Signature Theatre News

59E59 Theaters welcomes Smoke & Mirrors Collaborative with NDEBELE FUNERAL, written by Zoey Martinson and directed by Awoye Timpo. NDEBELE FUNERAL begins performances on Thursday, September 11 for a limited engagement through Sunday, October 5. Press opening is Tuesday, September 16 at 7:30 PM. The performance schedule is Tuesday - Thursday at 7:30 PM; Friday at 8:30 PM; Saturday at 2:30 PM & 8:30 PM; and Sunday at 3:30 PM. Performances are at 59E59 Theaters (59 East 59th Street, between Park and Madison Avenues). Tickets are $25 ($17.50 for 59E59 Members). To purchase tickets, call Ticket Central at (212) 279-4200 or go to www.59e59.org.

Signature Theatre is proud to announce the cast of Sunday in the Park with George, the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award®-winning musical, directed by Signature Associate Artistic Director Matthew Gardiner(Signature's Dreamgirls, The Threepenny Opera). Running in the MAX Theatre August 15 - September 21, the Stephen Sondheim/James Lapine classic is the first production of Signature Theatre's 25th Anniversary. Check out a sneak peek below!

Signature Theatre is proud to announce the cast of Sunday in the Park with George, the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award®-winning musical, directed by Signature Associate Artistic Director Matthew Gardiner(Signature's Dreamgirls, The Threepenny Opera). Running in the MAX Theatre August 15 - September 21, the Stephen Sondheim/James Lapine classic is the first production of Signature Theatre's 25th Anniversary. Check out a first look at rehearsals below!

President and CEO Kim H. Kowalke today announced expanded programmatic initiatives for the The Kurt Weill Foundation for Music. Dr. Kowalke, who was invited to lead the Foundation by Lotte Lenya in 1981, described the present moment as 'the beginning of a new phase in the Foundation's history. The twelve-member Board of Trustees of the Foundation has made available the financial resources necessary to increase funding for grants and sponsorships substantially, expand existing programs, and embark upon new initiatives that will significantly advance the organization's mission. Staff appointments will enhance the Foundation's ability to respond to these new opportunities.'

Everyman Theatre began rehearsals today for the 2014/15 season opener, The Understudy. Theresa Rebeck's comedic look into the backstage world of show biz runs from August 27th through September 28th. The three-person cast features Everyman Resident Company Members Clinton Brandhagen, Danny Gavigan and Beth Hylton. Joseph W. Ritsch makes his Everyman directorial debut with the production.

The incomparable CHITA RIVERA returns to Birdland (315 West 44 Street) for seven shows only, Tuesday, October 7 through Saturday, October 11. Tickets are on sale now.

Ms. Florrie Bagel of Bethesda, Maryland, recently back from her two-year national tour of Sister Act, performed a one-night-only cabaret at Signature Theatre on Friday, July 25, as part of their Sizzlin' Summer Nights series, and it didn't take long to realize that Florrie Bagel is somebody special.

Signature's Open House will celebrate the very best in theatre, music and fun on Saturday, August 2nd from noon to 10:00pm. Free and open to the public, this special event is an entire day full of exciting performances, demonstrations, master classes, exhibits, a concert on the plaza, and kids' activities offered both inside and outside the Signature Theatre complex. The entire schedule and list of performers can be viewed by visiting our website at http://www.signature-theatre.org/open-house-2014

Tim Realbuto's 54 Below show will feature JULIE D'MOURE (Hair), JUSTIN ANTHONY LONG ('City of Dreams'), ANNA LOUISE MORSE (Spring Awakening), and NICHOLAS YENSON (Ghostlight), along with special guest stars, including Tony Award winner BETH LEAVEL (The Drowsy Chaperone), JENNA LEIGH GREEN (Wicked); DANIELLE FERLAND (Into the Woods), DEREK KLENA (Dogfight), JASON GOTAY (Bring It On), ALLI MAUZEY (Cry-Baby), NATASCIA DIAZ (tick tick Boom), Drama Desk nominee CHRISTINA BIANCO (Forbidden Broadway), LAURISSA ROMAIN (South Pacific), and KIMBERLY FAYE GREENBERG (One Night With Fanny Brice).

'That's So Raven' star Anneliese van der Pol teams up with actor/writer Tim Realbuto (Ghostlight; The Emperor's Club) for an evening of song, hilarity and personal reflection at popular venue 54 Below, beginning tonight.

