Not so very long ago, Roundabout Theatre Company suffered from a recurrent case of Celebrity Fornication Disorder, a wasting condition that leads theatrical producers to cast famous or semifamous people in leading roles to which they are manifestly unsuited. So pervasive was the CFD problem that, at one point, I even characterized it as “the Roundabout Way.” In recent years, the company seemed to have kicked the habit; but now comes sad evidence of recidivism in the form of the avian fiasco Bye Bye Birdie.

We must admit, we had fun unleashing wordplay on the bird play in our review today, which turned out to be just one missile among a volley of critical arrows that greeted the show. Robert Longbottom’s sorry direction did the production no favors. But the central problem of the show—its casting—bespeaks a new outbreak of CFD at the Roundabout. How else to explain the presence of John Stamos, Gina Gershon and Bill Irwin above the title of this dodo of a revival? This is a musical, after all, and none of them, for starters, can sing. Read more »

The starry (and very effective) original cast of Yasmina Reza’s God of Carnage will  continue its brawling and bickering only for the next four weeks. After that, James Gandolfini, Marcia Gay Harden, Jeff Daniels and Hope Davis make way for a new bunch of nasty Brooklyn parents. Here they are. Producers just announced the new lineup: Christine Lahti (Chicago Hope) as Veronica; Annie Potts (Designing Women) as Annette; Jimmy Smits (The West Wing) as Alan; and Ken Stott (original cast member of West End productions of God of Carnage and Art) as Michael. The new actors join the production on November 17.

Can you shoot steel-cable-strong elastic webbing from the back of your hand? Do you have super strength, allowing you to battle supervillains? Do you have a curious tingling sensation that alerts you to danger? No? Well, that’s okay, you can still audition for the role of Peter Parker for Julie Taymor’s upcoming musical adaptation of Spider-Man, the Marvel Comics icon. Other roles Taymor is looking to fill: Mary Jane and an unnamed “Female Lead Villain.” We already offered our top choice for Peter Parker. Details after the jump. Read more »

Good morning, sunshine! Have you stretched properly? Wiped the sand out of your eyes? Had your morning coffee? Splendid! Here are penises! Puppetry of the Penis, the almost-self-explanatory Australian comedy act that appalled us a few seasons back, is returning later this month, and the producers are using the lousy economic times to their PR advantage. A casting call for limber dicks after the jump. Since we can’t possibly come up with more tacky puns about penis stretching and folding, we’ll just share the release and run for cover. Read more »

Producers have announced that the search is on for Eugene Jerome, the smart-aleck Brooklyn teen at the center of Neil Simon’s Brighton Beach Memoirs, which is scheduled to open on Broadway this fall in a revival directed by David Cromer (Our Town). On Broadway back in 1983, the part was played by Matthew Broderick. Here’s the description from the casting notice: “For the role of Eugene, the creative team is seeking male performers between the ages of 16 and 21 that are intelligent, attractive and have a winning personality, ironic sense of humor, and excellent comic timing. The play is about a family in Brooklyn in 1937.” Our nominee for Eugene? Conservative prodigy and professional annoying child Jonathan Krohn. The 14-year-old (he’s young but precocious!) recently addressed CPAC and is hard at work on the second edition of his self-published manifesto, Define Conservatism. After the jump, J-Kro’s audition reel. Read more »

Here’s all we know about the musical based on Marvel’s sassy web-slinger Spider-Man: It will be directed by theatrical sorceress Julie Taymor of Lion King fame; it will feature a rock score by U2’s Bono and the Edge; and it will start previews January 16, 2010, at the Hilton Theatre. (Okay, we know a few more things, but we won’t bore you.) What is still under wraps (or layers of spiderwebbing, if you like) is the casting, which producers say they will announce soon. We hope this is our Spidey sense and not just wishful thinking: John Gallagher Jr. for Peter Parker. Three reasons after the jump. Read more »