WAKE UP BROADWAY FANS! It’s time once again for another installment of New York Broadway Tours Top 30 Tony Awards countdown playing you the best of the Great White Way from the past telecasts over the last 70 years. We are 13 days away from Broadway’s Biggest Night!!!!
At # 13 today, we take a trip to an iconic night club in Berlin where the only thing you leave your troubles at the door. All during World War II during the Nazi’s rise to power. That iconic club is course THE KIT KAT CLUB from?Kander & Ebb‘s Cabaret the Musical. It was also written by Joe Masteroff?and featured the iconic choreography of Bob Fosse.
CABARET premiered in 1966 at Broadway’s Broadhurst Theatre starring?Joel Grey as the Emcee and later transferred twice to the Imperial and the Broadhurst Theatre where it played a total of 1,186 performances. It was nominated for 11 Tony Awards in 1977 winning 8 including Best Musical and Best Performance By A Featured Actor in A Musical (for Grey). Grey would later reprise his performance of the Emcee for the iconic 1972 film that won 8 Academy Awards (including winning his very own as well). CABARET would later be revived 3 times on Broadway…. In 1987 where it returned to the Imperial Theatre starring Grey AGAIN reprising the role of the Emcee playing a total of 261 performances. That first revival was nominated for 3 Tony Awards including Best Revival of a Musical but lost all of it’s categories. In 1998, a new production (that came from London’s?Donmar Warehouse) was produced by Roundabout Theatre company playing Broadway’s Henry Miller’s Theatre (currently the Stephen Sondheim Theatre) before moving to Studio 54 starring Alan Cumming (and later Ra?l E. Esparza, Neil Patrick Harris, Adam Pascal, Jon Secada, Norbert Leo Butz, and John Stamos) as the Emcee playing a total of 2,377-performances. The production was well known for it’s intimacy look including setting the Theatre look like as if the Kit Kat Club actually excited with table seating. In addition, the entire cast also served as the orchestra playing the entire score LIVE (no pit). It was nominated for 10 Tony Awards that very same year winning 4 including Best Revival of a Musical and Best Leading Actor in a Musical (for Cumming). The most recent revival happened in 2014 when Roundabout Theatre Company brought back the Tony winning production once again back into Broadway’s Studio 54 and featured Alan Cumming reprising his performance of the Emcee playing a total of 423 performances. It was nominated for 2 Tony Awards for Best Featured Actor and Actress in A Musical (for Danny Burstein (who is nominated again this year) and Linda Emond) but lost all of it’s categories. The acclaimed Roundabout Theatre Company revival is still touring America right now with Randy Harrison as the Emcee.
Doesn’t this show remind all of us each day that LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL?
GET READY BROADWAY FANS! It’s time once again for another great performance on our Top 30 Tony Awards. Broadway’s biggest night is only 14 days away.
At #14 is another toe-tapping and hair teasing showstopper. It follows the story of an overweight teenager who has big dreams, loves to dance, seeks true love, and tries to integrate a National TV dance show in 1960’s Baltimore. This is course Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman‘s smash hit?Hairspray.
HAIRSPRAY (based on the classic John Waters film of the same name) premiered at The 5th Avenue Theatre in Seattle earning critical acclaim before moving into Broadway’s Neil Simon Theatre in 2002 where it ran for an acclaimed 6 years and 2,642 performances. It was nominated for 12 Tonys in 2003 winning 8 including Best Musical.
Besides the original film, there are 2 remakes of the HAIRSPRAY… In 2007 (first film version of the musical), starring Nikki Blonsky, John Travolta, and an all star cast and coming up this Holiday season with NBC‘s live televised remake which will feature Grammy and Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson, Tony winner Martin Short, Dancing with the Stars and Broadway bound?Derek Hough, and Tony winner Harvey Fierstein reprising his Tony winning performance of Edna Turnblad (and is also doing the script). HAIRSPRAY LIVE is set to air December 7th.
RISE & SHINE BROADWAY FANS! We are having so much fun waking you all up to some of the best Broadway performances in our Top 30 Tony Awards countdown. Broadway’s biggest night is only 15 days away.
