Broadway Buzz

Hello fellow theater lovers! I’m Kelsey Johnson, newest member of the Fox Cities P.A.C. Marketing Team. I am a recent graduate of UW-Eau Claire, with a B.A. in Mass Communications: Advertising and Foreign Language: Spanish, along with a minor in Art History. I guess you could say I studied a little bit of everything at school, but my real passions lie in Broadway theater, traveling (especially Europe!), movies, friends and family and the perfect cup of coffee (I’m a retired Starbucks barista!). In my upcoming blog posts, I will keep you posted on the current Broadway buzz. I am a musical lover, so expect information on current shows and new productions!

Here’s the latest buzz:

• Green Day’s lead singer, Billie Joe Armstrong, made his Broadway debut in American Idiot in the supporting role of St. Jimmy. How do you feel about this rocker gone Broadway star?
• La Cage aux Folles released a new cast album, now with additional encores, playoffs and reprises. Kelsey Grammer and Douglas Hodge have never sounded so good!
• Finally, a play for the sports lover! Lombardi, a brand new play about American football coaching legend, Vince Lombardi, opens on Broadway October 21, 2010.
• Thirteen-year-old Peter Mazurowski is wowing crowds in New York as Billy Elliot. At 13, could you have handled two hours of dance practice, middle school and the lead role in one of the hottest Broadway musicals?
• This just in! Andrew Lloyd Webber’s sequel to Phantom of the Opera, Love Never Dies, will not open on Broadway this spring as originally announced. Hopefully we’ll see you this fall, ALW!
• Brief Encounter premiered on Broadway September 28, 2010. An adaptation of the film romance, this production will hopefully be anything but a “brief encounter” with the hearts of New York theatergoers.
• Did you know “Catch Me If You Can” has gone musical? Based on the DreamWorks film and Frank Abagnale Jr. autobiography, the musical will play at the Neil Simon Theatre in New York beginning March 7, 2011.
• For the first time in 45 years, the entire film cast of “The Sound of Music” will reunite on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” on October 29, 2010. Catch the cast as they share secrets from the set and reminisce the years that have gone by!

I’d love to hear from fellow theater lovers! What aspects of Broadway are you most interested in? Give me some feedback, and we’ll keep the buzz going!