Interview: Director Devon Hayakawa On the Chicago Area Premiere of MEAN GIRLS at Paramount Theatre

BroadwayWorld: Paramount Theatre presents the Chicago area premiere of MEAN GIRLS, the hit musical based on the beloved film, in a fresh, Gen-Z take set in 2026. Directed by Devon Hayakawa, the production leans into everything that makes the show fierce, campy, bright, satirical, and surprisingly honest, while introducing a newly revised version of the script to Chicagoland audiences.

A History of Broadway Grosses

BroadwayWorld: Broadway grosses are a significant part of how both professionals and the public learn about Broadway on a regular basis. Each week, the Broadway League reports official statistics including how much money each show earned in gross ticket sales, how many theatergoers attended, and how this compares with the previous week.

Survey Says: ‘John Proctor’ Is the Most-Staged Play in the U.S.

The New York Times: “John Proctor Is the Villain,” a kinetic teen drama about a group of high school girls who are enraged and energized by the echoes of their own lives that they find in a classic play, will be the most-produced show in the country this season.

THE SHINDIG: HARD HATS AND HIGH SPIRITS to Benefit FST Expansion

BroadwayWorld: Florida Studio Theatre has announced new details for its annual fundraising celebration, The Shindig: Hard Hats and High Spirits, taking place March 8, 2027, in FST’s Hegner Theatre Wing. This year’s construction-inspired celebration honors the continued growth of the McGillicuddy Arts Plaza: the largest expansion in FST’s history and an ambitious investment in the future of theatre in downtown Sarasota.

People to Watch: Mfoniso Udofia

AMERICAN THEATRE: A writer for screen and stage, Mfoniso Udofia has made waves with her nine-play Ufot Family Cycle, which will wrap up its two-and-a-half-year Boston-area reign at the Huntington this fall. Udofia is also readying the world premiere of creation stories and all the important importants at Lincoln Center Theater, Sept. 15-Nov. 1.

Get the hex code of any color on your Mac screen with Digital Color Meter

boingboing.net: I recently learned that Macs have a neat little utility to get the color number of any color on the display. It's called Digital Color Meter. When you open it, a window pops up showing the color value at your cursor's location.

Theatrely31: Class of 2026

www.theatrely.com: What does the theatrical landscape of tomorrow look like? The Theatrely31 is our annual compilation of visionary actors, directors, and theatre makers poised for a meteoric rise. These trailblazers and emerging stars are carving unique paths within our industry, and we eagerly anticipate the exciting destinations they will take us to next.

How President Trump Broke the Kennedy Center

The New York Times: A storm brought down a five-foot piece of ceiling plaster at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts this month and its leadership sprang into action. One thing they did not do was repair the damage.

Backyard Theatre Festival launches new outdoor stage in Montreal

Intermission Magazine: The intercultural theatre company launched its new open-air stage at Cité-des-Hospitalières earlier this month. The former seat of the Religious Hospitallers of Saint Joseph, Cité-des-Hospitalières sits on Avenue des Pins at the northeastern foot of the iconic Mount Royal hill. The City of Montreal purchased the heritage complex in 2017 and converted it into a community space that currently hosts 33 non-profit organizations, including Teesri Duniya Theatre.

Disney Hires First-Ever Chief Technology Officer

www.hollywoodreporter.com: Disney has hired Karandeep Anand as its first chief technology officer, in time for an unfolding generative AI tools era. While also serving as senior executive vp, Anand comes to Disney after being CEO of Character.AI and also being a former Meta and Microsoft exec. Anand will report directly to Disney CEO Josh D’Amaro.

National Center For Choreography-Akron Awarded $500k Grant In Honor Of Christy Bolingbroke’s Leadership

BroadwayWorld: The National Center for Choreography-Akron (NCCAkron) has received a $500,000 grant from the Mellon Foundation in honor of Executive/Artistic Director Christy Bolingbroke's decade of visionary leadership. NCCAkron is currently celebrating its 10th anniversary as a connector, an incubator and research lab for artists, and a hyperagent for the national dance field.

