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    Chita Rivera, Electrifying Broadway Star, Is Dead at 91

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    Appearing in scores of stage productions, she dazzled audiences for nearly six decades, most memorably starring as Anita in “West Side Story” and Velma Kelly in “Chicago.”Chita Rivera, the fire-and-ice dancer, singer and actress who leapt to stardom in the original Broadway production of “West Side Story” and dazzled audiences for nearly seven decades as a Puerto Rican lodestar of the American musical theater, died on Tuesday in New York. She was 91.The death was announced in a statement by her daughter, Lisa Mordente. It gave no other details.To generations of musical aficionados, Ms. Rivera was a whirling, bounding, high-kicking elemental force of the dance; a seductive singer of smoky ballads and sizzling jazz; and a propulsive actress of vaudevillian energy. She appeared in scores of stage productions in New York and London, logged 100,000 miles on cabaret tours and performed in dozens of films and television programs.On Broadway, she created a string of memorably hard-edged women — Anita in “West Side Story” (1957), Rosie in “Bye Bye Birdie” (1960), the murderous floozy Velma Kelly in “Chicago” (1975) and the title role in “Kiss of the Spider Woman” (1993). She sang enduring numbers in those roles: “America” in “West Side Story,” “One Boy” and “Spanish Rose” in “Bye Bye Birdie,” and “All That Jazz” in “Chicago.”Ms. Rivera, foreground, led dancers in a rehearsal for “West Side Story,” which opened on Broadway in 1957, the same year she married a dancer in the production. Leo FriedmanCritics thumbed thesauruses for hyperboles to rhapsodize about her pyrotechnics. In 2005, Newsweek called her “only the greatest musical-theater dancer ever.” Reviewing her performance in “Bye Bye Birdie” in The New York Times, Brooks Atkinson called her “a flammable singer and gyroscopic dancer.” Of her Tony Award-winning romp as Anna in “The Rink” (1984), Richard Corliss in Time magazine wrote: “Packing 30 years of Broadway savvy into the frame of a vivacious teenager, the 51-year-old entertainer could by now sell a song to the deaf.”Ms. Rivera was a hard-working perfectionist who rarely missed a beat, let alone a performance. Trained in classical ballet before joining the musical stage, she was beloved on Broadway, where she began performing in the early 1950s. With her showstopping voice and eloquent body language, she radiated a charisma rooted in solid song and dance techniques and in the pleasures she derived from them.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber?  More

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      Bill C. Davis, Who Had a Hit Play With ‘Mass Appeal,’ Dies at 69

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      #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }The Coronavirus OutbreakliveLatest UpdatesMaps and CasesRisk Near YouVaccine RolloutNew Variants TrackerAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyThose We’ve LostBill C. Davis, Who Had a Hit Play With ‘Mass Appeal,’ Dies at 69He was an unknown playwright in his 20s when his comic drama about a priest and a seminarian drew raves off and on Broadway. It was turned into a movie.Bill C. Davis in an undated photo. His play “Mass Appeal” was a “moving and very funny comedy about the nature of friendship, courage and all kinds of love,” Frank Rich wrote.Credit…via Davis familyMarch 5, 2021Updated 6:07 p.m. ETBill C. Davis, whose play “Mass Appeal” was a hit both off and on Broadway in the early 1980s and has been performed countless times since, died on Feb. 26 in Torrington, Conn. He was 69.His sister, Patricia Marks, said the cause was complications of Covid-19.Mr. Davis was virtually unknown in theater circles and still in his 20s when he wrote “Mass Appeal,” a two-character comic drama in which a middle-aged Roman Catholic priest finds his complacency challenged by an outspoken young seminarian. A friend — a priest, in fact — sent the play to the actress Geraldine Fitzgerald, who in turn brought it to Lynne Meadow, the artistic director of the Manhattan Theater Club.Ms. Meadow, in a telephone interview, recalled first reading the play.“I put it down and I had this feeling of lucidity,” she said. “It was crystal clear what he was trying to talk about.”The play, directed by Ms. Fitzgerald, opened at Manhattan Theater Club in spring 1980 to rave reviews. “There are few more invigorating theatrical experiences than hearing the voice of a gifted writer for the first time,” Frank Rich’s review in The New York Times began.“Though ‘Mass Appeal’ starts out as a debate between two men on the opposite sides of a generational-theological gap,” Mr. Rich wrote, “it quickly deepens into a wise, moving and very funny comedy about the nature of friendship, courage and all kinds of love.”The play, starring Milo O’Shea as the older man and Eric Roberts as the younger one, enjoyed an extended run at Ms. Meadow’s theater before moving to Broadway, where Michael O’Keefe replaced Mr. Roberts. It ran for 212 performances at the Booth Theater, earning Tony Award nominations for Ms. Fitzgerald and Mr. O’Shea.Mr. Davis adapted the play for a 1984 film version that starred Jack Lemmon as the priest and Zeljko Ivanek as the younger man.Mr. Davis’s subsequent plays were performed Off Broadway and in regional theaters (one, “Dancing in the End Zone,” about the tribulations of a college football star, had a brief Broadway run in 1985), but none approached the success of “Mass Appeal,” which was beloved by both audiences and actors. A 1982 production in Colorado starred Charles Durning and John Travolta.For Ms. Meadow, “Mass Appeal” led to an enduring friendship with Mr. Davis.“He was a person who loved the theater and loved ideas,” she said. “He was innocent and wise at the same time.”The Coronavirus Outbreak More

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      Broadway to Remain Closed Until January 2021 as Result of Ongoing Coronavirus Pandemic

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      Board chairman Thomas Schumacher announces the decision to write off the rest of 2020 as COVID-19 cases are on the rise again following a number of state re-openings.
      Jun 30, 2020
      AceShowbiz – Broadway theatres will stay dark for the remainder of the year as a result of the continued coronavirus pandemic.
      Bosses at the Broadway League trade organisation, which represents theatre owners and producers, have decided to write off the rest of 2020 as COVID-19 cases in the U.S. are on the rise again following a number of state re-openings.
      “The Great White Way” closures are now expected to last until at least 3 January (21), marking the fourth time the shutdown has been extended since all performances were put on pause in mid-March.

