The Bushnell has announced its 2016-17 Broadway Series of nationally touring shows, and it’s as diverse a bunch as the theater has ever offered. Many of the offerings have very familiar titles, but for different reasons: one is based on a famous Hollywood movie, another is a show first seen at Hartford Stage, yet another is a thoughtful reworking of a Rodgers & Hammerstein classic, and the others are based on pop songs, a bestselling novel and an autobiographical comic book. In terms of style and content, the season shows extraordinary range.
It begins Aug. 3 to 7 with the modern musical “If/Then,” about a divorced woman who seeks a new start in New York City. “If/Then” is followed Oct. 25 to 30 by the more traditional “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder,” which originated at Hartford Stage and went on to win six Tony awards, including Best Musical and Best Director (Darko Tresnjak).
For the past three years, at least two musicals on the Bushnell Broadway series were adapted from famous movies. This year, there’s only one: the dance-filled “An American in Paris,” Nov. 15 to 20. The only non-musical show next season will be the stage adaptation of the mystery novel “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time,” arriving at the Bushnell Dec. 27 through Jan. 1. “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical” plays Jan. 17 to 22. The tour of the recent Broadway revival of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s “The King and I” comes May 30 through June 4. The season ends June 20 to 25 with the groundbreaking “Fun Home,” based on the graphic novel/memoir by Alison Bechdel. “Fun Home” is not only the first mainstream musical to feature a lesbian heroine, it’s the first musical with an all-female writing team (playwright Lisa Kron, composer Jeanine Tesori and Bechdel, who wrote the original source material).
For a Broadway Series season subscription, call 860-987-5900 or visit bushnell.org.
Second Stage
The co-production of “Body of an American” that played Hartford Stage during January has moved on to New York, where it will play through March 20 at the Cherry Lane Theatre in the West Village, under the aegis of Primary Stages. The show has the same cast, director and designers as it did in Hartford, though it might feel different: The performance area is shallower and the Cherry Lane auditorium has less than half the capacity of Hartford Stage.
Going On In “Anything Goes”
Goodspeed Musicals has announced the cast for its season-opening production of the Cole Porter-scored musical comedy “Anything Goes,” running April 8 through June 16 at the Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam. One name leaps out as ideal casting: Stephen DeRosa, the Broadway stalwart and Yale School of Drama grad who recently played the father in “These Paper Bullets!” both at the Yale Rep and Off Broadway, will be the genial gangster Moonface Martin. The show’s heroine, Reno Sweeney, will be portrayed by Rashidra Scott, and David Harris (Valjean from last summer’s Connecticut Repertory Theatre production of “Les Miserables”) will be Billy Crocker.
Also on board: Hannah Florence (Hope Harcourt), Desiree Davar (Erma), Denise Lute (Mrs. Wadsworth T. Harcourt), Benjamin Howes (Sir Evelyn Oakleigh), Kingsley Leggs (Elisha J. Whitney) and Patrick Richwood (Purser). The chorus/ensemble players are Brittany Bohn, Sy Chounchaisit, Alison Jantzie, Jay Aubrey Jones, John Ramsey, Christopher Shin, Karilyn Surratt, Sam Tanabe, James Tolbert, Edward Tolve and John T. Wolfe, plus two “swing” performers, Cooper Taggard and Chiara Trentalange.
“Anything Goes” is directed by Daniel Goldstein and choreographed by Kelli Barclay; they’ve worked together previously on the Goodspeed productions of “Damn Yankees” and “Hello, Dolly.” The set design is by WIlson Chin (a longtime associate of Santo Loquasto). Costumes are by Ilona Somogyi, whose work is now on view in “Romeo and Juliet” at Hartford Stage.
Succeeding, Starcatching and West-Siding
Connecticut Repertory Theatre has its 2016 Nutmeg Summer Series all set for the Harriet S. Jorgensen Theatre on the UConn campus in Storrs:
June 2-12: The capitalistic musical comedy “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.”
June 15-July 2: The lighthearted “Peter Pan” prequel “Peter and the Starcatcher.”
July 7-17: The classic romantic musical “West Side Story.”
It’s a timely selection, what with CRT having just done “Peter Pan” last summer (and another Pan-themed show, “Finding Neverland,” still on Broadway) and Hartford Stage currently staging “Romeo and Juliet,” on which “West Side Story” is based. Vincent Cardinal is in his sixth season as CRT’s artistic director. Subscriptions are already on sale, while single tickets will be available April 20. Details at 860-486-2113 or crt.uconn.edu.
What Light Through Yonder Projector Breaks
The Shakespeare Book Club at the Noah Webster Library in West Hartford is a film series as well. The 7 p.m. Monday screenings include “Julius Caesar” (the Marlon Brando/James Mason one) on March 7, “The Tempest” (with Christopher Plummer) April 4, “The Taming of the Shrew (starring Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor) May 2 and “Othello” (Laurence Fishburne) June 6. Details at westhartfordlibrary.org.
