Check out the latest from producer Ryan Murphy, who gave us Glee, American Horror Story, and Pose - thenew original comedy series, The Politician.
This is the first series for the streaming service from Murphy, who last year signed a five-year $300 million contract with the company.
The show will be an anthology series, like Murphy's American Horror Story and American Crime Story, wherein each season will tell its own tale.
In Season One, Payton Hobart, played by Tony Award winner Ben Platt (Dear Evan Hansen), is a wealthy student from Santa Barbara, California, who's known since age seven that he's going to be the President of the United States.
But before he can get to the White House, he'll have to navigate the most treacherous political landscape of all: Saint Sebastian High School.
The longterm plan is: get elected Student Body President, get into Harvard, and no matter what - keep his eye on that Oval Office prize.
But first, Payton will have to outmaneuver his cold-blooded, cunning classmates without sacrificing his own morality and carefully crafted image.
Even his mother, played by Oscar-winner Gywneth Paltrow, admits to Payton, "Your ambition frightens me."
The sly, satirical dark comedy offers a rare glimpse into just what it takes to make a politician.
The trailer is a fast-paced affair and includes a same-sex kiss for Platt - so don't blink.
Bette Midler recently announced on Twitter that she and LGBTQ ally Judith Light have also joined the cast.
It's worth hitting the play button just to see Jessica Lange wonder why calling a gay man a 'butt-muncher' would be a scandal: "It's what gays do - munch butt and celebrate Halloween..."
• Here's a t-shirt (modeled by InstaHunk Ramses Principe) that I can totally relate to ;)
• The governor of Utah has signed into law the state's new, tougher hate crimes law with stricter punishments for those who commit crimes specifically due to bias. Yes - Utah!
• Even though Netflix cancelled the terrific One Day at a Time reboot, the streaming giant may be standing in the show's way of finding a new home.
• Starting out at a bus stop as young boys, James Corden and Tony Award winner Ben Platt tell the story of a life-long friendship using 9 different sets and 12 carefully curated songs all captured in one take.
• Investigators on Special Counsel Robert Mueller's team say the four page letter by Attorney General William Barr didn't adequately portray the findings of their investigation.
• Donald Trump's choices for ambassadorships has been, interesting, to say the least. Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates — a wealthy real estate developer with no diplomatic experience. Ambassador to Morocco? A well-heeled car dealer. For Iceland? While well-traveled, the nominee had never even been to the Nordic country.
• The brilliant satirist, Randy Rainbow, offers his parody of the Disney classic, "Cruella DeVille," with a nod to our current clueless Education Secretary Betsy DeVos.
Grammy and Tony Award winner Ben Platt releases his fourth music video, “Temporary Love,” from his upcoming solo debut album, Sing To Me Instead.
The first two singles, “Bad Habit” and “Ease My Mind,” featured out actor Charlie Carver as his love interest in days gone by. With the release of the second track, Platt publicly came out as gay via People Magazine.
The third video, “Grow As We Go,” featured dancers Rudy Abreu and Effie Tutko to spectacular effect as, again, Platt seemed to be looking back at lost loves.
“Temporary Love” finds the 25-year-old reassuring a partner that their relationship is NOT temporary, but here to last.
This is not a temporary love
Now your heart is in my hands, I won't give it up
This is not a temporary love
The music video, directed by frequent collaborator Nick Lieberman, follows the soulful singer wandering through an old, abandoned house while flashes of couples of all types - gay, lesbian, straight, older, younger - flash across the screen.
As in “Ease My Mind,” Platt pairs his powerful voice with a gospel-tinged chorus, providing a comfortable sweet spot for his vulnerable, evocative vocals.
Platt is scheduled to perform the new single March 14 on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
Emmy/Grammy/Tony Award winner Ben Platt (Dear Evan Hansen) releases “Grow As We Go” today, the third track from his upcoming debut solo album, Sing to Me Instead.
The music video for the song completes a trilogy begun in his first two music videos, “Bad Habit” and “Ease My Mind,” which featured out actor Charlie Carver (Teen Wolf, The Boys in the Band) as Platt’s love interest.
