Issue #82: February 15, 2002

• It was only a matter of time before the two leads of the hottest show on Broadway moved on. On March 17 British actor Henry Goodman will replace Nathan Lane as Max Bialystock in The Producers. Rumours are Steven Weber (Wings) is in the running to replace Matthew Broderick.

• Next January you will have a chance to check out Melanie Griffith’s main squeeze in the flesh. Antonio Banderas will make his Broadway debut with the Roundabout Theater Co. in a revival of the 1982 Tony-winning best musical Nine.

• Participating in the Sondheim Celebration this spring at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. will be Raul E. Esparza. Currently on the boards in Cabaret, Esparza will perform back-to-back starring roles in Sunday in the Park with George and Merrily We Roll Along. The two musicals are slated to run in repertory with four other Sondheim favorites this summer.

• One of Britain’s most important playwrights is undergoing treatment for cancer of the esophagus. Harold Pinter, 71, is currently represented in London by his play No Man’s Land at the Royal National Theatre. Pinter was diagnosed last month and was undergoing chemotherapy while producing two 45-minute sketches – obviously someone that takes life’s bumps in stride.

• A revival of Kenneth Lonergan’s play This Is Our Youth begins previews at the end of February for just an eight week run. The activities of the three stars of the production may explain why such a short engagement. Hayden Christensen is set to make young hearts flutter when he hits the screen as Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones. Then there is Anna Paquin who will be reprising her role in the X-Men sequel. And to round off the trio is Jake Gyllenhaal who has just finished Disney’s Goodbye Hello with Dustin Hoffman and Susan Sarandon.

• Xena star Lucy Lawless is currently in rehearsal for the Auckland production of Eve Ensler’s The Vagina Monologues. The 33 year old New Zealander is six months pregnant with her third child and says she is ready to take the stage in the award-winning play.

• It’s heartening to learn that theatre has returned to war-ravaged Afghanistan. The Kabul Theater Co. held two performances recently – the first since 1995 when the Taliban regime outlawed all art forms. With no walls or roof, a stage of twisted metal and concrete, and broken and cold seats the first two shows, free of charge, received standing ovations. Let’s hope that the cultural heart of this devastated country is encouraged, nurtured and supported by the new government.