Q&A: Rebecca Gerhard And The Doja Cat Ma Vie Tour

Live Design Online: Freelance video engineer, operator, and lighting technician Rebecca Gerhard was instrumental in bringing Doja Cat’s Ma Vie world tour visuals to life on stage. Traveling to 30 shows across five continents, Rebecca did everything from physically building the tour infrastructure on a Disguise system for visual consistency, through to using a Sockpuppet workflow to busk the whole operation live, night after night.

Interview: Madison Palmer On Originating Dyanne in MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET at Paramount Theatre's Stolp Island Theatre

BroadwayWorld: Paramount Theatre's production of MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET, staged in the new Stolp Island Theatre designed to immerse audiences in the world of Sun Studio, continues its long run. Based on the real events of December 4, 1956, when Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Carl Perkins had a chance encounter at Sun Studio in Memphis, the show captures one of the greatest impromptu jam sessions in music history, featuring 'Blue Suede Shoes,' 'Walk the Line,' 'Great Balls of Fire,' and more.

Feature: GRAND OPENING OF 'THE POSEY' During Stage 13 One Year Anniversary

BroadwayWorld: Just one year after Stage 13 Foundation for the Performing Arts began its mission of creating opportunities for young artists in Arkansas, the organization celebrated its first anniversary with another major milestone—the debut of its new performance space, the Stage 13 Sheridan Posey Performance Center, affectionately known as The Posey.

Who Is the New Director of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History?

Pittsburgh Magazine: A new leader will take the helm at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History. Carnegie Museums announced that Carey Scheide Miller has been appointed as the new director and vice president of the museum. Since 2023, she has served as the vice president and chief development officer for Carnegie Museums, leading outreach and philanthropic support for the four institutions under its umbrella.

Immersive Arts offers £8.5m to artists in new funding round

AV Magazine: The Immersive Arts programme has secured more than £8.5m to continue supporting UK artists working with immersive technologies until 2030. Since launching in 2024 with a £6m investment, the UK-wide Immersive Arts programme has awarded more than £3.2m in grants to 225 creative teams.

Costumes Ground A Multiverse in ‘Stuart Fails To Save The Universe’

www.forbes.com: For the many die hard fans of The Big Bang Theory, the continuation of the beloved sitcom through spin-offs has been a very real treat, but the latest series on HBO Max, Stuart Fails To Save The Universe, is by far the best and most hilarious offshoot from the original.

Crisis at the Kennedy Center: Why Its Main Building Is Going Dark for Two Years

time.com: The Kennedy Center Board of Trustees on Tuesday voted to immediately close the lauded arts institution’s main building. President Donald Trump, who is its Chairman, announced the decision on Truth Social. Hours before the vote, a district court ruled against the Board’s latest effort to add Trump’s name back to the building—this time, in recognition of his purported role in the planned renovations. The closure decision also came one day after leadership claimed that the cultural center was on the brink of bankruptcy.

SCHMIGADOON!’s Kaleigh Cronin Recalls Performing Until She Was 8 Months Pregnant: ‘I Felt Brave’

BroadwayWorld: At around 34 weeks pregnant, Kaleigh Cronin said farewell to her fellow Schmigadoonians in the Broadway musical Schmigadoon! — but felt so good, she could’ve stuck around for more. “Honestly, up until the day I went into labor, I was like, ‘I could still be doing this,’” Cronin, now mom to six-week-old Charlie Joseph De Simini — whom she shares with husband John De Simini — exclusively tells BroadwayWorld.

IBC 2026 Preview: The big picture, from proving flexibility to proving its worth

NCS | NewscastStudio: A framing conversation runs underneath every other topic at IBC 2026, running Sept. 11-14 in Amsterdam: how production, distribution, audience engagement and monetization continue to converge across the media industry, and what that convergence is actually worth to the organizations paying for it.

Judge orders Kennedy Center to provide 30 days' notice before making any major physical changes

PBS News: A federal judge on Thursday ordered the Kennedy Center to provide 30 days' notice before making any major physical changes to the building, including demolishing it as President Donald Trump has threatened.

