Current Broadway Show listings

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★ ‘ALFRED HITCHCOCK’S THE 39 STEPS’ An absurdly enjoyable, gleefully theatrical riff on the 1935 Hitchcock movie, directed by Maria Aitken and featuring a cast of four that feels like a cast of thousands. This fast, frothy exercise in legerdemain is throwaway theater at its finest (1:45). Cort Theater, 138 West 48th Street, (212) 719-1300. (Ben Brantley)

★ ‘AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY’ Tracy Letts’s turbocharged tragicomedy about an Oklahoma clan in a state of near-apocalyptic meltdown is the most exciting new American play Broadway has seen in years. Fiercely funny and bitingly sad, it somehow finds fresh sources of insight in that classic staple of the stage, the disintegrating American family. And the cast, from the Steppenwolf Theater Company, is beyond sublime (3:20). Music Box Theatre, 239 West 45th Street, (212) 239-6200. (Charles Isherwood)

‘A CATERED AFFAIR’ John Buccino and Harvey Fierstein’s short, slow and somber depiction of a blue-collar family planning an expensive wedding, inspired by the 1956 movie, is so low-key that it often seems to sink below stage level. John Doyle directs a scrupulously subdued cast led by Faith Prince, Tom Wopat and Mr. Fierstein (1:30). Walter Kerr Theater, 219 West 48th Street, (212) 239-6200. (Brantley)

‘CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF’ Anika Noni Rose and Terrence Howard deliciously embody those eternal adversaries, irresistible force and immovable object, as the battling husband and wife in the first act of this otherwise flabby revival of Tennessee Williams’s melodrama. Debbie Allen directs, none too certainly, a cast that also includes James Earl Jones and Phylicia Rashad (2:45). Broadhurst Theater, 235 West 44th Street, Manhattan; (212) 239-6200. (Brantley)

‘THE COUNTRY GIRL’ The sole source of suspense in this inert revival — directed by Mike Nichols and starring Morgan Freeman, Frances McDormand and Peter Gallagher — is whether three of the finest actors around can ever make you care about what their characters are going through (2:10). Jacobs Theater, 242 West 45th Street, (212) 239-6200. (Brantley)

‘CRY-BABY’ Tasteless, though not in the way you would expect from a show adapted from a movie by John Waters, the king of cinematic vulgarity. This bad-boy-meets-good-girl 1950s spoof has all the flavor of week-old, prechewed gum. Mark Brokaw directs a forgettable cast. (2:20). Marquis Theater, 1535 Broadway, at 45th Street, (212) 307-4100. (Brantley)

‘DISNEY’S THE LITTLE MERMAID’ The motto for this charm-free musical blunderbuss, based on the charming 1989 Disney movie, might be “You can’t go broke overestimating the taste of preschoolers.” Francesca Zambello directs an overwhelmed cast (2:20). Lunt-Fontanne Theater, 205 West 46th Street, (212) 307-4747. (Brantley)

‘GREASE’ A limp revival of a musical set in a high school that feels like a musical put on by a high school. Kathleen Marshall directs and choreographs a charisma-free ensemble, whose leads (Max Crumm and Laura Osnes) were cast via reality television (2:15). Brooks Atkinson Theater, 256 West 47th Street, (212) 307-4100. (Brantley)

★ ‘GYPSY’ As the dangerously obsessed Momma Rose, Patti Lupone has found her focus. And when Ms. LuPone is truly focused, she’s a laser, she incinerates. Directed by Arthur Laurents, this wallop-packing incarnation of the great musical showbiz fable, also starring the superb Boyd Gaines and Laura Benanti, shines with a magnified, soul-revealing transparency (2:30). St. James, 246 West 44th Street, (212) 239-6200. (Brantley)

★ ‘IN THE HEIGHTS’ Lin-Manuel Miranda, who wrote the bubbly Latin pop score for this musical about barrio life, also gives a captivating performance as the owner of a bodega who dispenses good cheer along with cafe con leche. Zesty choreography and a host of lively performers are among its other assets; its fundamental flaw is a vivid streak of sentimentality (2:20). Richard Rodgers Theater, 226 West 46th Street, (212) 307-4100. (Isherwood)