Platt officially came out with the release of the second video telling PEOPLE, “If I was going to write about people I loved, I wasn’t going to pretend they weren’t men just because I hadn’t talked about that before.”
“I only wanted to take this leap if I was going to present every part of myself,” added the Pitch Perfect star.
Platt has previously shared that the album will chart the course of a romantic relationship from beginning to end, and represent an amalgamation of past loves.
The poignant, acoustic guitar-driven “Grow As We Go” reins in Platt’s signature power vocals to a calm, comforting promise of support. Instead of building to a big, dramatic climax, Platt does the opposite, pulling the listener in with an emotional sotto voce release.
You don’t ever have to leave
If to change is what you need
You can change right next to me
When you’re high I’ll take the lows
You can ebb and I can flow
And we’ll take it slow
And grow as we go
The video, directed by Nick Lieberman, features gorgeous performances by dancers Rudy Abreu and Effie Tutko who live out the highs and lows of connection, often trying to resist their intense attraction only to be drawn back together.
As a whole, the video delivers on an undeniably emotional, affecting level.
Sing to Me Instead drops March 29 with a 12-city tour beginning in Chicago May 3, and winding up in Los Angeles May 24.
Ben Platt and Charlie Carver in "Ease My Mind" (screen capture)
For several years now, Broadway’s sensitive ‘golden boy,’ Ben Platt has captured the hearts and minds of theater audiences with his show-stopping performances in The Book of Mormon and his Tony Award-winning turn as the anxious, social misfit “Evan Hansen” in the hit musical, Dear Evan Hansen.
Now, he’s set his sights on conquering the music industry with his first solo album, Sing To Me Instead, set to drop on March 29.
He recently released the first two music videos from the album, both directed by longtime friend Nick Lieberman.
At the end of “Bad Habit,” after spending the bulk of the song missing a former lover, a last second shot revealed that lover to be out actor Charlie Carver (Teen Wolf, Boys in the Band).
At the time, this writer wondered, “Did Ben Platt just come out?”
In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Platt does just that as he shares that wanted his audience to hear from the authentic “Ben."
“If I was going to write about people I loved, I wasn’t going to pretend they weren’t men just because I hadn’t talked about that before,” Platt tells PEOPLE.
As he worked with a team of songwriters to create what he wanted to be a deeply personal statement about who he is, Platt felt the album would be his “first opportunity to represent my relationships and the men that I’ve loved.”
“I only wanted to take this leap if I was going to present every part of myself,” he adds.
Always a storyteller, Platt knew he wanted the collection of songs to have an arc that covered not only his personal relationships but “a grander perspective about bigger questions about family and mortality and things like that.”
Platt released the full music video for the gospel-tinged, “Ease My Mind,” today again incorporating a relationship with Charlie Carver in the story arc.
“As a kid, I wanted to do an original musical and get a Tony, and so the fact that that happened is such a freeing thing,” says Platt. “Now I can sort of go down another path and see where that leads.”
Tony Award winner Ben Platt (Dear Evan Hansen) drops the first two tracks from his upcoming debut album, Sing To Me Instead.
Platt recently told the Los Angeles Times that the album will be structured with a loose narrative based on his own past relationships.
The first, "Bad Habit,"gives Platt fans exactly what they want: a sensitive and raw reading on missing an ex that builds to pop power ballad levels complete with long-held, over-the-bar notes.
"'Bad Habit' is like a prologue, somebody singing retrospectively about a relationship they've gotten out of and realizing that they have somewhat of an addiction to this person," he told the LA Times. "And regardless of understanding they may not be the best or healthiest person for them, there's just still this hole inside that's hard to ignore."
Out actor Charlie Carver (The Boys in the Band, Teen Wolf) has a cameo at the end of the music video which seems to make this a story of gay love gone bad.
Did Ben Platt just come out?
The second, "Ease My Mind," is a thoughtful, piano-driven, R&B-style ballad that leads to a rich, gospel-inspired release.
