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Today on Broadway: Thursday, March 13, 2025
00:18:03
Live Entertainment 5 Years After COVID Shutdown, ‘Freestyle Love Supreme’ Returns to NYC Shive and Roman Roy Reunite at Stage Door Since 2016, “Today on Broadway” has been the first and only daily podcast recapping the top theatre headlines every Monda...
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- [00:02]
Matt Tamminini
Welcome to Today on Broadway for Thursday, March 13, 2025. I'm Broadway Radio's Matt Tamminini and I'm.
- [00:08]
Grace Aki
Tell Me on a Sunday podcast, Grace.
- [00:09]
Matt Tamminini
Aki Grace, after we record, you are racing to some New York area airport to fly over to London. When you get back and when you're done, we'll talk about the shows you're seeing because everything is a little bit in flux. But very excited for you to check out some of these shows that we've talked about, some of these shows we haven't talked about. So whatever you see, I'm sure it's going to be fantastic. So I can't wait all about that when you're back. One thing that I am in no hurry to talk about anytime ever again is the fact that the day we are recording Tuesday, March 12, is the fifth anniversary of When Broadway Went Dark for the COVID 19 pandemic. There's a very interesting article in the New York Times that was posted on Wednesday that kind of looks at not only theater but live performance in general. And it really goes back to what we were talking about, I think on yesterday's show, Grace, about how some things are coming back. Tours, like music tours, are doing very well. Obviously, big artists like Taylor Swift and Beyonce sell really well. We talked about the wwe, but then they also mentioned the fact that Broadway is back to about 95% of the grosses that it was making compared to 2018, which was the best year on record. That was the last full season, 2018, 2019, before the pandemic happened. But they do note that while yes, we're about 95% back for the first time since 2018, all 41 Broadway theaters will have a show in them this season. More shows are regularly grossing $1 million. But they also talk about the fact that one, a lot of those extra grosses is due to just price increases, but also the fact that profitability is down because of how expensive it is to do business on Broadway. They talk about the fact that like national tours are selling pretty well, but not for profit, theaters are not. So there's a lot of really interesting stuff in there, not just for the theater industry, but for live entertainment in general. They also dive into like the Met Opera, the Philadelphia Opera, sports. They even talk about Hollywood orchestras. So there's a lot of really good information there that I think that we can get some details and insight into what's going on in the theater community out of, even if it's not theater specific. Greece But I know this is something that you look at in your day job, you know, about how different industries could give us information on what we can learn from for theater specifically.
- [02:43]
Grace Aki
Yeah, for sure. It's, it's, it's a hard stat to hear that like profitability is down because you always want. If record breaking numbers are happening, like does that actually supplement the cost of everything? Are producers able to recoup in a better timeline? Are they able to in a, in a better percentage than they have in the past? You know, who knows? But yeah, it is hard, it's hard to hear. But I hope that there are measures being taken to both. And we were talking about this yesterday, right, where it's like we want unions and the people that are making the shows to also be profiting in the same capacity and getting those numbers up as much as these box office records and things like that. So hard to hear. But also interesting to find out.
- [03:24]
Matt Tamminini
Is there one segment of the live entertainment industry aside from theater that you think is doing really well or doing something really interesting that theater could learn from?
- [03:36]
Grace Aki
I don't think that I have enough of a background knowledge in financially what is genuinely sustainable and paying actors and people backstage like an equitable amount. So I just want to start by saying that I also think that live entertainment with sports and this is something I'm actually talking to my partner a lot about because they engage in sports and WWE and all these other things. Live events engage in sports.
- [04:02]
Matt Tamminini
I've never heard it phrase that engage.
