William Brown News

Writers Theatre, under the leadership of Artistic Director Michael Halberstam and Executive Director Kathryn M. Lipuma, concludes its 2015/16 season with Company, featuring music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by George Furth. The production is directed by William Brown. Company features original orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick, Orchestral Reductions by Ian Weinberger, music direction by Tom Vendafreddo and choreography by Brock Clawson. The show runs June 15 - July 31, 2016 in the Alexandra C. and John D. Nichols Theatre at 325 Tudor Court, Glencoe. The Press Opening is Wednesday, June 22, at 7:30 pm.

Writers Theatre concludes its 2015/16 season with Company, featuring music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by George Furth. The production is directed by William Brown. Company was originally produced and directed on Broadway by Harold Prince, and features original orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick, music direction by Tom Vendafreddo, and choreography by Brock Clawson. The show runs June 15, 2016 - July 31, 2016 in the Alexandra C. and John D. Nichols Theatre: 325 Tudor Court, Glencoe. The Press Opening is Wednesday, June 22 at 7:30 p.m.

TimeLine Theatre Company announces that Chicago artists Behzad Dabu and Ron OJ Parson have been named Company Members at the theater, effective immediately.

American Players Theatre (APT) announces its 37th Summer Festival Season, June 3 - October 16, 2016, a diverse lineup of eight classical and contemporary plays in repertory that includes the return and work of two visiting Chicago directors: Derrick Sanders, founding Artistic Director of Congo Square Theatre Company directing The African Company Presents Richard III by Carlyle Brown in APT's intimate 200-seat Touchstone Theatre; and Jeff Award winner William Brown taking on William Shakespeare's King Lear in APT's flagship 1140-seat outdoor amphitheater on the Hill.

Happy Holidays! It's the last week to vote for the 2015 BroadwayWorld Madison Regional Awards! Check out the latest live stats as of December 18. Nominations were reader-submitted and after the nomination period ended, BroadwayWorld's local editors proofed the list for eligibility and errors. Voting runs through December 31!

Time is running out to vote for the 2015 BroadwayWorld Madison Regional Awards! Check out the latest live stats as of December 18. Nominations were reader-submitted and after the nomination period ended, BroadwayWorld's local editors proofed the list for eligibility and errors. Voting runs through December 31!

Voting is fully underway for the 2015 BroadwayWorld Madison Regional Awards! Check out the latest live stats as of December 11. Nominations were reader-submitted and after the nomination period ended, BroadwayWorld's local editors proofed the list for eligibility and errors. Voting runs through December 31.

Voting has opened for the 2015 BroadwayWorld Madison Regional Awards! Check out the latest live stats as of November 27th. Nominations were reader-submitted and after the nomination period ended, BroadwayWorld's local editors proofed the list for eligibility and errors. Voting runs through December 31.

Mercy Street Theatre kicks off its second season with the world premiere of MERRY CHRISTMAS, MULCH PILE!, written by resident playwright Dakota Parobek.  The show runs tonight, December 3 - 6, 2015 at Hairpin Arts Center, 2810 N Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago.

Voting has opened for the 2015 BroadwayWorld Madison Regional Awards! Check out the latest live stats as of November 27th. Nominations were reader-submitted and after the nomination period ended, BroadwayWorld's local editors proofed the list for eligibility and errors. Voting runs through December 31.

Mercy Street Theatre kicks off its second season with the world premiere of MERRY CHRISTMAS, MULCH PILE!, written by resident playwright Dakota Parobek.  The show runs December 3 - 6, 2015 at Hairpin Arts Center, 2810 N Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago.

American Players Theatre (APT) is excited to announce its 37th season, which will run June 4 to October 16, 2016. In APT's flagship outdoor amphitheater, William Shakespeare will bookend the Hill season with The Comedy of Errors and King Lear. Also playing on the Hill: Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, An Ideal Husband by Oscar Wilde and Arcadia by Tom Stoppard.

