William Shakespeare News

UWM Peck School of the Arts announced upcoming events and shows.

Actors' Shakespeare Project (ASP) continues its 8th season - Laughter, Loss & Longing ? with one of Shakespeare's later comedies, The Merry Wives of Windsor, directed by ASP resident acting company member Steven Barkhimer. The play previews on December 7th, 8th & 9th, and opens on Saturday, December 10th at 8:00pm at the newly opened Davis Square Theatre (formerly Jimmy Tingle's), 255 Elm Street, right in the heart of Davis Square in Somerville. For this production we hope to be long on the 'laughter' part of our theme and, the holidays and Davis Square are a perfect match for the escapades of the Merry Wives. 'It's the time of year when we should be laughing off the crap we have to go through the rest of the year,' Artistic Director Allyn Burrows said. 'And what better place to perform but in the space once operated by the hilarious comedian Jimmy Tingle.'

New York Women in Film & Television (NYWIFT), which has supported the advancement of women in the entertainment industry for more than 30 years, will present their 31th annual Muse Awards at a gala luncheon to be held Wednesday, December 7th at the New York Hilton.

American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) continues its 2011-12 season with Wild Swans, the first stage version of Jung Chang's astonishing personal memoir.

Chesapeake Shakespeare Company, best known for their imaginative classical productions at the PFI Historic Park in Ellicott City, recently completed their first state-wide educational tour of their highly acclaimed A Midsummer Night's Dream.

Chicago Shakespeare Theater (CST) announced today casting for its 25th Anniversary Season production of William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, directed by CST Associate Artistic Director Gary Griffin (CST's Follies, Broadway's The Color Purple) and featuring a celebrated company of artists that includes stage and screen actor Ron Orbach as Nick Bottom, former Saturday Night Live funnyman Tim Kazurinsky as Peter Quince, and veteran CST actors Tracy Michelle Arnold as Hippolyta/Titania and Timothy Edward Kane as Theseus/Oberon. Performing the role of Puck is Elizabeth Ledo.

Here they come again! Those joyful - and trying - times we call 'The Holidays:' the annual celebration of presents and parties, obligatory expressions of peace and good will, accompanied by overstuffing at dinners, not to mention all that STUFF!

The Mechanicals Theatre Group, a professional acting company in Los Angeles begins rehearsals for a pared down, bare bones, actor-centered telling of one of Shakespeare's most intriguing and enigmatic comedies.

Oscar winning Actress Helen Hunt and MacArthur Award-winning director David Cromer triumph in a landmark production of Thornton Wilder's Pulitzer Prize-winning Our Town that is '... probably the only production to enter the theater history books' (New York Times). The Broad Stage itself will be physically transformed, allowing for only 325 seats, to bring Grover's Corners, the play's every town USA, truly home. Forget nostalgic Americana or anything you recall from your high school production. Our Town has been reclaimed as the relevant and urgent work of art about living here and now, reminding us why it is a truly timeless - and timely - masterpiece. KCRW presents this production with Helen Hunt as the Stage Manager leading many of the original Chicago/New York cast in stripping away the myth and artifice to reveal what counts in Our Town and in ourselves.

The Looking Glass Winter 2011 Writer/Director Forum, a festival of new works featuring emerging women playwrights and directors, runs December 1 - 18 at Looking Glass Theatre (422 West 57th Street).

American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) has scheduled two American Sign Language (ASL) interpreted performances and one audio described performance of the family production of The Snow Queen and two ASL interpreted performances and two audio described performances of the world premiere production Wild Swans based on the bestselling memoir by Jung Chang.

The Shakespeare Theatre Company is pleased to partner with Madame Tussauds, bringing a wax figure of William Shakespeare to Washington, D.C. in celebration of STC's 25th Anniversary Season. This STC debut marks the first U.S. public appearance of the wax William Shakespeare; he will be on display at the Company's Sidney Harman Hall (610 F Street NW) through May 31, 2012.

Burning Coal Theatre Company continues its 15th season with Shakespeare's Henry V (on Trapeze) presented in collaboration with the NYC-based Fight or Flight.

A Noise Within (ANW), the acclaimed classical repertory theatre company, continues its inaugural season in its new state-of-the-art Pasadena venue with the announcement of its series of 'FRIDAY NIGHT CONVERSATIONS,' 'FAMILY PACKAGE' matinees, and ASL-INTERPRETED PERFORMANCES, as well as the option of valet parking at the theatre for all performances.

Performances begin today for Chicago Shakespeare Theater's (CST) 25th Anniversary Season production of Elizabeth Rex, directed by CST Artistic Director Barbara Gaines and playing in CST's Courtyard Theater now through January 22, 2012.

After the overwhelming success of last season's 'Chicago', Playhouse on Park is set to present their production of the modern-day musical, 'Company' for 15 performances beginning with a preview on November 30th.

Stars André Braugher, Ami Brabson, Suzzanne Douglas, Frankie Faison, and many more will perform in a staged reading of King Lear by William Shakespeare for two performances only: Saturday January 7th, 2012 at 7pm and Sunday January 8th, 2012 at 5pm.

SH-K-BOOM RECORDS will release the new CD from GEORGIA STITT, the award winning and critically acclaimed composer and lyricist.