Austin Interviews - Page 2

Andrew Lloyd Webber's sequel to one of Broadway's longest running musicals, THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, is his show LOVE NEVER DIES; which is currently touring across the United States. The tour staging is inspired by the reworked 2011 Australian production of the musical. To give Austin audiences an ...

THE PLAY THAT GOES WRONG is certainly a play that seems intriguing just by the title. "The Murder at Havernesh Manor" is the title of the play within the play that can't seem to stay on script. It seems that everything and anything goes wrong. This sets in motion so many mishaps, the audiences can't...

Theatre Synesthesia has only been on the scene for a few short years, yet in that short time, they've managed to get on several award lists and have even walked away with a few of those awards. Their work has been exclusively dedicated to producing the writing of playwright Casey Wimpee... until now...

Lisa B. Thompson burst onto the Austin theatre scene in a big way last season with her play UNDERGROUND, which was not only nominated for most of the awards given in Austin, but also managed to walk away with a few. She capped off the season by winning the New Play award from Austin Playhouse's annu...

One of Austin's best kept secrets is Austin Cabaret Theatre, which quietly brings in the best of the New York cabaret scene for one night only performances. This is all due to one man, Stuart Moulton. Stuart lives in New York City, but his love of Austin is unmistakable. We recently sat down with hi...

Who hasn't been to one of the Broadway musical gems that play out in the open air amphitheatre during these blistering hot Austin summers? A gift to the community, the Zilker Summer Musical has been part of Austin for sixty years now. Always free to the public, this year's offering is ALL SHOOK UP, ...

Leonard Bernstein is an American treasure. He was one of the first American born conductors to receive worldwide acclaim. His fame is derived not only from his long tenure as the music director of the New York Philharmonic, but also from his conducting most of the world's leading orchestras, and fr...

Many may have heard of the movie AN AMERICAN IN PARIS that starred Gene Kelly and featured such songs as "I'll Build a Stairway to Paradise," "S Wonderful," and "I Got Rhythm." Well, the recent Broadway hit of AN AMERICAN IN PARIS took some of the story, some of the songs, and added to it. What was ...

Every year, Quiet Valley Ranch just outside the small town of Kerrville, Texas is transformed into a musical wonderland as the Kerrville Folk Festival is presented for 18 days. It showcases singer/songwriters who show passion and joy for the art of folk music. People come from all over the world to ...

As THE BOOK OF MORMON tours around North America, it has sold-out in city after city. Locals enjoy the opportunity to laugh and have a fun evening watching THE BOOK OF MORMON while they forget their outside worries. Currently on tour with the company is Andy Jones who is playing the role of Elder Mc...

Austin theatre troupe paper chairs has been creating original works of theatre here for the past eight years that consistently push boundaries both verbal and visual. These fresh and exciting works are, in no small part, due to two women who were among the founding members, Elizabeth Doss and Lisa L...

A GENTLEMAN'S GUIDE TO LOVE & MURDER is a fun, whacky, entertaining show that won four Tony Awards including Best Musical. It seems to be a favorite by everyone. It's one that will entertain the entire family. As the show prepares to come to Austin, Texas, BWW caught up with Colleen McLaughlin who p...

Coming in March, The Baron's Men will be presenting the rarely performed The Curate Shakespeare AS YOU LIKE at the Curtain Theatre. This unique piece of theatre is subtitled 'the record of one company's attempt to perform the play by William Shakespeare.' The piece came about when the playwright, Do...

The success of THE KING AND I over the years has been nothing short of remarkable. The movie version from the 1950's brought Yul Brynner to center stage as he played the role of this famous king. With so many incarnations of the iconic musical there have been quite a few actors who have worked hard ...

Aaron Johnson is best known to Austin audiences for his strong body of performances, including Tribes (Daniel) at ZACH Theatre; Orphans (Phillip), Skylight (Edward) with Street Corner Arts; The Totalitarians (Ben) with Theatre en Bloc; The Real Thing (Billy), The Explorers Club (Lucius), Bloomsday (...

On January 13th, 1979, the world lost singer Donny Hathaway. Austinite Robert King Jr. has written a new, thought provoking musical, in which he introduces the audience to a side of Donny Hathaway that has never been explored before. Most people are unaware Hathaway battled with voices that haunted ...

It's hard to believe that RENT is celebrating its 20th Anniversary. But, from its debut on Broadway to the present, audiences have loved this great show that tackles important issues but at the same time manages to connect with the audience. BWW recently caught up with Lyndie Moe who is playing Maur...

Seth Glier's latest album is called BIRDS and is a true reflection of some difficult moments in Glier's life over the past two years including the loss of his brother, as well as watching all of the life-changing events occurring throughout the world. BWW sat down with Seth Glier to discuss with him...

One of Austin's most innovative theatre companies is Theatre Synesthesia, which has been recently recognized with awards from both BroadwayWorld and the Austin Critic's Table. We had an opportunity to sit down with two of the company founders, Devin Finn and Nick Kier to find out more about this com...

When Nick and Nigel Bottom decided they wanted to write a new hit play, they knew they had a lot of work ahead of them. With William Shakespeare as their competition, they knew they had to be new and innovative. The hilarious show SOMETHING ROTTEN is an original musical comedy with a book by John O'...

