Jeff Dennhardt - Page 40

The Bay Street Theatre has announced they will name their new stage the ANNIE AND ELI, after theatre legends Anne Jackson and Eli Wallach. The 99-seat theatre will serve as a testament to the contribution in theatre by both individuals.

Francesca Zambello will take over as the new general and artistic director of the Glimmerglass Opera after the departure of Michael MacLeod earlier this year. Zambello is currently the artistic adviser for the San Francisco Opera and has worked at a number of other operas around the world including the Metropolitan Opera, the Paris Opera, and the Royal Opera House.

The filming of the Ralph Fiennes helmed 'Coriolanus' will begin next week in Serbia, according to a number of published reports. Vanessa Redgrave will star alongside Fiennes as Volumnia, Coriolanus' mother. The project has been in a standstill for quite some time until producers were finally gathered and a cast put together. Fiennes will direct as well as play the title role in the adaptation by John Logan.

A night with a number of surprises rounded out the final separation of the guys and girls, as America found out the twelve contestants that will make up the finals of "American Idol." Each of the contestants sent home this evening had standout performance within the past three weeks and many contestants who did make it through were shocked at their fate.

"Idol" tonight saw the last separation between the men and women, with the top eight gentlemen performing before learning to the top twelve. The guys gave a solid show, showing versatility and an ability to adapt songs to their personal styles. It seems that, tonight, the guys as a group gave an overall better performance than the women did last night, in a surprisingly strong showing.

Legendary comedian JOAN RIVERS continues to make The Laurie Beechman Theatre in Times Square her performance home in New York City. Rivers presents an evening of her newest and most outrageous riffs on Hollywood, pop culture, celebrities, and award show fashions at The Laurie Beechman Theatre inside the West Bank Cafe (407 West 42nd Street at Ninth Avenue).

The new opera by Mark-Anthony Turnage and Richard Thomas entitled ANNA NICOLE, will debut at London's Royal Opera House in February of next year. The opera centers around the late actress/model Anna Nicole Smith.

Pittsburgh CLO is set to host the world premiere of 'S Wonderful, the new musical revue celebrating the work of George and Ira Gershwin, running June 17th through September 5th at the CLO Cabaret.

Shakespeare on the Sound, Connecticut's premier outdoor summer theater company presenting free Shakespeare in the park, has found its ‘Othello' and ‘Iago.' It was announced today that Victor Williams will play the title role and Jesse J. Perez will play ‘Iago' in Othello, under the direction of Joanna Settle this summer.

Barefoot Theatre Company will present the closing event of the 70/70 Project, a yearlong, worldwide festival showcasing 70 plays by the soon-to-be 71-year-old playwright. The celebration features a reading of Unexpected Tenderness, one of Horovitz's most personal plays, live music, a surprise guest host and more. This special evening will take place at the Bleecker Street Theatre (45 Bleecker between Lafayette and Mott streets) on Wednesday, March 31st, 2010. Cocktail hour is at 7pm; curtain rises at 8. Tickets are $25 per person.

The reading of John Holleman's new play DEAD MAN'S HAND will star John Early, Jessica Frey, and Jordan Lage, the Atlantic Theater Company announced today. The reading will take place March 15th at the company's Stage 2 Theatre.

The San Jose Repertory is hoping to recover from recent financial losses incurred during their last season of productions. The company says it will take necessary steps to reduce costs and increase revenue for their current season.

Nigel Redden, Director of the Lincoln Center Festival, which runs from July 7 through July 25, 2010, today announced the Festival's line-up, which includes ten North American, U.S., and New York premieres, and debuts. The Festival will unfold in seven venues on and off the Lincoln Center campus, including two major theater events on Governors Island-the North American premiere of Peter Stein's 12-hour marathon production of Dostoyevsky's The Demons (also known as The Possessed) and the North American premiere of Toneelgroep Amsterdam's production of Pier Paolo Pasolini's searing Teorema, adapted and staged by Ivo van Hove.

Artistic Director/CEO Kate Maguire is pleased to announce that Tony® award winner Sutton Foster will be bringing her cabaret performance An Evening with Sutton Foster to Berkshire Theatre Festival on August 22 at 7pm on the historic Main Stage. Tickets for the evening are $25 and $45, with a limited number of VIP tickets at $70. VIP tickets feature prime seating locations and admission to an exclusive post-show reception featuring the artists. This evening of song and laughter, presented with her Musical Director Michael Rafter accompanying, is fueled by Ms. Foster's sparkling wit and incredible voice. Songs for the evening are drawn from her critically-acclaimed debut solo album Wish and from the stage roles that have helped make her famous, such as Thoroughly Modern Millie and The Drowsy Chaperone.

Tony Kushner will be the commencement speaker at the annual graduation ceremony for the New York School of Visual Arts. The Pulitzer Prize winning author will speak to the graduating class on May 14th.

Steppenwolf Theatre Company announced its 2010-2011 Subscription Season, exploring the theme of public/private self. Season subscriptions go on-sale to the public on Wednesday, March 10th at 11 a.m.

Ladies night tonight featured the top eight women remaining on "Idol." On a night that Simon called "the worst night to go" and is widely regarded as one of the more important nights in the competition, several contestants came out strong, while a few made terrible choices that may spell the end of the show for them. It seemed a generally safe night for many of the contestants, but was entertaining nonetheless.

Four members of the remaining "American Idol" hopefuls had to be sent home tonight, and the results shows only grow more emotional each week. The evening began with the top twenty contestants singing the Black Eyed Pea's hit I've Got a Feeling and the song was just, well, awkward. This is not the type of song that lends itself to a group performance and the "Idol" staff showed us exactly why that's the case. The harmonies were odd, the rapping by many of the contestants didn't fit, and the song just sounded odd. Katie Stevens was the standout, as she seemed to actually be enjoying herself and was having fun with the song. (Perhaps this is more the type of song she should be choosing on a weekly basis?)

The women were back tonight and ready to perform after last night's last minute switch. The theme was still Billboard Chart Toppers and the night had some songs that were up to Billboard caliber. Others, however, fell flat, as contestants were again plagued by poor song choices. Of all the judges, Randy seemed most frustrated by the multitude of poor choices. Hopefully this is a skill that will come with time and the contestants will get better. Some of the ladies, however, knew exactly where they wanted to be and were spot on in their selection.

Louis Sachar, Newbery Award winning author of Holes, has adapted his children's novel, Small Steps into a musical that will premiere at the Orgeon Children's Theatre in April. SMALL STEPS will begin performances April 24th and run through May 16th.