Caught in the Act celebrates Tina who last week, on Nov. 26, 2022, celebrated her 83rd birthday. When Tina Turner’s solo star finally ascended with the 1984 hit “What’s Love Got to Do With It,” it felt like a victory for anyone who had been hurt or held back in pursuit of a dream. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGpFcHTxjZs... Continue Reading →
If Anais Mitchell chronicles her journey from indie-folk artist to Tony-award winning playwright and composer, she might call it How to Get to Broadway in 15 Grueling, Setback-Filled Years. Mitchell’s work places Greek mythological figures Orpheus and Eurydice in a dystopian world where the lure of stability draws desperate souls to the grim, cruel factory... Continue Reading →
The Straz Center’s resident mixologist draws inspiration from the shows in our Broadway series lineup, concocting one-of-a-kind signature highballs to salute and celebrate each production. When the Broadway production plays the Straz Center, the performers onstage aren’t the only ones flexing their talents. Out in the lobby behind the bar, the creative handiwork of Straz... Continue Reading →
Wicked, the phenomenally popular musical about the witches of Oz, returns to The Straz March 8-26. Tickets go on sale, appropriately, on Halloween. Premiering in 2003, Wicked has become one of the longest-running productions in Broadway history. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wU3Mw_0rt8 However, those Wicked witches might be getting some company. Elphaba and Glinda will have to make room... Continue Reading →
SHE COULD HAVE SUNG ALL NIGHT She was the voice of Deborah, Natalie and Audrey. Her lilting soprano delivering “Somewhere,” “Wouldn’t it be Loverly” and “Hello Young Lovers” in the film versions of West Side Story, My Fair Lady and The King and I, respectively. For her work on The King and I, Nixon was... Continue Reading →
‘Mozart of Madras’ to play The Straz With his concerts at The Straz nearly sold out, renowned composer A.R. Rahman, two-time Oscar® winner for soundtrack and original song from Slumdog Millionaire (2008) is still an unknown to many, though many recognize his music when they hear it. So, in the spirit of putting everyone on... Continue Reading →
Harper Lee’s seminal novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, was published 62 years ago on July 11. Somewhere between 40 million and 50 million copies of the novel have been sold. It has been translated into 40 languages. A movie version (about which Harper wrote adoringly) premiered Christmas Day 1962 and was an immediate commercial and... Continue Reading →
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crOyhjL2e9s Pretty Woman: The Musical celebrated the first anniversary of its premiere by adding the Roy Orbison number from which it took its name to the curtain call. That’s right – a whole year of performances were staged minus the rock ‘n’ roll classic after which the show was named. Where the movie soundtrack featured... Continue Reading →
Call them what you want, rags-to-riches or fairy tales – either way, My Fair Lady and Pretty Woman, both playing The Straz over the coming weeks, are contemporary variants of a familiar plot. An uptight man of particular stature brings under his wing a woman who many considered tarnished and makes her over. During the... Continue Reading →
If the face and name are familiar, that’s because Janet Dacal starred as Alice in Wonderland, the Broadway musical that had its origins at the Straz Center. She returns to our stage starring in the Tony Award®-winning The Band’s Visit, a musical about Egyptian musicians who find themselves stranded in a small Israeli town. Janet’s... Continue Reading →
Considering it’s the subject of one of his most recognizable drawings, caricaturist Al Hirschfeld was not enthusiastic about a friend’s idea. Albert "Al" Hirschfeld photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1955. Hirschfeld’s friend, theatrical director Moss Hart, wanted to produce George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion as a musical. Hirschfeld balked. “I said ‘How are you going to improve that... Continue Reading →
Idina Menzel is Broadway’s contemporary Queen of the Showstoppers. With "Take Me or Leave Me" from RENT, and then with “Defying Gravity” from Wicked, Menzel turned songs into events, thrilling theater audiences and even more listeners via original cast recordings. Her most celebrated hit, though, originated in the Disney animated film Frozen. That song, “Let... Continue Reading →
Alan Cumming, Tony Award®-winner for Cabaret, comes to The Straz April 3 for an evening of song and chit-chat about a topic we all have in common, but try to avoid – AGING. Here are five fun facts about Alan Cumming: He made a successful transition from a Scottish sitcom to film in small but... Continue Reading →
Photo: Brian Thomas Desmond Richardson is co-founder and co-artistic director of Complexions Contemporary Ballet. Called “one of the greatest dancers of his time” by The New York Times, Richardson danced with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater as a principal dancer from 1987 to 1994 and, in 1997, joined American Ballet Theatre where he was... Continue Reading →
If famed choreographer Bob Fosse had an “it” girl before Gwen Verdon, it was actress Carol Haney. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26PiPUn4AWg After leaving an uncredited dance assistant job with Gene Kelly, Haney landed at MGM as a specialty dancer and partner to Fosse, who was playing Hortensio in the film Kiss Me Kate. The pair’s dance to “From... Continue Reading →
In the Broadway hit The Prom, which opens at The Straz Feb. 15, a student faces hostility for wanting to bring her girlfriend to the big high school dance. That part of the plot is based on a real event, and while we admire those who stand up for equality and inclusiveness, we wonder why... Continue Reading →
Broadway was about the only place Donna Summer’s music didn’t dominate during her late ‘70s hit-making heyday. The jukebox musical Summer: The Donna Summer Musical finally brought the Queen of Disco’s catalog to the Great White Way. It would be difficult to overstate Summer’s popularity from the mid-‘70s through the early ‘80s. She had 11... Continue Reading →
New year’s resolutions – made to be broken. What makes us think the end of one year and the beginning of the next will imbue us with discipline and determination we’ve never had before and enable us to effortlessly stop smoking, start exercising, eat healthier, etc. etc., et-freaking-cetera? It’s the myth of the clean slate.... Continue Reading →
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7UKtrhLRD_k CATS returns to the Straz Center Dec. 7. As a crowd-pleasing theatrical spectacle, CATS’ success is undeniable. As a tutorial for first-time cat owners, it leaves something to be desired. Potential first-time cat owners should note that cats rarely if ever perform choreographed dance moves. Nor do they break into song. Their speech is... Continue Reading →
We know how much you love The Straz, but how much do you really KNOW about the Straz, other than it’s fabulous, of course? Well, we’re going to find out. Take this quiz, awarding yourself one point for every correct answer to determine if you are a well-informed Straz patron or if you are just... Continue Reading →