TheatreScene: September 19 - 25 in Pictures

Here is the TheatreScene for September 19 - 25, 2011!

BROADWAY BOX OFFICE (September 12 - 18):


Top Gross: Wicked: $1.479M
Photo by Joan Marcus



Top Attendance: The Book of Mormon: 102.4%
Top Average Ticket Price: The Book of Mormon: $147.58
Photo by Joan Marcus



Biggest Drop (Over previous week):
Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark -3.3%
Photo by Jacob Cohl

Now in previews:

Man and Boy: Previews: September 9; Opens October 9

Relatively Speaking: Previews: September 20; Opens October 20

The Mountaintop: Previews: September 13; Opens October 13


BROADWAY SHOW NEWS:



Kathleen Turner and Evan Jonigkeit in High
Photo by Joan Marcus

8 included actors Matt Bomer and Cheyenne Jackson
Photo by Joseph Marzullo

September 19:

• High didn't last but a week on Broadway last season, but Kathleen Turner and Evan Jonigkeit will be taking their troubled souls on the road for a national tour starting in Boston.


• 8, by Academy Award-winning writer Dustin Lance Black, had a star-filled benefit reading at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre directed by Tony Award-winning director Joe Mantello.



Reeve Carney and Diane Pagan (center) along with all
the Spider-Men at the announcement of the first Everyday Hero.
Photo by Krissie Fullerton

September 21:

• Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark's Reeve Carney announced that show's first honoree in their "Everyday Heroes" program.  Her name is Diane Pagan, honored for her work making house calls to home bound patients in an effort for them to avoid hospitalization.  She's been doing this important work for six years!

Follies at the Marquis Theatre through January 22, 2012
Photo by Joan Marcus

September 22:

• Follies has been extended for an additional 3 weeks at the Marquis Theatre.  The critically-acclaimed revival will now close January 22.

September 25:

• Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS held its 25th annual Broadway Flea Market and Grand Auction today.

BROADWAY CASTING NEWS:

The Addams Family: A Portrait
Photo by Jeremy Daniel

• Roger Rees will continue in the role of Gomez Addams opposite the Morticia of Brooke Shields through the closing night of The Addams Family, December 31.



Anything Goes: Reno Sweeney (Sutton Foster, center) and her Angels
Photo by Joan Marcus

• Tony-winner Sutton Foster also extended her contract this week with Anything Goes.  This tap dancing phenom will now play Reno Sweeney through April 29, 2012.  Of course, this also means that the show will go on at least that long as well!

Bobby Steggert (left) in a scene from a previous production of Yank!

• Yank! will be getting a New York reading before heading off to the Old Globe Theatre, and, one hopes, then returning to Broadway.  The reading will star Bobby Steggert, Santino Fontana and Nellie McKay.



BROADWAY PICTURE/VIDEO OF THE WEEK:

PICTURES:

A Little Night Music's Hunter Ryan Herdlicka
in Dallas Theater Center's The Tempest
Photo by Karen Almond

The Submission as rendered by (left) Ken Fallin and (right) "Squigs"

Last week, Spider-Man, this week,  Assassins

and Cabaret  star Neil Patrick Harris

makes the cover of a magazine.  

VIDEO:

The making of the latest Roxie Hart, Kara DioGuardi:

Rate this blog below and leave your comments here, by email at jkstheatrescene@yahoo.com, or Tweet me!
Jeff
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Drawing Broadway 4: Al Hirschfeld

The final blog in this series is all about the master of Broadway caricature, Al Hirschfeld.  A true legend, his works were first featured with each Broadway opening in The New York Times.  Then his works began to become part of Broadway logos and advertising, including such iconic logos as Man of La Mancha's original production icon, featuring Richard Kiley and Joan Diener.  One of his most famous figures is of Carol Channing as Dolly in Hello, Dolly!

Each of his drawings used simple ink lines to recreate some of Broadway's most iconic scenes, actors and other luminaries in the business.  Each scene or conglomeration of a show's key moments was at once so simple - a few lines and squiggles - and yet so detailed they were easily recognizable.

