James Lapine News

What better for the month of love than a musical love story? Sunday in the Park with George opens Friday, Feb. 20, at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. With music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine, Sunday in the Park with George is a complex work that revolves around 19th century French painter George Seurat, who founded the neo-Impressionist art of Pointillism.

Broadway's most talked about new musical and the biggest Tony Award?-winner in years is coming to the Fabulous Fox Theatre in St. Louis. Spring Awakening, the 8-time Tony Award? winning Broadway musical, will play a two-week engagement from February 10-22, 2009. Curtain times for the U.S. Bank Broadway Series presentation are Tuesdays through Fridays at 8 p.m.; Saturdays at 2 & 8 p.m.; Sunday, February 15 at 2 & 7:30 p.m.; and Sunday, February 22 at 2 p.m. There is also a weekday matinee on Thursday, February 19 at 1 p.m.

Center Theatre Group has announced that Bill Pullman and Julia Stiles will appear in David Mamet's 'Oleanna', the third production of the Mark Taper season, replacing the previously announced 'Uncle Vanya.' That production was cancelled due to scheduling conflicts. Tony-winning Broadway director Doug Hughes will stage 'Oleanna,' which is scheduled to run May 28th through July 12th. Opening night is scheduled June 5th.

The Brown University Literary Arts Program and the Brown/Trinity Repertory Consortium are pleased to announce the first installment of the 27th annual NEW PLAYS FESTIVAL.

Liz Callaway has been cast in the upcoming iSondheim: A Musical Revue, a world premiere in honor of America's greatest living composer of musical theatre that will run at the Alliance Theatre from April 15 to May 10, 2009.

Cooler than Kill Bill, hotter than Shaft! The OBIE Award-winning Ma-Yi Theater Company teams up with the NYIT Award-winning Vampire Cowboys for 'SOUL SAMURAI' the story of Dewdrop and her fight through the mean streets of a post-apocalyptic Brooklyn. After avenging her lover's murder in the heart of Coney Island, Dewdrop now must make it back home to the Lower East Side before the shoguns of Kings County find her. In a play that mixes hip-hop culture, blaxploitation, and the martial arts, this production dials it back old school with this seventies-inspired samurai story. This is one slick slice with a sharp sword and a score to settle! 'SOUL SAMURAI' is being sponsored by the 2009 New York Comic Con.

Stephen Sondheim's exquisite musical about art, life, and what artists draw from both, Sunday in the Park with George, opens at The 5th Avenue Theatre on April 23rd. This rarely-seen but much-lauded musical features an all-star Seattle cast (led by Broadway actor Hugh Panaro in the leading role of George), and the astonishing scenic design and computer animation effects created by Sam Buntrock and designers Tim Bird and David Farley.

Broadway's most talked about new musical and the biggest Tony Award-winner in years is coming to Cleveland. Spring Awakening, the 8-time Tony Award? winning Broadway musical, will open at PlayhouseSquare's PalaceTheatre and play for 16 performances, March 3-15. Spring Awakening is part of the KeyBank Broadway Series at PlayhouseSquare. Spring Awakening swept the 2007 Tony Awards? winning eight out of its eleven nominations, including Best Musical, Best Director (Michael Mayer), Best Book (Steven Sater), Best Choreography (Bill T. Jones), Best Orchestrations (Duncan Sheik), Best Lighting Design (Kevin Adams), Best Featured Actor (John Gallagher Jr.).

Playwrights Horizons announces completion of a major renovation to 440 Studios, which is Lower Manhattan's largest rehearsal space complex (located at 440 Lafayette Street). The $1.2 million project took 8 months for demolition and renovation.

Playwrights Horizons announces completion of a major renovation to 440 Studios, which is Lower Manhattan's largest rehearsal space complex (located at 440 Lafayette Street). The $1.2 million project took 8 months for demolition and renovation. 440 Studios is the third and fourth floors of the Playwrights Horizons Theater School. When not in use by the School for classes, workshops and productions, the rehearsal studios and theaters are rented out to hundreds of New York City cultural groups each year. The School and the studios are an integral part of Playwrights Horizons and perform a vital service for students, the theater community and the surrounding neighborhood. The renovation of the third floor was made possible, in large part, through generous capital funding from New York City and New York State.

As of this morning, Wednesday, January 28, Playwrights Horizons (Tim Sanford, Artistic Director; Leslie Marcus, Managing Director) is now accepting entries for its popular LIVEforFIVE online lottery for $5 tickets to its next production, the New York premiere of THE SAVANNAH DISPUTATION, a new play by Evan Smith (Psych and The Uneasy Chair at Playwrights Horizons, Servicemen at The New Group). At least 50 tickets will be available via the online lottery. A ticketing initiative created last season as part of the theater company's Arts Access program, LIVEforFIVE makes $5 tickets available for the first preview performance of each Playwrights Horizons production through a lottery via the company's website (www.playwrightshorizons.org). The LIVEforFIVE lottery for THE SAVANNAH DISPUTATION will be for tickets to the first preview on Friday, February 6 at 8:00 PM at Playwrights Horizons' Mainstage Theater (416 West 42nd Street).

