In a canny bit of casting that appropriately mirrors the backstage drama at the heart of "42nd Street," Shirley Jones and Patrick Cassidy have assumed the lead roles in the award-winning revival, representing the first time that a mother and son have starred together in a Broadway musical. The family connection, not to mention the warm feelings engendered by Jones thanks to her long and successful career in films and television (especially her family matriarch in "The Partridge Family"), brings a new emotional resonance to the long-running show. Based, of course, on the 1933 film and the various others of its ilk, the show depicts the efforts of tyrannical Broadway producer Julian Marsh (Cassidy) to mount his latest extravaganza when his diva-like leading lady Dorothy Brock (Jones) breaks her ankle just before opening night.

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