WAKE UP with BWW 5/29/14 - ANTHEM, O'Neill Center, BIG OTIS JUMP UP BLUES REVUE and More!

Good morning, BroadwayWorld! Because we know all our readers eat, sleep and breathe Broadway, what could be better than waking up to it? Today's big news: ANTHEM opens off-Broadway tonight, the NYPL hosts a discussion in honor of the O'Neill Center's 50th anniversary, and the creator of SMOKEY JOE'S CAFE Otis Sallid boogies down at 54 Below!

TODAY'S TOP ITEMS:

• Jeff Britting's adaptation of Ayn Rand's novel ANTHEM opens off-Broadway tonight!
• The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts kicks off its celebration of the O'Neill Center with a discussion featuring O'Neill alumni playwrights John Guare, Samuel D. Hunter, and Quiara Alegría Hudes...
• BIG OTIS JUMP UP BLUES REVUE plays for one night only at 54 Below, with Lillias White and more, directed by SMOKEY JOE'S CAFE creator Otis Sallid!
• ALL THE WAY star Bryan Cranston is getting a Sardi's portrait today, so stay tuned for photos!
• And as she does every year, Bette Midler will appear at the 2014 New York Restoration Project Spring Picnic today, and we'll be bringing you coverage later on.

NEWS YOU MISSED YESTERDAY:

• Could an adaptation of the Oscar-winning film THE STING be coming to Broadway?
• The original 'Pippin' John Rubinstein will rejoin the musical this summer as 'Charles'!
• Second Stage announced its 2014-15 season, featuring a world premiere by Neil LaBute and more.
• Atlantic Theater also revealed its 2014-15 lineup, with world premiere productions from Hunter Bell and Lee Overtree, Halley Feiffer, Rajiv Joseph and Doug Wright...
• PAGEANT - THE MUSICAL is returning to off-Broadway for a summer run.
• We got a sneak peek at Paper Mill's GREASE; and speaking of GREASE, Taylor Louderman, Brandon Espinoza and more will star in The Muny's production this summer!
• HBO's THE NORMAL HEART has topped the 2014 CTA nominees list!
• Kelli O'Hara and more are set for this year's A CAPITOL FOURTH on PBS.
• KIDS WEEK will return to the West End in August with free tickets to 36 shows!
• GONE GIRL author Gillian Flynn is writing a "modern and accessible" version of Shakespeare's HAMLET...
• ONCE's Steve Kazee has signed on for Showtime's SHAMELESS!
• And finally, poet, activist and so much more, Maya Angelou passed away yesterday at the age of 86.

Broadway Weather Forecast: Mostly sunny with a high of 65 degrees.

Quote of the Day: On finding a happy medium between thinking and doing...

"Vision without action is a daydream. Action without vision is a nightmare."
-- Japanese Proverb (Quotes4All)

What we're looking forward to: Lincoln Center Theater's Tony-winning production of THE NANCE, starring Nathan Lane. The play will be hitting theaters next month and kicks off during Gay Pride Week in many cities!