Beautiful - The Carole King Musical

BROADWAY PHILADELPHIA PRESENTS

Beautiful

The Carole King Musical

FIRST NATIONAL TOUR MAKES PHILADELPHIA PREMIERE AT KIMMEL CENTER'S ACADEMY OF MUSIC 

                MARCH 22 - APRIL 3, 2016 

Broadway Philadelphia presents the Philadelphia Premiere of the Tony and Grammy Award- winning musical Beautiful - The Carol King Musical which will appear at the Academy of Music from March 22 through April 3, 2016.   Starring Abby Mueller, this is the first national tour of the Broadway hit musical about the early life and career of the renowned and innovative singer/songwriter Carole King and fellow songwriters Gerry Goffin, Cynthia Weil and Barry Mann. Beautiful features  a myriad of hit songs, among them "I Feel The Earth Move," "One Fine Day," and "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman." Beautiful tells the inspiring true story of King's  rise to stardom, starting with being part of a songwriting team with her husband Gerry Goffin, followed by her relationships with fellow writers and best friends Cynthia Weil and Barry Mann to finally becoming one of the most successful solo artists of our time. The show opened on Broadway at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre  in January 2014 and has recently become the highest grossing production in the theatre's history. Tickets  for  the Philadelphia production are on sale now and can be purchased by calling (215) 893-1993, visiting online at www.kimmelcenter.org, or at the Kimmel Center Box Office.  Group sales are available for groups of 10 or more and can be purchased by calling (215) 790-5883. For more information, please visit www.BeautifulOnBroadway.com.

The Sound of Music

Kerstin Anderson as Maria

BROADWAY PHILADELPHIA PRESENTS

The Sound of Music

NEW NATIONAL TOURING PRODUCTION

MAKES PHILADELPHIA PREMIERE AT

THE ACADEMY OF MUSIC

MARCH 15-20, 2016

Broadway Philadelphia presents the Philadelphia Premiere of the new touring production of The Sound of Music directed by three-time Tony Award winner Jack O’Brien at the Academy of Music March 15-20, 2016. This new production celebrates the 50^th anniversary of the renowned film.  The production features the music by Richard Rogers and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. The national tour stars Ben Davis as Captain George von Trapp, Ashley Brown as The Mother Abbess and Jack O’Brien’s brand new discovery Kerstin Anderson as Maria. This is Kirstin’s first national tour; The Sound of Music is  the most successful movie musical in history.  Performances will be held at 7:30 p.m. on March 15 - 17; 8:00 p.m. on March 18 and 19; a 2:00 p.m. matinee on March 19; a 1:00 p.m. matinee on March 20 and a final performance at 6:30 p.m. on March 20, 2016. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased by calling (215) 893-1999, visiting online at www.kimmelcenter.org and at the Kimmel Center Box Office.  For more information, visit www.TheSoundOfMusicOnTour.com. 

#therevolution

Mary Tuomanen &
Brett Ashley Robinson

In its own inimical way, InterAct Theatre Company has once again brought thought-provoking theatre to its stage. With its new home in the Proscenium Theatre at the Drake, 1512 Spruce Street, InterAct has made the postponement of its first production of the year well worth waiting for.  Projections are an integral part of this production and Projection Designer Jorge Cousineau continues to produce the best work in the business.  #the revolution is a compelling tale of two young women set on changing the world to make it a better place for all. Riffing on “Power corrupts but absolute power corrupts absolutely”, playwright Kristoffer Diaz introduces additional characters to add to the complexity. You will be mesmerized by Brett Ashley Robinson’s portrayal of The Revolution as she undergoes a metamorphosis before your eyes.  Anita Holland gives a strong performance of The Muscle behind the revolution. Stephanie N. Walters has the difficult task of portraying a mindless “everyman” who gets swept up in a wave of fanaticism and will do anything to belong. She plays her role to perfection.  It is only Mary Tuomanen, The Witness to the original crime and sometimes narrator of the tale who continues to relate to the masses and tries to undo some of the damage which #the revolution has inadvertently caused. This is not your typical bedtime story, but it is one that you will be discussing at bedtime and beyond.  Make sure you see Jennifer Halley’s The Nether, presented by InterAct in March.

