Along the lines of Memento, Sliding Doors, and/or Vantage Point, those [tos]sers over at [title of show] have cooked up a super-creative eighth episode of the [title of show] show (which I like to call “Run, Mindy, Run“) to officially announce their upcoming Broadway engagement.

As instructed, I’m doing my best to tell 9 people (or hopefully more like hundreds of people) that [title of show] will begin previews at Broadway’s Lyceum Theatre July 5 with an official opening scheduled for July 17.

Here is the answer to the many inquiries Man In Chair has been receiving about tickets to the upcoming Thea Sharrock-helmed production of Equus staring Daniel Radcliffe and Tony and Olivier Award winner Richard Griffiths:

Opening night at the Broadhurst (where Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is currently playing) is scheduled for September 25, and the production will play a 22-week engagement through February 8, 2009.

According to Broadwayworld.com, tickets can be purchased by American Express Gold Card members Saturday, April 12, 2008 at 9am ET by calling (212) 239-6200 or by visiting www.telecharge.com.

A cursory look at telecharge this morning still lists Cat on a Hot Tin Roof at the Broadhurst, but no Equus yet. Also not sure when tickets will go on sale for non-Amex holders, and a quick call to Tele-charge gained me no additonal info.

Stay posted to MIC for more Equus ticket news.

Equus comes to Broadway from the West End, where the production received critical praise and played to SRO houses during its five-month engagement at the Gielgud Theatre last year. The production is designed by John Napier, with lighting design by David Hersey, and sound design by Gregory Clarke.

All those episodes of the [title of show] show have finally paid off.

According to playbill.com, “[title of show] — the four-person Off-Broadway musical about the making of a musical — will begin previews at Broadway’s Lyceum Theatre July 5 with an official opening scheduled for July 17.”

The entire original cast — including co-creators Jeff Bowen and Hunter Bell as well as Susan Blackwell and Heidi Blickenstaff— will be seen on Broadway, directed by A Chorus Line’s Michael Berresse, who also helmed the acclaimed Off-Broadway run.

I’ve written e-tomes about this show (see links below, or click on the title of this post, and then see links below) about the show’s twoguyswritingamusicalabouttwoguyswritingamusicalabouttwoguyswritingamusical circular plot, so I won’t go on and on. Just wanted to share the big news.

I wonder though, each time this show goes another step–from New York Musical Theatre Festival, to Off-Broadway, and now to Broadway–Hunter and Jeff have to write new material chronicling the show’s progress within the show itself. At this rate, it’s going to be an Angels In America/Mahabharata/Coast of Utopia epic. Not that I’m complaining. I’m just sayin’…

Congratulations to all involved. And here’s to a long and healthy Broadway run.

Around the Fall of 2007, Man In Chair, was Tale of Two Cities Central, as I became somewhat obsessed with Jill Santoriello’s new musical of Dicken’s classic novel. Joe and I thoroughly enjoyed the production at the Asolo Rep in Sarasota and the reviews of that production were good to great to glowing. At the time it was being hailed as the “pre-Broadway” run, though there were no definite plans to bring it to Broadway.Until now.According to playbill.com, Tale will begin Broadway previews Aug. 19 toward a Sept. 18 opening at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre, after Curtains closes there in June. No casting has been announced, but many of the Florida cast are expected to be asked back, and Warren Carlyle, who choreographed the Sarasota production, is apparently on the short list of choices for director.

The leads (and standouts in smaller roles) in the Asolo cast included James Barbour as Sydney Carton, Natalie Toro as Mme. Defarge, Jessica Rush as Lucie Manette, Derek Keeling as Charles Darnay, Nick Wyman, as the wily John Barsad, Alex Santoriello as Dr. Manette and Bruce Compton Merkle whose five minute turn as a dying young man was heart breaking and beautifully sung.

For more information, you can search for “tale of two cities” on Man In Chair, or visit http://www.talemusical.com/.

