BROADWAY

BROADWAY
What's playing
"A Raisin in the Sun" -- Sean Combs, Audra McDonald, Phylicia Rashad and Sanaa Lathan star in a revival of Lorraine Hansberry's groundbreaking drama. Now in previews. Opens April 26. Royale. Telecharge."Aida" -- Deborah Cox stars in Elton John and Tim Rice's crowd-pleaser of a musical based on the ancient Egyptian love triangle. John's music may be the show's initial lure, but audiences will be wowed by designer Bob Crowley's spectacular sets and often outlandish costumes. Palace. Ticketmaster."Assassins" -- A revival of the Stephen Sondheim-John Weidman musical about presidential assassins. A Roundabout Theatre Company production. Now in previews. Opens April 22. Studio 54. (212) 719-1300."Avenue Q" -- Love blossoms among the twentysomething set -- a group that includes puppets -- in this very funny, adult musical comedy that has transferred from off-Broadway. Golden. Telecharge."Beauty and the Beast" -- For those who want a lavish, literal, live-action version of the delightful Disney animated feature, this is the ticket. Others may be content to rent the film. Lunt-Fontanne. Ticketmaster."Bombay Dreams" -- The lavish London success that celebrates India's Bollywood musicals. Now in previews. Opens April 29. Broadway. Telecharge."The Boy From Oz" -- An appealing and hardworking Hugh Jackman stars as Australian entertainer Peter Allen in this pallid musical autobiography that uses Allen's original songs. The musical shuts down while Jackman vacations on certain Tuesday evenings this summer including June 15, July 6, July 20 and Aug. 3. Imperial. Telecharge."Chicago" -- A potent revival of the 1975 Bob Fosse musical with a sassy Kander and Ebb score. Broadway's longest running musical revival -- and deservedly so. Ambassador. Telecharge."Fiddler on the Roof" -- A lovely revival of the classic Bock-Harnick and Robbins musical, starring Alfred Molina as Tevye and Randy Graff as Golde. Minskoff. Ticketmaster."42nd Street" -- Those tapping feet are back. A loud, relentless revival of one of the biggest musical hits of the 1980s. Ford Center for the Performing Arts. Ticketmaster. Closes Jan. 2, 2005."Golda's Balcony" -- A forceful Tovah Feldshuh is the legendary Israeli prime minister in a fascinating one-woman show written by William Gibson. Helen Hayes. Telecharge."Gypsy" -- Bernadette Peters is the ultimate stage mother in a revival of one of the best musicals Broadway has ever produced. Shubert. Telecharge."Hairspray" -- The cult John Waters movie set in 1960s Baltimore has been turned into a hilarious, tuneful musical. Harvey Fierstein inherits the role of full-figured Edna Turnblad, played in the film by Divine. Kathy Brier plays perky teen Tracy Turnblad. Michael McKean replaces Fierstein on May 4. Neil Simon. Ticketmaster. Difficult on weekends."I Am My Own Wife" -- The astonishing Jefferson Mays stars in Doug Wright's evocative play about a German transvestite who survived both the Nazi and communist regimes. Lyceum. Telecharge."King Lear" -- A superb Christopher Plummer stars as Shakespeare's towering monarch. Jonathan Miller directs. A Lincoln Center Theater production. Vivian Beaumont. Telecharge. Difficult. Closes April 18."The Lion King" -- Director Julie Taymor is a modern-day Merlin, creating a stage version of the Disney animated hit that makes you truly believe in the magic of theater. New Amsterdam. Ticketmaster. Difficult on weekends."Little Shop of Horrors" -- The cheeky 1982 off-Broadway hit about a man-eating plant finds its way to Broadway in a spiffy, much larger production. Telecharge."Mamma Mia!" The London musical sensation featuring the pop songs of ABBA makes it to Broadway. Die-hard ABBA fans will like it best; others may be puzzled. A special "Mamma Mia!" Telecharge number (212) 563-5544."Match" -- A husband and wife, played by Ray Liotta and Jane Adams, arrive at the home of a famous dancer (Frank Langella) and want to question him about his past. A play by Stephen Belber. Now in previews. Opens Thursday. Plymouth. Telecharge."Movin' Out" -- Songs by Billy Joel. Choreography by Twyla Tharp. A dance musical about good friends, taking them from the 1960s onward. The