London (and NYC) Calling: Spring Theater Flings

Need a musical reason to spring for a spring trip to London? Up for a megadose of Shakespeare? Looking for help picking a Broadway show teenagers might enjoy? Sharon Isch, our resident theater maven, has a few tips on spring shows.

In London:

* The creators of "Les Miz" have tapped yet another French classic for "Marguerite," a musical about the mistress of a high-ranking Nazi and her dangerous secret romance with a much younger man. It's based on "La Dame aux Camilias," the same Dumas novel that inspired Garbo's "Camille," Verdi's "La Traviata" and Luhrmann's "Moulin Rouge." We've heard good things about the score by triple Oscar winner Michel Le Grand. Opens May 20 with previews from May 7. Info at www.Marguerite-themusical.com.

* The "Miz" director-designer team of Trevor Nunn and John Napier, meanwhile, are taking on "Gone With the Wind: The Musical," written by first-time writer-composer-lyricist Margaret Martin, an American. Opens April 22 with previews from April 4. Info at www.gwtwthemusical.com.

* If you want to brush up on the Bard in a big way, it's hard to beat the Royal Shakespeare Company's upcoming offering of all eight history plays performed by the same ensemble, in London April 1-May 23. Info at www.rsc.org.uk/home/default.aspx. Also keep in mind, Shakespeare's Globe and its six-play season, running April 23-Oct. 5. Info at www.shakespeares-globe.org.

For more London theater ideas, review roundups and discount offers, try the Web sites www.theatremonkey.com and www.whatsonstage.com. For what's selling at London's TKTS booth, go to www.officiallondontheatre.co.uk.

Meanwhile, on this side of the Pond:

* New York's Theater Development Fund has just launched a blog featuring reviews of Broadway and Off-Broadway plays written by 8th to 12th graders. As you might expect from the people who run the TKTS booths, there's also plenty of info there on reduced-price offers for students. Check it out at www.tdf.org/playbyplayonline/plog.

By K.C. Summers |  March 12, 2008; 12:02 PM ET  | Category:  Europe , Theater
Previous: Insta-Q&A: Taking Credit for Italy | Next: Southwest Airlines: The Plot Thickens

View or post comments

The comments to this entry are closed.