Today at #15 is the well known Backstage and Toe-Tapping Musical dramady about what goes into bringing a new show to the Great White Way. We are of course are talking about the iconic 42ND STREET. It was written by Harry Warren (Music), Al Dubin (Lyrics), Michael Stewart, and Mark Bramble (Book)
From the 2001 telecast, the cast of most recent revival opened up the that year’s Tonys with a toe-tapping medley of the show’s title song from their “then Theatre” at the Ford Center for the Performing Arts (currently The Lyric Theatre) before tap dancing onto a Subway train (from the actual 42nd Street) heading straight for Radio City Music Hall.
42ND STREET (which was based on a 1933 MGM Musical movie) premiered in 1980 at the Winter Garden Theatre and later transferred twice to the Majestic Theatre and the St. James Theatre playing 3,486 performances. The original production received 8 Tony nominations and winning 2 in 1981 including Best Musical. The show was later revived in 2001 at the Ford Center for the Performing Arts (now the Lyric Theatre) playing 1,524 performances. That production also was nominated for 8 Tonys that year and winning 2 including Best Revival of a Musical. Currently, the acclaimed revival is 42ND STREET is back on the road from Trokia Entertainment In addition, it’s currently the 14th Longest Running Show in Broadway History.
HELLO BROADWAY FANS! You are AGAIN waking up with New York Broadway Tour’s Top 30 Tony Awards countdown playing you some of the best performances on the Tony telecasts in the past. We are only 16 days away from Broadway’s Biggest Night of the year
At #16 on our countdown is one of Broadway’s most popular crime shows. As the opening line of this show says, this is a story of MURDER, GREED, CORRUPTION, VIOLENCE, EXPLOITATION, ADULTERY, & TREACHERY. We of course are talking about Kander & Ebb‘s dark murder classic?Chicago The Musical. It was also co-written and features the iconic choreography of Bob Fosse.
From the 1997 telecast, Tony winners Bebe Neuwirth, Ann Reinking, and original cast members of the long running revival perform a medley of ALL THAT JAZZ and HOT HONEY RAG.
CHICAGO first premiered on Broadway at the 46th Street Theatre (now the Richard Rodgers Theatre) in 1975 starring Tony winners Chita Rivera,Gwen Verdon, and the late Jerry Orbach running for 936 performances. It was nominated for 10 Tony Awards that same year including Best Musical but lost all of it’s categories. The current (and 1st) revival of the show started out in 1996 as a concert production for the New York City Center?Encores series (starring Bebe Neuwirth, Ann Reinking, James Naughton, and the legendary Joel Grey). Because the production got critical success, producers Barry Weissler and Fran Weissler brought the production and transferred it to Broadway. It first started out at the Richard Rodgers Theatre (where the original production previously was) before transferring twice to the Shubert Theatre (a few months after it opened) and then to it’s “still up & running” home at the Ambassador Theatre (in 2003). The revival was nominated for 8 Tony Awards in 1997 winning 6 including Best Revival Of A Musical. In 2014, it surpassed the original production of Cats the Musical (which played 7,485 performance) and currently holds the distinction as the 2nd Longest Running Show in Broadway History. The revival is well known for having a huge lineup of celebrities having their attempts on doing Broadway and Musical Theatre. It continues to play to packed houses (On Broadway and Around The World) every night. So far on Broadway, it has played over 8,100 performances. This year, the revival will be celebrating it’s spectacular 20th Anniversary.
LEAPIN’ LIZARDS BROADWAY FANS! It’s only 17 days away from Broadway’s biggest night of the year and we are waking you each morning with our Top 30 Tony Awards. Are you guys ready for more showtunes and incredible Tony performances?
Today at #17 on our countdown is a fan favorite and the musical that every little girl grows up dreaming of being in. We are of course talking about everyone’s favorite little red head orphan Annie The Musical. It was written by Charles Strouse (music), Martin Charnin (Lyrics), and Thomas Meehan (Book) and based on off Harold Gray’s comic strip LITTLE ORPHAN ANNIE.
