Andrew Hinderaker News

Netflix has shared the first teaser to Away, the film starring Hilary Swank and Josh Charles!

Nationally acclaimed new play development theatre, Southern Rep, finds itself in a heartbreaking situation. Ticket sales and mainstage subscriptions are at an all-time high. Arts education programming is thriving. Audiences are raving about the work and the company's new venue, the former St. Rose de Lima Church on Bayou Road. And still, Southern Rep finds itself in an urgent financial crisis as it navigates the expenses of moving into their new home.

Olney Theatre Center kicks off the decade with a production of Quiara Alegría Hudes' newest musical, Miss You Like Hell on the Mainstage (January 29 - March 1, 2020). Hudes, a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and Lin-Manuel Miranda's collaborator on the book and film of In The Heights, wrote the book and shares credit for the lyrics with folk-rock star Erin McKeown who also wrote the music. Lisa Portes and Breon Arzell make their Olney Theatre debuts as director and choreographer, respectively. Press is invited to attend the performance on Saturday, February 1 at 8:00 pm.

Steep Theatre announces the programming for its upcoming 19th season, which will continue the company's tradition of presenting bold plays from today's most exciting playwrights, brought to life by fearless ensembles and visionary directors.

Netflix announces the cast for original series 'Away' starring Hilary Swank and Josh Charles. Away centers on Emma Green, an American astronaut who must leave her husband and teenage daughter behind to command an international space crew embarking upon a treacherous mission. It is a series about hope, humanity and how we need one another if we are to achieve impossible things.

Josh Charles (The Good Wife) is set to star as Matt Logan (joining co-star Hilary Swank), a NASA engineer whose wife is commanding the first mission to Mars. He faces the already enormous challenges of dealing with the mission from home, while trying to raise their teenage daughter on his own, but when he goes through a life-altering experience in the first episode he will understand the true cost of what it means to be away from each other.

Goodman Theatre announces a line-up of free readings written by members of its Playwrights Unit-a year-long residency for Chicago-based writers to develop their plays-in-progress with the Goodman's artistic team, in partnership with Chicago Dramatists. Members of the 2018/2019 Playwrights Unit include Georgette Kelly, Dianne Nora, Marisela Treviño Orta and Stacey Rose. Free, one-time-only readings take place July 5-7 at Goodman Theatre (170 N. Dearborn); to make a reservation call 312.443.3800 or visit GoodmanTheatre.org/PlaywrightsUnitReadings. Availability is extremely limited. More information about each writer follows; headshots can be found in the Press Room.

Green Space is pleased to announce a diverse roster of artists for its signature programs this June. Take Root will present an evening of work by Angharad Davies and Amber Sloan, curated by Aviva Geismar on June 14th and 15th, and Fertile Ground showcases works-in-progress by multiple dance artists on June 16th.

Two-time Academy Award winning actress Hilary Swank (Boys Don't Cry, Million Dollar Baby, PS I Love You) set to star as astronaut Emma Green in 10 episode drama series, Away. Swank will also serve as an executive producer on the series.

Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein today announced the appointment of Travis LeMont Ballenger as Associate Artistic Director. The Globe will have two people in this key position, as Ballenger joins Associate Artistic Director Justin Waldman, who has been at the Globe since 2011. Ballenger and Waldman will report jointly to Edelstein. Ballenger will assume his artistic duties at The Old Globe on May 1.

Broadway, TV, and film star Cheyenne Jackson is the headliner at Olney Theatre Center's annual Gala on Saturday, May 18, 2019. The Gala, which raises crucial funds for Olney Theatre Center, will also honor MedStar Montgomery Medical Center on its 100th Anniversary.

Today, Olney Theatre Center Artistic Director Jason Loewith unveiled a lineup of 16 plays, concerts, and presentations coming in 2019-2020 as part of the company's 82nd season, including the highly-anticipated DC-area premiere of Miss You Like Hell by Quiara Alegria Hudes and Erin McKeown. Included are both classic and contemporary musicals, family fare for the holidays, Tony-winning dramas and work by some of the most innovative American playwrights.

With the original run and first extension completely sold out, Steep Theatre is extending the run of Ike Holter's Red Rex through March 30. Jack Miggins, who was nominated for a Jeff Award for his work in Steep's 2014 production of The Vandal, will join the cast in the role of Adam beginning on March 13. Tickets are on sale now at steeptheatre.com/redrex, and they're expected to sell very quickly. 

With the original run completely sold out, Steep Theatre is extending the run of Ike Holter's Red Rex through March 16 and adding Wednesday evening performances to the schedule beginning February 6. Tickets are on sale now at steeptheatre.com/redrex, and they're expected to sell very quickly. 

The American Premiere of Ella Hickson's Oil directed by Tracy Brigden begins its Olney Theatre Center run in the Mulitz-Gudelsky Theatre Lab on February 27 and runs through March 31.  Invited Press Night is Saturday, March 2 at 7:45pm.

In January, Steep Ensemble Member Jonathan Berry returns to Steep to direct the world premiere of Ike Holter's Red Rex, the sixth play in Holter's seven-play "Rightlynd Saga" about Chicago. Since the 2012 production of his Hit the Wall, Holter's work has gained increasing national and international attention. In describing the "Rightlynd Saga," Chris Jones of the Chicago Tribune opined that it "might just be one of the most significant literary achievements in modern-day Chicago." Holter's play Rightlynd, part of the seven-play saga, is currently in production at Victory Gardens Theatre, and his Lottery Day, the final play in the saga, premieres in the Spring of 2019 at the Goodman Theatre. Director Jonathan Berry has been at the helm of many of Steep's most memorable shows, including the recent smash-hit production of Simon Stephens' Birdland.

Roundabout Theatre Company (Todd Haimes, Artistic Director/CEO) is thrilled to announce the eighth annual Roundabout Underground Reading Series, a five-night event that includes nightly readings of new works written and directed by emerging artists, as well as post-show receptions. The Reading Series will feature new works by Aaron Carter, Emily Feldman, Dave Harris, Jonathan Spector and Sanaz Toossi.

-A small theater company moves into an abandoned Chicago storefront. Led by their adventurously thirsty artistic director, they embark on an explosive new play with the hope of finally breaking it big. When the ensemble realizes their source material might not be as original as once assumed, they are thrust into an intense confrontation with residents of their new community, who not only want them out, but will take their story back by any means necessary. Red Rex is the sixth play in Ike Holter's seven part 'Rightlynd Saga," which also includes Exit Strategy, Prowess, and The Wolf at the End of the Block.

The Gift Theatre is pleased to welcome Jennifer Glasse as its newest Ensemble member. Glasse has appeared in The Gift's world premieres of Hang Man and A Life Extra Ordinary.