Hans Christian Andersen News

Tokyo International Players have announced information about upcoming 2012-13 productions, youth opportunities, auditions, how to apply to produce a show on TIP's second stage, and more. See full details below.

Crown Center has announced its schedule of events for June 2012 through August 2013, including events from the Coterie Theatre, American Heartland Theatre, Musical Theatre Heritage, and much more. See details below.

Enchanting audiences of all generations worldwide, Disney's Beauty and the Beast casts its spell in Chicago Shakespeare's Courtyard Theater on Navy Pier June 28 to August 26, 2012. Tickets are $18-$25 with special discounts available for groups of 10 or more. All patrons receive a 40 percent parking discount at Navy Pier garages. For more information or to purchase tickets, contact Chicago Shakespeare Theater's Box Office at 312.595.5600 or visit the Theater's website at www.chicagoshakes.com.

'The Wizard of Oz' by L. Frank Baum, book by John Kane, music by Harold Arlen, lyrics by E.Y. Harburg, directed by Jonah Hagans, will be presented on Tokyo International Players' mainstage tonight, May 17 through May 20.

Hans Christian Andersen's classic fairytale, "The Princess and the Pea," comes to the stage as a musical comedy in Once Upon a Mattress June 19 - August 5 at the Coterie Theatre in Crown Center.

Moate Youth Theatre presents THE WIZARD & I in Tuar Ard Arts Centre, Moate, tonight 15th - Wednesday 16th May at 7.30pm.

Lookingglass Theatre Company presents the world premiere of EASTLAND: A NEW MUSICAL, written by Artistic Director Andrew White with music by Ben Sussman and Artistic Associate Andre Pluess and directed by Amanda Dehnert. The production runs June 6 - July 29, 2012 at Lookingglass Theatre Company, located inside Chicago's historic Water Tower Water Works, 821 N. Michigan Ave. at Pearson. The Press Opening is Saturday, June 16, 2012 at 7:30 p.m.

Today in 1959, Once Upon a Mattress opened at the Phoenix Theatre, where it ran for 244 performances. Once Upon a Mattress is a musical comedy with music by Mary Rodgers, lyrics by Marshall Barer and book by Jay Thompson, Dean Fuller, and Marshall Barer. The play was written as an adaptation of the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale The Princess and the Pea. Once Upon A Mattress marked the Broadway debut of later stage and TV legend Carol Burnett, who originated the role of Princess Winnifred. Also featured were Joseph Bova, Allen Case, Jack Gilford and Matt Mattox. Jane White played the role of Queen Aggravain, becoming the first African-American actress to portray a white character on the Broadway stage.

Moate Youth Theatre presents THE WIZARD & I in Tuar Ard Arts Centre, Moate, Tuesday 15th - Wednesday 16th May at 7.30pm.

Sacramento Regional Theatre Alliance is composed of many theatres around Sacramento all of which have their own theatre locations and will be presenting various shows throughout the summer.

Berkeley Playhouse has announced its next KidStage production, HONK! JR. Based on the Olivier award- winning production of Honk!, this retelling of Hans Christian Andersen's The Ugly Duckling is a bright musical comedy for all ages, full of humor, charm, and a message of tolerance. The show runs Saturday, June 2, 2pm and 7pm; Sunday, June 3, 12pm and 5pm at the Julia Morgan Theatre, 2640 College Avenue, Berkeley.

Stage Entertainment, in cooperation with Disney Theatrical Productions, will present the Dutch premiere of The Little Mermaid, which premiered on Broadway in 2007. After presenting Tarzan, Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King, the Netherlands is the first country to scoop the European premiere of the Disney musical. Disney's The Little Mermaid opens on Saturday May 12, premiering at Martini Plaza in Groningen and then playing larger theaters in the Netherlands. Check out the trailer video below.

Crown Center has announced its summer schedule of events, May 2012 - August 2013. See details below.

April showers don't bother StoryBook Theater's A Little Mermaid. She is used to being wet--but she dreams of dancing on dry land. Walking and talking aren't easy for a little mermaid and she is determined to trade in her tail for legs. In this original StoryBook Theater version of Hans Christian Andersen's classic, the audience will decide whether the Little Mermaid should keep her legs or high-tail it back to the sea. A Little Mermaid will visit Renton , Kirkland and Seattle tonight, April 28 through May 20 for a total of 19 performances.

'The Wizard of Oz' by L. Frank Baum, book by John Kane, music by Harold Arlen, lyrics by E.Y. Harburg, directed by Jonah Hagans, will be presented on TIP's mainstage May 17-20. TIP has also announced several upcoming performances and the program for its 2012-2013 season.

Emmy, Grammy and Tony Award-winning actress Cynthia Nixon will join soprano Lisa Delan and pianist Kristin Pankonin in an evening that features Gordon Getty's The White Election, a song cycle based on the poetry of Emily Dickinson. Ms. Nixon will read selections from Emily Dickinson's letters. The event will take place on Thursday, April 19, 2012, at 7:30 p.m. at The Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse (Samuel B. & David Rose Building, 70 Lincoln Center Plaza, 165 West 65th Street, Manhattan).

Theatricum Botanicum's 2012 Summer Repertory Season will present four plays in repertory on its mainstage: Measure for Measure and A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare; Heartbreak House by George Bernard Shaw; and The Women of Lockerbie by Deborah Brevoort. In addition, Cherry Docs by David Gow will get six performances in Theatricum's intimate second performance space.

Sydney Theatre Company's Actor On A Box series returns during the Autumn school holidays, created and directed by the incomparable Jonathan Biggins, who turns his talents to theatre for young people for the first time with The Tale Maker.

Berkeley Playhouse proudly announces the lineup for its fifth season. The family-friendly season of musicals timeless and new opens in October with Rodgers and Hammerstein's THE SOUND OF MUSIC, directed by Jennifer King. Jon Tracy (The Pirates of Penzance) returns to the company to direct Frank Loesser and Abe Burrows' GUYS AND DOLLS in March.

Emmy, Grammy and Tony Award-winning actress Cynthia Nixon will join soprano Lisa Delan and pianist Kristin Pankonin in an evening that features Gordon Getty's The White Election, a song cycle based on the poetry of Emily Dickinson. Ms. Nixon will read selections from Emily Dickinson's letters. The event will take place on Thursday, April 19, 2012, at 7:30 p.m. at The Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse (Samuel B. & David Rose Building, 70 Lincoln Center Plaza, 165 West 65th Street, Manhattan).