Before You Walk in the Room: Audition Advice from Resident Music Director Kevin Robert White

Before You Walk in the Room: Audition Advice from Resident Music Director Kevin Robert White   By The Phoenix Theatre Company Auditions are just days away, and that means performers are running material, second-guessing choices, and trying to figure out what the room is actually looking for.  We asked The Phoenix Theatre Company’s Resident Music Director to break down what he’s looking…

The Art of Transformation: Tony Blosser on Playing Multiple Roles in Tenderly

  By Elizabeth Montgomery   One moment he’s the Doctor, the next he’s Frank Sinatra. Then Rosemary’s mother, then someone else entirely. In Tenderly: The Rosemary Clooney Story, Tony Blosser* makes it feel effortless, even as the work underneath it is anything but simple.  That kind of transformation doesn’t come from quick costume changes or theatrical tricks. It comes from precision, instinct, and…

The Phoenix Theatre Company Announces Ambitious 107th Season Featuring Eleven Productions Across Three Stages

The Phoenix Theatre Company Announces Ambitious 107th Season Featuring Eleven Productions Across Three Stages   By The Phoenix Theatre Company The Phoenix Theatre Company’s 107th Season is the most ambitious in the company’s history: eleven productions across three stages, five Tony Award–winning musicals, one world premiere, and one regional production. From the razor-sharp wit of…

The Heartbeat of Come From Away: A Conversation with Music Director Alan J. Plado

  By Elizabeth Montgomery   In Come From Away, the story unfolds at a relentless pace. Twelve actors portray dozens of characters, scenes shift in seconds, and emotions move from humor to heartbreak and back again. Beneath it all is a score that keeps the story moving.    For the show’s Music Director Alan J. Plado, guiding that momentum requires the same level of…

Nostalgia, Resilience, and Song: Inside Tenderly with Director Jodie Weiss

  By Shelina Elyse From the height of fame to collapse then reinvention, Tenderly is an introspective jukebox musical like no other.  We sat with director Jodie Weiss to explore the unique storytelling of the show and the remarkable talent required to portray Clooney and the many figures in her life.  The musical showcases timeless classics that may surprise you to find that Clooney originated. Read…

A Family Affair: How Miracle Mile Deli and The Phoenix Theatre Company Found Each Other

  By Elizabeth Montgomery In a photo from 1969, a little girl stands between her parents in the back of a kitchen, smiling like she runs the place. She doesn’t know it yet, but she will.  That girl is Jill Garcia, and 56 years later, she and her husband George and their son Josh are still running the Miracle Mile Deli in Phoenix. Still slicing up…

Telling the Story the World Still Needs to Hear

  By Shelina Elyse   In a world that often feels divided, Come From Away explores a true story of compassion and community that feels more necessary than ever.   We spoke with Michael Barnard, Producing Artistic Director and director of Come From Away, about bringing the uplifting story of rerouted passengers and Gander residents during September 11, 2001 to our stage.    At its heart, the…

“The Greatest Live Show” & The King of Rockabilly: Meet the Actors Bringing Them to Life

“The Greatest Live Show” & The King of Rockabilly: Meet the Actors Bringing Them to Life https://youtu.be/AeF6vr6Rato   By The Phoenix Theatre Company Get to know Brady Wease* and Kurt Jenkins* who play Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins, respectively, as they share their history with their characters and Million Dollar Quartet!  When Wease* isn’t hyping…

Love and Musicals

  By Theresa Kellar Tonner What do you do when you love someone? Movie musical director, Rob Marshall, says, “When movement isn’t enough, you dance, or when speaking isn’t enough, you sing,” and a musical does both.  When Tony is so full of his love for Maria, he can’t do anything else but sing out…

From Page to Stage: Michelle Chin and the Power of New Work

  By Shelina Elyse   January closed out a successful Richard P. Stahl Festival of New American Theatre, a Phoenix Theatre Company annual staple! Thanks to our generous sponsor, creatives, and staff, patrons enjoyed 3 weeks of exciting events showcasing our commitment to amplify and develop new works and artists.  We sat down with Festival Director Michelle Chin to chat about her deep roots in developing…