Closing Night

The idea of an Annie Part II had actually been floating around since 1982, while the original Annie was still on Broadway, and rather than a traditional sequel, the production was framed as a continuation of the original story, beginning six weeks after the events of Annie, with Miss Hannigan devising her revenge from prison. This continuing story was initially set to open on Broadway in 1983, jus...

Season 2 of Closing Night is finally here—the theater history podcast that takes you behind the curtain to uncover stories about famous and forgotten Broadway show that closed too soon. While season 1 focused on musicals that came and went from the Marquis Theatre, this season I’m tackling a whole new kind of theatrical heartbreak: shows that never actually opened on Broadway.  These are the produ...

There’s a unique category of musicals that only come around once a year. And it is this annual tradition that makes Christmas musicals so special. They're not just a way to celebrate the holiday season—they tap into that universal feeling of nostalgia, warmth, and tradition. These shows bring people together in a way that few others can, offering an escape into a world of joy, wonder, and yes, a l...

In this special video podcast combo between Why I’ll Never Make It and Closing Night, I’m joined by theater historian and author Jennifer Ashley Tepper, who has written a truly remarkable book - Women Writing Musicals: The Legacy That the History Books Left Out.  Jennifer’s work is the first comprehensive exploration of women who have shaped Broadway and Off-Broadway musicals over the last century...

Few musicals have captured the hearts of audiences quite like Disney's ALADDIN. But did you know the beloved stage adaptation of the classic animation almost never came to be? This podcast pulls back the curtain on the untold story of ALADDIN's journey from conception to Broadway triumph. Join 11-time Emmy Award winning entertainment journalist for NY1 and NY1OnStage host Frank DiLella on an in-de...

Last month, Closing Night went live at 54 Below here in New York City, exploring the songs and stories of the Marquis Theatre with Broadway performers and singers—many of whom have performed in shows at the Marquis and some of them even joined us this past podcast season. Patrick Oliver Jones / Diego Prieto - "I Am I, Don Quixote” (Man of La Mancha) Jane Summerhays / Patrick Oliver Jones - "You Wo...

The second season of Closing Night is set to premiere this June. But while we all eagerly await the curtain rising on our next act, here's a story about a show that famously closed on its opening night. There are actual plans to do a future season about Broadway productions that only lasted one performance. But now there's one show to take off the list of potential episodes, all because of the pod...

Get ready for a night of Broadway magic as 54 Below Celebrates the Marquis Theatre on March 19th! The concert will feature performances by those who were there at the Marquis, like Tony Award nominee Kate Baldwin from Thoroughly Modern Millie, Tony Award winner Richard Maltby, Jr. from Nick & Nora, E. Clayton Cornelious from Wonderland, Leah Horowitz from The Woman in White, and Lisa Howard from 9...

Five years ago, the enchanting musical The Band's Visit closed on Broadway (April 7, 2019) after capturing hearts with its simplicity and profound storytelling. Composed by David Yazbek and written by Itamar Moses, it emerged as a masterpiece in the 2017-2018 season, transcending contemporary Broadway norms. At the 2018 Tony Awards, this gem earned 11 nominations and secured 10 wins, including Bes...

In an enjoyable BroadwayCon encounter this past summer, I found myself in the heart of all things Broadway, rubbing shoulders with the stars and hosting live interviews for the Broadway Podcast Network. While my conversation with Jelani Alladin about Frozen and Hercules has already been shared in a previous episode of Why I’ll Never Make It, today we delve into my interview with the talented Broad...

One of the most enduring and iconic tales of the Christmas season comes from famed British writer Charles Dickens. His 1843 novel, A Christmas Carol, would become his most famous work, and the character of Scrooge is part of our lexicon now, being synonymous with someone who doesn’t enjoy the holidays. With many so stage and screen adaptations of this story, it surprised me to find out that its fi...

Over the history of the Marquis Theatre, three musicals have closed during the month of December. Two of them we've already covered here on the podcast: Me and My Girl and Nick & Nora. The third one was The Drowsy Chaperone and is the focus of this bonus mini-episode. It starred Tony Award winner Sutton Foster was cast as Janet Van De Graff, Emmy-nominated TV star Georgia Engel was Mrs. Tottendale...

