Lin-Manuel Miranda drops previously unheard ‘Hamilton’ track

So what exactly happened after Alexander Hamilton cheated on his wife in Broadway’s hit musical “Hamilton”?

Well, according to the show’s head-honcho, he went to speak with his friend and confidant George Washington about a little situation that we’re going to call the “Maria Reynolds dilemma.”

On Friday (March 13), Miranda decided to bring up the country’s morale by releasing a previously unheard track from his Tony-Award winning show. Titled “I Have This Friend,” the two-and-a-half-minute song follows Hamilton after his ongoing affair with Maria Reynolds.

Throughout the track, we hear the show’s protagonist refer to himself as “this friend” instead of outright admitting what he did. He also reveals that he’s pretty much being blackmailed by several men (a reference to “We Know”) and sets the stage for the big public reveal in “The Reynolds Pamphlet.” Washington also warns Hamilton to be careful of who he hurts, which, we assume, is a call to the track “Burn.”

The track features Miranda taking on both positions as Hamilton and Washington who was played by Christopher Jackson in the original cast.

You will also notice the usage of the line “the world turned upside down,” a direct reference to “Yorktown (World Turned Upside Down)” from the first act of the show as well as the ongoing “wait for it” line that can be found in several of the musical’s tracks.

“Wish I could send you peace of mind via this app,” Miranda tweeted to his legion of followers. “Alas. But I can send you music no one’s heard. Here’s a cut Hamilton/Washington tune called ‘I Have This Friend.’ No one’s heard it, not even Kail.”

“This was my first draft of the song before ‘The Reynolds Pamphlet,'” the singer reveals on Soundcloud.

“With Hamilton & Washington. I don’t think I even showed it to Tommy Kail. It would go where ‘Hurricane is now.’ Stay safe out there. Love you.”

Listen to the track above.

On Wednesday (March 12), it was announced that all Broadway shows would be suspended effective immediately until mid-April due to Coronavirus fears. “Hamilton” performances in Los Angeles, New York, and Miami have been suspended.

Want to be in ‘The Room Where It Happens’? The ‘Hamilton’ movie will do just that

Remember when Lin-Manuel Miranda told us to “Wait for It” because his “Hamilton” news was going to “Blow Us All Away“?

Well, guys. He was right.

On Monday (Feb. 3), the Jack-of-All-Trades announced that the “Hamilton” film was, in fact, happening in conjunction with Disney and gave us all an official release date.

“Disney presents: Hamilton. With the original Broadway cast. Filmed on stage at the Richard Rodgers Theatre. In a theater near you. October 15, 2021,” Miranda posted on social media.

But before you assume that this just going to be Hollywood’s take on the Tony-Award winning show, you will be wrong.

As per Miranda and a press release for the upcoming flick states, “This movie transports its audience into the world of the Broadway show in a uniquely intimate way. Combining the best elements of live theater and film, the result is a cinematic stage performance that is a wholly new way to experience Hamilton.”

Filmed right before the original cast left the production, this will give fans the chance to see the original actors “One Last Time.”

The original cast of “Hamilton” featured Miranda, Leslie Odom Jr., Daveed Diggs, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Christopher Jackson, Jonathan Groff, Phillipa Soo, Jasmine Cephas Jones, Okieriete Onaodowan, and Anthony Ramos.

Odom, Jr., Diggs, and Goldsberry all won Tony Awards for their performances in the show.

Last month during an interview at the Sundance Film Festival, Miranda was once again asked about the musical making its way to the big screen. He teased that it will invade theaters “hopefully sooner than later.”

And he was right.

In case you didn’t read everything above and are thinking “What’d I Miss?,” “Disney Presents: Hamilton” is due out Oct. 15, 2021.

Hugh Jackman announces his return to Broadway in ‘The Music Man’ revival

We all know that Hugh Jackman is “the greatest showman” and now it looks like he’s ready to return to where it all started. On Wednesday (March 13), the performer announced plans to return to Broadway in 2020. Taking to social media, Jackman revealed that he will star in the upcoming revival of Meredith Willson’s 1957 classic “The Music Man.”

