Month: August 2009

What’s My Line – Angela Lansbury

Thanks to the Game Show Network, I discovered a lot of old 50s game shows when I was living the life of a night owl at college. However, the one that I always found myself really fascinated with was “What’s My Line,” where a four person panel had to guess the occupation of ordinary folks. The regulars on the show were columnist Dorothy Kilgallen, TV and stage personality Arlene Francis (who brought warmth and charm to the entire series) and publisher Bennett Cerf. Many other stars made guest appearances on the panel, but these three were the mainstays for most of the original run. The host was John Charles Daly (no relation) who moderated all questions.

The special gimmick each week was to have a mystery guest appear on the show. The panelists would be blindfolded and they would have to guess which star was in their midst. Based in NY, the panelists and guests ran the gamut from A-list movie stars to noted politicians and diplomats – practically everyone you could think of appeared on the show during its run, including Eleanor Roosevelt.

For each question wrong, the guest would receive $5, with a limit at $50. For celebrities, their winnings would go to charity. I have to warn you, it’s very easy to get swept up in watching these clips. Sometimes I find myself spending an hour going from one segment to another – just so addicting and a show that I think could still work today, if any daring TV producer decided to revive it.

Anyway, while Angela Lansbury was appearing on Broadway in Mame, she made an appearance as the weekly mystery challenger. Enjoy.

Quote of the Day: Rude Audience Edition

“But rudeness, in my worldview, is not a small crime. When a phone ring rips everyone’s attention from the illusion that has been carefully created in a theater, that’s a kind of violence. When rapt darkness is shattered by the light of one iPhone, I find myself dreaming of mob rule. It is impossible to imagine how jarring this oblivious multi-tasking must be to performers, who, we should remember, see and hear everything in the house.”

-Linda Winer, “Rude Behavior Plagues New York theater,” Newsday

Thinking of Beverly Sills

I didn’t discover Beverly Sills until the last months of her life. I was aware of the American icon through “Live from Lincoln Center” telecasts which she hosted with her trademark down-to-earth amiability and charm, but wasn’t familiar with her actual artistic abilities. The night she hosted The Light in the Piazza, I was there, but while I could see the television lighting for her in the wings at the Beaumont, I never got a glimpse of the great diva herself. It wasn’t until her death in 2007 that I really discovered her greatness thanks to YouTube. I realized while introducing a friend to her with some clips, that I never wrote about Ms. Sills.

Sills was one of the foremost American opera singers, and was a formidable presence in bridging the cultural gap between the world of opera and mainstream entertainment. Her personality made her a popular guest on television shows, including “The Carol Burnett Show” and a famed appearance with Danny Kaye. She was a frequent guest on “The Tonight Show,” and is in fact the only opera singer to have ever guest-hosted in Johnny Carson’s absence. Months before her death, she appeared on “The View” serving as guest co-host during Best Friends week (she and Barbara Walters were especially close).

Her contribution to the arts transcended her professional singing career. When she retired from performing in 1980, she became the General Director of the NYCO, a position she held until 1989. In 1994, she became the Chairman of Lincoln Center. In 2002, she took reigns as the Chairman of the Metropolitan Opera, a position from which she resigned in 2005 due to the declining health of her husband. She raised millions of dollars for the organizations and was as much a staple at Lincoln Center as the fountain in the plaza.

Sills’ battle with cancer made headlines in NY, and as the news became increasingly grim her fans prepared for the worst. When Beverly Sills died of cancer on July 2, 2007, she was fondly remembered for her immense contribution to the world of opera and to the arts in general. Her photo and obituary appeared on the front page of the NY Times the following day and the lights at Lincoln Center were dimmed in her honor. A memorial service was held on September 16 of that year, with performances from Placido Domingo, Anna Netrebko, Natalie Dessay and Nathan Gunn. Speakers at the event included Henry Kissinger, Barbara Walters and Carol Burnett. Other memorial events continued throughout the fall of that year, especially at the NYCO.

Beverly Sills left behind an indelible legacy of talent, arts advocacy and set an example of what it truly means to be a diva. Here are some of my personal favorite clips of the star:

“Una Voce Poco Fa” from Il Barbiere di Siviglia from a 1976 telecast:

Here is “All the Things You Are” from 1973:

A television appearance with Danny Kaye:

And finally, my all time favorite. Here is Ms. Sills appearing on “The Muppet Show” in the debut performance of the new opera Pigoletto.

Neil Simon revivals in rep this fall

If you missed the chance to take in a day of The Norman Conquests, you’ll be able to experience another special event this fall when two of Neil Simon’s most popular plays of the 1980s are revived in repertory this fall at the Nederlander Theatre. There will be opportunities to take in both shows in one day after both shows are up and running.

