Reviewing the Drama: Broadway, Off-Broadway, Ballet, Movies, and TV Reviews

Carousel   Revival to Hit Broadway in 2018 A revival of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Carousel  will bow on Broadway in spring 2018, officially opening at a theatre to be announced on March 23. The production will be directed by Jack O'Brien  ( Catch Me If You Can ) and choreographed by NYCB resident choreographer  Justin Peck  ( Everywhere We Go , The Times Are Racing ). Peck's fellow NYCB dancers Amar Ramasar  and Brittany Pollack  will be among the company, figuring prominently in the act two dream ballet. The production will star Tony winner Jessie Mueller  ( Beautiful , Waitress ) as Julie Jordan and two-time Tony nominee Joshua Henry  ( The Scottsboro Boys , Violet ,  Shuffle Along... ) as Billy Bigelow. (Now this photo of Justin and Joshua has been demystified.) Opera diva Renee Fleming  will also appear in the production. In the  Playbill  announcement, Peck promises "an even more dance-and-movement-f...

Ticket Updates Dear Evan Hansen tickets are now on sale through March 18, 2018. Visit dearevanhansen.com to learn more and purchase tickets. The Broadway bow of Oslo , the new play by J.T. Rogers, will have an online lottery. Audience members can go to oslobroadwaylottery.com to enter for their chance to up to two $39 tickets to a performance. Playbill has more. There will be a digital lottery for War Paint , which is in previews and opens April 6. Beginning March 28, fans can visit lottery.broadwaydirect.com/show/war-paint to enter for a chance to win up to two $40 tickets to a performance. The production's previously announced rush and standing room policies remain in effect. Playbill has more. Tickets for Anastasia , which just began previews and opens April 24, are now available through January 7, 2018. Playbill has more. Casting News Zainab Jab ( Eclipsed , Homeland ), John Ellison Conlee ( The (curious case of the) Watson Intelligence , Murder Ballad )...

Encores! Off-Center The Encores! Off-Center season, which celebrates rarely produced or under appreciated off-Broadway fare, has been announced. First up, July 12-15, is a production of Assassins , the Stephen Sondheim – John Weidman musical about the people who have attempted to assassinate US presidents. That will be directed by Anne Kauffman ( Marjorie Prime ). Next, Robert O'Hara ( Barbecue ) will direct Kirsten Childs 's Bubbly Black Girl Sheds Her Chameleon Skin , which runs July 26 and 27. Closing out the season is the whimsical Really Rosie , written by Maurice Sendak (book and lyrics) and Carole King (music). The musical in which kids play pretend will run August 2-5. Theater Mania has more. Playwrights Horizons 2017-2018 Season The venerable off-Broadway company, which has produced works like the Pulitzer Prize-winning The Flick , has announced its 2017-2018 season, and it includes five world premieres, three plays by women, and one play by a person of c...

Casting News Complete casting for the revival of Sunday in the Park with George has been announced. Joining stars Jake Gyllenhaal and Annaleigh Ashford are their City Center costars Tony winner Ruthie Ann Miles ( The King and I ) and Phillip Boykin ( Porgy and Bess ), among others, as well as Andrew Kober ( She Loves Me ), Erin Davie ( Side Show ), Max Chernin ( Bright Star ), and Robert Sean Leonard ( Dead Poets Society , Prodigal Son ), and more. Previews begin February 11, and opening night is set for February 23. The limited engagement is scheduled to conclude April 23. Broadway World has the full casting announcement. Ben Schwartz ( House of Lies , This is Where I Leave You ) and Noell Wells ( SNL , Master of None ) will star in the Netflix original film, Happy Anniversary . The Tracking Board has more. Complete casting for the February 19 Crazy for You concert has been announced. Joining stars Tony Yazbeck and Laura Osnes are Mark Linn-Baker ( On the Twenti...

Sunday in the Park with Jake and Annaleigh on Broadway Following an acclaimed, four-performance run at City Center , the Stephen Sondheim-James Lapine musical, Sunday in the Park with George , will bow on Broadway this season for a limited run, with stars Jake Gyllenhaal and Annaleigh Ashford in tow. You might recall that Gyllenhaal had been slated to return to Broadway this spring in a revival of Burn This , and that the production would open the new Hudson Theatre. The production was cancelled, in all likelihood, to make room for this production, which will, in fact, play the Hudson Theatre. Previews begin February 11, 2017, with opening night set for February 23. The limited engagement is scheduled to conclude April 23. No official word yet regarding whether or not the rest of the starry cast will join Gyllenhaal and Tony winner Ashford for the Broadway run. Broadway.com has more, and you can see the key art below. (One more thought: This means we might cast a cast recordi...

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Nominees The nominees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2017 have been announced. Artists are eligible (though not always nominated and, certainly, not always chosen for induction) 25 years after their first release. First time nominees include Pearl Jam (first year eligible), Tupac (first year eligible), and Bad Brains , while Janet Jackson , Chic , Chaka Khan , Journey , and Yes are among repeat nominees. Fans can see all the nominees and vote for their choice on Rolling Stone . Those artists selected for induction into the Rock Hall will be announced in December. The ceremony will be held in Brooklyn in April 2017, and HBO will air an edited version of the ceremony in May. Coming to Broadway and the West End Emmy winner and Tony nominee Allison Janney ( The West Wing , 9 to 5 ) and Tony winner John Benjamin Hickey ( The Normal Heart ) are heading back to Broadway in a revival of John Guare 's Six Degrees of Separation . Dire...