“The Music Man. Broadway. October 22, 2020. ⁦@MusicManBway⁩,” Jackman posted on Twitter.

Jackman will play the role of Harold Hill, a con man whose latest scheme involves posing as the organizer of a boys’ marching band in a ploy to run away with all the money he collects for instruments and uniforms.

Jackman is no stranger to the Broadway stage having performed in several productions including “Oklahoma!” and his one-man show.

His role as Hill will mark the first time in over a decade that the actor will perform on a Broadway stage. His last Broadway role as Peter Allen in “The Boy from Oz” earned him a Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Musical.

Group tickets go on sale on June 9, 2019, while single tickets go on sale Sept. 15, 2019.

Previews for the show begin on Sept. 9, 2020, with opening night taking place a few weeks later on Oct. 22, 2020. The show will take over one of the Shubert Organization’s theatres.

Before returning to Broadway, Jackman will spend most of the spring and summer months on the road for his “The Man. The Music. The Show” one-man show.

The first leg of the tour will find Jackman performing at venues across Europe with stops in Berlin, Amsterdam, Paris, Manchester, and Dublin. The 12-stop jaunt will begin on May 13 at the Barclaycard Arena in Hamburg, Germany and conclude with a two-night engagement at the O2 Arena in London on June 2 and 3.

Following a couple of weeks off, Jackman will journey across the pond for the United States-centric leg of the tour. The 22-stop excursion will begin on June 18 at the Toyota Center in Houston and conclude with a double-night engagement at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles on July 19 and 20.

The show’s set list will include songs from his past films like “The Greatest Showman” and “Les Miserables” as well as Broadway songs from productions like “Oklahoma!” and “The Boy from Oz.” The full list of tour dates can be found here.

Travel to Bikini Bottom in ‘(Just a) Simple Sponge’

If you haven’t had the chance to see the new “SpongeBob SqaurePants: The Musical” then you should probably get on that soon before tickets for the Tony-nominated show are sold out indefinitely. But, if you can’t make it to New York any time soon, don’t worry because you can get a little sneak peek at the musical now. On Friday (May 4), the official music video for the show’s tune “(Just a) Simple Sponge” was released.

The almost four-minute clip features the show’s star, Ethan Slater, recording the song in a recording studio surrounded by the show’s ensemble. In between the footage of the musicians in the studio, there is footage from the showing which brings the cartoon version of Bikini Bottom to life. Watch the music video for “(Just a) Simple Sponge” above.

“(Just a) Simple Sponge” was written by Panic! at the Disco frontman Brendon Urie. In addition to Urie, the multi-award nominated musical includes songs from Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler and Joe Perry, Tony-nominated Sara Bareilles, Cyndi Lauper, Plain White T’s, They Might Be Giants, David Bowie, and many more.

The musical is described as: “The stakes are higher than ever as SpongeBob and all of Bikini Bottom face the total annihilation of their undersea world. Chaos erupts. Lives hang in the balance. And just when all hope seems lost, a most unexpected hero rises up and takes center stage.”

The cast includes Slater as said unexpected hero, SpongeBob SquarePants; Gavin Lee as Squidward Q. Tentacles; Lilli Cooper as Sandy Cheeks; Brian Ray Norris as Eugene Krabs; Danny Skinner as Patrick Star; and Wesley Taylor as Sheldon Plankton.

Last week, it was announced that the musical was nominated for a total of 12 Tony Awards tied with fellow newcomer “Mean Girls.” Those categories include “Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre,” “Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical” for Slater, and “Best Musical.”

SpongeBob SquarePants, The New Musical Original Cast Recording is now available from Masterworks Broadway wherever music is sold.

“SpongeBob SquarePants: The Musical” is now playing at the Palace Theatre. To purchase tickets for an upcoming show, head on over to the musical’s website here.

Panic! at the Disco frontman to hit Broadway

Photo by Erica Dominguez

Just when you thought Panic! at the Disco couldn’t get any more theatrical, they just elevated it to another level. On Tuesday (April 11), frontman Brendon Urie took to social media to announce that he will be heading to Broadway during the summer months for a stint in the Tony-award winning musical, Kinky Boots. The singer posted a short video on Twitter and Facebook to announce his summer plans. He also revealed that being on Broadway is on his bucket list.

