‘Phantom of the Opera’ sales explode after shock closing announcement

Oprah Winfrey, David Letterman and Ellen DeGeneres are among the moderators tapped to appear with former first lady Michelle Obama on her upcoming tour for her book The Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Times. 

Mark Sutherland Sarah Brightman’s 40-year singing career has brought her global acclaim. But, the British star says, what she’s best known for varies according to where she is in the world. “In China, they know me far more for my later recorded work and not necessarily for ‘Phantom of the Opera,’” she tells Variety. “I’ve worked with very famous artists in Japan. And, in the last two years, I’ve even become well-known in France, which has always been quite a difficult market to penetrate. It’s great – it’s like you’re a new person in each city you go to…” Brightman’s American persona will be in the spotlight when the soprano is awarded her own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Oct. 6, presented for her contributions to live theater and live performance.

Jem Aswad Senior Music Editor Back in the day (“the day” being the 1990s), Pavement became so typecast as a cliché-lambasting, anti-rock band that they never really got credit for what a great rock band they were — and, as their ongoing 30th-ish anniversary tour shows, still are. The stereotypical scrawny, bookish, indie vibe and image of the group’s early records had become so cemented that few seemed to notice how tight and accomplished they became after drummer Steve West joined the group in 1993. Although they always downplayed their ability to “rock out” and still do, when the band locks in on hypnotic grooves while singer-guitarist Stephen Malkmus plays solos with a Lou Reed-ish combination of soaring melodies and brittle squall (usually finishing with some self-mocking gesture), they can hold their own with virtually any rock band. On their later albums, that seasoning carried over to their songwriting, as Malkmus’ almost run-on melodies were delivered in a cleaner, sharper manner, as if he were no longer quite so embarrassed by how pretty or catchy they can be.

Broadway held fairly steady at the box office last week, with recent arrivals Leopoldstadt and The Piano Lesson leading the pack of fall newcomers with grosses of $758,988 and $704,051, respectively.

Celebrity chef Gino D'Acampo's pizza and prosecco restaurant inside Manchester's Arndale Centre has closed - but has swiftly reopened as new Italian restaurant brand Piccolo by Piccolino. The Italian TV star had launched his My Pizza and Prosecco Bar amid a blaze of publicity inside the huge Next in the shopping centre back in 2017.

Sarah Jessica Parker's stepfather has died. Paul Giffin Forste was 76.

Going her own way. MacKenzie Scott, who was formally married to Jeff Bezos, has filed for divorce from her second husband, Dan Jewett, after less than two years of marriage. 

MacKenzie Scott is filing for divorce.

Jackson Wang has announced concerts in London, Paris, Singapore, Dubai and more as part of his ‘MAGIC MAN’ world tour.The tour was confirmed by concert promoter AEG Presents on social media on Wednesday (September 28). The tour currently consists of six dates: three this year, and three next year.

Former president Donald Trump was met with a civil fraud lawsuit from New York Attorney General Letitia James on Wednesday, and “The Tonight Show” host Jimmy Fallon can tell he’s getting worried. “He just asked Ron DeSantis to fly him somewhere random in the middle of the night,” he joked.

Wiki and Subjxct 5 have confirmed the details of their debut collaborative mixtape, Cold Cuts, and shared its lead single, “My Life.” The New York City rapper and Elizabeth, New Jersey producer first teased the project back in March in a joint show on NTS they dubbed the “Cold Cuts Radio Hour.” Six months later, it’s finally coming to fruition with an arrival date set for October 21 and a tracklist featuring frequent Wiki collaborator Navy Blue, frequent Subjxct 5 collaborator Papo2oo4, and Dark World progenitor DJ Lucas. Everything about the new project’s campaign thus far screams the type of old-school east coast hip-hop nostalgia Wiki and Subjxct 5 have both presented so artfully over the past decade, updating the familiar sounds ever so slightly for a new generation of listeners.

John Travolta is sending out praise for his daughter Ella Bleu Travolta after she made her debut at New York Fashion Week!

The Phantom of the Opera, Broadway’s longest running show, will close in February following its 35th anniversary in January, producers have announced.

Rumors are swirling that The Phantom of the Opera is closing on Broadway.

flop movie version, starring Gerard Butler and Emmy Rossum, was released in 2004.Lloyd Webber also put on an unsuccessful sequel, called “Love Never Dies,” in London in 2010 that toured but never made it to Broadway.“Phantom” continues to play in London at Her Majesty’s Theatre — soon to be renamed His Majesty’s Theatre following the death of Queen Elizabeth II — and recently had some of its original staging revised.That could be a clue to the musical’s future. While this “Phantom” will close for good in December, it would not be shocking to see it return in a much cheaper iteration in a few years.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Pooja Midha has been named executive vice president and general manager for Effectv, the ad-sales division of Comcast’s large cable operation, putting her in charge of a unit with broadening importance for the unit at a time when advertisers are seeking new technologies to aid in the placement of their pitches to consumers. Midha replaces James Rooke, who was recently named president of Comcast Advertising. Midha will oversee a national team that manages everything from sales to data innovation. She is expected to continue to burnish the company’s efforts to bring more widespread use of data to TV strategies, and to utilize addressable and programmatic ad technologies.

The Great British Bake Off announced the first contestant to leave the 2022 tent on Tuesday night after it returned with a new batch of amateur bakers. During the opening episode, the contestants had to create mini sandwich cakes, a red velvet cake and a showstopper 3D replica of their home.

Aldi, B&Q and Primark are among dozens of shops that have announced they will shut their stores next Monday, the day of the Queen’s funeral. Monday, September 19, will be a bank holiday in the UK as the Queen’s state funeral takes place in London.