When Rent began rehearsals in December 1995, it hardly looked like a phenomenon in the making. Composer Jonathan Larson had only recently quit his job at a Soho diner, its stars for the most part had little theatrical experience, and Broadway was dominated by long-running British-import megamusicals like Les Misérables, The Phantom […]

There’s a late-’80s episode of The Golden Girls where Blanche and Rose befriend two teenagers as part of the “Be a Pal” program. The young ladies want to go to a movie and Rose, bubbly as always, suggests a few options: “We can go see Oliver & Company. […]

Idina Menzel will reprise her Tony-winning performance as the green-faced Elphaba in the upcoming West End production of Stephen Schwartz’s hit musical Wicked. The musical, which is currently playing Broadway, Chicago and a national tour, will officially open at London’s Victoria Apollo — currently host to Billy Joel’s […]

Idina Menzel Provides a Few Details on “Enchanted:” “Amy Adams is playing this princess in a real fairy tale world. It starts out with eight minutes of animation, like a spoof on Disney, and she plays this princess, and James Marsden is the prince. They fall in love […]

My main thought while sitting in a movie theater waiting for the film, Rent, to begin, was that I was happy that Hollywood is once again producing movies based on hit musical plays. Thanks to the success of the movie version of Chicago the energy of creation is […]