Megan Hilty and Nicholas Kraft (screen capture)
this kid said he needed an Ivy 😌🙈 pic.twitter.com/r7l2Txnfrv
— Megan Hilty (@meganhilty) March 31, 2021
My Favorite Thing Today: “I Need An Ivy!”
Video: “Bombshell” On Broadway
Last night at the Minskoff Theater on Broadway, the cast and creators of the NBC show SMASH reunited for a one-night only event benefitting The Actors Fund.
The evening was a live staging of the fictional BOMBSHELL, the Marilyn Monroe musical created in NBC’s Golden Globe-nominated television hit series “Smash,” created byTheresa Rebeck. BOMBSHELL has become a cult favorite for theater lovers which featured the Emmy-nominated songs “Let Me Be Your Star,” and “Hang the Moon.”
The one-night-only landmark event featuring Bombshell’s original songs featured Broadway vets from the TV show and more including Christian Borle, Will Chase, Megan Hilty, Katharine McPhee and Debra Messing, Jaime Cepero, Brian d’Arcy James, Ann Harada,Jeremy Jordan, Donna McKechnie, Leslie Odom, Jr., and Wesley Taylor.
One fan was able to get some footage of the sold-out event.
Check out “Don’t Forget Me” and “Let Me Be Your Star” below sung by the TV show’s two “Marilyns,” Katherine McPhee and Megan Hilty.
UPDATE: Broadway.com has uploaded some “official” clips from the concert. Here’s a compilation – click here for more.
Broadway: “One-Night-Only” BOMBSHELL Concert Sells Out In One Hour
In just over an hour, all tickets to the upcoming “one-night-only” Broadway concert performance of Bombshell (the up-until-now fictional musical about Marilyn Monroe featured in the NBC series SMASH) were snapped up by the show’s adoring fans.
And this was the PRE-SALE!
Today’s ticket sales were made available to those fans who helped support the event via a spectacular Kickstarter campaign that originally aimed to raise $50,000 to fund the concert, and ended up netting over $318,000. But even those fans weren’t guaranteed seats.
The June 8th performance will take place at the Minskoff Theatre on Broadway with a capacity of 1,621 seats. The campaign had 1,485. You do the math.
The Actor’s Fund made an announcement that they plan to refund any Kickstarter backers who were unable to purchase tickets:
“On behalf of the 21,000 people across the country that The Actors Fund helps every year, I’d like to send my personal thanks to the Kickstarter community for your support.
“Based on the overwhelming response to this campaign and our presentation of Bombshell, we have spent the last month exploring every opportunity to allow more people to view (both live or virtually) this one-night-only event. But unfortunately, none of these options were viable and as a result there are some disappointed supporters who were unable to purchase one of the limited number of tickets available.
“As a gesture of good faith, we are offering a full refund to anyone who wants to withdraw their Kickstarter support. Even if you couldn’t get tickets, you’ve helped those in need in performing arts and entertainment — something The Actors Fund has been doing with respect and compassion since 1882.
“Your support assures that 100% of the ticket proceeds from this benefit concert will help actors, dancers, musicians, playwrights, directors and more. Thanks to your generosity, The Actors Fund will continue to be there for everyone in entertainment.”
Due to the difficult scheduling of cast members Christian Borle, Will Chase, Megan Hilty, Katharine McPhee and Debra Messing, the event organizers do not have the option of presenting Bombshell for more than one performance.
Unfortunately, various union regulations make a recording of the event impossible.
Concert Version Of NBC’s SMASH Musical “Bombshell” Raises $75K In Two Hours
UPDATE: Only an hour after I posted this, the Kickstarter campaign passed the $125,000 mark.
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In just a few hours, a Kickstarter campaign to help fund a concert of “Bombshell” – the fictional musical from NBC’s SMASH – raised over $75,000 with over 540 donors.
From the Kickstarter page:
We are raising money to put on the show of your dreams: A once-in-a-lifetime concert presentation of BOMBSHELL to benefit The Actors Fund.
The cast is donating their time, as is the whole creative team.* But we do need to raise $50,000 to cover the costs of the production and to assure that 100% of the proceeds will go to The Actors Fund to help people in the creative community who are in need, crisis or transition.
If you love this show – and you know you do – please consider a contribution large or small to help bring this evening to life. We have a great list of rewards at different tax-deductible donation levels to say THANK YOU for your support.
On Monday, June 8, 2015, at the Minskoff Theater, in New York City, we will present: Christian Borle, Will Chase, Megan Hilty, Katherine McPhee and Debra Messing.
Completing the cast will be a starry collection of Broadway favorites. BOMBSHELL features the Emmy nominated songs “Let Me Be Your Star” and “Hang the Moon.” This is a night not be missed.
Music by Marc Shaiman. Lyrics by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman.
BOMBSHELL will be co-directed by Scott Wittman and Josh Bergasse with Musical Numbers Choreographed by Josh Bergasse.
I loved much of SMASH during it’s two seasons on the air. And by far the best parts of the show were the musical numbers skillfully staged by Josh Bergasse and company.
I’m thrilled this concert is happening. If you’re in NYC on June 8th, this will be the hardest ticket in town to get. Guaranteed.
