Monday, June 10, 2013
Christopher Durang, a celebrated playwright for more than 40 years, won his first Antoinette Perry statuette for 'Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike.'
Northern New Jersey was represented at Sunday night's glittery Tony Awards ceremony at Radio City Music Hall in New York City in the form of award-winning playwright Christopher Durang. The Montclair-born, Berkeley Heights-raised Durang, 64, saw his "Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike" take away the Antoinette Perry statue for Best Play of the 2013 Tony season. The play was commissioned by the McCarter Theater of Princeton, NJ.com reported, and featured a cast starring Sigourney Weaver and David Hyde Pierce. Durang is no stranger to winning awards for his work. He's the acclaimed scribe behind theatrical on- and off-Broadway classics including "Beyond Therapy," "Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All For You, "The Actor's Nightmare" and "A …
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
South Orange's David Josefsberg wins kudos at Paper Mill
New Jersey loves its sopranos, but for the next few weeks, tenors are the dominant class in the northern area codes. And theater fans from Cape May to Cliffside Park will want to share the mayhem and merriment at Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn. No doubt the majority of regular theatergoers have seen at least one production of “Lend Me a Tenor,” a door-slamming farce that has been a staple of professional and community theaters since its debut in 1986 on London’s West End. It debuted on Broadway in 1989, where it earned nine Tony nominations (winning two), and was revived there in 2010. Playwright Ken Ludwig, who has seen his comic hit translated into 16 languages, attended Sunday’s press opening at Paper Mill and shared a standing …
Monday, February 11, 2013
The Millburn playhouse was voted the best theater in New Jersey to see a musical.
Theater-goers have voted, and the Paper Mill Playhouse was picked as a favorite in New Jersey by a landslide. In the Fifth-Annual JerseyArts.com People's Choice Awards, the Millburn theater was voted New Jersey's Favorite Theater to See a Musical, garnering 3,122 votes out of a possible 4,200 public votes cast. "Paper Mill Playhouse is both humbled and honored to receive the 2012 People's Choice Award for Favorite Place to see a Musical," Paper Mill Playhouse Managing Director Todd Schmidt said. "These awards are a gift from the audiences and students we serve throughout the state of New Jersey." In the last few years Paper Mill has produced some of the most successful musicals, having the 25th Anniversary of 'Les Misérables' produced at …
Friday, January 25, 2013
Nikkole Salter talks with the Bloomfield Patch about her upcoming play “Carnaval,” an explicit play about the consequences of sexual tourism.
Bloomfield playwright Nikkole Salter will have have her second play, “Carnaval,” produced at Luna Stage in West Orange beginning at the end of January. Salter is coming off her first critically acclaimed coauthored play, “In the Continuum,” which was written in 2005. The Off-Broadway production lasted about five months, and it was also produced overseas. Salter has also appeared in the feature film “Pride & Glory," and received various accolades and nominations. Her most recent written work, “Carnaval”, was selected to be a part of The New Black Fest 2011-2012 season. About the Play, “Carnaval” A year ago in Brooklyn, two young men mourned the untimely loss of their best friend. In his honor they decided then and there that, despite …
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Enjoyable revival sets festive tone for the holidays
Despite its utter lack of thematic connection to the holiday season, “The Sound of Music” always feels like a good fit when the sleigh bells start to ring. Paper Mill Playhouse scored a hit with this beloved family musical in 2003, when it closed on Dec. 14. This year, it is back with full billing as a limited holiday engagement, which will extend to Dec. 30. James Brennan, who directed the 2003 revival, is back with an all new cast and a more attractive and three-dimensional set. No need to rank which production was better because what we have, here and now, is a perfectly timed tribute to the magic of live theater and a worthy successor to the legacy of the final triumph authored by Rodgers and Hammerstein. The cast, too, shines …
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Opening night is Oct. 20.
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Thursday, October 11, 2012
Montclair's Unitarian Universalist Congregation theater group is delighted to present "Almost, Maine," by John Cariani, opening Oct. 20 at 8 p.m. at the congregation's church, 67 Church St. Additional performances will be on Oct. 27 at 8 p.m., and Oct. 21 and Oct. 28 at 3 p.m. in the same location. Tickets will be available at the door. The suggested donation is $10. Overview of the play: On a cold, clear, moonless night in the middle of winter, all is not quite what it seems in the remote, mythical town of Almost, Maine. As the Northern Lights hover in the star-filled sky above, Almost's residents find themselves falling in and out of love in unexpected and often hilarious ways. Knees are bruised, hearts are broken, but the bruises heal …
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Cast, alumni of "A Chorus Line" pay tribute to Marvin Hamlisch on opening night at Millburn's playhouse.
The bright lights of prime-time show business stretched from downtown Millburn all the way to Brookside Drive Sunday night, where Paper Mill Playhouse premiered its 2012-13 season in grand style. Following the press opening of its splashy revival of “A Chorus Line,” about 50 former cast members from the legendary Broadway production joined the current cast onstage for a tribute to the late Marvin Hamlisch. Hamlisch, who wrote the musical’s memorable score, died in August. In addition to a high-kicking reprise of “One,” the capacity crowd was treated to some moving personal tributes, including a speech from Mitzi Hamilton, who inspired one of the show’s characters and is directing “A Chorus Line” here, as she has done some three dozen …
