Sienna Miller backed out of play due to pay rate
Film actress Sienna Miller, who played Sally Bowles in the revival of “Cabaret” just a few months ago, backed out of plans to come back to Broadway in a two-character play because she “was offered less than half of what [her male co-star] was going to be paid,” Miller told Vogue. It is unclear what play or actor she was referring to.
‘Amazing Grace’ to close
The poorly-reviewed Broadway musical “Amazing Grace,” which dramatizes the life of 18th century merchant turned abolitionist John Newton and culminates in a choral rendition of the title hymn, will close on Oct. 25 after a less than amazing three-month run. “We are incredibly disappointed in the show’s performance at the box office,” producer Carolyn Rossi Copeland said in the statement. Plans are apparently underway for a national tour.
Lane going back to ‘Dinner’
Right before he rejuvenated his career with “The Producers,” Nathan Lane starred in a Roundabout Theatre Company revival of the 1930s Kaufman and Hart comedy “The Man Who Came to Dinner,” which got filmed for television. Roundabout announced this week that Lane will headline a one-night benefit reading of the play on Dec. 7 at Studio 54. Lane will be joined by other cast members from the 2000 production including Jean Smart, Harriet Harris and Julie Halston.
Gilbert & Sullivan Players facing criticism for ‘The Mikado’
The New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players, which presents classic Gilbert & Sullivan operettas each year with old-fashioned flair, is facing criticism this time around from certain bloggers for having Caucasian actors portray Japanese characters in a stereotypical manner in its staging of “The Mikado,” which will come back in December. The group told Playbill.com that the production has been reviewed “for offensive material and practice” and that “we are listening to the response we have received.”
McDonald to leave ‘Shuffle Along’ for three months
The upcoming Broadway revamp of the historic all-black musical “Shuffle Along” doesn’t start previews until March, but the producers have already revealed that Audra McDonald (who will star in it alongside Brian Stokes Mitchell and Billy Porter) will miss performances from June 21 through Sept. 25. Why she is taking the leave of absence is presently unknown.
Revised ‘Testament of Mary’ getting industry reading
“The Testament of Mary,” Colm Toibin’s stage adaptation of his controversial novella about the Virgin Mary, which flopped on Broadway two years ago, is being reconceived as a piece for five actresses (instead of a one-woman monologue). The new version will receive an industry presentation on Oct. 1 led by Adriane Lenox (“Doubt”) and Jill Paice (“An American in Paris”).
Rumer Willis pushes back ‘Chicago’ start date once again
“Dancing with the Stars” winner Rumer Willis (also known as the daughter of Bruce Willis) delayed her start date in the Broadway company of “Chicago” for a second time this week due to foot injuries. She is now expected to join the 19-year-old production on Monday as the merry murderess Roxie Hart.
Spotted …
Neil Patrick Harris, Andrew Rannells, Michael C. Hall, Darren Criss and John Cameron Mitchell at the final performance of “Hedwig and the Angry Inch”…Pharrell and Queen Latifah at “Hamilton”…Sally Field at “Something Rotten!”…Matthew Broderick at “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time”… Constantine Maroulis at “Spring Awakening.”
