Latest news with #Showstoppers
Hindustan Times
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Actor Digangana Suryavanshi adds ‘MBA graduate' to her list of achievements: It's a dream fulfilled
Actor Digangana Suryavanshi recently took to Instagram to share a milestone beyond the world of lights and cameras as she earned her Master's in Business Administration. 'Yes, I am an MBA now. It's a dream that was officially fulfilled in July this year,' she says, beaming with pride. Actor Digangana Suryavanshi For the actor, known for her popular shows such as Ek Veer Ki the degree was about more than just adding another qualification. 'It was more about the process of being a part of the real academic world. The eagerness to know facts and constantly attain knowledge from wherever I get it has always been with me,' she says. Completing her master's, she adds, was a long-held goal and a promise to her parents. 'It was always on my mind to conclude my formal education, as that was also what my parents wanted me to do,' says the actor. While she believes education should be pursued whenever possible, Digangana admits she's far from a textbook student. 'I don't study with a fixed routine and prefer self-studies. In fact, I study only when examinations are around the corner, but wholeheartedly,' she laughs. This flexible approach meant taking a break after her first two semesters to fulfil work commitments before resuming her final year with full focus. She chose to pursue her MBA in finance at SVKM's Narsee Monjee Institute, a deliberate challenge: 'I'm terrible with numbers, and I picked finance because I thought, if I'm going to do a course, I might as well learn something I find difficult.' The actor views her MBA as a stepping stone towards future entrepreneurial ventures. 'Yes, there are a few startup options I am looking at, along with acting. This course will surely help me there and reduce my dependency on others,' she shares. Academics, however, aren't pulling her away from the screen. 'Now that I'm done with my course, I will soon start shooting for a bilingual film. I also await the release of two Telugu action films and one in Tamil. Plus, I have a Hindi web series, Showstoppers, set to stream this year,' says Digangana, adding that she's in no rush to return to mainstream television.
The Herald Scotland
09-08-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
Spending a day at the Edinburgh Fringe with a teenager
Those of us with creaking knees, who have not slept solidly without a 3am trip to the loo for years, do not need that sort of existential gut punch on a night out. It is, to be fair, tricky being a teenager at the Fringe. The shows tend towards the adult or the pre-tween — jokes about filth or puppet shows about colours. So there was some apprehension when my 14-year-old and I were offered a day of shows curated by Mel and her team at Impressive PR. The day started off with Doktor Kaboom in the Pleasance Courtyard — a treat for anyone with an interest in science, with plenty of silly jokes and loud bangs to keep those without interested too. At one point the Doktor — the stage persona of actor and comedian David Epley — fired a ping-pong ball out of a homemade vacuum cannon at 300 miles per hour across the stage, and at another he imploded a 5-gallon, 20-litre steel bucket. (Image: Damian Robertson) It was part physics lesson, part slapstick — all very thoughtful too, with messages about curiosity and coping under pressure. Which was handy for us, as we had ten minutes to get from the Pleasance to the stunning Spiegeltent Palais du Variété in Assembly George Square Gardens for Circus The Show. The show squeezes into an hour what most other circuses would make last three. Presented by Australia's Showmen Productions, there were aerial skills, magic, clowning and tricks. Our highlight was Sam Aldham and Josie Wardrope from Children Are Stinky performing some pretty impressive 'do not try this at home' chair balancing. It was maybe a little young for my jaded teen, but I loved it — and there were plenty of other happy faces in the big top. Circus the show (Image: FRANK PACKER) The show of the day was Showstoppers! The Improvised Musical in the Grand at the Pleasance Courtyard. The musical improv troupe has been coming to the Fringe for years, and there is no danger of me ruining it with spoilers given that every show is completely different and dependent on audience suggestions. On the day we saw it, the super-talented cast and phenomenal band performed Cocoa-lahoma, about a troubled sweet shop owner run out of a Depression-era Midwestern town by an unfathomably sexy mayor. At the audience's behest, the show featured songs in the style of Hadestown, Matilda and Mamma Mia. It was a hoot. Sure, not everything makes sense — those five kids at the bottom of the mineshaft are, presumably, still there. And I think the shop owner was maybe