Attention "Wicked" fans! In August, I wrote a piece about the press preview of the hit musical touring through Salt Lake City next year. An invited audience sat on stage, watched clips of the show, heard the producers and listened to two girls sing "The Wizard and I" and "For Good."
I noted how great the two actresses were and thought it a shame they weren't part of the tour.
Well, good news! One of them just joined.
Donna Vivino will be coming to Salt Lake City as Elphaba. This is good news, folks. I was really impressed with not only her voice but her interpretation and phrasing of the music.
"Wicked" will run at Capitol Theatre from April 8 - May 3, with tickets going on sale to the public Dec. 12.
"Tickets have been available to our subscribers and different groups through pre-sales for a while now," said Elisabeth Nebeker with Broadway Across America. "Based on what we've seen, we're expecting great demand with the public. Salt Lake is very excited for this show."
BAA still hasn't released how single ticket sales will be handled, "but we're hoping to have an answer soon," Nebeker said.
Last week, one-day pre-sales to sponsors crashed the system. "It was an overwhelming number of requests," she said, noting that they've learned from that experience and "we'll be prepared; we don't want anyone to be disappointed."
Here are the Broadway happenings:
It Was The Worst of Times: The new musical, "A Tale of Two Cities," an adaptation of the Charles Dickens' novel costing $16 million, has announced a closing date of Nov. 16. "Tale," which saw the debut of local actor Eric Van Tielen, just had a hard time finding a Broadway audience. Producers are planning a national tour.
The Dawning of Something: Out with the old, in with the new, I suppose. As "Tale" packs its bags, the love-rock musical, "Hair," moves into the Al Hirschfeld Theatre. A revival of the show played this summer in Central Park to sold-out houses and will open on the Great White Way in February.
Thriller: Get this — Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5 live on. "Thriller — Live" opens on London's West End in January. Having already danced its way through Germany, Holland and Scandinavia, "Thriller," which pays tribute to the music of the Jacksons, is launching a major hunt for the next young Michael. Billed as family-friendly and feel-good, no word when the Jackson jukebox will make it's way to NYC.
E-mail: ehansen@desnews.com