Stale Gossip …..

This is where the older gossip from The Green Room ends up ….. much of it is still of interest, even though its not so juicy and current ….

31 Jan 96: The Society of London Theatre's half price ticket booth in Leicester square celebrated its 15th anniversary on Saturday 27 January and is one of Theatreland's great success stories. La boheme was 100 today. Entertainers take to the sky! Singers, puppeteers, comics and magicians will be able to land glamorous contracts to perform on long-distance flights. Happy Days will be coming to the West End stage, possibly with some of the original TV cast.
21 Jan 96: The Northbrook Theatre has just opened near Worthing.
18 Jan 96: Wild Rose's version of Phantom of the Opera (on ice, with the Russian Ice Stars) is touring and doing well - expect to see Carmen on ice for 96/97. The Fly is not going to do Lincoln after all, "technical difficulties" so its going straight to the West End - probably the Prince of Wales. The tour of Ain't Misbehavin is having problems, its proving too expensive to stage (tour due to start 27 feb). The National Theatre team has 21 nominations for this year's Olivier Awards. From now to 1997 we should see the musicals of The Secret Garden, Out There, Face, Napoleon, How Gren Was My Valley, Jeckyll, Jean de Florette amongst others … but where, says Anthony Field in The Stage, are they to go?! Is the West End too full of money spinners to make way for new material?
13 Jan 96: On 29th January Cats at the New London theatre becomes the longest running musical on Broadway or the West End - indeed the only show to beat it is the off-Broadway "Fantasticks" (thanks to a diligent reader for the update!) … Jesus Christ Superstar comes to the Lyceum in the West End in the summer. Check out the new 6 part series on BBC2 called The House which starts 16 January at 21:30 … an in-depth behind the scenes look at the Royal Opera House
11 Jan 96: The UKTW is offering free trial web entry to professional theatres and production companies, contact us for details. Brian Rix has published a book, Life in the Farce Lane: Or Tragedy with its Trousers Down which looks at Farce 'from Aristophanes to Cooney'. There's still squabbling over the Royal Opera House temporary home plans. Michael Flatley, who left Riverdance amid controversy is planning his own show 'Lord of the Dance' for touring starting March. The Royal Lyceum in Edinburgh will be giving away free tickets (all 870 of them - first come first served) to the first night of each new play this season - thanks to the Bank of Scotland.
4 Jan 96: Angela Thorne replaces Julia McKenzie in Communicating Doors when it moves to the Savoy later this month. Antoinette Sibley (president of the Royal Academy of Dancing) was made a Dame, Frances Line and Peggy Mount got OBEs and Julie Goodyear got an MBE in the New Year's Honours list.
31Dec 95: Congratulations due to many people for being recognised in the New Year's Honours list, Note particularly that Cameron Mackintosh was made a Knight Bachelor (Sir to you and me!) for services to the Musical Theatre.
29Dec 95: Royal Opera house admits that a new production of Verdi's Il Corsaro was cancelled for financial reasons. Covent Garden, conductor, Edward Downes has withdrawn from next April's production of Nabucco saying he is "Out of sympathy" with the production. Plans for a new Welsh opera house have been thrown into disarray after the controversial Cardiff Bay project failed to receive funds from the Millennium Commission. Actor Alex Dimitriades is recovering after dislocating his shoulder in an accident at Cambridge's Corn Exchange. Maggie Smith is this year's winner of the Channel Four Lifetime Achievement prize at the Women in Film and Television Awards. Tewkesbury councillors have granted a 21 year lease to the Roses Theatre Trust, plus the promise of 50,000 a year for the first three years.
22 Dec 95: The temporary home for the Royal Opera has got the go-ahead for its building by the Thames - it will be recyclable! There is a rumour that Disney may take it over when the Royal Opera have done with it in a couple of years. Coventry's Belgrade Theatre is struggling to survive - redundancies are expected. Canterbury's Marlowe Theatre has been asked to keep the noise of set breaking down - which could limit the number of large shows that can tour there. The Ambassador's and the Royalty theatres are up for sale .. and there's a rumour that the Playhouse might follow. Arthur Mullard died on 11th Dec aged 85.
