During the run of Cabaret, we managed to raised over $310,000 for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS! Thank you to everyone who contributed, including those who I shamed into giving just a little bit extra as punishment for using their phones during the show.
What Alan did next!
Hey have you listened to my first Club Cumming playlist on Spotify? Check it out here
I have also gone all Oprah, literally, and made this little vid for the Own network's Youtube channel, about life and stuff
What's been going down this week...
The lovely Sienna Miller joined the cast of Cabaret as Sally Bowles. Wilkommen!
I have started writing a column for the Globe and Mail newspaper in Canada, and you can read my first one, about turning fifty, here
Here's a wee PSA I made to highlight the bigoted and totally stupid blood ban that exists for gay and bisexual men here in the USA. Unfortunately, the situation is similar in many other countries too, including my homeland of Scotland
Sign GLAAD and GMHC's petition at www.celibacychallenge.com to pressure the FDA to screen all prospective blood donors based on risk, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity. The FDA recently announced that gay and bisexual men may finally be allowed to donate blood after being banned for life since the '80s - but only if they remain celibate for one year.
Also I was interviewed by the lovely and talented Jeffrey Self for his podcast, This Is Really Important, and you can listen to it here
I attended the Saturday Night Live 40th anniversary bash this past weekend. I hosted the show in 2000! It was a great, surreal evening. And oh yes, I'm wearing Calvin Klein.
And finally I interviewed my dearest chum and former fiance, Saffron Burrows, for Interview magazine and you can read it here
What I've been up to...
Drama League Awards
I attended the Drama League awards in NYC, and gave an award to Mark Saks, the casting director of The Good Wife.
Alan Cumming joins Arthur Kade at the Drama League's 31st Annual "Musical Celebration of Broadway" honoring James Earl Jones. Cumming talks about his Golden Globe nomination for "The Good Wife" as well as starring in Broadway's "Cabaret".
And here is the latest commercial for Cabaret, which ends, like, forever, never coming back, on March 29th...
Don't miss Academy Award® nominee EMMA STONE in her thrilling Broadway debut as Sally Bowles, now through February 15 only. Beginning February 17, Golden Globe® nominee SIENNA MILLER joins Tony Award® winner ALAN CUMMING in SAM MENDES' and ROB MARSHALL's Tony-winning production of CABARET, also starring Tony nominees DANNY BURSTEIN and LINDA EMOND.
And here's some fun snaps from Club Cumming...
Evan Rachel Wood and I star in George Lucas' new animated movie, Strange Magic,
Subscribe to TRAILERS: http://bit.ly/sxaw6h Subscribe to COMING SOON: http://bit.ly/H2vZUn Like us on FACEBOOK: http://goo.gl/dHs73 Follow us on TWITTER: http://bit.ly/1ghOWmt Strange Magic Movie CLIP - The Duel Duet (2015) - Alan Cumming Movie HD A fairy tale of goblins, fairies and imps meeting for the first time and the consequent confusions and conflicts the culture clash causes.
and here we are talking about it...
Alan Cumming & Evan Rachel Wood Interview - Strange Magic (2015) JoBlo Exclusive HD Goblins, elves, fairies and imps, and their misadventures sparked by th. Strange Magic, a new animated film from Lucasfilm Ltd., is a madcap fairy tale musical inspired by A Midsummer Night's Dream. Popular songs from the past.
And Whitney Cummings guest hosted the Late Late Show and I went on and said hello...
The Late Late Show Alan Cumming Alison Brie Joanne Froggatt 29 January 2015, The Late Late Show Alan Cumming Alison Brie Joanne Froggatt 29 January 2015 Full Watch, The Late Late Show 29 January 2015 Full Watch, The Late Late Show 29 January 2015 Full Episode, The Late Late Show 29 January 2015, The Late Late Show 29 Jan 2015, The Late Late Show 29/1/2015, The Late Late Show 29.1.2015, The Late Late Show 1/29/2015, The Late Late Show 1.29.2015
Portrait of me by Christian Hook
I am truly honoured to tell you the above portrait of me by Christian Hook was recently unveiled at the Scottish National Portrait Gallery in Edinburgh.
Christian won the Portrait Artist of the Year award, and the competition was filmed by Sky Arts and shown in the UK, including the final episode when I went to Edinburgh for the unveiling. It is a huge honour to be in the SNPG,. especially painted by someone I admire so much, and someone with whom I got to know and collaborated with. I am wearing a kilt that is made of the official YES Campaign for Independence tartan, and by my side is a jar of Honey in honour of my dog who died last summer.
