Welcome to The Scene, your bi-weekly round-up of theatre news you may have missed.
In this issue, we’ve got some Tips for Self-Care to make sure you’re making the most of your summer intermission. Also, in Shows You Should Know, we’re featuring Chelsea Marcantel’s Airness, a dramatic comedy set in the world of competitive air guitar. In the Spotlight, writer Joe Tracz, librettist of the musical The Lightning Thief, discusses Percy Jackson on stage and screen. Plus, of course, we have your informative round-up of recent theatre news, including coverage of the Jimmy Awards.
So, raise the curtain and shine the spotlight as we dive into another issue celebrating the wondrous world of theatre. This is The Scene.
The Sound of Music and A Few Good Men Are Coming to Broadway by Michael Paulson, The New York Times | Lincoln Center plans a revival of two more well-known titles this season. Read…
Lin-Manuel Miranda and Eisa Davis’ Warriors Musical Will Open on Broadway in 2027 by Andrew Gans, Playbill | The new musical, based on the hit film, will play the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre. Read…
What’s Behind Broadway’s New Music Drought? by Michael Paulson, The New York Times | Skittish investors have contributed to an unusually tough climate for song-and-dance shows. Read…
Every Night, Francis Jue Is Marrying Dozens of Real Life Couples Onstage at Romeo and Juliet by Margaret Hall, Playbill | The Tony winner became ordained so that he could marry couples this summer on the stage at the Delacorte Theater. Read…
Curious about the making of Hamilton? Check out this 16-minute mini-doc about the show’s birth as a mixtape:
Meet the 2026 Jimmy Awards Winners by Gabby Macogay, Playbill | It’s the happiest and most heartwarming time of the year. Read…
Manhattan Borough President Gives $50 Million to N.Y.C. Arts Groups by Zachary Small, The New York Times | Brad Hoylman-Sigal said he wanted to send a message to President Trump about the need to keep arts funding. Read…
Meet the Winners of Concord Theatricals’ ‘You’re in the Band’ School of Rock Licensing Contest by Logan Culwell-Block, Playbill | The initiative gives free licenses of the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical to 10 schools in underserved communities. Read…
Banned on Broadway, a new generation of music software is shrinking musical theatre orchestras by Elissa Blake, The Guardian | Musicians are losing jobs as KeyComp and other technologies replace human players in the pit. Read…
The solstice has come and gone, so summer is officially here! How are you faring this season? Some teachers are enjoying their much-needed down time, while others are madly dashing from one activity to another. Still others are balancing vacation time with summer employment. And somehow, they’re all wrapping up last year while pre-planning for the upcoming semester.
So, is summer a time to reflect, to relax, or to plan? As with most things in life, it’s a bit of all three. Here are some simple tips to make the most of your summer, ensuring that the season keeps you feeling organized, relaxed and prepared. As you make the most of summer, think of your goals in terms of past, present and future:
Clean up loose ends: Make sure you’ve put the previous season to bed. Clear those last few emails, close out those spreadsheets, and tuck away those files. If you’ve got costumes, props or set pieces haphazardly cluttering up your space, enlist the help of some students or friends and organize that work or storage area. You don’t want last year’s stresses to carry over into next year!
Reflect: Take some time to look back on the past year. Keep simple records of your program’s strengths and weaknesses. This doesn’t have to be anything fancy – It could take the form of a journal entry, a set of voice memos in a Notes app, a simple spreadsheet, or even a video to your future self. Be sure to commend yourself on your successes! You may need the reminder next year.
Enjoy some downtime! We all need moments to recharge and rebalance, and summer may be your best opportunity. Though you may be occupied with family, summer employment, or social obligations, be sure to set aside some time for you – take a day to go hiking or biking, sit in a quiet spot and read, enjoy a spa day, go to a movie, or just sit on your couch and enjoy some mindless TV. If you’re not replenished, you’ll be no good to your students.
Employ mindfulness strategies: In addition to engaging in fun activities, try some relaxation exercises. You can find a host of guided videos online to help you meditate, practice yoga, breathe mindfully or ground yourself.
Connect with your community: Theatre is a collaborative art, so while you’re enjoying that crucial downtime, be sure to mix in some quality time with colleagues and friends. You don’t have to do anything theatre-related; just socialize with some like-minded buddies who energize and support you.
Be a theatre fan, not just a creator: You’ve spent all year making theatre. Now go out and remind yourself why you fell in love with theatre in the first place. Check out a local community theatre production, visit your nearest regional professional theatre, or watch a Broadway pro shot online. Seeing others do the work you love will inspire you to continue creating vibrant, rewarding art.
Explore other forms of art: Chances are, you’re a fan of other art forms, so be sure to explore those as well. Take a drawing or painting class, join a dance club, enroll in a writing workshop. Honing those artistic skills will strengthen your effectiveness as a director.
Engage in professional development: Network with the greater theatre community by attending a theater conference, seminar or workshop. Some events have passed, but you can plan for next year! Check out Broadway Teachers Workshop, Broadway Weekends or the International Thespian Festival for ideas.