15 Dec 95: The National Council for Drama Training (NCDT) now has info on the net . John Carlisle has recovered so the RSC's Cain has gone ahead. While the Royal Court is refurbished the company will take over the Duke of York and Ambassador theatres - for two years. The Tyne Theatre and Opera House has been purchased by a local business man, making the move of the D'Oyly Carte seem more likely. Claire Luckham has become writer in residence at Chichester's Mercury Theatre.
12 Dec 95: The ten Regional Arts Boards, funders of the arts in England, yesterday launched a major arts and cultural WWW site. England's Regional Arts Pages build on the success of the 'North of England Regional Arts Pages' established in May. This new national site provides the largest arts and cultural web information source in the UK.
7 Dec 95: Natalie Imbruglia has had to pull out of the Orchard Theatre production of Cinderella - couldn't geta work permit. Charlie Drake has puled out of Funny Money after complaining of dizzy spells - he will return when he feels recovered. The RSC's version of Cain has been postponed, John Carlisle is ill. Lily savage and Danny La Rue are having a bit of a slanging match through the press - Danny accused Lily of "lavatorial" language and "degrading" women.
29 Nov 95: Best new play at the British Regional Theatre Awards was Irvine Welsh's Trainspotting. Adrian Noble is filming A Midsummer Night's Dream. Next Stage Theatre Company is to close at the end of the year - financial trouble. The Greenwich Theatre has denied that it is having cash problems. Frank Thornton will replace Leo McKern in Hobson's Choice on 11 Dec.
29 Nov 95: Five Guys Named Moe is now out on video (VCI), the show only has 6 weeks left to run prior to its world tour. Sir Derek Jacobi, Harold Pinter and Prunella Scales will star in a film version of Breaking the Code the Broadway play about Alan Turing. Sir Derek is also in Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet which has started filming.
26 Nov 95: This week, Lionel Bart gave a preview for a selected audience (including Cameron Mackintosh, Bill Kenwright, Richard O'Brien, Robert Lindsay and David Essex) of Quasimodo, a musical which he wrote in the early sixties following his hit success Oliver!. He hopes to get the show to the West End in 1997. It includes some typical Bart songs which are as memorable as those in Oliver, as it follows the story of Quasimodo and his caring gypsy Esmerelda. Of course, Walt Disney are looking at this storyline too - so the timing is good. We saw Lionel Bart at a recent drama college production of Blitz - he was not looking a well man.
The Evening Standard Drama Awards. Best Actor, Michael Gambon (Volpone). Best Actress, Geraldine McEwan (Lady Wishfort, The Way of the World). Best Comedy, Dealer's Choice. Patricia Rothermere Award for Outstanding Services by Members of the Theatre Community, Richard Eyre. RADA Scholarship, Maxine Pealie. Sydney Edwards Award for Best Director, Mathew Werchus (Volpone, Henry V). Best Play, Pentecost (David Edgar). Most Promising Playwright, Jez Butterworth (Mojo). Best Musical, Mack and Mable. LWT Plays on Stage Award, Paine's Plough Theatre Company.
25 Nov 95: Jesus Christ Superstar will be making a re-appearance in London. Chess will tour during 1996. Rupert Street Lonely Heart's Club is off down to Brighton then will return to London at the Criterion.
23 Nov 95: The Oxford Playhouse is to get 2.5 Million from the Lottery. There was a bit of a 'disagreement' between two members of the Scottish Ballet backstage during a performance - the police are to investigate. Principle dancer Zoltan Solymosi has unexpectedly left the Royal Ballet. West Yorkshire theatres have drawn up emergency plans to allow the show to go on through the drought. Barbara Dickson has signed for the lead in Dusty to open in April.
16 Nov 95: Burning Blue is to close for good on 2nd December. The rescue bid failed to be matched by good audiences. The De Montfort Hall pantomime has been cancelled for safety reasons. There are repairs at the Hackney Empir, but Lear goes on. Opera North's performance of Jenufa at the Leeds Grand Theatre will not have a 400 gallon tank of water on stage - there's a drought on! A new theatre will open on 8th December in Melrose, Scotland.
