Odds & Ends: Daveed Diggs' ABC Pilot, Jennifer Simard to Star in London's Disaster! & More

Here's a quick roundup of stories you may have missed today and over the holiday weekend.

Daveed Diggs' ABC Pilot
Daveed Diggs is definitely not throwing away his shot! The Tony winner will executive produce a single-camera comedy pilot for ABC that follows a hip-hop artist-turned-mayor. Deadline reports that Diggs has teamed up with writer Jeremy Bronson and Bluegrass FanFare for the as yet untitled project. Along with his recent turn on ABC’s Black-ish, additional screen work on Diggs’ horizon include HBO sports mockumentary Tour de Pharmacy and the movie Wonder opposite Julia Roberts.

Jennifer Simard to Star in London's Disaster!
Second to nun! Jennifer Simard will head to the U.K. to recreate her Tony-nominated role as gambling-addicted nun, Sister Mary Downy, in Disaster! “I am thrilled to make my London debut and eat my weight in Marmite,” said the former Broadway.com vlogger in a statement. As previously reported, the musical comedy spoof of star-studded 1970s jeopardy movies like The Poseidon Adventure, Earthquake and Airport, is set to play two gala concert charity performances to raise funds for The Make a Difference Trust at Charing Cross Theatre on November 20. Simard will next be seen on Broadway opposite Bette Midler in Hello Dolly!

It's Official: Live Screenings Help Theater
You may have noticed a trend across the pond to film live theatrical productions and pondered whether they were a good idea or not. Well, the Society of London Theatre (SOLT), U.K .Theatre and Arts Council England (ACE) have published From Live-To-Digital, the first big piece of research on the impact of live to digital work on theater audiences and organizations. Big takeaways include: there has been minimal impact on live attendance, streamers are younger and more diverse than live theater and event cinema audiences, and overall, organizations believe Live-to-Digital to have had a positive effect. Expect to see more of this Stateside.

Diane Lane Learned on the Job
Diane Lane is currently appearing in the Broadway revival of Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard and she recently stopped by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert to talk about the play, Superman, and how she started out as a child actor. "I learned everything the hard way," said Lane, providing an excruciating example of just how. Check out the Oscar nominee below; the Chekhov classic is running at the American Airlines Theatre.