Broadway Things That Make Me Happy: July Edition

IT COULD BE WORSE SEASON 2 STARTS TOMORROW!
Love, love, loved Season 1!!!  Can't wait to see what happens to Jacob (Wesley Taylor), Ben (Adam Chanler-Berat) and Sam (Mitchell Jarvis) when they head to L.A.!  Check out the amazing cast list at itcouldbeworse.tv !  You'll be able to see it on Hulu and Hulu Plus starting July 17.

BROADWAY BARKS WAS A BIG SUCCESS!
I love it when the Broadway community comes together for a great cause.  And they've been doing so for 16 years for Broadway Barks, founded by Bernadette Peters and Mary Tyler Moore!  This year, the stars were out in full force, including James Franco, Bebe Neuwirth and cast members from If/Then, Beautiful, Rocky and many more.

If/Then's James Snyder and Jen Colella and 2 cute friends!

BROADWAY FAVORITES IN THE ADDAMS FAMILY
And I love it when my favorites performers get to show off their talents all over the country, too!  How lucky the people of St. Louis are to see Rob McClure, Jenny Powers and Jen Cody at the MUNY in The Addams Family.  Can't to see McClure in Honeymoon in Vegas!

BOX OFFICE SUCCESS!
With shows dropping like flies these days, it is great to hear that many shows are thriving!  The Tonys sure gave a boost to the Best Musical A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder - it's doing SRO business!  Beautiful is packing 'em in, and Hedwig and the Angry Inch made back its investment!

YOU ARE THE BEST READERS!
Just yesterday, I posted my dream cast for DEXTER:The Musical, and already, you've sent in a TON of casting suggestions.  Read that blog HERE.  He:re are some of my favorite suggestions:

Tim S. wrote: "How about an older Dexter, Debra and Rita than you suggested? Norbert Leo Butz, Jenn Colella and Kate Baldwin!"  I think Jenn would be great, too, Tim!

nooziefloozie wrote: "You left out Doakes!  How about Bryan Terrell Clark from Motown?  And there has to be room for Andrew Keenan-Bolger!"  Oops! How could I have forgotten Doakes?  Nice work, noozie!  (Love your screen name!)

Kara H. wrote: "You have Jeremy Jordan and not Laura Osnes??"  Kara, for which part? Debra or Rita? I can only imagine Laura with Debra's potty mouth!

Like minds came together, too. 3 of you suggested Neil Patrick Harris and Lena Hall as Dexter and Debra!

Keep sending in your ideas!

Jeff
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Broadway Things That Make Me Happy: June Edition (Mildly NSFW)

June is one of my favorite Broadway months!  Not only does June have The Tony Awards, but it is also Broadway Bares time!

Some of the Tony Nominees!
I love these pictures... the camaraderie , the joy, all winners, no losers!

Tony nominees for a good cause!
With the recent Tony Awards rulings, I could easily make this a "Broadway Things That Make Me Mad" rant, but I'm not going there.  Instead here's a fun pre-Tonys video, combining two of my favorite things: a worthwhile charity AND Broadway Stars.  The charity: Jesse Tyler Ferguson's Tie the Knot (bow ties for Marriage Equality).  The stars: Sutton, Audra, James Monroe, Celia (and brother Andrew), LAURA BENANTI and others... It's funny and a great cause!

Broadway Bares: Rock Hard Strip-a-Thon!
Speaking of charity and stars... as Broadway Bares gets ready for its Rock Hard edition this upcoming Sunday (June 22), it's always fun to see how the community raises extra funds via a Strip-a-Thon.  (It's not too late to donate... click HERE.)  Pippin's hot bad boy, Erik Altemus, Tweeted a strip of his own to raise his goal of $5,000.  Here's what he did... and he made his goal, too!  Way to go, Erik!

How He Got the Ball Rolling...

$3,000.00!

$4,000.00

GOAL! $5,000.00 and growing...

Phantom updated!
Gotta give credit where credit is due... it is super nice to see that The Phantom of the Opera has finally gotten its first African-American Broadway Phantom, Norm Lewis (and his Christine, Sierra Boggess, ain't too shabby, either)!  And they's got a really cool new sign outside the Majestic - a picture made up of pictures.  I can't wait to see it in person!

What Broadway things make you happy?  Share with me! Tweet or email or leave a comment!

Jeff
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More Broadway Things That Make Me Happy - May Edition 2 (Some NSFW)

THINGS TO LOOK FORWARD TO LATER THIS YEAR

Alexander Sharp

These are the days when fall shows start announcing casts!  And I am already super excited for  The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, especially now that it looks like we'll be seeing a real star in the making, with Julliard alum Alexander Sharp making his debut in the leading role.  (And his alternate is the always terrific Taylor Trensch! Win-Win!

Johnson, Yazbeck, Alves

And who can't get excited for the three sailors on shore leave in On the Town when they are Clyde Alves, Tony Yazbeck and Jay Armstrong Johnson?!  Win-Win-Win!

THINGS TO FORGET BUT IN A REALLY COOL WAY

Those amazing folks over at Pippin have come up with a cool short/commercial that embraces adversity - the epic horror that was this past winter.  Magic to do, indeed!

