MTC cancels Lonergan's The Starry Messenger

Here's something that slipped under my radar during all the strike(s) hubbub: MTC has cancelled it's upcoming production of Kenneth Lonergan's new play The Starry Messenger. Matthew Broderick was slated to star in the play off-broadway, and there was a lot of buzz around the show, as one of the highlights of MTC's season.

Manhattan Theatre Club's only expanation was, "Scheduling conflicts make it impossible to proceed in the allotted time slot," which means exactly nothing. Indeed, the production is still listed on the company's website, a full day after the announcement. I'm sure their subscribers will be thrilled to hear about the cancellation, and wonder what in the world would have stopped them from proceeding with the production. Casting was in progress, with some pretty great people lined up to star alongside Broderick. I wonder if it's something personal going on with Broderick or Lonergan, who was also set to direct the play.

Shoot! I was looking forward to this.

Catch Leo Bloom If You Can

Looks like the Catch Me If You Can musical is happening. Tom Wopat (currently on tour with Chicago) says he's been cast, along with Nathan Lane. From canada.com:

Between musicals and cutting CDs, Wopat lives in Manhattan and has a getaway cabin on a lake in upper New Jersey. He cooks, gardens and plans for his next role, one in the musical version of Catch Me If You Can, with Nathan Lane.

We can only presume that Lane will play the Tom Hanks role, and that Wopat will NOT be playing the Leonardo DiCaprio role. My bet is that Wopat will play Leo's dad, the Christopher Walken character in the movie. So, who do we think will be cast opposite Lane? Matt Morrison might be able to do it, or how about (ooohhh...) Steve Kazee, or Christian Hoff? Whoever ends up nabbing it, Moxie's got one note to the producers: Please, please, please do not bring this to Broadway: