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Ariana DeBose just can’t stop doing the thing! The Academy Award-winning actress, dancer and singer is set to return to host the upcoming 77th Annual Tony Awards on June 16. “I couldn’t pass up the chance to host the Tonys one more time at Lincoln Center,” DeBose said in a statement. “I’m excited to collaborate […]
“Ever since Rent, I have made it a priority to originate roles and shine a light on new work,” Idina Menzel tells Billboard. “It takes lots of patience and fortitude, but there is truly nothing as rewarding as seeing your kernel of an idea fully realized with a group of people you love and admire so deeply.”
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The Broadway icon’s latest project in that vein is the new musical Redwood, currently playing at La Jolla Playhouse in California. For Menzel — who plays Jesse, a successful businesswoman, mother and wife who finds herself as a personal crossroads and finds unexpected answers in the forests of Northern California — the show is an especially personal creative endeavor. “The story of a woman at a turning point in her life paralleled with the resilience, wisdom and strength of the redwood tree was one that spoke to me deep in my soul,” Menzel says. “Nature’s power to heal and connect us as human beings is essential in this turbulent world we are living in.”
Idina Menzel backstage during REDWOOD at La Jolla Playhouse.
Courtesy of Idina Menzel
Menzel, who released her latest album Drama Queen in August of last year, isn’t just the star of the production. She co-conceived Redwood with director, writer and co-lyricist Tina Landau (recently of Broadway’s inventive SpongeBob SquarePants musical) over the course of many years, delving deeply into the development of Jesse as a character.
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Menzel and Landau also “knew we wanted to find a new young composer who could bring a fresh take to musical theater” for the show, bringing in Kate Diaz for a score that Menzel describes as having “a beautiful, earthy and soulful quality as well as expansive and cinematic. When I perform Kate’s music, I am able to use all the different colors in my voice. I’m not just shooting for the rafters. I’m expressing myself similarly to how I express myself in my own songwriting.” (Diaz also co-wrote the lyrics with Landau).
While the La Jolla run of Redwood ends March 31, the show has its sights set on Broadway — which certainly seems more likely than not with Menzel and her creative collaborators on board. “We knew we wanted the production to be cutting edge and unconventional,” Menzel says. “We have encouraged one another to dream big, break rules, and not compromise our creative ideas. There’s a deep sense of creative freedom and trust in how we work.”
Here, Menzel exclusively shares with Billboard a live recording of her performing “Great Escape,” recorded during a performance of Redwood.
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Sufjan Stevens is bringing the noise to Broadway. The acclaimed singer/songwriter’s new musical, Illinoise, is slated to graduate to the Great White Way after sold-out productions at New York’s Park Avenue Armory and the Chicago Shakespeare Theater when it opens at New York’s St. James Theatre on April 24.
The show is set to the songs from Stevens’ fifth studio LP, 2005’s concept album Illinoise (also known as Sufjan Stevens Invites You to: Come on Feel the Illinoise) which features songs and characters based on the Prairie state as the follow-up to his previous “state” album, 2003’s Michigan.
The show will be directed and choreographed by Tony-winner Justin Peck (Carousel, West Side Story), with an original story by Peck and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Jackie Sibbles Drury (Fairview, Marys Seacole).
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The cast of Illinoise includes: Yesenia Ayala (West Side Story film), Kara Chan (Twyla Tharp Dance), Ben Cook (West Side Story film), Gaby Diaz (So You Think You Can Dance? winner, Maestro), Jeanete Delgado (Miami City Ballet), Carlos Falu (West Side Story film), Christine Flores (Dance Heginbotham), Jada German (Twyla Tharp Dance) and Zachary Gonder (Carmen at Lyric Opera), among others. The vocalists and band for the show will be announced soon.
According to an announcement, the show “brings the original story to life, set to the entirety of Stevens’ album with new arrangements by composer, pianist, and frequent Stevens collaborator Timo Andres, ranging in style from DIY folk and indie rock to marching band and ambient electronics, performed live by an 11-member band and three vocalists.”
“We’re absolutely thrilled to bring Illinoise to the St. James Theatre on Broadway. This project has been ruminating in my mind for nearly 20 years, which makes this moment even more sublime,” said Peck in a statement. “The audience response throughout our engagement at Fisher Center at Bard, Chicago Shakespeare Theater and Park Avenue Armory has been extraordinary, and we feel lucky that we get to continue sharing this unique show with future audiences on Broadway.”