Platt says the track, "harkens to the beginning of that relationship to consider the reasons why it got started in the first place."
Platt will next lead an all-star cast in the much-anticipated new Netflix series, The Politician, set to premiere laster this year. Platt's co-stars include Jessica Lange, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Zoey Deutch.
He will also star in the upcoming films Run This Town – premiering at this year’s SXSW Film Festival – and Broken Diamonds.
Check out the new tracks below. Sing To Me Instead will be released March 29.
Tony Award winners Lin-Manuel Miranda and Ben Platt performed their collaboration "Found Tonight" during the March for Our Lives in Washington, DC today.
The track combines songs of empowerment from each of their blockbuster Broadway musicals, Dear Evan Hansen and Hamilton.
Last week, the duo announced the proceeds from the song would go to ending gun violence.
As they left the stage, they encouraged the young protesters, "We love you. Don't give up."
Two Tony Award winners singing a mashup of two songs from back-to-back Tony Award winning scores and a portion of the proceeds go to help the March for Our Lives initiative.
Nope - can't find a thing wrong with that.
Lin-Manuel Miranda and Ben Platt finally team up for a mash-up of Hamilton and Dear Evan Hansen.
The new single “Found/Tonight,” arranged by Alex Lacamoire, brings together Hamilton's “The Story of Tonight” with Dear Evan Hansen's “You Will Be Found,” adding up to a truly anthemic theme song for the upcoming nationwide protest against gun violence, March for Our Lives.
USA Today sets up the two songs that become musical magic:
"The Story of Tonight," from Hamilton, is sung by a young Alexander Hamilton, Marquis de Lafayette, John Laurens and Hercules Mulligan, who share a round of drinks and camaraderie before joining the American Revolution.
"You Will Be Found," from the 2017 Tony winner for best musical Dear Evan Hansen, is a speech about loneliness and friendship intended to keep alive the memory of a high school pal who committed suicide.
And here's how it comes together: Even when the dark comes crashing through, when you need a friend to carry you, When you're broken on the ground, you will be found So let the sun come streaming in cause you'll reach up and you'll rise again, If you only look around, you will be found And when our children tell their story, they'll tell the story of tonight No matter what they tell you tomorrow there'll be more of us Telling the story of tonight
Bonus points for Platt getting to sing the word "tonight" as he's publicly campaigning to play "Tony" in the upcoming movie remake of West Side Story.
One of the students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, where last month's devastating gun massacre left 17 dead, clearly got the feels intended as he promoted the song on Twitter:
Furniture store Ethan Allen features a jazzy/pop version of Stephen Sondheim's "Putting It Together" in its new commercial and apparently it blew Tony Award-winner Ben Platt's mind.
I’m sorry but has anyone seen the Ethan Allen commercial that uses a pop version of Putting it Together from Sunday in the Park with George because it just came on my TV and I thought I was having a stroke
Sung by Anna Dellaria, the spot highlights Ethan Allen's attention to detail.
Bit by bit, piece by piece, we put together this game-changer of an ad to let the world know that Ethan Allen's designers – and the free design service they provide – are the best in the business.
LOL... I love that Ben is so attuned to Sondheim's presence in a commercial.
Patti LuPone delivers stunning "Don't Cry For Me Argentina" at 2018 Grammy Awards
Last night's Grammy Awards included tributes to Broadway legends Andrew Lloyd Webber and Leonard Bernstein performed by Tony Award winners Ben Platt (Dear Evan Hansen) and the one and only Patti Lupone (Evita).
Platt delivered a stirring "Somewhere" from Bernstein's West Side Story, but it was LuPone's electrifying "Don't Cry For Me Argentina" from the original Broadway production of Evita in 1979 (a true diva who can still deliver like a boss 39 years later) that stunned the Grammy audience.
LuPone quickly began trending on Twitter.
It was also a big night for Platt as the Dear Evan Hansen cast recording took home the 2018 Grammy for Best Musical Theater Album, moving Platt to the halfway mark to EGOT status ― that is, winning Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony awards.
Watch both performances below.
