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Martin Levan
Martin Levan is a music producer and sound engineer who, during the 1980s and 1990s, designed the sound for many of the major musicals in the West End of London. Early career Levan began his career as the tea boy at Morgan Studios, London in 1971, rising to become an engineer and producer. His album credits include John Martyn's ''Grace and Danger'', Ralph McTell's ''Water of Dreams'', Iron Maiden's eponymous album, Neil Ardley's ''Kaleidoscope of Rainbows'' and ''Harmony of the Spheres'', Colosseum II's ''Wardance'', Andrew Lloyd Webber's ''Variations (Andrew Lloyd Webber album), Variations'' and ''Requiem (Lloyd Webber), Requiem'', Gary Boyle's ''The Dancer'' and ''Electric Glide'' and Barbara Thompson (musician), Barbara Thompson's ''Paraphernalia''. Sound Design Levan's career developed in a different direction when, in 1982, Andrew Lloyd Webber contracted him to supervise the sound design for the original production of the musical ''Song and Dance'' at the Palace Theatre, L ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
West End Of London
The West End of London (commonly referred to as the West End) is a district of Central London, west of the City of London and north of the River Thames, in which many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buildings and entertainment venues, including West End theatres, are concentrated. The term was first used in the early 19th century to describe fashionable areas to the west of Charing Cross.Mills, A., ''Oxford Dictionary of London Place Names'', (2001) The West End covers parts of the boroughs of Westminster and Camden.Greater London Authority, The London Plan: The Sub Regions'' While the City of London is the main business and financial district in London, the West End is the main commercial and entertainment centre of the city. It is the largest central business district in the United Kingdom, comparable to Midtown Manhattan in New York City, the 8th arrondissement in Paris, Causeway Bay in Hong Kong, or Shibuya in Tokyo. It is one of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'' (often colloquially known as ''Joseph'') is a sung-through musical with lyrics by Tim Rice and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the character of Joseph from the Bible's Book of Genesis. This was the first Lloyd Webber and Rice musical to be performed publicly; their first collaboration, ''The Likes of Us'', written in 1965, was not performed until 2005. Its family-friendly retelling of Joseph, familiar themes, and catchy music have resulted in numerous stagings. According to the owner of the copyright, the Really Useful Group, by 2008 more than 20,000 schools and amateur theatre groups had staged productions. ''Joseph'' was first presented as a 15-minute " pop cantata" at Colet Court School in London in 1968, and was published by Novello and recorded in an expanded form by Decca Records in 1969. After the success of the next Lloyd Webber and Rice piece, ''Jesus Christ Superstar'', ''Joseph'' received amateur stage productio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
NAACP Theatre Awards
The NAACP Theatre Awards are a NAACP member voted awards started in 1991 and presented annually by the Beverly Hills-Hollywood branch of the NAACP to honor outstanding people of color in theater. The ceremonies usually take place in the Los Angeles area following the presentation ceremonies of the NAACP Image Awards. There are also honorary awards: the President's Award, the Trailblazer Award, the Spirit Award, the Community Service Award, and The Lifetime Achievement Award. Award ceremonies Award categories Equity * Best Choreography * Best Costumes * Best Director * Best Director of a Musical * Best Ensemble Cast * Best Lead Female * Best Lead Male * Best Lighting * Best Music Director * Best Playwright * Best Producer * Best Set Design * Best Sound * Best Supporting Female * Best Supporting Male Local * Best Choreography * Best Costumes * Best Director * Best Director of a Musical * Best Ensemble Cast * Best Lead Female * Best Lead Male * Best Lighting * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Broadway Theatre
Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), 130 of the 144 extant and extinct Broadway venues use (used) the spelling ''Theatre'' as the proper noun in their names (12 others used neither), with many performers and trade groups for live dramatic presentations also using the spelling ''theatre''. or Broadway, are the theatrical performances presented in the 41 professional theatres, each with 500 or more seats, located in the Theater District and the Lincoln Center along Broadway, in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Broadway and London's West End together represent the highest commercial level of live theater in the English-speaking world. While the thoroughfare is eponymous with the district and its collection of 41 theaters, and it is also closely identified with Times Square, only three of the theaters are located on Broadway itself (namely the Broadwa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Show Boat
''Show Boat'' is a musical with music by Jerome Kern and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. It is based on Edna Ferber's best-selling 1926 novel of the same name. The musical follows the lives of the performers, stagehands and dock workers on the ''Cotton Blossom'', a Mississippi River show boat, over 40 years from 1887 to 1927. Its themes include racial prejudice and tragic, enduring love. The musical contributed such classic songs as "Ol' Man River", " Make Believe", and " Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man". The musical was first produced in 1927 by Florenz Ziegfeld. The premiere of ''Show Boat'' on Broadway was an important event in the history of American musical theatre. It "was a radical departure in musical storytelling, marrying spectacle with seriousness", compared with the trivial and unrealistic operettas, light musical comedies and "Follies"-type musical revues that defined Broadway in the 1890s and early 20th century. According to ''The Complete Book of Light Opera ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Baker's Wife
''The Baker's Wife'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and the book by Joseph Stein, based on the 1938 French film of the same name by Marcel Pagnol and Jean Giono. The musical premiered in the West End in 1989 for a short run but, while establishing a dedicated cult following, has not been produced on Broadway. Background The musical theater rights of the Marcel Pagnol's 1938 film were originally optioned in 1952 by producers Cy Feuer and Ernest Martin. Composer Frank Loesser and librettist Abe Burrows, who had worked with Feuer and Martin on ''Guys and Dolls'' and ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'' were attached as authors. The production to star Bert Lahr, however, never materialized. Nearly a decade later Zero Mostel was named to take the lead. By 1976 the rights had devolved to producer David Merrick. The production by Stephen Schwartz and Joseph Stein toured the United States for six months in 1976, undergoing major retoolings ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carrie (musical)
