LGBTQ news and entertainment
The 2020 revival of the classic Broadway musical West Side Story – vividly reimagined by director Ivo van Hove and choreographer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker — opened less than a month before the coronavirus outbreak shut down Broadway. The producers have announced it will not reopen. Continue reading “Broadway Revival Of WEST SIDE STORY Will Not Reopen”
Some news items you might have missed: • HuffPost: Apparently there are ads on porn sites suggesting men pour apple cider vinegar on their junk to increase size??? Do. Not. Do. This. Continue reading “News Round-Up: August 12, 2021”
Some news items you might have missed: • Outsports: If the out LGBTQ athletes at the Tokyo Olympics were a country, they’d currently be ranked 11th. Outsports is tracking what they call ‘Team LGBTQ’ throughout the Olympiad. Continue reading “News Round-Up: July 31, 2021”
J. Harrison Ghee in ‘I Am What I Am’
The 2019-2020 Tony Awards – titled THE TONY AWARDS® PRESENT: BROADWAY’S BACK! – will take place on Sunday, September 26 (9:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) with two separate events. As theater fans know, the annual awards ceremony was originally scheduled for June 7, 2020. But the coronavirus pandemic not only ended the 2019-2020 Broadway season on March 12, 2020, but also postponed the Tonys as well. The long-awaited celebration will begin with the presentation of the American Theatre Wing’s 74th Annual Tony Awards® at 7:00 PM ET/4:00 PM PT live exclusively on Paramount+. The streaming presentation will honor the outstanding shows, performances and artistry of the 2019-2020 Broadway season, which was brought to a halt by the COVID-19 pandemic. Immediately following, THE TONY AWARDS PRESENT: BROADWAY’S BACK! will air on the CBS Network, bringing the excitement of Broadway to viewers through a live concert event, featuring superstar Broadway entertainers and Tony Award winners re-uniting on stage to perform beloved classics and celebrate the joy and magic of live theatre. The re-opening of Broadway will be further celebrated with special performances from the three Tony nominated Best Musical contenders, followed by the live presentation of three Tony Awards, including Best Play, Best Revival of a Play and Best Musical. Other winners will be celebrated throughout the broadcast. Performances on the Great White Way are set to resume September 2 with the return of Hadestown. September 14 will see the reopening of Broadway blockbusters Wicked, Hamilton and The Lion King, to be followed by more in the following weeks.
Michael and I loved this year’s installment of MisCast, the annual fundraiser for MCC Theater (Manhattan Class Company). The annual gala celebration features artists performing songs from roles in which they wouldn’t traditionally be cast. Performances in MisCast21 in order of appearance:
RENÉE ELISE GOLDSBERRY performing THOSE MAGIC CHANGES from GREASE MELISSA BARRERA and LESLIE GRACE performing WHAT YOU OWN from RENT CHEYENNE JACKSON performing IF I WERE A BELL from GUYS AND DOLLS JAI’LEN JOSEY performing OUT THERE from THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME ROBIN DE JESÚS performing NOTHING from A CHORUS LINE PATRICK WILSON performing THINK OF ME from THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA LACHANZE performing WAIT FOR IT from HAMILTON ANNALEIGH ASHFORD performing MISTER MISTOFFELEES from CATS KELLY MARIE TRAN performing YOU AND ME (BUT MOSTLY ME) from THE BOOK OF MORMON BILLY PORTER performing DIVA’S LAMENT from SPAMALOT AARON TVEIT and GAVIN CREEL performing IN HIS EYES from JEKYLL AND HYDE KELLI O’HARA performing BEAUTIFUL CITY from GODSPELL IDINA MENZEL performing MORNING GLOW from PIPPIN
Broadway stars Billy Porter, Kelli O’Hara and Robin DeJesus
Ben Platt is playing the role that made him uber-famous one more time, fortunately for us. Universal Pictures drops the official trailer for the film adaptation for Dear Evan Hansen, the moving stage musical that promises ‘you will be found.’ From Vanity Fair:
The story centers on a kid whose therapist has given him the assignment of writing letters to himself, addressing his fears, hopes, and insecurities.
A classmate named Connor Murphy (Colton Ryan, who understudied the role on Broadway) steals one of the letters and later takes his own life. That boy’s parents (played in the film by Amy Adams and Danny Pino) mistake the letter Evan wrote for their son’s final words, addressed to a kid they assume was his close friend. Evan lets them believe this because he thinks it brings them comfort—but the confusion and lies soon pile up, leading to greater heartbreak.
The Broadway production scored 5 Tony Awards including Best Musical and a Best Actor in a Musical statue for Platt. Folks on social media are making light of 27-year-old Platt playing a high school student, but come on folks – suspend your disbelief a bit and just enjoy. The movie hits theaters September 24.
Broadway & TV star Jeremy Jordan
(photo: Sudan Ouyang)
Why the four-month wait? With as many as eight shows a week to fill, and the tourists who make up an important part of their customer base yet to return, producers need time to advertise and market. They need to reassemble and rehearse casts who have been out of work for more than a year. And they need to sort out and negotiate safety protocols.
But the biggest reason is more gut-based: individually and collectively, they are trying to imagine when large numbers of people are likely to feel comfortable traveling to Times Square, funneling through cramped lobbies and walking down narrow aisles to sit shoulder-to-shoulder with strangers.
The Times mentions that long-running mega-hits Wicked, The Lion King, and Hamilton are already planning their announcements to reopen next week. Aladdin, Chicago, Come From Away and American Utopia are also looking strong to reopen in September.
(photo: Ludovic Bertron/Flickr)
Though Broadway can effectively reopen on that date “from a capacity point of view,” Cuomo said, the governor noted that it will take time to remount productions and sell tickets.
“They may make their own economic decision as to when they reopen,” Cuomo said during a Monday press briefing. “We’re talking about Broadway.”
For their part, Broadway leaders — including The Broadway League — had previously said a September reopening is more likely. This came after Mayor Bill de Blasio said he expects New York City to reopen in July.
And, following Cuomo’s Monday remarks, the League remains committed to reopening at full capacity in the fall.
Included in Cuomo’s announcement was an emphasis on social distancing measures which would have to remain in effect per the CDC unless theatergoers provide proof of vaccination or recent negative test results. Read the full article here.