Odds & Ends: Leslie Odom Jr. Rocks the U.S. Open with Phil Collins, Josh Groban Stays Out Too Late & More

Here's a quick roundup of stories you may have missed from today.

Leslie Odom Jr. Performs with Phil Collins
Dang, can these two serve! Hamilton Tony winner Leslie Odom Jr. joined chart-topping artist Phil Collins to perform at the U.S. Open’s kick-off ceremony on August 29 at Arthur Ashe Stadium. Collins began with his smash hit “In the Air Tonight” (which those of us at Broadway.com HQ have become obsessed with since American Psycho bowed on the Great White Red Way). Odom Jr. joins him onstage around 6:30 to smash “Easy Lover” if you’re not willing to wait for it. Enjoy the performance below!



Grammy Winner Joyce DiDonato Slated for Rabbit
It’s opera sensation Joyce DiDonato’s turn to perform from that mysterious script! DiDonato will step into White Rabbit Red Rabbit on October 3. She joins previously announced stars like Tony winner Billy Porter, Justin Bartha and Stana Katic, who will perform on September 12, September 19 and September 26, respectively. Nathan Lane, Darren Criss and Ramin Karimloo are just a few of the faves who have already taken their turn at the Westside Theatre. Nassim Soleimanpour’s solo show involves a different actor every performance seeing the script for the first time just before they go on stage.

Melissa McCarthy Joins Babs in the Recording Studio
Our ears were blessed with Barbra Streisand’s Encore: Movie Partners Sing Broadway on August 26. Hugh Jackman, Alec Baldwin and Jamie Foxx are just a few of the starry friends Babs collaborated with for the album, but one star was particularly was surprised to be asked to record with Streisand: Funny girl Melissa McCarthy hit the studio with the stage and screen legend—and it’s clear she’s a fan (maybe not quite a Barbra-Streisand-candle-level fan, but one of us nonetheless). Enjoy their behind-the-scenes shenanigans below!



Matt Bomer to Star in Transgender Drama
American Horror Story fave Matt Bomer has his next gig lined up, Variety reports. He will reunite with his The Normal Heart co-star Mark Ruffalo, who is producing the transgender drama Anything alongside Robert Halmi and Jim Reeve. Timothy McNeil will make his debut directing the feature film, which is based on his play of the same name. Bomer will take on the role of a trans sex worker who begins a relationship with fellow AHS actor John Carroll Lynch's character, who moves to Los Angeles after the painful loss of his wife.

Josh Groban Faces Off with James Corden
He’s just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake! Before Josh Groban makes his highly anticipated Broadway debut in Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812, the Stages singer visited 2016 Tony host James Corden on The Late Late Show. The two went head-to-head in a game of First Line, Every Line, in which each vocalist has to sing the first line of a song all the way through said song. Groban responded to Corden’s “Livin’ on a Prayer” (entirely sung as “Tommy used to work on the docks”) with Taylor Swift’s “Shake It Off.” Watch the hilarity ensue below!