Tag: Tony Awards (1-10 of 83)

May 20 2013 10:26 AM ET

'Kinky Boots' original cast recording -- EXCLUSIVE FIRST LISTEN

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Image Credit: Matthew Murphy

Everybody say yeah! Get ready to dig your heels into a 15-track exclusive first listen of the original cast recording of Kinky Boots, the high-energy Cyndi Lauper/Harvey Fierstein musical currently nominated for 13 Tony Awards — including all three principal actors (Billy Porter, Stark Sands, Annaleigh Ashford). Adapted from the 2005 British indie movie chronicling the turnaround of a middling shoe factory that starts manufacturing thigh-high ‘kinky boots,’ the musical has Lauper’s signature sass and pop pep galore — we think you’ll be listening to this one… time after time. (The official CD will be on sale May 28.)

Kinky Boots is now playing at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre in New York City. Tickets are available at the show’s official website. READ FULL STORY »

May 3 2013 03:45 PM ET

'Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike' and 'Matilda' take top honors at New York Drama Critics' Circle

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Image Credit: Carol Rosegg

Looks like the voodoo priestess/housekeeper Cassandra (Tony nominee Shalita Grant) in Christopher Durang’s Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike can look out for more than Hootie Pie! Vanya (recently anointed with six Tony nominations) has just claimed Best Play from the New York Drama Critics’ Circle (which includes EW critic Melissa Rose Bernardo). After four rounds of voting, the madcap comedy starring David Hyde Pierce and Sigourney Weaver emerged victorious, with Matilda the Musical taking home Best Musical. No award was given this year for Best Foreign Play.

Special citations included downtown NYC stalwart Soho Rep and uptown musical concert series New York City Center Encores!, plus award-winning scenic designer John Lee Beatty (Tony nommed this year for The Nance) also receiving special honors. To see a complete breakdown of votes by each critic, click here for the full list on the New York Drama Critics’ Circle website.

Read more:
Read the full list of 2013 Tony Nominations
2013 Tony Nominees: Who Got Snubbed?

EW Stage Hub

May 2 2013 04:16 PM ET

Nora Ephron's 'Lucky Guy', starring Tom Hanks, recoups investment on Broadway

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Image Credit: Joan Marcus

Lucky Guy, the late Nora Ephron’s valentine to the 1980s heyday of New York journalism, has more good news this week on top of its impressive six Tony nominations (including nods for Ephron for Best Play and first-time Great White Way star Tom Hanks). It has become the latest Broadway production to recoup its investment, after only eight weeks on the boards — a fast feat for any show, play or musical.

Since opening on April 1, the play — chronicling the controversial career of late Pulitzer-winning newspaper columnist Mike McAlary — was met with some mixed reviews but audiences have been arriving in droves, as the production has consistently grossed over $1 million per week. (Also, Hanks is greeted with a Hollywood red carpet-size fan base on 44th Street after each and every performance.)

The capitalization is reported to be $3.6 million, and given that the show still has nine weeks left in the run (it closes July 3), that means there is plenty more Lucky-ness to be had. And that’s no small feat this season, given how some high-profile shows have already shuttered (Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Hands on a Hardbody) or announced as much. As its protagonist journo McAlary might exclaim

: f—!

Read more:
Read the full list of 2013 Tony Nominations
2013 Tony Nominees: Who Got Snubbed?

Tom Hanks, Bette Midler and Steve Martin among 2013 Drama Desk nominees

Apr 30 2013 04:55 PM ET

Tony nomination surprises and snubs: Not much love for 'Motown' or Bette

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Image Credit: Matthew Murphy

There were plenty of surprises in the Tony nominations this morning, starting with the fact that the most-recognized show was Cyndi Lauper’s Kinky Boots (with 13 total nominations, including Best Musical) — and not presumed front-runner Matilda (with 12). Of course, the Roald Dahl-inspired Matilda might have picked up a tying 13th nomination had the four young actresses rotating in the title role not been ruled ineligible for Best Actress in a Musical (the quartet will share special Tony honors instead).

Plenty of familiar Hollywood names made the cut for nominations, including three in the Best Actor in a Play category: Tom Hanks (inching closer to EGOT status with his leading role in the late Nora Ephron’s play Lucky Guy), Nathan Lane for The Nance, and David Hyde Pierce for Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike.
READ FULL STORY »

Apr 30 2013 09:58 AM ET

2013 Tony Nominations: 'Kinky Boots,' 'Matilda,' 'Pippin' lead the pack

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Image Credit: Carol Rosegg

The sex is in the heel, indeed! The Harvey Fierstein-Cyndi Lauper musical Kinky Boots (based on the 2005 British film) dominated the Tony nominations, garnering 13 Tony nominations, including a best score nod for Lauper for her first-ever musical. Trailing not far behind were Matilda (12 nods), whose four tweens sharing the title role will be recognized with a special award on Tony night, Pippin (10 nods), and Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella (9 nods).