Brava #PattiLuPone 👏 She slayed the #GRAMMYs with Don't Cry for me Argentina 🎙️🎶
Ben Platt's powerful star-making turn as a young high schooler in Broadway's runaway hit Dear Evan Hansen is sadly coming to a close on November 19.
He'll be replaced for six weeks by Noah Galvin (The Real O'Neals) followed by the current "Barnaby" in Hello Dolly!, Taylor Trensch, in January 2018.
The three actors appear in this short, light-hearted video where the trio meet up in the streets of New York City to kick-ball-change to Earth, Wind & Fire's "Getaway."
There's a bit of a "passing of the torch" as clip ends with Galvin and Trensch heading towards their future Broadway theater with Platt watches them walk away.
Ben Platt, this year's Tony Award winner for "Best Actor in a Musical" for his star turn in Dear Evan Hansen, makes for a perfectly adorable 23-year-old ADHD twink who finds himself attracted to Eric McCormack's "Will" this week on Will & Grace.
I enjoyed last night's Tony Awards broadcast muchly.
For one thing, rather than one of those year's where one show dominates heavily (Hamilton, Chicago, The Producers), for the most part the Tony voters seemed happy to share the wealth among several productions. And I like that. The Tonys are, in great part, a marketing tool to help shows run, and when everyone is acknowledged for excellent work, the entire theater community wins.
All in all, I agreed with just about every winner (I hate using that word) in each category.
Other random thoughts:
• It's ridiculous that the Choreographer category isn't presented during the telecast. I won't qualify artistic contributions among team mates, but the choreographer (the most physically demanding position on a creative team) creates highly complex storytelling without the use of spoken language. The number from Andy Blankenbuehler's Bandstand was easily a standout among all the numbers featured last night. Also, look at the popularity of dance today across the country (So You Think You Can Dance, Dancing With The Stars). There's intense interest in the art form.
For those who didn't see Andy's acceptance speech:
Check out Dr. Jill Biden (huge standing ovation) introducing "Nobody" from Bandstand. This is excellent choreography :)
• Whether it was Bette Midler demurring or producer Scott Rudin not wanting to "give away the goods," it was a shame there was no production number from this year's biggest hit, Hello, Dolly! • While I miss seeing excerpts from the nominated plays, I did enjoy seeing the playwrights introduced and being allowed to speak about their shows.
• The In Memoriam was handled with taste and grace. Thank you.
• The two most memorable speeches (vastly different in tone) were:
Ben Platt winning "Best Actor in a Musical" for Dear Evan Hansen - "To all young people watching at home, don't waste any time trying to be like anybody but yourself. The things that make you strange are the things that make you powerful."
And Bette Midler's four minute filibuster ("Shut that crap off!") for "Best Actress in a Musical" for Hello, Dolly!:
• Kevin Spacey did a good job as host. Brilliant? Maybe not, but he was solid and brings aesthetic weight to the stage. I wasn't a huge fan of the impersonation schtick, but I know there were producers and writers making a lot of those decisions, so... Much is being made about his "in the closet" jokes. On one hand folks seem to be of the opinion he's basically out to everyone but the masses, so he should be be out; on the other hand, he's dealt with the rumors for years and if he wants to joke about them, whatever.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, ratings for this year's telecast were down 31 percent from last year's show. According to Nielsen overnight returns, the telecast averaged a 4.7 rating among metered market households, almost tying for the Tony broadcast from five years ago. The numbers appear to be strong enough to top NBC's coverage of the Stanley Cup Finals, although they may fall short of winning in the Adult 18-49 demo.
In comparison, the 2016 TONY AWARDS reached a 15-year viewership high, averaging a 6.8 rating among households in overnight returns, ultimately delivering 8.7 million viewers and a 1.6 rating among adults 18-49.
Click here to see many of the performances and acceptance speeches.
Here's the full list of the artists who took home awards last night:
Best musical: "Dear Evan Hansen"
Best play: "Oslo"
Best revival of a play: "August Wilson's Jitney"
Best revival of a musical: "Hello, Dolly!"