Tickets go on sale on Friday, August 7 for The Neil Simon Plays, new productions of Brighton Beach Memoirs and Broadway Bound. Specially priced preview tickets for $50-$35 (not including Saturday evening performances) will be available for both plays if ordered by September 6. Regular priced tickets are $100-$65. Tickets will be available at www.Ticketmaster.com.

The first Broadway revivals of two of Simon’s beloved semi-autobiographical “Eugene Jerome” plays will be directed by David Cromer (Our Town) and will play the beautifully restored Nederlander Theatre (208 West 41st Street).

Brighton Beach Memoirs begins previews on Friday, October 2 and opens on Sunday, October 25. Broadway Bound begins previews on Wednesday, November 18 and opens Thursday, December 10. Starting on November 18, the two plays will be performed in repertory on a varied schedule.

Brighton Beach Memoirs and Broadway Bound were two of the longest running Broadway plays of the 1980s. The works ushered in a new era of appreciation for Neil Simon, with praise for the playwright’s hilarious and poignant account of his adolescence, early career and family life in New York in the 1930s and 1940s.

Brighton Beach Memoirs originally opened on March 27, 1983 at the Alvin Theatre and played for 1,299 performances. (During the run of Brighton Beach Memoirs, the Alvin Theatre was renamed The Neil Simon Theatre). Broadway Bound opened on December 4, 1986 at the Broadhurst Theatre, where it played for 756 performances.

Brighton Beach Memoirs stars Laurie Metcalf (Kate Jerome) and Dennis Boutsikaris (Jack Jerome) with Santino Fontana (Stanley Jerome), Jessica Hecht (Blanche), Gracie Bea Lawrence (Laurie), Noah Robbins (Eugene Jerome) and Alexandra Socha (Nora).

Broadway Bound stars Laurie Metcalf (Kate Jerome) and Dennis Boutsikaris (Jack Jerome) with Santino Fontana (Stanley Jerome), Jessica Hecht (Blanche), Josh Grisetti (Eugene Jerome) and Allan Miller (Ben).

Brighton Beach Memoirs centers on young Jewish teen Eugene Morris Jerome and his extended family living in a crowded home in the Brighton Beach section of Brooklyn in 1937: his overworked father, Jack; overbearing mother, Kate; his older brother Stanley; Kate’s widowed sister Blanche and her daughters, Nora and Laurie. As Eugene spends his time daydreaming about a baseball career, he must also cope with his family’s troubles, his awkward discovery of the opposite sex and his developing identity as a writer.

In Broadway Bound, it’s the late 1940s and Eugene and Stanley have started their careers as professional comedy writers. But when the brothers use their home life in Brighton Beach as inspiration for a radio comedy skit, the Jerome family may never be the same.

Scenic design is by John Lee Beatty, costume design is by Jane Greenwood, lighting design is by Brian MacDevitt and sound design is by Josh Schmidt and Fitz Patton. Hair and wig design is by Tom Watson.

The Neil Simon Plays will be produced by Ira Pittelman, Max Cooper, Jeffrey Sine, Scott Delman, Ruth Hendel, Roy Furman, Ben Sprecher/Wendy Federman, Scott Landis and Emanuel Azenberg.

Rehearsals will begin in New York on Monday, August 24.

Prices are $50-$35 for each individual play for tickets ordered by September 6. Regular pricing will be $100-$65.

The Neil Simon Plays will be performed in repertory on a varied schedule. Tickets are available at www.TicketMaster.com or 212-307-4100. The Nederlander Theatre box office will open on August 31st.

The Mystery of Patricia Neway, An Update

Back on July 7, I discussed the whereabouts of Tony-winner Patricia Neway. Conflicting circumstantial information led me to post, calling on our musical and opera sleuths to get to the bottom of the situation. If you recall, information on several websites indicated that her name was actually Frances Breeze, and she retired from performing to teach voice in a university in Virginia, ultimately passing away in 2003.

Well, this comment posted today informed me:

“[Famed American contralto] Florence Kopleff reported to me that she spoke by telephone with Patricia Neway on 8/5/09. Miss Neway is living at home in Vermont. She is disabled by arthritis to the extent that she requires full-time assistance, but is otherwise well and alert.”

So there you have it.

Quote of the Day

Who needs Burn the Floor when Broadway has Angela Lansbury?

“Although it was lacking true star power, the first-night crowd seemed to have more choreographers than you could shake a baton at. If a bomb had fallen on the Longacre, what a boon for Angela Lansbury! She “choreographed” her own trance-dance in Blithe Spirit — and, she said disparagingly, “did it nightly.”

– Harry Haun, Playbill on Opening Night: Burn the Floor

Gwen Verdon – "Walk It Out"

Someone with a lot of time on their hands realized that a vintage clip of Gwen Verdon dancing to “Mexican Breakfast” on 1960s TV synced up with the rapper Unk’s single “Walk It Out.” Reading the commentary, people are discussing how Beyonce emulated these steps. Homage or thief? You decide…

Here’s the original:

Here’s the remixed video: