Andrea Meyerson interviews Jill Sobule about the inspiration for her hit single, "I Kissed a Girl" and Julia Sweeney about her famous Saturday Night Live character "Pat."

They also talk about how their new show The Jill and Julia Show, which mixes musical performance with social commentary.

Go to JillSobule.com and JuliaSweeney.com for more info on these women, and alloutfilms.com for more about Andrea.

Well, it's here — the announcement you've all been anticipating. The Outer Critics Circle Award nominations have been announced! What? You you've never heard of the Outer Critics Circle Awards? Well, that puts you in stead with everyone else in the world that doesn't follow New York theater closely. These awards could really use a good PR campaign.

Laurie Metcalf in November

To clarify the confusion, these are the Golden Globes of the New York theater. Just as the Golden Globes are predictive of and broader (movies and television) than the Oscars, these are predictive of and broader (Broadway and Off-Broadway) than the Tony Awards. But they really need a catchier name. If the Golden Globes were called the Hollywood Foreign Press Association Awards, I don't think so many stars would show up and get publicly drunk at the ceremony. 

Given that I do follow New York theater somewhat closely, I care about the Outer Critics Circle Awards. And one good thing about this year's awards is how well women are represented in non-acting categories. Half of the nominees for Outstanding Director of a Play and Outstanding Choreographer are women. Half. Compare that to, say, the Academy Awards where there appears to be an unwritten rule against nominating women for Outstanding Achievement in Direction.

And there are some amazing women nominated for the acting awards, though there are not, to the best of my knowledge, any lesbians nominated. (Cherry Jones, Cynthia Nixon and Sarah Paulson didn't do theater this year, and director Leigh Silverman was working too far off Broadway.) However, there is one nomination for a lesbian character! (I know, it's sad to get to excited about that, but I need to grasp on to something.)

Let's take a quick look at some of the highlights, shall we? (And by highlights, I mean categories in which I know enough to have an opinion.)  … continue reading

Ask and ye shall receive. Or, in Rachel Dratch's case, beg a little and ye shall be gainfully employed again. After she told New York magazine earlier this month that she was "not doing much" and "ready for a job," the out-of-work Saturday Night Live alum got an emphatic answer from the universe.

Dratch has just been cast in the comedic play Scramble! at the Westport County Playhouse, a historic Connecticut theater revived by Paul Newman and his wife, Joanne Woodward. She will appear in the production in July. Earlier this week she flew to Los Angeles to shoot a pilot for a new, as yet unnamed, TV series.

When New York magazine caught back up with Dratch at the opening night of the new musical A Catered Affair over the weekend, she confessed a little post-press remorse. … continue reading

I swear I meant to see the Broadway revival of Maury Yeston's Nine in 2003.

It had one the best casts ever: Jane Krakowski, Mary Stuart Masterson, Laura Benati, Chita Rivera. But despite my best intentions, I was a big loser and I never got around to seeing it. Alas.

Now I know next to nothing about the show, just that it's based on Federico Fellini's 8½, which I've never seen. I also know that the show features only one man and the rest of the cast is women. (And the New York Times review made it clear that the heart of the show was the women.) Basically, I wish I had not passed up the chance to see another Chita Rivera show, and I'm sorry that I missed Mary Stuart Masterson and Jane Krakowski onstage. And, of course, Laura Benati has been fantastic every time I've seen her on Broadway.

But now I — and everyone else who missed it — will have an opportunity to see a different version with a cast full of amazing women. Rob Marshall (Chicago) is directing a film version, tentatively scheduled to begin production in the fall. … continue reading

So, the BBC has recently launched the latest in its line of three musical talent contests, and I admit that I’m watching. First there was the 2006 show How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?, which searched for an unknown girl to play Maria in a new West End production of The Sound of Music. Then there was the 2007 show Any Dream Will Do, which searched for an unknown boy to play Joseph in a new West End production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.

Now there’s I’d Do Anything, which searches for both a girl to play Nancy and a boy to play Oliver Twist in a new stage production of Lionel Bart’s Dickens-based musical Oliver! Thankfully, the producers have decided that it’s just too cruel to put the small boys auditioning for Oliver through the usual American Idol–style humiliation of panel criticism and a public vote — so that decision will be made privately, although the audience will be let in on footage of the boys preparing and performing.

But the girls — who have now been narrowed down to twelve finalists aged between 17 and 28 — are judged to be old enough to cope. Consequently, there’s been all the usual gratuitous upping of their angst, as the panel (which includes Andrew Lloyd Webber) make them stand and wait for the initial decisions, and hint that they’ve been dropped just to see them squirm.

Why do I keep on watching, given how obnoxious that behavior is? Well, for one thing, I love musical theater. And for another, there are worse ways to spend your Saturday evenings than in watching 12 talented women singing their hearts out.

Back in the days of the first contest, How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?, the show was considerably enlivened by the gorgeousness, as well as the talent, of one of the competitors, Siobhan Dillon: … continue reading

First, let me establish that I am a Bradyphile. After a few child-specific shows (Sesame Street, The Electric Company, The Magic Garden), The Brady Bunch was my first great TV love. And it proved to be an enduring love.

If you weren’t around for TV in the '70s and early '80s, I don’t believe you can appreciate how frequently The Brady Bunch aired in syndication. One could watch it daily. And I did.

Over time, I developed an encyclopedic knowledge of the show. When my family moved to California in the '80s, I had a moment of truly pathetic excitement when I was watching one of the “Grand Canyon” episodes and realized that it was a different edit than my old station had aired — I was seeing a scene I had never seen before! I’ve watched the show in every incarnation and have seen stage versions, and every time I’ve gone to Hawaii, I’ve sent my brother a postcard of Diamond Head with the message, “That’s Diamond Head, dumbhead.”

So, when my brother sent me an article about an upcoming Brady Bunch musical, I read it warily. And then I quickly concluded it sounded like a very bad idea. Here’s the ill-advised plot:

"Through a misunderstanding, the Brady kids overhear a loud argument between their usually perfectly-in-love parents. The kids think their parents might be heading for a divorce and dig in to raise money to obtain marriage counseling for their woe-stricken parents. Greg operates a car service; Marcia dates for money; Peter and Jan put on magic shows; and Bobby and Cindy look for money in couches. Did you ever imagine what the Bradys might look like in a holding cell at the local police station? Somehow even Alice gets in some legal trouble for fraud. All the while Mike and Carol are desperately trying to have sex, something they have never done since they’ve always had six kids in the house and have never had any alone time."

The plot sounds pretty stupid to me, but that’s not really the problem. (I’ve waxed rhapsodic about Grease 2 a few too many times to make a compelling case that I’m above stupid plots.) The problem is that not only is it just tired to rehash and revisit The Brady Bunch, but there’s also just something inherently disrespectful and cheap — base, really — in this particular idea. And I’m a little surprised by how much it bugs me. … continue reading

It's still a year or two down the road, but a musical version of Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City is slated to head to Broadway — with a possible stop in San Francisco along the way.

The Tales of the City series, which spanned seven books and three miniseries, began as a serial in The San Francisco Chronicle in the '70s. It told the story of Mary Ann Singleton, a secretary who never returned to Cleveland after a vacation in San Francisco, and the “family” she found in her new digs at 28 Barbary Lane on Russian Hill. Her family members included Michael “Mouse” Tolliver, her gay best friend; Mona Ramsey, Michael's sometimes-lesbian roommate; Brian Hawkins, '70s straight guy on the prowl (and her future husband); and Anna Madrigal, the transgender “mother of them all” who grew pot in her garden and taped joints to apartment doors as gifts for her “children.”

The creative team certainly has the credentials to keep the show gay enough. Tony Award winner Jeff Whitty is slated to write the book. If you're not familiar with his work in Avenue Q, check out the opening number.

(Whitty didn't write the music and lyrics, but he clearly had a lot to do with the campy gay sensibility.) The musical team will consist of John Garden and Jason Sellards (Scissor Sisters), so it's likely that the show will have some era-appropriate disco influences.

The story has so many intricate story lines that some will clearly have to go. Obviously I hope the lesbian plot remains. (Mona's ex-lover, D'or — a white woman who's passing as black for the sake of her modeling career — moves back to the Bay Area to win back Mona.) Perhaps they can do without the story of the closeted gay husband of the socialite (pregnant by the Chinese deliveryman) hooking up with the socialite's gynecologist at the baths. Or maybe they'll downplay Brian's endless quest to get laid. But they have to keep Mary Ann's doomed romance with the vitamin salesman/private investigator/child pornographer. (I won't tell you how that ends.)

I can imagine lots about the show: a set featuring the Barbary Lane steps with the Golden Gate Bridge and Transamerica building in the background, an opening number about Cleveland, perhaps a song and dance number with the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. But what I cannot picture is the casting. The original miniseries was so perfectly cast that I cannot fathom seeing others in the roles.

First, there was Laura Linney as Mary Ann. … continue reading

Earlier this week, after noting that two actresses reasonably well-known for playing lesbian and bisexual characters would be playing two of the three flight attendants in the upcoming Broadway revival of Boeing-Boeing, I speculated that Piper Perabo, who’s also known in certain circles for her lesbian and bisexual roles, might play the third.  

Now, I was just picking her name out of the air because I associate her with lesbian/bi roles. But it turns out she was not such a bad pick because she will, in fact, be on the New York stage in just a few months time! (Thanks, BQ, for that tip.) 

Perabo will not be joining Gina Gershon and Mary McCormack on Broadway, but she will be starring in the Neil Labute’s reasons to be pretty at the Lucille Lortel Theatre. The show is set to open June 2 and run until July 15.  … continue reading

UPDATED POST: This post was first published on Friday. But there's new news. Read on!

Last week, the rumor mill had Sarah Jessica Parker starring as one of the fiancées in the madcap comedy Boeing-Boeing — she was to play the Italian air hostess. Given that she has some solid Broadway history and even more interesting Off-Broadway history, that could have been fun casting. However, it seems the rumor mill was not correct this time. Alas. The latest casting news is not exactly depressing, though — Gina Gershon will be the Italian assistente di bordo.

You may know her better as Corky.

Gershon doesn't have a lot of Broadway history — just a stint as Sally Bowles in Cabaret. But apparently she was good. I almost wish Boeing-Boeing was a musical so I could see her sing live. (Although I suspect it would be different than this Prey for Rock 'n' Roll excerpt.)

The other actress recently cast in Boeing-Boeing is Mary McCormack (West Wing, K Street), as the German flight attendant. … continue reading

One of the more tiresome trends in musical theater these days is the reinvention of '80s movies as stage musicals. (The other tiresome trends are jukebox musicals — which seem to be waning — and musicals that mock musical theater.) I've seen a few of the '80s movie musicals. Xanadu was fun, but a little too self-aware for my taste. Urban Cowboy was, um, kind of watchable, I guess — and I did see Rosie O'Donnell in the audience. Footloose managed to lose whatever depth and heart the movie possessed. Ergo, I'm ready for this trend to play out soon.

I am, however, cautiously optimistic about the upcoming 9 to 5 musical — especially as long as Dolly Parton and Allison Janney stay attached to the project. And I just read about another one that maybe, possibly could be good. A musical version of Mask, the 1985 Cher and Eric Stolz movie about Rocky Dennis, a teenager with craniodiaphyseal dysplasia, will open at the Pasadena Playhouse on March 21.

Although Cher won an Oscar for Moonstruck, I believe that Rusty Dennis, in Mask, was her best role. She was this incredibly flawed, drug-abusing, loving, devoted mom. Who was incredibly hot.

You can get a pretty good sense of her in this extended music video filled with scenes from the movie. … continue reading

Tonight on ABC, Sean Combs, Audra McDonald, Phylicia Rashad and Sanaa Lathan star in an adaptation of Lorraine Hansberry's play A Raisin in the Sun.

The film also screened at Sundance this year (out of competition). Most of the reviews are quite positive, which is a relief — I'm always a little worried when a masterpiece gets adapted for TV. But I'm encouraged by comments like this: "[T]hose who can relax into the leisurely pace and lush language will be rewarded with an earnest, moving night at the movies."

Here's the trailer: … continue reading

For the past few years, I've been studiously ignoring the fact that Shrek the Musical is in development and coming to Broadway this November. It keeps getting delayed (I believe it was originally projected to open in 2006), so it's been fairly easy to dismiss. And it's not a given that I'll hate it if I see it. The movie wasn't bad. It won't be a jukebox musical. And I haven't heard any stunt-casting rumors. Yet I find it difficult to get excited about a show starring an ogre and wisecracking donkey. Odd, that.

