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PRADA Details are in the DEVIL, Jordan Fisher is Found, COURTROOM Goes To Cooper, BARTON Comes Early, NYT’s Top 10 of 2019
“Today on Broadway” is a daily, Monday through Friday, podcast hitting the top theatre headlines of the day.
Any and all feedback is appreciated:
Ashley Steves [email protected] | @NoThisIsAshley
James Marino [email protected] | @JamesMarino
Matt Tamanini [email protected] | @BWWMatt
Welcome to Today on Broadway for Wednesday, December 4th, 2019. I’m arts and culture writer Ashley Steves…
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1) THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA Announces Stars, Delay
At last, we have initial casting for the upcoming musical adaptation of THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA.
Beth Leavel will play Miranda Priestly in the premiere production with Taylor Iman Jones in the role of Andy. In the film, the roles were iconically played by Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway.
Now, great news/bad news situation here, the bad news being that the opening date is getting pushed back to July 13, 2021, with plans to run through August 15, 2021, at Broadway in Chicago’s CIBC Theatre. According to producer Kevin McCollum said in a statement, “We realized that we wanted more time to work on the show. Our creative team members are in demand around the world with ridiculous schedules. The new dates mean that not only do we get an ideal theatre in Chicago (the CIBC Theatre), it also allows our New York landlord to confirm the Broadway venue, which means we have more time to coordinate our physical design, marketing, and sales plans accordingly.”
As previously reported, the musical has music by Elton John, lyrics by Shaina Taub, a book by Paul Rudnick, and direction by Anna D. Shapiro. Also joining the new musical is choreographer James Alsop. Additional casting and Broadway plans will be announced at a later time.
Jordan Fisher Will Play the Title Role in Broadway’s DEAR EVAN HANSEN
http://www.playbill.com/article/jordan-fisher-will-play-title-role-in-broadways-dear-evan-hansen
Not to be overshadowed yesterday, DEAR EVAN HANSEN also announced some major news. Jordan Fisher, who made his Broadway debut in 2016 in the dual role of John Laurens/Philip in HAMILTON, will return to Broadway in 2020 in the eponymous role of DEAR EVAN HANSEN.
Fisher will join the company for a 16-week engagement beginning January 28th, succeeding Andrew Barth Feldman, who will play his final performance on January 26th. The show released a video of Fisher trying on Evan’s polo and cast for the first time as part of their announcement.
Fisher has previously appeared in GREASE: LIVE, RENT: LIVE, and DANCING WITH THE STARS, where he was the Season 25 champion. This will make Fisher the first actor of color to play Evan Hansen on a permanent basis (Roman Banks and Zach Piser have understudied the role and gone on).
In Other News
Waterwell’s THE COURTROOM to Play at the Great Hall at The Cooper Union
MY NAME IS LUCY BARTON To Begin Previews Early
First up, Waterwell has announced the next performance of THE COURTROOM. The show will play the Great Hall at The Cooper Union on Monday, December 9th, at 7:00 P.M.
The production, a re-enactment of deportation proceedings, features text arranged from real court transcripts and features a rotating cast. After a sold-out run earlier this year, THE COURTROOM will continue to play in civic venues between now and the 2020 election.
The complete cast for the upcoming performance will include Happy Anderson, J. Smith-Cameron, Kathleen Chalfant, Hanna Cheek, Michael Bryan French, Mick Hilgers, Linda Powell, Jason Ralph, and Kristin Villanueva. Casting for 2020 performances will be announced soon.
And over on Broadway, Manhattan Theatre Club announced yesterday its upcoming production of the London transfer of MY NAME IS LUCY BARTON, starring Laura Linney, will start previews ahead of scheduled. Performances will now begin on Saturday, January 4th, at 8 PM ahead of an opening night on January 15th. (Previews were initially supposed to begin on January 6th.) The solo play adapted by Rona Munro from the bestselling novel by Elizabeth Strout will play the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre. Tickets are now on sale for the full run, including the new first preview date.
Recommendations
The New York Times’ Best Theater of 2019
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