By Jackie Demaline
The Cincinnati Enquirer

There will be cheering at Paul Brown Stadium tonight, but it won't be for the Bengals, it will be for the Tony Awards.

Don't look for playwright Kevin Barry in the crowd cheering on Hairspray and local producers Rick Steiner, Fred Mayerson and John Osher. (Or featured actress nominee and CCM grad Michele Pawk.)

Barry will be at the Tony Awards, if traffic is with him. This afternoon his play, In Rebel Country (which premiered at Know Theatre Tribe) will be read at New York's 13th Street Repertory Company, then he hot-foots it uptown for Broadway's big night.

You can still come to the live broadcast party, benefiting Ensemble Theatre. For $25, you can arrive at 7:30 p.m. (prior to the 8 p.m. start) and enjoy New York-themed appetizers and two drink tickets.

CCM grads grab spotlight

In more Tony news, College-Conservatory of Music's musical theater grads were in the spotlight at the annual Tony Time Party at Sardi's last Sunday.

The entertainment was Covers On, with Broadway headliners introducing their understudies and standbys who each sang a number from their show.

Three of the six showcased performers were CCM alums: Shoshana Bean sang "Good Morning, Baltimore!" from Hairspray; Sara Gettlefinger took over from Jane Krakowski in "Call from the Vatican" from Nine and Nikki Daniels belted out "Alfie" from Burt Bacharach/Hal David revue The Look of Love.

'On the Town' revives

Here's a question for local theater fans with long memories: Will the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music's revival of the exuberant Broadway classic On the Town next fall be a Cincinnati premiere?

I couldn't turn up evidence of a local production and neither could licensing agent Tams-Witmark. It doesn't seem likely that in almost 60 years there hasn't been a pro production here, but...

On the Town is, of course, the great song-and-dance show about three sailors on 24-hour leave in New York (the wonderful town where "the Bronx is up and the Battery's down/the people ride in a hole in the ground...").

More updates on the CCM season, announced last week: Composition department faculty member Michael Fiday will compose an original score for Ezra Pound's adaptation of Greek tragedy Elektra.

Director Nick Mangano, fresh from media opera Three Tales' tour of the international festival circuit, says he's "delighted."

Call the box office at 556-4183, subscriptions are on sale now.

Readings at Rosenthal Center

The Lois & Richard Rosenthal Center for Contemporary Art continues its opening celebration with programming in the performance space in the lower level.

Cincinnati Playwrights Initiative will have back-to-back readings tonight and Monday:

Pauline Smolin's Numbers Man will be read at 6 p.m. tonight. "It's a modern Faust story about a former CFO awaiting a promised parson in a minimum security prison," says Smolin. The cast includes Michael Bath and Michael Shooner. Jane Goetzman directs.

CPI executive director Chuck Wente's Son of the Moon, a consideraton of filmmaker Orson Welles, will be read at 6 p.m. Monday. Greg Procaccino will direct. The cast includes Chip Smith, Bob Allen, Sue Breving, Bill Hartnett, Elaine Wilson, Bill Keaton and Ernie Rowland.

Readings free with museum admission.

Rice does encore

After the reading, if you were knocked out by Clara Rice's performance on stage at Hamburger Mary's during last month's Bar Tour, you can catch her again at 9 p.m. Monday at the Federal Reserve (Fourth and Race streets, downtown).

Cincinnati revitalization efforts

Keep your eyes on how this progresses: a four-hour "work session" took place Tuesday at Greater Cincinnati Foundation with the heads of The Big Eight and beyond; John Alschuler, in town to present his "Center City" plan to revitalize Cincinnati to a variety of interest groups; and Louise Stevens, the arts consultant who's been promoting the concept of a Cincinnati Cultural Trust - which hit road blocks almost as soon as it went public a few months ago.

Among the topics of discussion: buy in to the realization that culturally, the way things have always been done is no longer the best way.

Tuesday ended with no outcomes, but there was the realization that the people in the room have to come together again, soon, for some decision-making.

It's a start.

E-mail jdemaline@enquirer.com