Odds & Ends: Audra McDonald Set for Gay Days at Disneyland, SpongeBob Enlists Newsies Tony Winner & More

Here's a quick roundup of stories you may have missed today and over the holiday weekend.

Audra to Headline at Disneyland
Audra McDonald has been tapped for this year’s Gay Days at Disneyland, which will run October 2 through October 4 in California. The six-time Tony winner and future Beauty and the Beast star’s An Evening With Audra McDonald will take place at the Disneyland Hotel on October 2. Other theater faves scheduled for the weekend include Ben Rimalower, who will perform his off-Broadway show Patti Issues at the Grand Californian Hotel on October 4. Note that the 18th annual event is not sponsored by Disney; it is a "mix-in" with the park’s other guests.

SpongeBob Enlists Newsies Tony Winner
Another renowned name is heading to Bikini Bottom! Christopher Gattelli, who won a Tony for his work on Newsies, has been tapped to choreograph the Broadway-bound The SpongeBob Musical. Co-conceived and directed by Tina Landau, with a book by Kyle Jarrow, music supervision by Tom Kitt and songs by stars including Aerosmith, John Legend and David Bowie, the musical event will begin performances on June 7, 2016. The limited engagement will run through July 3 at Broadway in Chicago's Oriental Theatre.

Original Carrie in Carousel Dead at 93
Stage and screen star Jean Darling died aged 93 on September 4 in Rödermark, Germany, The New York Times reports. After making her Broadway debut in 1942 in the tuner Count Me In, Darling originated the role of Carrie Pipperidge in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Carousel on the Great White Way in 1945. Also known for starring in the Our Gang comedy films as a child, she later became an author. Darling is survived by her son with the late Reuben Bowen, Roy, and two grandsons.

Casting Update for London's Billy Elliot
Put on your ballet shoes! Bradley Mayfield has become one of the boys taking on the role of Michael, while Beatrice Bartley and Hollie Creighton are now two of the rotating "Debbies," in Billy Elliot the Musical. Ruthie Henshall and Deka Walmsley continue to lead the adult cast as Mrs. Wilkinson and Dad, respectively. The long-running show is playing at the West End’s Victoria Palace Theatre.

Vanessa Williams Returns to Miss America
Tony nominee Vanessa Williams (Into the Woods) is going back to where she got her big break—the Miss America pageant! The stage and screen star was the first African-American crowned Miss America back in 1983, but she had to resign 10 months later after nude photos of her surfaced. "That’s one of the problems I’ve had to deal with for my career,” she told GMA’s Robin Roberts. “Not only being a Miss America, but a scandalous Miss America." Williams will be one of the judges of the 2016 pageant on September 13. And yes, because the only pageant we really knew about was the one recently off-Broadway, we had to check: Miss America is the event that doesn't have anything to do with Donald Trump. The presidential candidate is behind Miss USA. You learn something every day!