‘Broadway Flea Market and Grand Auction’ sets fall 2026 return

www.broadwaynews.com: Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS has announced the return of its annual “Broadway Flea Market and Grand Auction” to the Theater District. The 40th annual edition of the fundraiser will see West 44th and 45th Streets, Shubert Alley and part of Times Square transformed into an open-air market between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. on Sept. 27. The online silent auction is now live, with more lots to be added.

Preview: Premiere ‘Refugee Rhapsody’ Rolls In for PICT’s 30th Season

onStage Pittsburgh: What started as Pittsburgh Irish & Classic Theatre under Andrew Paul has been rocked by ousters at the top, the sudden death of Board Chair Eileen Clancy in October 2023, and the same financial woes that plague most American theater companies, large and small. Huffman, who took over as Artistic Director of what is now Pittsburgh International Classic Theatre in February 2023, has put her stamp on the company, with the emphasis on “international.”

Meyer Sound TIGRA Makes Canadian Debut At TCU Place

ProSoundWeb: TCU Place, a convention center and performing arts complex in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, is home to the first permanent deployment of Meyer Sound TIGRA line arrays in Canada, provided by Canadian distributor GerrAudio and installed by integrator Sapphire.

NFTRW Weekly Top Five

Here are the top five comment generating posts of the past week:

What You Can Do With a Theatre Degree Beyond Theatre

Playbill: You've all seen the semi-frequent discourse online—from disapproving elders who insist students study "practical" college degrees, to commenters wondering who can afford to study the arts, in this economy. Sadly, many people feel that a theatre degree, should you not end up working in the theatre, is obsolete.

Man Sentenced to 2-Year Jail Sentence After Strangling Fellow Theatregoer for Singing Along During We Will Rock You

Playbill: Seventy-five year-old Malcolm Potier was sentenced to jail time for strangling a fellow theatregoer at a 2023 performance of Queen jukebox musical We Will Rock You in London's West End. According to MyLondon, the sentence was handed down by Southwark Crown Court Judge Dafna Spiro September 10.

Alison Pill: Hollywood Parents Don't Let Their Kids Be Child Stars

The Ankler: “It is brutal for self-esteem. I only understood how brutal later in life.” That’s how Alison Pill describes her experience being a child star — words that echo a comment the late Hayden Panettiere made about her own time as a kid in the industry. “It’s the most brutal experience,” Panettiere, who died in August at 36, said during an interview earlier this year.

18 Years Later, 'Avengers: Doomsday' Is Bringing Back An Unusual Marvel Technique — But Could It Work Again?

www.inverse.com: There’s a lot that separates Marvel movies from “normal” movies. The biggest thing is, of course, the franchise itself, as each movie is the next chapter in an ever-growing saga. But Marvel Studios films also popularized the post-credits scene teaser, as well as surprise cameos that lead into other movies or shows. But one other surprising filmmaking technique has been part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe fabric from the beginning.

How Hollywood Shapes Our Understanding of Health

www.hollywoodreporter.com: Film and TV have always shaped how audiences see the world. Movies and shows have transformed how people think about mental health, addiction, sexuality, and countless other topics once considered too private for the big screen. But when it comes to one of the most common parts of our daily lives—living with illness—many of today’s most prevalent chronic diseases are still largely missing from popular entertainment.

 

Interview: Director Tony Isbell On AN ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE at Playhouse on the Square

BroadwayWorld: Playhouse on the Square, in partnership with Circuit Playhouse, Inc., presents AN ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE, Henrik Ibsen's powerful drama in a new adaptation by Amy Herzog, running September 11 through October 4, 2026 at The Circuit Playhouse in Memphis. When Dr. Thomas Stockmann discovers that his town's spa is contaminated with dangerous bacteria, he expects praise from the public.

Why are the Trainspotting team clapping back at the critics?

www.whatsonstage.com: The tour’s demise was marked down to unhealthy ticket sales and a turbulent economic climate: Trainspotting cast members and creatives admitted that if this, of all shows, can’t sell in Edinburgh then really there’s not much to gain in trying. But the period also marked a very pronounced window of hostility between creatives and critics – unlike any this editor has really seen before.

