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It’s been over two weeks since Kevin McCarthy was (finally) elected speaker of the house after the longest contest to a speaker election in more than 150 years — and Internet sensation Randy Rainbow isn’t quite ready to move on from that bit of news.
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On Monday (Jan. 23), Rainbow posted his latest parody video “Speaker of the House,” in which the star lampoons the embattled GOP leader for his repeated failures to get elected — and the concessions he had to make to finally get the job done.
Starting off as many of Rainbow’s parodies do, the video opens with Rainbow conducting a fake interview with the leader, introducing him as “barely elected Speaker of the House, Kevin McF—head.” As the comedian begins to simultaneously question and roast McCarthy (including drinking from a mug with a piece of paper reading “you’re a dumba–” taped to it), the music begins to kick in, leading us to another song from the viral star.
Performing to the tune of “Master of the House” from the seminal Broadway musical Les Miserables, Rainbow holds nothing back when referring to McCarthy as a “slimy, climby man-boy” and a “power-hungry whore,” while making sure to rub the politician’s nose in his recent pyrrhic victory. “Speaker of the house/ Cunning little chap/ Covetous, conservative and full of crap,” he sings. “Thirsty as a fish/ Quick to compromise/ Only took the motherf—er 15 tries.”
But Rainbow’s barbs are not only reserved for McCarthy — the singer also takes time to go after some of McCarthy’s opponents, his allies and other much-discussed members of the GOP. “[Lauren] Boebert doesn’t even know what state she’s from/ Marjorie [Taylor Green]’s a mess/ Matt [Gaetz]’s a ticking bomb/ [George] Santos says he’s Ariana Grande’s mom,” he sings.
Finally bringing the song to its exacerbated conclusion, Rainbow delivers a final “toast” to McCarthy: “Girl, I give you one more week/ Everybody lift a cheek to the speaker of the house.”
The video comes just ahead of the 2023 Grammy Awards on Feb. 5, where Rainbow’s debut studio album A Little Brains, A Little Talent is nominated for best comedy album against huge competitors like Dave Chappelle, Patton Oswalt, Jim Gaffigan and Louis C.K.
Check out Randy Rainbow’s full video for “Speaker of the House” above.
Unlike seven years ago, when Hamilton’s Grammy win for best musical theater album was a foregone conclusion, this year’s contest appears to be wide-open.
The award could go to the cast album from the latest revival of one of Stephen Sondheim’s most beloved musicals, or to the album from a musical that celebrates the legacy of pop legend Michael Jackson or to the album from a show (A Strange Loop) that has already won a Pulitzer Prize and two Tony Awards, including best musical.
The Grammys have presented an award for best musical theater album every year since they started in 1959 (though the name of the category has changed over the years). This year, 42 albums were entered and eligible in the category, from which six were nominated.
Four of the nominated cast albums are from newly-produced shows – MJ: The Musical, Mr. Saturday Night, Six and A Strange Loop. The other two are from revivals – Into the Woods, which first opened on Broadway in 1987, Caroline, or Change, which first opened on Broadway in 2004.
Voters in this category are asked to focus on the cast album, not their memories of the show. (The Rules and Guidelines handbook for the 65th Annual Grammy Awards states: “This award honors excellence in the performances(s) in and production of musical theater recordings. Elements of the corresponding stage production should not be considered in evaluating the recording.”)
The award is presented to the principal vocalist(s) and to the album producer(s) of 50% or more of the playing time on the album. The lyricist(s) and composer(s) of 50% or more of a score of a new recording are eligible if no previous recording of said score has been nominated in this category. Caroline, or Change had not previously been nominated in this category, so its composer, Jeanine Tesori, and lyricist, Tony Kushner, are eligible. Into the Woods had been, so its composer/lyricist, Sondheim, is not.
A few category quirks: Recordings of revues that reflect a dramatic theme are eligible, but benefit/tribute concerts featuring performances of various musical show songs are not. Non-musical theater performance albums are likewise not eligible.
Let’s take a closer look at the six nominees:
Rebecca Milzoff and Keith Caulfield assisted in preparing this list.
Paul Mescal is replacing Blake Jenner in the decade-spanning production of the movie musical of Stephen Sondheim’s Merrily We Roll Along, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed.
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Richard Linklater will be directing the project, which is being backed by Blumhouse, and will shoot over a 20-year span. (The director shot his Oscar-winning Boyhood over 12 years.)
