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Jay Binder, whose more than four decades as a prominent Broadway casting director included finding just the right talent for such productions as The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast and Jerome Robbins’ Broadway, among many others, died peacefully today at his home. He was 71.

His death was announced by a press spokesperson.

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A founder and driving force behind the popular and acclaimed Encores! Great American Musicals in Concert series at New York City Center, Binder cast that series’ Chicago revival, which went on to Broadway and a Tony Award.

In all, Binder cast nearly 100 Broadway productions, including A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, Dames At Sea, Nice Work If You Can Get It, Gypsy, and The King and I. He cast Neil Simon’s Lost in Yonkers and every other production of the playwright’s work from 1990 through 2009.

“I worked hand-in-glove with Jay for two decades,...

After Larry Nassar was sentenced to up to 175 years in prison for sexually abusing women and girls, Aly Raisman delivered a powerful statement late Wednesday night.

The Olympic gymnast, who was one of more than 150 women and girls to accuse Nassar of sexual assault, tweeted her thanks to her “fellow survivors” for their “courage, strength, and leadership.”

“As we all continue to process our pain and suffering, it is my hope that in some way, sharing out impact statements is part of our healing process,” Raisman wrote. “There are going to be good days and there are going to be tough days,...

Former Team USA gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar has been sentenced to up to 175 years in prison for sexually abusing women and girls for years.

After days of hearing moving impact statements from dozens of victims, Judge Rosemarie Aquilina of Michigan’s Ingham County Circuit Court sentenced the 54-year-old predator to the lengthy sentence — the culmination of a long-term effort to take down the abuser.

“Your crimes have cut into the core of this community and families and many we don’t know,” Aquilina said before handing down the sentence. “There was no medical treatment. You did this for your pleasure and your control.

Aly Raisman is calling for an independent investigation of both USA Gymnastics and the United States Olympic Committee after accusing the organizations of “shamelessly taking credit” for the recent resignations of three Usag board members.

In a scathing statement posted on Twitter, the 23-year-old Olympian chided the organizations for their apparently disingenuous response to the sexual abuse scandal involving former Team USA gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar. Her address came shortly after news broke that three Usag board members had resigned from their positions.

“Over the weekend, the Usoc released a statement shamelessly taking credit for a few Usag resignations (note:...

At least 3 powerful members of the Team USA gymnastics board of directors have resigned ... just days after Aly Raisman Blasted the organization for its role in the Dr. Nassar sexual assault scandal.  [[tmz:video id="0_1q8s3x5t"]] Board of Directors executive leadership chairman Paul Parilla -- along with vice chairman Jay Binder and treasurer Bitsy Kelley have resigned, USA Gymnastics has confirmed.  By the way, all traces of the three board members have already been scrubbed from the Team USA gymnastics website.

Three former athletes who accused former USA Gymnastics team doctor Dr. Larry Nassar of sexual abuse are launching a petition calling for change in leadership within the organization in the wake of McKayla Maroney‘s moving post about sexual abuse she also allegedly endured under Nassar.

Jeanette Antolin, Jessica Howard and Olympian Jamie Dantzscher, who all accused Nassar of abuse in a February 60 Minutes interview, have started a petition on Change.org to demand that those who knew about, or turned a blind eye to, Nassar’s alleged abuse be held accountable.

“A lot of women have come forward now...

A new production of Howard Crabtree’s When Pigs Fly, exclusively announced on Deadline in August, has been cancelled before it ever took off. In a statement this morning, the producers said they had been unable to raise enough money to complete capitalization of the show, a campy, politically charged musical revue that was a two-year off-Broadway hit in the late 1990s.

Previews of the show already had been postponed, indicating the production was in trouble. It was slated to open October 30 at Stage 42, the Shubert Organization-owned off-Broadway house near Times Square. Ticket holders were instructed to return to point of purchase for refunds.

The musical was to have featured costumes by Bob Mackie, whose form-fitting, whimsical clothes for Carol Burnett, Cher and other stars have made him a Hollywood legend. Mackie’s last NYC venture was 2010’s Viagara Falls, a flop that played the same theater.

Shear Madness...

While the Oscars have yet to make room for casting directors — a pivotal part of the Best Picture equation — the oversight isn't stopping the Casting Society of America from readying its third decade of picking up the Academy's slack. Csa announced Monday morning that the 30th Annual Artios Awards will honor Academy Award-nominated and Emmy Award-winning director Rob Marshall and Emmy Award-winning casting director Ellen Lewis for their individual work in the world of casting. The news arrives with nominations in categories of television, theater, new media and short film, and on the heels of the ceremony's move from November to Jan. 22, the thick of the awards season. Feature film nominations will be announced closer to the show date. Marshall, whose adaptation of Stephen Sondheim's "Into the Woods" bows Dec. 25, will receive the New York Apple Award, "recognizing individuals who have made special contributions to the New York entertainment...