If you have an American Express, you can now get your tickets to the limited run (March 29-May 24) of the Patrick Stewart-led Macbeth transferring from a sold out run at BAM to Broadway’s Lyceum Theatre. Go to Telecharge.com with your blue, platinum, plum, gold, silver, or black Amex and get started.

Tickets go on sale to the rest of us Visa/Mastercard/Discover carrying schmucks on March 22.

For more information about the show, click on the title of this post, and scroll down to the “related articles” section.

No definite information yet on when tickets for the Broadway transfer of Patrick Stewart’s Macbeth will go on sale, but here are a couple of clues:

1. Playbill.com has Macbeth listed on its Broadway listings, with the ticket sale date listed as TBA. This would be a good place to keep checking.

2. Looks like Telecharge.com will be the ticket vendor. All that’s listed right now on Telecharge at the Lyceum is Is He Dead?, which is closing March 9.

3. According to Bloomberg, the first ad for the transfer is scheduled to be published in the New York Times on March 9. According to the same article, the show will have to sell out right away in order for the investors to turn any sort of profit:

With $800,000 raised to finance the show, the producers will need all of Stewart’s star power for the Shakespeare drama to turn a profit. “We have to sell out right away,” said a member of the producing team, who insisted on anonymity because not all of the arrangements for the move have been completed.

While the actual cost of transferring the production is well under $200,000, the budget rose because of the cost of keeping the large company on payroll during the time between the end of the BAM run and the Broadway opening.

4. There is also a thread tracking progress of the transfer at Broadwayworld.com. This is often one of the hottest spots for the latest breaking theatre news.

5. And if the hits to Macbeth-related posts on Man In Chair are any indication, there are TONS of people looking for tickets, so don’t get lazy if you want to see this one. Keep checking here and at the sites listed above.

I found a great interview with Daniel Evans and Jenna Russell of the upcoming revivial of Sondheim’s Sunday in the Park with George at the Roundabout Theatre. Gives some insight into the huge animated version of Seurat’s painting that plays such a large role in this production, and gives us a couple of tiny audio and visual glimpses into the original Menier Chocolate Factory’s Olivier Award-winning production of this revival.

The actors mention a generation of theatre-goers who love the score, but have never seen the show. I nearly went see the original in high school in the late 80s on my first trip to NYC, but instead settled for a balcony seat at Brighton Beach Memoirs from which I could only see the action on the ground floor of the two-story set. S.I.T.P.W.G. is one of my favorite scores, and I hope to rectify that twenty-year-old bad decision by taking in this exciting production.

So check out the video and then go to Goldstar Events to get $121 tickets for $61. Or if you are 18-35 years old, join the Roundabout’s free Hiptix program, and get tickets for $20!!

Sunday in the Park with George Interviews

Since I haven’t posted for awhile, I thought I’d jump back in with a doozy. Like I did last Fall, I’ve compiled the pertinent information for the upcoming six musicals and seven plays scheduled to open in the next several months on Broadway. Thanks to Playbill.com for the inspiration.

Plays first, in order of first performance dates. Enjoy!!

SHOW: November
BY: David Mamet
CAST: Nathan Lane, Laurie Metclaf, Dylan Baker, Michael Nichols, Ethan Phillips, directed by Joe Mantello
SYNOPSIS: November, a political play by David Mamet, who wrote the screenplay for Wag the Dog, is set in the month notable for elections as well as presidential pardons of Thanksgiving turkeys.
PERFORMANCES BEGAN: December 20, 2007
RUNS:Open-Ended, beginning January 17, 2008

SHOW: Come Back, Little Sheba
BY: William Inge
CAST: S. Epatha Merkerson, Kevin Anderso, Lyle Kanous, Zoe Kaza, Brian J. Smit, Brenda Wehl, Matthew J. Williamson, directed by Michael Pressman
SYNOPSIS: Marie, an attractive young boarder, gives new meaning to the lives of Doc and Lola Delaney, married for 20 years and grindingly unhappy. For Lola, Marie is the child she never had. Doc, who has been drinking away his frustrations, has less than paternal feelings. Shocking in 1950 for its frank references to alcoholism and premarital pregnancy, Sheba helped usher in an era of realistic domestic dramas.
PERFORMANCES BEGAN: January 3, 2008
RUNS: January 24 through March 16, 2008

