Carol Rosegg News

When Aristophanes premiered the knockabout comedy, Lysistrata, in 411 B.C., his tale of women denying sex to their husbands until they ended the Peloponnesian War was an irreverent protest against then-contemporary politics.  In their giddily fun and sexy musical update, Lysistrata Jones, bookwriter Douglas Carter Beane and composer/lyricist Lewis Flinn ditch the anti-war hoopla in favor of college basketball hoops.  At first it seems a lot sillier - the girlfriends of an apathetic team stop putting out until they win a game - but then evolves into neat little explorations of self-esteem, self-discovery and the importance of non-sexual connections in romantic relationships.  I'm not saying they delve into Sondheimish depths here, but this twist to the story adds a refreshingly original and unexpected angle to an already immensely enjoyable show.

Music Director Robert Spano will lead the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra in the Atlanta Symphony premiere, and Theater of a Concert presentation, of Puccini's Madama Butterfly June 9 and 11 at 8:00 p.m. and June 12, 2011, at 3:00 p.m.

Broadway In Chicago is thrilled to announce that former 'Saturday Night Live' and Comedy Central star Colin Quinn will move his one-man show COLIN QUINN LONG STORY SHORT, directed by Jerry Seinfeld, to the Broadway Playhouse at Water Tower Place (175 E. Chestnut St.) for a limited three-week engagement from Aug. 24 - Sep. 10, 2011.

Those who miss the patter of little urbanites that made Thursday night sitcoms so popular in the 1990s should welcome the arrival of Jonathan Marc Sherman's angsty new comedy, Knickerbocker; a play generously populated by an assortment of smart, funny and hip New Yorkers whose charm lies in their ability to over-think.

Music Director Robert Spano will lead the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra in the Atlanta Symphony premiere, and Theater of a Concert presentation, of Puccini's Madama Butterfly June 9 and 11 at 8:00 p.m. and June 12, 2011, at 3:00 p.m.

The Public Theater (Artistic Director Oskar Eustis; Interim Executive Director Joey Parnes) presents the New York premiere of KNICKERBOCKER, written by Jonathan Marc Sherman and directed by Pippin Parker. The final show in the 2010-2011 Public LAB season, KNICKERBOCKER will run Friday, May 6 through Sunday, May 29, with an official press opening on Thursday, May 19. Single tickets are on sale now; all tickets for Public LAB productions are $15.

We chat with Broadway baby Kritzer, who relives her 1990s Jersey high school years in her new cabaret act.

KIMBERLY FAYE GREENBERG, who has been playing ‘Sylvia Fine' in the long-running off-Broadway musical 'DANNY and SYLVIA: THE DANNY KAYE MUSICAL', just opened in the new one-woman musical 'ONE NIGHT WITH FANNY BRICE' also playing at St. Luke's Theatre, 308 West 46th Street, N

Born Yesterday, starring Jim Belushi, Robert Sean Leonard and Nina Arianda, opens April 24 at Broadway's Cort Theatre (138 West 48th Street) at 8 pm. Directed by Doug Hughes, the show is a revival of Garson Kanin's award-winning comedy about sex and politics.

Stephen Schwartz has teamed up with the New York City opera for the New York premiere of his first opera, Seance on a Wet Afternoon. The prodigious Oscar and Grammy Award-winning composer has written the scores to hit shows Godspell, Pippin, and Wicked, which continues to break Broadway attendance records and has become one of the most popular musicals of all time.

When the 1920s crooner heartthrob Rudy Vallee made his return to Broadway in the 1961 original production of How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, he wasn't exactly known as an actor, and certainly not known as a comedian who might excel in a scalding satire of the ups and downs of the corporate ladder.  So when director Abe Burrows guided him through the role of J.B. Biggley, the feared and revered President of World-Wide Wickets, he gave him specific instructs... don't be funny.  Since the brilliant comic scribe Burrows was also writing the book for How To Succeed... (starting from Jack Weinstock and Willie Gilbert's straight play draft) he knew exactly how to surround the star with daffy characters and plant him into silly situations while keeping him obliviously normal.  By not really giving a performance, but by being Rudy Vallee saying lines and singing songs, the used-to-be has-been had audiences rolling with laughter.

The national tour of Fiddler on the Roof took the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts by storm - literally. But as the rain poured outside, nothing could diminish the reception inside of this timeless story of endurance, family and love. Playing through March 20th, this latest rendition of Fiddler on the Roof is heartwarming and memorable.

'One man's facts are another man's fabrications,' notes Ghassan (Ted Sod) as he and several other characters in Mona Mansour's Urge For Going try to explain to the audience the circumstances that brought this family of Palestinian Arabs to live in a South Lebanese refugee camp that has been serving as a temporary settlement for nearly 60 years.

Soho Rep announces staged readings of four new plays by contemporary Black-British Playwrights to run in conjunction with the U.S. Première of debbie tucker green's BORN BAD, set to open at Soho Rep on April 7, 2011.

A Columbia literary scholar with a passion for the punctuation used in Keats' poetry starts dating a personal trainer who has moved to New York from Ireland.  Sounds like the beginning of a romantic comedy about a seemingly mismatched pair trying to get their conflicting worlds to mesh.

There aren't many concerts around where you can hear a full house go berserk at the promise of hearing Jill Eikenberry sing a number from Onward, Victoria.  Or where the mention of the name Bruce Yeko draws spontaneous applause and the audience enjoys a running gag about Lenny Wolpe.

The Public Theater (Artistic Director Oskar Eustis; Interim Executive Director Joey Parnes) will begin previews on Friday, March 25 for the world premiere of URGE FOR GOING, written by Mona Mansour and directed by Hal Brooks. The third show in the 2010-2011 Public LAB season, URGE FOR GOING will run Friday, March 25 through Sunday, April 17 at The Public Theater (425 Lafayette Street), with an official press opening on Sunday, April 10. Single tickets are on sale now; all tickets for Public LAB productions are $15.

Whether you've been living under a rock for the past week, or you're just in the mood for a recap of everything theatre, BroadwayWorld's new feature, ‘This Week in Pictures' is here to satisfy your end of the week fix. Take a look below to catch up on the latest happenings from the Great White Way to the West End (and everywhere in between) with coverage of press events, rehearsals, opening nights and more!

Today we are continuing our series of coverage of the offerings this Spring at The Public Theater with the playwright of the new LAB production, URGE FOR GOING, Mona Mansour. With topics ranging from the Palestinian crisis to Patty Hearst and the play, ME AND THE SLA, that it inspired; her Lebanese upbringing; her affection for John Waters; humble beginnings at the Groundlings leading now to the New York premiere of her first play at the Public, URGE FOR GOING; and more. Additionally, Mansour provides her insights into the culturally rich material at the core of URGE FOR GOING, her own family's reaction to the controversial material and what audiences can expect from the drama.

BENGAL TIGER AT THE BAGHDAD ZOO performs Tuesdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m., with matinees on Wednesdays and Saturdays at 2 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m at the Richard Rodgers Theatre (226 West 46th Street) on Broadway. Here's a first look at photos from the production!