FOREVER PLAID Celebrates 20 Year Anniversary (Triad is the original home of Forever Plaid)

The Triad Theater (then called Steve McGraws) is where Forever Plaid made it's debut and played for over 5 years. Since then the show has become perhaps the most successful show in Off-Broadway History grossing over 300 million dollars worldwide. All of this came about from a small little show at our 130 seat theater.

On Thursday July 9th a live broadcast and filmed event of the show was broadcast into 375 theaters and featured 3 members of the original cast. Below is some information aboutthe show & live filmed broadcast from Forever Plaid's website:

Amassing loyal followers around the world, the Plaid fan base has been constantly growing for nearly twenty years. All these fans have now become part of the "Frequent Plaid" program. 'Plaid Heads' (a term coined by Jay Leno) have seen the show upwards of 700 times! 'Plaid Head' celebrities include Joanne Woodward, Goldie Hawn, Liza Minnelli, Garry Marshall, Jason Alexander, Elaine Stritch, Rosie O'Donnell, Tommy Hilfiger, Bette Midler, Joan Baez and Robert Reich. The film features cameos by Fred Willard, Loni Anderson, Rose Marie, Kate Linder, and Melissa Manchester.
―FOREVER PLAID‖ has played the East Room of the White House (under the first Bush administration), and The Plaids have also sung for President Clinton at both his Democratic Conventions. In London ―FOREVER PLAID‖ gave a command performance for HRH Queen Elizabeth. In Japan, the show was sponsored by the government and was honored with performances for Japanese dignitaries. The show has played non-stop, worldwide for nearly twenty years.

Broadway World Photo Coverage of Erotic Broadway's Debut at Triad June 29th 2009

Adam Shorsten, Anthony Francavilla, Michelle Mantione, and The Imagination Company presented EROTIC BROADWAY at The Triad on Monday June 29th. EROTIC BROADWAY is New York City's sexiest, new late-night Monday series. BroadwayWorld.com made the late night trip to the Triad to cover all the seductive action.

Two of Broadways hottest talents, Nick Adams and Kearran Giovanni guest starred in the June 29th performance which was choreographed by Broadway's hottest dance talent, Lorin Latarro.

Press notes describe EROTIC BROADWAY as, "this stimulating and irreverent adults-only variety show series, showcasing Broadway's brightest talent, will feature an erotically-charged evening of dance, slinky love songs, risqué stand-up comedy, steamy story telling and...well, who knows what else? Featuring a new cast and creative team at each performance, the hottest and most exciting talent on Broadway will offer their own unique and different interpretation of the genre."

Future performance dates are July 20th, August 10th, August 24th, October 5th & October 19th at 9:30pm. Cast and creative teams to be announced.

The Triad is located at 158 West 72nd Street, NY, NY. www.triadnyc.com Tickets are $50, $35 & $30 each plus a 2 beverage minimum. Tickets on sale now for all performances at www.smarttix.com.

"The Real Billy Elliot" by Rex Reed New York Observer May 19th, 2009

Jon Peterson: Song Man Dance Man
The Triad, 158 West 72 Street

With youth, one expects energy and exuberance, but good looks, intelligence and talent are rarely found in the same package. Jon Peterson, an enchanting new performer from England who has “adopted” the Apple as his own, has got it all. In Song Man Dance Man, an entertaining nonstop revue at the beautifully refurbished cabaret theater called the Triad, Mr. Peterson is paying homage to the historic song-and-dance icons George M. Cohan, Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Bobby Darin and Anthony Newley. A combination of Tommy Steele and Norman Wisdom, he was a veteran of the Royal Ballet School at 9 years old. But Swan Lake didn’t hold a candle to MGM musicals, and Mr. Peterson never had any doubt what he wanted to be when he grew up. He is, in many ways, the real Billy Elliot.

Unfortunately, by the time he was handsome and supple enough to become the new Bob Fosse, movie musicals were over. That hasn’t stopped him from emulating his heroes. From a vaudeville trunk he extracts top hats, canes, baseball caps and props to create his own version of That’s Entertainment! His Bobby Darin needs work, but the athletic cockiness of Gene Kelly shines through, tough but tender on “For Me and My Gal” and wet dancing with an umbrella on “Singin’ in the Rain.” He doesn’t imitate the cockney of fellow Londoner Anthony Newley. He channels him, until his “Once in a Lifetime” sends chills down your spine. His biographical patter is revealing, his personal revelations are endearing and his tap-dancing is aces high. With flipper shoes, baggy pants, white gloves protruding from a long purple coat, orange shirt and polka dot tie, he kneels in front of a mirror applying clown makeup and emerges as Kelly singing Cole Porter’s “Be a Clown” in The Pirate, then keeps the makeup on for “What Kind of Fool Am I?” which displays the serious, lonely side of a clown and builds to a perfect finale.