three years old. The joy of Showstoppers is how skilled the improvisers and live band are. They more than deserved their standing ovation at the end. Cast and crew of Showstoppers (Image: Ray Burmiston) We also saw Mary O'Connell at the Pleasance Courtyard, where the rising star on the UK comedy scene told us about moving back in with her parents in her 20s — a potentially dangerous idea to plant in the young mind of my daughter. Dilly Dally is her second solo hour and explores family, adulthood and identity. In the tiny attic venue, she had us laughing about the awkwardness of living with Mum, Dad, siblings and her LibDem boyfriend. I remember talking to someone high up at the Fringe about a decade ago about the struggle to get West Coasters to cross Harthill and come to what is, by some considerable distance, the world's largest arts festival. All manner of wheezes have been tried over the years, including a box office in Glasgow Queen Street station. Having paid the best part of £20 for two cheese toasties, I can understand the reluctance. They weren't even good cheese toasties. No sourdough or anything like that. If the cheese was locally sourced, it was because the guy operating the George Foreman nipped past the Tesco Express on Southbridge. Heading back to Waverley for the train home we saw the American comic and star of series 12 of Taskmaster, Desiree Burch, walk into the Monkey Barrel, where she was part of the venue's Big Show — their weekend stand-up showcase. The venue lists the Big Show as suitable for 14-plus, but do not expect the rotating line-up of comics to adjust their material for the youngest people in the room. Desiree Burch was funny, but also filthy. I had to avoid my kid's eye for a good chunk of her set. The rest of the line-up did not disappoint — we particularly loved the bizarre musical antics of Josh Glanc. The Australian oddball's sketches and physical gags teeter between the ridiculous and the ingenious. Cutting about the capital with a teen at Fringe time can soon add up. There are ways to enjoy it on a budget, and the Big Show is one of them, with the audience able to either buy a ticket in advance for £15 or pay what they can on the night. It was worth taking the last-minute detour and catching the later train back to Glasgow.
Elle
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Elle
Elizabeth Gillies Will Never Sing ‘Suddenly Seymour' Again
Places, please for ELLE's column Showstoppers, where theater's biggest stars reflect upon the moment in their careers when the famous phrase 'the show must go on' became a little too real. When things don't go according to plan onstage, here's how the pros react—and what they take away from it. Elizabeth 'Liz' Gillies is perhaps best known for two iconic television roles: Fallon Carrington on Dynasty and Jade West on Victorious. In both roles, Gillies had notable belt-your-brains-out moments. (Her 'Give It Up' duet with Ariana Grande on Victorious is gay history.) Now, the actress is returning to her theatrical roots. Gillies, who made her Broadway debut in 13 with Grande in 2008, is about to wrap her five-month run as Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors at the Westside Theatre. She's been the Audrey to both Milo Manheim and Graham Phillips's Seymours, and for the actress, it has been a welcome return home. Below, Gillies discusses the challenges of the song 'Suddenly Seymour,' her favorite shows, and if she'd ever return for the Victorious reboot. I did the show with the flu a few times, which was just sort of trippy and disorienting. The beautiful thing about this show is [that it's] very self-aware, and obviously, it's funny. Although there are moments of total sincerity and gravitas, it can be very irreverent. It's fun to see where my handicaps that day take me. I've made the choice to do the show instead of calling out [sick]. When I've [gone onstage] with no voice, other parts of my performance have been stronger. It's forced me to make different choices and not rely on a pretty vocal. One time, I went to sing high notes, and I had to talk it. It got a laugh. I've had fun messing around and seeing what I can get out of myself when I'm at my weakest. 