How One Event Turned Pre-Show Survey Feedback into Action

www.eventmarketer.com: For its 2026 Spring Summit, Builder Innovator pivoted from its traditional survey strategy to using AI-powered surveys and conversational AI agents, powered by Marcus AI. For a hosted-buyer construction event, zeroing in on the right connections is critical, and the new survey tools are instrumental in delivering a deeply personalized experience and upgrading the event design overall.

Los Angeles Opera Issues Statement Regarding Center Square Foundation Findings

OperaWire: In light of reports indicating that the Los Angeles Opera is under investigation for its tax returns, the company has a released a statement. The company states that, “The LA Opera is committed to transparency and responsible stewardship of public and private resources.

The Dallas Opera Names New Senior Artistic Advisor

OperaWire: The Dallas Opera has appointed Matthew A. Epstein as the company’s new Senior Artistic Advisor. Epstein, who will now consult on creative, artist, and repertoire programming, takes over the role previously occupied by David Lomelí, who was recently named the company’s Kern Wildenthal General Director and CEO.

Katie Brook Takes the Helm as Quantum Theatre's New Director

OnStagePittsburgh: No stranger to Pittsburgh or Quantum, Brook earned her MFA in Directing from Carnegie Mellon University’s School of Drama in 2012 and, while living in Pittsburgh during the pandemic, directed Quantum’s The Cherry Orchard in 2022, when Boos led the cast as Madame Ranevskaya. Brook will direct the world premiere of radio island, written by Liza Birkenmeier (MFA Dramatic Writing, CMU School of Drama), for Quantum, opening October 23, 2026.

Wembley Stadium Sets Attendance Record During Biggest Concert Season

TicketNews: Wembley Stadium has completed the largest summer concert season in its history after welcoming more than 2.5 million music fans to 34 shows between June and September. The 90,000-capacity London stadium increased its concert schedule by about 30% compared with 2025, when it presented 26 shows. This year’s program established a venue record for the number of concerts held during a single calendar year.

Fencing goes up around the main Kennedy Center building after Trump-aligned board votes to close it

PBS News: Fencing went up Wednesday around the main Kennedy Center building, a day after the Trump-aligned board voted to close most of the performing arts center for repairs. A Democratic congresswoman who is a trustee quickly sought an emergency court hearing to prevent what she called the "unlawful closing."

Minnesota manufacturer takes fixtures out of robotic welding

www.thefabricator.com: Door Engineering, a manufacturer of custom-engineered doors for commercial, industrial, and aviation, has a technologically diverse welding department. Visit the plant floor in Mankato, Minn., and you’ll see some manual, out-of-position gas metal arc welding, with skilled welders completing challenging joints on complicated workpieces. You’ll see operators training and managing cobot welding cells. They place a piece in the cell, adapt an existing program via a tablet interface, then initiate the weld.

Layered Reality entered liquidation with £20m in debt

AV Magazine: The immersive experience company behind the Elvis Evolution and Jeff Wayne’s War of the World’s shows went into liquidation with £20m of debts, according to documents filed at Companies House last month.

Sam Pinkleton to Direct ‘Annie’ Broadway Revival for Musical’s 50th Anniversary

TicketNews: The revival will mark the musical’s first Broadway production since the 2012 revival and will arrive 50 years after “Annie” made its Broadway debut in 1977. A theater, exact performance dates, casting and ticket-sale information have not yet been announced.

What Burning Man’s Gen Z problem says about the festival

Salon.com: The first time Samantha R. went to Burning Man, it was on a whim. She hadn’t read much about it and had no idea what to expect. She received a free ticket from someone she met at a Grateful Dead event and had little time to prepare. She didn’t bring goggles or even a big coat to survive the cold, dusty nights. Despite the spontaneity and haphazardness of it all, which contributed to a rough burn, the 22-year-old returned on two more occasions — including this year.

