Carey Perloff News

The A.C.T. Master of Fine Arts Program and Young Conservatory present the world premiere production of Volleygirls, Rob Ackerman's funny and moving look at the spirit and passion of team sports, directed by W. D. Keith. Featuring actors from the graduating class of the A.C.T. M.F.A. Program and young actors from the Young Conservatory, Volleygirls spikes a spirited, heartfelt look at a down-and-out high school volleyball team. Following a string of losses and facing their biggest rival, the girls of Saint Agnes hatch a wild plan to turn their flailing team around-while their self-defeating coach must confront his 'loseritis.'

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) and gala co-chairs Carla Crane and Chandra Geiger Gordon are proud to announce A.C.T.'s 2008-09 season gala, Illuminate the Night, featuring an exclusive performance by Judy Kaye, Tony Award-winning star of A.C.T.'s Sweeney Todd and Souvenir. The entertainment for this wonderful evening also includes performances by A.C.T.'s own Master of Fine Arts Program and Young Conservatory students, created and directed by John Carrafa, the Tony Award-nominated choreographer of Urinetown, the Musical on Broadway and at A.C.T.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) salutes the secret diva in all of us with Stephen Temperley's play with music, Souvenir: A Fantasia on the Life of Florence Foster Jenkins directed by Vivian Matalon. This production marks the return of the remarkable Judy Kaye to A.C.T. in the daring role that earned her a 2006 Tony Award nomination. Kaye last appeared on the A.C.T. stage as Mrs. Lovett in last season's critically-acclaimed production of Sweeney Todd. A heartfelt, wickedly funny look at the limits of self-perception and the unpredictable nature of friendship, Souvenir imagines the story of real-life Florence Foster Jenkins, a New York socialite and tone-deaf diva who thought she was a great soprano.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) continues its 2008-09 season Koret Visiting Artist Series with 'The Inner 'I': How Artists See Themselves,' a conversation with Lotfi Mansouri, celebrated opera director and the general director emeritus of the San Francisco Opera; Judy Kaye, the Tony Award-winning star of A.C.T.'s Souvenir; and the internationally acclaimed mezzo-soprano Frederica von Stade. Moderated by A.C.T. Artistic Director Carey Perloff, the conversation will focus on the different ways artists view themselves and how these self-images affect their work. 'The Inner 'I' is presented in conjunction with A.C.T.'s production of Stephen Temperley's Souvenir, which tells the story of Florence Foster Jenkins, a New York socialite and tone-deaf diva who thought she was a great soprano. The conversation will be followed by a Q&A session with the audience. The hour-long event is free and open to the public and takes place on the A.C.T. stage on Monday, February 23, 2009, at 5:30 p.m. Doors will open at 5 p.m. For more information, please visit www.act-sf.org/koret.

The American Conservatory Theater Master of Fine Arts Program presents Maxim Gorky's Philistines in a fresh new version by Andrew Upton, the co-artistic director of Australia's Sydney Theatre Company and an acclaimed adaptor of Russian plays.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) salutes the secret diva in all of us with Stephen Temperley's play with music, Souvenir: A Fantasia on the Life of Florence Foster Jenkins directed by Vivian Matalon. This production marks the return of the remarkable Judy Kaye to A.C.T. in the daring role that earned her a 2006 Tony Award nomination. Kaye last appeared on the A.C.T. stage as Mrs. Lovett in last season's critically-acclaimed production of Sweeney Todd. A heartfelt, wickedly funny look at the limits of self-perception and the unpredictable nature of friendship, Souvenir imagines the story of real-life Florence Foster Jenkins, a New York socialite and tone-deaf diva who thought she was a great soprano.

The Stratford Shakespeare Festival 2009 season ? a playbill reflecting the Festival's commitment to producing the works of William Shakespeare and his contemporaries, along with other classical theatre repertoire and the work of living playwrights is now offering tickets to the public.

The American Conservatory Theater Master of Fine Arts Program presents Maxim Gorky's Philistines in a fresh new version by Andrew Upton, the co-artistic director of Australia's Sydney Theatre Company and an acclaimed adaptor of Russian plays.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) continues its 2008-09 season with John Guare's Rich & Famous, directed by John Rando (Urinetown, The Musical and Wedding Singer on Broadway) in its first major revival since its 1976 New York debut. From the ingenious mind of John Guare, who brought Six Degrees of Separation and The House of Blue Leaves to the American stage, this delicious dark comedy springs to life with twisted humor, rapid-fire dialogue, and outrageous plot twists. The revival script includes significant rewrites to the original text, as well as hilarious songs freshly scribed by Guare himself. In Rich and Famous, playwright Bing Ringling yearns to savor the sweet taste of celebrity, and he's hoping play number 844 will be his lucky break. But on opening night, he slips into a nightmarish phantasmagoria that shows him just how wrong things can go.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) continues its 2008-09 season Koret Visiting Artist Series with a conversation with leading American playwright John Guare, author of Six Degrees of Separation, The House of Blue Leaves and A.C.T.'s upcoming Rich & Famous. Guare will talk about four decades in the American theater and his new version of Rich and Famous that includes significant rewrites in preparation for the show's first revival since 1976. A.C.T. Dramaturg and Director of Humanities Michael Paller moderates. The conversation will be followed by a Q&A session with the audience. The event is free and open to the public and takes place on the A.C.T. stage on Saturday, December 13, 2009, at 10 a.m. Reservations are required and can be made by visiting www.act-sf.org/koret or by calling 415.749.2ACT.

