What are you doing reading this blog?  Why aren't you out shopping?  Don't you know that this is one of the biggest shopping days of the year (aka Black Friday!); the bargains are unbelievable.  I have just come back from the 5:00am Macy's Door Buster Sale where I purchased ALL of my holiday gifts.  It was fantastic - me and 7 million other rabid bargain hunters.  Ahhh, the post T-giving shopping frenzy.

Ok, I am lying - completely.  After eating enough food to feed several small countries, yesterday and inhaling three (yes, you read that right - three) pieces of pumpkin pie; I slept in all morning like a sloth.  I love the holidays!  The only problem with the Thanksgiving Holiday is that there isn't a heck of a lot of stuff happening on the rialto (i.e. there isn't a ton of stuff to blog about - especially with the ongoing strike - ugh).  Here are a few tidbits of info to keep you satisfied until Monday.

Strike Update:

Do you hear that?  That is the sound of Hoo-Ha'ing coming from the St. James Theater.  Christmas has come early to Broadway this year and many small (and big) theatergoers have received a gigantic green package.  At 11:00am EST today, November 23rd, the picket lines have been dismantled and "the show will go on".  Hooray!  Finally, a glimmer of hope in this whole Stagehands Union Strike "mess"!  Dr. Seuss' The Grinch Who Stole Christmas! The Musical was given approval to reopen the show and now there are NINE shows running on "The Broadway".  Only 26 more shows to go!

What is next for the strike?  Potential negotiations this coming Sunday; nothing has been settled yet but I am hopeful that there will be some official notification of this today.

Additionally, we have the upcoming Nederlander litigation.  The Nederlander Organization and the producers of the shows running in those theaters are suing the Local One Stagehands Union for $35 million dollars.  The producers are suing to recover loss revenues from ticket sales, concessions and merchandise.  The Nederlanders believe that since they are not officially negotiating during this strike that they are the victims of an illegal "boycott".  The Nederlander shows affected are; Wicked, Cyrano de Bergerac (with Jennifer Garner and Kevin Kline), Grease, The Drowsy Chaperone (with Bob Saget), The Lion King, Hairspray,  Rent, The Little Mermaid, and Legally Blonde.

Cry-Baby Looks Good for B'way:

Cry-Baby the new musical based on John Waters edgy indie film opened at San Diego's La Jolla Playhouse.  With a book by Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan (Hairspray alums) and songs by David Javerbaum and Adam Schlesinger, the new show looks ready to take "The Broadway" by storm. The reviews are out and they are mostly favorable for the creative team and the fresh-faced cast lead by James Snyder and Elizabeth Stanley. Here is what the critics have to say about the show...

Variety says, "Exuberantly witty musical adaptation of John Waters' 1990 social satire...offers laughs aplenty, powerhouse choreography and a sizzling rockabilly-and-blues-inspired score".

SanDiego.com writers, "Remember how superior we all felt that, thanks to the La Jolla Playhouse, we got to see "Jersey Boys" first?  Well, get out your wallet. Call 858 550-1010. Book your tickets for Cry-Baby, before it heads back east Dec. 16 to prepare for a spring Broadway opening.  Because, the Playhouse has done it again."

The San Diego Tribune is a mixed review, "Cry-Baby, the talent-stuffed, deliriously danced new musical at La Jolla Playhouse, based on the John Waters movie and still struggling to find the right comedic core that might give it a shot - and some singularity - on Broadway."  They say this about the show's star, "The good-looking, blue-eyed actor has a big, smooth, rangy voice and shows comedic smarts in lyrics like "I'm in complete command / of my lachrymal gland."

The Orange County Register is a rave and praises Waters as the Great White Way's savior, "Fans of Pink Flamingos and Polyester probably never dreamed that Baltimore's bad-boy filmmaker would somehow evolve into a reliable source for mainstream musical theater. But with the debut of Cry-Baby Nov. 18 at the La Jolla Playhouse, the mustachioed provocateur, whose early career was tied to the antics of a morbidly obese drag queen performing unmentionable acts, seems poised to muscle Disney aside as America's biggest source of family fun."

Many insiders think that Cry-Baby is emerging as a favorite for the TONY Award for Best Musical.  These reviews certainly do give that opinion some weight, but we are going to have to wait until it arrives in the spring to find out for sure!

Ok, I have to rush back to the stores; I have more shopping to do.  Oh who am I kidding.  I need a nap.

~ See You On The Aisle.