★ ‘MACBETH’ Patrick Stewart brings fearsome insight to the title role in Rupert Goold’s good and nasty production of Shakespeare’s tragedy. Though the show has enough flash, blood and mutilation to satisfy Wes Craven fans, it’s Mr. Stewart’s brilliance that makes it a must-see. With Kate Fleetwood (excellent and original) as his stained trophy wife (2:45). Lyceum Theater, 149 West 45th Street, (212) 239-6200. (Brantley)

‘THE NEW MEL BROOKS MUSICAL YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN’ This tiring adaptation of Mr. Brooks’s 1974 movie, directed by Susan Stroman and starring an amiable but overwhelmed Roger Bart, never seems to stop screeching at you. This means that: a) it soon wears out its voice, and b) it leaves you with a monster-size headache (2:45). Hilton Theater, 213 West 42nd Street, (212) 307-4100. (Brantley)

‘NOVEMBER’ David Mamet’s glib, jaunty comedy about a corrupt, unpopular president seeking re-election suggests a “Saturday Night Live” sketch retro-styled as a Sid Caesar comedy sketch. Joe Mantello, in his Neil Simon mode, directs a cast led by Nathan Lane (as the quipping president) and Laurie Metcalf (as his doormat speechwriter) (1:35). Barrymore Theater, 243 West 47th Street, (212) 239-6200. (Brantley)

★ ‘PASSING STRANGE’ The rock ’n’ roll autobiography of Stew, a singer-songwriter who grew up in bourgeois black Los Angeles and trekked to Europe to find himself as an artist. The portrait of an artist in search of himself is an old story; Stew’s unique perspective, exuberant music and witty lyrics — and the show’s uniformly delightful cast — give it a vivid new sheen (2:10). Belasco Theater, 111 West 44th Street, (212) 239-6200. (Isherwood)

★ ‘SOUTH PACIFIC’ Bartlett Sher’s rapturous revival of this Rodgers and Hammerstein classic recreates the unabashed, unquestioning romance American theatergoers once had with the American book musical. Kelli O’Hara and Paulo Szot are the revelatory stars of a pitch-perfect cast (2:50). Vivian Beaumont Theater, 150 West 65th Street, Lincoln Center, (212) 239-6200. (Brantley)

★ ‘SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE’ A glorious revival of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s 1984 musical about art according to Seurat. Making enchanting use of 21st-century technology to convey a 19th-century Pointillist’s point of view, this production also shimmers with a new humanity and clarity Daniel Buntrock directs a revelatory cast, led by Daniel Evans and Jenna Russell. (2:15). Studio 54, 254 West 54th Street, (212) 719-1300. (Brantley)

★ ‘XANADU’ An improbably entertaining spoof of the majestically awful movie from 1980 about a Greek muse (Olivia Newton-John, roller-skating into oblivion) who inspires a young artist in Venice Beach, Calif., to chase his disco dream. Kerry Butler mimics Ms. Newton-John’s Aussie accent and sports her signature skates-and-leg-warmers look, but also puts her own affectionate stamp on a seriously silly role. The impish playwright Douglas Carter Beane, who wrote the adaptation, also supplies great material for the domineering comic actresses Jackie Hoffman and Mary Testa. Blissfully idiotic, practically sublime (1:30). Helen Hayes Theater, 240 West 44th Street, (212) 239-6200. (Isherwood)

Springsteen gives Lynchburg man time of his life

Springsteen gives Lynchburg man time of his life
Photo


SUBMITTED PHOTO
Bruce Springsteen (center), poses for a photo with Roger Rudder (from left), Jeff Maxwell, Mike Ion and Joe Esposito. Rudder’s friends set up the meeting with Springsteen earlier this week.


