Andréa Burns

The Gardens of Anuncia

The Gardens of Anuncia

Michael John LaChiusa’s new memory musical, The Gardens of Anuncia, is a love letter to Broadway legend Graciela Daniele and an homage to the three woman who shaped her life in Juan Perón’s Argentina. Sensitively directed by Daniele, it offers one not only a glimpse of the icon before she became famous for her choreography but a portrait of the artist as a mature woman, looking back on her star-dusted life. LaChiusa, who created the book, music, and lyrics, has earned a reputation in the American musical theater as a maverick who never repeats himself. And, indeed, his latest venture cements his image.

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Smart Blonde

Smart Blonde

Willy Holtzman calls his pocket-size play about Judy Holliday Smart Blonde. Not a bad title, considering Holliday’s reportedly high IQ and her early success, on stage and screen, as Billie Dawn, the seemingly dumb, actually discerning protagonist of Garson Kanin’s 1946 smash-hit comedy Born Yesterday.

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