Week in Review 11.4.16

Hamilton Mixtape Details Announced, Available for Pre-Order
The highly-anticipated Hamilton Mixtape, which features covers and remixes of Hamilton songs, demos and cut songs, and original pieces inspired by the Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winning show, will be released December 2, and is now available for pre-order. You can view the full track and performer list on Broadway.com (and on Amazon, where you can place your order). Highlights include the cut song, "Congratulations," John Legend singing "History Has Its Eyes On You," Regina Spektor and Ben Folds's take on "Dear Theodosia," Lin-Manual Miranda's demo of the slavery rap battle, and Busta Rhymes and friends on a "My Shot" remix.

American Songbook
The Lincoln Center American Songbook season has been announced. Featured artists include two-time Tony Award winner Sutton Foster (Anything Goes), Tony nominee Santino Fontana (Cinderella, Act One), recording artist India.Arie, and more. Concerts begin in February 2017, and tickets go sale November 14. Visit americansongbook.org to learn more.

Casting News
  • Corey Hawkins (Romeo and Juliet, Straight Outta Compton) is joining Allison Janney and John Benjamin Hickey in this spring's revival of Six Degrees of Separation. Previews at the Barrymore Theatre begin April 5, 2017, with opening night set for April 25. The limited engagement is scheduled to conclude July 16. Broadway.com has more.

  • Stage and screen veteran Denis O'Hare will be featured in multiple episodes of the NBC drama, This Is Us. Visit Entertainment Weekly for more. Variety reports the another stage and screen veteran, Jimmi Simpson (The Farnsworth Invention, House of Cards), will also appear on the show.

  • Javier Munoz, who plays the title role in Hamilton (and is amazing) will appear in an upcoming episode of Quantico, playing husband to fellow theatre vet, Nick Westrate (Casa Valentina). Playbill has more.

  • Holiday Inn has welcomed Danny Rutigliano as Danny, taking over the role originated by Lee Wilkof, who played his final performance with the company on October 30. Playbill has more.

  • Full casting for the revival of August Wilson's Jitney has been announced. The nine-person cast includes Brandon Dirden (Clybourne Park, All the Way), Carra Patterson (Significant Other), Michael Potts (Aubergine), and John Douglas Thompson (A Time to Kill), among others. Previews begin December 28, with opening night set for January 19, 2017. Broadway World has the full cast list.
Billy Porter and Friends Sing Richard Rodgers
Album alert: Tony winner Billy Porter (Kinky Boots, Shuffle Along...) is set to record a Richard Rodgers album, and he's enlisting the help of Tony winners and nominees Cynthia Erivo (The Color Purple), Leslie Odom, Jr. (Hamilton), Joshua Henry (Violet, Shuffle Along...), Renee Elise Goldsberry (Hamilton), Brandon Victor Dixon (Shuffle Along...), and Patina Miller (Pippin), as well as recording artist Ledisi. The album, Billy Porter Presents the Soul of Richard Rodgers, will be released in April 2017. Broadway.com has more.

Thanksgiving Day Parade
Tony nominee Christopher Jackson (Hamilton) will be among the performers at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Other performers include the cast and Muppets of Sesame Street and Tony Bennett, and Olympic gold medalist Laurie Hernandez will also appear. The parade will also include performances from Holiday Inn, Cats, and Hairspray Live (set to air on December 7). Additional Broadway performances are still to be announced. Playbill has more. (Planning on being in town during Thanksgiving? Head to the Broadway League website for the Thanksgiving week performance schedule.)

Coming, Going, and Staying a Little Longer
  • The Tony Award-winning revival of The Color Purple will conclude its Broadway run on January 8, 2017. A North American tour will commence in fall 2017. Broadway.com has more. 
  • Bandstand will take up residency at the Jacobs Theatre (current home to The Color Purple). Previews will begin March 31, 2017, with opening night set for April 26. Broadway World has more.

  • The Adam Bock play, A Life, has been extended. The play, which stars David Hyde Pierce, will continue at Playwrights Horizons through December 4. Playbill has more.

  • As reported last week, Paula Vogel's Indecent is moving to Broadway this season. This week, it found a home: the Cort Theatre. Opening night is still scheduled for April 18, 2017; a preview start date has yet to be announced. Broadway World has more.
In Other News
  • As previews for The Great Comet continue, its star, Josh Groban, was profiled on CBS Sunday Morning. Groban is making his Broadway debut in the show, which officially opens on November 14.

  • Dear Evan Hansen is bowing on Broadway this fall, and Vogue spoke to its star, the fantastic Ben Platt. Dear Evan Hansen begins previews November 14, and opening night is set for December 4.

  • American treasure Meryl Streep (Into the Woods) will receive the Cecil B. deMille Lifetime Achievement Award at the Golden Globes (set for January 8, 2017). Broadway World has more.

  • Tony nominee Alex Brightman will play his final performance in School of Rock this Sunday, November 6. In anticipation, he did an "exit interview" with Broadway.com.

  • Comedian Dave Chappelle will host SNL on November 12. This will mark his SNL debut. The musical guest will be legendary hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest. The Wrap has details.

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