Sean Hayes

It’s the first-ever revival of the 60s smash hit, Promises, Promises. And it’s coming to Broadway in just a matter of weeks! Kristen Chenoweth, the original star of Wicked, unites with Sean Hayes, of TV’s Will & Grace fame, in this classic musical.

Based on the Billy Wilder film, The Apartment, Promises, Promises tells the story of Chuck Baxter, an up-and-coming employee at Consolidated Life Insurance. Seeking to advance his fortunes with the company, the young Baxter lends his apartment to executives so they can carry out their extra-marital affairs. The scheme takes an unexpected turn when his lover Fran becomes the mistress to one of the executives.

Written by Neil Simon, Burt Bacharach and Hal David, Promises, Promises features such timeless Bacharach/David tunes as “I’ll Never Fall In Love Again” and the title song. Watch for previews to begin on March 27th, with opening night set for April 25th at the Broadway Theatre.

American Idiot
Get ready theatre fans, because Green Day’s rock musical American Idiot is coming to The Great White Way. American Idiot tells the exhilarating story of a new generation of young Americans as they struggle to find meaning in a post-9/11 world, borne along by Green Day’s electrifying score. With an 8 member onstage band and a cast of 19 led by Tony Award-winner John Gallagher, Jr., this high-octane musical includes every song from the acclaimed album American Idiot, as well as several songs from the band’s Grammy Award-winning new release, 21st Century Breakdown.

Directed by Michael Mayer, previews for American Idiot begin at the St. James Theatre on March 24th. Opening night is scheduled for April 20th.

South Pacific Closing… Eventually
It’s the longest running revival of a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical in Broadway history. But after 37 previews and 1000 regular performances, South Pacific will end it’s run at the Vivian Beaumont Theatre on August 22nd of this year. And while no one is welcoming this announcement, the good news is that there’s still time for you to see this 8-time Tony Award winning musical with us. To book your tour to South Pacific, simply click here.

And that’s today’s ShowBus Buzz. Check back soon for our next blog update.

The ShowBus Team
http://ShowBusTours.com
info@showbustours.com
(800) 882-6400

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Playwright Neil Simon

Call it a sign of the times – the tough economic times, that is. After opening on Broadway barely a week ago, the new revival of Neil Simon’s Brighton Beach Memoirs is already history. According to the New York Times, the show, which opened on October 25th, played its final performance last night.

Brighton Beach Memoirs was supposed to run in rep at the Nederlander Theatre with a revival of Simon’s Broadway Bound, which was scheduled to open later this year. Now the former is dark and the latter has been canceled.

Both plays were huge hits on The Great White Way back in the 1980s, yielding Tony awards for Matthew Broderick in Brighton Beach Memoirs, and for Linda Lavin (of TV’s Alice fame) in Broadway Bound.

Scarlett Johansson Planning Broadway Debut
Golden Globe winning actress Scarlett Johansson is set to make her Broadway debut in Arthur Miller’s A View From the Bridge. Johansson will co-star with Tony award winner Liev Schreiber who will play Eddie Carbone, a New York longshoreman obsessed with his 17 year old niece Catherine, played by Johansson. When Catherine falls in love with a newly arrived immigrant, Eddie’s jealousy erupts in a rage that consumes him, his family, and his world.

The production will play a 14-week limited engagement at Broadway’s Cort Theatre, with previews scheduled for December 28th and opening night set for January 24th.

Andrew Lloyd Webber Diagnosed With Cancer
Just a couple of weeks after announcing plans for a sequel to Phantom of the Opera, 61 year old legendary composer Andrew Lloyd Webber has made a more grim announcement. He has been diagnosed with prostate cancer. The good news, according to Webber’s publicist, is that the cancer was discovered in its early stages and a full recovery is expected. “Andrew is now undergoing treatment and expects to be fully back at work before the end of the year,” the statement said.

You may recall that we told you about the upcoming opening of Webber’s Phantom sequel, Love Never Dies, which is set to debut in London in March, with a Broadway opening planned for next November. At this time, Webber does not expect that this unfortunate news will affect that schedule.

And that’s today’s ShowBus Buzz. Check back here often because we’ll be back with more news from Broadway very soon.

The ShowBus Team
http://ShowBusTours.com
info@showbustours.com
(800) 882-6400

Harada, who is currently appearing in 9 to 5: The Musical, has also performed on Broadway in Les Miserables, M. Butterfly and Seussical. This summer she will take over the role of Christmas Eve, which she has played in both the London and Broadway Avenue Q productions. Look for Harada at the John Golden Theatre beginning on July 6th.

Neil Simon Revivals
Look for Broadway revivals of two popular Neil Simon plays this Fall as both Brighton Beach Memoirs and Broadway Bound are headed for The Great White Way. While the theatre has yet to be announced, watch for Brighton Beach Memoirs to begin previews on October 2nd with opening night scheduled for October 25th. Broadway Bound begins previews at the same theatre on November 18th with opening night set for December 10th. The two shows will be performed in rep on a varied schedule.

Memphis Headed for Broadway
The new musical, Memphis, a tale of the birth of rock ‘n’ roll in the 1950s is headed for Broadway’s Shubert Theatre this Fall. Featuring a score that mixes gospel, R & B and early rock ‘n’ roll, Memphis chronicles the life story of fictional character Huey Calhoun, a young, white radio jock growing up in Memphis in the 1950s.

Previews at the Shubert are set for September 23rd with opening night planned for October 18th.

Harris Set to Join Chicago
If you’re a fan of ABC-TV’s popular Dancing With The Stars, you’ll be pleased to know that the show’s co-host, Samantha Harris, is Broadway-bound this summer. Set for a limited, six-week engagement, Harris will assume the role of Roxie Hart in Chicago from July 7th through August 16th at the Ambassador Theatre.

If you’d like to catch Harris in Chicago this summer, you can reserve your tickets now by clicking here.

That’s today’s ShowBus Buzz. Join us again soon for more news from The Great White Way.

The ShowBus Team
http://ShowBusTours.com
info@showbustours.com
(800) 882-6400