Ariana Grande’s Got Tracy’s Back, Lin-Manuel Miranda Wants to Drunk Connect & More Lessons of the Week

Happy Friday, and Happy December! It's that time of year again where we hunt YouTube for our favorite clips of Broadway divas singing holiday tunes, starting with this one. While Bernadette goes rum-pum-pum-pum, let's revisit our favorite stories from the past seven days on the Great White Way. From a magical invasion on 43rd Street to an unexpected take on Beaches, catch up below with the Lessons of the Week!


Rory Knows the Glory of Love, Dammit
Move over, Idina, there's a new CC in town. When Hamilton's Rory O'Malley stopped by Live at Five, he couldn't stop gushing about Bette Midler. He's such a fan, her Beaches character is his biggest dream role. He'll still watch the upcoming Lifetime remake, but not without some resentment that the blazing supernova is singing "Wind Beneath My Wings" and not him. There's always Feinstein's/54 Below, Rory...


Tracy's Becoming a Dangerous Woman
With Ariana Grande's help, Maddie Baillio is going to go bang bang all over one of her Hairspray Live! buds. When we visited the set of the upcoming NBC broadcast, TV's Tracy admitted that she has a crush on an unnamed castmate, and the dangerous woman serves as her wing-woman. What does an Ariana Grande seduction look like? We hope it involves her Carolee Carmello impression.


Richard H. Blake Has a Quarter Star More
If you want to beat Sutton Foster, you have a few (but not many) options. You can throw some forks. You can belt about your awesome pants. Or you can take her lucky stuffed animal. That's what A Bronx Tale's Richard H. Blake did when they were pint-sized contestants on Star Search, and he beat her by a quarter of a star. Something tells us it turned out just fine for her. Aside from the panty selling.


Matt Morrison's New Friend's Got Humps
Speaking of panty selling, remember when Matthew Morrison was on Younger and went full The Goat or Who Is Sylvia on a poor sheep? (Sorry if you were lucky enough to have blocked that out.) The Broadway favorite recently shared this pic with a camel, and memories of that traumatizing scene came flooding back. Is nothing sacred, Matty Fresh?!


Lin Has Good (Drunk) Times on FaceTime
When we're buzzed, we go down a "Defying Gravity" YouTube wormhole (to be fair, we also do that sober.) But sloshed Lin-Manuel Miranda FaceTimes with famous friends. On Drunk History, the Hamilton genius went face to face with Questlove and Christopher Jackson. Next time you've had a few, Lin, FaceTime us. We can talk about Bunheads (starring Star Search loser Sutton Foster. Too soon?)


Anthony Rapp Knows His Space Shrooms
There's finally going to be a gay astromycogist on TV! Anthony Rapp has been tapped for Star Trek: Discovery, playing a gay space fungi expert. We're thrilled networks are realizing that representation matters; just think about how many gay space fungi experts you know, and how few gay space fungi expert characters there on TV. Have we said "gay space fungi expert" enough yet?


Richard Armitage Wants To Get Kingly
Now is the winter of our dreamcasting. This week, we learned screen favorite and off-Broadway's Love, Love, Love star Richard Armitage was born on the anniversary of Richard III's death and is thus named after him. He's yet to play the king in Shakespeare's tragedy or any other adaptation, but it's high on his list. Perhaps an adaptation in which Richard is also a gay space fungi expert?


Megan Sikora Tongue Punched Tugger
In the Thanksgiving Edition return of What's New Pussycat, Cats favorite Tyler Hanes reunited with former onstage flame Megan Sikora of Holiday Inn, who revealed that the two "tongue punched"  for a show way back when. The Rum Tum Tugger is a curious cat...and he's apparently into some curious stuff. Get a room or a junkyard, you two.


Harry Potter's Gonna Make 43rd St. Magical
Muggles, rejoice! Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is on its way to apparating on Broadway, and it's planning on transfiguring the Lyric Theatre into its Great White Way home. The renovations would involve moving the theater's entrance to 43rd Street, on a now marquee-less stretch. So much for that quiet block in the middle of bustling Times Square. Accio foot traffic?


Sheryl Lee Ralph Wants Green Glass Love
Are you watching Call Me Madame (hashtag Call Me Madame)? Well, you should. This week, Wicked diva Sheryl Lee Ralph showed off her positively emerald bling. She called it her "Green Glass Love" line, referring to a line from a certain show she was once in. Give up? You're welcome. Enjoy some Sheryl Lee Ralph belting on us, just because it's Friday. Have a good weekend!