Broadway’s ‘Brighton Beach Memoirs’ to Close a Week After its Opening

Broadway’s revival of Neil Simon’s Brighton Beach Memoirs will close this Sunday (Nov. 1). Although the play garnered several good reviews, the play only made $124,000 for eight performances last week.

Simon’s Broadway Bound has already begun its rehearsals and was planning to open in several weeks, but will not open as planned because lead producer Emanuel Azenberg believes that the play will also do poorly as far as tickets sales and “could not justify continuing to spend his investors’ money, or his own.”

Edited: October 31st, 2009

Adam Shankman Signs on to Direct ‘Rock of Ages”

Adam Shankman (Hairspray, Step Up 2: The Streets) has signed to to direct and choreograph the screen version of the Broadway musical, Rock of Ages.

According to Variey, production will begin next summer with a 2011 release date.

“I had the best time of my life making Hairspray and badly wanted another musical, and when I watched Rock of Ages, I was struck by the fact that not only had much of the audience seen it more than once, every guy in the audience knew the words to the songs. I thought, this is Mamma Mia! for dudes. What an extraordinary opportunity to open the genre to an audience that otherwise wouldn’t go see a musical.”

Rock of Ages started its production in Vegas briefly, but then moved to an off-Broadway location. After great ticket sales, the show re-located to the Brooks Atkinson Theatre on Broadway. The show has been nominated for five Tonys and stars American Idol alum, Constantine Maroulis.

Are you excited to see it on the big screen?

Edited: October 20th, 2009

Daniel Radcliffe is Broadway Bound Again

Daniel Radcliffe will be taking the stage once again, but this time in a musical.

The Harry Potter star will perform in the lead role in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. Radcliffe made his Broadway debut in 2008’s Equus.

Edited: October 9th, 2009

“Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” Musical in the Works

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory may be headed to a theater near you soon. Warner Bros. is developing a stage musical based on Ronald Dahl’s classic book “Willy Wonka &  the Chocolate Factory,” which was also adapted into two films – one of which was directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp.

Director Sam Mendes (Revolutionary Road, Away We Go) and Neal Street Productions are already on board to produce and possibly direct the production.

Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman who worked on the 2007 Hairspray film, are set to compose the music.

According to the Hollywood Reporter:

The concept behind the stage version of “Factory” is to take the candy-colored set pieces — seen most elaborately in the effects  of Tim Burton’s 2005 pic — and translate them to the stage, while also creating new musical elements and transferring some that animated the pic.

Edited: October 2nd, 2009

Cell Phone Interrupts Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig’s Performance in “A Steady Rain”

During a performance of the new Broadway play, A Steady Rain, a cell phone rang and continued to ring, causing stars Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig to ask the theatergoer to get it.

Jackman said,

“Can you get that, whoever that is? Can you get it? We can wait, just get the phone.”

Watch the video below of it all going down.

Photos by: Broadway.com

Edited: September 28th, 2009