Interview: Director James Warwick On THE NORWEGIANS at Shakespeare & Company

BroadwayWorld: Shakespeare & Company is presenting THE NORWEGIANS, C. Denby Swanson's sharp and surprising dark comedy, directed by James Warwick. Set in a Minnesota bar where heartbreak is served alongside beer, the play follows Betty and Olive, two women reeling from romantic betrayal who hatch an unlikely plan: hiring a pair of Norwegian hitmen to deal with the men who wronged them.

Theater in Socialist Mayor Mamdani’s New York

New York Theater: The mayor once took an improv class at Magnet Theater and assisted his filmmaker mother Mira Nair at staged readings when she was developing her movie “Monsoon Wedding” into a musical, but he is of course known far more for his socialist, pro-labor politics than his interest in theater. There are several moves he has made that merge the two. These are primarily rhetorical, but also involve mass ticket giveaways, a couple of crucial appointments, and most concretely an innovative arts-friendly budget.

How Fusion is Expanding What Product Teams Can Accomplish

Fusion Blog: Many manufacturers have already moved beyond experimentation and have started adopting AI and automation tools in their daily workflows. But even as interest turns into adoption, many teams are still asking practical questions: How do we increase output without adding risk? How do we help experienced people move faster without replacing the judgment they bring? And how do we connect work across engineering and manufacturing without disrupting the tools teams already rely on?

The Martha Graham Dance Company Has Moved to New Space in Times Square

Playbill: The Martha Graham Dance Center has officially relocated to its new, expanded home in Times Square at 1501 Broadway. A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held September 14, attended by members of the Martha Graham Center’s staff and board, dancers, and community partners, as well as New York State Senators Erik Bottcher and Liz Krueger and New York City Council Member Carl Michael Wilson.

Designers for The Lost Boys, Mexodus, More to Receive Henry Hewes Design Awards

Playbill: The Henry Hewes Design Awards Committee has announced the honorees of the 2026 Henry Hewes Design Awards, which recognize work on Broadway and Off-Broadway. The 62nd annual ceremony will be held October 19 in New York.

KV2 Audio improves intelligibility at University of Bradford

AV Magazine: An KV2 Audio sound system brought a new level of clarity to this summer’s graduation ceremonies at the University of Bradford’s Great Hall. The 900-capacity venue is also used for lectures and events by external organisations, but the previous system was failing to deliver intelligibility and even coverage from the front of the stage to the balcony.

Fifth Avenue Snowflake Lighting Returns This November

www.timeout.com/newyork: New York’s holiday lights are getting an early start this year. Weeks before the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree flips the switch, a 3,300-pound crystal snowflake will illuminate one of Manhattan’s busiest intersections—and anyone can watch it happen for free.

Asolo Repertory Theatre Awarded $85,000 Strategic Partnership Grant

BroadwayWorld: Asolo Repertory Theatre has received an $85,000 Strategic Partnership grant from the Community Foundation of Sarasota County to support its 2026–2027 season. Funding for this grant was made possible by the Community Foundation's Allen Wirtz Nobbe and Jo Bowen Nobbe Fund, Zella I. and Junius F. Allen Fund, and Two-Generation Approach Fund.

Alison Pill: Hollywood Parents Don't Let Their Kids Be Child Stars

The Ankler: “It is brutal for self-esteem. I only understood how brutal later in life.” That’s how Alison Pill describes her experience being a child star — words that echo a comment the late Hayden Panettiere made about her own time as a kid in the industry. “It’s the most brutal experience,” Panettiere, who died in August at 36, said during an interview earlier this year.

For the love of the game

Chicago Reader: How do art exhibitions get made? For major institutions like the Art Institute of Chicago, entire teams of people can spend months or years putting a show together. From the ideation phase to the time an exhibition opens, the work must be transported and installed, programming has to be planned, materials have to be written, a marketing strategy has to be laid out, among the many tasks that typically go on behind the scenes. For exhibitions that happen at smaller venues, all this work still needs to happen, often with little to no resources behind them.

Songwriter Urges Supreme Court to Let Landmark Copyright Ruling Stand

www.billboard.com: The songwriter who won a landmark ruling on copyright termination is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to reject efforts by major music companies to overturn it, telling the justices there is no “emergency” and that publishers are “doing just fine.”

