Log In


Reset Password
  • MENU
    Columns
    Saturday, December 07, 2024

    Milestones, Laughs, & New Works

    Fiftieth Anniversary Season: Goodspeed has lined up a blockbuster season to celebrate its 50th anniversary. Good News, the collegiate musical from 1927 with music and lyrics by DeSylva, Brown, and Henderson, kicks off the season, April 12 to June 22. You can expect that Goodspeed will apply its magic touch to refurbishing the old musical. Next up will be Jerry Herman's Hello, Dolly! from June 28 to Sept. 8. Goodspeed this season presented Herman's Mame. The season will conclude with The Most Happy Fella with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser. Rob Ruggiero will direct the production, which runs Sept. 20 to Dec. 1. Subscriptions are now on sale at 860-873-8668.

    Another Nunsense: This Thursday, the Palace Theater in Waterbury presents Nunsense Boulevard: The Nunsense Hollywood Show with Cindy Williams, who is best known for playing Shirley on TV's Laverne & Shirley. For tickets, call 203-346-2000 or visit www.palacetheaterct.org.

    Kitchen Competition: Next up at Ivoryton Playhouse is The Kitchen Witches, winner of a Canadian playwrights contest. The comedy centers around two competing cable-access cooking show hostesses who are brought together to co-host a show. Given that the husband of one of the cooks had dated the other chef, you can expect the flour to fly. It runs through Sunday, Nov. 11. For tickets, call 860-767-7318 or visit www.ivorytonplayhouse.org.

    Venus Extended: Venus in Furs, the play about an audition that turns into a lot more-let'ss just say it is very adult- has been extended to Sunday, Nov. 18 at TheaterWorks in Hartford. For tickets, visit www.theaterworkshartford.org or call 860-729-1146.

    February House Fans: Many people loved the musical February House presented at Long Wharf's Stage II last spring. The good news is an original cast recording has been released on the StorySound label.

    Musical in Norwich: The Spirit of Broadway Theater in Norwich is concluding its 15th anniversary season with Wings, based on the play by Arthur Kopit that premiered, we believe, at Yale Rep. The story is about Emily who walked on the wings of biplanes in her youth but now is falling through another type of space due to a stroke. When we saw the play, it moved us; we can only assume that music will add to the emotional impact as Emily tries to recapture words, memories, and thoughts. It runs through Nov. 25. For tickets, visit www.spirtofbroadway.org or call 860-886-2378.

    Holiday Musicals: This holiday season, a plethora of holiday musicals will be on stage in New York City competing with the Radio City Musical Hall Christmas Show and the various Nutcrackers. Perhaps our favorite of the ones we have seen is Elf, based on the popular film that starred Will Ferrell as an over-sized elf who goes to New York City to find his parents. The production in 2010 broke box office records and the cast album shows why with a tuneful score. Returning to the cast this year is Marc Jacoby as Buddy's father and Beth Leavel as his wife. Jordan Gelber will star as Buddy and Seinfeld star Wayne Knight will be Santa. The show runs Friday, Nov. 9 to Jan. 6. For tickets, visit www.telecharge.com or call 800-432-7250.

    Durang Comedy: A new Christopher Durang comedy (he's a graduate of the Yale School of Drama) is at Lincoln Center's Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater through Jan. 13. The play, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, stars Sigourney Weaver, David Hyde Pierce (both Yale alums), as well as Kristin Nielsen. Durang describes the play not as a Chekhov parody, but as "taking Chekhov scenes and characters and putting into a blender." For tickets, visit www.telecharge.com or 800-432-7250.

    Bob and Karen Isaacs are North Branford residents with a five-minute radio show, Two on the Aisle, and a DJ Memory Lane show every Monday from 8 to 10 a.m. Both shows are broadcast on University of New Haven's radio station, WNHU 88.7 FM, and online at www.wnhu.net.

    Comment threads are monitored for 48 hours after publication and then closed.