13 Nov 95: Sir Robert Stevens has died. He had just completed a CD being sponsored by the Prince of Wales which includes a number of famous Shakespeare speeches. Andrew Lloyd Webber's Really Useful Group is now on the web with details of Cats, Phantom, Starlight and Sunset.
11 Nov 95: Mary Millar will replace Marti Caine in Snow White at the Anvil, Basingstoke. Marti Caine sadly died recently after a long battle with cancer. The Phantom of the Opera at the Edinburgh Playhouse has broken all box office records with £5 million in advance sales. Glasgow's Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama will be open a new opera school in 1997.
6 Nov 95: Did you know that Paul Eddington died yesterday? Yes, Prime Minister ...
2 Nov 95: Jessica Lange may come to the West End to lead Streetcar Named Desire directed by Sir Peter Hall. Jekyll (based on Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde), should open as a musical with Dave Willetts at Churchill Theatre bromley in Spring, followed by a West End run. The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company may be moving to Newcastle's Tyne Theatre and Opera House. The RSC is to tour the US early '96 with a production of Midsummer Nights Dream.
29 Oct 95: Tommy is still looking for a lead actor. There is a possibility of Cleo Laine taking the Grizabella role in Cats for 8 weeks over Christmas. Beauty and the Beast now looks unlikely before Dec96 (possible for The Dominion). Moby Dick's writing is bringing Tony n' Tina's Wedding to London, partly improvised. Richard Dreyfus may direct Baitz's play Three Hotels.
26 Oct 95: My Night with Reg is to be filmed for TV by the BBC. The BBC will also broadcast highlights from the Martini British Regional Theatre Awards in a special edition of Pebble Mill.
25 Oct 95: The Royal Opera and the Royal Ballet will have a temporary new home from autumn 1997 for two seasons while the Royal Opera House is refurbished. The new home is yet to be built and will be on the south bank of the Thames near Tower Bridge - it will seat nearly 2500 and have a larger stage than the ROH itself. The ROH has rejected the possibility of moving to the Lyceum which leaves open the possibility of the English Naional Opera moving there if they decide to refurbish the Coliseum instead of moving to a new home. In 1996 Cliff Richard will star as Heathcliff in a musical version of Wuthering Heights.
22 Oct 95: See references to new pages for the National Youth Music and 21st Century Actors in Companies
18 Oct 95: Burning Blue has found itself back on the stage (its third London venue) and the Roy Orbison Story re-opens at the Whitehall theatre. The D'Oyly Carte company is looking for more money and may have to move from Birmingham to find it.
16 Oct 95:The Sadler's Wells and the Shakepseare's Globe will both be receiving millions from the national lottery - this has not received universal acclaim and comes only three months after the major award to the Royal Opera House. The Trocadero (Piccadilly Circus) will be floated on the Stock Exchange.
11 Oct 95:The Three Tenors will appear at Wembley Stadium on 6th July. 0181 900n 1234
11 Oct 95:Around February 1996 expect to see a new London productions called VOYEURZ.
9 Oct 95:In January 1996 expect to see new London productions of The Fields of Ambrosia, The Darling Buds of May (currently on tour) and Napoleon.
9 Oct 95:In March 1996 expect to see new London productions of Angels in America, Birdy, Dusty (as in Springfield), The Fly (musical), The Heiress, How Green Was My Valley, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, Martin Guerre (Boubil and Schonberg), Passion, Plunder and Scrooge.
6 Oct 95: Elton John is to write a `pop' version of Aida for the Walt Disney Company! The production will appear on stage before being transferred to film.
Oct 95: The Donmar Warehouse is in financial trouble, the Ambassadors is up for sale and the Royal Court closes next year for a two year refurbishment.

UK:-) [ Email : UKTW Home ]
)-:TW [ Tel/Fax: +44 (0)1993 704 268 Address: P.O.Box 124, Witney, OX8 6WX, UK ]