Steve On Broadway (SOB)

Baranski's Mame Won't Open a New Window on Broadway

Baranski's Mame Won't Open a New Window on Broadway

For the last several weeks, much of the entertainment buzz in the busy DC-New York corridor centered on whether the Eric Schaeffer-helmed Kennedy Center revival of Mame starring Christine Baranski would transfer to Broadway's Palace Theatre. The official word appears to be that it won't, according to a Playbill.com story published earlier this morning.

The production's costs apparently are much too prohibitive to justify a brief 20-week engagement. The Kennedy Center itself spent more than $5 million to produce the show, and it's visibly apparent to anyone who has had a chance to see the eye candy-filled tuner this summer in Washington. This has to be particularly disappointing for Baranski, who has enthusiastically talked at length about how she'd enjoy the opportunity to take this to New York.

But lest her New York fans lament not having a chance to see her anytime soon on the stage, Baranski is in talks with the Manhattan Theatre Club to perform in a Paul Rudnick play. Keep your fingers crossed for that one coming to fruition.

For anyone who has tickets for the current sold-out engagement of Mame in our nation's capital, count yourself as truly fortunate to be among a select group of theatregoers able to see this outstanding musical before it becomes history on July 2.

This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).

Related Stories:
Mame (The SOB Review) - The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Eisenhower Theatre, Washington, DC (June 18, 2006)
Mame Slightly Bruised, Not Maimed, by Critics (June 2, 2006)
Assassins Loose in Washington for Another Week (May 31, 2006)
Mame with Christine Baranski Begins Saturday at Kennedy Center (May 26, 2006)

Labels: Christine Baranski, Kennedy Center, Mame, Musical, Revival, Washington DC

posted by Steve On Broadway (SOB) @ Tuesday, June 27, 2006