TDF Stages Archive

Sometimes great minds think alike–and far too much for their own good. "We actually tried to do the T-Birds' first entrance with non-leather jackets," confesses Grease costume designer Martin Pakledinaz, of his and director Kathleen Marshall's approach in fashioning the hit Broadway revival. "We even tried to do 'Greased Lightning' without leather jackets." Say what? […]

It may sound like a rock musical with peace on its mind, but in fact Rock Doves , whose title is a common name for pigeons, is another lively, gritty play about life in Northern Ireland from Belfast's Marie Jones ( Stones in His Pockets , A Night in November ), which opens at Irish […]

Over the summer, many of us did some cross-country traveling. But how many of us, in the course of our travels, helped raise money toward reviving a historic American theatre building? The TDF Costume Collection spent its summer "vacation" doing both: traveling to clothe actors in farflung productions from California to North Carolina, Florida to […]

Broadway Those who look at Broadway and wonder where all the new American plays are need only glance a bit Off-Broadway to find a vibrant crop of fresh stage works. The coming season at major Off-Broadway theatres is especially ripe with world premieres by new and emerging playwrights. Two of the season's most promising offerings […]

George Lee Andrews has a well-worn evening routine. Pick up an iced chai from Starbucks; check. Sign in for work on a bulletin board ringed by Christmas lights; check. Greet every one of his colleagues; double-check. Then, at about 6:30 p.m., Andrews makes his way up three flights, through a narrow stairwell decorated with vacation […]

Broadway “Isn’t it a shame that all awards shows can’t be this warm?” said director Jack O’Brien ( The Coast of Utopia , Hairspray ) as he presented the Robert L.B. Tobin Award for Sustained Excellence in Theatrical Design to his colleague, British designer Bob Crowley ( Carousel , The History Boys ). The occasion […]

The imported epic Coram Boy may have closed precipitously on Broadway after just 30 performances, but its breakout star, Xanthe Elbrick, is having a very good year, thank you. Nominated for a Tony in May for the dual role of a pair of precocious, musically talented boys, the British-American actress was nominated for a Tony […]

To say that Kate Mulgrew is "in a good place" right now would be an understatement. Given that she's starring in Iphigenia 2.0 , Chuck Mee's free-wheeling modern take on Euripides, at the Signature Theatre, you might even call it a tragic understatement. "Going to the theatre right now is going on wings," effuses Mulgrew, […]

The Theatre Development Fund's TKTS booth is justly famous for its half-price offerings of Broadway and Off-Broadway shows. But what about Off-Off-Broadway? This thriving alternative realm of New York theatre already boasts pretty cheap seats, but now TDF is offering the ticket-buying public the option of even lower prices, and the chance to sample a […]