Things better left unsaid

Beyond the Yellow Brick Road Concert Series to Feature Bean, Espinosa and Schwartz

By Andrew Gans
April 8, 2009

Upright Cabaret's Wicked Summer Nights: Beyond the Yellow Brick Road concert series will play Los Angeles' Ford Amphitheatre beginning June 2009 and will boast the talents of Wicked composer-lyricist Stephen Schwartz and former Elphabas Shoshana Bean and Eden Espinosa.

( Read more... )

Wicked's Espinosa to Be Part of Hair Cast; Broadway Perfs. Begin March 6

By Andrew Gans
January 1, 2009

Spring Awakening producers Jeffrey Richards and Jerry Frankel have joined forces with the Public Theater to present the upcoming revival of Hair, The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical.

Oskar Eustis, artistic director of The Public Theater, also announced that Eden Espinosa — seen on Broadway in Wicked and Brooklyn — has joined the cast in the role of Sheila.

( Read more... )

Wicked's Espinosa to Offer Solo Concerts in CA Beginning Dec. 15

By Andrew Gans
November 25, 2008

Eden Espinosa, who is currently playing the green-faced, misunderstood Elphaba in the Los Angeles production of Wicked, will go it solo Monday nights beginning Dec. 15.

Espinosa will perform in concert at the Upright Cabaret at Mark's Restaurant Mondays, Dec. 15, 22 and 29, 2008, and Jan. 5, 2009. Show time each night is 9 PM.

( Read more... )

DIVA TALK: Chatting with Wicked's Ashford, Bean, Espinosa, Murney and Thompson

DIVA TALK: Chatting with Wicked's Ashford, Bean, Espinosa, Murney and Thompson

By Andrew Gans
October 24, 2008

News, views and reviews about the multi-talented women of the musical theatre and the concert/cabaret stage.

THE GALS OF WICKED
There can be little argument that the biggest theatrical phenomenon of the past five years has been the Stephen Schwartz-Winnie Holzman musical Wicked, which is based on Gregory Maguire's novel of the same name. The production, which celebrates its fifth anniversary at Broadway's Gershwin Theatre Oct. 30, has been a massive hit wherever it has played, including sit-down productions in Chicago and Los Angeles, a national touring company, and international stagings in London, Tokyo, Stuttgart and Melbourne (there will soon be a second U.S. national touring company, and the Los Angeles production will transfer to San Francisco in January 2009). Much of the show's success can be credited to the exciting score (years ago, Schwartz gave belting fans "Meadowlark," and his work for Wicked includes the vocally soaring "Defying Gravity," "The Wizard and I" and "No Good Deed" as well as the comic and catchy "Popular" and the touching ballad "I'm Not That Girl") and the its big heart (Holzman's adaptation of Maguire's clever novel offers several touching moments and keeps the audience rooting for its green-skinned heroine). The musical also provides two of the greatest roles for women in recent musical theatre history, and the work of original co-stars Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel as well as future Glindas and Elphabas — including Annaleigh Ashford, Shoshana Bean, Stephanie J. Block, Kerry Ellis, Eden Espinosa, Megan Hilty, Kendra Kassebaum, Julia Murney, Jennifer Laura Thompson, among others — cannot be discounted. Recently "Diva Talk" posed the same four questions to several of the actresses who have brought Elphaba or Glinda to full life; their answers follow.

( Read more... )

Rent Filming for Nationwide, Cinematic Broadcast to Begin Aug. 20

By Andrew Gans
August 19, 2008

The Aug. 20 performance of the landmark, Pulitzer Prize-winning musical Rent, which is currently playing its final weeks of a 12-year-run at the Nederlander Theatre, will be filmed.

A Columbia Pictures spokesperson confirmed to Playbill.com that nine cameras will capture the 8 PM performance of the Tony Award-winning Jonathan Larson musical. Those same cameras will also record the show's final performance on Sept. 7.

