I grew up watching the original Emmet Otter’s Jugband Christmas special on HBO as a child, and the idea of it as a stage musical makes me smile. …

Happy Thanksgiving to our readers in the USA!
Don’t forget to tune in to Thursday’s Thanksgiving Day parades to get your fill of Broadway performances on this holiday!
Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade will air on CBS, from 9AM until Noon (should be the same for all time zones, but check your local listings for any discrepancies).
The following shows and songs will be featured on the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade:

Bye Bye Birdie – “Put on a Happy Face”
Hair – “Aquarius”
Billy Elliot – “Shine”
Shrek – “I’m a Believer”

Other performers include:

The …

It’s a boy!
A better-late-than-never congratulations to Idina Menzel and Taye Diggs, who welcomed a baby boy on Wednesday, September 2. After he arrived, they promptly named him Walker Nathaniel Diggs.
This child is bound to have an amazing set of vocal pipes, considering both his parents have amazing voices. And he’s got good-looking genes on both sides! What a kid!
According to People.com, Diggs recently stated, “We have a couple [names] in the running. But part of us wants to see what he hits us with when we see him. We’ll see …

9 to 5, the musical based on the 1980 movie comedy that starred Dolly Parton, closed at the Marquis Theatre on September 6, after 24 previews and 148 performances.
The show, which starred Megan Hilty, Allison Janney, and Stephanie J. Block in the roles originally played in the film by Dolly Parton, Lily Tomlin, and Jane Fonda, followed the story of secretaries working in an oppressive office.
In case you missed it, you can still hear these lovely ladies singing the songs from the show on the 9 to 5 original Broadway …

Disney’s Broadway musical The Little Mermaid played its last performance at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on August 30.
Since it began previews November 3, 2007, and opened on January 10, 2008 at the Lunt-Fontanne, it played 50 previews and 685 regular performances.
You can still hear the cast as their voices were preserved on The Little Mermaid original Broadway cast recording.
Thomas Schumacher, producer and president of Disney Theatrical Productions, said this about the show’s close:
We are tremendously proud of the show and are confident we’ll have an excellent summer but it would be …

So, this news is a bit late, but it’s still interesting from a cultural perspective.
Producers of the revival of West Side Story decided to change the lyrics of two songs which were performed in Spanish.
According to a press statement,”‘A Boy Like That’ is now predominately sung in English to the original lyrics and selected dialogue and lyrics in ‘I Feel Pretty’ have reverted to English.” However, the Spanish lyrics in “Tonight,” sung by the Sharks, still remain.
Writer-director Arthur Laurents said this in a statement: “From the outset, the Spanish in …

Disney’s The Little Mermaid is closing on August 30, and, according to an official press statement, all tickets were sold out as of August 18.
The Little Mermaid, which began previews November 3, 2007, and opened on January 10, 2008, had a 20-month run, though it never quite achieved the popularity of its predecessors, Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King.
If you want to see the show before it closes on August 30, you have two options:

wait in line at the Lunt-Fontanne box office for cancellations
wait in line …

Say it with me… Mamma Mia!
Yesterday, August 19, the hit Broadway musical Mamma Mia! celebrated a milestone: it became the 13th longest-running show in Broadway history!
Congratulations, Mamma Mia!
Last night it played its 3,243rd performance, knocking Fiddler on the Roof out of the 13th spot.
The official website describes the musical:
Writer Catherine Johnson’s sunny, funny tale unfolds on a Greek island paradise. On the eve of her wedding, a daughter’s quest to discover the identity of her father brings 3 men from her mother’s past back to the island they …

Michelle Federer, who created the role of Nessarose in the original Broadway production of Wicked, returned to the Broadway role on August 18. She is succeeding Cristy Candler in the role.
Federer made her Broadway debut in Wicked.
The cast currently includes Dee Roscioli as Elphaba, Erin Mackey as Glinda, Tony Award winner Rondi Reed as Madame Morrible, P.J. Benjamin as The Wizard, Kevin Kern as Fiyero, Alex Brightman as Boq, and Timothy Britten Parker as Dr. Dillamond.
Press notes describe the musical:
Based on Gregory Maguire’s novel, which turned every Oz myth inside …

Talk-show host Jerry Springer joined the Broadway cast of Chicago on August 18, playing the role of lawyer Billy Flynn. Springer recently played a limited run in the London company, as well.
You don’t have to go to New York to see Springer in Chicago, either. He will also be performing the role in limited engagements elsewhere: Sept. 8-13 at Atlanta’s Fabulous Fox Theatre and Sept. 15-20 at Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center’s Academy of Music.
The rest of the cast currently includes Amra-Faye Wright as Velma Kelly, Bianca Marroquin as Roxie Hart, Raymond …