With PHANTOM OF THE OPERA playing to sold-out audiences all over the world, the current North American tour is no exception. Derrick Davis took over the role of the Phantom last year and spent a lot of time considering his dream role. While playing the famed Phantom, Davis chatted with BWW about his...

Continuing our series of interviews of Austin Theatre companies and the artists behind them, BroadwayWorld had the opportunity to talk to Benjamin Summers about StreetCorner Arts during their Tech Week for their latest production, PERFECT MENDACITY....

BroadwayWorld recently asked ZACH Theatre's guest director Michael Rader, in town to direct the Austin Premiere of LADY DAY AT EMERSON'S BAR AND GRILL, to give our readers a little background on him and the production, which runs April 5-30 on the Topher Stage....

BEAUTIFUL: THE CAROLE KING MUSICAL tells the true story of King's rise to fame as being part of a songwriting team with her husband Gerry Goffin. With such hits as 'The Locomotion,' 'Up on the Roof,' '(You Make Me Feel Like) a Natural Woman,' and 'I Feel the Earth Move,' BEAUTIFUL blends King's life...

Young Adult novelist and actress Katerine Catmull has teamed up with Physical Plant Theatre to create SISTER OF SHATTERING GLASS, an adventure story told entirely with text messages. The adventure follows Catmull's characters Summer and Bird in a race to the center of a dark maze located behind the ...

MAMMA MIA has been entertaining audiences all over the world and has audiences on their feet singing and dancing to the inspiring music of ABBA. As the Farewell Tour winds down, Broadway World was able to catch up with Cashelle Butler who is playing the role or Tanya. She shares her joy in this exci...

Continuing our series of articles about Austin performing companies and the artists behind them, we caught up recently with the very busy Bonnie Cullum of The Vortex to ask her about the past, present and future of the popular East Austin venue....

With ROGERS AND HAMMERSTEIN'S CINDERELLA playing to sold-out audiences on their current North American Tour, it's no wonder so many have been singing the praises of the fantastic cast who is working hard to entertain. As the tour continues, it will soon be making a stop in Austin, Texas to thrill th...

Audiences first became aware of Jaston Williams as half of the citizens of Tuna, Texas with the debut of Greater Tuna in 1982. The saga continued with A Tuna Christmas, Red, White and Tuna and Tuna Does Vegas. The plays have been performed on and off Broadway at the Kennedy Center, the Edinburgh Int...

BroadwayWorld recently had an opportunity to sit down with Jeff Davis, Artistic Director for Agape Theatre and author of an adaptation for the stage of Charlotte Perkins Gilman 's 1982 short story THE YELLOW WALLPAPER for a rare look into the process of adapting a classic piece of literature as a th...

Recently BroadwayWorld had the opportunity to sit down with Dr. Billy F. Harden to discuss Spectrum Theatre Company which was founded in 2013. We asked him to give our readers a broader view of Spectrum Theatre Company past, present and future. Currently Austin audiences are enjoying Spectrum's prod...

Magic is something that entertains millions of people all over the world. There are no language barriers nor issues with interpreting the art. It's just an opportunity to be entertained by talented magicians for an unforgettable two hours. THE ILLUSIONISTS started out as a three-week engagement at A...

NEWSIES has entertained audiences all over North America as the tour visited many cities. As this current tour wraps up in Austin, Texas, BWW had a chance to visit with San Antonio, Texas native Andy Richardson who plays Crutchie....

Anytime you see a tour of a Broadway show, the talent happening right before your eyes is just the tip of the Broadway iceberg. Lurking behind the scenes is a whole crew of insanely gifted folks who also contribute to the spectacle on stage. One of those people is Paula Gilbert, who works here in Au...

A make-up artist is an artist whose medium is the human body, applying makeup and prosthetics for theatrical, television and film. One of the busiest in this area is Kaye Brown, who sat down with us to give our readers a backstage look at her incredible art....

Stage Manager… it is one of those credits in your theatre program that you take for granted without ever really thinking about just what that title entails. Stage management, at the core, is the organizing and coordinating of a theatrical production. The words organizing and coordinating encompass a...

MOTOWN THE MUSICAL opened in NYC to enthusiastic audiences in 2013. The strength of the show brought in great audiences. As the popularity continued, a national tour began. Currently playing to role of Marvin Gaye, Jarran Muse shared with BWW some of the highlights of his career and how he came to b...

One of the more clearly visible technical aspects of a show for average theatre-goers is the set. What isn't quite as clear is just what goes into the creation of the world the characters inhabit in the play you are seeing. Set design, sometimes called scenic design, is the art of designing and crea...

We continue our series on technical theatre artists in Austin with a look at the Art of Costuming. The dictionary defines costuming as "the act of furnishing or designing costumes" but that definition doesn't really tell someone exactly what all goes into that act. A costumer is the person who, for ...

Very few audience members know what goes into the technical aspects of a stage production. Without the theatre's technical artists, often the unsung stars of any production, your experience at the theatre would be very different. In a new series of articles about the Technical Theatre artists of Aus...