“I’m thrilled to be making my Broadway debut with this fantastic company,” Urie said in a statement. “I’m a huge fan of Kinky Boots and musical theater and am honored to be joining the cast.”

He add: “That’s crazy to say because this has been on my bucket list for the longest time and it really is a dream come true. I’m just so incredibly excited. That’s wild. Plus, you guys get to see me in those heels now, so that’s pretty cool!”

Urie’s stint as Charlie will begin on May 26 and conclude on Aug. 6.

Urie will play Charlie Price, a man who inherited a failing shoe factory from his late father. Throughout the show, Charlie befriends a cabaret performer and drag queen named Lola and the two strike up a partnership to start producing a line of high-heeled boots in an effort to resurrect the shoe factory.

The Broadway show was inspired by the 2005 British film also named Kinky Boots. The British film, in turn, was inspired by a 1999 documentary by BBC titled Trouble at the Top. On of the episodes of the series centered around Steve Pateman, who was struggling to save his family-run shoe factory from closure. Instead of closing, Paterman decided to produce fetish footwear for men, under the brand name “Divine Footwear.”

Currently, orchestra seats for Urie’s shows are available at a discounted price of $99 using the promo cod BRENDON. This special offer is only available until Friday, April 15.

As for Panic! at the Disco, the group will wrap up their massive Death of a Bachelor arena tour this Sunday, April 16, at the BB&T Center in Sunrise, Florida.

Courtney Love to Appear in a “Non-Traditional Opera”

Courtney Love and opera might be one of the most unlikely and strange things to be paired together, but it looks like the Hole frotnwoman will be appearing in an opera.

Love has been cast in an upcoming pop opera titled Kansas City Choir Boy. The show is scheduled to be performed 10 times during New York’s PROTOTYPE: Opera/Theater/Now Festival. The festival will take place from Jan. 8 to the 17.

“I love the concept, and I’m loving the music,” Love said in an interview with The New York Times.

“I’m playing it constantly. I’m looking to do things that are different. I just finished a rock tour of Australia, and it was great, but I’ve been doing that for a long time. I wanted to do something challenging.”

When asked about the opera, composer Todd almond assured the publication that he doesn’t mean old-school operas that we have become accustomed to, but rather a non-traditional popular music infused version.

“When I say opera. I don’t mean it’s in an operatic style,” he begins. “I mean it in a sense that it’s a group of songs that tell a story. I write musicals, I write plays, and I write what I call opera.”

Though there has been no official synopsis of the opera, a look at the website for the festival describes the opera as the following:

“A love song for the computer age and a product of the 24-hour news cycle that feds on the stories of the anonymous ‘missing.'”

Love’s most recent gig was playing the role of teacher Ms. Harrison during the final season of FX’s hit biker drama, Sons of Anarchy.

‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ Musical to Head Out on Arena Tour

Jesus Christ Superstar is about to return and follow in the footsteps of many other musicals by hitting the road this Summer.

The new production of the Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice musical is slated to kick off its 51-city North American arena tour on June 9 in New Orleans. The biggest surprise of the announcement, is the fact that many musicians will be filling the cast including Incubus frontman Brandon Boyd, former Destiny’s Child Michelle Williams, *NSYNC alum J.C. Chasez and The Sex Pistols’ John Lyndon or Johnny Rotten, as he’s better known as.

The announcement of the show was made this morning during Good Morning America where Boyd and Williams not only revealed the news but also performed one of the songs from the show. Boyd will play Judas Iscariot while Williams will take on the role of Mary Magdalene. Chasez will play Pontius Pilate, Lyndon will take on the role of King Herod and Ben Forster will once again reprise the role of Jesus after playing the character in the U.K. leg of the tour.

“I’m looking forward to the experience,” said Chasez. “This is honestly my first theater experience so I’m being thrown into the fire a bit. But I’m excited because the fact that we’re doing something that feels pretty unique.”

“It’s completely new, and it’s incredible,” said Boyd during the sit down portion of the interview. “It’s an arena rock show.”