- [04:04]
Grace Aki
In sports activity as in watching them. But like even with my colleagues that have worked with like the WNBA and whatnot, like the feeling of fandom when you go see a Taylor Swift concert. The feeling of fandom that you're able to achieve through the MLB app. Like the way that you're able to like have achievements and badges and like collect things. I wish there were better systems in place. I know that the reason that those don't exist right now is because of the difficulty and there's no streamlined ticketing system. So when there are like five different ticket platforms, you cannot actually say like oh, if I went to go see, you know, one show, like let's say that it's, you know, I'll talk about shows that have passed, right? Like if I'm going to see Tammy Faye and then I'm also the very next night going to see oh Mary or and then on Sunday I go see Swept Away or something. That would be a three show weekend that I curated for myself. Like the next time I made a ticket purchase $20 off or something like that. You know what I mean? Or like you did a three day back to. Back to back. You get, you know, next time you buy two tickets, you get one free because that's the three or something like that. You know what I mean? Like, there are not a ton of community building and streamlined fan service things that we are able to automate right now that I would really love to see implemented. If there is more consistency in ticketing platforms like moving forward. I feel like I said five different things and that's because I've had three coffee drinks today. But I think that someone might get something out of that. So hopefully, you know, whatever.
- [05:37]
Matt Tamminini
Yeah, no, no, that's great. I think that there's a lot of really smart things that you can take from that. I love the idea of really engaging with the fandom. And you're right, like the difficulty.
- [05:48]
Grace Aki
There's a ton of incentivization. There's not a ton of incentive to be a multibuyer always. There is group sale pricing, which I love. Oftentimes shows will put out like a three plus me. I know. And Juliet ran that and it was really successful. Like, I think that there are opportunities that people are doing. I'm not saying that they aren't, but it's not as consistent. And I think that you and I both, and we are both, you know, often theater goers enough to where we would absolutely love very small perks, even if it's one free cocktail or non alcoholic beverage when we go to the theater per five visits or something. Like, I just, I want that.
- [06:29]
Matt Tamminini
Yeah. I mean, six did the Royalty program last year where if you saw six three times, you got like a little ring light and the house of Holbein glasses. If you went six times, you got these.
- [06:42]
Grace Aki
Yeah. And shout out to Pico and Kevin McCollum for like making that happen. You know, it takes people that want. It's not an easy thing. They have to get it across the line. But that show specifically has always understood that gorgeous fan service and I appreciate it and I want it to roll out across the board.
- [07:00]
Matt Tamminini
Yeah, absolutely. I actually saw the show five times last year, but I didn't do the tickets properly all the time. But I did get the three benefits and I passed them down to my niece and nephew. So they have. My niece has the ring light, my nephew has the sunglasses. So. All right, well, let's talk about some show and casting and developmental stuff that was in the news on Wednesday. One of the most fun times I've had in the Theater Freestyle Love supreme is coming back to New York City, but just for two performances. It is happening next week at the Gramercy Theater on March 19th and 21st. The show will feature a core group of Andrew Bancroft, Anissa Folds. Both of those two have been on the podcast before. Arthur Lewis, Kaylia Mulladay and Chris Sullivan. And then they will have special guests on each night. On the first night, March 19, winner James Monroe Iglehart. And then on the second night, March 21, they will have Broadway favorite Christopher Jackson. And honestly, what's crazy about this is is that aside from Lin Manuel Miranda, I think now the most famous in terms of like most people know him, the most known person aside from Lyn in Freestyle Love supreme is probably Utkarsh Ambedkar who is going to be a part of the 21st performance. He is one of the stars of one of the most popular comedies on television, Ghosts. That show is incred incredibly popular. So I think that this is very cool that he's coming back as a special guest along with cjack. So if you want information on how you can purchase tickets to that, we will have it in the show Notes Speaking of very cool one or two night only events, on Monday we had the 2025 version of Broadway Backwards, which of course is an annual concert that benefits the LGBTQIA community of New York City. Well, Broadway Cares and the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community center raised a record breaking total