SHOW: The 39 Steps
BY: John Buchan, adapted by Patrick Barlow from an original concept by Simon Corble and Nobby Dimon
CAST: Charles Edwards, Arnie Burton, Jennifer Ferrin, Cliff Saunders, directed by Maria Aitken
SYNOPSIS: Part espionage thriller and part slapstick comedy, the production features four actors who portray all the characters and all the action from the 1935 Alfred Hitchcock film, including the chase atop the Flying Scotsman train, a bi-plane crash and the death-defying finale in London’s Palladium theatre,
PERFORMANCES BEGAN: January 4, 2008
RUNS: January 15 through March 23, 2008

SHOW: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
BY: Tennessee Williams
CAST: Terrence Howard, Anika Noni Rose, James Earl Jones, Phylicia Rashad, directed by Debbie Allen
SYNOPSIS: Will manipulative patriarch Big Daddy leave his plantation to his weasly son Gooper or his handsome alcoholic son Brick? And why doesn’t Brick have a son of his own? Hotblooded wife Maggie does her best to tempt Brick from his brooding and back into her bed. Winner of the 1955 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
PERFORMANCES BEGIN: February 12, 2008
RUNS: March 6 through April 13, 2008

SHOW: Thurgood
BY: George Stevens, Jr.
CAST: Laurence Fishburne, directed by Leonard Foglia
SYNOPSIS: The one-man show is based on the life and momentous times of Thurgood Marshall, the first African-American to serve on the Supreme Court.
PERFORMANCES BEGIN: March 30, 2008
RUNS: April 20 through July 20, 2008

SHOW: The Country Girl
BY: Clifford Odets
CAST: Morgan Freeman, Frances McDormand, Peter Gallagher, directed by Mike Nichols
SYNOPSIS: A washed-up actor is given a final shot at redemption, but his drinking threatens to derail things. Can his put-upon wife save the situation, or is she the cause of it?
PERFORMANCES BEGIN: April 1, 2008
RUNS: Open Ended

SHOW: Top Girls
BY: Caryl Churchill
CAST: Mary Catherine Garrison, Elizabeth Marvel, Martha Plimpton, Marisa Tomei, directed by James Macdonald
SYNOPSIS: Marlene celebrates her promotion to managing director of the Top Girls Employment Agency by throwing a “Mad Hatter” type dinner party for a fanciful array of mythical and historical women, including a Victorian-era Scottish traveler, a Japanese courtesan turned Buddhist nun, Pope Joan and Chaucer’s Patient Griselda. Crossing cultures, generations and politics, the sparkling dinner conversation reveals the sacrifices made as well as the joys experienced by these extraordinary women.
PERFORMANCES BEGIN: April 15, 2008
RUNS: May 7 through June 22, 2008

SHOW: Stalig 17
BY: Donald Bevan and Edmund Trzcinski
CAST: TBA, directed by Spike Lee
SYNOPSIS: A war drama set in a German prison camp. Billy Wilder directed the 1952 film based on the play, which, in turn, spawned the TV series “Hogan’s Heroes.”
PERFORMANCES BEGIN: TBA

