Broadway Ticket Prices, Then and Now. My Wallet Today

The New York Times recently ran a great article about Death of a Salesman, the crux of the article being that even though the play centers on the middle class Loman family, the middle class is no where to be seen in the audience.

“Certainly few middle-class people, or at least anyone from any “middle class” that Loman would recognize, are among the audiences attending this production. What was once a middle-class entertainment has become a luxury item,” Lee Siegel writes. 

The Times writes that tickets for the 1949 original run of Salesman, tickets cost between $1.80 and $4.80. If you were to buy tickets for the 2012 version, they go anywhere from $111 to $840.

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Biography: Matthew McConaughey

Matthew McConaughey is one of Hollywood’s most sought after leading men whose films have grossed over a billion dollars at the box office. He is a Texas native who, while attending the University of Texas in Austin, planned to be a lawyer. When he discovered an inspirational Og Mandino book The Greatest Salesman in the World before one of his final exams, he suddenly knew that he had to change his major from law to film.

McConaughey began his acting career in 1991, appearing in student films and commercials in Texas and directing short films. It was a chance meeting in Austin with casting director and producer, Don Phillips, who introduced him to director, Richard Linklater where he was cast as Wooderson in the cult classic Dazed and Confused. Since that time McConaughey has appeared in over 40 feature films, and has become a producer, director, and philanthropist all the while sticking to his Texas roots and ‘jk livin’ philosophy. Over the years, he has portrayed an athlete, a police officer, a football coach, and a lawyer, and has worked with Hollywood greats such as Steven Spielberg, Robert Zemekis, Anthony Hopkins, Jodie Foster, Sandra Bullock, and Al Pacino to name a few. Read more

Review: ‘Cock’ at The Duke on 42nd Street (NYC)

A play with the provocative title Cock is going to raise eyebrows (especially with the marquee outside the Duke on 42nd Street says it).  The provided plot description makes it even more appealing: “When John and his boyfriend take a break, the last thing he expects is to suddenly meet the woman of his dreams. Now he has a big choice to make.”

Based on that description, it would seem like John (Cory Michael Smith) would be the central focus of the play’s story, and in some regards he is.  But once the set-up behind John’s unqiue predicament is established, boyfriend M (Jason Butler Harner), and girlfriend W (Amanda Quaid) take the lead by talking to and about John rather than with him, he sits or lies down in total frustration at not knowing what he truly wants.  It makes it even more difficult when M’s father, F (Cotter Smith) arrives and begins to advise John from his perspective as both a concerned father and a supporter of gay rights.  That ultimatum — that John has to choose to be with a man or a woman — actually flies in the face of the whole idea of F’s insistence that it is okay for him to be whoever he is, since John doesn’t want to make a choice but finds himself forced to between the one(s) he loves on criteria that isn’t as simple as who he loves more.  Read more

Watch this Four-Minute Preview of ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’

Last night, Sony released this four-minute preview of Marc Webb‘s The Amazing Spider-Man except for the first minute, everything is pretty much the same stuff you’ve already seen in the previous trailers.

But, it still looks great.

Starring Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Rhys Ifans, Denis Leary, Campbell Scott, Irrfan Khan, Martin Sheen and Sally Field, The Amazing Spider-Man is the story of Peter Parker (Garfield), an outcast high schooler who was abandoned by his parents as a boy, leaving him to be raised by his Uncle Ben (Sheen) and Aunt May (Field). Like most teenagers, Peter is trying to figure out who he is and how he got to be the person he is today. Peter is also finding his way with his first high school crush, Gwen Stacy (Stone), and together, they struggle with love, commitment, and secrets. As Peter discovers a mysterious briefcase that belonged to his father, he begins a quest to understand his parents’ disappearance – leading him directly to Oscorp and the lab of Dr. Curt Connors (Ifans), his father’s former partner. As Spider-Man is set on a collision course with Connors’ alter-ego, The Lizard, Peter will make life-altering choices to use his powers and shape his destiny to become a hero.

Check it out below! Read more

Biography: Aubrey Plaza

Actor, writer, and comedian Aubrey Plaza is quickly becoming one of her generation’s brightest young talents.

Plaza currently stars in the NBC comedy series Parks and Recreation as ‘April Ludgate,’ ‘Ron Swanson‘s’ underachieving assistant. The series, from the creators of The Office, is a half-‐hour mockumentary that looks at the world of local government. Amy Poehler and Rashida Jones co-‐star. The show was just nominated for an Emmy in the “Best Comedy Series” category and will return for a fourth season in September.

