The new musical comedy MINSKY’S, directed by Tony Award® nominee Casey Nicholaw (The Drowsy Chaperone) features a book by Tony Award® winner Bob Martin (The Drowsy Chaperone) and music and lyrics by Tony Award® winner Charles Strouse (Annie) and Tony Award® nominee Susan Birkenhead (Jelly’s Last Jam). The world premiere engagement is now playing at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles through Sunday, March 1st.
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
Producers say ‘Minsky’s’ is headed to Broadway
By Michael Kuchwara
“Minsky’s,” the big, brash musical tale of Depression era burlesque that opened last week in Los Angeles, is Broadway-bound, its producers say.
A summer or fall New York opening is planned for the production, budgeted at about $11 million.
Reviews were mixed, particularly for the book of this lavish musical, which ends its California engagement March 1 at the Center Theatre Group’s Ahmanson Theatre. But, according to producers Kevin McCollum and Bob Boyett, the production team sits down next week to begin assessing what still needs to be done.
“Minsky’s” tells the story of Billy Minsky, played by Christopher Fitzgerald, as he struggles to keep his house of burlesque – a cornucopia of striptease and baggy-pants vaudeville acts – in business.
The musical features a book by Bob Martin and a score by “Annie” composer Charles Strouse and lyricist Susan Birkenhead. The director and choreographer is Casey Nicholaw, who collaborated with Martin on “The Drowsy Chaperone,” another McCollum hit that played the Ahmanson on its way to New York.
“Part of a producer’s job, I think, is to support artists you believe in. Both Bob Martin and Casey were interested in tackling this,” McCollum said. “Charles Strouse is a hero of mine. And I’ve always felt that Susan Birkenhead of ‘Jelly’s Last Jam’ is one of the great lyricists of our time. So the idea that we had artists who wanted to reinvent a show that had stumbled all those years back was exciting.”
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Tickets for MINSKY’S start at $20 and are available by calling (213) 628-2772 or online at www.CenterTheatreGroup.org. Tickets can also be purchased in person at the Center Theatre Group box office at the Music Center. For the deaf community, call TDD (213) 680-4017 for tickets and information.