The portrait below is a gift to me from Christian. Then you can see them both in his studio.
And now here's a video of one of the sessions Christian and I had on the stage of Studio 54 in NYC, when he came to meet me and begin the process of the portrait.
Watch as our Portrait Artist Of The Year series 2 winner paints award-winning actor, Alan Cumming. Portrait Artist Of The Year airs Tuesday at 8pm on Sky Arts. Create your own masterpiece with Selfie Portrait: http://www.selfieportrait.co.uk Watch more Sky Arts on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/SkyArtsOfficial
And finally, a little film of us talking on the night of the unveiling in Edinburgh...
Eli GOLD
Today I was nominated for a Golden Globe, here is a statement I made!
I am shocked and awed by this nomination, especially in a year when the show itself is honored. The standard of writing on The Good Wife is unparalleled, but matched by the grace of our glorious leader Jules. Thanks HFPA for making it easier to have my hair painted with a silver Sharpie this morning!
My book tour
Here are the details of the readings and signings I will be doing on my North American book tour to promote my memoir, Not My Father's Son, out in the US anbd canada October 7th and in the UK November 14th. I will be coming to the UK for a few days in November and will post more details about that soon.
New York, NY, Monday 10/6, 7PM, Upper East Side Barnes & Noble Click here for tickets!
Chicago, IL, Monday 10/13, 11:30 AM, Union League of Chicago Click here for tickets!
Chicago, IL, Monday 10/13, 7PM, The Music Box Theatre with Unabridged Books Click here for tickets!
Los Angeles, CA, Monday 10/20, 8:00 PM, Live Talks Los Angeles at the Aero Theatre Click here for tickets!
San Francisco, CA Monday 11/3, 7:30 PM, City Arts & Lectures at the Nourse Theatre Click here for tickets!
Philadelphia, PA, Monday 11/17, 7:30 PM, Free Library of Philadelphia Click here for tickets!
Toronto, Canada, 12/1, 7PM, TIFF Bell Lighthouse Click here for tickets!
You can also find out more on my book's Facebook page here
Looking forward to seeing you all!
Stovies
Last night I made stovies for my Cabaret castmates in a crockpot that I have in my dressing room, but here is the recipe for doing it on the stove...
Serves many
Stovies is a Scottish dish that is traditionally made with beef dripping, but I am a vegan so I have made up my own version.
It is real peasant food and ideal for people who, like me, love to have a plateful of one thing. I much prefer a mush-style dish to something with loads of different components.
Stovies are so great for parties on cold winter nights because you can just leave them on the stove and people can help themselves throughout the night as they please.
olive oil
3-4 cloves of garlic (more, if you like)
4 large onions
8-10 large potatoes
tamari or dark soy sauce, to taste
Worcestershire sauce, to taste
salt and pepper, to taste
a couple of handfuls of soya mince
In a wok or large pot, put a good old sloosh of olive oil. (I normally turn the bottle upside down and count until about four.) Chop up some garlic, and fry it in the olive oil for a bit. Don't let it get crispy, but tit needs to permeate the oil and make a tasty base for the stovies.
Take the biggish onions and chop them up into fairly big chunks and add them to the olive oil and garlic. Fry them for a bit longer, then put a lid on and leave them to sweat for a bit (about five minutes).
Now scrub and chop up the potatoes into fairly big chunks. Add to the sweating onions and garlic and leave for a bit to get all infused.
Now comes the fun bit. Get your tamari or dark soy sauce and squirt about 20 or so squirts into the wok, then do the same with your Worcestershire sauce. You could also use BBQ sauce; basically the trick is to make the stovies tasty and to give it a bit of a browny colour. You do all this to taste, and can also add some salt and pepper (although don't go crazy with the salt if you are going heavy on the tamari). Then throw in a couple of big handfuls of the soya mince. (My assistant Joey thought I said soya mints the first time I asked him to buy some, and had a devil of a job tracking any down).
Pour water into the wok so that all the ingredients are just submerged. Bring to the boil for a bit, turn it down to simmer, then go away and check your e-mails or have a bath or something.
Stir occasionally, and once the potatoes are cooked and soft you can give them a little beating up with a spoon to make the stovies more mushy in texture. I usually cook mine for about 30 minutes, with the lid half on, half off. Then turn them off, put the lid on and let them cook in their own juices.
You could also add things like hot sauce or mustard if you felt daring. Enjoy!
What I've been up to
Some recent visual iads of my eclectic existence...
I had never seen this till the other day
..and now I will never be able to forget it!