Out of character, his floppy hair refuses to stay in place, and his smile is as warm as Palm Springs in December. With Hermes Pan to do the choreography, Conrad Salinger to write the arrangements and Ira Gershwin to pen the lyrics, Jon Peterson could have been a big star. Even in the creatively bankrupt show business world of today, he vibrates with talent and charisma, and in the right vehicle he could own the stage. 

rreed@observer.com

From the INSIDER.com - Schirripa And Richards On Mulberry Street

We had the pleasure of catching up yesterday with our pal Steve Schirripa and his good friend Sal Richards at Il Cortile in Little Italy yesterday. Steve, who rose to international notoriety for his role as Bobby ‘Bacala’ Baccalieri on HBO’s The Sopranos, was with entertainer Sal Richards shooting a commercial for an upcoming appearance at the Andiamo Celebrity Showroom in Warren, Michigan. Steve was en route after his shoot to The Triad to participate in their Drama Desk Winning show, Celebrity Autobiography. Richards, who’ll be appearing at The Triad Theatre in July and August, has his own documentary coming out later this summer entitled ‘Mr. Laughs: A Look behind The Curtain.’ The movie is narrated by Vincent D’Onofrio, from ‘Law And Order: Criminal Intent’, and features his rather dramatic life story … which is very definitely to be continued. The movie which we here at Times Square Gossip got an advance look at, features testimonials from the likes of Sid Ceasar; Don Rickles; Jackie Mason; Jerry Stiller; Soupy Sales; The View’s Joy Behar; Norm Crosby; Lanie Kazan; and Julius LaRosa, among others. It is a lovingly rendered work … sure to be a favorite. The film was directed by Gregory Principato. Richards’ show, ‘The Way It Was’ will be at The Traid theatre on West 72nd street on July 22 and 29, and August 6 and 13.

Celebrity Autobiography at Triad Wins Drama Desk for Best Unique Theatrical Experience

The next Scheduled Performance is Monday, June 22 at 7:30pm

Scheduled to appear are:

Rachel Dratch, Jackie Hoffman, Kristen Johnston (3rd Rock) Eugene Pack, Dayle Reyfel, Steve Schirripa (Sopranos), Sherri Shepherd (The View), Alan Zweibel, and more!

Paulie Walnuts (Tony Sirico) from the Sopranos attends fellow Soprano Tony Darrow's show last night

Another great show last night by Tony Darrow (Sopranos, Goodfellas and many Woody Allen Films).

Tony Sirico (Paulie Walnuts) fellow Sopranos was in attendance.    Three more shows remain on Thursday

nights at 9pm.    Remaining tickets are available on Smarttix.com.   

Drama Desk Nomination for Celebrity Autobiography at Triad

Celebrity Autobiography was nominated for a Drama Desk Award.    A new show for Mother's Day was scheduled for Sunday May 10th at 7pm.       Bring your Mother for free.    For tickets visit www.smarttix.com and put in code MD25 or call 212-868-4444.

Judith Light, Vanessa Williams, Michael Urie & Bernadette Peters at Triad for Celebrity Autobiography (March 30th)

From Time Square Gossip - Former NY Knick John Starks & Jaid Barrymore attend Tony Darrow's Sold Out One Man Show

Actor TONY DARROW's one-man show at New York's Triad had its second performance last night (with GIANNI RUSSO -Carlo from The Godfather-; JAID BARRYMORE -Drew's mom-; KEITH GIRARD from The Improper, NBA-great JOHN STARKS in the sold-out audience; and, guest host GOUMBA JOHNNY SIALIANO from WKTU), and he killed once again! The actor, perhaps best-known as 'Sonny Bunz' from GOOD FELLAS, first made his mark as a stand-up comedian, with stints in Las Vegas and Atlantic City, opening up for names like Buddy Hackett. Then one day, out of the blue, his agent called to say he had set up a meeting with MARTY SCORSESE. He met Marty and decided to do some shtick from his act. The director loved it, and commented, “That’s exactly what I want.” He got the gig and worked alongside the stellar cast of that movie, including ROBERT DeNIRO; JOE PESCI; RAY LIOTTA; and, PAUL SORVINO. Pesci’s character at one point starts whacking Darrow’s character with a wine bottle. Needless to say … the die was cast. 5 movies with WOODY ALLEN followed, as well as the movie SEARCHING FOR BOBBY D and ANALYZE THIS. He also essayed the role of ‘Larry Boy Barese’ in HBO’s The Sopranos. Allen’s office called this week and said the Wood-man himself might be down at future show. Darrow likes to say, that both ALLEN and SCORSESE discovered him … not bad! He also appeared in MICKEY BLUE EYES with HUGH GRANT and JAMES CAAN, and several LAW & ORDER episodes. His show is an observational one, with ribald comments about some of the personalities he’s come up against and much interaction with the audience, and the audience last night was ready to interact! especially the group sitting right in front of us! We sat half-way back with the show's PR-mouthpiece, The Pasha, David Salidor. Funny stuff for sure ... conjuring up the best vaudeville moments ever. The guy knows his stuff. A video montage of his career opens the laugh-filled show and reminds the audience of his many memorable moments onscreen ... small and large. His show runs through May 21st (GoodFella Thursdays) and should not be missed. The show is produced by Paul Borghese, who most recently produced the stellar LAMPOST REUNION, with FRANK (RAO’s) PELLIGRINO. Not every actor can carry a one-man show with this much style and grace … at the top of our list … TONY DARROW!