dancing is exuberant; the story less so. Richard Rodgers. Ticketmaster."The Phantom of the Opera" -- The one with the chandelier. The Andrew Lloyd Webber musical about a deformed composer who haunts the Paris Opera House is the prime, Grade A example of big Brit musical excess. But all the lavishness does have a purpose in Harold Prince's intelligent production. Majestic. Telecharge."The Producers" -- Brad Oscar and Roger Bart star in this riotous stage version of the Mel Brooks movie. The musical is even better than the film, which is saying something. St. James. A special "Producers" Telecharge number (212) 239-5800."Rent" -- Jonathan Larson's touching and now nostalgic look at struggling artists in New York's East Village. Loosely based on Puccini's opera "La Boheme." Nederlander. Ticketmaster."Sixteen Wounded" -- Judd Hirsch and Omar Metwally star in Eliam Kraiem's play about the friendship between a young Palestinian radical and a Jewish baker in Amsterdam. Now in previews. Opens April 15. Walter Kerr. Telecharge."Sly Fox" -- Richard Dreyfuss stars in a revival of Larry Gelbart's adaptation of Ben Jonson's "Volpone," transplanted to late 19th-century San Francisco. Ethel Barrymore. Telecharge."Thoroughly Modern Millie" -- Susan Egan now stars as the 1920s flapper in this bubbly stage reworking of the Julie Andrews movie musical. Leslie Uggams and Dixie Carter are also in the cast. Marquis. Ticketmaster."Twentieth Century" -- Alec Baldwin and Anne Heche star in an adaptation by Ken Ludwig of the classic comedy by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur. A Roundabout Theatre Company production. American Airlines. (212) 719-1300. Closes June 6."Wicked" -- Kristin Chenoweth is the good witch, Idina Menzel the bad witch and Joel Grey the Wizard in an ambitious if problematic new musical based on the Oz novel by Gregory Maguire. Gershwin. Ticketmaster. Difficult on weekends."Wonderful Town" -- The fabulous Donna Murphy stars in a buoyant revival of the Leonard Bernstein, Betty Comden and Adolph Green musical based on "My Sister Eileen." Al Hirschfeld. Telecharge.
"A Raisin in the Sun" -- Sean Combs, Audra McDonald, Phylicia Rashad and Sanaa Lathan star in a revival of Lorraine Hansberry's groundbreaking drama. Now in previews. Opens April 26. Royale. Telecharge."Aida" -- Deborah Cox stars in Elton John and Tim Rice's crowd-pleaser of a musical based on the ancient Egyptian love triangle. John's music may be the show's initial lure, but audiences will be wowed by designer Bob Crowley's spectacular sets and often outlandish costumes. Palace. Ticketmaster."Assassins" -- A revival of the Stephen Sondheim-John Weidman musical about presidential assassins. A Roundabout Theatre Company production. Now in previews. Opens April 22. Studio 54. (212) 719-1300."Avenue Q" -- Love blossoms among the twentysomething set -- a group that includes puppets -- in this very funny, adult musical comedy that has transferred from off-Broadway. Golden. Telecharge."Beauty and the Beast" -- For those who want a lavish, literal, live-action version of the delightful Disney animated feature, this is the ticket. Others may be content to rent the film. Lunt-Fontanne. Ticketmaster."Bombay Dreams" -- The lavish London success that celebrates India's Bollywood musicals. Now in previews. Opens April 29. Broadway. Telecharge."The Boy From Oz" -- An appealing and hardworking Hugh Jackman stars as Australian entertainer Peter Allen in this pallid musical autobiography that uses Allen's original songs. The musical shuts down while Jackman vacations on certain Tuesday evenings this summer including June 15, July 6, July 20 and Aug. 3. Imperial. Telecharge."Chicago" -- A potent revival of the 1975 Bob Fosse musical with a sassy Kander and Ebb score. Broadway's longest running musical revival -- and deservedly so. Ambassador. Telecharge."Fiddler on the Roof" -- A lovely revival of the classic Bock-Harnick and Robbins musical, starring Alfred Molina as Tevye and Randy Graff as Golde. Minskoff. Ticketmaster."42nd Street" -- Those tapping feet are back. A loud, relentless revival of one of the biggest musical hits of the 1980s. Ford Center for the