Arts & Entertainment

Springtime For Broadway

It's our semiannual roundup of New York stages'
newest offerings with a Jewish twist.

Alice Burdick Schweiger
Special to the Jewish News

Photo by Jim Coy

Photo by Joan Marcus

Photo by Carol Rosegg

A Catered Affair
This funny new musical, with book by and
starring Harvey Fierstein, tells the story
of a 1950s Bronx mother's efforts to give
her only daughter the elaborate wedding
the mother never had. Fierstein is best
known on Broadway for Tony-winning
roles in the semiautobiographical Torch
Song Trilogy (which he also wrote) and
Hairpray (as Mama Edna). He also starred
as Tevye in a recent revival of Fiddler on
the Roof
Now in previews, the show opens April
17.
At the Walter Kerr Theatre, 219 West
48th St. (212) 239-6200.

Boeing Boeing
First performed in the 1960s, this corn-
edy comes directly from a revival run in
London, where it received rave reviews.
Starring Christine Baranski and Gina
Gershon, it's about an archited in Paris
who juggles three flight attendant fiancées
as they fly in and out of town..
Previews begin April 19; the show opens
May 4.
At the Longacre Theatre, 220 West 48th
St. (212) 239-6200.

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Cry Baby
Set in 1954 Baltimore at the beginning of
rock 'n' roll, this musical about teenage
rebellion tells the story of a "good" girl
who falls for a "bad" boy. Songs are by
David Javerbaum, former head writer
of the Daily Show with John Stewart, and
Adam Schlesinger of alt-rock group
Fountains of Wayne, who was Oscar-nomi-
nated for the song "That Thing You Do"
from the film of the same name.
Now in previews; the show opens April
24.
At the Marquis Theatre, 1535 Broadway.
(212) 307-4100.

-

Gypsy
Returning to Broadway, this landmark
musical set in the vaudeville era and
based on the memoirs of burlesque queen
Gypsy Rose Lee, is about a stage mother
(played by the critically acclaimed Patti

Prior Tony winner Harvey Fierstein in

A Catered Affair

Lupone) and her efforts to catapult her
daughters into stardom. Book by Arthur
Laurents (who, at 90, directs this produc-
tion), music by Jule Styne and lyrics by
Stephen Sondheim.
At the St. James Theatre, 246 West 44th
St. (212) 239-6200.

Jackie Mason:
The Ultimate Jew
Once again Jackie Mason presents a one-
man stand-up comedy show combining
political satire with insightful observa-
tions.
A limited engagement, the show runs
through June 29.
At the New World Stages/Stage 1, 340
West 50th St. (212) 239-6200.

Marcy in the Galaxy
Former Detroiter Nancy Shayne wrote
the music, lyrics and book for this poi-
gnant "psychological" comedy, based on a
story by Shayne and Michael Patrick King,
writer-producer-director of Sex and the
City. Marcy, a struggling Michigan-born
Jewish artist in midlife is living in New
York and sitting in the Galaxy Diner try-
ing to figure out her life when her family
appears.
"Anyone who lives in the Detroit area
will clearly pick up local references:' says

Victor Hawks, Danny Burstein and Noah
Weisberg in South Pacific

David Rossner as Shlomo Carlebach
in Shlomo

Shayne, who grew up in Oak Park, gradu-
ated from Berkley High School, earned
a degree at the University of Detroit and
was one of three co-founders of the Attic
Theatre in Detroit. After college, she
moved to Chicago and became musical
director of the touring company of Second
City. She now resides in New York City.
This Off-Broadway show closes April 20.
At the Connelly Theatre, 220 East Fourth
St. (212) 352-3101.

tells the story of two couples whose hap-
piness is threatened by the realities of war
and prejudice during World War II. First
performed in 1949, South Pacific is con-
sidered to be one of the greatest Broadway
shows ever written. Danny Burstein (The
Drowsy Chaperone, Titanic, Company)
plays Seabee Luther Billis, who has cor-
nered the market in everything from grass
skirts to shrunken heads.
At the Vivian Beaumont Theater, 150
West 65th St. (212) 239-6200.

Shlomo
This musical celebrates the life of singer-
songwriter Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach,
who revolutionized modern Jewish music.
After escaping from the Nazis in Europe,
Carlebach traveled to America, became the
first emissary of the Lubavitcher Rebbe
and emerged in the 1960s folk scene as a
"rabbi rock star" sharing the stage with
the likes of Bob Dylan.
This limited engagement runs April 22-
May 9.
At the Museum of Jewish Heritage,
Edmund J. Safra Hall, 36 Battery Place.
(212) 279-4200.

South Pacific
Set on a tropical island during World
War 11, this beloved musical by Richard
Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II

The Country Girl
Directed by Mike Nichols, this Clifford
Odets play about a once famous down-
on-his- luck alcoholic actor whose wife
tries to help him make a comeback stars
Morgan Freeman, Frances McDormand
(wife of recent Oscar winner Joel Coen)
and Peter Gallagher. One of Odets' last
plays, it earned great acclaim on Broadway
in 1950 and was a box-office film success
in 1954.
A limited engagement, it runs through
July 20.
At the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, 242
West 45th St. (212) 239-6200.111

April 10 • 2008

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