'Suddenly Seymour' was my audition and karaoke song for years. After this, I won't touch it with a 10-foot pole. It's not that I don't love it, it's a gorgeous song, there's just something about it. I'm more relaxed once it's over. For a long time, I was completely unable to hit the high note on 'condescend.' I was making a choice in the beginning to sing in head voice and get choked up over it, and now I sing it how it's supposed to be sung—sort of—but I made a sign in the girls' dressing room that says, 'What I lack in condescend, I make up for in vibes.' It's on our wall. So, once I'm gone, they can always remember that. Of course, if I must call out, I totally do. We have such an incredible team of understudies. The show is never in danger. Anytime I've been having a really horrible day or something bad happens, I think [the show] is a lovely escape. Unlike TV, where you really have too much time to sit and think about it in green rooms, the luxury of having two hours of catharsis is unmatched. I love theater. I love it when it's good. I love it when it's messy. I think it's all great, as long as the performance comes through. It's not an opera. As long as the audience feels what they're meant to feel, as long as they feel connected, it's OK. It's been my dream since I saw the show in 2003. I have other Broadway shows that I love very much, but there's really no role for me in them. It's always been Audrey. I was nervous to reenter this space, but also I would be doing myself such a major disservice if I said no. It's really changed my life, not in a corny way. This reminded me of how much I love theater. Going back to my roots kind of reaffirmed my passion for this business. I've been a serial monogamist in TV world. I would have these really tiny gaps of not working, and then it would be two to six years on a TV show. But, my roots are honestly exclusively in musical theater and improv. I'm thankful [coming back to the theater] was kind of was like riding a bike. It's very, very different from TV, in many ways. Wonderful. It's certainly my preference. TV and film both have their charms, but to me, the immediate response of live theater and live performing is unmatched. I love knowing if I succeeded or failed in real time. I love knowing if I moved the audience or if I fell short. I'm a glutton for punishment. My run with Milo was incredible. He had his devout Disney fans. I had my fan base, which is primarily Nickelodeon-lore. I think the combination of the two fandoms sort of blew the roof off the Westside Theatre. Our stage doors were insane. Now, with Graham [who previously co-starred with Gillies in 13], our stage doors are as passionate as ever. They bring their 13 playbills, which is so special. So many 13 fans have been waiting to get our final two signatures for 15 years. They've found everyone else. It's been so rewarding to me, and I really can't even put it to work into words. That's why I wasn't ready to leave just yet. I had actually never heard of Milo [before this]. He had also never watched Victorious, which was surprising to me. Milo was so wonderful, and I think the youngest person I have ever played opposite against romantically, and probably the youngest friend I now have in my life. I was very surprised and impressed by him. He is so professional and talented. He's such a star, and he played the role without any preconceived notions or any comparisons, because he wasn't that familiar with Little Shop. I think that served him really well. He created his own iconic take on the character, he and really made his own stamp. I built my Audrey around his Seymour, because Seymour's the lead. Graham has been my friend for 16 years. I've known him since I was a child. The biggest hurdle with Graham has been that we avoided the romance and kissing of it all until the very last possible minute, because it was just too weird. Imagine having a friend for 16 years non-romantic, and then all of a sudden you have to be dying in his arms, falling in love, and kissing. Now we're fine because we're professionals. It feels like we've been working with each other consistently for the last 15 years, when really the last thing we did together was an episode of White Collar [in 2012]. We've had Ari, Eamon Foley is a good friend of mine, Aaron Simon Gross. I don't know if I'm missing anybody, but we've had we've had people come in and out. One day, I'm going to track everyone down. We're going to have some kind of 13 family reunion. We'll have a barbecue. I know. I think we should do a reunion concert, in a much smaller scale than what they did for Spring Awakening. We don't need to get that fancy, but I do think something like that would be special. I'd love to play Hedwig [in Hedwig and the Angry Itch]. That is one of my all-time favorite shows. I'm probably not going to play Hedwig, but I would, if asked, if that was ever okay. Hair is one of my favorite musicals. I would totally play Sheila, if I can hit it all, because I am an alto. I love Sweet Charity, but I'm not a dancer. I love Ragtime, but I don't want to be Mother. You know what I mean? In Hairspray, I'd love to be Velma von Tussle. That's a dream role. [Annie's] Miss Hannigan is a dream role. And I really, really, really, really, want to play Velma in Chicago. I'm not diminishing how difficult the dancing is, but that type of dancing, I think I can do it. Then, all the 60-and-over roles, which I have to wait a little longer for. If they let me in Death Becomes Her, I'd play Helen Sharp. Yes, I definitely want to do more. I have to do more. I was reminded by doing this show that this is