Will Aronson News

A yellow flower pot and a mason jar with a single firefly, when hearing the title of a particular musical, MAYBE HAPPY ENDING, these are the two images that pop up in my mind. When first performed in 2016, the musical was not only awarded with various prizes but set an amazing ticket sales and attendance record like no other musical. The heart touching story of Olivier and Claire has returned for its third production in Korea.

TheaterWorksUSA will bring their musical adaptation of the celebrated bookseries Pete the Cat back to New York City to BMCC Tribeca Performing Arts Center (199 Chambers St, New York, NY 10007) on Saturday, November 24 & Sunday, November 25 at 11am. Tickets are $30 (General Admission) and can be purchased by visiting Tribecapac.org or by calling (212) 220-1460.

Following three sold-out shows in the 2017-18 season, Theatreworks USA's "Pete the Cat" is back. Based on the popular books by James Dean and Eric Litwin, this family-friendly musical comes to the McAninch Arts Center (MAC) on Friday, Nov. 9 at 7 p.m. This hour-long play is recommended for ages 3 and up.

The New York Musical Festival (NYMF) will honor Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Award-winning actress Victoria Clark, NYMF Board Member Jill Jaysen and Tony Award-winning producers Frankel, Viertel, Baruch, Routh Group at its 2018 Gala on Sunday, November 11 at the Edison Ballroom in Midtown Manhattan (240 W 47th St, New York, NY 10036).

For over 50 years TheaterWorksUSA has presented family-friendly adaptations of celebrated books on stages across the country. This fall, TheaterWorksUSA will be offering its trademark brand of quality entertainment in New York as they partner with BMCC Tribeca Performing Arts Center (199 Chambers St, New York, NY 10007) to present four shows based on beloved children's books Charlotte's Web, Pete the Cat, Dragons Love Tacos & The Magic School Bus: Lost in the Solar System.

Several years ago, I remember watching the Tony Awards and seeing Broadway power couple Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker presenting the award for Best Score and getting all giddy and nerdy over it because "NEW SONGS!" Well that's how I feel every summer at Village Theatre's Festival of New Musicals. I get to see what's out there up and coming and maybe get to walk away seeing a new gem. And this year was no exception with a couple of shows blowing me away. Now, of course, these are workshops and staged readings of shows, so we cannot really review them, but I can at least tell you what they offered us.

With one week left until The 18th Annual Festival of New Musicals, Village Theatre is excited to announce this summer's casting and creative teams! Tony Award-winner Victoria Clark (The Light in the Piazza) will direct Hansel & Gretl & Heidi & Gu?nter, a hilarious family adventure of what happens after Hansel and Gretl escape. Village Theatre's new artistic director Jerry Dixon (If/Then, Once on this Island) will direct the kick-off show Elysium: An American Fable, the moving story of a family dying under the weight of their own secrets; and associate artistic director Brandon Ivie (Jasper in Deadland) will direct The Passage, a coming-of-age mystery about a boy battling a monster holding his father captive. Joining them will be music directors Jason Hart (American Psycho), Rona Siddiqui (Bella: An American Tall Tale), R.J. Tancioco (Here Lies Love), and resident music director Tim Symons (Romy & Michelle's High School Reunion), among others.

Kaufman Music Center's annual showcase of some of the best new musicals headed to New York theaters will include shows by Academy Award Winner and 'Let It Go' songwriter KRISTEN ANDERSON-LOPEZ ('Frozen') and RICK ELICE ('Jersey Boys,' 'Peter and the Starcatcher'), plus music director ANDY EINHORN ('Bullets Over Broadway, 'Sondheim on Sondheim' & the upcoming 'Hello, Dolly' starring Bette Midler). Featuring performances by BETSY WOLFE ('Falsettos'), SEBASTIAN ARCELUS ('Jersey Boys,' TV series 'House of Cards' and 'Madam Secretary'), DREW GEHLING ('Waitress') and many more.

