GOOD MORNING BROADWAY FANS! Who is getting their hypes up since Broadway’s Biggest Night of the year is 27 days away? Each day we at?New York Broadway Tours are waking up you up with some of the most breathtaking performances from the past Tony Awards telecasts in our Top 30 Countdown.
Today at #27, we take a stroll to a famous street in Hollywood where a famous silent movie diva is on the verge of a comeback but drama occurs. This is of course the iconic Sunset Boulevard, a musical version of the 1950 film written by Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber, Don Black, and Christopher Hampton.
From the 1995 telecast, the legendary Glenn Close as the iconic Norma Desmond arrives at a Hollywood soundstage for the first time in many years singing the show’s powerful anthem AS IF WE NEVER SAID GOODBYE.
SUNSET BOULEVARD first premiered in London’s West End at the Adelphi Theatre in July 1993 with Patti LuPone as Norma Desmond opening to mixed reviews especially around LuPone’s performance (UK audiences loved her but American audiences were not happy saying LuPone was a complete “miscast”). Around the same time the show was going through a revamp, the show had it’s American premiere in Los Angeles at the Shubert Theatre in December 1993 with Glenn Close as Norma Desmond earning rave reviews before bringing her LA Performance to Broadway’s Minskoff Theatre in November 1994 playing a total of 977 performances. It was nominated for 11 Tony Awards in 1995 and won 8 including Best Musical & Best Performance By A Leading Actress In A Musical (for Close). The Broadway production’s later Norma Desmond’s included Petula Clark, Betty Buckley and Dame Elaine Paige. The show is still being performed internationally and in many different languages. Most recently, Close reprised her role of Norma Desmond for a semi-staged production of the musical at the English National Opera in London. It’s currently rumored to hit NYC next.
FUN FACT: The show was well known some controversy with casting. Originally Patti LuPone was set to open the New York company. However, the American critics were not pleased about LuPone’s portrayl opening the show in London and her behavior. In addition, Glenn Close’s powerful portrayl in LA changed the critics minds. Andrew Lloyd Webber decided it was “commercially safer” to fire LuPone from the show and not tell her. LuPone eventually found out from an article by Liz Smith saying it’s “GLENN AS NORMA”. Heartbroken, LuPone (as mentioned in her autobiography) broke down taking a bat and tore her entire dressing room down (pretty much like when those 80’s rock stars damage hotel rooms). In addition, LuPone sued Lloyd Webber and received a settlement reported to be over $1 million.
Besides LuPone, there was controversy for Faye Dunaway, who was supposed to replace Close as Norma Desmond (when she left for Broadway) in the LA company but also got fired because Lloyd Webber said her singing choice was not strong enough for the role. Instead of continuing and not getting a new Norma, the LA production closed. Dunaway filed a lawsuit saying her reputation has been destroyed. The lawsuit got settled and the producers paid her a settlement.
Isn’t this show so emotional?! How horrible is the backstage drama?!
RISE AND SHINE BROADWAY FANS. It’s 28 days to Broadway’s biggest night of the year and you are waking up to New York Broadway Tours‘ Top 30 Tony Awards Countdown playing your the best of performances from over the past 70 years.
Today at #28 on our countdown is not your typical Broadway musical. This is a playlist of 3 one act stories all dealing with the theme of people not wanting what they really really wanted once they got what they wanted. That is the theme of Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick‘s musical masterpiece THE APPLE TREE. It was additionally also co-written by Jerome Coopersmith. In the musical, the 3 one act stories are Mark Twain‘s retelling of THE DIARY OF ADAM & EVE (Act 1), Frank R. Stockton‘s THE LADY OR THE TIGER (Act 2), and Jules Feiffer‘s PASSIONELLA (Act 3).
From the 1967 telecast, the legendary Barbara Harris and Alan Alda?perform the opening bit from the PASSIONELLA segment featuring OH, TO BE A MOVIE STAR and GORGEOUS.
THE APPLE TREE premiered in 1966 at Broadway’s Shubert Theatre running for a total of 463 performances. It was nominated for 7 Tony Awards in 1967 (including Best Musical) winning only 1 for Best Performance By A Leading Actress In A Musical (which went to Barbara Harris). The musical was later revived in 2005 originally as a concert staging production for New York City Center ENCORES starring Tony winners Kristin Chenoweth and Michael Ceveris along with Tony nominee?Malcolm Gets. The ENCORES staging earned acclaim and was turned into a full scale production for Roundabout Theatre Company at Studio 54 in 2006 starring Chenoweth, Tony nominee Brian d’Arcy James, and Marc Kudisch (who was Chenoweth’s ex-fiance). The revival ran for a limited engagement of 117 performances and was nominated for only 1 Tony Award in 2007 for Best Revival Of A Musical but lost the category.
Isn’t this musical such a timeless piece of Theatre?