Ficitonal SMASH musical to get concert reading at 54 Below in NYC
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| SMASH star Jeremy Jordan to appear in concert performance of “Hit List” |
SMASH fans may need to get to New York City on December 9th.
The fictional Broadway show “Hit List” from the now cancelled TV series SMASH will make a real life appearance at 54 Below in concert form WITH some of the series stars, including Jeremy Jordan and Krysta Rodriguez.
From the NY Times:
54 Below will present the world-premiere concert performances of “Hit List” on Dec. 9, press representatives for the project said on Tuesday, with a cast that features the former “Smash” stars Jeremy Jordan and Andy Mientus (who played the putative “Hit List” creators Jimmy Collins and Kyle Bishop), as well as Krysta Rodriguez (who played Ana Vargas, a “Hit List” cast member).
A news release for “Hit List” described it — finally! — as “a modern fable about identity and the price of fame” that “tells the tragic love story of a wannabe pop singer who transforms herself to become a star and the hidden songwriter she uses to get there – but at what cost?”
The score for “Hit List” is written by the flesh-and-blood composers Drew Gasparini, Joe Iconis, Andrew McMahon, Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman and Lucie Silvas. Its press representatives said that the live performances “will include some additional songs from these composers that were intended for ‘Hit List’ but never made it to air, and also special appearances by several of ‘Hit List’s composers and additional performers to be announced at a later date.”
TV: SMASH ends it’s run tonight
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| Bernadette Peters and Megan Hilty on SMASH |
Say good night to SMASH tonight. Series finale is on NBC tonight at 9pm EST.
While I personally had my ups and downs with the show, I did like a lot of it in the end. And I give the creators a lot of credit for what they set out to do. To this day, the song that closed the terrific pilot episode, “Let Me Be Your Star,” still sounds like a Broadway blockbuster to me. And so much of the choreography on the show was top notch.
Over the course of the show’s life, I’ve had several friends appear on the show (which was cool) and I interviewed the fab Megan Hilty for The Candi & Randy Show (warm, delightful and speaks with a smile in her voice).
So while many folks may be ready to see the show go, I’ll be watching tonight. Maybe I’ll dim the lights around my bathroom mirror down in remembrance.
Cancelled: “SMASH”
This is a bit of a heart-breaker for me.
I loved the pilot and continued to watch the show. It had it’s ups and downs along the way of it’s two seasons, but I really liked what the creators of the show were going for: how a Broadway show gets to the Great White Way and what goes on underneath the surface of all those lives along the journey.
Here’s Newsday‘s take on the cancellation:
Despite promise in the first season, the show’s storytelling deteriorated and ended up drawing a small crowd of spitball-throwers known as “hate viewers,” who traded social media barbs over the show’s storylines… A new producer couldn’t turn matters around and “Smash” was sent to Saturday earlier this season where its end was foretold.
In addition to many great moments on the show as the writers and producers were finding their voice again, the music was often just fab. Songs like “Let Me Be Your Star” and “Don’t Forget Me” sit in my head all day if I happen to play one.
Series’ star Katharine McPhee talked to The Hollywood Reporter about what the experience has meant to her, saying:
“Sure, I wish that it could have five more seasons, but we had two great seasons and all I can say is I loved every moment of it. I loved getting to the set, I loved the people, I loved my crew. We did amazing things on the show in two years,” she told THR. “With this business, you can never predict what people are going to like or love or hate. All I know is that when the show started and people were so excited about the plot, I was excited to finally be a part of something that could showcase me. Everyone has perceptions about what you’re capable of and what you can do and this show was a huge gift.”
There were rumors that the series fictitious musical “Bombshell” might find some life somewhere on a real theatrical stage. I’d love to see that happen.
With the music we’ve heard and the fantastic choreography by Joshua Bergasse, I think there are a lot of fans who’d head out to see it.
RIP SMASH.
Jeremy Jordan & Jonathan Groff – “Let Me Be Your Star”
A bit of Saturday silly fun from hunky Jeremy Jordan (SMASH) and Jonathan Groff (GLEE). I’ve liked the song “Let Me Be Your Star” since I first heard it in the pilot of SMASH.
In related news, Glee‘s Jonathan Groff has been cast in The Normal Heart, HBO‘s original movie adaptation of the Tony-winning Larry Kramer play, which is being written by Kramer and directed by Ryan Murphy.
He joins Julia Roberts, Mark Ruffalo, Matt Bomer, Jim Parsons and Taylor Kitsch in the pic, which tells the story of the onset of the HIV-AIDS crisis in New York City in the early 1980s. Production is slated to begin later this year in New York for a 2014 debut.
SMASH show runner: “We’re aware the show is not successful”
Even with scenes featuring a shirtless Jeremy Jordan, there’s not good news coming from SMASH show runner Josh Safran: “We’re all aware the show is not successful,” according to TVLine.
He also reveals that the upcoming season finale, episode 17, “was constructed as a series finale.”
The series, recently moved to Saturday nights, is expected to be cancelled.
(via Gay.net)
Debra Messing cast in new CBS pilot for fall
More indication that SMASH is pretty much done.
As if the move to Saturday nights wasn’t enough, EW is reporting Ms. Messing already has a new gig with CBS.