On the play side, the celebrated revival of Clifford Odets’ Golden Boy proved strong as its boxer lead character, with 8 nods. Tom Hanks guns for EGOT territory with a best actor in a play nod in his first Broadway role in Lucky Guy (its late author Nora Ephron was also nominated for the journalism bio). But perhaps the biggest surprise was the very strong showing for Christopher Durang’s Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike with 6 nods, including one in each acting category (though star Sigourney Weaver’s comic turn was overlooked).

Below is a full list of nominees for the 2013 Tony Awards, which will be broadcast on CBS on June 9 at 8 p.m.: READ FULL STORY »

Apr 29 2013 04:09 PM ET

Tom Hanks, Bette Midler and Steve Martin among 2013 Drama Desk Nominations

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Image Credit: Joan Marcus

The Drama Desk Awards — commonly known as the theater world’s Golden Globes, though nominees are represented across all NYC productions in a season — are the last precursor to the Tony Awards (check EW.com tomorrow morning for a full list of those). And judging by the list below, it’s going to be quite a competitive year, with some pretty heavy-hitters mixed in with longshots, not to mention some major snubs (Alan Cumming, Cyndi Lauper, Fiona Shaw, Chaplin‘s Rob McClure to name a few). The winners will be announced at NYC’s Town Hall on May 19.  Below is the full list of nominees and special awards recipients: READ FULL STORY »

Mar 28 2013 12:45 PM ET

'Gigi' to return to Broadway

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A new musical production of Gigi is coming to Broadway.

Created 40 years ago by Anita Loos, the musical is based on the well-known novel of the same name by French writer Colette and the Oscar-winning 1958 film that starred Leslie Caron. (Audrey Hepburn originally played the heroine in a popular 1951 play.) Loos’ musical didn’t last long when it originally opened in 1973; Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe’s music and lyrics won a Tony but the show closed after only 103 performances. READ FULL STORY »

Mar 18 2013 10:42 AM ET

Tony Awards head back to Radio City Music Hall

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The Tony Awards are going back to the place where the Rockettes high-kick it.

The Broadway League and the American Theatre Wing, joint producers of the show that honors the best of Broadway, said Monday that the glittery event will be broadcast live by CBS from Radio City Music Hall on June 9.

Producers of the show were forced to find a new home for the 2011 event after Cirque du Soleil moved into the 6,000-seat Rockefeller Center arena with its $50 million acrobatic rock opera Zarkana. The Tonys had been hosted at Radio City from 1997-2010.

For the past two years, the Tonys were handed out at the Beacon Theater on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. The venue was much smaller, having only about 2,870 seats, leading to ticket-rationing and a struggle to seat the often large amount of show producers. READ FULL STORY »

Jul 10 2012 10:29 AM ET

Broadway box office report: Without Ricky Martin, do cry for 'Evita'

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Image Credit: Theo Wargo/Getty Images

It seems that the hit Broadway revival of Evita needs more than just a little bit of star quality. In fact, it very much needs a star of the caliber of Ricky Martin — whose vacation last week had a huge impact on the musical’s box office. The show, which has grossed at least $1.1 million per week since its first preview performance in March, managed only $643,663 for the week ending July 8, according to figures from the Broadway League. That’s a drop of nearly 46 percent. Luckily, Martin’s holiday is a brief one (he’ll also be out Aug. 5 – 11), and he’s signed onto the Andrew Lloyd Webber tuner through January.

Over at Peter and the Starcatcher, which had seen a box office boost since picking up five Tony Awards last month, sales fell 24 percent to $520,608 in the first week since Tony winner Christian Borle left the show to shoot the second season of NBC’s Broadway-set drama Smash. Without the swash of Borle as over-the-top pirate Black Stache, audience interest seems to have buckled.

Overall, box office was down 2.5 percent from the previous week, to $22.4 million. Even without Evita, six shows managed to hold their standing in the Great White Way’s million-dollar club: The Lion King ($1.998 million), Wicked ($1.92 million), Spider-Man Turn Off the Dark ($1.7 million), The Book of Mormon ($1.6 million), Newsies ($1.03 million), and Once ($1 million).

Related:
‘Once,’ ‘Porgy and Bess’ both get big post-Tony box office bumps
‘Peter and the Starcatcher’ gets box office bump even before Tony wins
EW’s Stage Hub

Jun 18 2012 04:56 PM ET

'Once,' 'Porgy and Bess' both get big post-Tony box office bumps

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Image Credit: Joan Marcus

In the first full week since the June 10 Tony Awards, Once (pictured at left) and The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess both posted big gains in ticket sales. Once, which claimed eight prizes, including Best Musical, earned $955,362 for the week ending June 17, an increase of 13 percent from the previous week and about 81 percent of its potential gross. According to the Broadway League, two other new shows saw gains of roughly 12 percent last week: the Tony-winning revival Porgy and Bess ($655,364, roughly half its potential gross) and the comedy One Man, Two Guvnors, starring the Best Actor in a Play winner James Corden ($648,405, nearly 70 percent its potential gross). READ FULL STORY »

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