There's a ton of Hollywood stars on and off Broadway these days. Here's a game you can play

NEW YORK -- There are truthful galore Hollywood stars connected New York theatre stages aliases connected nan measurement that you mightiness want to level up your stargazing game. Why not play immoderate bingo?

Sure, Robert Downey Jr., Daniel Dae Kim, Jim Parsons, Mia Farrow, and Katie Holmes are presently successful New York, and George Clooney, Denzel Washington, Nick Jonas and Jake Gyllenhaal are connected platform for spring.

But if you really want to impress, why not link nan stars, for illustration playing bingo pinch nan stars of “Frasier”? Catch Bebe Neuwirth (who played chilly Lilith) now successful “Cabaret” connected Broadway; Dan Butler (who played Bulldog connected nan TV show) successful nan off-Broadway play “Another Shot;" and past successful a fewer months, spot David Hyde Pierce (who played Niles) successful “The Pirates of Penzance.”

If a small TV stardust is capable to person theatergoers to spot Butler successful nan witty and heavy betterment play “Another Shot” astatine The Romulus Linney Courtyard Theatre, nan character says he's game.

“I emotion that it would bring group there, and you would conscionable dream that they get bitten by that point theatre tin do that nary different mean tin do,” he says. “Hopefully, it brings you successful nan doors again.”

Laura Stanczyk, a seasoned casting head and shaper who has formed dozens of Broadway, off-Broadway and world plays and musicals, knows galore shows unafraid a bankable prima to effort to guidelines out.

“When you person actors for illustration Robert Downey Jr. who are yet showing up and participating successful nan New York theatre scene, it becomes moreover much important to person personification who has immoderate benignant of notoriety,” she says.

She is producing nan play that Butler is starring successful by Spike Manton and Harry Teinowitz, successful which a deadpan Butler plays a power DJ successful recovery. “It’s benignant of for illustration Bulldog goes to rehab,” jokes nan actor.

Movie and TV celebrities person been portion of Broadway's DNA for decades — 1 caller large activity was successful 2010 pinch nan presence of Robin Williams, Chris Rock, Kiefer Sutherland, Daniel Radcliffe, Pee-wee Herman, Vanessa Redgrave, Ben Stiller and Edie Falco — but their beingness this play is peculiarly striking.

Kit Connor and Rachel Zegler are starring successful “Romeo & Juliet,” Nicole Scherzinger has “Sunset Boulevard,” Peter Gallagher and Julianna Margulies are successful “Left connected Tenth” and Sean Astin is playing Santa successful “Elf nan Musical.”

Stanczyk says it's not excessively astonishing to spot truthful overmuch prima wattage since galore of nan TV and movie stars person their roots successful theater. Margulies studied stage, and that's besides wherever Connor and Zegler sewage their starts. Scherzinger studied philharmonic theatre astatine Wright State University.

“People hide that these awesome actors sewage a batch of their commencement successful theater,” she says. “I do deliberation immoderate board gravitate towards that because they cognize those folks — it’s successful their bones and there’s a communal language.”

The logic “Frasier” Bingo is imaginable is because truthful galore associated pinch nan show are theatre veterans, starting pinch James Burrows, nan head who helped trade nan “Cheers” spinoff. Burrows started successful nan theatre and is nan boy of nan legendary playwright and head Abe Burrows, down “Guys and Dolls” and “How to Succeed successful Business Without Really Trying.”

Butler — who was precocious shouted connected by Pierce during a sojourn to “Another Shot” — said “Frasier” often had a shape feel. “It benignant of felt for illustration doing a short play successful beforehand of a unrecorded assemblage each clip we filmed,” he said.

Other TV shows — for illustration “Law & Order,” "The Good Wife," “The Gilded Age,” ”Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" and “Only Murders successful nan Building” — stock that shape vibe since they besides person leaned into casting from nan theater.

So basking is New York that nan stars are moreover coming off-Broadway, for illustration Adam Driver successful “Hold On to Me Darling,” Marisa Tomei successful “Babe,” Kenneth Branagh successful “King Lear,” T.R. Knight successful “The Merchant of Venice” and Christian Slater and Calista Flockhart successful “Curse of nan Starving Class.”

The influx of Hollywood types aren't squeezing retired Broadway stars: Audra McDonald, Sutton Foster, Jonathan Groff, Patti LuPone, Megan Hilty, Jennifer Simard, Adrienne Warren and Darren Criss person each booked parts.

Louis McCartney, a rising surface prima who will beryllium bringing nan play “Stranger Things: The First Shadow” from London to Broadway successful outpouring 2025, didn't train arsenic a shape animal, but he's mesmerized.

“It’s benignant of this backmost and distant wherever you springiness yourself up,” he says. “You springiness your psyche each azygous night. And I deliberation that’s beautiful.”

If “Frasier” Bingo isn't your speed, there's ever “Succession” Bingo: Jeremy Strong was connected Broadway successful a revival of “An Enemy of nan People,” Kieran Culkin will beryllium successful a revival of “Glengarry Glen Ross” and Sarah Snook gets nan shape each to herself arsenic she plays each 26 parts successful an adjustment of “The Picture of Dorian Gray” this spring. Or play a agelong game: With Clooney and Margulies, you tin commencement connected “ER” Bingo.

Stanczyk thinks Hollywood liking successful nan shape whitethorn beryllium driven by nan stars attempting to push themselves professionally and to seizure that unsocial buzz that life theatre tin give.

“Every nighttime you're successful nan theatre that point that happens hasn’t happened before. It’s a unsocial speech of energy,” she says. “There’s thing other for illustration it successful nan world.”