The much-beloved musical, based on the 1934 play of the same name by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart, follows Franklin Shepard, a talented composer of Broadway musicals that abandons his friends and career to become a producer of Hollywood movies. The story begins at the height of his Hollywood fame and moves backwards in time, showing important moments in Frank’s life.
Mescal will be playing the lead role of Broadway composer Franklin Shepard, which was previously meant to be played by Jenner. After being cast, Jenner was embroiled in allegations of domestic abuse.
In November 2019, actress Melissa Benoist posted a 14-minute Instagram video during which she spoke of being a survivor of domestic violence. At the time, Benoist did not name her abuser. In October 2020 Jenner, who was previously married to Benoist, took to social media where he apologized for an abusive relationship, writing that he took “full responsibility and accountability for the hurt that I inflicted during my relationship with my past partner — emotionally, mentally, and yes, physically.” (Jenner, who also lodged claims of abuse against his former partner, also did not name the partner he was referring to in his post.)
Mescal will join a previously announced cast of Beanie Feldstein and Ben Platt. The project announced four years ago, completed its first segment of filming in Aug 2019. Ginger Sledge will produce with Jason Blum for Blumhouse, along with Jonathan Marc Sherman and Linklater.
Mescal, who broke out in Hulu series Normal People, was recently cast in Ridley Scott’s Gladiator sequel. He has earned acclaim this past year for his work in Cannes standout Aftersun.
Above the Line first reported this news.
This article was originally published by The Hollywood Reporter.
Lizzie and Rachel! Hilary Duff spent a girls night out in New York City over the weekend supporting Lea Michele in Broadway’s Funny Girl.
“Lea, what a treat to see you in this role! You shine so bright … it was made for you!” the Lizzie McGuire star wrote on Saturday (Jan. 7) alongside a photo of herself and three pals — including Younger co-star Molly Bernard — posing with the Glee alum at the theater.
Within the slideshow, Duff also shared snaps smiling in front of the Funny Girl marquee outside the August Wilson Theatre, and showing off multiple copies of the musical’s playbill from her seat. For her part, Michele appreciated the social media shout-out, writing, “Love you hil” with a simple red heart emoji in the comments.
The Broadway star’s stint as Fanny Brice in the musical revival has been a resounding success since she stepped into the role in September, replacing original star Beanie Feldstein. In late December, her star power helped the show bring in more than $2 million across eight shows, setting a new record for the historic venue that’s also been home to Tony nominees such as Mean Girls, Jersey Boys, Slave Play and more over the years.
During the holiday season, Michele also dished on the heartwarming letter she received in her dressing room from original Funny Girl star Barbra Streisand in an interview on Late Night With Seth Meyers. Duff, meanwhile, shared an adorably chaotic Christmas card with her rocker husband Matthew Koma and kids Luca, Banks and Mae.
See Duff and Michele celebrate Funny Girl below.
Oops! Renée Elise Goldsberry jumped into the comments section on Laura Benanti‘s latest social media post Monday to congratulate her for… catching COVID?
The LOL-worthy gaffe occurred when Benanti shared her positive coronavirus test on Instagram after taking her daughter Ella on a trip to the New York City Ballet, writing, “Happy New Year? (I tested the day of the ballet and was negative…I also wore my mask so everyone is safe, don’t worry!).”
However, the original Hamilton cast member appears to have thought her fellow Broadway star was sharing a positive pregnancy test on her feed, and mistakenly wrote, “AAAAAAH! Congratulations!” in a now-deleted comment, all while other Broadway stars like Kristin Chenoweth and Jessica Vosk added their commiseration and well-wishes for Benanti’s speedy recovery.
On Tuesday (Jan. 3), Goldsberry offered some hysterical context for her mistake via Twitter, writing, “Drunk scrolling on my birthday… Wrong positive test…” with a facepalm and laughing emoji before adding, “Love you, Laura! Feel better!”
For her part, Benanti seemed focused on making sure her recovery was as low-key and relaxing as possible. “Dear Laura: you do not need to spend this quarantine writing the great American novel, or a pilot, or a play, or a song,” the Tony winner wrote on her Instagram Story. “You do not need to clean and organize your basement. You do not need to organize your email into categories. You do not need to return the thousands of unread emails in your inbox. You do not need to journal, or reflect or read books that challenge you. You can rest and watch tv and read cheesy novels and that doesn’t make you lazy. K?”
