Ellen McLaughlin News

Holy Crap! That's really the most emphatic sentiment I can use to describe the internal battles I had when trying to pick my top picks for this past year. There were so many amazing performances and achievements that to pick just one was almost an impossibility (and as you'll see, WAS an impossibility for one category). But the battle is over and it's my distinct pleasure to announce my picks for the 2013 Broadway World Seattle Critic's Choice Awards (or Jay's Picks, if you prefer).

Roundabout Theatre Company has announced that Dinner with Friends by Pulitzer Prize winnerDonald Margulies, directed by Tony Award winner Pam MacKinnon will open on February 13, 2014. The cast will include Jeremy Shamos as 'Gabe,' Darren Pettie as 'Tom', Marin Hinkle as 'Karen,' and Maria Dizzia as 'Beth.'

The Public Theater will continue its Public Forum season with PUBLIC FORUM SOLO: JOSEPH STIGLITZ ON THE RICH AND POOR on Monday, December 9 at 7:00 p.m. at Joe's Pub. This one-night-only event will feature a talk by Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz on income inequality and what the artistic community can do about it, followed by a conversation featuring Darryl McDaniels of Run-DMC, Artistic Director Oskar Eustis, and Public Works Director Lear deBessonet.

Noor Theatre's Highlight Reading Series continues this Monday at 7:30pm with an excerpt of The Shadow Spirit, by Ibn Daniyal. Written in Cairo in the 13th century, this saucy, satirical piece offers a raucous glimpse into medieval Cairo's underworld of pimps, prostitutes and dirty dealings. This is a rare opportunity to hear one of Egypt's earliest secular plays, which was written by a contemporary of Chaucer.

Producers Meredith Lucio and Sarah Hancock in association with Perry Street Theatricals present the critically acclaimed Bedlam productions of William Shakespeare's Hamlet and George Bernard Shaw's Saint Joan, directed by Eric Tucker.

A bomb goes off in New York City. The course of nine lives and a nation are irrevocably changed. Sifting through the pieces of the past and the future, Somewhere Safer's provocative story examines questions of polarization, citizenship and idealism in modern America. This fast paced and fiercely intelligent play was the inaugural recipient of Square One development with On the Square Productions and was twice featured as part of the company's Write Angle Reading Series. It was also a finalist for the 2012 Old Vic/New Voices Playwrights' Exchange, and featured in Flux Theatre Ensemble's 2013 Have Another series. Atmospheric and evocative, Somewhere digs into the serious and timely questions America faces today about what kind of nation we can and should be, and who will lead us there.

Juilliard's Drama Division announces the 2013-2014 season of fully-staged productions featuring Juilliard's 43rd group of acting students in their fourth and final year in the drama program at Juilliard. This season's plays include Jeffrey Hatcher's Smash, directed by Victor Pappas; Amy Herzog's The Great God Pan, directed by Maria Mileaf; and Sam Shepard's Buried Child, directed by Daniel Fish. All performances take place in the Stephanie P. McClelland Drama Theater at Juilliard.

It is with great sadness that Aurora Theatre Company announces the passing of the company's founding Artistic Director Barbara Oliver due to complications from a recent stroke. Barbara passed away peacefully in her sleep on May 20 at her Berkeley home, surrounded by family.

On Monday, May 13 Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national organization for Theatre honored Ruth and Stephen Hendel and Ming Cho Lee at their Gala Evening. The evening was held at the Angel Orensanz Foundation (172 Norfolk Street) in New York City, cocktails started at 6pm and dinner started at 7pm. Jessica Hecht was the emcee of the evening; the Gala co-chairs were playwright Lydia R. Diamond and interior designer Jasmine M. Keller. The Gala honorary chairs were Anne Kaufman, Obie award-winning director; Nelle Nugent, Broadway producer; Judith O. Rubin, chairman of the board of Playwrights Horizons; and Liz Smith, gossip columnist. The event hosted 200 guests and surpassed its financial goal. Scroll down for photos from the gala!

