Ahmanson Theatre News

Producer Jeffrey Finn announced today that OLEANNA, the provocative drama by Pulitzer Prize winner David Mamet, will have its first-ever Broadway production as part of the 2009-2010 Broadway Season. Starring Bill Pullman and Julia Stiles and directed by Tony Award winner Doug Hughes, the play is a gripping account of a power struggle between a male university professor and one of his female students.

They starred together 30 years ago in the smash hit Evita, and for one week only, at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles, theatre legends Patti Lupone and Mandy Patinkin reunite on stage in a love letter to the theatre which also celebrates their decades-long friendship.

Center Theatre Group is announcing casting for the upcoming Donmar Warehouse production of the musical 'Parade,' starting previews on September 24, 2009, at the CTG/Mark Taper Forum. Opening is set for October 4 and performances will continue through November 15.

Broadway legends Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin open their critically acclaimed theatre concert, 'An Evening with Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin,' at the Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre on Tuesday, June 23, 2009. Performances for this one-week-only engagement continue through June 29.

Tony Award winner Beth Leavel will star as Miss Hannigan in The Muny's production of ANNIE. The show has subscription performances June 22 through 28, with additional performances June 29 and 30. All performances begin at 8:15pm. Ticket prices range from $9 - $66.

Broadway legends Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin open their critically acclaimed theatre concert, 'An Evening with Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin,' at the Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre on Tuesday, June 23, 2009. Performances for this one-week-only engagement continue through June 29.

Tony Award winner Beth Leavel will star as Miss Hannigan in The Muny's production of ANNIE. The show has subscription performances June 22 through 28, with additional performances June 29 and 30. All performances begin at 8:15pm. Ticket prices range from $9 - $66.

Variety is reporting that Broadway looks to be set to get a double dose of David Mamet this fall, with a transfer of his OLEANNA. Variety reveals that the production is likely to join a fall slate that also includes the playwright's new play 'Race.' The Doug Hughes-helmed staging of OLEANNA, starring Bill Pullman and Julia Stiles, opened Sunday at L.A. Center Theater Group's Mark Taper Forum to enthusiastic reviews.

Fern Kershon and Orange Thought Productions will present Heart of the City, a new play by Eric Lane, directed by Martha Banta, featuring Eliza Foss, Scott Kerns, Marcia Jean Kurtz, Martin LaPlatney, Melissa Miller and Mark Setlock. Performances will begin Thursday June 11th at the Theatre at 30th Street, for a limited engagement.

The widely loved, international homemaker, talk show host, gigastar, fashion icon, swami and most-sought-after friend of the rich, famous and royal - the incomparable Dame Edna - is making a welcomed return to the Ahmanson Theatre.

'Dame Edna: My First Last Tour' opens Wednesday, June 10 at 8 p.m. at the Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre in downtown Los Angeles at the Music Center, and will play for two weeks only through June 21.

WhatsOnStage.com is reporting that talks are under way to bring 'Minsky's,' the musical tale of Depression era burlesque that recently played in Los Angeles, to the West End in late 2010 or early 2011.

David Mamet's 'Oleanna' opens at the Center Theatre Group/Mark Taper Forum on Friday, June 5, at 8 p.m. Featuring Bill Pullman and Julia Stiles under the direction of Tony Award-winner Doug Hughes, 'Oleanna' continues through July 12.

After a 48 year absence, Roundabout Theatre Company (Todd Haimes, Artistic Director) will present the first new Broadway production of Bye Bye Birdie as the inaugural production of the new Henry Miller's Theatre (124 West 43rd Street) beginning Thursday, September 10th, 2009 with an official opening on Thursday, October 15th, 2009. This will be a limited engagement through January 10th, 2010.

Center Theatre Group has announced that Bill Pullman and Julia Stiles will appear in David Mamet's 'Oleanna', the third production of the Mark Taper season, replacing the previously announced 'Uncle Vanya.' That production was cancelled due to scheduling conflicts. Tony-winning Broadway director Doug Hughes will stage 'Oleanna,' which is scheduled to run May 28th through July 12th. Opening night is scheduled June 5th.

Monty Python's Spamalot begins a two month run in Los Angeles on July 7th. The show plays at the Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre (At the Music Center, 135 N. Grand Avenue in Downtown L.A.) There will be a preview performance on July 7 at 8 p.m. Monty Python's Spamlot opens July 8 at 8 p.m, and will perform through September 6, 2009.

Fern Kershon and Orange Thought Productions today announced that Eliza Foss, Scott Kerns, Marcia Jean Kurtz, Martin LaPlatney, Melissa Miller and Mark Setlock would comprise the cast of their new production, Heart of the City, a new play by Eric Lane, directed by Martha Banta.

'Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo' by Rajiv Joseph, directed by Mois?s Kaufman makes its World Premiere. A lyrical, haunting new play set against the backdrop of the war in Iraq, in which the lives and, in some cases, the afterlives of two American soldiers, an Iraqi translator, the ghosts of Saddam Hussein's sons Uday and Ousay, and a Bengal tiger all intersect in a surreal, darkly humorous and gently balanced view of war and its aftermath.

Who says it's all takin' and no givin'? $36.50 tickets avaliable by lottery for every performance of 9 to 5: The Musical at Broadway's Marriott Marquis theatre

The 2008-2009 season of Glorya Kaufman Presents Dance at the Music Center continues June 5 to 7 at the Ahmanson Theatre with Ballet Hispanico. Led by Artistic Director Tina Ramirez, Ballet Hispanico is widely recognized as one of the pre-eminent Latino cultural institutions.