New Alice in Wonderland Cabaret Premieres at Hollywood Roosevelt

www.timeout.com/los-angeles: Los Angeles has no shortage of places where you can drink cocktails while wondering if you’ve wandered into another dimension. Now there’s an Alice in Wonderland-themed cabaret hiding behind a bookcase at one of Hollywood’s most iconic hotels.

Colbert Reveals Surprising ‘Dream Job’ After Late-Night Exit

www.thedailybeast.com: Stephen Colbert is branching out into a brand new industry. In addition to writing the new Lord of the Rings movie and winning Emmys left and right, the former host of The Late Show, 62, is working to expand a scriptwriting software company he developed called Scripto.

GLP UK Celebrates 10th Anniversary with New Debuts and JDC2 IP Workshops at PLASA 2026

LightSoundJournal.com: Marking 10 years of GLP UK, the stand brings together the UK team, international GLP colleagues, and some of the latest additions to the GLP range, including the impression FR2, WildBar 8, and TWYN. Alongside them is the JDC2 IP, supported by a separate program of dedicated hands-on workshops running away from the bustle of the show floor.

Transverse Flux Motors: A Compact and Efficient Electric Motor Option

Power & Motion Tech: Electric motors are used in a wide range of applications today to drive hydraulic and pneumatic pumps, electric actuators and more. These motors are typically categorized as radial flux, axial flux and transverse flux, the latter of which is gaining in use due to companies like ETM — the electric motor division of Graco Inc. — advancing the technology in recent years.

What You Can Do With a Theatre Degree Beyond Theatre

Playbill: You've all seen the semi-frequent discourse online—from disapproving elders who insist students study "practical" college degrees, to commenters wondering who can afford to study the arts, in this economy. Sadly, many people feel that a theatre degree, should you not end up working in the theatre, is obsolete.

Outlining Your Terms: A Look At Standard Contract Negotiations & Terms For Freelance Audio Engineers

ProSoundWeb: My work is mostly in corporate events with some broadcast and local music so my terms and experience will be centered on those. Some industries like touring music and theater work could have different norms and require a different approach when discussing rates and negotiations.

How Hollywood Shapes Our Understanding of Health

www.hollywoodreporter.com: Film and TV have always shaped how audiences see the world. Movies and shows have transformed how people think about mental health, addiction, sexuality, and countless other topics once considered too private for the big screen. But when it comes to one of the most common parts of our daily lives—living with illness—many of today’s most prevalent chronic diseases are still largely missing from popular entertainment.

18 Years Later, 'Avengers: Doomsday' Is Bringing Back An Unusual Marvel Technique — But Could It Work Again?

www.inverse.com: There’s a lot that separates Marvel movies from “normal” movies. The biggest thing is, of course, the franchise itself, as each movie is the next chapter in an ever-growing saga. But Marvel Studios films also popularized the post-credits scene teaser, as well as surprise cameos that lead into other movies or shows. But one other surprising filmmaking technique has been part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe fabric from the beginning.

Seeding the Chicago theater field with new productions and companies

Chicago Reader: In July, Oskar Eustis, the celebrated longtime artistic director of New York’s Public Theater (the venue where both A Chorus Line and Hamilton were birthed), announced he would be leaving his position in two years. In an interview with Michael Paulson of the New York Times, Eustis, while declaring the state of the Public itself “strong,” also said, “I think the American nonprofit theater movement is over. That doesn’t mean any individual theater is over. But every individual theater is having to make its own case and come up with its own business model. We’ve lost a lot of theaters, and we’re going to lose more.”

Equity Jeff Awards 2026 winners: full list

WBEZ Chicago: Writers Theatre’s epic family drama Leopoldstadt took home the most prizes at Monday’s 58th annual Equity Jeff Awards. The Glencoe theater won five awards, all for its Midwest premiere of the Tom Stoppard epic family drama.

Kennedy Center board votes to close over Trump naming dispute and financial trouble

PBS News: The Trump-aligned Kennedy Center board voted on Tuesday to close most of the iconic performing arts venue just hours after a federal judge blocked the institution from returning President Donald Trump's name to the building.