''Carrie'' is a musical theatre, musical with a book by Lawrence D. Cohen, lyrics by Dean Pitchford, and music by Michael Gore. Adapted from Stephen King's 1974 novel ''Carrie (novel), Carrie'', it focuses on an awkward teenage girl with Psychokinesis, telekinetic powers whose lonely life is dominated by an oppressive religious fanatic mother. When she is humiliated by her classmates at the high school prom, she unleashes chaos on everyone and everything in her path. Originally premiering in the U.K. in 1988, ''Carrie'' opened on Broadway theatre, Broadway at the Virginia Theatre the same year, but closed after 16 previews and five regular performances. Due to the passionate response from both its critics and its fans, the show is considered one of the most notable failures in Broadway theatre history; a 1991 book written by Ken Mandelbaum, which chronicled the history of flop Broadway musicals, was partially entitled ''Not Since Carrie'', and a 2021 podcast, ''Out for Blood'', do ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blondel (musical)
''Blondel'', a rock opera musical by Tim Rice (book and lyrics) and Stephen Oliver (music), was inspired by, and very loosely based on, the life of the eponymous French troubadour. The play is set during the period of the Third Crusade. Originally conceived by Tim Rice during his collaboration with Andrew Lloyd Webber, the project was originally titled "Come Back, Richard, Your Country Needs You" and a single of the same title was recorded in 1969. The project was shelved until Rice met Stephen Oliver in the 1970s, and the pair began working on a musical centering on King Richard I of England; as it developed, the project shifted its focus to a minstrel in the King's court, vying for pop-stardom, and his 'progressive' girlfriend. Though the musical is largely a comic romp, it does tackle some serious issues. Historically, Blondel lays out the basic goings-on of the Third Crusade as told through the eyes of the English political environment. Although the musical frequently mentio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kiss Of The Spider Woman (musical)
''Kiss of the Spider Woman'' is a musical with music by John Kander and Fred Ebb, with the book by Terrence McNally. It is based on the Manuel Puig novel '' El Beso de la Mujer Araña''. Directed by Harold Prince, the musical had runs in the West End (1992) and Broadway (1993) and won the 1993 Tony Award for Best Musical. Despite a decidedly mixed review by Frank Rich, the musical ran on Broadway for 904 performances. Plot Luis Alberto Molina, a gay window dresser, is in a prison in Argentina, serving his third year of an eight-year-sentence for corrupting a minor. He lives in a fantasy world to flee the prison life, the torture, fear and humiliation. His fantasies turn mostly around movies, particularly around a vampy diva, Aurora. He loves her in all roles, but one scares him: This role is the spider woman, who kills with her kiss. One day, a new man is brought into his cell: Valentin Arregui Paz, a Marxist revolutionary, already in a bad state of health after torture. Moli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Little Shop Of Horrors (musical)
''Little Shop of Horrors'' is a horror comedy rock musical with music by Alan Menken and lyrics and a book by Howard Ashman. The story follows a hapless florist shop worker who raises a plant that feeds on human blood and flesh. The musical is loosely based on the low-budget 1960 black comedy film ''The Little Shop of Horrors''. The music, composed by Menken in the style of early 1960s rock and roll, doo-wop and early Motown, includes several well-known tunes, including the title song, "Skid Row (Downtown)", "Somewhere That's Green", and "Suddenly, Seymour". The musical premiered Off-Off-Broadway in 1982 before moving to the Orpheum Theatre Off-Broadway, where it had a five-year run. It later received numerous productions in the U.S. and abroad, and a subsequent Broadway production. Because of its small cast, it has become popular with community theatre, school and other amateur groups. The musical was also made into a 1986 film of the same name, directed by Frank Oz. Syn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cats (musical)
''Cats'' is a sung-through musical composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based upon the 1939 poetry collection ''Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats'' by T. S. Eliot. It tells the story of a tribe of cats called the Jellicles and the night they make the "Jellicle choice" by deciding which cat will ascend to the Heaviside Layer and come back to a new life. As of 2022, ''Cats'' remains the fourth-longest-running Broadway show and the seventh-longest-running West End show. Lloyd Webber began setting Eliot's poems to music in 1977, and the compositions were first presented as a song cycle in 1980. Producer Cameron Mackintosh then recruited director Trevor Nunn and choreographer Gillian Lynne to turn the songs into a complete musical. ''Cats'' opened to positive reviews at the New London Theatre in the West End in 1981 and then to mixed reviews at the Winter Garden Theatre on Broadway in 1982. It won numerous awards including Best Musical at both the Laurence Olivier and Tony Awards ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Beautiful Game (musical)
''The Beautiful Game'' (sometimes performed as ''The Boys in the Photograph'') is a musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Ben Elton about a group of teenagers growing up during The Troubles in Belfast, Northern Ireland in 1969. The title of the musical (''The Beautiful Game'') is a commonly used reference to football, the origins of which are disputed. The plot, which is centred on a local football (soccer) team, focuses on the attempt to overcome the violence that has engulfed their community. The Catholic team has one atheist player, Del (who comes from a Protestant family) and the coach is a priest. The musical chronicles some of the key players during the emerging political and religious violence. Some of the players become IRA volunteers, and another is knee-capped. The musical also chronicles the emotional change in the protagonist from political ambivalence to becoming an IRA volunteer. The most successful song from the score was "Our Kind of Love", which had originally bee ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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