Read more plays! Those precious hours spent by the pool, beside a lake or in the shade of a tree are that much sweeter when you have a script in your hand. Sure, you can peruse titles that you may want to produce, but be sure to read plays and musicals that appeal to your tastes, even if they’re not right for your students.
Set goals for next year: Think about what you’d like to attain – personally and professionally – in the next theatre season. Start by mulling over ideas while you engage in your regular activities, then sit down and record them in writing. These objectives may include specific details about your program, your directing style or your fall production, or they may just be general concepts like “delegate more” or “take more breaks.”
Begin your prep: After all the relaxing and rejuvenating, you’ll need to get down to work. Gather your resources, organize your syllabus and begin to outline your next season. The sooner you get a head start on those upcoming shows, the more you’ll be able to enjoy the experience!
Don’t forget to dream: Think about the immense possibility of this upcoming year – the students who’ll be forever changed by their experience. The indelible memories you’ll make. The friendships you’ll forge together. Take pride in the work you’ve done – and the magic you will continue to create – as you engage young minds and welcome new hearts into the incomparable world of live theatre.
(Full-Length Play, Comedy / 2w, 4m, 1 any gender + ensemble)
A shred-or-be-shredded comedy about the spirit of competition and community found through air guitar! This High School Edition of the play has been adapted specifically for teen performers, with an expandable cast. The original version is also available for licensing.
When Nina enters her first air guitar competition, she thinks winning will be easy. As she befriends a group of charismatic nerds, all committed to becoming the next champion, she discovers that there’s more to this art form than playing pretend. From artistic merit to originality to feeling itself, Nina must learn the pillars of air guitar if she wants to compete. There are seven pillars of air guitar, after all, including the elusive state of “airness.” Will Nina be able to let go and set herself free onstage?
Heathers the Musical announces 2026 complete casting by Alex Wood, WhatsOnStage | Meet London’s Veronica! Read…
A First Look at Christine Baranski and Richard E Grant in West End Hay Fever by Alex Wood, WhatsOnStage | Baranski makes her West End debut in the new revival. Read…
Everybody’s Talking About Jamie announces leads for tour by Alex Wood, WhatsOnStage | Meet Jamie and Margaret New! Read…
Royal Court releases first look at Archduke by Alex Wood, WhatsOnStage | The play is inspired by the assassination of Franz Ferdinand. Read…
Joe Tracz is no stranger to adapting literature. On screen, he brought the words of Lemony Snicket to life as a writer on Netflix’s A Series of Unfortunate Events. On stage, he transformed two novels for Broadway, penning the book for musical adaptations of Ned Vizzini’s Be More Chill (US/UK) and Rick Riordan’s The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical (US/UK). But Tracz’s latest journey into the world of adaptation, writing for the Disney+ series Percy Jackson and the Olympians, offered a unique opportunity: adapting the same source material to two different mediums.
Here are some highlights from Breaking Character’s interview with Joe:
What is it about Percy’s adventure that makes it the right fit for the stage?
On the surface, The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical doesn’t seem an obvious candidate to turn into a musical. You don’t see a lot of YA fantasy on Broadway. And in the books, Percy is very much the kind of kid who would rather fight a monster than sing a song about it. But to me, musical theatre thrives on emotions so big, they can’t be expressed by words alone. And the characters in The Lightning Thief are young people coming of age while grappling with world-shaking, mythic forces – what could be bigger than that?
The Lightning Thief provides so many fun opportunities for theatres to be creative in crafting the magic and monsters of Greek mythology. What are some highlights you’ve witnessed?
While our original production had only seven actors, I love seeing schools perform the show with a huge cast, where every person on stage gets something to do. I read about one production that even cast someone to play the lightning bolt! The titular role! (And for any kid disappointed to be cast as a tree, well, Percy fans know that the tree is in fact a very significant part.) But really, the best thing about having the show out there is knowing how much these characters mean to people around the world. With every production, people are seeing their heroes come to life – or playing their heroes themselves.
You first adapted the novel for stage and then for TV. How do the two mediums differ?
While the musical covers the entire story in under two hours, the TV adaptation has eight episodes, which gives the series a lot more time to live in scenes and dig into characters. In the musical, Percy gets his quest at the end of act one – aka the halfway point. In the TV series, Percy gets his quest at the end of episode two… and there are six more episodes to go. In fact, both episodes I co-wrote are centered around stories that that the musical covers in a single road trip song!
For a deeper dive, check out From Page to Stage and Screen: Joe Tracz on Percy Jackson.
Plays, Musicals and Theater Festivals Worth Traveling to This Summer by Laura Collins-Hughes and Elisabeth Vincentelli, The New York Times | Audiences will find an abundance of Shakespeare, exciting new plays and musicals, and regional repertories in bucolic settings. Read…
Mystic Pizza: A New Musical Will Launch National Tour This Fall by Andrew Gans, Playbill | Jennifer Werner will direct and choreograph the musical based on the film of the same name. Read…
Full Cast Set For Rodgers & Hammerstein’s South Pacific at the Muny by Stephi Wild, BroadwayWorld | The cast will be led by Paulo Szot, Taylor Louderman and more. Read…
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