Best book of a musical: "Dear Evan Hansen," Steven Levenson
Best original score (music and/or lyrics) written for the theater: "Dear Evan Hansen," Music and lyrics: Benj Pasek & Justin Paul
Tony Awards 2017: Highlights, winners and best moments
Best performance by an actor in a leading role in a musical: Ben Platt, "Dear Evan Hansen"
Best performance by an actress in a leading role in a musical: Bette Midler, "Hello, Dolly!"
Best performance by an actor in a leading role in a play: Kevin Kline, "Present Laughter"
Best performance by an actress in a leading role in a play: Laurie Metcalf, "A Doll's House, Part 2"
Best performance by an actor in a featured role in a play: Michael Aronov, "Oslo"
Best performance by an actress in a featured role in a play: Cynthia Nixon, "Lillian Hellman's The Little Foxes"
Best performance by an actor in a featured role in a musical: Gavin Creel, "Hello, Dolly!"
Best performance by an actress in a featured role in a musical: Rachel Bay Jones, "Dear Evan Hansen"
Best scenic design of a play: Nigel Hook, "The Play That Goes Wrong"
Best scenic design of a musical: Mimi Lien, "Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812"
Best costume design of a play: Jane Greenwood, "Lillian Hellman's The Little Foxes"
Best costume design of a musical: Santo Loquasto, "Hello, Dolly!"
Best lighting design of a play: Christopher Akerlind, "Indecent"
Best lighting design of a musical: Bradley King, "Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812"
Best direction of a play: Rebecca Taichman, "Indecent"
Best direction of a musical: Christopher Ashley, "Come From Away"
Best choreography: Andy Blankenbuehler, "Bandstand"
Best orchestrations: Alex Lacamoire, "Dear Evan Hansen"
Special Tony Award for lifetime achievement in the theatre: James Earl Jones
Special Tony Award: Gareth Fry and Pete Malkin, sound designers for "The Encounter"
Regional theatre Tony Award: Dallas Theater Center in Dallas, Texas
Isabelle Stevenson Tony Award: Baayork Lee
Tony honors for excellence in theater: Nina Lannan and Alan Wasser
According to everyone I know, Ben Platt's devastating performance as the title character in the hit Broadway musical, Dear Evan Hansen, is about to be honored with a Tony Award for "Best Performance by an Actor in a Musical."
The musical is about an awkward teen who feels isolated in life. His therapist advises him to write himself a hopeful letter each day, which he does.
But one of those daily letters, wherein Evan appears to have given up on his senior year and wonders if anyone would notice if he were gone, accidentally falls into the hands of another student shortly before that student commits suicide.
The boy's family, and eventually everyone, assume the letter to have been addressed to Evan, now perceived as the boy's best friend. This event cracks open Evan's lonely life.
This week Platt performed the song "For Forever" on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert for the first time outside the context of the show, to devastating effect.
Here's how Platt introduced the performance.
"The song is called "For Forever. This is the first time I've ever sung the song outside the context of the show.
"Essentially, this lie that we talked about earlier that he fabricated is that he was friends with this kid in his class that committed suicide. And so Evan has been invited over to dinner by this kids grieving family. They've been led to believe that he was a friend of their son.
"Evan's plan when he goes into dinner he tried to either diffuse that or make sure the situation ends right there.
"However, the mother of this kid is so in desperate need of something good to hang on to, some sort of memory, that Evan starts to fabricate this story about a day that they had, a friendship that never existed.
"And in doing so, visibly helps this mother to heal. And also sort of finds he gets to heal a bit himself. A sort of answer to his loneliness he didn't expect to find."
James Corden and The Late Late Show hit another out of the park with this parody of the current White House tenants 'back when.'
Composer Tim Minchin, Ben Platt (Dear Even Hansen), Abigail Spencer ("Timeless") and host James Corden perform a parody of Matilda's "When I Grow Up" playing the roles of Donald Trump, Sean Spicer, Kellyanne Conway and Steve Bannon, respectively, wondering what running the world would be like as adults.
