Tommy Tune Designated Living Landmark

New York City will be honoring one of Broadway's most renowned talents, Tommy Tune, in a rather unusual way on November 4. Tune will be designated as a "Living Landmark" by the New York Landmarks Conservancy, an organization that for over 35 years has been working to preserve the great architecture of New York. With the "Living Landmark" honor, the Conservancy has also been acknowledging some of the state's most distinguished human contributors (past honorees include Lauren Bacall, Harry Belafonte, Whoopi Goldberg, and more). A nine-time Tony Award winner, Tommy Tune is an actor, director, and choreographer whose work includes Broadway musicals such as Nine, My One & Only, Grand Hotel, and The Will Rogers Follies.

Catherine-Zeta Jones To Star In Night Music

Rumors have been flying about the upcoming Broadway revival of A Little Night Music for some time, but at last details are getting finalized, notably the production's star. Catherine Zeta-Jones (who showed off her musical skills in the film of Chicago) will play Desiree Armfeldt in the charming Hugh Wheeler/Stephen Sondheim musical, based on the Bergman film Smiles of a Summer Night. Playing Madame Armfeldt will be legendary stage and screen star Angela Lansbury, who recently appeared on Broadway in Blithe Spirit. The production is scheduled to open at the Walter Kerr Theatre on December 13.

Regina Spektor To Write Broadway Musical

Regina Spektor, the alternative folk-rock songwriter that has been a darling of the music scene of late, is going to be writing the music for a new Broadway musical called Beauty. Based on the Grimm's fairy tale of Sleeping Beauty (also well-known from the Disney animated film version), Beauty will have lyrics by Michael Korie (Grey Gardens) and book/direction by Tina Landau, whose 2002 one-act play is the basis for the new musical. The production team is hoping to bring Beauty to Broadway in the 2011-2012 season.

Phantom Hits 9,000 Performance Milestone

The Phantom of the Opera, Broadway's longest running musical, hits a major milestone tomorrow when it has its 9,000th performance at the Thursday night performance. This makes The Phantom of the Opera the first Broadway show ever to play 9,000 performances, a pretty stunning achievement. The history-making performance was actually celebrated today following the matinee in a special curtain call presentation. Phantom opened on Broadway at the Majestic Theatre in 1988 and was an immediate smash hit, but nobody could have imagined that the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical would still be running over 20 years later. Now in its 22nd year, the show continues drawing both Broadway newcomers and fans who enjoy seeing the musical again and again.

Hamlet Starring Jude Law Begins On Broadway

The new production of Hamlet starring Jude Law began performances at the Broadhurst Theatre on Broadway this evening. The Donmar Warehouse production, directed by Michael Grandage, enjoyed sold-out runs in London's West End and at Kronberg Castle in Elsinore (where the legendary Shakespearean tragedy takes place) earlier this year. This Broadway run will be a limited engagement playing through December 6, so Jude Law fans had best get their tickets before they sell out. This production of Hamlet marks Law's first time on Broadway since he appeared in Indiscretions in 1995 (a role that earned him a Tony nod). Though he is no stranger to the stage, Law is best known as an international movie star, with notable films including The Talented Mr. Ripley, Alfie, Cold Mountain, and the upcoming Guy Ritchie Sherlock Holmes movie.

Jersey Boys Visit America's Got Talent

Check out the TV show America's Got Talent tonight on NBC and see a performance by the leads in the Las Vegas company of the smash hit Broadway musical Jersey Boys. Deven May (Bat Boy: The Musical), Rick Faugno, Erich Bergen, and Jeffrey Leibow, who play '60s pop group Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, will perform a medley of songs from the musical on the latest episode of the popular television talent show, which is hosted by Nick Cannon and features celebrity judges David Hasselhoff, Piers Morgan, and Sharon Osbourne. "Sherry," "Walk Like a Man," Big Girls Don't Cry," "Oh, What a Night," and "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" are just a few of the memorable Frankie Valli/Four Seasons hits featured in Jersey Boys, which the medley is likely to include.

Tyler Perry To Take Shange's Play To Film

Variety has reported that Tyler Perry (creator of numerous stage, television, and film properties, many featuring his famous "Madea" character, as well as the upcoming film I Can Do Bad All By Myself) will be writing, directing, and producing a film version of Ntozake Shange's "choreo-poem" play for colored girls who have considered suicide when the rainbow is enuf. The 1975 play, which was supposed to have a Broadway revival starring India.Arie last season (later postponed), is a series of poetic monologues from black women about everything from love and youth to abuse and abandonment.