Holly Allen News

CBS announced today the 16 all-new Houseguests who will embark on the 21st season of BIG BROTHER. This season's cast includes Broadway performer Tommy Bracco, a wine safari guide, a preschool aide, a petroleum engineer and a therapist, among others. CBS' summer reality hit will again have three weekly episodes, starting with a two-night premiere Tuesday, June 25 and Wednesday, June 26 (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT). The series is hosted by Julie Chen Moonves.

As she gathered other artists around her to collaborate, Cathy Street's impact on Nashville theater became something that will be long remembered as she pursues theatrical adventures in the coming years. Today, we take a look at Cathy's years in Nashville, by letting her theater family express themselves about the impact she has had on their lives and what she means to them...

2015 First Night Honoree Kaul Bluestone claimed her place in the First Night record books in the 20th Century: She was the 1996 Outstanding Leading Actress in a Play for her role in Circle Players' production of Dancing at Lughnasa...and she has starred in two critically acclaimed plays directed by First Night founder and executive producer Jeffrey Ellis in the 21st Century: The Last Night of Ballyhoo and Picnic, both for Circle Players.

Noted Chicago playwright Douglas Post will join Raven Theatre's [Working Title] new play development series with a fully staged workshop production of his comedy Forty-Two Stories, to be directed by Jessica Fisch and performed on the Raven Theatre East Stage now through Wednesday, November 5.

Noted Chicago playwright Douglas Post will join Raven Theatre's [Working Title] new play development series with a fully staged workshop production of his comedy Forty-Two Stories, to be directed by Jessica Fisch and performed on the Raven Theatre East Stage Monday, November 3 through Wednesday, November 5.

Noted Chicago playwright Douglas Post will join Raven Theatre's [Working Title] new play development series with a fully staged workshop production of his comedy Forty-Two Stories, to be directed by Jessica Fisch and performed on the Raven Theatre East Stage Monday, November 3 through Wednesday, November 5. Curtain times for all three performances will be 7:30 pm.

Kathleen Tolan ('Memory House') has granted the side project the world premiere rights to her exploration of memory, history and music, What to Listen For, opening June 3, 2014. The company will also present the Midwest premiere of Washington State-based playwright/performer Kristen Kosmas' Hello Failure, commencing June 15, as it continues its 2013-14 season of repertory plays. Overall, the June Rep, featuring two of America's most fascinating female playwrights, will explore themes of loss and the search for lasting connections.

Kathleen Tolan ("Memory House") has granted the side project the world premiere rights to her exploration of memory, history and music, What to Listen For, opening June 3, 2014. The company will also present the Midwest premiere of Washington State-based playwright/performer Kristen Kosmas' Hello Failure, commencing June 15, as it continues its 2013-14 season of repertory plays. Overall, the June Rep, featuring two of America's most fascinating female playwrights, will explore themes of loss and the search for lasting connections.

On tonight's episode of the ABC drama NASHVILLE entitled "I'm Sorry for You, My Friend" - Rayna and Juliette get ready to perform in San Diego in their first arena concert on the same bill. Get a sneak peek below!

The world premiere of a brand-spanking new musical with Broadway in its sights, a relatively young but awe-inspiring theater company and a sparkling, witty new play about Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald led the list of Tennessee's outstanding theatrical achievements in 2012 that was revealed Sunday night at Midwinter's First Night.

Voting is now underway for the Nashville Awards and continues until December 31, 2012. Winners will be announced in early January.

Now, we're the last to try to stir up trouble or to further flame the fires of jealousy or envy, but we thought we'd share with you some photographs of some of those lovely ladies who could delight their audiences just by standing there-but whom inspire and encourage us all with their superb onstage talents. So, here's our recommendation, take a look at these photographs, then find out on which stages you can find these women this summer, then make a reservation and go to the theater…

Just when you thought it was safe to go to the theater once again, we welcome you to the debut installment of Music City Confidential, all the news that's fit to print (or not-depending on your perspective) from Nashville's ever-growing, ever-fascinating (okay, so we obviously don't have enough to occupy ourselves) live theater industry (we're trying that out-does it work? Let us know, theaterati!) Here amid the florid prose and flowery praise, you'll find all the stories that don't quite fit elsewhere, some of 'em kind of gossipy, some of 'em stone-cold serious, some of 'em just lists of names you need to know. You'll also find photos from our new "Intermission@" series, details about the latest cast parties and various and sundry minutiae-the veritable flotsam and jetsam-from backstage, onstage, offstage and beyond…

So, when it was announced that the almost obscenely talented duo of Holly Allen and Cathy Street would be reviving their performances for a summer 2012 run, I knew that I, fueled by a nostalgic bent and wistful sentimentality of a sort, should give it another once-over, as much for the winning portrayals from Allen and Street, as for the opportunity to doff my fedora (as a man with a hat-head, I've often worn a fedora, just not to the theater-I have a hard and fast set of the rules that keep me on the fashion straight-and-narrow, as it were) to director Lauren Shouse, a woman of honor and skill who will be leaving Nashville by summer's end to pursue education of a higher sort at Northwestern University.

According to the weather forecasters, it's going to be a long, hot summer in Tennessee and if you're looking to cool off at the theatre, you could probably use some help in making the right selections, right? Here are our top five picks for the theater offerings that are sure to satisfy your hankering for good entertainment...ranging from the revival of a comedy hit from Street Theatre Company's 2009 season, new takes on two classic Broadway musicals, the 25th annual Shakespeare in the Park presentation of the internationally known Nashville Shakespeare Festival and the Broadway-bound debut of a new musical comedy based on a classic film comedy, directed by the legendary Jerry Lewis and featuring the music of Marvin Hamlisch and lyrics of Rupert Holmes...

As part of its 2012 "Street Corner Show" series, featuring shows that are returning by popular demand, Street Theatre Company is excited to bring back the two-woman comedic tour de force that is Parallel Lives, running Tuesday nights from tonight, May 22 through July 3 at Street Theatre.

As part of its 2012 "Street Corner Show" series, featuring shows that are returning by popular demand, Street Theatre Company is excited to bring back the two-woman comedic tour de force that is Parallel Lives, running Tuesday nights from May 22 through July 3 at Street Theatre.

In the play, 90-year-old Mabel Tidings Bigelow-the first woman to swim the English Channel from England to Franc -insists on celebrating her daughter and granddaughter's annual visit with a croquet party. As the game unfolds, she relives vignettes from the last 80 years, interweaving past and present to reveal the precise moment of opportunity gained and love rejected, the moment that defined her life.

Howe's rather fanciful memory play wears its heart on its crisp linen sleeve, offering audiences a glimpse into the life of Mabel Tidings Bigelow (played with such spirit by Allen that it's easy to fall just a little bit in love with both the actress and the beautifully written character she plays), a spirited 90-year-old former swimming champion who in her later years finds herself looking back over the multitude of events in her life that have shaped her and challenged her. As the story of Mabel's remarkable, though sometimes deceptively mundane and usual, life unfolds onstage before you, you are likely to find yourself thoroughly caught up in the minutiae of that life as the panoply of events and individuals move about-not unlike the ebb and flow of the tides that buffet the beaches of her hometown of Prides Crossing, Massachusetts, an upper crust enclave of Beverly, Mass.