Back in October, Goldsberry’s musical sitcom Girls5eva was officially renewed for a third season and will find a new home on Netflix after originating its first two seasons on Peacock.
See Benanti’s post lamenting her positive COVID test and Goldsberry’s amusing response to her accidental congratulations below.
Leading up to the lucrative holiday weeks, the Lea Michele-led Funny Girl broke a box office record at the August Wilson Theatre on Broadway.
The revival brought in just above $2 million across eight shows last week, which also marked a record gross for the production. Michele joined the revival in September, following the departure of Beanie Feldstein, in a move seen to help boost grosses for the then-struggling show.
Since Michele joined the production on Sept. 6, Funny Girl has seen that boost, with the musical bringing in more than $1.6 million a week, and recently closer to $2 million, after more modest returns in the spring and a drop to less than $1 million over the summer.
Mean Girls, which played the August Wilson Theatre from March 2018 until the theatrical shutdown, previously set the house record at the theater in 2018 with a gross of $1.99 million.
The recent box office record was set as Funny Girl played to a capacity of 96 percent and commanded an average ticket price of $213.28, the second highest of all shows for the week. Only The Music Man had a higher average ticket price, at $267.99, which helped the show continue its reign as the highest-grossing show of the week, bringing in $3.25 million.
Ain’t No Mo‘ was another notable standout in the week ended Dec. 18, as the new play saw its grosses triple to reach $499,303 from $164,592 the previous week and play to a capacity of 93 percent. The surge came as creator Jordan E. Cooper waged a campaign to stop the show from closing and received help along the way from Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, Tyler Perry, Shonda Rhimes, Gabrielle Union, Dwyane Wade, Queen Latifah and Sara Ramirez, all of whom bought out performances. The show has now extended through Dec. 23 after initially being told it would close on Dec. 18.
Grosses remain high for the standard top performers on Broadway, with The Lion King bringing in $2.4 million, Wicked bringing in $2.2 million and Hamilton bringing in $2.3 million. Phantom continues to see elevated interest, after extending its closure to April after a run of 35 years.
But many Broadway newcomers continue to struggle, with productions such as Topdog/Underdog, a Pulitzer Prize-winning play starring Corey Hawkins and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, grossing $257,217 last week and playing to a capacity of 52 percent, which has been the trend for several weeks. Almost Famous, which just announced a Jan. 8 closing, played to a capacity of 68 percent and grossed $703,714, down about $61,000 from the previous week.
These grosses are still a welcome reprieve from last December, when a surge in omicron cases among cast and company members caused the cancellation of dozens of performances across the industry and led to the permanent closure of some shows. Coming up, the weeks around Christmas and New Years Eve often bring in the biggest grosses productions see all season.
This article was originally published by The Hollywood Reporter.
The musical stage adaptation of Almost Famous will play its final Broadway performance on Jan. 8, the production announced Monday (Dec. 19).
The musical, an adaptation of Cameron Crowe’s 2000 film, began previews at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre on Oct. 3 and opened on Nov. 3.
This is the latest Broadway show to announce its closure, following KPOP, which closed on Dec. 11, two weeks after opening, and Ain’t No Mo, which received a closing notice, but is now extended through Dec. 23 after the production and celebrities backers rallied around the show.
The closing notices come as tourism remains down in New York and as Broadway shows grapple with higher running costs and changing audience behavior. Almost Famous also received mixed to poor reviews, with The Hollywood Reporter‘s David Rooney highlighting its “infectious energy” while asking, “Did it need to become a stage musical? Debatable.” Grosses have been fairly average, with the musical bringing in $765,060 in the week ended Dec. 11, but while playing to theaters at 74 percent capacity.
“Almost Famous, like the music it celebrates, will endure. We look forward to the release of the cast recording on March 17, and to the many productions in communities across the country and world, for years to come,” said producers Lia Vollack and Michael Cassel.
The musical features a book by Crowe, a score by Tom Kitt, direction by Jeremy Herrin and choreography by Sarah O’Gleby.
The Broadway production stars Chris Wood as Russell Hammond, Anika Larsen as Elaine Miller, Solea Pfeiffer as Penny Lane, Drew Gehling as Jeff Bebe and Casey Likes as William Miller.