She will next begin production on Roman Coppola‘s new film A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charlie Swan III. The independent film produced by Youree Henley stars Charlie Sheen as the title character, a successful graphic designer whose fame, money and charm have made him irresistible to women. When his girlfriend breaks up with him, his life swirls into a downward spiral of doubt, confusion and reflection. Through delirious fantasies involving his many failed romances, he begins the hard road of self-‐evaluation to come to terms with life without her. Plaza will play Marnie, a producer who works with the protagonist at his company, Swan Design. Read more

Q&A: Leonard Nimoy Talks ‘Fringe’, Voice Acting and ‘Big Bang Theory’

After announcing that he was retiring from acting, the great Leonard Nimoy was thankfully lured back to work. Tonight, you can catch him once again as William Bell on the season finale of Fringe.

How was he convinced? “I’m a sucker for a good role and J.J. Abrams, the Executive Producer of the show, is a friend of mine,” he said in a conference call earlier this week.

I’ve loved Nimoy for years and any chance I can see him on-screen is a treat. In this Q&A, he talks about Fringe, his character William Bell, if he’s coming back for the show’s final season and voice acting.

The season finale of Fringe airs tonight at 9/8c on FOX

Follow Leonard Nimoy on Twitter! Read more

Trailer #2: ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’ starring Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Rhys Ifans & Denis Leary

Holy crap! This is awesome! No time to write. I gotta watch this again.

The Amazing Spider-Man is the story of Peter Parker (Garfield), an outcast high schooler who was abandoned by his parents as a boy, leaving him to be raised by his Uncle Ben (Sheen) and Aunt May (Field). Like most teenagers, Peter is trying to figure out who he is and how he got to be the person he is today. Peter is also finding his way with his first high school crush, Gwen Stacy (Stone), and together, they struggle with love, commitment, and secrets. As Peter discovers a mysterious briefcase that belonged to his father, he begins a quest to understand his parents’ disappearance – leading him directly to Oscorp and the lab of Dr. Curt Connors (Ifans), his father’s former partner. As Spider-Man is set on a collision course with Connors’ alter-ego, The Lizard, Peter will make life-altering choices to use his powers and shape his destiny to become a hero.

Director: Marc Webb
Cast: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Rhys Ifans, Denis Leary, Campbell Scott, Irrfan Khan, Martin Sheen, Sally Field
Writers: Steve Kloves, James Vanderbilt, Alvin Sargent

In Theaters: July 3rd Read more

Interview: Louisa Krause on the SXSW Hit ‘King Kelly’, Her New Film ‘You Can’t Win’ and How She Got Neil LaBute’s Phone Number

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 21:37 — 14.9MB)

If you haven’t heard of Louisa Krause, wait a couple minutes because her name will soon be on your radar.

Louisa recently starred in the SXSW hit, King Kelly and had a short film, Double or Nothing (written by Neil LaBute) premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival. And as I was talking to her, she was getting ready to fly out to Seattle to film You Can’t Win, a project co-written, produced and starring Michael Pitt (Boardwalk Empire).

She’s previously appeared on Law & Order and Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Blue Bloods and last year’s great indie hit, Martha Marcy May Marlene.

King Kelly, which I saw at SXSW, got a great reception and the audience loved it and Louisa. The film is about an up-and-coming internet star (Krause) who strips on a webcam. When her car, that’s loaded with drugs, is stolen by her ex-boyfriend, Kelly and her friend head out on an epic streak of sex, drugs and violence as they try to get the car back. You should definitely check it out if you get the chance.

I talked to Louisa about how she got her start, King Kelly, You Can’t Win and how she got Neil LaBute’s phone number.   Read more

Creating Your Network – Doubling Your Income

Written by Gywn Gilliss

First of all what is a network? How does that relate to being an actor?

“A network is a large group of people who communicate, are interconnected and work together as a system.”

If you create a network you double, triple, exponentially multiply your work opportunities a gazillion times. The more people who know you, like you, want to work with you, the more work you will get. Then, the process of submissions, auditions and trying to get work is reduced to zero. Offers come out of nowhere from people who know you, have been referred to you, have seen your work. It’s like virus marketing or the internet which is a humongous network. Career-wise you can then focus on just doing the work-a film, a play, a new prime time series. Read more

Turn Away From The Way You See Yourself

Written by Anthony Meindl

That is, unless you see yourself as the amazing, empowering, sexy, dynamic creator that you are.

And we rarely do.

Why?

Because we don’t see ourselves through a clear lens.

When I was in my 20’s I would tell myself I was stupid. I looked forward to the day when I would stop beating myself up, and have a new way of looking at myself, which I thought would occur in a few years.

I thought I’d outgrow my destructive thoughts once I was little older or more successful or more accomplished or more physically fit.

By my mid 20′s, calling myself “stupid” was replaced by my saying I was unattractive. By 30, I was a failure. Read more

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