The Old Globe today announced the full cast and creative team for Shakespeare's The Two Gentlemen of Verona. Renowned director, Globe alumnus, and Tony Award nominee Mark Lamos (Compleat Female Stage Beauty, Pentecost, Resurrection Blues) returns to the Globe with one of Shakespeare's most delightful and boisterous comedies. The final production of the 2014 Summer Season will be presented in the outdoor Lowell Davies Festival Theatre, August 10 - September 14, 2014.

Signature Theatre has announced a one-week extension for THE WAYSIDE MOTOR INN by A.R. Gurney, directed by Lila Neugebauer. The production will now play through Sunday, September 28, 2014. THE WAYSIDE MOTOR INN begins performances on Tuesday, August 12 and opens Thursday, September 4 in The Alice Griffin Jewel Box Theatre at The Pershing Square Signature Center (480 West 42nd Street between 9th and 10th Avenues). Limited $25 subsidized tickets remain for the production's initial run. Tickets during the extension week start at $55 each.

Artistic Director Molly Smith announces D.C.-area based playwright John Strand will join Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater for a yearlong playwright residency as part of the American Voices New Play Institute, effective this month through June 2015. Through the residency Strand will receive a salary; health benefits; a budget to be used at his discretion to cover collaborator fees, workshop costs and research expenses to support his new play development process; and a commitment from Arena Stage to produce a new work in a future season and to continue cultivating an ongoing, long-term relationship.

After playing to sold out crowds at the recent 2014 Hollywood Fringe Festival, the new hit comedy play - MEET & GREET returns for an extended run at Theatre Asylum-Elephant Space in Hollywood. The Encore! Producers' Award winner was written by t.v. veterans Stan Zimmerman (The Golden Girls, Roseanne, Gilmore Girls) & Christian McLaughlin (Married with Children, Desperate Housewives) and directed by Stan Zimmerman (Entertaining Mr. Sloane, Blink & You Might Miss Me, A Tuna Christmas). The outrageous comedy features an all star cast, including Daniele Gaither (Mad TV, Groundlings), Teresa Ganzel (Wall-E, The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson), Carolyn Hennesy (True Blood, General Hospital), Vicki Lewis (NewsRadio, Chicago on Broadway) and Brendan Robinson (Pretty Little Liars). It runs for only twenty-four performances at Theatre Asylum-Elephant Space, 6322 Santa Monica Blvd in Los Angeles from Friday August 1st to Sunday September 21st with three performances per weekend, Fridays & Saturdays at 8pm and Sundays at 4pm. Tickets are $20 online or $25 at the door.

Prepare yourselves b***hes! Tay Tay's coming to town. And not the lovely girl with a beautiful voice. It's Wesley 'Tay Tay' Taylor, the lovely boy with a beautiful voice. And he's here to teach you. Not just how to sing but how to sang. The Broadway star has teamed up with the Straight From New York Workshop and Concert Series and will be teaching master classes in Houston and Dallas.

Sundance Institute and the LUMA Foundation today announced that the two organizations will again collaborate to host the second Sundance Institute | LUMA Foundation Theatre Directors Retreat in Arles, France, July 29 through August 11. The Retreat is one of 10 residential programs hosted by Sundance Institute this summer, collectively representing 15 weeks of support and mentorship for promising independent artists in theatre and film from the United States and around the world.

Signature Theatre will present The Wayside Motor Inn by A.R. Gurney and directed by Lila Neugebauer. The production runs August 12 through September 21, 2014 with a September 4 opening night in The Alice Griffin Jewel Box Theatre at The Pershing Square Signature Center (480 West 42nd Street between 9thand 10th Avenues). Scroll down for a sneak peek at the cast and creative team in rehearsal!

Signature Theatre presents the U.S. premiere of And I and Silence, by Naomi Wallace and directed by Caitlin McLeod. The production runs August 5 through September 14, 2014 with a August 25 opening night in The Romulus Linney Courtyard Theatre at The Pershing Square Signature Center (480 West 42nd Street between 9thand 10th Avenues). Get a sneak peek at the cast in rehearsal below!

kef theatrical productions will present IT'S ONLY KICKBALL, STUPID - the new play by Caroline Prugh and directed by Adam Fitzgerald - from August 28 to September 14 at The Hartley House (413 West 46th Street). IT'S ONLY KICKBALL, STUPID is a sly time-bending comedy in a special immersive production that tosses the audience into the center of the action.