McCarter Theatre News

Due to early ticket demand, Victory Gardens Theater adds an additional week of performances to the run of Death and the Maiden by Ariel Dorfman, directed by Artistic Director Chay Yew. Death and the Maiden now runs June 13 - July 20, 2014, with the press performance on June 20, 2014, at Victory Gardens Theater, 2433 N. Lincoln Avenue.

LABA: A Laboratory for Jewish Culture, working in collaboration with choreographer Renana Raz, whose work has been called 'brilliant' by the Israeli press, is pleased to announce the first-ever international production of MOTHER.NET. The show aims to take the usually isolated experience of watching YouTube videos and turns it into a public experience. Artists will respond to YouTube clips on the theme of mother through dance, theater, music, storytelling, and audience interaction.

'Subverted is an explosive solo show by Dominque Fishback, a talented and dynamic new voice on the theatre scene.' -Lynn Nottage

Victory Gardens Theater continues its 2013-2014 season with Death and the Maiden by Ariel Dorfman, directed by Artistic Director Chay Yew. Death and the Maiden runs now through July 13, 2014, with the press performance on June 20, 2014, at Victory Gardens Theatre, 2433 N. Lincoln Avenue. The cast of Death and the Maiden includes Raul Castillo, John Judd and Sandra Oh. Below, BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action!

American Repertory Ballet, New Jersey's preeminent classical and contemporary ballet company, will perform throughout New Jersey - in Princeton, New Brunswick, Lawrenceville, Branchburg, Rahway, Manasquan, and Trenton - beginning September, 2014 through April, 2015.

The American Repertory Theater/Moscow Art Theatre Institute for Advanced Theater Training at Harvard University, under the direction of Scott Zigler, has announced that after an exhaustive nationwide search, Erika Bailey has been selected to join the faculty as Head of Voice and Speech.

The Kilroys, an independent LA-based band of female playwrights and producers, have released THE LIST, the results of the first annual industry survey of excellent new plays by female-identified playwrights.

The Playwrights' Center has announced the 2014-15 recipients of its McKnight Theater Artist Fellowships: costume designer Mathew LeFebvre; actor, director and choreographer Austene Van and actor Sally Wingert.

In May, Marsha Mason became the 2,000th active Full Member of Stage Directors and Choreographers Society (SDC), a national labor union representing stage directors and choreographers working throughout the United States.

LABA: A Laboratory for Jewish Culture, working in collaboration with choreographer Renana Raz, whose work has been called "brilliant" by the Israeli press, is pleased to announce the first-ever international production of MOTHER.NET. The show aims to take the usually isolated experience of watching YouTube videos and turns it into a public experience. Artists will respond to YouTube clips on the theme of mother through dance, theater, music, storytelling, and audience interaction.

Producing Artistic Director Gwendolyn Whiteside and American Blues Theater, Chicago's second oldest Equity ensemble, are proud to announce the Chicago premiere of Grounded, by George Brant and directed by Lisa Portes, today, June 6 - July 13 at the Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) presents the U.S. premiere of James Fenton's acclaimed adaptation of The Orphan of Zhao, a classic Chinese legend that has its roots in the fourth century BCE.

Christopher Durang was the talk of 2013 because of his gloomy new comedy VANYA AND SONIA AND MASHA AND SPIKE. Following a successful 2012 World Premiere in New Jersey, the show moved Off-Broadway before transitioning to Broadway and earned numerous award nominations, a handful of awards, and many positive reviews. When the Alley Theatre announced the show for this season, anticipation was high. Sadly, Houston audiences aren't quite getting the show they expected.

Waiting for Gilgamesh: Scenes from Iraq; presented by Fort Point Theatre Channel. Performances run June 26-28, Thurs.-Sat. at 8 pm, with a special 2 pm matinee on Sat. June 28. Tickets: $20, $15 for students, seniors. and veterans. Held at Arsenal Center for the Arts, Black Box Theatre, 321 Arsenal St., Watertown, MA 02472. For general information, www.fortpointtc.org, 617.750.8900; for advance tickets, call 800.838.3006 or visit www.brownpapertickets.com/event/690754.

Dixon Place (Ellie Covan, Artistic Director) presents the 23rd Annual HOT!, the NYC Celebration of Queer Culture. The world's longest-running LGBTQ Performance Festival, HOT! offers theater, music, dance, puppetry, performance art and homoeroticism for the whole family! HOT! is the pioneering festival of queer performance and culture - and the oldest annual festival of its kind in the world. Dixon Place is proud the HOT! serves as the model for other queer festivals across the globe and has become a performance destination for emerging talent in the LGBTQ community. This year's HOT!, featuring hundreds of participating artists presenting their newest creations, will run July 5th through August 2nd at Dixon Place, located at 161A Chrystie Street in New York City.

Kathy Evans, Founding Executive Director, announced the nine musicals and twenty-six writers selected for the 2014 Rhinebeck Writers Retreat, its fourth year of providing working retreats for musical theatre writers. For nine consecutive weeks beginning June 29th, each writing team will have an individual weeklong residency in Rhinebeck, New York to write their musical. They are provided with a private home, transportation, food, and a stipend. All costs are fully funded by donors including The ASCAP Foundation, The Dramatists Guild Fund, and The Noel Coward Foundation. Writers participating this year include Broadway's Mindi Dickstein (Little Women), this year's Kleban Prize winner Nathan Tysen (Burnt Part Boys), and Peter Mills, past winner of the Kleban, Fred Ebb Award, and Richard Rodgers prize. The musicals' subjects cover 19th century nautical mysteries, 20th century fairy tales, a 1970's gay bar, and modern-day meth addicts. Every score is original and styles include 16th century Renaissance, big band, folk, rock, and electronic music.

SPAIN arts & culture and The Shakespeare Theatre Company present a staged reading of Life is a Dream (La vida es sueño) by Pedro Calderon de la Barca, newly translated by Helen Edmundson. In this special presentation at the Former Residence of the Ambassadors of Spain, the philosophical masterpiece comes to life in a one-night-only staged reading by some of Washington's finest actors.

Tony Award-winning comedy Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike will feature Resident Actor Jeffrey Bean as Vanya, Sharon Lockwood returning to the Alley as Sonia, Alley Artist Josie de Guzman returning as Masha, and Resident Actor Jay Sullivan as Spike. Rounding out the cast and making their Alley debuts are Rachael Holmes as Cassandra and Sarah Nealis as Nina. Jonathan Moscone, Artistic Director of California Shakespeare Theater, helms the production and returns after having directed the Alley's 2011 production of Amadeus.

Steppenwolf for Young Adults (SYA) has announced its 2014/15 season: George Orwell's Animal Farm, adapted for the stage by Althos Low, directed by SYA Artistic and Educational Director Hallie Gordon; and the world premiere of This Is Modern Art by Kevin Coval and Idris Goodwin, directed by Lisa Portes.

The Ensemble Theatre is currently producing a revival of John Henry Redwood's 1997 dramedy THE OLD SETTLER. The interesting piece, which examines various types of love, first premiered at the McCarter Theatre in Princeton, New Jersey. During it developmental stages it was part of the 1995 Eugene O'Neill Theatre Conference in Waterford, Connecticut and was rehearsed and performed in several Russian cities in 1996 by both an American and Russian cast. PBS also filmed it for a TV Movie adaption starring Debbie Allen and Phylicia Rasad, which originally aired on April 25, 2001. Additionally, the show has proven to be quite popular in regional theatres, and The Ensemble Theatre's entertaining production ensures Houston audiences know why.