Issue #107: April 1, 2003
Next issue May 1, 2003

• It looks like Andrew Lloyd Webber's Bombay Dreams will bypass Toronto on its way to New York.  An earlier report had the production making its North American debut in Toronto for a six-month run then, heading to Broadway.  Now with theatre availability in New York and an opportunity for the musical to open in April 2004, the show will be eligible for Tony nominations. The Toronto stop will happen after the Broadway opening.  

• Al Pacino makes his way back to Broadway on April 30 in Oscar Wilde's Salome at the Ethel Barrymore Theater.  Directed by Estelle Parsons, Marisa Tomei will play the title role.  That probably means the Sweet Charity production Tomei was recently associated with must be on hold.

• A revival of Noel Coward's Fallen Angels starring Annette Bening and two-time Tony winner Judith Ivey is planned for the fall.  Bening was last seen on Broadway in 1987 in her career defining performance in Tina Howe's Coastal Disturbances.

• Canadian comedian Sean Cullen looks to be the favourite to play the role of Max Bialystock in the Toronto production of The Producers scheduled to open in November.

• Look for a revival tour of the '60s musical Hair to hit the road in September in L.A.  The original musical opened on Broadway in 1968 at the Biltmore Theater and ran for 1,750 performances.  Michael Butler, the original producer, has not decided on a Broadway run just yet — he wants to see how the national tour pans out.

• The successful Sondheim celebration last season at The Kennedy Center has paved the way for next season's salute to Tennessee Williams.  The festival begins April 27, 2004, with Garry Hynes' staging of A Streetcar Named Desire.  Then Broadway legend Zoe Caldwell will direct Cat on a Hot Tin Roof  — June 1-20.  The third Williams classic, The Glass Menagerie, will be directed by Gregory Mosher July 6-25.  Also part of the Williams love fest will be five one-act plays, three of them world premieres, directed by Michael Kahn.

• Theatregoers in China will soon get a taste of Broadway.  Cats, the longest running musical in Broadway history, will debut in Beijing on May 20.  No information on how long the production will run or other cities the legendary musical will visit while in China.