» This Week on Broadway for November 23, 2025: Chess BroadwayRadio

BROADWAYRADIO

11/23/25

James Marino,Jan Simpson,Michael Portantiere,Peter Filichia

This Week on Broadway for November 23, 2025: Chess

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Peter Filichia, James Marino, Michael Portantiere, and Jan Simpson talk about Chess, Little Bear Ridge Road, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee @ New World Stages, Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York), This World of Tomorrow @ The Shed, Oedipus @ Studio 54, MasterVoices Sweet Smell of Success @ Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Frederick P. Rose Hall, and The Baker’s Wife at Classic Stage Company

Lea Michele (Florence Vassy) and the cast of CHESS
CREDIT: Matthew Murphy, 2025

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Panel:

Peter Filichia | [email protected] | Facebook
PETER FILICHIA is a playwright, journalist, and historian with a number of books. Peter’s new day-by-day desk calendar – A SHOW TUNE FOR TODAY – 366 Songs to Brighten Your Year – is available at finer retailers! Peter also has columns at Masterworks Broadway, Broadway Select, and many other places.

Showtune for Today: Fran and Janie from Is There Life After High School?

Michael Portantiere | [email protected] | Facebook
MICHAEL PORTANTIERE is a theater reviewer and interviewer. The founder and editor of CastAlbumReviews.com. He is also a theatrical photographer whose photos have appeared in The New York Times and other publications, and he writes reviews of cabaret shows for NiteLifeExchange.com. Additionally, Michael is known as a producer and director of shows at 54 Below, the Laurie Beechman Theatre, and other venues.

Jan Simpson | [email protected] | Facebook | Twitter
Broadway & Me
Jan Simpson is a theater journalist who writes the blog Broadway & Me and hosts the BroadwayRadio podcasts Stagecraft and All The Drama. She has thrice (that is three times!) served as a Pulitzer Prize juror.

James Marino | [email protected] | Facebook
BroadwayStars

Note: This week we had listeners join us while recording. These listeners are Patreon members who support BroadwayRadio. If you would like to join us in the future, become a supporter at Patreon.com/BroadwayRadio.

Pre:

An Evening with Len Cariou @ The Laurie Beechman Theatre
Tuesday, December 16, 2025

Len Cariou is well known and beloved for his indelible performances in musicals and plays on and off Broadway, in classical theater, and in other media.

His major credits include Sweeney Todd, A Little Night Music, and Applause on Broadway, Blue Bloods on television, etc.

Join us at the Laurie Beechman Theatre as he shares reminiscences of his storied career and the many legends he has worked with in an on-stage interview conducted by theater journalist Michael Portantiere.

The evening will include clips of Mr. Cariou’s greatest roles, plus live performances of a song or two, followed by a Q&A session with the audience.

Reviews:

Lea Michele (Florence Vassy) and Nicholas Christopher (Anatoly Sergievksy).
CREDIT: Matthew Murphy, 2025

PF + JS + MP: Chess @ Imperial Theatre, through May 3, 2026 (that is an odd end date!)

Link to BroadwayRadio discussion of CHESS at Kennedy Center in 2018 (first presentation of “Broadway Center Stage”):

Laurie Metcalf and Micah Stock. Photo by Julieta Cervantes

JS + MP: Little Bear Ridge Road @ Booth Theatre, Febrary 8, 2026

Cast of Spelling Bee. Spelling Bee Production Photos (c) Joan Marcus

MP + PF + JS: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee @ New World Stages, April 12, 2026

Jasmine Amy Rogers. Spelling Bee Production Photos (c) Joan Marcus

At the opening night gala, which took place at John’s Pizzeria, Carvel™ provided an ice cream sundae bar for cast, creative team, producers, and friends of the show. They also surprised all attendees that night with complimentary Carvel® gift cards.

“It has been such a treat to have Carvel as our opening night sponsor,” said producers Barbara Whitman, Aaron Glick, and Timothy Bloom. “Our post-show celebration and pizza party would not have been complete without their delicious ice cream!”