The Easter Bonnet Competition (#BroadwayBonnets) was presented April 25 and 26, 2016 at the Minskoff Theatre, home to Disney’s The Lion King. The production featured 17 extravagant, handmade bonnets presented by some of Broadway?s most popular shows. Celebrating six weeks of fundraising by 58 Broadway, Off-Broadway and national touring companies, the Easter Bonnet Competition raised a record-shattering $5,528,568 for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, the largest grand total from either an Easter Bonnet Competition or Gypsy of the Year fundraising campaign in Broadway Cares history.
Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS is one of the nation?s leading industry?based, nonprofit AIDS fundraising and grant?making organizations. By drawing upon the talents, resources and generosity of the American theatre community, since 1988 BC/EFA has raised more than $285 million for essential services for people with AIDS and other critical illnesses across the United States.
Broadway Cares is the major supporter of the social service programs at The Actors Fund, including the HIV/AIDS Initiative, the Phyllis Newman Women?s Health Initiative and the Al Hirschfeld Free Health Clinic, and awards annual grants to more than 450 AIDS and family service organizations in all 50 states.
For this year’s 30th annual Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids Easter Bonnet Competition: A public service announcement to turn off your phones using ‘Turn It Off’ from “The Book Of Mormon”.?Our New York Broadway Tours friend Billy Hipkins WON the Easter Bonnet competition and gave a fantastic and fun breakdown of his process. Enjoy!!!
“The front side was a selfie of Max and Brandon who led the number, the back was a shattered cell phone screen. Worn by gorgeous Charlotte and backed up by an army of ushers who came down the aisles snatching phones which they then tap danced on.
So, how do you pull this off?…
Start with a hard hat and foam core and hot glue.#BroadwayBonnets?…
Build a turntable on a lazy susan and work out the foam core phone shapes. #BroadwayBonnets?…
Take a picture of your boys wearing the costumes they’ll have on when they take the onstage selfie and blow it up 28″ x 16″. #BroadwayBonnets ? withBrandon Uranowitz and Max von Essen.
Find a shattered screen shot and blow it up too.#BroadwayBonnets
Make a 1/4 scale model so you can work out where you’re heading. #BroadwayBonnets
Then surrender your apartment to the process and get busy. #BroadwayBonnets
Glue and glitter parts of the spider web leaving the rest to be rhinestoned to death by an army of stoners at the show. #BroadwayBonnets
Try to only glitter in the shower or over a drain. (WARNING: This will not keep glitter out of your bed.) #BroadwayBonnets
Cut, number, glitter, and stone the shattered panes.#BroadwayBonnets
Attach to plastic rods punched through the phone. Hold each one for 5 minutes while the hot glue hardens. Think about your life choices while doing this. #BroadwayBonnets
Or if you saw Monday’s show you would have seen me filling in for Brandon. And look at the grand total we as a community raised! #BroadwayBonnets ? with Max von Essen and Carlotta Chassimi.?
As much as you love Broadway how much do you really know about the origins of it?s history? Have you ever wondered if you could just take a trip back in time and see where it all began?! Now you can!
If you are fans of Lin-Manuel Miranda?s Hamilton or Jonathan Larson?s RENT you will LOVE these tours.
Our Gilbert and Sullivan to Hamilton musical theatre downtown walking tour meets right near City Hall where the first theatre in New York was built. We will then visit other locations that fall in tribute to nautical themed Broadway musicals such as Titanic, Ragtime, Showboat, and of course HAMILTON! We will even pass by where Thomas Jefferson lived and you can take pictures with George Washington (maybe even meet his ghost!) in front of Federal Hall. Come learn about the revolution and sing along to shows with your Broadway tour guide.
And then on April 29th we are launching our ?The Inspiration Of Rent? a tour based off of the musical RENT written by Jonathan Larson. It will begin at The New York Theatre Workshop where the show originally premiered and we will visit iconic locations from his story. We will discuss New York?s East Village history, the show, and of course Jonathan Larson?s life and death. On April 29th it will be the 20th anniversary that the show originally opened on Broadway so tickets will be selling fast!
For more information visit our tours listings page. We look forward to singing and dancing with you down Broadway!
“Do You Hear What I Hear?” Is it Sleigh Bells? Is It Snowflakes and ice cracking? Even better!! Get ready to “Deck the Halls” on the Great White Way as we take you on a fun adventure around the best Broadway houses….Holiday style. Get ready to come caroling with us as we celebrate CHRISTMAS ON BROADWAY!!
Our famous Christmas on Broadway walking tour is back!
Starting Saturday, November 28th, 2015 at 11am and offered every day until December 31st, we are pleased to bring you JOY TO THE WORLD!
For 2 glorious hours you will be taken on a fun-filled, historical, memorable walking tour through Times Square. This tour is?1/2 mile in length?and will end right in front of New York’s famous Christmas Tree in Rockefeller Center.
Along the way you will learn about?Times Square, Broadway Theatres, the Rockettes and Radio City’s Christmas Spectacular, and of course how Santa Claus made a name for himself in the greatest city in the world, New York!
We look forward to singing and dancing with you and your family!
