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THEATRE

“Phantom” Closes On Broadway After 13,981 Performances

"I got the gig of a lifetime. There's no other way to describe it," says Richard Poole, who's been a member of the ensemble, playing small roles, for almost 25 years. - NPR

On Broadway, Fans Gathered As Phantom Ended

"The audience, which included Lin-Manuel Miranda, cheered not only the entrance of each principal performer, but also the first sightings of signature props, including the monkey music box and, of course, the chandelier." - The New York Times

Center Theatre Group Chooses Snehal Desai, An Artistic Director With Deep Connections To LA

"CTG seems to have received the message that local knowledge of a sprawling, culturally complex city is necessary to rebuilding the communal connection that had been fraying for years." - Los Angeles Times

Larissa Fasthorse On Getting The Thanksgiving Play Ready For Broadway

"It’s meant to give people that beautiful release and time together as an audience, getting to have a really good time in the theatre. But then also, to choose your metaphor, to have the uranium rods for afterwards. ... I’m trying to make these things all exist together." - American Theatre

As She Leaves The Arena Stage, Molly Smith Has Some Post-Pandemic Audience Thoughts

How is the DC theatre doing? Well, each production is "either a boffo hit, with tons and tons of people, or it’s small audiences." Some shows are good, "but they weren’t events. That seems to be the thing that’s drawing people out of their pajamas right now." - American Theatre

The Nonprofit Theatre Reckoning Is Here

The recent stories about Williamstown and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival have thrown some serious structural issues into relief. "Quality theatre ... is not in question, but whether quality theatre is enough of a reason for an organization to be nonprofit in any particular community is." - Wratchford Group

Actors’ Equity Has A Deal For A New Broadway Tour Contract

"The deal comes after the union, which represents more than 51,000 stage managers and actors, had announced a strike threat against the Broadway League, which represents industry producers, presenters and general managers, on April 3, at which time a resolution seemed far off." - The Hollywood Reporter

Stage Intimacy Training Is Growing

This fall, Columbia College Chicago will begin a yearlong, graduate-level program in stage and screen intimacy, leading to a certificate — the first of its kind, it says, offered at an accredited American college or university. - Chicago Sun-Times

Oregon Shakespeare Festival Declares An Emergency, Says It Needs $2.5 Million To Save Season

The Oregon Shakespeare Festival announced a campaign Tuesday to raise $2.5 million to “save” the season set to begin later this month and said it was suspending its planning for 2024 as it seeks to stabilize its finances. - The Oregonian

Why Has The Hometown Paper Been Boycotting This Year’s Adelaide Fringe Festival?

Editor Gemma Jones said the Fringe launched a “rival” review website with “an almost identical format and functionality as our ‘Tiser Fringe Adviser”, a decision she said undermined “our ability to find an audience” for similar content. - Crikey

Dallas Theater Center, Struggling With Attendance And Finances, Announces Layoffs

"Dallas Theater Center will lay off an undisclosed number of staff, it announced Tuesday, a cost-cutting measure that comes as the organization has struggled to rebound from the pandemic and its chilling effect on attendance. The layoffs take effect in May." - MSN (The Dallas Morning News)

Why You Shouldn’t Sing Along At The Theatre…

There is a difference between a theatre show and a concert. "It's a musical and you're there to hear the lyrics, hear the words, emotions, everything. - BBC

Martin McDonagh Complains That Some Theatres Refuse To Produce His Plays Because They Have Dirty Words

"'Only in the past few years have I had theatre companies refuse to do my plays, because they don't like some of the wording,' McDonagh said. They wanted to make some words 'more palatable to what they think their audience is', he said, despite him being 'an established writer who sells tickets'." - BBC

British Theatres Discover A New Target Audience: Female Novel-Readers

"(There is) a string of new stage shows based on hit books by female authors that were enjoyed largely by female readers. Waiting in the wings this spring are plays or musicals based on bestsellers that include Hamnet, The Time Traveler's Wife and The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher." - The Observer (UK)

Fans’ Loud Singalong Halts Theatre Performance

A rowdy singalong by audience members has halted a performance of The Bodyguard. Singer Melody Thornton was unable to complete her rendition of I Will Always Love You during the musical's finale at Manchester's Palace Theatre on Friday. - BBC

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