And this just makes me smile...

(THIS IS THE NSFW PART...)
THINGS TO ENJOY LIKE AN APPETIZER BEFORE A GREAT MEAL!

Broadway Bares: Rock Hard is coming soon!  But to get us in the mood, this Mother's Day, Broadway Bares held another edition of Solo Strips.  I think these pictures (from Broadway Cares) say it all!

TOP and BOTTOM: Callan Bergmann, Joshua Michael Bergmann and Vince Oddo

Can't wait to see Broadway Bares: Rock Hard!

Jeff
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Broadway Things That Make Me Happy - May Edition

While the Broadway community continues to hold its collective breath waiting for all the award winning to begin, there are plenty of things to keep us fans happy!  Here are three of them:

Celia Keenan-Bolger Wins The Dorothy Loudon Award for Excellence in Theater!

She was truly amazing as Laura in The Glass Menagerie, wasn't she?

Neil Patrick Harris is a cover boy once again!

This time, he (and his truly amazing bod) is on the cover of Rolling Stone, being a great ambassador for all things Broadway!  Plus, as a guy in his forties, he is a role model for other guys (like me) who are in their forties!

A Gentleman's Guide is really "Happy"!

I just love these videos!  And the song actually makes me happy!

Happy Mother's Day!
Jeff
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Broadway Things That Make Me Happy - April Edition

So, April isn't even a full 3 days old yet, and I am already really Broadway HAPPY!  (If things keep going like this, there might be one of these each week!  OK... nobody's that happy.  But I digress...)

BROADWAY IN THE AIR

Why can't I ever get one of these flights?  Seems the Australian cast of The Lion King was really feeling it, and burst into an a cappella rendition of "Circle of Life."  Can you imagine the flight attendants' reaction when Rafiki got the party started?

AWESOME REPLACEMENT CAST PICS

I will simply state that the fact that Kyle Dean Massey exists makes me happy.  That he (and that amazing up-and-comer Ciara Renee) are in one of my favorite shows, Pippin, is a great bonus...

Kyle Dean Massey
as Pippin

Ciara Renee as
The Leading Player

 Here they are in action...

And any pic with Erik Altemus and
Charlotte d'Amboise bears posting!

HAPPINESS IS A BROADWAY TRADITION

I love the whole idea of the Gypsy Robe Ceremony... the whole tradition.  Ever see one up close?  There's one on display in that Times Square rest station (?).  I am digressing again... But the newest recipient is one of my favorite Broadway boys ever: If/Then's Curtis Holbrook.  Yay!

(Left) Hottie Happiness

(Right) Let It Go, Idina!

(ANOTHER) BROADWAY MILESTONE

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street is one of the greatest musicals at all time.  And if there were any doubt, it must truly be art since this week it caused controversy and it was given a rare honor.  The controversy came when a high school production of the show - even re-tooled for younger audiences by Stephen Sondheim himself - was cancelled "in the interest of the greater good." Don't get me started... And then the Original Broadway Cast Recording was named to The Library of Congress' National Recording Registry.   Go, Sweeney!

So much to be happy about...

Jeff

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Broadway Things That Make Me Happy February Edition (Mildly NSFW)

Like everyone else, I am really getting tired of this particular winter with its "polar vortex phenomena" and all.  That's saying a lot coming from a guy born and raised in the Adirondacks, where winter is what we live for.  Still cold and snow THIS much gets old.  So I am dedicating this month's Broadway happiness edition to things that, er, warm me up!

NEAR-NAKED BROADWAY FOLKS I: The Skivvies

File this one under "jealous of those of you who live IN NYC."  I think seeing The Skivvies (Lauren Molina and Nick Cearley) wherever they play would be so cool.  And seeing Nick Adams,Andrew Keenan-Bolger and Wesley Taylor (and, of course, Laura Benanti) in their undies live on stage would really make my night...

For more on The Skivvies click HERE. 

NEARLY-NAKED BROADWAY FOLKS II: TONY Spring 2014 Chorus Boys (and Girls)

Each spring and fall, Time Out New York posts its picks (and pics) of "The 10 Hottest Chorus Boys and Girls."  This spring's lists are particularly hot.  And I have to say I am looking forward to Aladdin, Bullets Over Broadway, Cabaret and Rocky even more... Here are a few from each list; see them all HERE.

From Aladdin

Mike Cannon

Tia Altinay

From Bullets Over Broadway

 Dan Horn

Beth Johnson Nicely

From Cabaret

 Evan D. Siegel

Jane Pfitsch

From Rocky

 Vince Corazza

Sasha Hutchings

PRE-PRODUCTION PHOTOS: Aladdin  AND The Cripple of Inishmaan

You all know I love show logos... but I also love pre-opening production shots.  Two shows that have really caught my eye recently in that department are Aladdin  and The Cripple of Inishmaan. Maybe it's because I've always had a thing for Aladdin and Daniel Radcliffe...

BITTERSWEET BROADWAY: The Closing of The Glass Menagerie

I think this image sums it all up... a creative triumph gone too soon.  Thanks to everyone involved.

Jeff
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