RAIN A Tribute to the Beatles

Beatles Fans…This is Your Lucky Weekend! Broadway Philadelphia presents Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles at the Merriam Theater through Sunday February 14.  Members of this national tour are from the original Broadway cast. The musicians are extraordinarily talented and all have started playing their prospective instruments at a very young age.  So perfectly nuanced are the dozens and dozens of every song they sing, you could close your eyes during the performance and believe you were actually hearing the original Beatles but you won’t want to. The projections are phenomenal. Never have I seen a more wide-spread use of projections on the stage - 3D backdrops, clips of actual events in which the Beatles appeared, animation, audiences watching the Beatles’ concert, the audience watching the Rain concert, projections of the band members playing with the actual Beatles playing behind them and so much more. It has to be seen and heard to be believed. To give the experience an  even more authentic time frame, film clips of old commercials were shown while band members left the stage to change into their St. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club costumes. “Ooooohs” filled the room when Barney Rubble and Fred Flintstone relaxed by having a Winston cigarette break. No one can stay still in his seat for the entire show. At a band member’s prompting, everyone gets up, claps their hands and dances. A camera pans the audience and the result is projected onto the large screen on the stage. It is just a night of great fun.  Time is limited to purchase your tickets. Get your Valentine a ticket to see the performance of this incredible tribute band.  It’s a gift that won’t be forgotten for a long time.  Call 215-893-1999, visit online at www.kimmelcenter.org or visit the Kimmel Center Box Office.

Oscar Wilde: From the Depths

Marc LeVasseur as Oscar Wilde

The Lantern Theater, located in St. Stephen’s Church, 10^th and Ludlow Streets, is presenting the world premiere of Oscar Wilde: From The Depths through February 14, 2016.  A letter Oscar Wilde wrote in prison to his lover inspired Lantern’s own artistic director Charles McMahon to write this piece. It is the tale of Oscar Wilde (Marc LeVasseur), who was one of the most talented, celebrated and beloved 19^th century literary giants of his time.  Incredibly he was swept to ruin and did nothing to prevent the devastation. Not heeding warnings, perhaps because he felt above them and was so sure of public support, Wilde instituted a libel suit against a member of the gentry (who was also his lover’s father). This backfired into a two year prison term in which Wilde was vilified and tortured.  In an effort to keep his sanity and his feelings of self-worth, he evoked memories of the past few years. LeVasseur gives a fine performance of the complex character of Oscar Wilde, whether he is living the good life or languishing in prison. David Bardeen and Jered McLenigan are excellent as they play myriad roles from jail keepers to aristocracy. For more information or tickets to this provocative play, call 215-829-0395 or visit online at LanternTheatrer.org. 

Exit Strategy

Philadelphia Theatre Company is presenting an East Coast premiere of a bomb shell.  Exit Strategy is a co-production with New York’s Primary Stages and will move to the Cherry Lane Theatre in March.  It can be seen at the Suzanne Roberts Theatre, 489  S. Broad Street, through February 28.  It is not often that you have an opportunity to see an original drama in Philadelphia immediately before it reaches the stage in New York.  Grab this opportunity.  You won’t regret it.  Exit Strategy has an excellent ensemble cast.  Michael Cullen, Deirdre Madison, Aimé Donna Kelly, Brandon Pierce, Rey Lucas, Christina Nieves and Ryan Spahn are all involved to some degree or another in coping with a failing school destined to be closed and fighting back to make the administration allow the school to remain open. Alliances change and altered attitudes are surprising.  Action is quick-paced and dialogue is contemporary.  Playwright Ike Holder gets to the soul of the heartbreak of a potential school-closing and the effect it has on so many-administration, faculty, and student body alike. For more information or tickets to this moving monument to comradery, cohesiveness, and concord, call 215-985-0420 or visit online at PhiladelphiaTheatreCompany.org.