Village Theatre is excited to announce the lineup for The 18th Annual Festival of New Musicals, a series of five staged readings of musicals currently in development. The Festival will take place in Issaquah on August 10-12, 2018.

After its try-out performance in 2010 at the Daegu International Musical Festival, BUNGEE JUMPING OF THEIR OWN made its stage premiere in 2012. In 2013, it came back for a second production. Until this year, BUNGEE JUMPING OF THEIR OWN was a musical that countless South Korean theatergoers yearned to see again. As a response to the fans of this musical, DAL Company and Sejong Center for the Performing Arts came together to revive BUNGEE JUMPING OF THEIR OWN in 2018. When the news that BUNGEE JUMPING OF THEIR OWN is going to come back to the theaters this year spread, this musical became the most anticipated original musical revival of this year.

Kaufman Music Center's annual showcase of some of the best new musicals headed to New York theaters will include shows by Academy Award Winner and 'Let It Go' songwriter KRISTEN ANDERSON-LOPEZ ('Frozen') and RICK ELICE ('Jersey Boys,' 'Peter and the Starcatcher'), plus music director ANDY EINHORN ('Bullets Over Broadway, 'Sondheim on Sondheim' & the upcoming 'Hello, Dolly' starring Bette Midler). Featuring performances by BETSY WOLFE ('Falsettos'), SEBASTIAN ARCELUS ('Jersey Boys,' TV series 'House of Cards' and 'Madam Secretary'), DREW GEHLING ('Waitress') and many more.

Eisemann Center Presents the Theatreworks USA production of PETE THE CAT, on Sunday, January 21, 2018 at 2:30 pm in the Hill Performance Hall. PETE THE CAT, a new musical, is based on the series of books by Kimberly and James Dean.

When cool, smooth Pete the Cat moves in with the perfectly normal Biddle family, he rocks their world with his electric strumming and strutting. Everybody loves Pete, except for Jimmy, the world's most organized 2nd grader. But when Jimmy draws a blank in art class, Pete takes him on the inspirational road trip of a lifetime! The whole family will love Pete's hilarious, jazzy antics in this toe-tapping musical.

Three nationally renowned playwrights will present public readings of their newest scripts at The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis' Ignite! Festival of New Plays, running March 28 April 7, 2018.

This summer, Theatreworks USA, the nation's leading not-for-profit professional theatre for young audiences, will present the Off-Broadway Premiere of the new musical PETE THE CAT. It will begin performances tonight, July 19, and run through August 18, with its benefit opening on July 25 at the Lucille Lortel Theatre (121 Christopher Street, between Bleecker and Hudson Streets).

After an extensive search, Artistic Director Barbara Pasternack and the Board of Theatreworks USA have announced that Michael Harrington has been tapped to be the new Managing Director of the award-winning 55-year-old organization.

This summer, Theatreworks USA, the nation's leading not-for-profit professional theatre for young audiences, will present the Off-Broadway Premiere of the new musical PETE THE CAT. It will begin performances on July 19 and run through August 18, with its benefit opening on July 25 at the Lucille Lortel Theatre (121 Christopher Street, between Bleecker and Hudson Streets).

This summer, Theatreworks USA, the nation's leading not-for-profit professional theatre for young audiences, will present the Off-Broadway Premiere of the new musical PETE THE CAT. It will begin performances on July 19 and run through August 18, with its benefit opening on July 25 at the Lucille Lortel Theatre (121 Christopher Street, between Bleecker and Hudson Streets).

The Trouble With Doug, a new musical from award-winning writers Will Aronson and Daniel Mate, is receiving its European premiere at Denmark's Fredericia Theatre tonight, May 11th, through June 2nd.

Tonight, April 24, A Little New Music returns to the Catalina Jazz Club in Hollywood to present their 14th evening of artists performing new and unheard musical theatre pieces in a classic cabaret setting, with hosts Barrett Foa, (B'way: AVENUE Q, SPELLING BEE, TV: 'NCIS:LA') and ALNM founding producer, Christopher Maikish.