“Carvel has always been part of special childhood moments — the ice cream treat after a big game, a recital, or, of course, a spelling bee,” said Carvel’s Chief Brand Officer Jim Salerno. “Teaming up with The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee captures that same playful spirit of nostalgia, and we can’t think of a better way to celebrate that feeling than with a swirl of soft serve and a little musical magic.”

About Carvel™
Carvel™ Ice Cream, founded in 1934, is the United States’ first retail ice cream franchise. It has become one of the most beloved and recognized names in its industry. The company is a leading provider of premium soft ice cream and hand-dipped ice cream products, as well as uniquely shaped ice cream cakes, including its signature Fudgie the Whale® and Cookie Puss® cakes. As of September 28, 2025, the Atlanta-based Carvel has 400 locations in 16 countries. Join Fudgie Fanatics Rewards Program via SMS for exclusive offers. For more information, visit carvel.com

Two Strangers Sam Tutty and Christiani Pitts Photo credit Andreas P. Verrios

PF + MP + JS: Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York) @ Longacre Theatre

Kelli O’Hara with Paul Murphy, Jay O. Sanders, Donald Webber Jr., and Lee Aaron Rosen in rehearsal for This World of Tomorrow, October 2, 2025. Photo: Marc J. Franklin. Courtesy The Shed.

JS + PF: This World of Tomorrow @ The Shed, through December 21, 2026
Starring Kelli O’Hara and some Lucky Guy

Tom Hanks in rehearsal for This World of Tomorrow, October 2, 2025. Photo: Marc J. Franklin. Courtesy The Shed.

Mark Strong, Lesley Manville in OEDIPUS_Photo by Julieta Cervantes

MP + JS: Oedipus @ Studio 54, through February 8, 2026

The Olivier Award®-winning, West End sensation, Oedipus – a bold and electrifying adaptation created and directed by Robert Icke stars Mark Strong – reprising his Olivier-nominated role as ‘Oedipus’ – and Lesley Manville – reprising her Olivier-winning role as ‘Jocasta.’

Also reprising their UK roles are Samuel Brewer as ‘Teiresias,’ Bhasker Patel as ‘Corin,’ Jordan Scowen as ‘Eteocles,’ and James Wilbraham as ‘Polyneices.’ They are joined by John Carroll Lynch as ‘Creon,’ Teagle F. Bougere as ‘Driver,’ Ani Mesa-Perez as ‘Lichas,’ Olivia Reis as ‘Antigone,’ and Anne Reid as ‘Merope,’ with Brian Thomas Abraham, Denise Cormier, Karl Kenzler, and Oliver Rowland-Jones rounding out the cast.

Robert Icke – the youngest Olivier Award-winning Director in history – transforms Sophocles’ epic tragedy into an essential, explosive, sensual human thriller catapulting the secrets of the past into a high-stakes present.

It’s election night. The polls predict a landslide victory. Everything is about to change. This fall, Broadway audiences will experience what London critics and theatergoers already know: Oedipus isn’t just a revival. It’s a revelation.

The creative team includes Hildegard Bechtler (Scenic Designer), Wojciech Dziedzic (Costume Designer), Natasha Chivers (Lighting Designer), Tom Gibbons (Sound Designer), and Tal Yarden (Video Designer). Casting is by Julia Horan, CDG and Jim Carnahan, CSA.

Robert Icke’s Oedipus was originally produced in Dutch by Internationaal Theater Amsterdam and was presented at the Edinburgh International Festival.

MP: MasterVoices Sweet Smell of Success @ Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Frederick P. Rose Hall, three performances on November 21-22, 2025

MP + JS: The Baker’s Wife at Classic Stage Company, through December 21, 2025

News:

Future Episodes:

Wicked: For Good special?

Peter’s Brainteaser:

THE BEGGAR’S OPERA

JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR

DO I HEAR A WALTZ?

PRINCESS IDA

THE SORCERER and

THE PROM

A song title from each of these musicals – listed in this order for a reason – contains one word that was one of five words that became very famous as a list made by an author and psychiatrist in 1969.

Who is she, what are the songs and what are the words?

Michael’s Musical Moments

Music Opener: “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” Original Broadway cast