musical theater

Go See: 'West Side Story' Infused With New Energy

Erin Keane — Fri, 17 May 2013 15:37:56 +0000

After Actors Theatre of Louisville's Tony Speciale-directed contemporary staging and the Louisville Ballet's classical interpretation, Broadway in Louisville caps off a season of "Romeo and Juliet" with the touring production of "West Side Story." The musical opened Tuesday and runs through Sunday in Whitney Hall, with matinees and eveni

The Middle of the Dial: A Conversation with 'Memphis' Producer Sue Frost

Erin Keane — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 21:43:26 +0000

In post-World War II Tennessee, radio stations were just as segregated as restaurants and hotels. The award-winning musical “Memphis” is loosely based on the life of Dewey Phillips, the white DJ who integrated the Memphis airwaves in the early days of rock and roll. In "Memphis," Phillips is re-imagined as fast-talking DJ Huey Calhoun, who falls in love with an African American nightclub singer.

Music Of My Soul: 'Memphis' Tour Comes to Town

Erin Keane — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 19:25:07 +0000

The national tour of the acclaimed Broadway musical “Memphis” stops in Louisville next week. It's the story of radio DJ Huey Calhoun, who becomes a sensation in 1950s Memphis for playing Black musicians on mainstream (white) commercial radio.

'War Horse' Joining Slate of All-New Broadway Series Season

Erin Keane — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 12:00:00 +0000

The acclaimed Broadway drama “War Horse” is coming to the Kentucky Center in November. The Broadway in Louisville series announced their next season today, which includes the popular musical “The Book of Mormon.” All of the shows scheduled for next season are new to Louisville.

Rounding out the season are musical adaptations of two early-Nineties films, “Ghost” and “Sister Act,” and “The Addams Family,” which opens the season in October.

Big Dreams, Big Show: 'Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat' at CenterStage

Erin Keane — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 19:00:00 +0000

Louisville’s Center Stage opens Andrew Lloyd Weber’s “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” this week. The musical was the first Andrew Lloyd Weber/Tim Rice collaboration to be staged, but it didn’t really catch on until the two had a smash hit with “Jesus Christ Superstar” in the early Seventies.

A Killer Role: Million Dollar Quartet's Touring Jerry Lee

Erin Keane — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 20:55:22 +0000

Ben Goddard, who plays Jerry Lee Lewis (and plays piano like him, too) talked with WFPL's Erin Keane yesterday about the touring life, acting vs. impressions, playing an American icon and growing up in England with rock and roll. The show plays at the Kentucky Center through Sunday, Feb. 17.

Million Dollar Quartet, Plus One

Erin Keane — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 15:51:40 +0000

The photo ran in the Memphis Press-Scimitar the day after Sam Phillips brought then-unknown Jerry Lee Lewis and his mad piano chops into his Sun Studios to fatten up Carl Perkins' follow-up to his hit "Blue Suede Shoes." Johnny Cash, already a star with "Folsom Prison Blues" and "I Walk the Line," was a buddy of Perkins', hanging around the studio during the session. When former Sun artist Elvis Presley dropped in, an iconic moment was born.

National Tour Takes 'Flashdance' to Broadway via Louisville

Erin Keane — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 18:00:46 +0000

The 1983 movie "Flashdance" wasn’t loved by film critics in its day—too much like music videos, they said. But the film grossed more than $100 million, and the soundtrack spawned a series of top ten hits and an Academy Award for Irene Cara’s “Flashdance—What a Feeling.”

Seth Rudetsky Brings His 'Big Fat Broadway Show' to Town

Erin Keane — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 12:00:00 +0000

As a pianist, Seth Rudetsky has played for more than a dozen Broadway shows, including "Ragtime," "Les Miserables" and "Phantom of the Opera." Listeners to Sirius/XM's On Broadway channel know afternoon host Rudetsky, also the hose of "Seth Speaks" on Sirius/XM Stars, is obsessed with Broadway.

Great 'I Want' Moments in Musicals

Erin Keane — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 20:04:17 +0000

The Broadway touring production of Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" opens tonight in the Kentucky Center's Whitney Hall.