma Torrey, who gave the show yet another glowing review:

"Seedier than ever!"

(and yes, that's a big compliment!)

Click here for the full story at ny1.com

MY NEW FAVORITE: LES MIZ EDITION

Far and way, this is my new favorite version of the uber-gay "On My Own" featuring @celiakb Celia Keenan-Bolger (25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee).

This one's for you, @kellyambereng.



Please also reference Katie Holmes version below, #barf:

SPIDER-MAN: Turn Off the Dark - Part 1

Friday, December 3, 2010 - Foxwoods Theatre

The show had it's first real preview on Sunday, November 28th and I scored a ticket to a performance a few days later. Immediately after work I bolted through the crowded, cold streets of Times Square to make it in enough time to get a double-pinot-in-a-plastic-cup and get to my seat in the last row of the orchestra before the curtain went up.

Let's start with the curtain; it's big, bold, and sketchy just like the rest of the show. The abstracted, geometric lines splatter off the neon cherry red backdrop as Spidey lunges toward with a sinister Green Goblin with his spiked tongue nearly as sharp as the dagger in his claw, all the while as an curiously curvy Mary Jane plunges off the Brooklyn Bridge lumbering in the shadowy distance. The whole thing is framed by towering skyscrapers and metallic webbing as I'm sure you can imagine.

The house grows dark, and a piercing electric guitar chord cuts through the fading light to reveal an unforgettable interpretation of the same scene illustrated on the curtain-- our hero, villain, and victim in a dramatic tableaux of life and death. It looks daring and dangerous, and the Vegas-style hydraulics thrust silently at seemingly staggering heights. Within a few short moments, we're quickly transported 'through the Astral Plane' into the world of Arachne, the ferocious new super-villain created by the famously infamous director, Julie Taymor.

Attempting to dissect the intricacies of the plot would be annoying for me and you, so I'll save us both the hassle and just encourage you to SEE THIS SHOW. See it a couple of times if you can-- because trust me, there is a lot going on here. And I'm not only talking about the mind-blowing scenic and costume design, the crazy good music, the FUH-LYING, and the incredible sense of danger you feel watching them pull it off.... But I'm really mean to say that there is a LOT happening in the concept and the subtext of a narrative arc that Broadway has never seen before. Many have criticized the show's seemingly absent 'plot-line', failing to appreciate the many layers of storytelling operating across a catalog over nearly 50 years of material-- MOST TYPICALLY told one comic-frame at a time.

I also have to record the fact that the show ran from start-to-finish without stopping-- which at that stage of development on the third night of previews, despite lacking any semblance of a coherent ending, was a roaring success. There was a collective electricity among the audience-- we experience the insanity of the show together the way parents and siblings spectate a home-town high school football game, cheering for every small point the show scored along the way.

In the end, I was left stunned, confused and I knew I had to return to see the evolution of the preview process, to track the progression of both artistry and technicality. My next encounter with the show will be the subject of Part Two of this series-- but before I depart let me say this:

HOW TO ENJOY/GET SPIDER-MAN: TURN OFF THE DARK (without feeling like a total tool)-

• Get yourself a seat in the Flying Circle.
• Really READ the song titles and character names (especially the Geek Chorus).
• Forget about 'the book' and remember SPIDER-MAN has a heritage that is built of countless books-- so there.
• Don't worry about the fact that this shit jumps around what seems to be some sort of Time/Space Continuum, or something (ie The Astral Plane?).
• Right?
• PS - I'm writing this at 3am, watching 'Across The Universe' on DVD-- hey hey.

As I've mentioned-- I'm going back to the show this coming MONDAY FEBRUARY 7.... so be sure to check back for the rest of by reports coming soon.

Last Night at La Cage

I feel....

SO MUCH BETTER. No, really.

Last Night At the Longacre**

** Actually, I took this photo a couple of weeks ago, but you get the gist...

Last Night at La Cage

BOX OFFICE

I got my ticket to the very first preview coming up April 6, 2010....

You should get yours, too.

SHOWGIRLS

 

lacage.com

OMG-- I'm dying for the froshly launched website for the upcoming Broadway revival of LA CAGE AUX FOLLES!

Tickets are now on sale-- bitches.