Horton Foote News

Vineyard Theatre's (108 E. 15 St.) world-premiere production of Christopher Shinn's play PICKED will close on May 22.

Next month, Goodman Theatre will present two free staged readings in the Owen Theatre. The Mecca Tales by Rohina Malik Rohina Malik Rohina Malik (June 13) and American Wee-Pie by Lisa Dillman Lisa Dillman Lisa Dillman (June 20) were both developed as part of the Playwrights Unit, the Goodman's season-long residency program of four local writers who meet once a month to discuss their plays in progress. Playing an essential role in the Goodman's efforts to commission and develop new works of the American theater, the Playwrights Unit also includes playwrights Seth Bockley Seth Bockley Seth Bockley and Laura Jac Laura Jac Laura Jacqmin qmin qmin, and is facilitated by Director of New Play Development Tanya Palmer. Both readings are free, but reservations are required: call 312.443.3800 or visit GoodmanTheatre.org.

New Dramatists, Tony Honor® recipient and the nation's premiere playwright development workshop, honored 14-time Tony Award® winner Roger Berlind with their 2011 Lifetime Achievement Award at its 62nd Annual Spring Luncheon tribute, yesterday, May 17th at the New York Marriott Marquis. Philip J. Smith and Robert E. Wankel of The Shubert Organization served as the Luncheon Chairs. Jim Dale, Emily Mann and Brian Stokes Mitchell were among those paying tribute to Mr Berlind. BroadwayWorld was on hand for the event and brings you phoot coverage below.

Previews for Signature Theatre Company's (James Houghton, Founding Artistic Director; Erika Mallin, Executive Director) production of Tony Kushner's THE ILLUSION begin tonight, Tuesday, May 17 at the Peter Norton Space (555 W. 42nd Street) with opening night scheduled for June 5.

An actress whose professional demeanor is upended at the absolute worst possible moment because her ex-boyfriend is sitting in the audience in What Are You Doing Here?, Maria Alexandria Beech's painfully funny tale of colliding lives, broken hearts and the ultimate symbiotic relationship. Starring Maggie Surovell & Kelley Jackson Garcia and directed by Michelle Bossy, What Are You Doing Here? will begin performances on June 4th at the Gene Frankel Theatre, located at 24 Bond Street as part of the 2011 Planet Connections Theatre Festivity.

James Earl Jones, who most recently starred as Hoke Colburn, the chauffeur in Driving Miss Daisy will return to Broadway in the role of the feisty, folksy and wily ex- U.S. President Arthur Hockstader in GORE VIDAL'S THE BEST MAN coming to Broadway in the spring of 2012. Reported first by Variety, he revealed last night while being honored with the Monte Cristo Award at Bridgewaters-South Street Seaport that starring alongside him will be five-time Tony Winner Angela Lansbury making her return to the stage after most recently appearing as Madame Armfeldt in A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC.

People's Light & Theatre presents the Philadelphia premiere of Horton Foote's Dividing the Estate. It runs May 11 - June 5, 2011 on the Main Stage. Artistic Director Abigail Adams directs. People's Light & T

Hartford Stage's Board of Directors, under the leadership of President Paul Bourdeau and Vice-President and search committee chair Jill Adams, announced today the appointment of Darko Tresnjak as the Tony Award-winning theatre's new Artistic Director, succeeding Michael Wilson.

Artistic Director Gregory Boyd announced that the Alley Theatre's 65th Season beginning in September 2011 will include two world premieres, Elizabeth Egloff's epic play Ether Dome and Theresa Rebeck's black comedy What We're Up Against, (the latter in a rolling world premiere that includes theatres in San Francisco and Chicago), and the Outer Critics Circle Award-winning rock musical The Toxic Avenger by Joe DiPietro and David Bryan, winners of last year's Best Musical Tony Award for Memphis.

Executive Producer Lou Spisto today announced that The Old Globe will produce the World Premieres of four new plays and musicals in its 2011-12 Winter Season.

Second Stage Theatre (Carole Rothman, Artistic Director) kicks off this summer's Second Stage Theatre Uptown Series with the world premiere of Sex Lives of Our Parents, written by Michael Mitnick. Directed by Davis McCallum, Sex Lives of Our Parents will feature Teddy Bergman (Peter and the Starcatcher), Lisa Emery (Far East), Daniel Jenkins (Mary Poppins), Virginia Kull (Dividing the Estate), Ben Rappaport (NBC's 'Outsourced') and Mark Zeisler (Second Stage Theatre's Eurydice). Previews begin on June 7th and opening night is Wednesday, June 22.

