To the list of larger-than-life, survivalist women in musical theater, add Tamara de Lempicka " but with an asterisk. The name of the Polish-born portraitist who died in 1980 might not be fa…
According to theater lore, it was Elizabeth I who demanded Shakespeare write another play about Falstaff, which, allegedly, is why he wrote "The Merry Wives of Windsor." The Queen might have…
Tough guys with a soft side have long held a firm grip on the American imagination. S.E. Hinton's novel "The Outsiders," about a cadre of down-and-out boys, has been read by millions of rest…
No one, wisely, has turned "A Long Day's Journey Into Night" into an opera " not least because, arguably, Eugene O'Neill's most famous play already is one. It features extended solo arias mi…
The Tony-winning Broadway icon Bernadette Peters has long been considered one of the foremost performers of composer Stephen Sondheim's work. But as Peters revealed in the latest episode of …
There are two kinds of people in this world: Those that love bone-shaking, ear-splitting spectacles, like fireworks and arena-sized heavy metal concerts, and those who want nothing more than…
At the start of the second half of Ivo Van Hove's production of his own musical version of John Cassavetes' ultra-Seventies backstager "Opening Night" " with music and lyrics by Rufus Wainwr…
Ever feel like running away from home to join a musical? Then "Water for Elephants" would be the show of choice that offers escapism, enchantment and heart " and thrills, too. Based on Sa…
Juliana Canfield didn't mean to lie when she was auditioning for the play "Stereophonic" " it just accidentally happened. Listen to this week's "Stagecraft" podcast below: The actor, w…
Musical theater can be a sucker for a romantic tale, whether it's about obsessive devotion, idealized passion, or lost loves. "The Notebook," based on Nicholas Sparks' bestselling, 1996 debu…
Even if you don't know "The Notebook," you know there's a romantic couple at the heart of the story. But in the new Broadway musical adaptation of "The Notebook," there's not just one couple…
A cohort of producers, including Ben Holtzman, Thomas Laub, Sammy Lopez, Greg Nobile, Alyah Chanelle Scott, Heather Shields and Rachel Sussman, discuss their vision for Broadway.
What's a theater influencer and how do you become one? On the latest episode of "Stagecraft," Variety's theater podcast, Kristin Hopkins and Ashley Hufford, two influencers with strong socia…
Oscar Wilde himself sat in the Royal Box in the West End's beautifully gilded Theatre Royal Haymarket in the 1890s for the premieres of his comedies "A Woman of No Importance" and "An Ideal …
Enraged by the British government charging the standard 15% sales tax on tickets for Live Aid, Bob Geldof (Craige Els) bullies his way into a meeting with Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher (s…
The creators of "Illinoise," the new stage show inspired by the 2005 Sufjan Stevens album "Illinois," are the first to admit that the production isn't a musical in the most traditional sense…
When Sterlin Harjo, the co-creator of "Reservation Dogs," started writing his first play with the other members of The 1491s, the sketch comedy troupe of which he was member, he and the grou…
At first blush, the three-hour runtime of "Prayer for the French Republic," playing at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre on Broadway, seems appropriate. Though it obviously does not exist speci…
Fresh off an early workshop of "The Light in the Piazza," the actress Kelli O'Hara had a passing thought: What if there was an ambitious musical adaptation of "Days of Wine and Roses," the 1…
"We need something a little theatrical." Boy, does excited Bob Newby (Christopher Buckley) get his wish. He's trying to solve a staging problem in "The Dark of the Moon," the school play he …
For a long time the 1998 animated film "The Prince of Egypt" didn't have an official stage adaptation. But that didn't stop fans from putting on live versions of the musical anyway"as Stephe…
Going (or not going) to the big dance has been an irresistible storyline for musicals from "Oklahoma!" to "The Prom." The set-up inherently inspires social stress, romantic anxiety, comic po…
Sara Bareilles has always spoken openly about the fact that her work on the musical "Waitress" changed her life. "My life is in two categories: It's before and after 'Waitress,'" she said on…
While the cast of the new Broadway production of "Spamalot" is cracking up audiences, they're all trying their best not to crack up as well. Listen to this week's "Stagecraft" podcast …
It may be appropriate for a musical with "spam" in the title to feel canned. But it's a shame that the first Broadway revival of "Monty Python's Spamalot," now playing at the St. James Theat…