really who I am and what I love. This is probably the most important job I've ever had, just because of where I am in my life. I come from a musical family. My uncles, my hands, my dad, my grandma, everyone sings. I was always around music. I sang in church growing up. I would cantor and do the arm movements. I would wear dresses that made no sense for church. That was my first little taste of it, and I was like, 'Oh, I love it.' Then, I forced my parents to help me get an agent when I was about 10, because we lived so close to the city. Why can't we try? I would find open calls and make them drive me. I was my own little stage mom, and I knew that I had enough to give it a shot. If it made sense, and I was going back with all my friends and 'classmates,' I would totally consider it. I mean, Daniela [Monet] is at the helm of it, and she's wonderful. She's the perfect person to keep this whole legacy alive. Hopefully it's everything our fans, and we alumni of Hollywood Arts, dream of and stand by. If I talk to the team, meaning my Victorious cast mate team, and they say so, we're going on the show. It's trippy. I think I processed it early when Milo left, because that was sort of the end of that era, and I didn't. I don't think I knew at that point that I was coming back. I'll feel it most on my first Tuesday off. This has been eight shows a week since February 25, and it's not a long time, but it is for me. I haven't had theater in a long time, and this has been my whole life. I made such good friends here. The people here are just incredible. I'm going to miss the girls so much, our dressing room, our gutter. We all kill cockroaches together and do TikToks. This show made me young again. This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity. Elizabeth Gillies currently stars in Little Shop of Horrors at the Westside Theatre. Tickets can be purchased here.
Associated Press
05-03-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
Aerendir Mobile Gains Momentum at Mobile World Congress 2025 Showcasing Neurotechnology Enabled Smartphone
Following Positive Reception, Aerendir Mobile Strengthens Position as a Leader in Privacy, Security, and Safety Focused Mobile Biometrics at MWC in Barcelona. BARCELONA, SPAIN, March 5, 2025 / / -- At Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2025, Aerendir Mobile previews their upcoming mobile launch alongside Reeder and Jolla, called Aura. Aura integrates biometric neurotechnology and fully cloudless AI directly into mobile devices. Following their debut at the Showstoppers pre-event with over 800 media professionals in attendance, Aura receives significant interest, particularly for its integration of Aerendir's novel NeuroPrint® authentication technology. The frictionless authentication—enabled simply by holding the device—reportedly stands out as an innovation beyond traditional biometrics. Analysts highlight the significance of NeuroPrint®, recognizing its resistance to hacking as a breakthrough in user security and its privacy-first design as a game-changer for mobile authentication. Responses to live demos of the neurotechnology-equipped smartphone solidify Aura's position as an emerging leader mobile security. About Aura's Innovative Technology Aura uses Aerendir's NeuroPrint® technology, a live physiological biometric authentication that detects micro-vibrational patterns in the user's hand. NeuroPrint® authentication offers greater privacy, security, and safety, as neural signals exhibit patterns resistant to replication or spoofing. Furthermore, authentication is cloudless and on-device, making it impervious to bad actors and data breaches. Aura replaces the Cloud with The Mist™ to create a local ecosystem of connected devices. When to Expect Aura Aerendir and Reeder are currently presenting Aura at MWC Barcelona in Hall 5 at Stand 5F61. Aura's collaboration team also plan to attend MWC in Las Vegas later this year. See Aerendir present Aura at MWC in Las Vegas later this year. Aura is arranged to launch Summer 2025. Learn more at About Aura's Founders Aerendir Mobile Aerendir Mobile is a pioneer in mobile neurotechnology, offering NeuroPrint®, a cutting-edge authentication solution that prioritizes security and privacy. By leveraging neurotechnology for on-device verification, Aerendir eliminates the need for cloud-based storage, ensuring users retain full control over their data. Its innovations enhance privacy, security, and convenience across mobile and IoT applications, revolutionizing how users interact with devices. Reeder Reeder is more than a technology company; it is a relentless pursuit of progress. Focused on enhancing productivity, connectivity, and convenience, Reeder develops high-performance devices that seamlessly integrate into modern life. Every challenge overcome and every innovation brought to life fuels Reeder's passion for creation. Aerendir Mobile Inc. Legal Disclaimer:
