Steve Martin News

Artistic Director Molly Smith tackles a unique, in-the-round staging of Bertolt Brecht's powerhouse anti-war play Mother Courage and Her Children at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater. Iconic stage and screen actress and Academy Award nominee Kathleen Turner returns to Arena Stage following her sold-out run of Red Hot Patriot: The Kick-Ass Wit of Molly Ivins to make her professional singing debut as the tough-as-nails matriarch Mother Courage-a single mother determined to keep her family alive and her business afloat during war. Using the David Hare translation, the show fuses politics and satire to paint an unforgettable and provocative portrait of war, incorporating more than 10 pieces of original music composed in a rollicking, gypsy-punk style and performed by cast members doubling as musicians. Mother Courage and Her Children runs January 31-March 9, 2014 in the Fichandler Stage.

The show, A SPELL FOR COLD WEATHER by Charles Way, began after a short break. The show was a sweet story. It takes place on a poor farm. It seemed to take place during the depression but it could have just as easily been in medieval times. I love these stories that tell a moral and define a tradition. Betty (Anastasia Van Allen) and Bob (Steve Martin) live on a farm where the life has gone out of living. They used to sing, dance and play games -but no more.

During rehearsals for The Underpants by Steve Martin, Hartford Stage administrators learned of plans for an "accidental" wardrobe malfunction. Horrified, the administrators noted that Hartford Stage does not condone wardrobe malfunctions of any kind.

Winter brings a trio of momentous house debuts for Richard Tucker Award-winner Stephen Costello. On the heels of headlining La bohème in his first appearances at Munich's Bavarian State Opera (Dec 15-23), he heads home to the States to make debuts at Houston Grand Opera, as the Duke of Mantua in Rigoletto (Jan 24–Feb 9), and the Washington National Opera, where he revisits Ishmael/Greenhorn, the role he originally created, in the East Coast premiere of Jake Heggie's Moby-Dick (Feb 22–March 8). The tenor will then remain in DC to reprise his star turn as Nemorino in L'elisir d'amore (March 20-29). One of today's most compelling exponents of Donizetti's lovelorn peasant, Costello was the obvious choice to sing favorite Nemorino numbers at Lincoln Center's star-studded Richard Tucker Gala last month.

Hartford Stage relaunches StagePass for Young Professionals, ages 21-29, for the New Year. With StagePass, for just $63, see all four shows this season over and over, and even bring your friends! If purchased by December 20, StagePass members see A Christmas Carol for FREE! (December 26-28 performances only.)

The Daily Mail reports that Downton Abbey's Samantha Bond will join Robert Lindsay, Rufus Hound and Katherine Kingsley in DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS, directed by Tony winner Jerry Mitchell at the Savoy Theatre.

Winter brings a trio of momentous house debuts for Richard Tucker Award-winner Stephen Costello. On the heels of headlining La bohème in his first appearances at Munich's Bavarian State Opera (Dec 15-23), he heads home to the States to make debuts at Houston Grand Opera, as the Duke of Mantua in Rigoletto (Jan 24–Feb 9), and the Washington National Opera, where he revisits Ishmael/Greenhorn, the role he originally created, in the East Coast premiere of Jake Heggie's Moby-Dick (Feb 22–March 8). The tenor will then remain in DC to reprise his star turn as Nemorino in L'elisir d'amore (March 20-29). One of today's most compelling exponents of Donizetti's lovelorn peasant, Costello was the obvious choice to sing favorite Nemorino numbers at Lincoln Center's star-studded Richard Tucker Gala last month.

As BroadwayWorld previously reported, Spider-Man Turn Off the Dark, the Broadway spectacular that defied odds and expectations to conquer New York, is moving to Las Vegas, the entertainment capital of the world. After more than three historic years on Broadway, the show play its final performance at the Foxwoods Theatre on January 4, 2014. Now according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Casino executive Steve Wynn is currently in meetings to host the production.

As BroadwayWorld previously reported, SPIDER-MAN Turn Off The Dark, the Broadway spectacular that defied odds and expectations to conquer New York, is moving to Las Vegas, the entertainment capital of the world. After more than three historic years on Broadway, the show play its final performance at the Foxwoods Theatre on January 4, 2014. In a recent interview with Billboard, producer Michael Cohl chatted about the big transfer.

Next year's eagerly awaited 'Backstage at the Geffen' will honor The Walt Disney Studios Chairman, Alan F. Horn, with the Distinction in Service Award and multi-talented entertainer Steve Martin with the Distinction in Theater Award at the ninth annual fundraiser

Nominations for the 56th Annual GRAMMY Awards were announced tonight by The Recording Academy and reflected one of the most diverse years for the best and brightest in music.

Jay Z tops the nominations with nine; Kendrick Lamar, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Justin Timberlake, and Pharrell Williams each garner seven nods; Drake and mastering engineer Bob Ludwig are up for five awards.

According to an Equity casting notice, Bright Star, a musical by Edie Brickell & Steve Martin, will get a New York City workshop this spring, presented by the Old Globe Theatre. Walter Bobbie is set to direct the project, which will be presented March 6-7, 2014.

The Old Globe presents a one-night-only event, Barry Edelstein In Conversation with Jack O'Brien, tonight, Monday, Dec. 2 at 7:00 p.m.

Performing a rich selection of Broadway songs from her extensive songbook, including standards, Rodgers & Hammerstein and Stephen Sondheim to name a few, Broadway's brightest star, Bernadette Peters will dazzle audiences this coming April , bringing her concert to Australia in a glamorous and magical evening of song with an orchestra as only Bernadette Peters can do. Throughout her illustrious career, the Tony Award winning actress has amazed critics and audiences with her performances on stage and television, in concert and on recordings.

San Jose Stage Company presents the iconic holiday classic, It's A Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play, from tonight, November 27 through December 22.

The CW will air the two-hour movie "Planes, Trains and Automobiles" tonight, November 27,2013 (8:00-10:00 p.m. ET) (TV-PG, DL) (HDTV)

The romantic comedy Parfumerie, adapted by E.P. Dowdall from the Hungarian play Illatszertar by Miklos Laszlo, will have a rare revival as the first theater production of the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts (Lou Moore, Executive Director), for a limited, 29 performance engagement November 26 to December 22. The production, directed by Mark Brokaw, who is currently represented on Broadway with Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, centers on a romance that unfolds through love letters, a perfect homage to the historic Beverly Hills Post Office. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!

It's been 10 years since Dane Cook, then a young comedian rising in the ranks of the comedy world, released "Dane Cook: Harmful if Swallowed."

The Stage is transformed into a 1940s radio studio, where six actors gather to perform the holiday classic as a live radio play on Christmas Eve. This captivating holiday treat brings the spirit of the season to life right before your eyes (and ears). The ensemble becomes the characters, stepping into the iconic scenes that have warmed hearts and souls for generations.