In the Wings

Joe Brancato is fond of saying he likes plays that entertain while “stirring the gray matter.” In 35 years as founding artistic director at Stony Point’s Penguin Rep, he has presented new works that have done both. Season 36 looks like more of the same in the 108-seat barn theater… Read More →

Vincent Pastore, who starred in “The Sopranos,” on the set of his new play, “Wild Children,” at the Nyack Village Theater. The show, directed by Richard Quinn, runs April 12-28. Photo by Seth Harrison/The Journal News. Memories travel. Vincent Pastore — who came to fame as Salvatore “Big Pussy” Bonpensiero… Read More →

John Anthony Lopez is King Arthur and Peter Turo is his trusty squire Patsy, coconuts at the ready, in rehearsal for the Westchester premiere of “Spamalot” at Yorktown Stage. The show, directed by Augie Abatecola, runs April 13 to 21. Photo by Joe Larese/The Journal News. If someone says “shrubbery”... Read More →

Cold Spring’s Maia Guest, Charlie Plummer and John Christian Plummer on the set of “Granite Flats,” a BYUtv series that premieres April 7. Photo by Jessica Brinton. It is a long way from Cold Spring to Utah, but an even longer way from 2013 to 1962. Just ask John Plummer,... Read More →

Jessica Lynch has been cast as Eva Peron in Archbishop Stepinac’s “Evita,” opening April 26. Stepinac’s producer Keith Sunderland got in touch this morning to update me on the all-boys Catholic high school’s search for a new Eva Peron for its production of “Evita.” After Friday’s auditions to replace Harrison’s… Read More →

Last May, newspaper people across the metropolitan area lost a treasured colleague with the passing of Bob Heisler, a former editor at The Journal News, Newsday, The New York Post and the New York Daily News. Bob was my editor here for about four years. He was the most positive,... Read More →

For years at The Schoolhouse Theater — up a steep hill on Owens Road in Croton Falls — the vibe was much more schoolhouse than theater. Stroll down the main hall and you could easily imagine an unruly child cooling his heels on a chair outside one of the classroom… Read More →

Bad dress rehearsals, they say, make for good runs. If you subscribe to that maxim, Larchmont’s John Treacy Egan should have a great run as Tito Merelli in “Lend Me a Tenor” at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, NJ. Just watch what happened at their dress. JT is such… Read More →

ArtsRock is racking up an impressive list of “conversations” with Nyack’s Elliott Forrest. They’ve had Alec Baldwin and Robert Osborne (who were a team on TCM’s “Essentials” series, but appeared separately with Forrest). Now, Forrest has landed Broadway’s David Hyde Pierce, who is perhaps still best known as Niles Crane… Read More →

Broadway’s Cosette, Marius reunite at The Town Hall Pleasantville’s Broadway vet, Ali Ewoldt, reunites with her “Les Miserables” co-star Adam Jacobs (who played Marius to her Cosette) for a one-night-only concert, “A Heart Full of Love: A Concert,” at NYC’s famous venue The Town Hall on Feb. 23. Jacobs (seen… Read More →

Buy early, buy often for memorable nights at Boscobel Photo by William Marsh: The opening of last summer’s excellent production of “Romeo & Juliet.” Tickets are now on sale for one of the greatest summer traditions in the northern suburbs: The fantastic Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival at Boscobel in Garrison…. Read More →

A nice surprise at Westchester Broadway Theatre in Elmsford last night when, before the curtain for the press night of “In the Heights,” director John Fanelli came out to the stage with local dignitaries and introduced Luis Miranda, the father of Tony-winner Lin-Manuel Miranda. Luis spun three stories about his… Read More →

This just in: The work refurbishing The Schoolhouse Theater at Croton Falls is about a week behind schedule, meaning Jon Robin Baitz’s “Ten Unknowns” won’t open as scheduled on Feb. 28. The new opening date is one week later, March 7, at the converted schoolhouse in Croton Falls where theatrical… Read More →