A composite of the best performances from those two evenings — including what will likely be emotional moments from the final Broadway show — will subsequently be broadcast in movie theatres nationwide. Audiences around the country will have the chance to view the Broadway production of Rent Sept. 24 and 25 (evening screenings) and Sept. 27 and 28 (afternoon screenings).

( Read more... )

Espinosa, Gonzalez, Murney and Porter Set for Broadway in South Africa Concert

By Andrew Gans
August 8, 2008

A host of theatre favorites will take part in an upcoming concert at Symphony Space to benefit the new organization Broadway in South Africa.

The Oct. 6 benefit concert at the Upper West Side venue is scheduled to feature the talents of Sebastian Arcelus (Jersey Boys), Stanley Bahorek (Spelling Bee), Sean Bradford (The Lion King), Eden Espinosa (Rent), Mandy Gonzalez (In the Heights), Frankie James Grande (Mamma Mia!), Adam Kantor (Rent), Kendra Kassebaum (Wicked), Norm Lewis (The Little Mermaid), Julia Murney (Wicked), Billy Porter (Grease), Kate Shindle (Legally Blonde) and Lisa Nicole Wilkerson (The Lion King) with Gabriel Croom (The Lion King), Kenway Kua (Wicked), Ray Mercer (The Lion King), Brandon O'Neal (The Lion King), Luis Salgado (In the Heights), Rickey Tripp (In the Heights) and Phillip Turner (The Lion King) performing choreography by Dance Theater X's Charles Anderson. Show time is 7:30 PM.

( Read more... )

"Rent" Film Star Thoms to Join Broadway Production of Larson Musical

By Andrew Gans
July 22, 2008

Tracie Thoms, who played Joanne in the 2005 "Rent" film, will join the Broadway production of that Pulitzer Prize-winning Jonathan Larson musical.

Thoms, Variety reports, will step into the role she played on film — Joanne Jefferson — beginning July 26 at the Nederlander Theatre. The singing actress will stay with the production through its final performance on Sept. 7.

( Read more... )

Broadway's Rent Welcomes Eden Espinosa May 30

By Kenneth Jones
May 30, 2008

Eden Espinosa jumps into the role of performance artist Maureen in Broadway's Rent starting May 30 at the Nederlander Theatre.

Espinosa made her Broadway debut covering the roles of Elphaba and Nessarose in Stephen Schwartz's Wicked. She eventually assumed the role of Elphaba on Broadway and also opened the sit-down production of Wicked in Los Angeles. Espinosa also played the role of Brooklyn — a part she created at the Denver Civic Theatre — in the musical of the same name on Broadway, and she made her solo concert debut at New York's Town Hall.

( Read more... )

Chase and Espinosa Will Join Broadway's Rent Cast

By Andrew Gans
May 1, 2008

Broadway favorites Will Chase and Eden Espinosa are scheduled to join what will be the final company of Broadway's Rent, which will end its lengthy, award-winning run at the Nederlander Theatre Sept. 7.

Chase, according to a production spokesperson, will join the cast of the Jonathan Larson musical May 5 in the role of Roger; Espinosa will make her Rent debut as Maureen May 30.

( Read more... )

Espinosa and Felciano to Star in Reprise! Flora, the Red Menace

By Andrew Gans
27 Feb 2008

Eden Espinosa — whose Broadway credits include the title role in Brooklyn and Elphaba in Wicked — will star in the Reprise! Broadway's Best upcoming staging of Kander and Ebb's Flora, the Red Menace.

( Read more... )

Meadowlark is probably one of the most famous songs from a Schwartz musical that didn't have a Broadway run. It's from The Baker's Wife by Stephen Schwartz. :) The Elphaba's seem to like singing this song - at least, Julia Murney has mentioned (several times) singing this song to the accompaniment of Andrew Lippa for Stephen Schwartz. Both Stephanie J Block and Eden Espinosa have also sung this song (see below).

( Read more... )