Says the creator and star of hit parodies Titanique and The Big Gay Jamboree, "I liken myself to the homeless man’s Lin-Manuel Miranda. I’m still broke, but I’ve excelled at carving out a little queer millennial piece of the pie." - Variety
For the most part, show tunes on Broadway still sound more influenced by Andrew Lloyd Webber than by, say, Morgan Wallen. But country music is making inroads. - Christian Science Monitor
"From eliciting boos and hisses from audiences of all ages, to making sure there are enough local jokes and updating old stories for today, Holly Williams hears from playwrights tackling their first pantos and veterans who pen several every year about how they keep the tradition alive." - The Stage
Between that obstinate Elphaba and the bubbly Glinda the Good — “Wicked” has grossed more than $1.6 billion on Broadway while enduring as itsfourth-longest-running show. - Washington Post
Les Misérables was originally written in French by two Frenchmen, based on a classic French historical novel — and the musical has been wildly popular just about everywhere except France. Yet an updated version of the show at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris might just catch on. - The New York Times
School district officials cancelled Santa Rosa High School's production of Dog Sees God, which depicts the characters of the comic strip Peanuts in high school and deals with themes of bullying, gun violence, and homophobia. A privately-owned theater nearby hosted the production instead. - San Francisco Chronicle (MSN)
“Food is a very grounding thing in itself; you want to have a shared experience with people while you’re eating it. When you think about immersive dining, it is very important that that feeling doesn’t get overshadowed by anything else.” - The Stage
“When you create art for a living, sometimes you take for granted how much more art is out there,” says Cody Renard Richard. Still, New York gives him a broad canvas to discover. - The New York Times
What worked in the past, that is, pre-pandemic, is coming around again - more marketing, more membership drives, more discounts, more repertory theatre. Can it work? - Oregon ArtsWatch
"What began with … piling the family and their sets into a van and putting on shows for churches and home-school groups has evolved into a performing arts conservatory, a 300-seat theater and a twice-annual residency at the Museum of the Bible just south of the National Mall." - The Washington Post (MSN)
Yes, the future chief of Fox News, fresh off getting Nixon re-elected, took control of a California show called Mother Earth, revamped it (badly) and took it to Broadway, where it flopped. Meanwhile, the show's composer, one Toni Shearer, quit — and ended up fronting one of the 1970s' superstar groups. - Playbill
The dry, landlocked West African nation used to be known for its lively cultural scene; in recent years, the country's stability has been wrecked by extremist militias and their battles with government forces. Solace has come from the festival Récréâtrales, a festival spread across a district in the capital, Ouagadougou. - AP