Performing Arts. Ticketmaster. Closes Jan. 2, 2005."Golda's Balcony" -- A forceful Tovah Feldshuh is the legendary Israeli prime minister in a fascinating one-woman show written by William Gibson. Helen Hayes. Telecharge."Gypsy" -- Bernadette Peters is the ultimate stage mother in a revival of one of the best musicals Broadway has ever produced. Shubert. Telecharge."Hairspray" -- The cult John Waters movie set in 1960s Baltimore has been turned into a hilarious, tuneful musical. Harvey Fierstein inherits the role of full-figured Edna Turnblad, played in the film by Divine. Kathy Brier plays perky teen Tracy Turnblad. Michael McKean replaces Fierstein on May 4. Neil Simon. Ticketmaster. Difficult on weekends."I Am My Own Wife" -- The astonishing Jefferson Mays stars in Doug Wright's evocative play about a German transvestite who survived both the Nazi and communist regimes. Lyceum. Telecharge."King Lear" -- A superb Christopher Plummer stars as Shakespeare's towering monarch. Jonathan Miller directs. A Lincoln Center Theater production. Vivian Beaumont. Telecharge. Difficult. Closes April 18."The Lion King" -- Director Julie Taymor is a modern-day Merlin, creating a stage version of the Disney animated hit that makes you truly believe in the magic of theater. New Amsterdam. Ticketmaster. Difficult on weekends."Little Shop of Horrors" -- The cheeky 1982 off-Broadway hit about a man-eating plant finds its way to Broadway in a spiffy, much larger production. Telecharge."Mamma Mia!" The London musical sensation featuring the pop songs of ABBA makes it to Broadway. Die-hard ABBA fans will like it best; others may be puzzled. A special "Mamma Mia!" Telecharge number (212) 563-5544."Match" -- A husband and wife, played by Ray Liotta and Jane Adams, arrive at the home of a famous dancer (Frank Langella) and want to question him about his past. A play by Stephen Belber. Now in previews. Opens Thursday. Plymouth. Telecharge."Movin' Out" -- Songs by Billy Joel. Choreography by Twyla Tharp. A dance musical about good friends, taking them from the 1960s onward. The dancing is exuberant; the story less so. Richard Rodgers. Ticketmaster."The Phantom of the Opera" -- The one with the chandelier. The Andrew Lloyd Webber musical about a deformed composer who haunts the Paris Opera House is the prime, Grade A example of big Brit musical excess. But all the lavishness does have a purpose in Harold Prince's intelligent production. Majestic. Telecharge."The Producers" -- Brad Oscar and Roger Bart star in this riotous stage version of the Mel Brooks movie. The musical is even better than the film, which is saying something. St. James. A special "Producers" Telecharge number (212) 239-5800."Rent" -- Jonathan Larson's touching and now nostalgic look at struggling artists in New York's East Village. Loosely based on Puccini's opera "La Boheme." Nederlander. Ticketmaster."Sixteen Wounded" -- Judd Hirsch and Omar Metwally star in Eliam Kraiem's play about the friendship between a young Palestinian radical and a Jewish baker in Amsterdam. Now in previews. Opens April 15. Walter Kerr. Telecharge."Sly Fox" -- Richard Dreyfuss stars in a revival of Larry Gelbart's adaptation of Ben Jonson's "Volpone," transplanted to late 19th-century San Francisco. Ethel Barrymore. Telecharge."Thoroughly Modern Millie" -- Susan Egan now stars as the 1920s flapper in this bubbly stage reworking of the Julie Andrews movie musical. Leslie Uggams and Dixie Carter are also in the cast. Marquis. Ticketmaster."Twentieth Century" -- Alec Baldwin and Anne Heche star in an adaptation by Ken Ludwig of the classic comedy by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur. A Roundabout Theatre Company production. American Airlines. (212) 719-1300. Closes June 6."Wicked" -- Kristin Chenoweth is the good witch, Idina Menzel the bad witch and Joel Grey the Wizard in an ambitious if problematic new musical based on the Oz novel by Gregory Maguire. Gershwin. Ticketmaster. Difficult on weekends."Wonderful Town" -- The fabulous Donna Murphy stars in a buoyant revival of the Leonard Bernstein, Betty Comden and Adolph Green musical based on "My Sister Eileen." Al Hirschfeld. Telecharge.