And now the musicals…

SHOW: The Little Mermaid
BY: Lyrics—Howard Ashman & Glenn Slater; Music—Alan Menken; Book—Doug Wright
CAST: Sierra Boggess, Sherie Rene Scott, Sean Palmer, Norm Lewis, Tituss Burgess, Eddie Korbich, Jonathan Freeman, Derrick Baskin, Tyler Maynard, Trevor Braun, Brian D’addario, Cody Hanford, J.J. Singleton, Adrian Bailey, Cathryn Basile, Heidi Blickenstaff, James Brown Iii, Robert Creighton, Cicily Daniels, John Treacy Egan, Tim Federle, Merwin Foard, Ben Hartley, Meredith Inglesby, Michelle Lookadoo, Joanne Manning, Alan mingo, jr., Zakiya Young Mizen, Betsy Morgan, Arbender J. Robinson, Bahiyah Sayyed Gaines, Bret Shuford, Jason Snow, Chelsea Morgan Stock, Kay Trinidad, Price Waldman, Daniel J. Watts, directed by Francesca Zambello
SYNOPSIS: After rescuing a handsome young prince, Ariel, a young mermaid, makes a faustian bargain with an unscrupulous sea witch that allows Ariel to be human, but at a terrible cost.
PERFORMANCES BEGAN: November 3, 2007
RUNS: Open-Ended, beginning January 10 2008

SHOW: Sunday in the Park with George
BY: Music & Lyrics—Stephen Sondheim, Book—James Lapine
CAST: Daniel Evans, Jenna Russell, Michael Cumpsty, Alexander Gemignani, Jessica Molaskey, Mary Beth Peil, Ed Dixon, Santino Fontana, Kelsey Fowler, Jessica Grove, Alison Horowitz, Stacie Morgain Lewis, Drew McVety, Anne Nathan, Brynn O’Malley, David Turner, directed by Sam Buntrock
SYNOPSIS: The Pulitzer Prize-winning musical chronicles the life of maverick French impressionist painter Georges Seurat during the creation of his now celebrated masterpiece, “A Sunday on La Grande Jatte-1884.” Act Two is set in the 1990s, when Seurat’s great-grandson encounters different artistic struggles.
PERFORMANCES BEGIN: January 25, 2008
RUNS: February 21 through April 6, 2008

SHOW: Passing Strange
BY: Lyrics & Book—Stew; Music—Stew and Heidi Rodewald
CAST: Stew, de’Adre Aziza, Daniel Breaker, Eisa Davis, Colman Domingo, Chad Goodridge, Rebecca Naomi Jones, Heidi Rodewald, Jon Spurney, Christian Cassan, directed by Annie Dorsen
SYNOPSIS: An African-American rock musician’s desire for authenticity takes him to some exotic locales to find the meaning of life.
PERFORMANCES BEGIN: February 8, 2008
RUNS: Open-Ended, beginning February 28, 2008

SHOW: In the Heights
BY: Music & Lyrics—Lin-Manuel Miranda; Book—Quiara Alegría Hudes
CAST: Lin-Manuel Miranda, Andréa Burns, Janet Dacal, Robin De Jesús, Carlos Gomez , Mandy Gonzalez, Christopher Jackson, Priscilla Lopez, Olga Merediz, Karen Olivo, Seth Stewart , Tony Chiroldes, Rosie Lani Fiedelman, Joshua Henry, Afra Hines, Nina Lafarga, Doreen Montalvo, Javier Muñoz, Krysta Rodriguez, Eliseo Roman, Luis Salgado, Shaun Taylor-Corbett, Rickey Tripp, Michael Balderrama, Blanca Camacho, Rogelio Douglas Jr., Stephanie Klemons, directed by Thomas Kail
SYNOPSIS: It’s the July 4th weekend in Washington Heights, a vibrant and tight-knit neighborhood at the top of Manhattan. The musical explores the joys, heartbreaks and bonds of a Latino community struggling to redefine home.
PERFORMANCES BEGIN: February 14, 2008
RUNS: Open-Ended, beginning March 9, 2008

