Molly Smith News

From Nick Jonas and Michael Urie to the Ladies of THE VIEW to Adam Pascal, Raul Esparza, Barbra Streisand to Alan Menken, Bernadette Peters to Susan Boyle, Colin Quinn to GLEE and Everything in Between - It's the BroadwayWorld.com 2012 Valentine's Day Special - It's the Biggest Ever!

Molly Smith Metzler's ELEMENO PEA features a pair of sisters: down-to-earth Devon and status-seeking Simone. Simone works as a personal assistant to Michaela Kell, the trophy wife of a wealthy ad executive, and she's planned a sisters' weekend in the Kells' gorgeous beachfront mansion. But within minutes of the girls' arrival, Michaela crashes the party. She and her husband have had a fight, and she's counting on Simone to help her keep from becoming Ex-Wife Number Two. The ensuing chaos brings to light old wounds and explosive secrets that turn everyone's worlds upside-down. Get a first look at the production below!

Ars Nova (Jason Eagan, Artistic Director; Jeremy Blocker, Managing Director) will kick off its 2012 season with The Urban Dictionary Plays, by Ars Nova's Play Group. Set to play 10 performances only from February 1-11, this year's incarnation of Ars Nova's annual Play Group production features original short plays and live music inspired by the irreverent entries on urbandictionary.com.

Ars Nova (Jason Eagan, Artistic Director; Jeremy Blocker, Managing Director) kicks off its 2012 season with The Urban Dictionary Plays, by Ars Nova's Play Group. Set to play 10 performances only from February 1-11, this year's incarnation of Ars Nova's annual Play Group production redefines the short play genre, featuring original short plays and live music inspired by the irreverent entries on urbandictionary.com.

While laughing fairly consistently throughout Molly Smith Metzler's funny new American play ELEMENO PEA--now having its West Coast premiere engagement at South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa through February 26--you'll probably feel like you're sitting in a live studio taping of a fresh new sitcom about the rich and the spoiled in the posh enclave of Martha's Vineyard. Unfolding in real time, the play is refreshingly of-the-moment, making it quite entertaining and approachable to contemporary audiences no matter where someone stands in the economic spectrum.

Ah, Wilderness!, Eugene O'Neill's depiction of American family life at the turn of the 20th century, will kick off the two-month citywide Eugene O'Neill Festival at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater.

Cherry Lane Theatre's award-winning MENTOR PROJECT will begin its 13th season on February 21 with a production of Elizabeth Rose's RELATIVE PITCH, the first of four new works in 2012 MENTOR PROJECT running February 21 to April 14 at Cherry Lane Studio Theatre (38 Commerce Street in Manhattan).

Ars Nova (Jason Eagan, Artistic Director; Jeremy Blocker, Managing Director) will kick off its 2012 season with The Urban Dictionary Plays, by Ars Nova's Play Group. Set to play 10 performances only from February 1-11, this year's incarnation of Ars Nova's annual Play Group production features original short plays and live music inspired by the irreverent entries on urbandictionary.com. Check out photos from the productions below!

Ars Nova (Jason Eagan, Artistic Director; Jeremy Blocker, Managing Director) will kick off its 2012 season with The Urban Dictionary Plays, by Ars Nova's Play Group. Set to play 10 performances only from February 1-11, this year's incarnation of Ars Nova's annual Play Group production features original short plays and live music inspired by the irreverent entries on urbandictionary.com.

The Susan Smith Blackburn Prize has announced 10 Finalists for its prestigious playwriting award, now celebrating its thirty-fourth year. The ten Finalists for the 2011-2012 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, chosen from over 100 submitted plays, are:

Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater today announced eight winners of the 2011/2012 Student Playwrights Project 10-Minute Play Competition-an annual event in which D.C.-area students submit original 10-minute plays into competition. Nearly 800 works were submitted from students in D.C.-area middle and high schools this year.

Ars Nova (Jason Eagan, Artistic Director; Jeremy Blocker, Managing Director) kicks off its 2012 season with The Urban Dictionary Plays, by Ars Nova's Play Group. Set to play 10 performances only from February 1-11, this year's incarnation of Ars Nova's annual Play Group production redefines the short play genre, featuring original short plays and live music inspired by the irreverent entries on urbandictionary.com.

Ars Nova (Jason Eagan, Artistic Director; Jeremy Blocker, Managing Director) has announced its 2012 featured programming and exciting developments at its vibrant Hell's Kitchen music, comedy and theater space at 511 West 54th Street.

Manhattan Theatre Club's world premiere of CLOSE UP SPACE, the new play by Molly Smith Metzler, directed by Leigh Silverman will end its limited engagement at MTC at New York City Center - Stage I (131 West 55th Street) on Sunday, January 29. When it ends its run, it will have played 21 previews and 46 regular performances.

In homage to one of America's greatest playwrights, Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater hosts the Eugene O'Neill Festival, a two-month examination of the life and work of O'Neill. Similar to the Edward Albee Festival in 2011, this celebration will feature unique collaborations with other arts and education institutions in a diverse program of events. The Eugene O'Neill Festival runs March 9-May 6, 2012 and is sponsored by Joan and David Maxwell.

South Coast Repertory takes audiences to Martha's Vineyard in Elemeno Pea, a new comedy about 'the rich behaving badly' that will have its West Coast premiere Jan. 27 through Feb. 26 on the Segerstrom Stage.

Manhattan Theatre Club's world premiere of CLOSE UP SPACE, the new play by Molly Smith Metzler, directed by Leigh Silverman will end its limited engagement at MTC at New York City Center - Stage I (131 West 55th Street) on Sunday, January 29. When it ends its run, it will have played 21 previews and 46 regular performances.

Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater announces casting for Eugene O'Neill's singular comedy Ah, Wilderness! Helen Hayes Award winner and former Arena Stage Associate Artistic Director Kyle Donnelly returns to direct her 21st show at Arena Stage. Ah, Wilderness! runs March 9-April 8, 2012 in the Fichandler Stage as part of the two-month Eugene O'Neill Festival.

Primary Stages (Casey Childs, Founder & Executive Producer; Andrew Leynse, Artistic Director; Elliot Fox, Managing Director) continues its 27th season with the world premiere of the new play, Rx, written by Kate Fodor.

Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater's Arlene and Robert Kogod Cradle will be transformed into a mystical place of wonder and amusement, with a dash of ridiculousness, with Elephant Room, featuring semi-pro conjurors Dennis Diamond, Daryl Hannah and Louie Magic.