by Nathaniel R
Donna Lynne, Sutton, and Ann
Theater is finally starting up again this summer and though the news is coming fast and furious about MANY productions there are three you really must know about involving great shows starring three special actresses that TFE loves dearly: Donna Lynn Champlin and Ann Dowd (both of whom have been kind enough to guest-star on this very site!) and Sutton Foster who is a longtime obsession...
DONNA LYNNE CHAMPLIN as "Mrs Lovett" in Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Hangar Theatre in Ithaca, New York is doing a reimagined Sweeney Todd this summer with racially diverse casting. Nic Walker is playing the titular demon barber and the always funny Champlin (Crazy Ex Girlfriend) is playing one the greatest female musical theater roles of all time, Mrs Lovett. She's got the pipes and the comic timing. That's just great casting, friends. Incidentally Donna Lynn was in Sweeney Todd the last time it played Broadway (the Patti Lupone / Michael Cerveris production) albeit in a much much smaller role. And in case you missed it, she did two Smackdown panels here at TFE on the years 1972 and 1981.
[Performances: July 22nd - August 7th]
ANN DOWD in Henrik Ibsen's Enemy of the People
Remember when Ann Dowd guest-blogged here at TFE? That was so wonderful and generous of her. We're thrilled to share that she is going to be performing Ibsen's Enemy of the People at NYC's Park Avenue Armory this summer. That's not even the most exciting part. The most exciting part is that she'll be playing ALL the roles in the experimental production. Tickets are only sold in pods (groups of 2 to 5) so that you can enjoy in social distance safety with your friends at personal tables.
[Performances: June 22nd-July 25th]
SUTTON FOSTER as "Reno Sweeney" in Cole Porter's Anything Goes
Listen up readers living in or near the UK. Two-time Tony winner Sutton Foster, whose schedule has officially freed up now that her (underrated) comedy series Younger has wrapped, will be back on the musical stage with force. Everyone knows she's doing The Music Man with Hugh Jackman on Broadway in 2022 but FIRST she'll be reprising her second Tony winning performance from a 2011/2012 Broadway production for her West End debut. If you're in the UK do not miss it; she's just sensational in the role singing showtune classics like "Anything Goes", "Blow, Gabriel, Blow", "You're the Top" and "I Get a Kick Out of You". It remains insane that Hollywood hasn't begged Sutton Foster to star in movie musicals. Younger proved she can carry a whole show on camera just as she does so regularly and with endearing funny ease on stage. Plus, you don't need to edit around her (or edit at all), dub her, or anything and she also apparently doesn't require oxygen to hold a note forever after dancing up a storm. We've watched the clip above dozens of times since 2011 and it always puts a stupid grin on our face. And that's just a rehearsal. She turns the energy up even more on stage.
[Performances: July 23rd - October 17th]