Second Stage Theatre (Carole Rothman, Artistic Director) kicks off this summer's Second Stage Theatre Uptown Series with the world premiere of Sex Lives of Our Parents, written by Michael Mitnick. Directed by Davis McCallum, Sex Lives of Our Parents will feature Teddy Bergmann (Peter and the Starcatcher), Lisa Emery (Far East), Daniel Jenkins (Mary Poppins), Virginia Kull (Dividing the Estate), Ben Rappaport (NBC's 'Outsourced') and Mark Zeisler (Second Stage Theatre's Eurydice). Previews begin on June 7th and opening night is Wednesday, June 22

Executive Producer Lou Spisto today announced that The Old Globe will produce the World Premieres of four new plays and musicals in its 2011-12 Winter Season. The season will feature the World Premiere musicals Some Lovers by music legend Burt Bacharach and Tony Award winner Steven Sater and Nobody Loves You by Gaby Alter and Itamar Moses, as well as the West Coast Premiere of John Kander and Fred Ebb's The Scottsboro Boys, recently nominated for 12 Tony Awards including Best Musical, directed and choreographed by five-time Tony Award winner Susan Stroman. The two plays receiving World Premiere productions are Somewhere by Globe Playwright-in-Residence Matthew Lopez and The Recommendation by Jonathan Caren. The new season also includes revivals of Richard O'Brien's The Rocky Horror Show and the Eugene O'Neill classic Anna Christie directed by Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winner David Auburn. Special events include the World Premiere of Odyssey by Todd Almond, a music theater event conceived and directed by Lear deBessonet celebrating the Globe's 75th Anniversary, The Old Globe/University of San Diego Graduate Theatre Program production of Twelfth Night and Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, which returns for its 14th consecutive year.

Yellow Face, the nationally-acclaimed play by Tony Award winning playwright David Henry Hwang, makes its Chicago debut at Silk Road Theatre Project (SRTP), produced in association with the Goodman Theatre. Yellow Face, directed by Steve Scott, runs June 14 - July 17, 2011, in Pierce Hall at The Historic Chicago Temple Building, 77 W. Washington St, Chicag

Primary Stages (Casey Childs, Founder & Executive Producer; Andrew Leynse, Artistic Director; Elliot Fox, Managing Director), in keeping with its mission of inspiring, supporting and sharing the art of playwriting, has announced the line-up for the annual Fresh Ink Reading Series, with staged readings of new plays by members of the Dorothy Strelsin New American Writers Group: Bekah Brunstetter, David Caudle, Cheri Magid, Rogelio Martinez, Janine Nabers, Tommy Smith, and Adam Szymkowicz.

Mix a Hitchcock masterpiece with a juicy spy novel, add a dash of Monty Python and you have the hilarious Tony Award-winning hit Alfred Hitchcock's 'The 39 Steps.' In Patrick Barlow's stage adaptation of the film, from the novel by John Buchan, a beautiful spy leaks a deadly secret to a man she's just met.

One of the busiest leading men on Broadway since his two-year stint in the smash hit revival of Irving Berlin's ANNIE GET YOUR GUN co-starring Bernadette Peters (and, later, Susan Lucci and Reba McIntire), having appeared in Joe Mantello's highly-lauded revival of David Mamet's Pulitzer Prize-winning GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS and last season's Sondheim musical retrospective SONDHEIM ON SONDHEIM, the original star of DUKES OF HAZZARD himself, Tom Wopat, can currently be seen eight times a week in the jet-set new musical CATCH ME IF YOU CAN by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman. In this career-spanning retrospective interview, Wopat and I take a look at his TV work ranging from directing DUKES to co-starring on CYBILL and bring it all the way to today with TAKING CHANCE on HBO and last year's JONAH HEX feature film. We also have news on John Doyle's directorial debut MAIN ST. co-starring Orlando Bloom, Ellen Burstyn and many more, as well as a thorough discussion of his musical side: Sondheim, his recording career, upcoming albums, concerts and more - plus, a complete consideration of his newest Broadway venture CATCH ME IF YOU CAN in anticipation of the NY Pops tribute to Bob Hope that he is co-starring in alongside Kelli O'Hara, Aaron Lazar and many more this Monday, also featuring a special presentation by legendary theatre icon Angela Lansbury. More information - and tickets - are available here.

Theater Works is proud to produce Horton Foote's masterwork DIVIDING THE ESTATE a must see for discriminating theatergoers.

Theater Works is proud to produce Horton Foote's masterwork DIVIDING THE ESTATE a must see for discriminating theatergoers.

Vineyard Theatre (108 E. 15 St.) will extend its world-premiere production of Christopher Shinn's play PICKED through May 22, it has been announced by Douglas Aibel, The Vineyard's artistic director.