Backstage University is excited to start the week off with two amazing guests on Monday. First we have a musical theater audition masterclass with Broadway casting legend Jay Binder. He will be working with actors on their audition techniques with material from their song books. This class is almost sold out, so you should sign up fast. Also on Monday, we have an agent seminar with Ashley Landay of Professional Artists Agency. Landay is a return guest that has called in actors from Backstage University in the past. She will be meeting with actors individually and seeing contemporary monologues. On Tuesday we have our sold out networking event. These have become so popular that we are going to start doing them on a monthly basis. They always sell out fast, so keep an eye out for the next one to posted soon. On Wednesday, we welcome Peter Kaiser from the multi-office agency,...

As summer winds down, working actors everywhere are returning home from their summer theater productions. The leaves will fall, the showmances will fade, résumés will grow one credit longer, and the following things will be said. To themselves: “I did nothing but drink for three solid months, time to get back in shape!” To their actor friends who also booked work: “This was the best summer of my life!” To their actor friends who didn’t book work: “You didn’t miss much. You were better off in the city.” To their non-actor friends: “Yeah, I only made $300 a week, but it was so valuable to my résumé. You wouldn’t understand.” To their parents: “Seriously, I only made $300 a week. Send money or I’ll be homeless.” To their agent: “So this gig will get me seen by Jay Binder now, right?” To casting directors: “I am glad you called me in.

Broadway Grease Marty, Chicago Mona, Wedding Singer Donatella, Chitty Chitty Bang BangViolet. Off-BroadwayNYMF Play It Cool Lena, Tour De Fierce starring as Broadway Doll. National Tours A Chorus Line Cassie, 1st Nat'l, Spamalot Lady of the Lake us, Starlight Express Pearl. Regional Chicago Roxie. Gratitude must go out to Kathleen, Jay Binder, Professional Artists, Bbs, and my beloved friends. So much love to the amazing Hurder and Alves family, and to the love of my life, Clyde.

Playwright Tony Kushner, producer Marcy Carsey, and casting director Ellen Chenoweth will be honored by the Casting Society of America at this year's Artios Awards. The nominees for this year's awards—to be presented Nov. 1 in dual ceremonies at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles and the American Airlines Theatre in New York—were announced today. Kushner, Carsey, and Chenoweth will be presented with special awards. The complete list of nominees follows.Big budget feature, drama"Avatar," Margery Simkin and Mali Finn (initial casting)"Inglourious Basterds," Johanna Ray and Jenny Jue"Nine," Francine Maisler"Sherlock Holmes," Reg Poerscout-Edgerton"Shutter Island," Ellen Lewis and Carolyn Pickman (location casting)Big budget feature, comedy"Couples Retreat," Sarah Halley Finn and Randi Hiller"Date Night," Donna Isaacson"Julie and Julia," Francine Maisler"The Proposal," Amanda Mackey Johnson, Cathy Sandrich Gelfond, and Angela Peri (location casting)"Valentine's Day," Deborah Aquila and Tricia WoodFeature,...

Making for quite the glamorous evening in the Big Apple, the stars gathered together at Radio City Music Hall for the 2010 Tony Awards on Sunday night (June 13).

With Sean Hayes acting as the evening's host, big names such as Katie Holmes, Daniel Radcliffe, Beyonce and Jay-z, and Lea Michele all turned up for the annual Broadway event.

During the course of the evening, big winners included the lovely Scarlett Johansson as Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play for her work in "A View From a Bridge," as well as Denzel Washington as Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play for his stage duties in "Fences".

Also taking home trophies were Catherine Zeta Jones as Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical for "A Little Night Music," along with "Red," which received the best play prize and five other trophies.

The complete list of...

One has to hand it to the Tony nominators: They didn't follow conventional wisdom nor did they particularly pay heed to commercial considerations.

Indeed, some of the biggest noms went to shows that are either long gone ("Ragtime," "Finian's Rainbow," "In the Next Room, or the Vibrator Play," "Time Stands Still") or lagging at the boxoffice ("Fela!" "Memphis," "Next Fall," "Million Dollar Quartet").

The biggest surprises Tuesday were the omissions.

