Bessie Smith News

Susie McKenna, Creative Director at Hackney Empire, directs Blues in the Night today, 14 July 2013 at 2.30pm and 7.30pm.

ZACH Theatre's much-anticipated staging of ONE NIGHT WITH Janis Joplin stars Kacee Clanton, the Los Angeles-based rock and blues singer-songwriter who previously played Janis Joplin in Love, Janis and has toured as lead vocalist with Big Brother & The Holding Company. ONE NIGHT WITH Janis Joplin opens tonight, July 10, at ZACH.

People's Light & Theatre presents Michael Frayn's Noises Off running today, July 10-August 4, 2013 on the Main Stage. Pete Pryor directs. People's Light & Theatre is located at 39 Conestoga Road, Malvern, PA 19355. For tickets call 610.644.3500 or visit PeoplesLight.org.

Penguin Rep Theatre presents How the World Began, Catherine Trieschmann's thought-provoking new play examining contemporary America where religion, science and irreconcilable beliefs collide, beginning last night, June 28 in Stony Point (Rockland County), New York, directed by Penguin Rep founder and Artistic Director Joe Brancato will direct. Click below to watch interviews with the cast and creative team!

Janis Joplin is alive and well and living in DC for the summer at Arena Stage until August 11, 2013.

After two prior sellout shows at The Cabaret, Deb Mullins is back again! Her new show, Bluesville features songs from the Delta to Broadway and Bessie Smith to Cassandra Wilson.

People's Light & Theatre presents Michael Frayn's Noises Off running July 10-August 4, 2013 on the Main Stage. Pete Pryor directs. People's Light & Theatre is located at 39 Conestoga Road, Malvern, PA 19355. For tickets call 610.644.3500 or visit PeoplesLight.org.

Penguin Rep Theatre will present How the World Began, Catherine Trieschmann's thought-provoking new play examining contemporary America where religion, science and irreconcilable beliefs collide, beginning Friday, June 28 in Stony Point (Rockland County), New York.

Jeffrey Walker's top picks for summer theatre in Washington, DC and the metro area.

BLUES IN THE NIGHT uses the great blues and jazz songs of the 1920s and 30s to explore the lives of three women and a saloon singer in a 'cheap hotel' during the course of a long memory-filled evening. The 26 songs celebrate the blues melodies of Bessie Smith, Jimmy Cox, Duke Ellington, Alberta Hunter and songs by Harold Arlen, Benny Goodman, Andy Razaf, Johnny Mercer and others.

The all-star cast for ZACH Theatre's much-anticipated staging of ONE NIGHT WITH JANIS JOPLIN was announced today. Kacee Clanton, the Los Angeles-based rock and blues singer-songwriter who previously played Janis Joplin in Love, Janis and has toured as lead vocalist with Big Brother & The Holding Company, will star in ONE NIGHT WITH JANIS JOPLIN at ZACH, opening July 10.

Following a critically acclaimed run at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater this past fall, One Night with Janis Joplin returns for a summer run. Leading the production is Mary Bridget Davies. Davies is joined by Sabrina Elayne Carten as the Blues Singer. Created, written and directed by Randy Johnson, the production is produced in partnership with The Pasadena Playhouse and Milwaukee Repertory Theater, in association with Todd Gershwin and Daniel Chilewich of One Night Productions, The Estate of Janis Joplin and Jeff Jampol of JAM, Inc. One Night with Janis Joplin runs June 21-August 11, 2013 in the Kreeger Theater.

Lynne Meadow (Artistic Director), Barry Grove (Executive Producer), and Mandy Greenfield (Artistic Producer) previously announced that THE EXPLORERS CLUB, the world premiere comedy by Tony nominee Nell Benjamin (Legally Blonde), will be directed by Marc Bruni (Ordinary Days, Old Jews Telling Jokes) featuring Obie Award winner Steven Boyer and Tony Award winner Richard Easton.

Merrimack Repertory Theatre's (MRT's) Artistic Director Charles Towers has just announced an updated schedule for the 2013-2014 Season. Due to rights availability, MRT is pleased to announce next season will now include Lanford Wilson's classic American love story Talley's Folley. An updated schedule of the 2013-2014 Season is included below. Subscriptions to MRT's 2013-2014 Season are on sale now. Discounted season tickets are available in a full 7-play subscription or 3-6 play customizable packages and can be purchased online at MRT.org or at the box office by calling 978-654-4678.

After two prior sellout shows at The Cabaret, Deb Mullins is back again! Her new show, Bluesville features songs from the Delta to Broadway and Bessie Smith to Cassandra Wilson.

With a voice like whiskey and a laugh like pure joy, Janis Joplin took the music scene by storm. Simultaneously rough and vulnerable, Joplin was dubbed the Queen of Rock 'n' Roll, proving music wasn't just a man's world anymore. Now, in a new musical event featuring more than a dozen singers and band members, playwright-director Randy Johnson creates 'a compelling portrait of an artist' (Culturemob) through the words, inspiration and music of one of America's greatest rock 'n' roll originals. One Night With Janis Joplin is a full-on concert experience and musical journey into the life and inspirations of one of rock 'n' roll's greatest legends and it runs in The Rep's Quadracci Powerhouse from tonight, May 3 - June 2, 2013 and opens on Monday, May 6, 2013. Packed with classic songs ('Piece Of My Heart,' 'Summertime,' 'Mercedes Benz'), One Night With Janis Joplin also shines the spotlight on trailblazers who influenced Janis - like Bessie Smith, Etta James and Aretha Franklin.