Odds & Ends: Idina Menzel Among Stars Talking About Their Love of Disney in New Podcast & More

Here's a quick roundup of stories you might have missed recently.

Idina Menzel, Jessie Mueller & More Talk Disney on New Podcast 
Idina Menzel, Jessie Mueller and Andrew Barth Feldman are among the guests set for David Alpert's new podcast E-Ticket to Broadway, presented in association with the Broadway Podcast Network. The series, which is available now and donates part of its profits to Gilana's Fund, features Broadway's brightest discussing their love of and memories from visits to Disney theme parks and more. In addition to Menzel, Feldman and Mueller, guests include Susan Egan, Lesli Margherita, Miguel Cervantes, Michael James Scott, Ashley Brown, Grey Henson, Stephanie Styles and more. Please keep your hands, arms, legs and mouse ears inside the podcast at all times!

The Public Theater Announces 2020-2022 Emerging Writers Group
A group of 10 playwrights have been selected from a pool of over 550 applicants for the Public Theater's Emerging Writers Group. The ongoing initiative targets scribes at the earliest stages of their career, creating an artistic home and offering support and resources for them to grow; the two-year fellowship also includes a stipend. The 2020-2022 Emerging Writers are Nissy Aya, Aya Aziz, Francisca Da Silveira, Katie Do, Timothy DuWhite, Ying Ying Li, Julián Mesri, AriDy Nox, Jacob Marx Rice and Else Went.

Billy Porter & More Set for Well Beings Virtual Town Hall
Well Beings, a mental health resource organization, will host a virtual town hall and panel discussion about youth mental health and society on July 14 at 11AM ET. Some bright stars will offer remarks and words of wisdom. Billy Porter, Alanis Morissette, Judith Ivey, Michael Urie, Norm Lewis, Rema Webb and more are set to appear. For more information, head here.

Olivier Winner & Oscar Nominee Lesley Manville Cast in The Crown
Lesley Manville has joined the cast of Netflix's popular series The Crown. She will take over from Helena Bonham Carter in playing Princess Margaret. Manville won a 2004 Olivier Award for her performance in Ghosts and received additional nominations for Grief in 2012 and Long Day's Journey Into Night in 2018. She earned a 2017 Oscar nomination for her performance in Phantom Thread. As announced, four-time Olivier winner Imelda Staunton is set to play Queen Elizabeth II in the fifth and final season, which is scheduled to begin production next year.

Philadelphia's Wilma Theater Offers Social Distancing Solution
The Wilma Theater in Philadelphia intends to keep audiences socially distant in its 300-seat house with a structure that would separate members using wooden dividers. According to The New York Times, the apparatus will seat as many as 100 people and as few as 35 people on its stage; the two-tiered structure is partially inspired by the seating at Shakespeare's Globe Theater and would keep patrons seated in a box that is physically separated from others. Many theater makers, including legendary composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, have been experimenting with new ways to raise curtains once more in a world greatly affected by COVID-19. We're excited to see what sticks!