Orlando Bloom to Make Broadway Debut as Romeo
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Classics, Drama, Romance, Casting, Celeb News, Upcoming Releases
Orlando Bloom will make his Broadway debut in a new production of Romeo & Juliet.
The 36-year-old actor will star as the tragic hero Romeo in director David Leveaux's staging of William Shakespeare's classic love story, which will begin previews at the Richard Rodgers Theatre in New York on August 24 with an official opening date of September 19. Condola Rashad will play Juliet in the production, but director David insists he isn't trying to make a political point by casting a black actress in the role opposite a white actor as Romeo.
"They could have been any number of different ethnicities. The two actors I wanted to be together producing sparks just happened to be those two and I followed my nose in casting the families. There was nothing simple about that choice but I'm not about to turn a contemporary version of Shakespeare into a sociological or political point. We know there are families from one background or another who would reject their children getting together with someone from another group. Romeo and Juliet reject that notion. It is still the case that children try to oppose the cultural expectations thrust upon them, the rigidity of tribes, the rigidity of fundamentalism," he told The New York Times.
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Shia LaBeouf: Baldwin Could’ve Had Me Fired
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Drama, Casting, Celebrity Gossip, New Releases, Rumors
Shia LaBeouf thinks that Alec Baldwin may have got him fired from Orphans.
The Transformers actor exited the Broadway play due to "creative differences" weeks before it was due to open, and after admitting he and his would-be co-star didn't connect as "men," he acknowledged the 30 Rock star could have been instrumental in his departure from the production.
"I'm pretty passionate and impulsive, and he's a very passionate individual as well. And I think that impulsiveness and that passion makes for, ya know, some fireworks. Me and Alec had tension as men. Not as artists but as men," he told TV talk show host David Letterman. The host then suggested, "Alec went to the producers and said, 'I can't take it another day. Fire him,'" prompting his guest to reply, "I think that might've been what happened."
Click to continue reading Shia LaBeouf: Baldwin Could’ve Had Me Fired
Elizabeth Olsen to Star in ‘Romeo and Juliet’
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Classics, Drama, Romance, Casting
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Elizabeth Olsen is set to star in an off Broadway production of Romeo and Juliet.
The 24-year-old actress will make her on-stage leading role debut as Juliet in the Classic Stage Company's production, which will open the company's 2013-14 season later this year, according to E! News.
Although Elizabeth's older siblings are actresses and designers Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen she previously insisted they never tell her how to behave or get ahead in her career: "It's always felt as though Mary-Kate and Ashley have been women, while I've been the kid. But we're very close and I look up to them a lot. I wasn't really affected by their fame until I went to college. People would expect me to be partying and all sorts of stuff. It was really strange. We've never had a conversation about [fame], but I learn by example. They try to keep their lives private and they work their asses off. People have this idea of them swanning around the world, partying, but they're at an office every day - I wouldn't be able to do what they do. They have so much pressure on them. They tell me, 'It's all about being happy with what you're working on and trying to be the best at it that you can be.'"
Alec Baldwin Says Shia LaBeouf’s Not Right for Theatre
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Drama, Celebrity Gossip
Alec Baldwin claims that Shia LaBeouf is more like a "celebrity chef" than a serious actor.
The Lawless actor recently used Twitter to leak a string of private emails relating to his departure from the new Broadway production of Orphans, which he was due to star in with Alec. His would-be co-star has now claimed Shia is in no position to talk about the theatre as he isn't a true stage actor and has accused him of not being able to cope with the challenges of the art form.
Click to continue reading Alec Baldwin Says Shia LaBeouf’s Not Right for Theatre
Jude Law Not “Fulfilled” by Films So Far
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Celebrity Gossip
Jude Law is "proud" but not "fulfilled" by his career so far. The Side Effects star turned 40 at the end of December and is looking forward to taking his acting to a new level as he enters a new decade of his life.
"I [am] optimistic about my 40s. The roles should get more complex. I look back and I'm proud of the work I've done but not fulfilled by it. I feel in some areas I've only scratched the surface," he said.
Jude is glad he got to play Hamlet on stage in London before he reached the landmark age, and although he didn't quite make it before 40, he's looking forward to ticking off another of Shakespeare's characters, Henry V, at the end of this year. "I wanted to play [Hamlet] before I was 40. My feeling is always commit and do it. You don't want to get to 50 and have not played Hamlet. I wanted to play Henry before I was 40 too, but I just missed it. He died when he was 37 so he has got to be played as a young king and I think I can get there with a little help from prosthetics. I'm joking," he explained.
