Anna-Deavere Smith News

As solidly staged and forcefully acted as this TWILIGHT is, the production is both problematic and comes across feeling like something is missing.

Signature Theatre will present the world premiere of MacArthur Fellow Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’s The Comeuppance, directed by Eric Ting.

Broadway Star Mandy Gonzalez will close the Tower Theatre Foundation's annual two-day Stage the Change PNW Conference in Bend, Oregon on Saturday, April 22, 2023 with a keynote address to high school conference attendees followed by a concert to attendees and members of the general public.

The Alley Theatre has announced its 2023-24 season which includes classic works, world premiere plays, one world premiere musical, a murder mystery, and lots of laughter. Learn more about the full lineup here!

On March 15th, “Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992” opened at Center Theatre Group / Mark Taper Forum. Playwright Anna Deavere Smith attended and posed with the cast, along with director Gregg T. Daniel, creative team members and special guests. Check out photos from the opening here!

The National Arts Club's Kesselring Prize for Playwriting has been awarded to Candrice Jones, who was nominated by TheatreSquared in Fayetteville, Arkansas, for her play Flex.

Children’s Theatre Company has announced the complete cast and creative team for the highly-anticipated World Premiere An American Tail the Musical.

Last night, Center Theatre Group hosted a Black Out Night performance of Anna Deavere Smith’s “Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992.” Rodney King’s Daughter Lora Dene King gave a pre-show welcome, followed by a reception after the performance. Check out photos from the event here!

The Los Angeles City Council honored Center Theatre Group on March 10, 2023 by proclaiming Wednesday, March 15, 2023 as “TWILIGHT: LOS ANGELES, 1992” Day. Councilmembers Marqueece Harris-Dawson, Curren D. Price Jr., Heather Hutt, and Hugo Soto-Martinez presented the proclamation to Center Theatre Group's Associate Artistic Director Tyrone Davis on behalf of the theatre company.

The League of Professional Theatre Women (LPTW) announced that its 2023 Rachel Crothers Leadership Award® will be given to Anna Deavere Smith, multi-award-winning playwright, actress, professor, and author. 

Center Theatre Group will host a series of community events to celebrate “Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992,” which is returning to the Mark Taper Forum 30 years after its world premiere. Anna Deavere Smith's groundbreaking production has been revised for a cast of five performers and is directed by Gregg T. Daniel.

LA Theatre Week, a two-week-long celebration of the performing arts, will be happening from March 13 to 26. With tickets to more than 75 productions starting at just $20, beginning on February 27th, audiences will be able to experience high-caliber shows at prices that democratize access to the best of LA culture.

The west coast premiere of playwright Anna Deavere Smith’s expanded solo show Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 opens March 15, 2023, at the Mark Taper Forum (with previews beginning March 8th). Gregg T. Daniel directs the cast of Hugo Armstrong, Lovensky Jean-Baptiste, Lisa Reneé Pitts, Jeanne Sakata and Sabina Zúñiga Varela performing the 30-40 characters of the play that Anna originally performed all on her own. Gregg was most gracious to carve out time from rehearsals to answer a few of my queries.

See details about the world premiere of Proximity at Lyric Opera of Chicago!

Originally performed solo by Smith, “Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992” has been reimagined for a cast of five performers. Thirty years after its world premiere, Center Theatre Group will celebrate the West Coast premiere of the revised production by giving away 1,000 tickets to Angelenos.

Acclaimed storytelling nonprofit The Moth has announced details for their annual fundraising gala, Full Bloom: The 2023 Moth Ball. Taking place at Pier Sixty at Chelsea Piers on Tuesday, May 23rd, this year's gathering will honor award-winning comedian and longtime Moth friend and storyteller, Hasan Minhaj. Tickets start at $500 and are on sale now.  

Jersey City Theater Center is proud to present the latest installment of Black Space, hosted by Ashley Nicole Baptiste, a free web series that celebrates Black artists, educators and culture.  The latest episode will feature an interview with natyna bean, a multidisciplinary artist and educator who celebrates Black queer folks navigating and interrogating the presence and impact of American carceral systems.

 The League of Professional Theatre Women (LPTW) will present its annual Theatre Women Awards on March 27th from 1 to 3 p.m., at The Green Fig Restaurant, Yotel Hotel, 570 10th Ave, New York, NY 10036.

Second Stage Theater (Carole Rothman, President and Artistic Director) has announced that Lisa Lawer Post has been named Interim Executive Director at Second Stage Theater. Ms. Post will officially join the award-winning Broadway and Off-Broadway institution on February 27, 2023.   Current Executive Director Khady Kamara will depart the company at the end of the month.

Second Stage Theater has just announced the cast for its upcoming production of Larissa FastHorse’s play, THE THANKSGIVING PLAY. Find out all the details about who will star in the new play!