iSondheim: A Musical Revue, a world premiere in honor of America's greatest living composer of musical theatre will run at the Alliance Theatre from April 15 to May 10, 2009.The revue features music and lyrics by Stephan Sondheim, and orchestrations by Michael Starobin. iSondheim is is directed by James Lapine and is based on a concept by David Kernan. Stephen Sondheim?s work revolutionized the Broadway musical with such wide-ranging hits as West Side Story, Gypsy, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Sweeney Todd and Into the Woods. This unique mixed-media musical revue, interspersed with commentary from the legendary composer, was developed by his longtime collaborator James Lapine (last at the Alliance to direct The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee). Be among the first to experience this celebration of the power of creativity in the American musical theatre. The box office is open Monday - Friday from 10 am to 8 pm and Saturday - Sunday 12 pm to 8 pm. For more information call the box office at: 404.733.5000. Now in its 40th season, Atlanta?s nationally acclaimed Alliance Theatre, recipient of the 2007 Regional Theatre Tony Award?, is the leading professional resident theatre of the Southeast, creating the powerful experience of shared theatre for diverse people on two stages for youth and adult audiences.

Tony Award-winning musical theatre composer-lyricist Stephen Sondheim, who last was represented Off-Broadway at the Public Theater with the recent musical Road Show, took part in a one-night-only event at Avery Fisher Hall on Sunday January, 18th. 'Stephen Sondheim: A Life in the Theater' featured Sondheim in conversation with former New York Times theatre critic Frank Rich. The celebrated pair engaged in a live, unscripted conversation, reminiscing about Stephen Sondheim's career, legendary collaborations, inspirations, his varied theatrical and cinematic resum? and some real surprises in regards to his personal likes and dislikes.

Variety is reporting that two-time Tony Winner Donna Murphy has landed a recurring role on the TNT series TRUST ME. In 1994, she won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her performance as Fosca in Stephen Sondheim's and James Lapine's Passion. In 1996, she appeared as Anna Leonowens in the Broadway revival of The King and I alongside Lou Diamond Philips. The role earned her another Tony for Best Actress in a Musical.She also appeared in a revival of Wonderful Town (from 2003 to 2005) and in Lovemusik (2007) as Lotte Lenya, opposite fellow Tony winner Michael Cerveris as Kurt Weill. She also appeared in the recent presentation of Follies by Encores and in the BC/EFA Benefit concert of Pamela's First Musical. Murphy's recent film roles include The Nanny Diaries as Scarlett Johansson's mother and Spider-Man 2 as Rosalie Octavius, wife of Dr. Otto Octavius, the movie's villain. Murphy is perhaps best known to film viewers for her role as Anij in Star Trek: Insurrection (1998) as the love interest of Captain Jean-Luc Picard.

Broadway's most talked about new musical and the biggest Tony Award?-winner in years is coming to the Fabulous Fox Theatre in St. Louis. Spring Awakening, the 8-time Tony Award? winning Broadway musical, will play a two-week engagement from February 10-22, 2009. Curtain times for the U.S. Bank Broadway Series presentation are Tuesdays through Fridays at 8 p.m.; Saturdays at 2 & 8 p.m.; Sunday, February 15 at 2 & 7:30 p.m.; and Sunday, February 22 at 2 p.m. There is also a weekday matinee on Thursday, February 19 at 1 p.m.

Ma-Yi Theater Company in association with Vampire Cowboys Theatre Company, will present the world premiere production of 'SOUL SAMURAI,' written by Qui Nguyen and directed by Robert Ross Parker, with fight choreography by Mr. Nguyen, when it begins performances on February 14 at HERE Arts Center(www.here.org), 145 Sixth Avenue (between Spring and Broome Streets, enter on Dominick Street). 'SOUL SAMURAI' will officially open on Thursday, February 19 at 8:30 p.m. This Off Broadway limited engagement will run through Sunday, March 15.

Variety has reported that The American Theater Wing has partnered with the legit helmers' union, the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers, to make SSDC/SDCF archival audio and video materials available online for streaming and download.

Playwrights Horizons (Tim Sanford, Artistic Director; Leslie Marcus, Managing Director) New York premiere of PRAYER FOR MY ENEMY, a new play by two-time Tony Award nominee, Pulitzer Prize finalist and two-time Obie Award winner Craig Lucas (Small Tragedy at Playwrights Horizons, The Light in the Piazza, Prelude to a Kiss, Reckless, The Dying Gaul) officially opens tonight Off-Broadway.

For the first time, a comprehensive 4-CD box set encompassing the incredible career of Broadway's foremost living composer/ lyricist, Stephen Sondheim. The lavish box set features 81 tracks over four CDs, and includes selections from Sondheim's 19 Broadway shows, as well as songs from his film scores and TV specials. The Story So Far... also features 33 previously unreleased tracks and never before seen photographs from Sondheim's personal archive.

YALE REPERTORY THEATRE (James Bundy, Artistic Director; Victoria Nolan, Managing Director) presents ROUGH CROSSING by TOM STOPPARD, from an original play by FERENC MOLN?R, directed by MARK RUCKER at the University Theatre (222 York Street, New Haven) beginning November 28 through December 20. Opening Night is Thursday, December 4.