Anne Hathaway Wants ‘My Fair Lady’ Role
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Drama, Musicals, Period, Remakes, Casting, Celebrity Gossip, Upcoming Releases
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Anne Hathaway wants to star in My Fair Lady.
The actress is hoping to capitalize on her Oscar-nominated performance in Les Miserables by landing the lead role of Eliza Doolittle in a stage version of the hit musical.
"I haven't heard for a while what's happening with My Fair Lady and I don't know whether I would do it on stage, or screen, but either would be a treat," she said.
The actress was reportedly being lined up to star in a film adaptation of the long-running show opposite Colin Firth, but the film rights fell through. Legendary music mogul Clive Davis announced earlier this week that he will produce the show on Broadway and is hoping to sign up Anne and Colin for the lead roles. However, the Daily Mail claims the actress could take to the stage in London's West End alongside Dominic West.
Click to continue reading Anne Hathaway Wants ‘My Fair Lady’ Role
Ben Foster Replaces Shia LaBeouf in ‘Orphans’
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Drama, Casting, Celebrity Gossip, Rumors
Shia LaBeouf been replaced by Ben Foster in Orphans.
The Lawless actor was due to make his Broadway debut alongside Alec Baldwin in the production - which tells the tale of two orphaned brothers who grow to regard a gangster they attempt to kidnap as a father figure - but he parted ways with the show after a week of rehearsals, leading to Alpha Dog actor Ben taking over the role of Treat.
"We are delighted that Ben will join Alec Baldwin and Tom Sturridge when rehearsals commence at Orphans tomorrow morning. He is an extraordinarily gifted actor," producers Frederick Zollo and Robert Cole said today.
Click to continue reading Ben Foster Replaces Shia LaBeouf in ‘Orphans’
Quote of the Day: Scarlett Johansson on Her Co-Star’s Butt
Posted by Robin Paulson Categories: Adaptation, Drama, Celebrity Gossip
"[His butt] is really one of the brighter points of my life. I have asked Ben at times, when I was having a more difficult day, to just leave it out there for a couple more moments, just to brighten my day a little bit... I think it adds a little bit of hope in an otherwise dismal situation."
- Scarlett Johansson talks about admiring her Cat on a Hot Tin Roof co-star Ben Walker, who spends a large amount of time during the play in a towel (and occasionally without even that).
(Make sure to check out other notable quotes.)
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Helen Mirren: Queen Role Will Be a Challenge
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Biopics, Drama, Period, Political, Casting, Celebrity Gossip, Upcoming Releases
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Helen Mirren admits that portraying Queen Elizabeth on stage will be a "challenge."
The 67-year-old actress - who has previously played the monarch in hit movie The Queen - is to star in The Audience in London's West End next year and admits the role will be tough as she has to portray the royal from when she took the throne aged 25 right up until the modern day. "That'll be a challenge," she said.
However, the actress has given the role some thought and thinks the monarch's "unbelievable consistency in everything" will help with the transition, and she is also studying the changes in her speech patterns. "Her voice has changed and I can use that - she had a terribly posh voice when she was young. But now even the queen, while she isn't quite dropping the ends of her lines - though her grandsons do - there's a tiny bit of estuary creeping in there. I can use all that to signify the age range and we'll come up with other things," she explained to The Daily Mail.
Click to continue reading Helen Mirren: Queen Role Will Be a Challenge
Alec Baldwin is Returning to Broadway
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Drama, Celeb News, Upcoming Releases
The 30 Rock star will star as Harold - a wealthy but shady gentleman, who becomes a father figure to two orphaned brothers after one of the siblings kidnaps him - in the latest version of the Lyle Kessler's 1983 play, which will be directed by Daniel Sullivan.
"I have dreamed, for a long time, of doing this play with this director. It's an honor to work with Dan Sullivan in Lyle Kessler's Orphans," he said in a statement.
The production - which had an off-Broadway run in at the Westside Arts Theater in Manhattan in 1985 and was later turned into a movie starring Albert Finney and Matthew Modine in 1987 - will begin next spring at the Shubert Theater in New York City.
Alec, 54, last appeared on Broadway in 2004 when he starred in a revival of comedy play Twentieth Century alongside Anne Hench and he previously starred in off-Broadway production Entertaining Mr. Sloane by Joe Orton in 2006.
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