Tonight, May 13, 2013, Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national organization for theatre, will honor Ruth and Stephen Hendel and Ming Cho Lee with a Gala Evening at the Angel Orensanz Foundation in New York City. The Gala co-chairs are playwright Lydia R. Diamond and interior designer Jasmine M. Keller. The Gala honorary chairs are Anne Kaufman, Obie award-winning director; Nelle Nugent, Broadway producer; Judith O. Rubin, chairman of the board of Playwrights Horizons; and Liz Smith, columnist and 'The Grand Dame of Dish'.

humRumbleROAR Productions has announced the world premiere production of Chisa Hutchinson's ALONDRA WAS HERE, directed by Jade King Carroll. ALONDRA WAS HERE will play a limited engagement at The Wild Project (195 East 3rd Street, NYC). Performances begin tonight, May 4 and continue through Saturday, May 18. Opening Night is Wednesday, May 8 (7 p.m.).

On Monday, May 13, 2013, Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national organization for theatre, will honor Ruth and Stephen Hendel and Ming Cho Lee with a Gala Evening at the Angel Orensanz Foundation in New York City. The Gala co-chairs are playwright Lydia R. Diamond and interior designer Jasmine M. Keller. The Gala honorary chairs are Anne Kaufman, Obie award-winning director; Nelle Nugent, Broadway producer; Judith O. Rubin, chairman of the board of Playwrights Horizons; and Liz Smith, columnist and 'The Grand Dame of Dish'.

humRumbleROAR Productions has announced the world premiere production of Chisa Hutchinson's ALONDRA WAS HERE, directed by Jade King Carroll. ALONDRA WAS HERE will play a limited engagement at The Wild Project (195 East 3rd Street, NYC). Performances begin Saturday, May 4 and continue through Saturday, May 18. Opening Night is Wednesday, May 8 (7 p.m.).

Playwright David Lindsay-Abaire has made a name for himself as an author who takes those uncomfortable situations and artfully puts them up on stage with heart and humor. Whether dealing with the loss of a child or the loss of memory his crisp dialogue always conveys sincere emotion and a discomfort that's riveting. His recent "Good People" currently playing at the Seattle Rep is no exception. And in addition to Lindsay-Abaire's fantastic script, Director David Saint and the Rep have assembled a superb cast and crafted a truly engaging power struggle between two old friends.

Pulitzer Prize-winner Lawrence Wright premieres his new play at Berkeley Repertory Theatre. It is a fictional play about the last days of legendary journalist Oriana Fallaci. Don't miss this sizzling new script, which is directed by Oskar Eustis, stars Concetta Tomei and Marjan Neshat, and features an incredible team of designers. The 65th world premiere presented by Berkeley Rep, Fallaci is currently in previews in the Roda Theatre and opens March 13, running through April 21. Below, check out a sneak peek at FALLACI, Berkeley Rep's new world premiere about one of the first rock stars of modern journalism!

Pulitzer Prize-winner Lawrence Wright premieres his new play at Berkeley Repertory Theatre. It is a fictional play about the last days of legendary journalist Oriana Fallaci. Don't miss this sizzling new script, which is directed by Oskar Eustis, stars Concetta Tomei and Marjan Neshat, and features an incredible team of designers. The 65th world premiere presented by Berkeley Rep, Fallaci is currently in previews in the Roda Theatre and opens March 13, running through April 21. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the actors onstage below!

Even as his latest book attracts international attention, Pulitzer Prize-winner Lawrence Wright premieres his new play at Berkeley Repertory Theatre. A reporter renowned for his work with The New Yorker - and the bestselling author behind The Looming Tower and Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief - Wright is also the playwright who penned My Trip to al Qaeda and The Human Scale. Now he debuts a fictional play about the last days of legendary journalist Oriana Fallaci. Don't miss this sizzling new script, which is directed by Oskar Eustis, stars Concetta Tomei and Marjan Neshat, and features an incredible team of designers. The 65th world premiere presented by Berkeley Rep, Fallaci begins previews in the Roda Theatre tonight, March 8, opens March 13, and runs through April 21.