this season. They brought in $1,111,788. That beats last year's record by over 194k. So congratulations to everybody who was a part of that. Jen Colella hosted for the fifth year. And you know Grace, this is a time when all of these types of organizations, especially Broadway Cares, but more specifically the organizations that benefit queer communities, they're going to need all of the extra funding that they can get because of the attacks that are happening from a governmental and legislative perspective. So if you have an opportunity to support the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community center in New York City or something similar in your community, please take that opportunity to do that. And always contributing to Broadway Cares has a huge effect to communities around the world. And speaking of which, we have talked a number of times here in the past few weeks about the musical Finn that was supposed to have a Kennedy center produced tour happening but it was canceled because of gestures widely at the world. Of course they will have a benefit performance of this show that'll be happening at the Town hall on next coming Monday. We already told you about some of the stars that'll be involved. Andrew Rannells, Kelli O'Hara, Lea Salonga, Bonnie Milligan, Jesse Mueller, Nicky M. James, Jose Lana Hennessey. Win. Now we know some other stars that will be involved in that production. Michael Urie, Charlotte Dambois, Nino West, Peppermint Adam Pascal, Brenda Braxton and Zachary Noah Peyser. They will also feature a performance by the Gay Men's Chorus of Washington, who also had their Kennedy center performance canceled along with the New York City Gay Men's Chorus as well. So this will be an anniversary production from Stars in the House and will benefit the Entertainment Community Fund. All right, Grace, I know you often go to workshops and industry presentations and readings as part of your job. I have some information about a couple of those that are coming up. First will happen next Friday on the 21st. There'll be two of them. They come from midnight theatricals and it will be a presentation of a new play called the Rosenbergs. It is a play directed by Chloe Treat and written by S. Asher Gelman. It will feature Caroline Arron, Francis Benhammu, William Demerit, Andy Gale, Adam Cantor, Zachary Prince, Sharon Segui and Rebecca Vega Romero. It is set in a luxury resort in Turks and Caicos and follows the titular family as they face two impending storms. The first a sudden hurricane forcing the group into close quarters, which engenders the second, a tempest of deep seated family tensions and confrontations over identity, faith and geopolitical beliefs. And then the other one, Grace, comes from the New York Theater Barn, which will present its 18th season of its New Works series. That'll happen on Monday, March 31. It will feature two new musicals. The first one is called the Orchids and it features a book by T.C. lind, music by Derek Greger and lyrics by Phoebe Kretz. And it is directed by the one and only Telly Lee Young. The show stars Patti Murin and Jackie Burns. Patty plays Evelyn Pierce, a fiercely intelligent English professor who secretly falls in love with the strident new dean at her university, played by Jackie Burns. The other one is called Skin and it features a book and lyrics by Andrew Strano and music by Yuriko Shibata. And while cleaning out their mother Cat's old house, Shiv discovers an album filled with pictures of Kath and her ex lover, Heather. Shiv feels betrayed because they never knew of their mother's queerness and they have to deal with that and what it means for their lives. So if you want more information about both of these shows, we will have them in the show notes. All right, Grace, this is another one of those box office things that we love to talk about so much and I think this is very cool. Happening on Tuesday, Tuesday the 18th over at the James Earl Jones at 9:45am the co composer of Real Women have Curves, Joy Huerta is going to do a special pop up concert outside of the theater. It is being done to ACcompany a special $50 ticket offer at the box office. She is going to do acoustic versions of songs from the show as well as selections from her Grammy Award winning pop duo along with her brother Jesse And Joy. This will be a very happening at 9:45. The box office will open at 10am and between 10am and 6pm you can get $50 tickets for all performances between April 1 and April 13. The offer is only valid for that day, so if you want to take advantage of that, be there on Tuesday the 18th. But I love this, Grace. We talk all the time about all these little special giveaways and appearances and all that stuff. But like I, this is the first time I think I can remember like a concert at a, at a box office event. Like obviously we've had the ham for hams with the lotteries but that was a kind of its own different deal. But this is the only thing that I can think of that was similar to that. Can you think of anything else?
