Issue #217: September 15, 2008
- Little House on the Prairie has taken
the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis by storm breaking box office
records when it first went on sale. The new musical based on
the stories of Laura Ingalls Wilder has been
extended to October 19. As it makes its way to Broadway in the
lead is Melissa Gilbert. You may remember Gilbert played
the young author in the television series which ran from 1974 – 83.
Debuting in her first musical, Melissa is playing
Laura’s mother.
-
Having great success in Sydney with his directing
debut of the Riflemind at the Sydney Theatre Company, Philip
Seymour Hoffman (Capote, Charlie Wilson’s
War) has transplanted the production to London’s
Trafalgar Studio 1 Theatre. In OZ this play by author/playwright
Andrew Upton, husband to Cate Blanchett, was critically acclaimed.
- Canada recently lost a theatre treasure…actor and director Richard
Monette died on September 9 of a pulmonary embolus. A larger than life
force, Monette was at the helm of the famed Stratford Theatre
for 14 years bringing it from the brink of bankruptcy to a thriving theatre destination
for both the Shakespearian classics and contemporary musicals and plays. The
highlights of his tenure are numerous including his establishing of a formal
program of new play development as well as the creation of a $50million endowment. Richard also
had the ability to attract first class talent to take to the stage from season
to season including such legends as William Hutt, Brian Bedford and Martha
Henry. Such a champion of Canadian talent will be missed.
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