Boyd would be familiar with arena rock tours since his band, Incubus, have managed to perform at some of them in the past.

Since its premiere back in 1971, the retelling of the last week of Jesus of Nazareth had been revived several time, most recently in 2012, but never has it hit the road for a full tour. Considering that the newest trend is to take big Broadway musicals such as Mary Poppins, Wicked, Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Jersey Boys on the road, this might be just the thing for the musical.

Tickets are set to go on sale next week but can range from $29 and $125. while tour dates can be seen here.

JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR TOUR DATES:

6/9 New Orleans, LA – Lakefront Arena
6/10 Birmingham, AL – BJCC Arena
6/11 Charlotte, NC – Time Warner Cable Arena
6/13 Fort Lauderdale, FL – BB&T Center
6/14 Orlando, FL – Amway Center
6/15 Tampa, FL – Tampa Bay Times Forum
6/16 Atlanta, GA – Philips Arena
6/17 Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena
6/19 San Antonia, TX – Freeman Coliseum
6/20 Austin, TX – Frank Erwin Center
6/21 Houston, TX – Toyota Center
6/22 Dallas, TX – American Airlines Center
6/23 Oklahoma City, OK – Chesapeake Energy Arena
6/24 Tulsa, OK – BOK Center
6/26 Toronto, ON – Air Canada Centre
6/28 Detroit, MI – Joe Louis Arena
6/29 Chicago, IL – United Center
7/1 St. Louis, MO – Scottrade Center
7/2 Kansas City, MO – Sprint Center
7/4 Winnipeg, MB – MTS Center
7/5 Regina, SK – Brandt Center
7/6 Edmonton, AB – Rexall Place
7/8 Boise, ID – Taco Bell Arena
7/9 Spokane, WA -Spokane Arena
7/10 Seattle, WA – KeyArena At Seattle Center
7/12 Vancouver, BC – Rogers Arena
7/13 Portland, OR – Moda Center
7/15 Sacramento, CA – Sleep Train Arena
7/16 Fresno, CA – Save Mart Center
7/17 Bakersfield, CA – Rabobank Arena
7/18 San Jose, CA – SAP Center at San Jose
7/20 Anaheim, CA – Honda Center
7/22 El Paso, TX – UTEP Don Haskins Center
7/23 Phoenix, AZ – US Airways Center
7/24 San Diego, CA – Valley View Casino Center
7/25 Las Vegas, NV – Mandalay Bay Events Center
7/26 Los Angeles, CA – STAPLES Center
7/29 Denver, CO – Pepsi Center
7/30 Lincoln, NE – Pinnacle Bank Arena
7/31 St. Paul, MN – Xcel Energy Center
8/1 Milwaukee, WI – BMO Bradley Harris Center
8/2 Indianapolis, IN – Bankers Life Fieldhouse
8/3 Cincinnati, OH – U.S. Bank Arena
8/5 New York, NY – Madison Square Garden
8/7 Washington, DC – Verizon Center
8/9 Columbus, OH – Schottenstein Center
8/10 Cleveland, OH – Quicken Loans Arena
8/12 Pittsburgh, PA – Consol Energy Center
8/13 Buffalo, NY –  First Niagara Center
8/14 Boston, MA – TD Garden
8/16 Philadelphia, PA – Wells Fargo Center

My Chemical Romance to Become a Musical?

Looks like 2014 is quickly becoming the year of turning some of our favorite bands’ albums into musicals. First we got word about Panic! at the Disco’s tracks being turned into a musical and then news got out that Fall Out Boy fans were hoping to raise funds to do the same.

Now, word has gotten around that My Chemical Romance will be the next to get the same treatment. According to sources, the musical won’t be based on a series of tracks from the band, like Panic! at the Disco and Fall Out Boy would be doing, all the music for the musical will be coming from My Chemical Romance’s hit album The Black Parade.

Seems a bit fitting since that album was the band;’s most theatrical album to date and was as close as you can get to a Broadway musical without becoming American Idiot.

The synopsis for the musical can be read below.

