Ars Nova News

After a successful ten-city tour of Russia in 2016, Migguel Anggelo returns this February as a cultural attache under the auspices of the U.S. Department of State, singing opposite lauded multi-hyphenate actress-singer-writer-teacher on the rise, Grace McLean.

Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU) presents their popular Writer-Producer Speed Date on Sunday, March 4, 2018. In deference to Oscar night, the event will start one hour earlier than usual: from 4:30pm - 8:00pm at NOLA Rehearsal Studio, 244 W 54th St., 11th floor.

Magician's sick in bed?! Too bad! THE SHOW MUST GO ON! The Magician's Assistant  is a physical comedy about the transformative power of believing in yourself and asking for help. Everything seems under control until the Magician's lovely Assistant blunders onstage and has to entertain the crowd in the magician's absence.

After a sold out run last summer in The Tank's 'Pride Fest' T and L, and their magical flying Thunderbird/badass rock band are back for a one-night-only concert reading at the Tank on Monday February 19th at 7pm. 

The Public Theater (Artistic Director, Oskar Eustis; Executive Director, Patrick Willingham) announced complete casting today for the world premiere of MLIMA'S TALE, written by two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage. Directed by Obie Award winner Jo Bonney, MLIMA'S TALE continues The Public's Astor Anniversary Season at their landmark downtown home on Lafayette Street, celebrating 50 years of new work and the 50th Anniversary of HAIR. MLIMA'S TALE begins performances on Tuesday, March 27 and runs through Sunday, May 20 in The Public's Martinson Hall, with an official press opening on Sunday, April 15.

Love appears in unlikely places in Adam Szymkowicz's new play, Kodachrome, which makes its world premiere at The Armory directed by Associate Artistic Director Rose Riordan. The production opens February 9, with previews beginning February 3 and performances running through March 10 in the Ellyn Bye Studio. Kodachrome was developed at The Armory's JAW: A Playwrights Festival in 2015 under the title Colchester and will be the company's 26th world premiere production.

PAGE 73 PRODUCTIONS (Page 73) (Michael Walkup, Producing Artistic Director; Jenny Lagundino, Managing Director; Liz Jones and Asher Richelli, Founding Directors) has named C.A. Johnson the 2018 P73 Playwriting Fellow. Selected from over 400 applicants, Johnson will receive a $10,000 award and additional $10,000 budgeted for developing several new plays over the course of the year.

Little League will receive its world premiere from February 15th - March 2nd, 2018 as part of the 11th annual FRIGID Festival at the historic Kraine Theater, presented by Horse Trade Theater Group.  Little League is written by Jack Spagnola, produced by Lizzy Ana Lincoln, directed by Noam Shapiro, and Executive Produced by Three Hares.

Ten explorers. Four boats. One Grand Canyon. Race down the rapids in this wildly, wonderful gender-bending escapade. Based (broadly) on the true adventures of the one-armed pioneering explorer John Wesley Powell and his intrepid crew, this gleefully subversive play capsizes the white male conquest narrative and discovers the beautifully fluid depth and courage of a wholly different landscape.

Rick Skye, who won the 2017 MAC Award for 'Best Impersonation,' welcomes Cabaret Sensation Molly Pope and Comedian Nancy Witter to 'Bazazz! - A Sequined Variety' along with Kit Kat Boyz Ryan Lind, Diego Sayao and David Ballard on Saturday, February 24th at 8:00PM at Don't Tell Mama (343 West 43rd Street). There is a $20.00 Cover Charge and 2 drink minimum and reservations can be made by calling 212-757-0788 or visiting www.donttellmamanyc.com. The Huffington Post called the show 'Energetic, high energy...loaded with talent, laughs...and BAZAZZ!'.

Main Street Theater continues its 42nd Season with MEN ON BOATS by Jaclyn Backhaus - and it's played by all women.  MEN ON BOATS tells the story of Major John Wesley Powell's actual expedition of the Grand Canyon in 1869.  The play depicts the amazing journey of these 10 explorers with all its humor and wonder and danger and excitement.  It's an extraordinary adventure.