Writers Theatre Artistic Director Michael Halberstam and Executive Director Kathryn M. Lipuma announce the Inaugural Season in the company's new theatre center, to include a season kick-off at Books on Vernon with Marjorie Prime by Jordan Harrison, directed by Kimberly Senior, followed by the Grand Opening of the state-of-the-art facility, designed by Jeanne Gang and Studio Gang Architects. Arcadia by Tom Stoppard, directed by Artistic Director Michael Halberstam will be the inaugural production in the Alexandra C. and John D. Nichols Theatre. A new collaboration with Chicago's The Second City entitled Death of a Streetcar Named Virginia Woolf-A Parody, by Tim Sniffen, with additional material by Tim Ryder, directed by Artistic Director Michael Halberstam and Stuart Carden, will open the Gillian Theatre. Company, with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by George Furth, directed by William Brown with musical direction by Tom Vendafreddo, will follow Arcadia in the Alexandra C. and John D. Nichols Theatre.

The latest in unauthorized gossip and buzz from the heart of Chicago's showtune video bars, and musical theater news from Chicago to Broadway. 'American Idiot' examines a generation, and 'The Girl In The Train' captures a by-gone era. We run down long-run shows, and break down the Marriott Theatre's 2016 season announcement, too. Plus 'Hollywood' from Light Opera Works, a new show from Underscore, a high school mounts 'Starlight Express,' and Christmas has begun!

The Marriott Theatre, Chicagoland's longest-running professional musical theater, announces its 2016 Season!  The award-winning theatre will present both premiere productions of recent Broadway hits, and classic revivals in 2016.  Joining returning directors Nick Bowling (The King & I) and Rachel Rockwell (October Sky) Marriott Theatre announced four directors who will be bringing their fresh and exciting perspectives to the unique, intimate Marriott stage for the very first time, William Brown, Amanda Dehnert, Don Stephenson and Aaron Thielen.  They will be joined by choreographers Matt Raftery and Alex Sanchez, and musical directors Ryan T. Nelson and Doug Peck on the creative teams.

Colorful light bulbs hang from the stairwell beside the home of Stanley and Stella Kowalski - an omnipresent sign that New Orleans is a colorful city alight with parties. When those bulbs are off, however, they stand as an even more daunting reminder that life isn't always Mardi Gras.

Mercy Street Theatre continues its debut season with the world premiere of ROTPETER, a new play based on Franz Kafka's 'A Report to an Academy' and adapted by resident playwright Rachel DuBose*. The show begins today, July 17, and runs through August 1, 2015 at Hairpin Arts Center, 2810 N Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago. Tickets for ROTPETER are on sale now at brownpapertickets.org. 

The latest in unauthorized gossip and buzz from the heart of Chicago's showtune video bars, and musical theater news from Chicago to Broadway. 'Into The Woods,' 'Company,' 'Oklahoma!' and 'South Pacific' receive local stagings, as do 'Loving Repeating' and 'Goblin Market.' New shows include 'Stanley In The Name Of Love' and the musical episode of 'Buffy.' Plus the latest on new screen versions of 'Lucky Stiff,' 'The Wiz' and 'Grease!'

Windy City Playhouse, Chicago's newest Equity theater, announces the cast for its third production, the riotous Things You Shouldn't Say Past Midnight: A Comedy in Three Beds from Peter Ackerman, co-author of 20th Century Fox's hit animated film Ice Age. This contemporary sex farce is directed by William Brown, fresh off his successful run of Doubt at Writers Theatre. Brown directs a stellar cast of Broadway veterans and rising stars including Emily Tate, Peter Meadows, Patrese McClain, Shane Kenyon, Chris Sheard and Robert Spencer. Things You Shouldn't Say Past Midnight runs August 12-October 4 at Windy City Playhouse, 3014 W. Irving Park. Opening night is Saturday, August 15. windycityplayhouse.com/things/