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THEATRE

Another Major Theatre Company In The Berkshires Changes Leadership

Less than a week after news broke of Mandy Greenfield's departure from the Williamstown Theater Festival following reports of poor working conditions, co-founder Julianne Boyd has announced her retirement (on good terms) from Barrington Stage Company. - The New York Times

Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theater Opens Its Brand-New Building

Chris Jones: "Contrary to the way it has sometimes been reported, Steppenwolf has not added a theater to its portfolio so much as replaced an inadequate one with a superior facility in a different configuration." - MSN (Chicago Tribune)

High School Teacher Abruptly Cancels Play After Students Complain About Script

Students complained of a script they felt made light of sexual assault victims and contained inappropriate language and stereotypes that made cast members uncomfortable. - Chicago Sun-Times

Williamstown Theatre Festival Artistic Director Mandy Greenfield Resigns

The move comes after a Times investigation, published in September, in which 25 current and former festival workers alleged that WTF exposed them to repeated safety hazards and a toxic work culture. - Los Angeles Times

Why #MeToo Isn’t Making Much Headway In Stand-Up Comedy

The female comics in the trenches of the club circuit say it remains a realm of "blatant misogyny" — and that #MeToo has only complicated their struggle not to be harassed. Part of the reason is built into the very structure of the industry. - The Hollywood Reporter

Why Did The Old Vic Cancel “Into The Woods” So Suddenly Last Week? A Staff Rebellion

The high-profile revival of the Sondheim musical was to be directed by Terry Gilliam (yes, from Monty Python), who has made some, er, controversial remarks (such as declaring himself "a black lesbian in transition"). Sondheim himself is said to be furious. - inews.co.uk

The Behemoth Of Broadway Licensing Companies May Be Up For Sale

You may not know of Concord Theatricals, but in the past five years, it has bought up Samuel French, Tams-Whitmark Music Library, and rights to the shows of Rodgers & Hammerstein and Andrew Lloyd Webber. Its majority owner — for now — is Michigan's state pension fund. - Forbes

Off-Broadway’s Leading Awards Eliminate Gender From Acting Categories

The Lucille Lortel Awards will honor outstanding lead performer and outstanding supporting performer in a musical and in a play, thus cutting the number of acting awards almost in half (a single category is being added for outstanding ensemble). - The Hollywood Reporter

The Real Skill Behind A Great Magician’s Show (It’s Not How The Tricks Are Done)

Joshua Jay: "In my craft, unlike filmmaking, I have to find the intersection of suspense and surprise, and that's difficult. In a two-hour movie, you get to alternate. You can have some surprises and lots of suspense, but in a magic show you have to have them together." - Salon

Haunted House Attractions Are Immersive Theater. What Distinguishes The Good Ones?

Really, it's the same things as with any other theater: good actors with good material matter more than special effects. As Halloween approaches, Alexis Soloski talks with actors at two notable attractions about what works. - The New York Times

Looking To A Play About An Earlier Epidemic To Answer A Key Question About This One

In Larry Kramer's The Normal Heart, Lily Janiak finds some lines that shed bright, painful light on why some people would refuse a vaccine that demonstrably saves lives. - San Francisco Chronicle

Bollywood Is Coming To Broadway (What Took So Long?)

"Come Fall in Love — The DDLJ Musical, based on the Indian filmmaker Aditya Chopra's 1995 hit Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, which has become a cultural touchstone of contemporary Bollywood, will open during the 2022-23 season." - The New York Times

Inside The Phantom’s Return To Broadway

So much celebration ensued - and, well, perhaps for good reason. "The show, which opened on Broadway in 1988 and has never closed, takes its first post-pandemic bow not just as a monied buttress for the industry, but as a symbol for Broadway’s own endurance." - Variety

Actor Sues Musical, Saying He Was Fired Because He Is Christian

One of Come from Away's former leads, Chad Kimball, "claimed he was terminated 'wholly or partly' because of his religious beliefs." - The New York Times

Broadway Shows, With The Advantage Of Time Off And Protests, Have Quietly Made Changes

Many changes came about because actors requested some rethinking of words, lyrics, or choreography. Sally Hemings, for instance, no longer flirt-dances with Jefferson in Hamilton's "What Did I Miss?" - The New York Times

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