“Synopsis

Based on the critically acclaimed album by My Chemical Romance. It is the story of Helena, a young German woman living in Nazi-occupied Warsaw, Poland in 1940. She has her life set: comfortable due to her father’s status as one of Hitler’s confidants and engaged to an officer quickly rising in the ranks. There’s just one problem — she falls in love with Ari, a Jew from the Warsaw ghetto. With the war growing more serious by the minute, they both decide to leave everything they know behind and start life over together… If they make it that far.”

Assuming that the poster is accurate, the band will have no involvement in the musical which wouldn’t be surprising since the synopsis really doesn’t have any relation to what the era in the group was like.

So tell us, are you digging the idea or what?

Fall Out Boy Fans Gather to Make a Musical

A few months ago, word got out that there was a Panic! at the Disco musical in the works, and no, the musical was not endorsed by the band at all, but still it piqued fans’ interest.

Now it seems, that another group of fans are thinking about turning another band’s music int a potential musical. This time, the band would be Fall Out Boy.

The musical which has been titled, Hand Of God, and currently, those fans are looking to raise money through go to crowdsourcing site, IndieGoGo to somehow make their goal of $800 for this project.

The summary of the project can be read below or you can visit the IndieGoGo page for more information about it.

“Short Summary

“Allison joins a group of dark, subculture junkies headed by playgirl Jamie when she returns to college after a year in Americorps. Her world gets darker and darker as she learns that there is more to living on the fringes than sad poems. A Fall Out Boy musical filled with drugs, lying, and emotional turmoil. Fun for the whole family.”

We’re a group of teenagers about to embark on our first full-length film project: a jukebox musical set to the music of Fall Out Boy. We’ve got a cast, a crew, and a screenplay, but we don’t have any budget at all. So we’ve come to the internet in the hopes that you’ll be as excited about getting this movie made as we are! 

What We Need & What You Get

Whatever amount we get, the budget will be divided something like this:

• 46% Lighting/Set Design
• 36% Sound Equipment
• 18% Camera Accessories

The current budget accounts for necessities only. If we go over our needed amount, we’ll get a higher quality microphone, better sets, and maybe a fog machine. Everyone on the crew is volunteering their time, so none of the money will end up in anyone’s pocket.

The Impact

Without the help of people like you, this film won’t get made. We have a group of excited, hard-working crew members. We just need the money to do what we love and give you the best quality product we can!

Other Ways You Can Help

If you can’t donate, you can help us spread the word about the film! Share the link to the website, tell your friends about it, or even make flyers, if you’re really excited! Just help us spread the word. We’re relying on word-of-mouth to build up hype, so any assistance there is appreciated.”

A Panic! at the Disco Musical in the Works?

If you ever thought that A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out would make a killer musical then you weren’t alone.

Recently, it was revealed that there might be a Panic! at the Disco influenced musical in the works. According to sources, the musical would not only feature songs from their hit debut album, but from all their album (yes, even the unfortunate Vices & Virtue).

The synopsis of the story is the following:

“PANIC! is a rough-edged new musical based on the songs of the American rock band Panic! At The Disco. PANIC! The Musical tells the story of Andi Witko, a naive teenager on the verge of rebellion after meeting bad boy Oliver Murphy. The musical features songs from all four studio albums, including hits such as: “I Write Sins, Not Tragedies,” “Lying is the Most Fun A Girl Can Have Without Taking Her Clothes Off,” “Ready to Go,” “This Is Gospel,” etc.

PANIC! will be directed by Alexis Acar, with choreography by Evan Lovelace featuring arrangements and musical direction by Brandon Austin and Craig Petrocelli”

At the moment, it seems that no one associated with the band have commented about this potential musical. If it is to go forward then there is a change that we will be hearing more about it in the near future; until then, we just wait.

As for Panic!, they are currently scheduled to perform on FOX’s New Year’s Eve Live with Mario Lopez as the host while Brendon Urie had the honor to perform in honor of Billy Joel the piano man’s hit song, “Big Shot” at The Kennedy Center Honors this past weekend. As for the near future, the band is slated to begin touring in support of their recent release, Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die in the new year.

So tell us, Panic! at the Disco musical? Yay or nay?