Pull out your HANDY DANDY NOTEBOOK and chill out in your THINKING CHAIR as Nickelodeon is bringing a revamped revival of the beloved children's series Blues Clues. Check out the new first look commercial that has just been revealed of the show now entitled BLUE'S CLUES AND YOU featuring its new host Broadway's very own Joshua Dela Cruz (Aladdin – The Musical). It is scheduled to air this November. Who is excited?
DID YOU KNOW: 2 time Tony Award nominee and Broadway sweetheart Laura Osnes met her longtime husband for the past 12 years acclaimed photographer (and occasional performer) Nathan Johnson during an interesting time in their life. They met performing in the Ensemble of a production of Disney's Aladdin at the Children's Theatre Company (a 2003 Tony winning Regional Theater Award recipient) in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Along with appearing in the Ensemble, Osnes and Johnson were also the understudies for both "Aladdin" and "Princess Jasmine". They slowly started knowing each other as friends in rehearsal and developed secret crushes on another. However, their romance began to bloom when they were forced to go on at an instant notice mid-show.
During the scene which "Aladdin" and "Jasmine" are being chased and escaping the guards of Agrabah, the initial 2 main performers playing the lead roles collided into each other, began to bleed, and were sent to the local hospital. The show was stopped for 20 minutes as both Osnes and Johnson found out they were going on together as "Aladdin and "Jasmine". As understudies, they had to squeeze into the costumes of the injured performers (yup, no special costumes if they went on were made for them). However, it was during that iconic romantic carpet ride that sparks began to fly and the 2 immediately fell in love.
The dynamic husband and wife were married in 2007. At the time, Osnes was competing and won the starring role of "Sandy" in the recent Broadway revival of Grease thanks to America's vote on the NBC reality casting show GREASE: YOU'RE THE ONE THAT I WANT.
How stunning and romantic are Laura and Nathan together?!!
Following finishing the ACT 3 Walking Tour, Michael went over to Schmackary's to help raise money for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS with their annual BROADWAY BAKES event which launched today.
HELLO THERE BROADWAY FANS! We are just 13 DAYS AWAY till Broadway's biggest night of the year, the 73rd Annual Tony Awards. To keep ourselves warmed up and entertained, we are waking you up each morning some of Broadway's Greatest hits on our TOP 40 TONY AWARDS COUNTDOWN. Here comes another Broadway toe-tapper! . At # 13 on our countdown, we travel back in time to New York City in 1959 where 2 sleazy Broadway producers try to make money by putting on the worst possible show ever in Broadway history. This is of course the madcap musical comedy The Producers. The show features a score by Mel Brooks along with a book by Brooks and Thomas Meehan. It's based on Brooks' 1968 film of the same name.
From the 2001 telecast, Tony winners Nathan Lane as "Max Bialystok", Matthew Broderick as "Leo Bloom", Cady Huffman as "Ulla", the late Gary Beach as "Roger De Bris", and Roger Bart as "Carmen Ghia", along with Tony nominee Brad Oscar as "Franz Liepkind", and members of the original cast gear up for the long awaited opening night of the show that is trying to be a great big Broadway flop SPRINGTIME FOR HITLER in the musical's Act 1 finale number ALONG CAME BIALY.
THE PRODUCRS was first conceived as a stage musical in 1999. Years following the success of the original 1968 film, Mel Brooks was recommended by David Geffen 1999 that he should write a full musical version of his own film. His original collaborator was originally going to be Tony winner Jerry Herman. However, he denied and encouraged Brooks' to do the score himself since he was an amazing songwriter (plus he wrote the film's signature tune SPRINGTIME FOR HITLER which is the film's iconic song and of course is a showstopper in the musical). He also got Thomas Meehan to help expand the story. In addition, husband and wife directing/choreographing duo Mike Ockrent and Susan Stroman came on board as well. However, Ockrent unexpectedly died in 1999 which Stroman continued to take on full leadership and director and choreographer by herself. The musical took 2 years to develop.
Following a triumphant world premiere tryout in Chicago, the officially opened on the Great White Way in 2001 at the St. James Theatre for an incredible run of 2,502 performances on Broadway. Under the direction of Susan Stroman, the cast starred…
Brad Oscar (later Jim Borstellmann, John Treacy Egan, Peter Samuel, and Bill Nolte) as "Franz Liepkind",
and more.
The show grossed more than $3 million following it's opening night. Lines for standing room and tickets would go all the way around the corner (literally like what Hamilton, Dear Evan Hansen, and Hadestown is like today). However, when Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick departed, the ticket sales started to go down. However, both actors returned to the show in 2004 for a limited 5 month engagement.
THE PRODUCERS was nominated for a recording breaking 15 Tony Awards that very same year. It went on to win a recording breaking 12 including Best Musical.
Following it's Broadway run, the show went on to be a worldwide hit in London's West End, across America, and around the world. Plus, productions of the show are still happening today in schools, community, and regional theatres around the world.
Following the success of the musical, a 2005 film remake (featuring the songs from the Broadway show) was made reuniting the whole original creative team majority of the original cast (including Lane and Broderick) However, the only 2 major cast changes that were in the film only. With Stroman recreating her direction and staging on film, the cast starred…
Tony winners Nathan Lane reprising his Broadway performance as "Max Bialystotck",
Matthew Broderick reprising his Broadway performance as "Leo Bloom",
