

Mark Hidalgo, most recently seen in McLean Community Players’ La Cage aux Folles, RCP’s Legally Blonde, and Arlington Players’ 9 to 5, directs and choreographs. Webber’s score includes such poignant, bittersweet romantic songs as “With One Look” and “As If We Never Said Goodbye”.
Katie webber actress movie#
Winner of seven Tony Awards, Sunset Boulevard combines the classic movie feel with what TIME magazine calls “Lloyd Webber’s most artfully constructed score.” The hit musical has engulfed audiences around the world. It runs the gamut with themes! Katie McManus as Norma Desmond. The themes in this show will always be relevant: love (and unrequited love), fame (or lack thereof), greed, narcissism. How is Sunset Boulevard relevant to audiences today? I hope our audiences see (and hear) a very intriguing story with really beautiful melodies. I think the general masses still see musicals as hokey or corny, so I always hope that some will see much further than that. What do you hope audiences take away from this production? I think it appeals to a majority (and not just the regular/typical theatergoers). I think Sunset Boulevard is a very accessible show. What makes Sunset Boulevard special or unique? Well, the title song, “Sunset Boulevard” is fantastic. What number from Sunset Boulevard do you wish you were singing (and why)? It’s very difficult to pick just one, but I would have to say “As if We Never Said Goodbye.” I think Norma is at her most vulnerable here. What is your favorite number that you do in Sunset Boulevard (and why)? Like anyone, I think, she wants to feel her life has purpose. My challenge is to keep that complexity (and neuroses, as the case may be) and make her as “human” as I can. She’s complex she could come across as very unlikeable and unsympathetic. What is the most challenging thing about playing your character? She has beautiful songs to sing, and her story is neurotic, lovely, and heartbreaking. Katie: Playing Norma Desmond is certainly a dream role. McManus has been honored with numerous WATCH best actress nominations for such productions as A New Brain, 110 in the Shade (winner, 2009), Curtains (winner, 2010), and Side Show as well as a Helen Hayes award for best ensemble ( Rent, 2010).ĭiane: What is the most exciting thing about playing the iconic Norma Desmond? Inspired by Billy Wilder’s iconic 1950 film, Webber’s musical version, featuring book and lyrics by Don Black and Christopher Hampton, focuses on the fading career of legendary silent film star Norma Desmond, portrayed by critically acclaimed Washington actress Katie McManus, recently seen in Ford’s Theatre’s Violet, NextStop’s Into the Woods, and Creative Cauldron’s Jacques Brel Is Alive and Well and Living in Paris (2015 Helen Hayes nomination for best ensemble). Get Tina: The Tina Turner Musical tickets now.Norma Desmond, in the form of the multi-talented and versatile Katie McManus, is waiting for her close-up in Reston Community Players’ sumptuous rendition of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Sunset Boulevard, opening Feb. In addition to Turner's music, the show features a book by Katori Hall, direction by Phyllida Lloyd, and choreography by Anthony van Laast. The current cast of Tina: The Tina Turner Musical is led by Nkeki Obi-Melekwe as Tina (with Kayla Davion playing the part at some performances) alongside Nick Rashad Burroughs as Ike, Tony Award nominee Myra Lucretia Taylor as Gran Georgeanna, NaTasha Yvette Williams as Zelma, and Katie Webber as Rhonda.

The four-star Tina review on New York Theatre Guide reads, "The audience can be found dancing and swaying in the aisles during the now-inevitable curtain call encores." The Broadway production received 11 additional nominations at the 2020 Tonys, including Best Musical. Adrienne Warren originated the title role in both cities, earning an Olivier Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical in London and winning a Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical on Broadway. Tina: The Tina Turner Musical had its world premiere in London in 2018 before moving to New York in 2019. The "Queen of Rock and Roll's" greatest hit songs are all in Tina, including "Proud Mary," "What's Love Got to Do With It?", "(Simply) The Best," and more. The show follows Turner, born Anna Mae Bullock, from her beginnings as a Tennessee church singer to her big break with the Ike Turner Revue, and later through her reinvention as a solo artist after breaking away from Ike Turner and his abuse. Shake a tail feather to the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre before Tina: The Tina Turner Musical closes! The Broadway show about Tina Turner's life and music has set a closing date of August 14.
