Week in Review 7.3.15


(Scroll down for the first Hamilton commercial.)

Fiddler Casting Update

Additional casting has been announced for the Danny Burstein-led revival of Fiddler on the Roof. Joining the five-time Tony nominee are Tony nominee Jessica Hecht (The Assembled Parties, Stage Kiss) and Adam Kantor (The Last Five Years). Hecht will play Golde to Burstein's Tevye, and Kantor takes on the role of tailor Motel. The revival, directed by Tony nominee Bartlett Sher (The Bridges of Madison County, The King and I), is set to play the Broadway Theatre. Previews begin November 12, and opening night is scheduled for December 17. Broadway.com has more.

Steve Jobs in Sorkinese

Several years ago we had Facebook in Sorkinese, The Social Network, and now Aaron Sorkin is taking on the venerated Apple icon in Steve Jobs. The film, set for release on October 9, stars Michael Fassbender (12 Years a Slave), and, as the trailer shows, is riddled with Sorkin's trademark snappy, clever dialogue. Some Sorkin veterans, like Michael Stuhlbarg (A Serious Man) and The Newsroom's Jeff Daniels, show up, as do other top notch actors, like Kate Winslet, Seth Rogen (50/50) and Katherine Waterston (Inherent Vice), all directed by Danny Boyle (127 Hours). Watch the trailer below, and then mark your calendar.  


And the Academy Welcomes...

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the governing body of the Oscars, has invited 322 artists to join its ranks. The Los Angeles Times has the full list, which includes Ballet 422 director Jody Lee Lipes; Emma Stone; Denis O'Hare; David Oyelowo; Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood (The Master, Inherent Vice); Eddie Redmayne; Jason Segel; J.K. Simmons; Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross (the Oscar-winning duo behind The Social Network's score); Elizabeth Banks; recent Oscar winners Common and John Legend (invited under their birth names, Lonnie Lynn and John Stephens, respectively); writer Dan Gilroy (Nightcrawler); and Mr. Reese Witherspoon, James Toth.

Casting News

  • Party of Five star Neve Campbell has signed on as a series regular for the fourth season of House of Cards, which begins shooting later this summer. Deadline has more.

  • Anthony Mackie (A Behanding in Spokane, The Hurt Locker) will portray Martin Luther King, Jr., and Melissa Leo (The Fighter) will play Lady Bird Johnson in the HBO adaptation of the LBJ hagiography, All the Way. (Bryan Cranston is already set to reprise his Tony-winning portrayal of the president.) Deadline has more about Mackie, and Vulture has more about Leo.
Dig This

  • As part of its Tales from the Script series, Broadway.com checks in with Pulitzer Prize finalist Rajiv Joseph, whose terrific new play, Guards at the Taj, continues its run at the Atlantic through July 12.

  • While On Your Feet! wraps up its out of town tryout (Broadway previews being in October), ensemble member Eric Ulloa (a college classmate of mine) takes you behind the scenes on a two-show day. See the photos on Playbill.

  • Let Rebecca Naomi Jones take you backstage at Hedwig and the Angry Inch in the seventh episode of her Broadway.com vlog, Total Package.

  • Word on the street is that a Spring Awakening revival is hitting New York. Multiple outlets report that the successful Deaf West production, which features performers using both spoken word and American Sign Language, would transfer from Los Angeles to the Big Apple. More information as it is confirmed.

  • As part of the promotional tour for Ted 2 (now in theaters), Seth MacFarlane sat with his idol, Norman Lear, for a joint New York Times interview.

  • The lineup for Broadway Barks has been announced. Visit Broadway.com for the list of those scheduled to appear at this annual pet adoption event. 

  • Aaron Tveit (Next to Normal, Les Miserables) talks to ET Online about the third season of Graceland, which premiered last week.

  • And here's your Hamilton fix, the first radio commercial:

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