Welcome to the final episode of Closing Night’s first season! We’ve covered eight different Broadway musicals at the Marquis Theatre that closed too soon, with our final show being Victor/Victoria, written and directed by Blake Edwards and starring his wife Julie Andrews. And in this interview episode we're featuring two members of that Broadway cast. Darren Lee - We talk about his experiences wor...

Thirteen years after starring in Victor/Victoria across cinemas nationwide, Julie Andrews made a triumphant return to Broadway in this highly anticipated stage adaptation, directed by her husband Blake Edwards. Playing a female singer masquerading as a man pretending to be a woman, Andrews ended a 33-year hiatus with the show's opening at the Marquis Theatre. In this emotional episode, experience...

To take you further behind the scenes of Wonderland, I’m sharing my conversation with E. Clayton Cornelious, who played the part of Caterpillar and is also a Broadway producer himself of such shows as Ain't Too Proud, Chicken and Biscuits, and New York, New York. In the previous episode, we explored the musical world of Frank Wildhorn and two of his shows that graced the Marquis Theatre for only a...

Ever since he burst onto the Broadway scene in the 1990s with Jekyll & Hyde, Frank Wildhorn has remained an intriguing figure in American Musical Theatre. (In fact, the title of this episode comes from a New York Times review of the 2013 J&H revival.) But Wildhorn’s journey is far from a conventional success story, nor was it a typical path to the Broadway stage. But among his seven Broadway music...

To take you further behind the scenes of this Broadway production, I’m sharing my conversation with Leah Horowitz, who was a swing in The Woman in White and an understudy for leading actress Maria Friedman. In the previous episode, we explored this lesser known Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, and Leah was a big help in putting that episode together. Now, you’ll get our full interview, full of anecdot...

When Bad Cinderella closed in June of this year, it signified the first time in 43 years that Broadway was without an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, and it became the second shortest run ever for one of his musicals on Broadway. Bad Cinderella also represented the second collaboration between Lloyd Webber and lyricist David Zippel. Their first show together was The Woman in White, which began in Lon...

In the previous episode you learned bumpy road to Broadway for Nick & Nora, one of Broadway's biggest flops. And in this bonus interview episode, you'll hear from Mark Hoebee, the swing and dance captain for the show who actually worked with the creatives as actors were fired and the show kept changing up until opening night. He gives behind the scenes insights into the rehearsal process and some...

In 1991, Broadway witnessed one of its most spectacular falls from grace with Nick & Nora, a musical adaptation of the beloved The Thin Man novel and film series. With a dream team that included Arthur Laurents, the creative force behind classics like West Side Story and Gypsy, Charles Strouse, the prolific composer of Bye Bye Birdie and Annie, and Richard Maltby Jr., known for Ain't Misbehavin',...

Welcome back to Closing Night, a theater history podcast celebrating Broadway shows that closed too soon. In the previous episode we went back to the dark days of 9/11 as Broadway went dark and had to find its own way back as a nation grieved and was forever changed. Back in 2021, which marked the 20th anniversary of those devastating 9/11 attacks, a live recording of the Broadway production of Co...

The Marquis Theatre was having great success in 2001 with the revival of Annie Get Your Gun. It had opened in 1999 with Bernadette Peters and Tom Wopat and became just the second show in Marquis history to surpass 1000 performances. It closed with Crystal Bernard in the title role with Tom Wopat coming back as Frank Butler to close the show on September 1, 2001. But ten days after Annie Get Your G...

Throughout this season and in between the main episodes, you get to hear some of my interviews with artists, creatives, and industry experts. And in this bonus interview episode, two of the guests from the Evita episode share more stories and insights. The first one is actress Christina DeCicco, who played Eva Peron twice a week in the 2012 Broadway revival of Evita. She talks about her audition p...

In April of 2012, the very first revival of Evita came to Broadway, having done the same in London six years earlier. And in both productions, the title role featured a relatively unknown actress to Western audiences: Elena Roger. She followed a select few chosen to take on one of the most difficult female roles in musical theater. First, there was Julie Covington, then Elaine Paige, Patti LuPone,...

In the previous episode you learned about the 30-year journey of 9 to 5, from a movie to a a big hit song to a TV show and eventually a Broadway musical. And in this bonus interview episode, you'll hear from Lisa Howard, one of the ensemble members in 9 to 5 who played Franklin Hart’s wife and was a part of the show from its early days in Los Angeles until its closing night on Broadway. She gives...