The Revival Of Bye Bye Birdie On Broadway

By Author: Al Terry
Total Articles: 787
Comment this article

Bye Bye Birdie has returned to Broadway after nearly half a century. It first opened at the Martin Beck Theatre on April 14, 1960. It was later shifted to the 54th Street Theatre and then to the Shubert Theatre. After giving 607 great performances it closed on Oct 7, 1961. This original production won 4 Tony Awards in 1961. This musical returned to the hallowed stages of Broadway after almost 50 years.

After its successful performances on Broadway in 1961, Bye Bye Birdie next performed at Her Majesty's Theatre, a West End, UK theatre, in June 1961. This was followed by a movie in 1963, a short-lived Broadway sequel in 1981, a US tour in the early 1990s, an Encores! production in 2004 and an abridged version in Oct 2008 at the Washington DC's Kennedy Centre.

Lately, this musical has previewed at Henry Miller's Theatre of the Roundabout Theatre Company on Sept 10, 2009 and opened on Oct 15, 2009. Initially expected to close on Jan 10, 2010, and despite its negative reviews after the first preview, Bye Bye Birdie is going for an extended run till April 25, 2010.

The Story

The plot of the story receives ...
... its inspiration from the great Elvis Presley and his draft into the army. The central character of the musical, Conrad Birdie (played by Nolan Gerald Funk), is a Rock superstar with many problems. Complications arise when he receives a draft notice from the army.

His agent/manager Albert Peterson (played by John Stamos) arranges a stunt on The Ed Sullivan Show. Birdie is to kiss one lucky girl from Sweet Apple, Ohio. Complications arise when the boyfriend of the lucky girl, Kim MacAfee (played by Allie Trimm), gets jealous. Both later settle their differences.

The Theatre

The Henry Miller's Theatre was one of the most luxurious theatres on Broadway when it opened way back in 1918. This Georgian style theatre had 950 seats. It was built for Henry Miller, the actor, and remained with his family after he died in 1926.

The theatre hit the golden patch between the 1930s and the 1960s. Great actors of the times, Helen Hayes, Leslie Howard, Lillian Gish, Douglas Fairbanks, and Ruth Chatterton, among others, performed on its stage.

The theatre was renovated in 2000 and is now a 1000 seat theatre. It is at this theatre that revival shows of Bye Bye Birdie are being performed.

Tickets For The Revival

You will require booking your seats for this revival well in advance. Tickets for shows on Broadway are always difficult to get; more so for the shows of successful revivals.

Book your tickets for Bye Bye Birdie early through legitimate ticket brokers. They ensure you receive your tickets in time and for the shows of your choice. They provide excellent services though they charge a bit more than the face value of the tickets for the extra services they provide, such as home delivery.
Al writes many articles about Broadway entertainment such as Bye Bye Birdie Tickets and resources. His articles include resources for Broadway and New York City including Bye Bye Birdie tickets information.