From the 1977 telecast, Andrea McArdle, the late Dorothy Loudon, and the original cast perform a medley of some of the show’s most beloved songs including TOMORROW, YOU’RE NEVER FULLY DRESSED WITHOUT A SMILE, EASY STREET, & a reprise of TOMORROW.
ANNIE originally premiered at Goodspeed Opera House in Connecticut in 1976 before transferring to Broadway’s Alvin Theatre (currently the Neil Simon Theatre) in 1977 and later transferred to 3 other Broadway houses (The ANTA Playhouse (now the August Wilson Theatre), the Eugene O’Neill Theatre, and the Uris Theatre (now the Gershwin Theatre)) during it’s run of 2,377 performances. It was nominated for 10 Tonys that year and won 7 including Best Musical) ANNIE was later revived twice.. The first revival happened in 1997 (in honor of the 20th Anniversary of the show) at the Martin Beck Theatre (now the Al Hirschfeld Theatre) for 253 performances. That first revival was nominated and lost it’s only Tony nomination that year as Best Revival of a Musical. The most recent revival in 2013 played Broadway’s Palace Theatre for 525 performances. It was nominated for 2 Tonys that year and also lost both it’s categories including Best Revival of a Musical playing 525 performances.
FUN FACT: ANNIE was known for having some casting drama of the lead role during both it’s original premiere and the first revival. Following the out of the town tryout in CT, Kristen Vigard was originally cast as Annie but was randomly fired before they hit NYC because the producers decided that her genuinely sweet interpretation was not tough enough for the street-smart orphan. Vigard was replaced by Andrea McArdle (who previously played one of Annie’s fellow Orphan friends Pepper) and critics were blown away and became an overnight sensation.
For the 20th Anniversary revival of ANNIE in 1997, the show originally did a pre-Broadway tour with Joanna Pacitti (who won the title role in a Macy’sAuditioning Contest). During a tour stop engagement in Boston (2 WEEKS BEFORE THEY HIT BROADWAY), she had a nasty case of bronchitis and…. got fired when she returned!!! She was replaced by Brittany Kissinger (who made history as the youngest girl to play Annie only at 8 years old). Kissinger previously appeared as an orphan and understudied Annie mainly on the tour. Within days of her dismissal, Joanna Pacittii’s firing made the headlines and everyone was all on her side. In addition, her family hired a lawyer and they sued the producers closer to $10-20 million.
Isn’t ANNIE such so popular? Who hear has kids that sing TOMORROW non stop?
RISE & SHINE BROADWAY FANS. The biggest night of year for Theatre nerds is only 18 days away. We are waking you up once again with our Top 30 Tony Awards countdown playing you the best performances from the past telecasts.
Continuing our countdown at #18 is one of the most iconic, haunting, and dark musicals of all time. It all begins with the sound of a screechy factory whistle… We of course are talking about Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler famous tale of Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.
From the 1979 telecast, the legendary Tony winners Dame Angela Lansbury laments about working in her pie shopping baking and selling THE WORST PIES IN LONDON.
SWEENEY TODD premiered in 1979 at Broadway’s Uris Theatre (currently the Gershwin Theatre) with Lansbury and Tony winner Len Cariou for 557 performances. It was nominated for 9 Tonys that same year and winning 8 (including Best Musical). The musical would later be revived twice. The first revival began in 1989 at Circle in the Square Theatre starring Bob Gunton and Beth Fowler for 238 performances. In addition, it was nominated for 4 Tonys that same year (including Best Revival Of A Musical) but lost all of it’s categories.The most recent revival happened in 2005 at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre for 384 performances starring 2 time Tony winners Patti LuPone?and Michael Ceveris. This production was known for it’s intimate staging where the pit was removed and instead had the actors also serve as the orchestra playing the score live. That production was nominated for 6 Tonys in 2006 winning 2 including Best Director (for John Doyle, who is nominated again this year for The Color Purple Musical).
Doesn’t this musical give you thrills and horror?!!