In response to popular demand, Soho Rep. (Sarah Benson, Artistic Director; Cynthia Flowers, Executive Director) extends the world premiere of Aleshea Harris's Relentless Award-winning Is God Is, directed by Taibi Magar by two weeks, through March 25. In this play, which dauntlessly cracks jokes as it eviscerates, twin sisters Anaia (Alfie Fuller) and Racine (Dame-Jasmine Hughes) undertake a murderous journey from the Dirty South to the California desert, seeking payback for a horrendous act. Is God Is treats both morality and genre as notions to be exploded, drawing on the ancient, the modern, the tragic, the Spaghetti Western, hip-hop and Afropunk in its subversion of theatrical constructs.

What good is sitting alone in your room this week? If you don't already have plans to see a Broadway show, come out to see your favorite Broadway stars in a cabaret act instead. Highlights this week include:

Cherry Lane Theatre has announced casting for the first production of the Obie award-winning MENTOR PROJECT now in its 20th season. Kate Cortesi's A PATRON OF THE ARTS, is being presented at Cherry Lane (38 Commerce St.) from March 1- 10, 2018, it has been announced by Seri Lawrence and Janio Marrero, Cherry Lane's Co-Artistic Directors.  Angelina Fiordellisi is Cherry Lane's Founding Artistic Director. Ms. Cortesi is mentored by Guggenheim, a Whiting, an Alpert, PEN/Laura Pels award winner Anne Washburn.

The Drama League (Gabriel Stelian-Shanks, Executive Artistic Director) has announced the theater directors and ensembles chosen to develop new plays and musicals as part of the 2018 Drama League Artist Residency Program. Public work-in-progress presentations will be held periodically throughout the year at The Drama League Theater Center, 32 Avenue of the Americas, in Tribeca. Schedules are available at www.dramaleague.org or by calling (212) 244-9494.

PITTSBURGH CLO is pleased to welcome a collection of writing teams from across the country to Pittsburgh for the inaugural SPARK festival in March. These teams were chosen from a highly-selective submissions process and will have the opportunity to rehearse and revise their work in residencies ranging from two days to three weeks. SPARK will provide dramaturgy and production resources to 10 new musicals at all stages of development, in addition to the world premiere of UP AND AWAY. As a part of the development period, eight of the musicals will receive public presentations through which the writing teams can gather audience insights and focus their intentions for the next phase of development. A major initiative of Pittsburgh CLO's recently completed Next Generation Capital Campaign, SPARK is designed to cultivate new and innovative work from emerging and established musical theater artists. 

Berkeley Repertory Theatre announced that due to scheduling conflicts, Nilaja Sun's Pike St. will be replaced by What the Constitution Means to Me as the final production in its 2017-18 season. Written by and starring award-winning playwright and actress Heidi Schreck and directed by Oliver Butler, What the Constitution Means to Me will have its world premiere in the Peet's Theatre.

Melbourne Theatre Company's annual play reading series, Cybec Electric, returns from Thursday 1 March - Saturday 3 March at Southbank Theatre, The Lawler with new writing from eight of Australia's most promising playwrights.

Little League will receive its world premiere from February 15th - March 2nd, 2018 as part of the 11th annual FRIGID Festival at the historic Kraine Theater, presented by Horse Trade Theater Group. Little League is written by Jack Spagnola, produced by Lizzy Ana Lincoln, directed by Noam Shapiro, and Executive Produced by Three Hares.

What if, instead of drowning, Shakespeare's Ophelia had splashed through the brook water and found a parallel universe on the other side? In playwright Caridad Svich's lyrical deconstruction of Hamlet, Ophelia cuts a new path for herself through a neo-Elizabethan Appalachia. In this world, Hamlet is known as Rude Boy, Gertrude is a brothel madam, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are her androgynous helpers.