Image Credit: Joan Marcus Glee
Tag: Amber Riley (1-3 of 3)
Nov 15
2012
10:40 AM ET
'Glee' star Amber Riley jazzes up Off Broadway musical 'Cotton Club Parade'
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Aug 4
2012
09:43 AM ET
This Week on Stage: 'Bring It On' waves its spirit stick on Broadway
Image Credit: Joan Marcus
A high-flying, basket-tossing new musical based on the 2000 teen cheerleader comedy Bring It On took an unusual (backward-somersaulting) path to its Broadway opening this week. Instead of launching a national tour after a splashy New York run, the energetic tuner (which is only loosely based on the Kirsten Dunst film, plot-wise) played in 13 cities starting last November before bowing on the Great White Way. In my B+ review, I noted the youthful cast and a score, by Tom Kitt (Next to Normal) and Lin-Manuel Miranda (In the Heights), with lyrics by Miranda and Amanda Green (High Fidelity), that actually “sounds like it was composed in this century.”
Also on Broadway, it’s the final curtain this weekend for three shows: Fela!, a short-run musical revival that has been doing anemic box office; Harvey, the comedy revival ending its limited summer run so star Jim Parsons can return to L.A. to shoot The Big Bang Theory; and Memphis, the 2010 Tony-winning musical that is expected to recoup its $12 million investment this weekend after 30 previews and 1,166 performances over the course of nearly three years. (At that rate, imagine how long it might take Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark to break even.) READ FULL STORY »
Jul 30
2012
05:51 PM ET
'Glee' star Amber Riley to make NYC stage debut in 'Cotton Club Parade'
Image Credit: Isaac Brekken/Getty Images for MGM Resorts
In a move that seems fitting, Glee star Amber Riley is taking her pipes to the Great White Way: The actress will join the cast of Duke Ellington’s Cotton Club Parade, which will return to New York City Center for a just a few dates, from November 14-18, as a part of the city’s annual Encores! series. The role marks the New York stage debut for Riley.
Cotton Club Parade is a revue-style show that celebrates Ellington’s reign at the famed Harlem nightclub through the ’20s and ’30s. The stage show is just like the shows that were in the club during its heydey, including singers, dancers, and variety acts, with songs by famed jazz composers like Jimmy McHugh and Dorothy Fields (“I Can’t Give You Anything But Love”), Harold Arlen (“Stormy Weather”), and, naturally, Ellington (“Rockin’ in Rhythm”).
The show opened at City Center last November for a short, six-performance run. Cotton Club Parade will again be directed and choreographed by Warren Carlyle, with music direction by Wynton Marsalis. The rest of the cast includes past stars like Tony-nominee Brandon Victor Dixon (The Color Purple), Jared Grimes (Twist), and Tony-winner Adriane Lenox (Doubt).
Tanner on Twitter: @EWTanStransky
Read more:
‘Glee’ scoop: Amber Riley tweets cryptic clues about her future on the series
‘Glee’: Amber Riley talks about Mercedes’ shocking decision
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