The Broadway Posters for the 1978 revival of Hello, Dolly!, the

original production of My Fair Lady, and detail in color of the

original Broadway cast of Into the Woods

His drawings for Mamma Mia! and

The Phantom of the Opera

(Look for the "Ninas")

One fun feature of many of his drawings was the inclusion of "hidden Ninas."  Hirschfeld's daughter, Nina, was never far from the artist's mind, and so he included her in his work.  If you look at his signature, there is sometimes a number next to it.  That number tells you how many times he hid the word "Nina" amongst the lines and curves.  So, if you see a Hirschfeld drawing that says "Hirschfeld4", you know to look for four "Ninas" somewhere in the picture.

The artist and his muse, daughter, Nina

Hirschfeld at work

A self portrait, including his famous barber chair and drawing table

The actual chair and table, plus another self portrait

Hirschfeld got his name AND a self portrait in lights;

one of several books about the master

Both of today's Broadway caricaturists, Justin "Squigs" Robertson and Ken Fallin cite Hirschfeld as their main inspiration for continuing this time honored tradition.  Only time will tell how much these up and coming (comparatively speaking, anyway) will impact the culture of Broadway and New York Theatre.  Who knows?  Maybe some day future generations will see a revival of The Book of Mormon at the Fallin Theatre.  Until then, we can see shows at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre, the only Broadway theatre named for a designer of any kind.


Part I of this series may be found HERE.
Part II of this series may be found HERE.
Part III of this series may be found HERE.



Comments? Leave one here, email me at jkstheatrescene@yahoo.com or Tweet me.
Jeff
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Drawing Broadway 3: Justin "Squigs" Robertson

It may seem, at first glance, that the theatre art created by Ken Fallin and today's artist-in-focus, Justin "Squigs" Robertson are very similar in style.  In fact, their careers are very similar; theatre caricature is a very specific art form.Like, his colleague, Robertson counts master illustrator Al Hirschfeld as a primary influence, as well as an obvious love of for live theatre.

Robertson's work has filled computer screens all over the world as the featured artist on Broadway.com, and has been used as both the logo and primary set design element for the Music Theatre West production of Forbidden Broadway (not to be confused with Ken Fallin's work with the off-Broadway production).  "Squigs" also created the logo and poster for last year's Broadway Cares Flea Market.  He has even done a piece memorializing the Broadway-bound Kennedy Center production of Follies.

For much more information, go to http://squigsink.com/.

Justin "Squigs" Robertson

Forbidden Broadway - Music Theatre West

The 24th Broadway Flea Market Poster

Drawings from the 2010 - 2011 Season

Anything Goes and How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying

Catch Me If You Can and The Scottsboro Boys

Priscilla Queen of the Desert

The 2011 Tony Nominees

Broadway-Bound Productions

2011 - 2012 Season

Yank and Follies

All of the above images are copyrighted by Justin "Squigs"Robertson

Part I of this series may be found HERE.
Part II of this series may be found HERE.


Rate this blog series below!
Comments?  Leave one here, email me at jkstheatrescene@yahoo.com or Tweet me.
Jeff
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Drawing Broadway: One Line at a Time

Had he lived until tomorrow, Al Hirschfeld would have turned 108 years old.  Still, Broadway's greatest caricaturist lived a long, productive life, creating lasting works of art right up until his death in 2003 at age 99.  He created thousands of pictures on all sorts of subjects, but it was for the Broadway theatre that he created his most iconic images.

Since his death, two other artists have come to the fore, not to replace Mr. Hirschfeld, but to carry on his tradition of capturing the stars, shows and fleeting moments of live theatre.  They are Ken Fallin and Justin "Squigs" Robertson, both of whom have had their drawings featured in such papers as The New York Times and the Broadway.com website.  Mr. Fallin's works are currently featured at Playbill .com.

Over the next weeks, I'll feature each of these artists in a Drawing Broadway series of blogs.  Here is a sample of each man's work to whet your appetite!

AL HIRSCHFELD

The Legendary Artist

His drawing became the logo for the original

Broadway production of Man of La Mancha

KEN FALLIN

Ken Fallin

His work for the current revival of Anything Goes,

featuring Joel Grey and Sutton Foster

JUSTIN "SQUIGS" ROBERTSON

Justin Robertson

His work for the current revival of Anything Goes,

featuring Joel Grey and Sutton Foster

Look for the next blog in this series next Monday.


Comments?  Leave one here, email me at jkstheatrescene@yahoo.com or Tweet me!
Jeff
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