Peck described the show as a coming-of-age story that “takes the audience on a journey through the American heartland — from campfire storytelling to the edges of the cosmos — all told in through a unique blend of music, dance, and theater. On behalf of my team, we welcome this rare opportunity with full hearts.”
Playwright Sibblies Drury added, “Supporting the craft of each of the artists involved in making up this show has been a joy and an inspiration. For me, the thing that makes Illinoise so special is how it allows incredible performers to come together with an audience and welcome emotion and connection with open arms. It is rare to have an experience, in a public space, that is moving on an elemental level, so we are all incredibly gratified to bring Illinoise to the St. James on Broadway.”
The musical’s limited engagement will run through August 10, with tickets on sale now here. The show is produced for Broadway by Orin Wolf, John Styles and David Binder in association with Seaview and executive produced by Nate Koch and co-produced by Thomas O. Kriegsmann and the Fisher Center at Bard.
Between Renée Rapp (Mean Girls), Halle Bailey (The Color Purple) and Ariana Grande (Wicked), the lines between Broadway, film and pop music aren’t really lines at all — and Ben Platt is ready to ride that wave with his forthcoming new album, Honeymind.
Announced via his official Instagram page last Tuesday (March 12), Honeymind marks the third studio effort from Emmy, Grammy and Tony winner. Both of his prior LPs — 2019’s Sing to Me Instead (No. 18) and 2021’s Reverie (No. 84) — reached the top half of the Billboard 200.
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“I’ve been working on this record for the last two years alongside my executive producer Dave Cobb and some brilliant co-writers and musicians across Nashville, Savannah, Los Angeles and New York,” he wrote in the Instagram announcement. “I began writing it during a period of major personal growth and transition. I wrote about all the ways that I’ve started to shed other people’s notions and perceptions of who I am, and really settle into myself from the root, earnestness and all. I wrote about growing out of the naiveté and aimlessness of childhood without resigning to the jaded and wonder-less feeling of adulthood… Most importantly, I wrote about finding real love… and all of the work we have to do as individuals to find security in who we are so that we’re ready for that real love when it comes along.”
That same day, Platt debuted “Andrew,” the set’s self-reflective lead single, while a plot-driven music video followed a few days later (March 15). The emotional video was crafted under the direction of Sam Wrench, known for his directorial work on Taylor Swift‘s Eras Tour film and Billie Eilish‘s Live at the O2 concert film.
In support of his record, Platt will also launch an 18-show concert residency at Broadway’s newly renovated Palace Theatre. Michael Arden — the Tony-winning director with whom Platt previously collaborated on the 2023 Tony-winning revival of Parade — will direct the residency, which will last from May 28 through June 15. During his stay at The Palace, Platt will perform selections from all three of his studio albums, as well as a few surprises and fan favorites.
“It is far beyond my wildest imagination to play a residency of my own music in a house as storied as the Palace,” gushed the Dear Evan Hansen star in a press release. “I feel blessed to be part of the theater community, and to have the opportunity to perform as myself and from my own perspective on a Broadway stage is one of the greatest honors of my life. I can’t wait to introduce my new record on the beautifully revived stage. My hope is to bridge my musical theater roots that I hold so dear with the world of classic Americana songwriting that I’ve fallen so deeply in love with.”
Watch the “Andrew” music video above and click here to purchase tickets for Ben Platt’s upcoming Palace residency.
There’s no need to “convince yourself” of any “delusion” — drag superstar Jinkx Monsoon is really performing at Carnegie Hall! On Wednesday (Feb. 7), Carnegie Hall officially announced their 2024-25 concert season. Among the many new shows coming to the legendary New York City venue, one in particular stood out to Drag Race; on Valentine’s […]
As more and more artists from the pop world add writing a Broadway musical to their career-goal lists, Sara Bareilles stands out as one of the brightest success stories from that group.
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Waitress — the musical adaptation of Adrienne Shelly’s beloved independent film, featuring music and lyrics by Bareilles — was an unequivocal Broadway hit, running for nearly four years after an opening in April 2016.
That year, Bareilles’ score earned her two Tony nominations (out of a total four for the show), and she went on to perform the lead role of Jenna for three different stints. The production played London’s West End as well as internationally, garnered a Grammy nomination for its original Broadway cast recording, and yielded both a standalone Bareilles album (What’s Inside: Songs From Waitress, released on Epic Records between the show’s off-Broadway and Broadway runs) and a film of the stage show (which debuted at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2023).
Sara Bareilles performs during the curtain call for Broadway’s “Waitress” at The Brooks Atkinson Theatre on March 31, 2017 in New York City.