‘60s icon comes to Suffern’s Lafayette Theatre on Valentine’s Day Singer Darlene Love, who will sing love songs at Suffern’s Lafayette Theatre on Valentine’s Day, poses for  a photograph at one of her favorite restaurants: Aldo & Gianni in Montvale, N.J.  Photo by Carucha L. Meuse/The Journal News. Darlene Love… Read More →

Songwriters say stars, songs, surprises mark show’s return Jennifer Hudson, as Broadway veteran Veronica Moore, appears in tonight’s season-two premiere of “SMASH” on NBC. Nanuet native Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman know that fans of NBC’s “SMASH” have endured a long wait since last season. So the writers of “Hairspray,”... Read More →

Longtime Rocklander returns to Broadway after a decade away Ellen Burstyn likes to keep sharp. “I exercise my memory at every opportunity,” says the newly-minted 80-year-old, calling from her car on a ride from her Rockland home to Broadway’s American Airlines Theater for another performance of William Inge’s “Picnic,” directed… Read More →

‘Guys and Dolls,’ ‘Sound of Music’ to follow ‘In the Heights’ Bob Funking and Bill Stutler, the men behind nearly 40 years of song and dance at Westchester Broadway Theatre, are going traditional in 2013. Having begun the year with the final weeks of “Fiddler on the Roof,” Funking and… Read More →

Alums honor Byram Hills triple play: Bissell to Varley to Shatraw Byram Hills alumni gather on the stage for the final number: “Seasons of Love” from “Rent.” (Grainy photo, sorry, by yours truly.) Byram Hills High School isn’t large by most standards, but its theatrical tradition is vast, producing outsized… Read More →

Mamaroneck plans to honor ‘X Factor’ star on Jan. 27 (Carly Rose Sonenclar attends the “The X Factor” season finale at CBS Television City in Los Angeles on Dec. 20, 2012 Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP) Mamaroneck’s singing superstar—“XFactor” runner-up Carly Rose Sonenclar—has been home for weeks, but her village will… Read More →

Broadway’s Blankenbuehler recalls challenges of staging in Elmsford Andy Blankenbuehler, above, who won a Tony Award for his choreography for “In the Heights,” began his professional career on the stage of Westchester Broadway Theatre, where “In the Heights” opens Feb. 7. WBT is where Blankenbuehler earned the Equity card that… Read More →

Hip-hop musical to take WBT stage, with a Broadway assist Director John Fanelli and actress Arielle Jacobs pose above the Westchester Broadway Theatre lobby last week, as they prepare to begin rehearsals for “In the Heights.” Jacobs played Nina on the national tour and on Broadway. Photo by Joe Larese/The… Read More →

Peter Gallagher leads alums back to Byram Hills (Peter Gallagher as Arthur Campbell in “Covert Affairs.” Photo by Steve Wilkie/USA Network.) Before Peter Gallagher made a name for himself on TV’s “Covert Affairs” and “The O.C,” and on Broadway, he was a theater kid at Armonk’s Byram Hills High School…. Read More →

Sharr White sits in the empty Samuel J. Friedman Theatre before a recent performance of “The Other Place,” his award-winning intermissionless drama that opens on Broadway tonight. After a few moments, his star, Laurie Metcalf (of “Roseanne” fame) appears, her hair in rollers, and sits in the chair at center… Read More →

Meet Jangle Bells and Chumley the Walrus (“The Year Without a Santa Claus,” airs on at 4 p.m. Dec. 22 on ABC Family. Dobbs Ferry’s Bradley Bolke provided the voice for Jangle Bells, the character on the left. Photo courtesy Rankin&Bass and ABC Family.) Since its 1974 premiere, there has… Read More →

 And then there were four… (Carly performs in Wednesday’s live show. Photo by Ray Mickshaw.) Westchester’s singing phenom, 13-year-old Carly Rose Sonenclar from Mamaroneck, made it straightaway to the top 4 and the semifinals of Fox TV’s “X Factor” singing competition tonight. Next Wednesday, she’ll face country singer Tate Stevens,... Read More →