- [13:53]
Grace Aki
Yeah, like during Swept Away we had like you know those little stage door concerts but never accompanied with like the, the ticket of it all. I know that they had a really great box office opening featuring like Los Tacos, which I thought was really smart. So I really like that they're doing something like this again, especially ahead of their performances. It's very exciting.
- [14:11]
Matt Tamminini
All right, Grace, I have two feel good recommendations. One of them I'm going to let you explain completely. The other one I'm going to ask you some questions about because I saw this video pop up on my Instagram feed and I thought it was just a clip from the Hairspray movie, but it's not. So have you seen this new hairspray with the. Okay, can you explain to me what's going on? So it features Gigi Hadid who I guess is a model. I know her name and I know her sister. She has a sister who's also a model named Bella, but I don't really know anything about beyond that. She plays Amber, I guess kind of in this video. Maybe Amber, maybe Penny, I can't really tell. And then it's got a bunch of other People. Alton Mason, Cole Escola, Laverne Cox, Marc Jacobs and more. And they're just doing, like, kind of a cut up of different parts of youf Can't Stop the Beat. I guess it's for Vogue. What's going on here? I don't know.
- [15:06]
Grace Aki
This was interesting. I think that, you know, Hairspray, from the film to the musical is a cultural phenomenon. I think it's strange when it's, like, through the lens of, like, a very, like, prominent, like, white woman. But, yeah, like, I. I was curious what this meant. I think it's just, like, a cultural touchstone that they were utilizing, but maybe not understanding, like, the racial and, you know, fat representation that film upholds. And that musical does so kind of an interesting take, but I'm. I'm curious to learn more. Anyways, you should watch it.
- [15:39]
Matt Tamminini
Yeah, I thought it was going to be like, some sort of, like, campaign or some big issue of Vogue, but there's nothing. It's just like, hey, here's this video that doesn't really say anything else. It's just like, we're doing this. But anyway, great fun, good times. All right, Grace, this other video I know probably holds a very special place in your heart. I first saw it because you posted a TikTok of it. So tell me what happened at a certain stage door, I'm guessing on Tuesday night.
- [16:11]
Grace Aki
Okay. If you all recall, I literally said, when am I going to see Sarah Snook? And also I learned Sarah Snook is maybe a better pronunciation from. From what I've heard her say her name is. So take that as you will. So Sarah Snook at the Dorian Gray stage door at the same time as, like, Kieran Culkin doing Glenn Gary Glen Ross. I was like, they have to meet in the middle. I have to see the video of that. Like, it's going to happen. This was an unplanned. He just ran up to her stage door as she's signing autographs and gave her a hug. And he's like, how is it going? Like, they're just checking in. He could have just called her, but he's not very good on the phone. His words, not mine. And it's the most pure, like, brother, sister thing you've ever seen. And I'm obsessed with them. And the video is adorable. You have to watch it.
- [16:57]
Matt Tamminini
I think it also gives us an insight into what having a conversation with Kieran is like when he is not giving a really fun, loving acceptance speech. Because I feel like when he goes over in like the. Where the video starts, he says, like three different things in the course of four seconds where he's like, I was.
- [17:16]
Grace Aki
Taking pictures of your theater. I love you so much.
- [17:17]
Matt Tamminini
Are you sick? All of this time all at once? And I was like, oh, my God, so much. And they're just like embracing and kissing. It was really lovely. So whether or not you are a Succession fan or not, I think you'll really enjoy that video. All right, everybody, that's all we have for today. Thanks for listening to today on Broadway. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Audrey Radio. You can follow me on Instagram. Grace. Where can people find you?
- [17:36]
Grace Aki
You can find me at. It's Grace Hockey.
- [17:37]
Matt Tamminini
Grace, have a wonderful trip, a great flight. I hope you are able to sleep on the plane across the Atlantic Ocean. And you won't be here for tomorrow's show, but you will be back for Monday's show. At least that is the plan. Who knows what happens with with all of the travel, but have a great time and I'm looking forward to talking about these shows with you next week.
- [18:03]
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