Ars Nova News

Now in its 10th year, Goodman Theatre's 2013 New Stages festival features five FREE new plays-two fully staged workshop productions performed in repertory plus three staged readings-in the Owen Theatre, December 7 - 22. All five plays celebrate Latino playwrights: The Upstairs Concierge, a contemporary farce about celebrity and baseball by Pulitzer Prize finalist (for The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity) Kristoffer Diaz; and The Solid Sand Below, an examination of the intoxicating nature of war which Martin Zimmerman developed during his time as a member of the Goodman's Playwrights Unit, and which was selected for the 2013 National Playwrights Conference at The Eugene O'Neill Theater Center in Connecticut. The three staged readings, which complement the two workshop productions over the December 13 - 15 "Industry Weekend," are TBA. Tickets are free, but reservations are required: 312.443.3800, GoodmanTheatre.org or visit the box office (170 N. Dearborn).

Critically acclaimed theatre company The Playwrights Realm presents the New York premiere of Lauren Yee's new play The Hatmaker's Wife, directed by recent OBIE Award winner Rachel Chavkin (Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812). The Hatmaker's Wife marks the first Playwrights Realm production at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater (416 West 42nd Street) in midtown Manhattan, following previous engagements in several downtown Off-Broadway venues. Previews begin tonight, August 27, for an opening Thursday, September 5.

Fresh from the success of Night of a Thousand Judys, The Meeting* hosted by Justin Sayre has moved to 54 BELOW for a six month run. Check out performances from last month's tribute to Cher below!

Don't let this summer end without seeing 'America's Favorite Original Boy Band'! Olney Theatre Institute presents a limited return engagement of Forever Plaid today, August 24 through September 15 on Olney Theatre Center's Historic Stage.

Westport Country Playhouse stages the World Premiere of 'Oblivion,' a provocative new play about parents and teenagers, and the gulf that often exists between them, by Carly Mensch, writer for Showtime's 'Nurse Jackie' and 'Weeds,' and directed by Mark Brokaw, currently represented on Broadway with 'Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella.' The coming-of-age comedy-drama runs now through September 8. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!

Fresh from the success of Night of a Thousand Judys, The Meeting* hosted by Justin Sayre - the acclaimed comedy/variety show hailed as 'rambunctious, uproarious and unpredictable' by The Wall Street Journal, 'delicious and delightfully droll' by The New York Post, and 'hilarious and sardonic' by The Village Voice - has moved to 54 BELOW for a six month run. The next show will be on Wednesday, August 28 at 9:30 PM. Known for its signature blend of outrageous comedy, politics, culture and everything in between, The Meeting* moves uptown after four seasons of packed houses in the West Village. Justin Sayre and The Meeting* were named one of the Top 10 nightclub shows of 2011 by Time Out New York, received the 2012 Bistro Award for 'Comedy Artistry' and a 2011 MAC Award nomination for Best Male Comedy Performance.

Welthy Holliday Productions proudly presents a revival of Bekah Brunstetter's Be a Good Little Widow, the inaugural theatrical production by the company, directed by Elena Araoz. Be a Good Little Widow runs from September 12 - 22, 2013 in a limited engagement at the Wild Project, located at 195 East 3rd Street between Avenue A and Avenue B in New York City.

A lifelong obsession with concert films and rock documentaries has left Nikka Graff Lanzarone (Chicago, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown) with this nagging thought: If you had cameras following you while you made a record, what would you say to them?

Joe's Pub at The Public is calling all bros tonight, August 22, 7pm. After sold-out shows at Caroline's On Broadway and 92YTribeca, Ewalt and Walker's Bromance in Concert is ready to rock Joe's Pub like a girl gone wild on spring break.

The 2013 New York International Fringe Festival has its first break-out hit with Ted Cubbin's new comedy The Rufus Equation, a world premiere production directed by Tom Ridgely, the Drama Desk-nominated director and co-founder of Waterwell. The Rufus Equation continues at The Connelly Theater (220 East 4th Street, NYC), tonight, August 21 at 2:00 p.m., and Friday, August 23 at 2:00 p.m. Check out a first look at the cast in action below!

Why two hit New York shows should find their new homes in Chicago.

The music of composer Will Van Dyke -- currently serving as associate music director of KINKY BOOTS on Broadway -- will take center stage when Tony Award-winner Billy Porter and other Broadway stars perform the one-night-only concert WILL VAN DYKE AND FRIENDS on Monday, October 14 at 9:30 p.m. at 54 Below (254 W. 54 St.) in Manhattan.

Now in its fifth consecutive year, the multi-award-winning Finborough Theatre - the coalface of British Theatre - presents Vibrant 2013 - A Festival of Finborough Playwrights, its annual explosion of new writing, running between 6-25 October 2013

Westport Country Playhouse will stage the World Premiere of 'Oblivion,' a provocative new play about parents and teenagers, and the gulf that often exists between them, by Carly Mensch, writer for Showtime's 'Nurse Jackie' and 'Weeds,' and directed by Mark Brokaw, currently represented on Broadway with 'Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella.' The coming-of-age comedy-drama runs from tonight, August 20 through September 8.

Fresh from the success of Night of a Thousand Judys, The Meeting* hosted by Justin Sayre - the acclaimed comedy/variety show hailed as 'rambunctious, uproarious and unpredictable' by The Wall Street Journal, 'delicious and delightfully droll' by The New York Post, and 'hilarious and sardonic' by The Village Voice - has moved to 54 BELOW for a six month run. The next show will be on Wednesday, August 28 at 9:30 PM. Known for its signature blend of outrageous comedy, politics, culture and everything in between, The Meeting* moves uptown after four seasons of packed houses in the West Village. Justin Sayre and The Meeting* were named one of the Top 10 nightclub shows of 2011 by Time Out New York, received the 2012 Bistro Award for 'Comedy Artistry' and a 2011 MAC Award nomination for Best Male Comedy Performance.

This coming Wednesday night's Broadway Ballyhoo will feature an eclectic cast at the Laurie Beechman Theatre. At 10:30 PM (doors open at 10 PM), the joint will be swinging with the sensational sound ofThe Anderson Twins (famous for their 59E59 shows), the thrilling voice of Jeanette Bayardelle, who is currently starring to critical acclaim in her one woman show, Shida,at Ars Nova, exciting song and dance man Derek Rowland (Time Step), the beautiful and talented Rebecca LaChance who is heading to Broadway this Fall inBeautiful: The Carole King Musical, Broadway Rising StarJustin Talkington, and More!

JAHN SOOD AND ALL THE BROKEN PARTS will be performing at 9:30pm on Monday September 9th at the historic Metropolitan Room (34 W 22nd St. New York, NY 10010).

54 BELOW, Broadway's Supper Club, has announced plans to augment its diverse programming with a varied new series of in-house productions including a new interview series, a new musicals-in-concert series (following-up on the success of the club's wildly successful High Fidelity in Concertevent), and a program for new composers. The venue will continue to present its popular Sondheim Unplugged series featuring some of Broadway's brightest stars sharing performances and behind-the-scenes anecdotes from their favorite Sondheim musicals.

Lark Play Development Center is proud to announce that seven plays have been chosen for its 20th annual Playwrights' Week, which will take place September 23rd - 28th.