The adorable, best selling children’s book Freckleface Strawberry by actress Julianne Moore has been adapted into a 70-minute musical. The high-energy, family friendly hit can be seen at the off Broadway theater MMAC (Manhattan Movement and Arts Center), located at 248 West 60th Street.
Freckleface Strawberry the Musical has music and lyrics by Gary Kupper, book by Gary
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Maybe you live far away, or maybe real near by- but either way, you are definitely going to want to mark your calendars for the return of America’s sweetheart- Annie!
If you can believe it, as a lover of musicals and the theater in general- I have never seen Annie on Broadway. Well, maybe you can believe it. Annie opened in 1977, and closed it’s doors in 1983, which would have made me a tiny baby 🙂
Inspired by the famous comic strip Little Orphan Annie, this show will celebrate the 35th Anniversary of the show’s opening with a full revival.
In just about 270 days, Annie will be back on Broadway. You know I will be there- and so will my Little Man! He’s my Broadway Baby- and I hope that you bring your kids, too. It’s never too early to start exposing your children to the magic of the theater. (Start with the movie if they have never seen it- it’s a classic, they need to watch it anyway!) This feel-good show will be the one everyone is sure to be talking about.
In less then one year, ANNIE arrives on Broadway!? Check out the website, Facebook, and Twitter and keep yourself in the loop.
Fiddler on the Roof was all that it promised to be. This classic piece of theater was a pleasure to watch and was thoroughly enjoyed. The music of Jerry Bock’s and Sheldon Harnick’s lyrics, along with Joseph Stein’s book (based on “Tevye and his Daughters” by Sholem Aleichem) are joined together to create one of the most enduring and well known works of theater to date.
The leading character, milkman Tevye, struggles with himself, talks to God, and tries to deal with the changes in the world around him. A kind-hearted man, he wants to do well by those around him and be an honest person. Living in the Russian village of Anatevka with his wife and five daughters, Tevye (please read the rest of my article below)
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There is nothing quite like a modern day Socrates checking their status and quoting great works of days of old- an amazing way to start the classic show with a cult following, “Godspell”. When the first notes of “Prepare Ye the Way of the Lord” were sung- the audience was ready to dance along as well. I don’t think one can have a pulse and one want to dance when Godspell is preformed in front of you
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Saturday, February 25th, Symphony Space at 2537 Broadway at 95th Street, New York, NY, will be showing Recess Monkey. Specializing in indie rock for children, this Seattle Teacher trio makes their triumphant return to Symphony Space with their outlandishly fun recipe of high-energy pop and rock and roll. Their two performances sold out last year, impressing parents and kids with space age music and futuristic sounds.
Their latest superhero-inspired [Read more…]
Tomorrow we will be at the show, and are excited to tell you all about it.
Fiddler on the Roof is slated to show at the State Theater in New Brunswick February 17-18. Fiddler on the Roof has been entertaining audiences from the youngest ticket holders upwards for generations. Few shows have captivated audiences like Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick’s Fiddler on the Roof. Even modern pop culture shows such at “The Wonder Pets” have referenced this Broadway standard, exposing even the youngest of children.
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Last weekend, we had the opportunity to see Mary Poppins on Broadway, for it’s 5 year Anniversary. Not only that, but we were able to go backstage and check out some amazing props from other Disney shows, like The Lion King, The Little Mermaid, Tarzan, Aida, and Beauty and the Beast. OK, nerd alert? Totally have seen them all, with the exception of Tarzan, LOL. Aida is one of my all time favorite shows, ever-ever, and I nearly had a heart attack standing backstage.
Did I mention I was a total Broadway lover and geek? OK, well, so what? And I am raising one to boot! My son, age 4, loves the theater, and sits rapt through shows, then listens to the CDs and learns them by heart. This wonderful experience was not one either of us will be forgetting, especially since he got to touch the props themselves!
Disney Theatrical’s VP of Operations Dana Amendola gave us all a backstage tour, and told us a bit about the history of the New Amsterdam Theater- by the way, when you go, see if you can find the hidden Micky Mouse! LOL There is a ghost of one of the original Ziegfeld Follies stars, Olive Thomas who resides there and will only show herself to men. The cure for this phenomenon was to only hire female security guards, since Olive was scaring all the men off, LOL. There is also a “listening post”, where critics could be listened to during the intermission of shows. If they didn’t seem to like what they were seeing, then they were invited up to have a drink with a Ziegfield girl after the show. I bet that changed quite a few minds! Ah, men. So easy to manipulate, LOL.
There were also these beautiful ornamental light fixtures, that were re-created by using descriptions from old diaries and journals. Women would write in great detail of their theater visits, and when the time came to re-construct and renovate the New Amsterdam, nothing was held back. The above was what was created from the descriptions- and right before the show opened, they found one of the original light fixtures, with lights and all still working- buried in a wall! Here was what it looked like-
Not bad, right? So close! And how cool, don’t you just love that story? They very quickly had a new batch made, replicating the newly-discovered old fixture, just in time for the re-opening.
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| Another Quite Famous Lady of the Theater! |
These lovely and ornate carvings are found everywhere you look in the theater- many based on Shakespeare’s plays. Right now, if you go see Mary Poppins, you can get the added perk of being [Read more…]