      “The safety of our cast, crew, orchestra and audience is our highest priority and we look forward to returning to our stages only when it’s safe to do so,” Broadway League board chairman Thomas Schumacher shared in a statement.
      “One thing is for sure, when we return we will be stronger and more needed than ever.”
      The news emerges days after the opening of Hugh Jackman’s highly-anticipated production of “The Music Man” was officially pushed back from October to May 2021, with previews beginning in April.
      The Broadway blackout had already caused the cancellation of two prominent new productions – Martin McDonagh’s “Hangmen”, with Dan Stevens, and Edward Albee’s “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”, starring Laurie Metcalf – which had been in previews when the shutdown first occurred. Producers subsequently confirmed they will not return once the suspension ends.

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      Broadway on Demand Service to Be Launched With Benefit Concert

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      To be made available in May, the streaming service will offer self-isolated fans a library of live-captured shows and exclusive performances as well as access to masterclasses.
      Apr 18, 2020
      AceShowbiz – New York theatre chiefs are to launch a Broadway on Demand streaming service allowing self-isolated fans to watch shows from home.
      The service will offer a library of educational and interactive resources as well as live-captured Broadway shows, exclusive performances and access to masterclasses, and will be launched with a 30 Days of Opening Nights benefit concert.
      The benefit will be livestreamed from Hollywood’s Bourbon Room, observing social distancing guidelines, and will raise funds for entertainers affected by the closure of Broadway theatres, and many others across the U.S., due to the coronavirus pandemic.
      Broadway on Demand’s president-CEO Sean Cercone says in a statement to Broadway World: “Broadway is a giant global brand, and its impact extends far beyond a few blocks in midtown Manhattan.”
      “Even before our current crisis, we’ve long dreamt of building a platform that would truly fulfil Broadway’s long-held promise of being the ‘longest street in the world.’ This platform is our way of breaking down geographical and economic barriers so that the entire world can partake in all the wonders that Broadway has to offer.”

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      Broadway to Prolong Coronavirus Shutdown Until Early June

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      A total of 31 stage productions have gone dark since March 12 after New York City announced its stay-at-home guidelines in the fight against the spread of the global COVID-19 pandemic.
      Apr 9, 2020
      AceShowbiz – Broadway’s curtains will stay closed until 7 June – a two-month extension of the current coronavirus shutdown deadline.
      All shows on the Great White Way were postponed as stay-at-home guidelines were announced in New York City on 12 March.
      Broadway League officials agreed the deadline extension after speaking with theatre owners and producers.
      “Our top priority continues to be the health and well-being of Broadway theatregoers and the thousands of people who work in the theatre industry every day, including actors, musicians, stagehands, ushers, and many other dedicated professionals,” Charlotte St. Martin, the president of the Broadway League, tells Deadline.
      “Broadway will always be at the very heart of the Big Apple, and we join with artists, theatre professionals, and fans in looking forward to the time when we can once again experience live theatre together.”

      In total, 31 productions went dark on 12 March and 15 productions had been set to open during the spring. A handful of new shows, including Martin McDonagh’s “Hangmen” and Edward Albee’s “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” will now not open at all.

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      Broadway to Be Shut Down Until Mid-April Amid Coronavirus Pandemic

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      https://www.broadway.com/

      New York’s theatre bosses, owners and union representatives have reportedly met to discuss the matter before Governor Andrew Cuomo announces a ban on gatherings of more than 500 people.
      Mar 13, 2020
      AceShowbiz – Broadway is going dark to keep actors, producers, theatre staff and fans safe amid the ongoing coronavirus chaos.
      All shows and plays will shut down from Thursday night (March 12) until April 12, according to officials at the Broadway League, a trade organisation representing producers and venue owners.
      New York’s theater bosses, owners, and union representatives met to discuss a possible month-long shutdown of all shows and plays on Thursday morning.
      Actors Equity union chiefs have been demanding the shut down for days, revealing members are concerned about contracting the virus.
      “Equity is driving this,” one producer told the New York Post. “If actors don’t feel safe, they don’t have to perform.”

      The news emerged hours after the producers of hit Broadway musical “Moulin Rouge!” cancelled Thursday’s performances amid unconfirmed reports a cast member had been exposed to the coronavirus.
      Theater bosses did not confirm why the matinee and evening performances were scrapped, but they initially insisted the show would go on at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre on Friday, as scheduled.
      That plan has since been scrapped as New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced a ban on gatherings of more than 500 people. He also slapped restrictions on smaller events in an effort to fight the spread of COVID-19.
      All non-Broadway venues will have to abide by the order on Friday evening onwards.

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