American Repertory Theater News

The Huntington Theatre Company's 2018 Breaking Ground festival of new plays will be held February 9 11, 2018 at the Huntington's home for new work, the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA. The festival is a vital part of the Huntington's new play development efforts and highlights the work of locally-based Huntington Playwriting Fellows and national writers in partnership with the Huntington. Over the last decade, Breaking Ground plays have gone on to appear at the Huntington as well as theatres in Boston, across the country, and internationally.

ArtsEmerson, Boston's leading presenter of contemporary world theatre, proudly presents the world premiere of American Repertory Theater's (A.R.T.)production of The White Card, written by acclaimed author, poet, and MacArthur Fellow Claudia Rankine. Directed by A.R.T. Artistic Director Diane Paulus, The White Cardperforms February 24 through April 1, 2018 at the Emerson Paramount Center's Robert J. Orchard Stage, located at 559 Washington Street in downtown Boston.

59E59 Theaters will present of THE UNDERTAKING, written and directed by Steve Cosson with creative collaboration and psychopomp guidance by Jessica Mitrani. Produced by The Civilians, THE UNDERTAKING begins performances on Thursday, January 11 for a limited engagement through Sunday, February 4. Press Opening is Today, January 17 at 7:15 PM.

Game on! The Chicago premiere of Sarah DeLappe's The Wolves, a 'smart, hilarious, delightful meditation on society, sex and soccer' (The Village Voice), directed by Vanessa Stalling, launches Goodman Theatre's 2018 Owen Theatre season. A 2017 Pulitzer Prize finalist, The Wolves follows a suburban girls soccer team as they navigate life's big questions and wage their own tiny battles-with all the 'bark and bite' (Vulture.com) of a pack of adolescent warriors. Hailed as 'one of the year's best plays' (The New York Times), The Wolves is DeLappe's break-out play that recently concluded an off-Broadway run at Lincoln Center Theater. Stalling directs the Chicago premiere with an all-Chicago company.

Lynne Meadow (Artistic Director) and Barry Grove (Executive Producer) have announced that Manhattan Theatre Club will present the American Repertory Theater production of In the Body of the World, written and performed by Tony Award winner Eve Ensler and directed by Tony Award winner Diane Paulus, as part of MTC's 2017-2018 season.

The Shakespeare Theatre Company (STC) announces the cast and creative team for Hamlet, directed by STC Artistic Director Michael Kahn and featuring acclaimed actor Michael Urie as the tortured Danish prince. Shakespeare's most celebrated tragedy will run January 16-February 25, 2018 at Sidney Harman Hall.

Performances begin tomorrow Tuesday, January 16 for Manhattan Theatre Club's New York premiere of the American Repertory Theater production of In The Body of The World, written and performed by Tony Award winner Eve Ensler and directed by Tony Award winner Diane Paulus. Opening night is set for Tuesday, February 6 at MTC at New York City Center Stage I (131 West 55th Street).

Funded by a National New Play Network (NNPN) Collaboration Fund Grant, Core Member Theatres Cleveland Public Theatre, InterAct Theatre Company (Philadelphia, PA) and Kitchen Dog Theater (Dallas, TX) have embarked on a groundbreaking playwright exchange project called Cross-Pollination. Through Cross-Pollination, theatres with shared aesthetics and missions identify plays grown in their own backyards poised for larger prominence, pairing their local playwrights with a theatre sharing their artistic values. Each theatre works with a playwright outside its sphere of influence; each playwright develops a relationship with a producing organization to which they otherwise wouldn't have been able to connect. The result is an immediate, meaningful artistic connection between theatres and artists that transcends state lines and logistical limits. For the pilot year of the program, the following pairings have been arranged: James Ijames and his play history of walking (from InterAct Theatre Company) will go to Cleveland Public Theatre in January as part of the Entry Point Festival of New Works (1/18-20); Jonathan Norton and his play A Love Offering (from Kitchen Dog Theater) will go to InterAct Theatre Company in May; and Lisa Langford and her play Rastus & Hattie (from Cleveland Public Theatre) will go to Kitchen Dog Theater in June.

Following the show's development at The Orchard Project in 2017, LubDub Theatre presents The Doubtful Guest, an immersive contemporary s ance featuring cocktails and sleight-of-hand and exploring the legacy of American spiritualism. The piece premieres at The Public Hotel (215 Chrystie St., New York, NY) following sold-out developmental performances at The Inn at Saratoga and Guild Greene Gallery.

