In The Paper

In this week’s issue of The Stage:

• Tributes special: As the tribute market grows ever more competitive, we take a look at the acts working the circuit today, the impact of television on the business and the emergence of the tribute production show, while America’s top Elvis, Shawn Klush, explains its ongoing appeal. Matthew Hemley asks whether the BBC’s tribute talent show, The One and Only, did more harm than good, while showcase reviewers Mark Ritchie and Derek Smith choose the personal top ten tribute acts

• Insight: Product placement has been given the go-ahead to appear in UK cinema, films for TV, sports broadcasts and light entertainment in less than two years. With TV on demnd services killing off scheduled advertising, Ben Dowell considers what this will mean for British commercial television and whether editorial integrity will be compromised in the process

• Culture minister Margaret Hodge recently talked about the lack of high-ranking femalr talent in theatre. Richard Jordan examines changes that are already happening and argues that such comments may do more harm than good

• Founder and artistic director of the Harare International Festival of the Arts, Manuel Bagorro talks about putting on an arts festival in Zimbabwe’s troubled capital

• Dear John: “I can ‘do’ several artists very well and I want to try the tribute market. Does it make more sense to work solo or to seek out a band?”

• Actor and director Steven Berkoff tells Richard Brooks why he has chosen to stage the classic film On The Waterfront and why drama must deal with the burning issues

• From the mean streets of Chicago to the haunted hallways of The Woman in White, Ruthie Henshall is as familiar to Theatreland as Lloyd Webber hits. She speaks to Nick Smurthwaite about her role in the new musical Marguerite

• Vocal coach Zoe Tyler continues her exclusive review of BBC talent show I’d Do Anything

• Seventy years after the death of the actor/writer/director Konstantin Stanislavski, Maria Hodson examines his impact on the acting profession

• Backstage Focus: It takes 150 crew, 92 wagons and eight days to move the 800-tonne set of Afrika! Afrika!. Petrus Bertschinger visits the immense tented village and finds a slick technical operation with a vibrant African heart

• Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys bonded over a love of German electronica and, as Orchestral Manouevres in the Dark, helped usher in the synth sound of the eighties with a homemade machine. After some time out of the spotlight, they’re excited to be back, they tell Douglas McPherson

Plus all the usual news, reviews, national UK theatre listings and recruitment ads.

The Stage is available from major newsagents, including most High Street branches of WH Smith, every Thursday priced £1.30. You can also subscribe and receive a copy by mail every week: more details and prices at http://www.thestage.co.uk/subscribe/.

Posted by Scott Matthewman at 4:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In this week’s issue of The Stage:

• A young West End producer states his case against Equity’s demands for a 44% wage hike for Theatreland performers

• Insight: Too few schools offer high quality drama provision, leaving pupils hoping to attend drama school at a loss, writes Susan Elkin

• Maggie Brown on the media: May 12 is Changeover Day — the day when the new programming chiefs for BBC1, ITV and Five all start work. Plus, why Kevin Spacey’s attack on the BBC is self-serving

• Arthur Smith: In favour of Covent Garden’s classical music buskers

• Dear John: “I’ve been to a lot of auditions and had a few call backs, but no jobs. How can I keep up my enthusiasm?”

• Costume Training special: Be they lavish, authentic or innovative, costumes are an important part of any production and a career in design can be diverse and rewarding. We examine the courses available, speak to students and pick up tips from the UK’s top costumiers.

• Songwriter Tim Daniel spent eight years working for other pop stars before stepping up to the mic himself. He talks to Tony Cooke about his talent for penning pop hits and releasing his own single after touring with Take That

• The artistic director of the Donmar Warehouse Michael Grandage tells Mark Shenton why accessibility, not exclusivity, is his intention and why the highly anticipated, affordable season at Wyndham’s will be a one-off

• Aspiring screenwriter Joanna Leigh spent ten years trying to land a major television commission. Now, after winning the Red Planet Prize, her luck is changing, she tells Matthew Hemley

• In her latest I’d Do Anything column, Zoe Tyler casts her expert eye over last Saturday’s live performances. More I’d Do Anything coverage on our TV blog, TV Today

• As West End hit The Woman in Black celebrates its 20th anniversary, Nick Smurthwaite talks to producer Peter Wilson about the show’s continuing success, his other big hitter An Inspector Calls and his role as chief executive of the Theatre Royal Norwich

• Clive Barnes’ New York notebook: The search for a new, gritty musical continues. Is In The Heights the new West Side Story?

• Backstage: Why a stage manager should be a rock in a stormy sea

• Backstage Focus: Taking authenticity to a new level, the Royal Shakespeare Company presents its Histories season at London’s Roundhouse until the end of May. Alistair Smith discovers how the company recreated Stratford’s Courtyrad in the capital.

• Anthony Field recalls the career highlights and untimely demise of one of Britain’s greatest actors, Robert Donat

Plus all the usual news, reviews, national UK theatre listings and recruitment ads.

The Stage is available from major newsagents, including most High Street branches of WH Smith, every Thursday priced £1.30. You can also subscribe and receive a copy by mail every week: more details and prices at http://www.thestage.co.uk/subscribe/.

Posted by Scott Matthewman at 3:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)