Ariana DeBose will once again be the face of Broadway, when she returns for the third time as host of the Tony Awards. The Oscar-winning actress of “West Side Story” and six-time Broadway veteran will also serve as a producer and choreograph the opening number of the 77th annual Tony Awards, which will take place at Lincoln Center’s David H Koch Theater on June 16.
At this moment at the beginning of April, that seems a long way off. “The Who’s Tommy,” which opened last week, was the last of the five Broadway shows in the busy month of March (Recall the month with the quiz below.) Now we need to get through the fourteen Broadway shows opening in April, finishing up on the last day of eligibility, April 25th, with the Tony nominees then announced on April 30th.
And Broadway is only one element in theater’s April showers:
April 2024 theater openings
New York Theater Quiz March 2024
The Week in New York Theater Reviews
Given rock’s ascendancy on the Rialto over the years…it would be hard to argue that “Tommy” stands out as a different kind of musical. But in the new production, [its songs] have lost none of their appeal. This is not just because of their catchy melodies. When Tommy sings “See me, feel me, touch me, heal me,” the song suggests that the rock opera radiates genuine feeling beneath its loud, busy, oft-impenetrable surface. Full review
Shanley’s skill and charm are detectable in some delectable moments, even though as a whole this 75-minute one-act is not as fulfilling a story of a middle aged love against the odds as, say, Terrence McNally’s “Frankie and Johnny at the Clair de Lune” Full review
Elmer J. McCurdy was killed in a shoot-out with sheriff’s deputies in Oklahoma in 1911, but took 66 years to be buried, his mummified remains having been exhibited all that time by a series of macabre showmen…Composer David Yazbek, librettist Itamar Moses, and director David Cromer are not merely a higher caliber of macabre showmen; they are the team behind “The Band’s Visit,” and their talent is reflected in some of the cleverer musical numbers in their latest show, backed by a busy ensemble and a felicitous folk-rock band. But this self-conscious slice of Americana winds up almost as creepy as clever, and less resonant than it might intend. Full review
The Week in New York Theater News
“Stereophonic” has announced they’re starting previews a day early — April 2nd — and ALL tickets to that performance will be $40.
Two new lotteries announced:
Cabaret $25
Hell’s Kitchen $39
Check out my Broadway Rush and Lottery for Spring 2024 Shows
Stephen Sondheim’s “A Little Night Music In Concert,” with new orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick for a 53-piece orchestra, will play Lincoln Center’s David Geffen Hall June 27-29, with a starry cast including Cynthia Erivo, Marsha Mason and Ruthie Ann Miles
Papermill Playhouse 2024–2025 season features two new musicals based on movies in the Spring. Mystic Pizza, a new musical based on 1988 movie; Take The Lead, a new musical based on 2006 movie, Other shows planned: Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Jersey Boys, and Irving Berlin’s White Christmas
Advice from six newly trained theater critics (American Theatre)
In Memoriam
“The only time I felt free was ..in front of a camera or on the stage; that’s when I flew” Louis Gossett Jr, 87, Oscar winner (An Officer and a Gentleman), Emmy winner (Roots), 10-time Broadway veteran who made his debut at age 17, as the lead in a play “Take a Giant Step”