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Now, Bareilles — who’s been warmly embraced by the wider theater community, and racked up another Tony nomination last year for her portrayal of The Baker’s Wife in Into the Woods — is making her return to Broadway.
She’s writing the music and lyrics for The Interestings, an adaptation of the New York Times bestselling novel by Meg Wolitzer with a book by Pulitzer- and Tony-nominated playwright Sarah Ruhl.
The plot of Wolitzer’s novel revolves around character Jules Jacobson and her friends from an exclusive childhood arts camp (the titular Interestings, as they call themselves) who grow up to find varying degrees of success and satisfaction or disillusionment with where a creative life has led them.
When it came out in 2013, the Times called it “warm, all-American, and acutely perceptive about the motivations of its characters,” likening it to modern Great American Novels and praising Wolitzer’s “inclusive vision and generous sweep.” With its complex, layered female protagonist and diverse cast of characters, as well as the knotty themes it explores — ranging from what qualifies as success to whether being extraordinary is the only path to it — the book seems rich material for musical adaptation, and it’s easy to see why it appealed to Bareilles, whose Waitress balanced the buoyant with the bittersweet.
The Interestings is being produced by Matt Ross, and is currently in development; additional creative team and production details will be announced in the coming months.
With West End sensation Rob Madge heading to the Great White Way to perform their show My Son’s a Queer (But What Can You Do?), it makes sense that they would partner with Mother Monster herself to spread their message as far as they can. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest […]
A U.S. District Court judge blocked JetBlue’s proposed $3.8 billion acquisition of Spirit Airlines this week, and got a little musical in the process. At one point in his 109-page ruling, Judge William G. Young of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts quoted lyrics of “Master of the House” from Les Misérables […]
Shucked is headed to the big screen. After the Broadway musical’s closing night at New York City’s Nederlander Theater on Sunday (Jan. 14), producer Mike Bosner announced that the show is being adapted into a feature film. “We’re all a little sad to say goodbye to this. But there’s some good news: We don’t have […]
Baby, he’s still a star! Nearly 40 years after Prince unleashed the original Purple Rain film and soundtrack album, the era-defining story is headed to the stage — and possibly The Great White Way.
A stage adaptation of Purple Rain is under development, with a world premiere in the works, as per The Hollywood Reporter on Monday (Jan. 8). The adaptation is set to feature a score by the late Prince, with a book by Pulitzer Prize-finalist Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, who is currently enjoying the Broadway run of his acclaimed drama Appropriate. Jacobs-Jenkins’ book will be based on the original Purple Rain screenplay, which was written by Albert Magnoli (who also directed the original film) and William Blinn. Lileana Blain-Cruz — who picked up a Tony nomination in 2022 for best direction of a play (The Skin of Our Teeth) — is set to direct, with Tony winner Orin Wolf on production duties.
The film version of Purple Rain arrived in 1984, starring Prince as The Kid, a burgeoning Minneapolis rock musician who trudges his way through rival bands, fleeting romances, and a gritty home life. To date, the film has grossed nearly $70 million worldwide, and, in 1984, it won the Academy Award for best original song score.
The accompanying soundtrack of the same name was a blockbuster success, spending 24 weeks atop the Billboard 200. The set spawned several Billboard Hot 100 hits, including “When Doves Cry” (No. 1, five weeks), “Let’s Go Crazy” (No. 1, two weeks), “Take Me With U” (No. 25), “I Would Die 4 U” (No. 8) and “Purple Rain” (No. 2). Purple Rain currently boasts a 13x platinum certification from the RIAA in recognition of over 13 million copies shipped in the U.S. alone. In addition, the soundtrack won a Grammy for bet rock performance by a duo or group with vocal and best score soundtrack for visual media.
“We can’t think of a more fitting tribute than to honor Prince and the Purple Rain legacy with this stage adaptation of the beloved story,” said L. Londell McMillan, chairman of The NorthStar Group, and Larry Mestel, founder and CEO of Primary Wave Music. “We are thrilled with our Broadway partners and creative team, who are bringing a theatricality to the film’s original fictional story. We can’t wait for a new generation to discover Purple Rain and for lovers of the original film and album to experience its power once again, this time live.”
Prince has earned 20 top 10 entries on the Billboard 200, including the chart-toppers Around the World In A Day (1985, three weeks), Batman (1989, six weeks), The Very Best of Prince (2001, one week), 3121 (2006, one week), and, of course, Purple Rain. On the Hot 100, the legendary musician has collected five No. 1 singles from 19 top 10 entries, including “Cream” (two weeks), “Kiss” (two weeks) and “Batdance” (one week).