By Catherine Chapman Mosley/THE NEWS & ADVANCE
Published: May 2, 2008

Roger Rudder was diagnosed with chronic pancreatitis nearly four years ago. At the same time, several masses were also found on his pancreas. The 48-year-old, however, doesn’t like for people to feel sorry for him.

“Now that I am getting closer to the end,” Rudder said, “I want to make the most of what time I have.”

He got some help from his friends this week to do just that.

Rudder and several friends drove to Greensboro on Monday to see Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band. Rudder wasn’t feeling well after five songs, so his friends urged him to leave, taking him to the emergency facility at the coliseum.

Upon reaching Rudder’s truck in the coliseum parking lot, his friends discovered it had been broken into, and 96 of Roger’s CDs, many Springsteen ones, had been stolen.

Rudder, of Lynchburg, has shopped for years at Plan 9 Music (formerly The Record Exchange) at Candlers Station. “Just by seeing what he buys and conversations we’ve had, I knew he was a huge Bruce Springsteen fan,” said store manager Adam Lee.

Lee knew Rudder and his friends were going to try again on Wednesday to attend Springsteen’s concert in Charlottesville.

“You could tell that he (Rudder) thought this was his last concert or the last time he would see Bruce Springsteen.”

On Tuesday, Lee said he walked out of the store with Rudder, put his arm around him and prayed for him, his health, and God’s will.

“My heart was stirred,” Lee said. After a series of phone calls, he sent an e-mail Tuesday afternoon to Sony BMG. Subject line: “Urgent Bruce Springsteen fan request.”

Wednesday morning arrived with a call from a Sony BMG representative who said, “Let’s make this thing happen.”

Rudder still didn’t know anything about it, and throughout the day, plans were put in place for him to meet Springsteen, his “lifetime hero.”

And Rudder did exactly that — along with friends Mike Ion, Jeff Maxwell and Joe Esposito — shortly after the concert Wednesday night.

“He met us and signed things for us,” Rudder said on Friday. “He went out of his way to treat me as a friend, with familiarity. He gave me a stack of CDs and gave me the set list he wrote up before the concert. He made sure I had an experience I would remember forever.

“I felt like I knew him forever, and I was not just meeting him.”

Springsteen recently lost a friend and longtime member of the E Street Band. Danny Federici, organist and keyboard player for 40 years, died on April 17 after battling melanoma.

Rudder recalled the concert’s opening tribute to Federici in Charlottesville. The band played “Blood Brothers” in darkness with a huge screen showing images of Federici.

“It choked me up,” Rudder said, “… knowing where I am in my life. Knowing that Bruce made the effort to meet me.”

“(This experience) has touched my heart,” he said. “I couldn’t have asked for a better gift.”

Or better friends.

“Roger said it was the highlight of his life,” Lee said. “The smile on his face is all I wanted.”

“What it all boils down to is friends,” Rudder said. “(Mike Ion) didn’t care about missing the concert (Monday night). He cared about getting me home. To have Mike get to meet Bruce — that meant the world to me.”

“I still have a smile on my face. I feel terrible, but I have a smile on my face that just won’t go away.”


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Turbo Tagger

Tina Turner tour dates 2008

Tina Turner says she's hitting the road again

Apr 30 07:54 PM US/Eastern
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for tickets go to www.tixx.com

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CHICAGO (AP) - entertainmentminute Tina Turner says she's hitting the road again for her first tour in the United States in seven years.
The 68-year-old singer announced on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" that it will begin Oct. 1 in Kansas City. Tickets for Turner's tour go on sale May 12.

The R&B legend appeared with singer-actress Cher, 61, on an episode taped Saturday in Las Vegas before a crowd of 4,000 people. The broadcast is scheduled to air May 8.

Winfrey asked both women how they feel about getting older in show business, according to remarks released Wednesday in advance by Harpo Productions.

"I think it sucks," said Cher.

for tickets to see Tina Turner go to www.tixx.com Starting Monday

"That number doesn't mean a thing. It just doesn't," said Turner.