Ben Brantley News

The Philadelphia premiere of the smash hit Broadway musical and Tony and Pulitzer Prize-Winning Next to Normal opens at the Academy of Music for a limited engagement June 21 - 26 , 2011 as part of the Broadway Season.

On the heels of the opening of its critically-hailed hit production of 'Passing Strange,' Bailiwick Chicago announced today that the company has been awarded the producing rights for the Chicago premiere of the groundbreaking 'Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson,' which, on Tuesday, May 3, was nominated for two Tony Awards (Best Book of a Musical and Set Design) and recently won the Lucille Lortel Award for Best Musical.

Ocean State Theatre Company (OSTC), the not-for-profit producing entity at the historic Theatre By The Sea, is proud to announce a special 2011 bonus production of the wildly popular comic thriller, Alfred Hitchcock's The 39 Steps.

Alissa Norby and Lampkin Music Group are proud to present acclaimed Tony Award winner and star of Broadway's Pulitzer Prize-winning Next to Normal Alice Ripley in DAILY PRACTICE: THE ACOUSTIC SESSIONS. The celebrated stage artist will perform an exclusive one-night-only engagement at the newly revamped Stage 773 Theatre (1225 W. Belmont in Chicago) May 2nd, 2011. The performance will mark Ripley's Midwest concert debut.

LA CAGE AUX FOLLES, the 2010 Tony Award winner for Best Revival of a Musical, will play its final Broadway performance on Sunday, May 1 at 3:00 PM at the Longacre Theatre (220 West 48th Street). At closing, the production will have played 433 performances and 15 previews. LA CAGE AUX FOLLES will be launching a national tour this fall, starting in October in Des Moines, IA.

The tour of the smash hit Broadway revival of WEST SIDE STORY will end its Providence run on May 1, 2011. Tony Award-winning librettist Arthur Laurents's Broadway direction will be recreated for the tour by David Saint, the Associate Director on Broadway. The original Jerome Robbins choreography is reproduced by Tony Award nominee Joey McKneely (The Boy from Oz, The Life).

Vineyard Theatre will present its 4th annual Paula Vogel Playwriting Award to emerging playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, author of the play NEIGHBORS and an adaptation of THE OCTAROON, it has been announced by Vineyard Theatre's Artistic Director Douglas Aibel and Associate Artistic Director Sarah Stern.

Vineyard Theatre will present its 4th annual Paula Vogel Playwriting Award to emerging playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, author of the play NEIGHBORS and an adaptation of THE OCTAROON, it has been announced by Vineyard Theatre's Artistic Director Douglas Aibel and Associate Artistic Director Sarah Stern.

Roundabout Theatre Company is presenting the new Broadway musical THE PEOPLE IN THE PICTURE, starring two time Tony® Award-winner Donna Murphy, directed by Leonard Foglia. THE PEOPLE IN THE PICTURE features book & lyrics by Iris Rainer Dart and music by Mike Stoller and Artie Butler.

The last production of Southern Rep's 24th season offers a unique twist on the usual play-going experience: Alan Ayckbourn's THE NORMAN CONQUESTS is a trilogy that follows a dysfunctional family through one crazy weekend.

The Broadway premiere of Larry Kramer's ground-breaking play The Normal Heart officially opens tonight, Wednesday, April 27, at the Golden Theatre (252 West 45th Street). The limited, 12-week engagement, directed by Joel Grey and George C. Wolfe, began performances on Tuesday, April 19.

Ben Stiller, Edie Falco and Jennifer Jason Leigh star in the Broadway revival of John Guare's comedic masterpiece THE HOUSE OF BLUE LEAVES, directed by David Cromer. THE HOUSE OF BLUE LEAVES, a strictly limited 16-week engagement opened tonight, April 25, 2011 at the Walter Kerr Theatre!

Vineyard Theatre (108 E. 15 St.) will extend its world-premiere production of Christopher Shinn's play PICKED through May 22, it has been announced by Douglas Aibel, The Vineyard's artistic director.

After two extensions, Peter and the Starcatcher will now close on Sunday, April 24.

The Tony and Pulitzer Prize-Winning NEXT TO NORMAL will play the Fabulous Fox Theatre for almited engagement thru April 24.

What if you were suddenly faced with the now-or-never chance to leave your spouse for your lover, no messy strings attached? Would you take it? Michelle Clunie (Queer as Folk) and Vs. Theatre Company artistic director Johnny Clark star in the Los Angeles premiere of The Mercy Seat, Neil LaBute's caustically funny examination of opportunism in the wake of tragedy. Ron Klier directs a six-week run, opening March 19 at [Inside] the Ford. Pay-what-you-can previews take place on March 17 and 18.

The 2011 GARAGE REP starts next week as robots invade the Steppenwolf Garage. Seriously, real robots.

GOOD PEOPLE's Estelle Parsons, who is currently appearing in the critically acclaimed play, will appear on the American Theatre Wing's "Working in the Theatre Panel" tonight, Friday, April 22at 7:30PM on CUNY TV, channel 75.

JERUSALEM opened at The Royal Court Theatre in July, 2009 with critics praising Jez Butterworth for his beautiful and comic elegy for a disappearing way of life in rural England and actor Mark Rylance, who was lauded as delivering one of the great stage performances of our time. The production played an extended sold out run at the Royal Court, before moving to the Apollo Theatre in the West End in January, 2010, where it received an unprecedented set of five-star reviews from 12 London newspapers. Will it garner the same reception across the pond? Let's find out!

According to Deadline.com, stage veterans Julia Stiles and Taye Diggs are set to star in the upcoming big screen adaptation of off-Broadway play BETWEEN US. Filming will begin in May.