Ars Nova News

Chester Theatre Company (CTC) has announced the casting for its 2016 season opener, the World Premiere of My Jane by Producing Artistic Director Daniel Elihu Kramer. My Jane, a contemporary exploration of Charlotte Bronte?'s sweeping novel Jane Eyre, opens June 29th and plays through July 10, 2016, at Chester's historic Town Hall, 15 Middlefield Road in Chester, MA. Camila Cano?-Flavia? will be making her professional debut in the title role of Jane.

Premiere Stages at Kean University will launch its much-anticipated 2016 Season with a free staged reading of Jeff Talbott's provocative new play, Three Rules for the Dragon, June 17-19 in Kean's Murphy Dunn Theatre. Selected from over 400 submissions, Three Rules for the Dragon is the first of two scripts scheduled for expanded development as part of the 2016 Premiere Stages Play Festival.

Producer Eva Price announced the complete cast for the critically acclaimed production of Small Mouth Sounds, written by Bess Wohl, which will return to New York this summer for a strictly limited engagement. Directed by Obie Award-winner Rachel Chavkin (Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812), Small Mouth Sounds begins previews for a commercial run at The Romulus Linney Courtyard Theatre at The Pershing Square Signature Center (480 West 42nd Street) on Sunday, July 3, 2016 at 7:30pm, with an official opening night set for Wednesday, July 13, 2016. The limited engagement will run through September 25, 2016

Kimber Lee's beautiful drama tokyo fish story, directed by May Adrales, opens today, June 2 at The Old Globe. The production runs through June 26, 2016, in the Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, part of the Conrad Prebys Theatre Center. Tickets start at $29.

San Francisco Playhouse has announced The Rules by Dipika Guha as the final world premiere show of the seventh season of the award-winning Sandbox Series. The play will be performed at The Creativity Theater in Yerba Buena Gardens.

Pipeline Theatre Company presents PLAYING HOT as its inaugural Big Mystery Show on Saturday June 4th at 7:30pmat The Gym at Judson (243 Thompson St., NYC). Tickets ($20) are currently available for purchase online at http://www.pipelinetheatre.org.

Under the leadership of Artistic Director Sarah Benson and Executive Director Cynthia Flowers, Soho Rep. has continually produced work by bold artists who harness the intimate power of the organization's own 73-seat black box theater, as well as other spaces, to create transformative experiences. Soho Rep.'s 2016-17 season, announced today, comprises two ambitious new works-both characterized by inventive theatrical forms, holistic collaborations, and striking original music-along with an opportunity to get the first 'work-in-process' look at a new commission by a celebrated playwright.

On today's episode of the Maxamoo Theater & Performance Podcast, Lindsay Barenz, Liz Richards, and Jack Moore discuss what they're most excited to see in June at the theater beyond Broadway in New York City. They digress for a brief celebration of Ars Nova, the Off Broadway powerhouse in Midtown, and proper etiquette for eating a lozenge at the theater.

On June 10, Cacophony Daniels (Courter Simmons) will return 'Under the 'C',' in a fun and inspirational cabaret tribute to Grammy- and Oscar-winning playwright and lyricist Howard Ashman that celebrates the lovable misfit in us all. 

In Episode 411 of 'Something New' -- a musical theatre podcast that interviews artists and premieres original songs -- award-winning songwriter Joel B. New sat down with Tim Eliot and Lauren Sowa, a real-life couple with an enormous bag of theatrical skills between them.

Kimber Lee's drama tokyo fish story, directed by May Adrales, begins today, May 28 at The Old Globe. The production runs through June 26, 2016, in the Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, part of the Conrad Prebys Theatre Center.

Acclaimed performer, writer and activist JUSTIN SAYRE - hailed as one the "Funniest People in Brooklyn" by Brooklyn Magazine and among "LA's 16 Most Talented LGBT Comics" by Frontiers Magazine - has released his debut comedy album The Gay Agenda today, Friday, May 27 in digital formats.

In the wake of her solo shows called 'Best of Cabaret in NYC' by TimeOut, popular songstress Tori Scott joins a stellar cast including Tony Award winner Daisy Eagan, Gotham's Michelle Veintimilla, Eddie Cooper and more to perform the songs of Dramatist Guild Fellows and Ars Nova Residents Brandon James Gwinn and EllaRose Chary tonight at Feinstein's/54 Below.

Capital Stage completes its 2015/16 Season with the Sacramento Premiere of The Totalitarians by Peter Sinn Nachtrieb, directed by Capital Stage Co-Founder Peter Mohrmann. This 'Riotous political comedy' - Bay Area Reporter, takes the audience on the campaign trail with retired roller derby star turned candidate for Lt. Governor, Penelope Easter! A dark political satire that promises to be the perfect tonic for this election year's headaches, The Totalitarians will run from June 22 through July 24, 2016 with a Press Opening on Saturday, June 25 at 8pm.

Berkeley Rep announced today that Tony Award-winning playwright and performer Sarah Jones (Bridge & Tunnel) will return to the stage as a dazzling medley of characters in Sell/Buy/Date, an exuberant new show she has developed inspired by the real-life experiences of people affected by the commercial sex industry.

Next week, FEINSTEIN'S/54 BELOW, Broadway's Supper Club & Private Event Destination, presents some of the brightest stars from Broadway, cabaret, jazz, and beyond.

The Drama League (Executive Artistic Director, Gabriel Shelian-Shanks) gathers today for the 82nd Annual Drama League Awards Ceremony, hosted by 2016 Tony® Award-nominees, Zachary Levi (She Loves Me) and Megan Hilty (Noises Off), in the Broadway Ballroom at the Marriott Marquis Times Square (1535 Broadway). 

BAM Humanities presents MEDEA & PHAEDRA: Tragedies of Passion, Betrayal, and Revenge -- an evening of performance and dialogue featuring dramatic readings of scenes from Euripides' Medea and Seneca's Phaedra, followed by discussion about the relevance of these myths to contemporary society.

THE MEETING* hosted by Justin Sayre, the acclaimed comedy/variety show, will return to Joe's Pub at The Public Theater to conclude its Spring 2016 season on Sunday, May 22 at 7:00 PM. The May show will honor the beloved late superstar Prince, with music director Tracy Stark leading a four-piece band and special musical guests Tony DeSare, Bridget Barkan, Michael Cavadias, Mark Aaron James and Ali Grieb.

In the wake of her solo shows called "Best of Cabaret in NYC" by TimeOut, popular songstress Tori Scott joins a stellar cast including Tony Award winner Daisy Eagan, Gotham's Michelle Veintimilla, Eddie Cooper and more to perform the songs of Dramatist Guild Fellows and Ars Nova Residents Brandon James Gwinn and EllaRose Chary.