The Broadway hit that's baked from the heart opens up in Cincinnati.

Artistic Director Les Waters and Managing Director Kevin E. Moore have announced the cast and creative team for the world premiere of Little Bunny Foo Foo.

Following the show's development at The Orchard Project in 2017, LubDub Theatre presents The Doubtful Guest, an immersive contemporary s ance featuring cocktails and sleight-of-hand and exploring the legacy of American spiritualism. The piece premieres at The Public Hotel (215 Chrystie St., New York, NY) following sold-out developmental performances at The Inn at Saratoga and Guild Greene Gallery.

James Graham's critically acclaimed and prescient political drama THIS HOUSE which played to sold-out houses at the National Theatre, Chichester Festival Theatre and in the West End will begin its first ever national tour at the West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds 22 February 10 March 2018 before touring the UK with exclusive Scottish dates at Festival Theatre Edinburgh (27 - 31 March). The tour is supported by the Arts Council of England Grants for the Arts.

TheatreWorks Silicon Valley continues its 2017/2018 season with the Bay Area premiere of the stunning musical tribute, Our Great Tchaikovsky, written and performed by Hershey Felder, who shattered box office records at TheatreWorks with his acclaimed portrayals of Irving Berlin and Beethoven. Exploring both current Russian politics and historical context, piano virtuoso Felder brings to life the music and story of composer Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in a time-bending tale. From the iconic ballets Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, and The Nutcracker, to the outrageous 1812 Overture and brilliant symphonic works, this powerful music journey travels from Czarist times to today, bringing vivid life to a haunted genius. Our Great Tchaikovsky will be presented January 10 February 11, 2018 (press opening: January 13) at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, 500 Castro Street, Mountain View. For tickets ($45-$105) and more information the public may visit TheatreWorks.org or call (650) 463-1960.

On the eve of its first performance, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley has announced that its presentation of Hershey Felder's Our Great Tchaikovsky is already establishing a new all-time box office record for the 48 year-old Bay Area theatre company and it is not even open yet. This newest work by acclaimed performer and playwright Hershey Felder is on track to shatter the theatre's previous record, set last year with TheatreWorks' presentation of Hershey Felder, Beethoven which set a high bar as the company's highest grossing show, amassing $637,767 in sales the day before opening. It has been bested by Our Great Tchaikovsky, which has now sold more than $710,000 to date, and may well top Beethoven's final sales total. Tickets are disappearing fast as theatre-goers flock to see Felder's latest piece, which runs Tuesdays through Sundays, January 10 February 11, 2018, at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, 500 Castro St., Mountain View. For tickets ($45-$105) and information the public may visit TheatreWorks.org or call (650) 463-1960.

The Geffen Playhouse today announced that Christian Camargo (Penny Dreadful, The Hurt Locker) has joined its West Coast Premiere of Martyna Majok's Ironbound, directed by Tyne Rafaeli (Actually). Camargo will play Tommy alongside Tony Award nominee Marin Ireland (Broadway's reasons to be pretty, Amazon's Sneaky Pete) as Darja and Josiah Bania (The Good Wife) as Maks, both of whom are reprising their Off-Broadway roles in the Geffen production, and Marcel Spears (The Mayor) as Vic.

Artistic Director Les Waters and Managing Director Kevin E. Moore have announced the cast and creative team for the world premiere of Little Bunny Foo Foo.

Folger Theatre continues its 2017/18 season with The Way of the World, a new comedy freely adapted from the classic play by William Congreve. Written and directed by renowned author Theresa Rebeck (Mauritus and Seminar and Broadway; creator and head writer of TV's Smash), the production will star Tony Award nominee Kristine Nielsen (Present Laughter, You Can't Take It With You, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike on Broadway).

Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's groundbreaking 1970 rock-opera JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR will be presented by the American Repertory Theater of WNY from March 8th to March 31st at the 330 Performance Space, 330 Amherst Street, Buffalo NY. Thursday to Saturday performances; 8 pm showtimes. Tickets are $25 general admission, $20 student & military veterans. This pioneering and legendary rock opera is loosely based on the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John accounting the last week of Jesus Christ's life. Andrew Lloyd Webber's music and Tim Rice's lyrics dynamically explores the personal relationships and struggles between Jesus, Judas, Mary Magdalene, his disciples, his followers and the Roman Empire.

Bedlam's production of SENSE AND SENSIBILITY opened at American Repertory Theater on December 10th and runs through January 14th.