Thank God it's Friday...and LaChanze's birthday! Let's celebrate both by watching this clip on repeat and taking a look back on this past week's goings on the Great White Way. A lot has happened in the past seven days, from a Star Wars queen turned pilot to a Great Comet star's scandalacious confession. Study up below with the Lessons of the Week!
Gyllenhaal Hasn't Moved On from Sunday
Jake Gyllenhaal's Broadway stint in Burn This was postponed, but don't worry: he knows to keep moving on. Instead, he'll open the very same theater with Sunday in the Park with George, reprising his role from the recent City Center concert. When God closes a stage door, he opens a blank canvas. Or something. Well, there are definitely worse things.
Don't Hop in Lesli Margherita's Starfighter
Lesli Margherita is great at many things: vlogging, being loud, stalking hot garbage men, etc. One thing she should probably leave off her special skills? Drone piloting. At a Star Wars event, the Matilda queen flew a toy drone—and promptly crashed it into a wall. She may be a Jedi, but next time she offers you a ride in her Starfighter, maybe you should have an excuse ready.
Liza Brought Kisses to Jersey Boys
Jersey Boys has had its fair share of visits from stars over the years, but only one of them has insisted on kissing everyone in the cast (to our knowledge). According to cast member Peter Gregus, Liza Minnelli was intent on smooching all the Jersey Boys and all the Jersey Girls backstage. First medicinal marijuana (allegedly), then kisses...Liza, do you want to stop by Broadway.com HQ?
Denée Defied Gravity From Her Seat
While Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 is Denée Benton's Broadway debut, she's technically sung on the Great White Way before. The newcomer revealed that the first show she saw on Broadway was Wicked, and she sang along from the audience the entire time. If you're going to sing at the Gershwin, Denée, at least do it on stage. We're sure you'd look great in green.
Eric Petersen Rocked as Reagan
School of Rock frontman Eric Petersen was first bitten by the acting bug in elementary school. His role? Ronald Reagan. This week, he even offered up a taste of the transcendent performance. Hey, if we can get a hip-hop musical about Alexander Hamilton, surely we can get a rock musical about Ronald Reagan. That definitely doesn't sound like a terrible idea at all.
Alysha Umphress Is an MTA Queen
At the In Transit opening, we learned Alysha Umphress has a solid fallback career option: MTA announcer. Not only was she well versed in the subway map, but she also shared an uncanny impression of a muffled conductor. Why did it seem like no one else knew which trains were at what station, though? Are you too fancy for the MTA, Frankie James Grande? Because Christine Baranski isn't.
Janet McTeer Can Probably Slay Vampires
Before she was Broadway's La Marquise de Merteuil, she was Madame de Buffy. While discussing her stint in Les Liaisons Dangereuses, Janet McTeer shared her old nickname back at the Donmar Warehouse, alluding to her Cruel Intentions counterpart Sarah Michelle Gellar. We have no doubt McTeer would be able to slay any and all vampires...and belt "Something to Sing About."
Morrible Needs a Production Company
Last week, we learned that when she's not on stage in Wicked or vlogging with Call Me Madame, Sheryl Lee Ralph moonlights as a film critic. This week, she's playing the role of a film producer. Ralph bonded with Glinda standby Ginna Claire Mason and revealed she's going to front a Doris Day biopic for her. This could be the start of something big. Redefining Diva Studios, perhaps?
Sherie Made Her Son Proud in a Weird Way
Sherie Renee Scott has played rich Upper East Side socialite, a rich Spanish socialite, and now, "the old whore with a heart of gold" (her words). The Front Page standout recalled that while she was initially horrified by what her 12-year-old son would think, he was "proud" of her for playing a sex worker and even helped her rehearse lines. That's a little weird, but hey, it's 2016.
Cheno & J. Lo Are Still Girls Next Door
Kristin Chenoweth wowed us all on NBC's Hairspray Live!, and Jennifer Lopez has some big shoes to fill in next year's Bye Bye Birdie. (But really, how big can Chenoweth's shoes be?) The two snapped an adorable pic together, reuniting after working on the cinematic masterpiece The Boy Next Door. We're sure the 4'11" Mistress of All Evil had some pro tips. Listen to Vicky; she's a vice principal!