"The Addams Family," the most successful new musical of the season, was thoroughly dissed, failing to get noms for best musical, for its stars Nathan Lane or Bebe Neuwirth, or even for its production design. And though it did get one for original score, that's not exactly a coup in a season in which only one other musical, "Memphis," even had one. The category had to be embarrassingly filled out with the forgettable music from "Enron" and Branford Marsalis' incidental music for "Fences.

New York – Star wattage will burn bright at the 2010 Tony Awards with Denzel Washington, Jude Law, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Kelsey Grammer among those receiving nominations Tuesday.Washington and Law were each cited for best actor performances in "Fences" and "Hamlet," respectively. Zeta-Jones was nominated for best performance by a leading actress in a musical, "A Little Night Music," and Grammer was nominated for lead actor in a musical, "La Cage aux Folles.""Fela!" — nominated for best musical — and "La Cage aux Folles," nominated for the best musical revival, each received 11 nominations, followed by "Fences" with 10 nods.Nominated for best play were "In the Next Room (or the vibrator play)" by Sarah Ruhl; "Next Fall," by Geoffrey Nauffts; "Red," by John Logan, and "Time Stands Still," by Donald Margulies.Best musical nominations went to Green Day's "American Idiot"; "Memphis"; "Million Dollar Quartet," and "Fela!"The Eugene O'Neill Theater Center in Waterford,...

Casting directors came out from behind the curtain to be honored by their peers last night at the 25th Annual Artios Awards. The bi-coastal awards, which were held simultaneously at the new Times Center in New York City and the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles, are presented yearly for outstanding achievement in casting in theater, film, and television categories on the criteria of originality, creativity, and contribution of casting to the overall quality of a project.Celebrity awards presenters in New York were Patrick Wilson ("Little Children," "Angels in America"), Carrie Preston ("True Blood"), Michael Shannon ("Revolutionary Road"), Jennifer Morrison ("House"), Bill Pullman ("Oleanna"), Christine Ebersole ("Grey Gardens"), Vincent Kartheiser ("Mad Men"), and Elizabeth Reaser ("Twilight"). Stanley Tucci and producer Daryl Roth presented the New York Big Apple Award to Nora Ephron and Delia Ephron, whose "Love, Loss and What I Wore" recently opened Off-Broadway to rave reviews.

Producer Laura Ziskin, writer-director Nora Ephron, writer Delia Ephron and casting director John Frank Levey will be honored at the Casting Society of America's 24th annual Artios Awards.

Simultaneous awards ceremonies will be held in at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza in Los Angeles and the New York Times Building in New York on Nov. 2.

Ziskin is set to receive the group's Career Achievement Award. The New York Apple Award will be presented to Nora and Delia Ephron. Levy is this year's recipient of the Hoyt Bowers Award.

Representing 425 members in the United States, Canada, England and Australia, Cas also announced its nominees in film TV and theater on Thursday.

In the category of big budget feature drama, Ellen Chenoweth scored two noms for "Changeling" and "Duplicity." The category nominees are John Papsidera for "The Dark Knight"; April Webster and Alyssa Weisberg for "Star Trek" and Avy Kaufman for "State of Play.

Although it doesn't happen on every project, Debra Zane savors those "Oh my God" moments when it is clear that a role fits an actor like a glove. "The Casting Society of America has their own awards once a year called the Artios, and artios is the Greek word for 'perfectly fitted,' " says Zane, who has been honored with 10 Artios nominations and three wins, most recently for Dreamgirls. "That, I think, is the true definition of what casting needs to be, because when it truly fits, then you get the best version of the story."Consider the audition of Oscar nominee Michael Shannon for the role of John Givings in Revolutionary Road. The New York - based Ellen Lewis, who cast the film with Zane, came up with the idea of Shannon for the part, but Zane's feedback and extra care sealed the deal. At Shannon's audition, casting...

Kerry Barden and Paul Schnee, formerly of Hopkins Smith Barden Casting, have opened Barden/Schnee Casting in New York.

Their current projects include Kirk Jones' "Everybody's Fine", starring Robert De Niro, Kate Beckinsale, Drew Barrymore and Sam Rockwell; "New York I Love You", from various directors, including Brett Ratner, Natalie Portman and Fatih Akin; Mitchell Lichtenstein's "Happy Tears", starring Demi Moore and Parker Posey; and David Siegel and Scott McGehee's "Uncertainty", starring Lynn Collins and Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

Between them, Barden and Schnee have been involved in such projects as "Pineapple Express", "Snow Angels", "Evening", ESPN's "The Bronx Is Burning", "Boys Don't Cry" and "American Psycho". Allison Estrin, formerly of Jay Binder Casting, has joined them as casting assistant.