SHOW: South Pacific
BY: Lyrics—Oscar Hammerstein II; Music—Richard Rodgers; Book—Joshua Logan & Oscar Hammerstein II
CAST: Kelli O’Hara. Paulo Szot. Loretta Ables Sayre. Matthew Morrison. Danny Burstein, directed by Bartlett Sher
SYNOPSIS: South Pacific concerns the lives of U.S. military men, nurses and the residents of the Polynesian island they occupy during World War II. Nurse Nellie Forbush is “In Love With a Wonderful Guy,” a French planter with small children. Clean-cut Lt. Cable has fallen hard for Bloody Mary’s daughter Liat. And the seabees, sailors and marines will tell you that there is “Nothing Like a Dame.” The show’s gorgeous score also includes “Cockeyed Optimist,” “I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Out of My Hair,” “Some Enchanted Evening,” “Younger Than Springtime,” “Honey Bun” and “This Nearly Was Mine.”
PERFORMANCES BEGIN: March 1, 2008
RUNS: April 3 through June 22, 2008

SHOW: A Catered Affair
BY: Music & Lyrics—John Bucchino; Book— Harvey Fierstein
CAST: Faith Prince, Tom Wopat, Matt Cavenaugh, Harvey Fierstein, Leslie Kritzer, Philip Hoffman, Katie Klaus, Heather MacRae, Lori Wilner, Kristine Zbornik, directed by John Doyle
SYNOPSIS: In 1953, relationships are strained to the limit when a Bronx couple must choose whether to spend their life savings on a family business or to launch their only daughter’s marriage with a lavish catered affair.
PERFORMANCES BEGIN: March 25, 2008
RUNS: Open-Ended beginning April 17, 2008

About the three shows, Playbill.com tells us:

August: Osage County at the Imperial is the praised Steppenwolf import by Pulitzer Prize nominee Tracy Letts. The family drama under the direction of Anna Shapiro stars Ian Barford, Deanna Dunagan, Kimberly Guerrero, Francis Guinan, Brian Kerwin, Dennis Letts, Madeleine Martin, Mariann Mayberry, Amy Morton, Sally Murphy, Jeff Perry, Rondi Reed, and Troy West. (Reviews have been stellar.)

Golden Globe Award-winner Ian McShane and Tony-nominee Raúl Esparza join Eve Best (A Moon for the Misbegotten), Michael McKean, James Frain, and Gareth Saxe for the 40th revival of Harold Pinter’s provocative The Homecoming under the direction of Daniel Sullivan. Currently in previews, The Homecoming opens Dec. 16 at the Cort Theatre.

Finally, David Mamet and Joe Mantello are reunited for the politically-inspired November, starring Tony winner Nathan Lane. The latest work from the Pulitzer Prize winning author of Glengarry Glen Ross, set days before the presidential election, also stars Laurie Metcalf, Tony-nominee Dylan Baker, Ethan Phillips and Michael Nichols. November begins previews Dec. 20 in anticipation of a Jan. 17 opening at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre.

The tickets are all in the orchestra or front mezzanine, and normally sell for around $99, so the three-for-$199 deal might also be construed as two-for-the-price-of-three.

Semantics aside, it’s a pretty good way to see three plays from primo locations at a pretty good price.

More info at www.3greatplays.com.

Playbill.com tells us that Richard Frankel productions has raised enough money and public enthusiasm to bring the Encores! Summer Stars series acclaimed mounting of Gypsy starring Tony and Olivier Award winner Patti LuPone to Broadway in 2008. The transfer will cost a reported nine million smackaroos, but many in the theatre-going community will gladly buy tickets to help offset the cost….

The current Broadway revival of Chicago started out as a sparsely staged Encores! presentation, and eleven years later, it’s doing just fine.

The entire cast will be offered the chance to repeat their roles, although LuPone is the only one officially cast so far.

Nancy Opel, who played Mazeppa and Miss Cratchitt is currently touring in the title role of The Drowsy Chaperone, so her availability might be in question.

Barring any extension, Boyd Gaines, the production’s Herbie, will have finished his run as Col. Pickering in the Roundabout’s Pygmalion by the time rehearsals start.

And Laura Benanti, aka Louise, has signed on to play the mother of an autistic child in Eli Stone, a new series on ABC projected for the mid 2007-2008 television season, which might be a difficult schedule to juggle.

Gypsy co-creator Arthur Laurents, who helmed the City Center run, will direct on Broadway as well.