Stars Flock to ‘Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends’ for Bernadette Peters
Even a torrential downpour couldn’t dampen the spirit of Stephen Sondheim that flowed through Center Theatre Group on Thursday night.
CTG’s Ahmanson Theatre hosted the opening night performance of Cameron Mackintosh’s production of Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends, starring Broadway greats Bernadette Peters and Lea Salonga and a cast of stage veterans. Billed as a “great big Broadway show,” Old Friends landed in Los Angeles for a North American premiere after a run in London’s West End. It will be staged at the Ahmanson through March 9 before it sets off for the Great White Way with a Broadway run opening April 8 at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre at 261 West 47th Street. Previews begin March 25.
The stars came out despite the rain, and The Hollywood Reporter spotted a number of industry insiders including Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Ashley Park, Andrew Rannells, Ian Paget, producers Lauren Shuler Donner and Dan Jinks, Peter Paige, Charles Shaughnessy, Kate Linder, Gregg Daniel, Eric Petersen, Vincent Rodriguez, Tom Irwin and more making the rounds.
Old Friends, which sparked from a lifetime of friendship and collaborations between Sondheim and Mackintosh, started to take shape during the pandemic, and they had their sights set on mounting the production as the third revue of Sondheim’s work following Putting it Together and Side by Side. However, Sondheim passed away in November 2021. The creative team soldiered on his absence and the roster includes directors Matthew Bourne and Julia McKenzie, choreographer Stephen Mear, musical supervision by Alfonso Casado Trigo and Stephen Brooker, musical arrangements by Stephen Metcalfe, and conducted by Annbritt duChateau.
The cast of Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends also includes Jacob Dickey, Kevin Earley, Jasmine Forsberg, Kate Jennings Grant, Bonnie Langford, Beth Leavel, Gavin Lee, Jason Pennycooke, Joanna Riding, Jeremy Secomb, Kyle Selig, Maria Wirries, Daniel Yearwood, Paige Faure, Alexa Lopez, Greg Mills and Peter Neureuther.
While it’s safe to say that all the numbers landed well with the capacity crowd, some of the songs that drew the most rousing ovations included “The Little Things You Do Together” by Leavel and Lee, “Send in the Clowns” by Peters, the “Sweeney Todd” section featuring Secomb and Salonga, “The Ladies Who Lunch” by Leavel, “Somewhere” by Salonga, “Broadway Baby” featuring Peters, Pennycooke and company, “Everybody Ought to Have a Maid” with Lee, Pennycooke and Selig, “Not a Day Goes By,” “Being Alive” by Dickey, “Old Friends” with Peters, Salonga and company and the finale of “Side by Side.”
See pics from inside the opening night celebration below.
Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Ashley Park.
(Photo by Ryan Miller/Capture Imaging)
Andrew Rannells.
(Photo by Ryan Miller/Capture Imaging)
Alec Mapa.
(Photo by Ryan Miller/Capture Imaging)
NCIS: Los Angeles star Barrett Foa.
(Photo by Ryan Miller/Capture Imaging)
The company of Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends (left to right): Associate director Nikki Woollaston, performers Kate Jennings Grant, Paige Fauer, Maria Wirries, Lea Salonga, Joanna Riding, Bonnie Langford, Beth Leavel, Alexa Lopez, Jasmine Forsberg and associate choreographer Jo Morris.
(Photo by Ryan Miller/Capture Imaging)
The company of Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends (left to right): Producer and deviser Cameron Mackintosh, direction and musical staging boss Matthew Bourne, actor Greg Mills, cast members Daniel Yearwood, Kyle Selig, Jacob Dickey, Jason Pennycooke, Peter Neureuther, Kevin Earley, Jeremy Secomb, choreographer Stephen Mear, and cast member Gavin Lee.
(Photo by Ryan Miller/Capture Imaging)
Center Theatre Group managing director and CEO Meghan Pressman and Center Theatre Group artistic director Snehal Desai speak during the opening night celebration.
(Photo by Reza Allah-Bakhshi/Capture Imaging)
Choreographer Stephen Mear, producer and deviser Cameron Mackintosh, and direction and musical staging boss Matthew Bourne.
(Photo by Ryan Miller/Capture Imaging)
Jeremy Secomb and Lea Salonga perform on stage during Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends.
Credit: Matthew Murphy/Courtesy of Center Theatre Group
Kyle Selig, Daniel Yearwood and Jacob Dickey perform.
Credit: Matthew Murphy/Courtesy of Center Theatre Group
Jacob Dickey and Bernadette Peters perform in Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends.
Credit: Matthew Murphy/Courtesy of Center Theatre Group
Source link