But it just got interesting. Tony Award winner Sutton Foster has signed on to star as Fiona, the princess who falls for the ogre. Sutton Foster is one of the best actresses in musical theater these days. And her story is great. She was an ensemble player in a number of shows in the late '90s and early '00s before she was plucked from the chorus of Thoroughly Modern Millie and cast in the starring role. She won Best Actress in a Musical for that performance and became one of the most bankable actresses on Broadway as a result. Her story could be the stuff of a corny Broadway musical (à la 42nd Street)!

I wasn't a huge fan of Millie, but I became a huge fan of Foster. Here she singing and dancing her heart out to “Forget About the Boy.” (An easy song to embrace.) … continue reading

Hairspray is the toast of London these days, and (probably) with good reason. (I haven't seen the London production, but the Broadway production was amazing when it was new.) After winning eight Tony Awards in 2003 (nominated for 13), the musical just broke Olivier Award records by receiving a whopping 11 nominations.

When I saw Hairspray during its first week of previews in 2002, I was ecstatic to see such a smart song-and-dance show that perfectly married showtunes with '60s pop. It outclassed everything then on Broadway (other than Urinetown), and nothing that's been produced since has impressed me as much. But even better than the show was creator John Waters' observation:

“The real reason I'm praying that Hairspray, the Broadway musical based on my 1988 movie, succeeds is that if it's a hit, there will be high school productions, and finally the fat girl and the drag queen will get the starring parts.”

Well, now the fat girls and drag queens in the U.K. are going to get the starring parts, too, because the show is definitely a hit. So, yay.

And it's not just the future secondary school students who will benefit. Newcomer Leanne Jones received a nomination for Best Actress in a Musical.

Speaking of Best Actress nominations, though, the star power the Best Actress in a Play category is approaching supernova proportions. There's Kristin Scott Thomas for her role in Checkov's The Seagull. … continue reading

It's true: A musical version of The Diary of Anne Frank will hit the stage in Madrid next month. And that is a first. Although the story of the Jewish girl who hid with her family from the Nazi occupation in Amsterdam has been depicted in theater and in film, it's never been told in song.

I'll give them one thing: Isabella Castillo, the 13-year-old Cuban-born girl who will play Anne Frank, is absolutely adorable. And she has spoken of the moving experience of visiting Anne Frank's house and the Anne Frank Foundation. Here she is in front of the Anne Frank tree.

And it is impressive that the musical's producers even have the blessings of The Anne Frank Foundation. Those are the same people who once rejected Steven Spielberg. … continue reading

I first stumbled across Ain't It Cool News a few years ago when I was researching a couple of U.K. university admissions tests — the BMAT and the LNAT. Unfortunately, I had my acronyms wrong. So instead of finding information about the BioMedical Admissions Test, I learned about the Butt-Numb-a-Thon, an annual 24-hour film festival/birthday party for Ain't It Cool's Harry Knowles. Since then, I've been a casual reader of Ain't It Cool News — a movie-geek site maintained mostly by and for male movie-geeks.

The site is a great source of movie news, rumors and gossip, and I usually find something interesting when I check it out every week or so. Today, I stumbled across the unexpected — an interview with Loretta Devine.

Loretta Devine is not a typical interview subject for a fanboy site. In fact, the interviewer, Capone, opens with this acknowledgment:

“Now before you start freaking out on me, I'm well aware that Loretta Devine might seem like a strange choice for an interview subject on this site, but quite frankly I don't care. I love this woman to death, and I'm not afraid to throw you guys a curve ball every once and a while. There is something about Devine's presence in a film or TV show that just makes me feel good about life. She's a solid acting talent, she can sing like an angel, and just about one of the sweetest people you could ever meet.”

And I agree with Capone. (Although I don't actually know if she's sweet in person. But I'll bet she is.)

Loretta Devine is one of those actresses you may or may not know by name, but you've definitely seen her somewhere. And probably a whole lot of somewheres. She's rarely the lead, but she has a prolific film, TV and stage résumé. Probably her best known role is Glo in the movie Waiting to Exhale. … continue reading