Notable Personalities Attending Shows at Triad this Month

Rene Zelwegger, Frank Langella, Bernadette Peters, Geoffrey Holder, Vanessa Williams & Ben Vereen attended shows at Triad this March.      

The VIEW - Celebrity Autobiography Featured on Tuesday's April 7th Show

The View rebroadcast the show which featured Joy Behar, Sherri Sheppherd and Kristen Johnston reading excerpts from the Hit Show at Triad, "Celebrity Autobiography".

New York Post Article - Kristin Chenoweth & Celebrity Autobiography (March 29th 2009)

A LITTLE BIT WICKED
By MICHAEL RIEDEL
When I first picked up Kristin Chenoweth's memoir, I thought: "Well, this is perfect fodder for 'Celebrity Autobiography.' " That's the popular Off-Broadway revue at the Triad in which actors read, perfectly straight, excerpts from celebrity memoirs. The unbridled narcissism, the bromides about "life lessons" and the awful writing found in such books give "Celebrity Autobiography" its razor-sharp teeth, and it chomps down on its famous victims the way Jaws does midnight swimmers. Chenoweth, I feared, would soon find herself applying a tourniquet alongside Vanna White ("Vanna Speaks"), Kenny Loggins ("The Unimaginable Life: Lessons Learned on the Path to Love") and David Cassidy ("Could It Be Forever?"). As it turns out, "A Little Bit Wicked" will likely be spared the shame, because Chenoweth's in on the joke. Just when you think she's pouring too much syrup on her waffle, she cuts it with some vinegar, usually in the form of a self-deprecating crack. Her flop sitcom "Kristin"? "Huge hit. Yak-dropping huge. Terribly misunderstood," she writes. Meeting NBC chief Jeff Zucker, who axed her show after a few episodes, she tells him: "Hey! Thanks for canceling my show, you party-pooper." Shortly before posing nude for FHM magazine, a gay friend notices she's put on weight. "I guess I'm retaining a little water," she allows. "Like Hoover Dam retains a little water?" he replies. Chenoweth skips through her life in bright and breezy fashion, and on the whole she's had a pretty good time. Adopted by a kind and loving couple, she grew up comfortably in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. Foreshadowing her show queen appeal, she reports that her high school boyfriend had "model good looks," liked to shop and helped design her prom dress (one suspects he went on to other crushes -- Ethel Merman, Patti LuPone, Hugh Jackman). She was on the beauty pageant circuit for awhile, but never nabbed a crown. Asked by a judge for her opinion of "60 Minutes," she replied: "I think . . . that's about the right amount of time." Blessed with an operatic voice, she gave up a classical music to pursue a career on Broadway. She appeared in a revival of "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown," and while the show was a flop, Chenoweth, who played Charlie Brown's sharp-tongued little sister Sally, walked away with "A Star Is Born"-type reviews. Soon she was in Hollywood, appearing most notably as media consultant Annabeth Schott on "The West Wing." Chenoweth has had an on-again-off-again romance with "West Wing" creator Aaron Sorkin. He makes a cameo appearance in the book, writing a funny and charming chapter about his state of mind on the eve of their first date. "I'd moved from the Four Seasons into a rental in the Hollywood Hillsthat had once been owned by one of the Mamas and the Papas and then Sam Kinison," he writes. "Exactly the right place for someone who needs to concentrate every day on not using cocaine." Chenoweth doesn't go into details about their romantic problems, and my one complaint about her memoir is that it's light on juicy showbiz gossip. She hints at tension backstage at "Wicked," the blockbuster Broadway musical in which she played the good witch Galinda, but aside from reporting that the creators stormed out of the theater one night, she doesn't serve up any bitchy stories. But as she admits: "When I'm a grand old dame of the stage, I might get around to writing a proper 'tell-all' autobiography. Right now, I'm offering this completely biased 'tell-a-little' slice of life." "A Little Bit Wicked" is aimed at the hordes of teenage girls who flock to see "Wicked" around the world. But when she gets around to writing that "grand old dame" memoir, she might want to channel Elaine Stritch a bit more and Galinda a bit less. Michael Riedel is The Post's Broadway columnist. A Little Bit Wicked Life, Love and Faith in Stages by Kirstin Chenoweth Touchstone

New York Post Page 6 - Celebrity Autobiography - April 5, 2009

April 5, 2009 --

THAT Scott Adsit, Michael Urie andRachel Dratch partied hard at Jennifer Klein's Wine & Roses on Columbus Avenue after the "Celebrity Autobiography" show the other night at the Triad, whereVanessa Williams read the autobiography of Ivana Trump and Craig Bierko read "The Jonas Brothers" in the voice ofFrankie Jonas, the 9-year-old bonus Jonas . . . THAT Vogue oracle Andre Leon Talley, shrouded in cashmere and velvet shoes with no socks, had a breakfast of fresh fruit and organic oatmeal with branding guru Peter Arnell at a meeting in Arnell's 7 World Trade Center offices . . . THAT Endeavor uber-agent Nick Stevens, who represents the likes of Ben Stiller, hung out withJames Gandolfini after seeing him in "God of Carnage."