Intellectualism gives way to emotion in Tom Stoppard's complex chronicle of the impact of Cold War politics and social revolution on life, love, and rock and roll

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) continues its 2008-09 season with John Guare's Rich & Famous, directed by John Rando (Urinetown, The Musical and Wedding Singer on Broadway) in its first major revival since its 1976 New York debut. From the ingenious mind of John Guare, who brought Six Degrees of Separation and The House of Blue Leaves to the American stage, this delicious dark comedy springs to life with twisted humor, rapid-fire dialogue, and outrageous plot twists. The revival script includes significant rewrites to the original text, as well as hilarious songs freshly scribed by Guare himself. In Rich and Famous, playwright Bing Ringling yearns to savor the sweet taste of celebrity, and he's hoping play number 844 will be his lucky break. But on opening night, he slips into a nightmarish phantasmagoria that shows him just how wrong things can go.

American Conservatory Theater presents the Charles Dickens classic A Christmas Carol, adapted by Carey Perloff and Paul Walsh and directed by acclaimed Bay Area director and actor Domenique Lozano.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) continues its 2008-09 season Koret Visiting Artist Series with a conversation with leading American playwright John Guare, author of Six Degrees of Separation, The House of Blue Leaves and A.C.T.'s upcoming Rich & Famous. Guare will talk about four decades in the American theater and his new version of Rich and Famous that includes significant rewrites in preparation for the show's first revival since 1976. A.C.T. Dramaturg and Director of Humanities Michael Paller moderates. The conversation will be followed by a Q&A session with the audience. The event is free and open to the public and takes place on the A.C.T. stage on Saturday, December 13, 2009, at 10 a.m. Reservations are required and can be made by visiting www.act-sf.org/koret or by calling 415.749.2ACT.

American Conservatory Theater presents the Charles Dickens classic A Christmas Carol, adapted by Carey Perloff and Paul Walsh and directed by acclaimed Bay Area director and actor Domenique Lozano.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) announced today that Laurie Metcalf will be performing the role of Jeannette for the full run of its production of The Quality of Life, written and directed by Jane Anderson. Caroline Lagerfelt has stepped down from the previously announced alternate arrangement for the role when Metcalf became available after her television commitment was put on hiatus.

In a co-commission with Theatre Royal Bath, ten talented young actors from communities throughout the Bay Area come together for the world premiere of My Life in the Silents by acclaimed playwright Timothy Mason (Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical on Broadway). Designed and directed by A.C.T. Young Conservatory Director Craig Slaight, My Life in the Silents continues the unique international artistic exchange between students from the United States and England. In this playful new comedy set in Hollywood's silent film era, a precocious teenager flees small-town Minnesota to chase her dream of becoming a movie star in Los Angeles-but discovers the road to fame isn't exactly paved with gold.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) announced the first of its 2008-09 season Koret Visiting Artist Series in association with the West Coast premiere of Tom Stoppard's Rock 'n' Roll. Artistic Director Carey Perloff moderates 'Velvet Underground to Velvet Revolution: Culture, Politics, and Change in Rock 'n' Roll,' a panel discussion featuring world-renowned Eastern European political expert Timothy Garton Ash (author of History of the Present and The Magic Lantern) and former editor of Rolling Stone Greil Marcus (author of Mystery Train and Lipstick Traces).

A.C.T. Master of Fine Arts Program presents celebrated young playwright and OBIE Award winner Robert O'Hara's Good Breeding, directed by acclaimed director Timothy Douglas, and featuring the A.C.T. M.F.A. Program class of 2009. Sex, murder, revenge-it's all fair game in this extravagant new adaptation of the Greek Oresteia.

San Francisco's cutting-edge Cutting Ball Theater opens its 2008-09 season with VICTIMS OF DUTY from the master of absurdism, Eugène Ionesco. Cutting Ball Artistic Director Rob Melrose helms Ionesco's most surreal and autobiographical play, starring David Sinaiko and Felicia Benefield, and featuring Avery Monsen and Ryan Oden, October 24 through November 23 (Press opening: Thursday, October 30).