While you were belly laughing over at Billy Crystal’s “700 Sundays,” here’s what was happening this week In the Wings:
“Big Fish” gets the hook. The new Broadway musical, directed by Susan Stroman, will play its last performance at the Neil Simon Theatre on Sunday, Dec. 29. At that time it will have played 34 previews and 98 regular performances. The show stars two-time Tony winner Norbert Leo Butz in the role made famous by Albert Finney in the 2003 film. [More Info]
“Newsies” will carry the banner across North America next fall. Disney’s surprise hit musical will head out on a 43-week, 25-city tour starting in October 2014. Cities on the press line include Philadelphia, Chicago, Los Angeles, Houston, San Francisco and Toronto. No word yet on whether they’ll make a stop, as their opening number suggests, in “Santa Fe.” [More Info]
“The Lion King” celebrated its Sweet 16. “Newsies” isn’t the only Disney production with something to celebrate. “The Lion King” had its 16th anniversary on Wednesday, Nov. 13. The landmark musical continues to break records. Last month, it became the first show to reach $1 billion in cumulative grosses. Next month, “The Lion King” will surpass “Les Misérables” as Broadway’s fourth-longest-running show. [More Info]
Andy Mientus and Charlotte Maltby are your new Marius and Cosette. Speaking of “Les Misérables,” the Broadway-revival of the hit musical has cast their two young lovers. Mientus (“Smash”) and University of Michigan-student Maltby will both be making their Broadway debuts. “Les Misérables” begins performances at the Imperial Theatre on March 1, 2014. [More Info]
Alanis Morissette is working on a “Jagged Little Pill” musical. The Canadian songstress is penning a musical version of her Grammy-winning 1995 LP. Tom Kitt, who won a Tony and a Pulitzer for his work on “Next to Normal,” will serve as orchestrator and arranger on the project, which is expected to debut as a workshop production next year. “Jagged Little Pill” is still the highest-selling album of the ’90s. [More Info]