This article originally appeared on The Hollywood Reporter.
The Off-Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim’s Merrily We Roll Along, starring Daniel Radcliffe, Jonathan Groff and Lindsay Mendez, will move to Broadway in the fall.
The production, directed by Maria Friedman, is currently playing a sold-out run at New York Theatre Workshop through Jan. 22. It came to New York after runs on London’s West End and at the Menier Chocolate Factory.
This is the first Broadway revival of Merrily We Roll Along, after it premiered on Broadway for a short run in 1981. The musical, which features a score by Sondheim and a book by Furth, follows three friends, played by Radcliffe, Groff and Mendez, and travels backwards through time to follow them over three decades of working in entertainment.
A revival of Sondheim’s Into the Woods is currently playing on Broadway and a revival of Sweeney Todd is planned for Broadway this spring.
Sonda Friedman Productions, David Babani, Patrick Catullo and Jeff Romley will produce Merrily We Roll Along on Broadway.
The revival also features Krystal Joy Brown, Katie Rose Clarke and Reg Rogers. Choreography is by Tim Jackson and orchestrations are by Tony Award winner Jonathan Tunick.
Exact dates and the Broadway theater where Merrily We Roll Along will play will be announced at a later date.
This story was originally published by The Hollywood Reporter.
Mimi’s officially a Broadway baby! Mariah Carey made her surprise debut in Broadway’s Some Like It Hot on Sunday night (Dec. 11), but probably not in the way the Lambs are expecting.
Ahead of the revival’s opening performance, audience members were treated to the singer’s voice welcoming them to the theater in a pre-recorded message. “Welcome to the Shubert Theater!” she said in fan-captured video as the lights dimmed. “At this time, please take a moment to turn off your cell phones. And remember: The use of photographic equipment and recording devices is strictly prohibited. And now, Some Like It Hot.”
According to a report by People, the star-studded premiere was attended by Broadway greats such as Bette Midler, Jane Krakowski, Nathan Lane and Victor Garber as well as Andy Cohen, John Stamos, Uma Thurman and more famous faces.
The pre-show message is far from Mariah’s only contribution to Some Like It Hot either, dahhlings. In November, the Elusive Chanteuse announced via social media that she had joined the production team of the musical in between prepping for her performance at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and gearing up for another holiday season filled with the familiar strains of “All I Want for Christmas Is You.”
Her seminal holiday hit currently sits back at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart dated Dec. 17 for the fourth consecutive year since it first reached the top of the chart in 2019. On Tuesday, she also brought her Merry Christmas To All! holiday concert to New York City’s Madison Square Garden, where she was presented with the RIAA certification for the song going diamond last year.
See the video of Mariah’s pre-show announcement at Some Like It Hot here.
Remember in Glee season two when Rachel Berry debates getting a nose job, sings an iconic mashup of “I Feel Pretty” from West Side Story and TLC‘s “Unpretty” with Quinn Fabray, then decides to embrace her natural beauty when reminded of her resemblance to her hero Barbra Streisand? Turns out, that all has a striking parallel to Lea Michele‘s real life.
In a Thursday (Dec. 8) interview with Town & Country, the Glee alum opened up about the constant pressure she faced as a young actress to surgically alter her face in order to align more with Hollywood’s beauty standards. “People would tell me to get nose jobs, that I wasn’t pretty enough for film and television,” she recalled.
But who else is a powerhouse vocalist and musical theater sensation whose nose is a key part of her unconventional beauty? Michele’s idol, Barbra Streisand, who originated the role of Fanny Brice in Broadway’s Funny Girl — the same role Michele is now playing in the show’s ongoing revival.
“She was an icon for me in my life,” the Scream Queens actress said of Streisand, to whom she’s been compared to throughout her career.
A couple days prior to the interview, Michele revealed on Late Night with Seth Meyers that the Way We Were icon had actually written her a sweet note about her Fanny Brice portrayal. “It was so surreal and such a wonderful moment,” she gushed about the note to Town & Country, revealing that she called Glee creator Ryan Murphy and former costar Jonathan Groff upon receiving it. “The fact that she acknowledged my performance—I could cry.”
“It was a beautiful, hand-written note that I will cherish,” she added. “She was incredibly complimentary,” Michele says. “It exists. It happened, and now I feel like so many dreams can come true.”