Broadway Friday

-Broadway's lights were dimmed on Wednesday in honor of Grammy and Tony Award winner Robert Goulet, who died on Tuesday of lung disease. In 1968 Goulet won the Tony for Best Actor In A Musical in The Happy Times. He last appeared on Broadway in 2005 in La Cage Aux Folles.

-Maxwell Caulfield and Jeff McCarthy will be the next two actors to play Billy Flynn in Chicago. Caulfield takes over from Brian McKnight on November 19th, McCarthy starts on December 2nd.

-Rosie O'Donnell will serve as national ambassador for the 12th Annual Kids Night On Broadway. The events run in NYC on Feb. 5, 6, 12 and 13, 2008, and nationwide throughout the winter and spring.

-Disney's The Little Mermaid begins previews Saturday at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre.

-Actor Joel Vig is suing the producers of Hairspray for $1.5M for wrongful termination. Vig left the show in 2004 after injuring his knee. The former Mr. Pinky claims he worked injured for six months at the request of the stage manager, but was fired from the show when he took leave for knee surgery. An arbitrator refused to hear the case and Vig's union refused to appeal that decision, prompting his suit.

-Duran Duran's two-week concert run at the Ethyl Barrymore Theatre began yesterday. Even with tickets at $75-$150, the three-act show is only expected to break even. The show is a promotion for the band's 12th album, Red Carpet Massacre, due November 13th. It's been eight years since a rock act staged a concert run on Broadway.

-Bob Saget joined the cast of Drowsy Chaperone earlier this month as Man In Chair. As Little David said to me, that is probably the death knell for the show. Pity.
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