Charise Castro Smith News

A third audience engagement event has been added to the list of special events surrounding Raven Theatre's production of Red Velvet, which details the story of Ira Aldridge, who in 1833 became the first black actor to play Othello on a London stage.

Smith Street Stage, the NYIT Award-Winning theatre company, is presenting The Frankenstein Project, an evening of experimental, collaborative, and original adaptations of Mary Shelley's classic novel. A group of actors, directors, and designers will use segments of the Frankenstein story as inspiration in initiating an original, short piece of theater. These individual pieces will be brought together by Smith Street Stage to render a new creation, our own Frankenstein's monster, in the form of a daring and artist-driven reinterpretation of the classic horror tale.

T.S. Eliot insists that April is the cruelest month, but I've always firmly believed that the correct answer is February. Between the unpredictable weather events and the cold; the sloppy sidewalks and the general malaise of realizing that spring is a long way off--February needs to have a few bright spots in order for us to power through. Thankfully, this year, we have Trinity Rep's THE HUNCHBACK OF SEVILLE to serve as one of those beacons. Though the story takes place on a cold day in 1504 Seville, it feels like a ray of sunshine-- perfect to thaw out your sense of humor and warm up your funny bone.

Trinity Rep continues Season 52 Rebels, Renegades and Pioneers with Charise Castro Smith's dark comedy, The Hunchback of Seville , directed by Taibi Magar. At the turn of the 16th century, Christopher Columbus has just returned from the new world with gold in his pockets and blood on his hands. Maxima Terrible Segunda, the brilliant adopted sister of dying HRH Queen Isabella, is living out her life locked away in a tower... until it is decided that the future of the country is in her nerdy, reclusive hands. In a bitingly funny and madcap take on Spanish history and colonialism, Maxima weaves her way through mountains of prejudice, politics, religion and the horrors of history.

? In association with its mission to present new voices from inadequately represented communities, Halcyon Theatre will host a one-night-only post-show discussion immediately following the 8p.m. performance of Estrella Cruz [the junkyard queen] Friday, February 19. The panel will address social issues facing young Latina women as reflected in Estrella Cruz, including young motherhood. The expert panel features Maureen Mena, Association of Latino Professionals for America board member; Tamika Lechee Morales, Halcyon Theatre company member (and Estrella Cruz cast member); and Yesenia Villaseñor, Assistant General Counsel at Exelon Corporation. Open to all theatre patrons.

Independent Shakespeare Co. (ISC), presenters of the Griffith Park Free Shakespeare Festival and recipients of the 2015 Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Margaret Harford Award for sustained excellence in theater, announce the debut of a new works reading series, iambic lab, presented Friday, February 12 and Saturday, February 13 at 7:30pm and Sunday, February 14 at 2pm at Independent Studio in the Atwater Crossing Arts + Innovation Complex, 3191 Casitas Ave., #168 in Atwater Village.

Artists Repertory Theatre announces a stylistically diverse season of seven imaginative and entertaining plays that grapple with family and the pursuit of happiness. The season features one World Premiere commissioned by Artists Rep's new play development program Table|Room|Stage, along with five Northwest Premieres (including a musical) by some of the best emerging contemporary playwrights in the country, and one re-imagined classic featuring an all-female cast. The 2016/17 selections emphasize the aesthetic and scope of work Artists Rep has been committed to producing for almost 35 years as Portland's premiere mid-size regional theatre.

?Trinity Rep continues Season 52 Rebels, Renegades and Pioneers with Charise Castro Smith's dark comedy, The Hunchback of Seville, directed by Taibi Magar (A Christmas Carol 2014). Performances run February 4 through March 6, 2016. Tickets are on sale now and by phone at (401) 351-4242, online at www.trinityrep.com, or in person at the theater's box office at 201 Washington Street, Providence.

Chicago's Halcyon Theatre announces casting for the Chicago Premiere of Estrella Cruz [the junkyard queen] by Charise Castro Smith. Directed by Tony Adams, Halcyon's Artistic Director, the company continues its 10th Anniversary season with this contemporary satirical twist on the classic Greek myth of Persephone and her journey to the underworld. The cast of Estrella Cruz features Johnny Garcia, Robert N. Isaac, Noe Jara, Tamika Lechee Morales, Kelly Opalko, and Allyce Torres. Estrella Cruz [the junkyard queen] runs January 21 - February 27 at Halcyon Theatre, in residence at Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church, 3253 W. Wilson Avenue. The official opening night performance is Thursday, January 28, at 8pm; the running time is approx. 70 minutes.

Asolo Repertory Theatre presents the sixth annual New Stages Tour, an FSU/Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training production of William Shakespeare's TWELFTH NIGHT, which performed throughout October and November 2015. There will be a homecoming performance, open to the public, tonight, November 24 at 6:30pm in the Cook Theatre, located in the FSU Center for the Performing Arts.

Trinity Rep continues Season 52 Rebels, Renegades and Pioneers with Wendy Wasserstein's Pulitzer Prize-winning comedy, The Heidi Chronicles, directed by Vivienne Benesch. Performances run December 3, 2015 through January 3, 2016.

The year is 1504. It's a freakishly cold day in Spain, and the hunchbacked, adopted sister of the dying queen Isabella has to use her formidable intellect to contend with colonial genocide, a forbidden lover, a hellion of an heir, and the mess that is politics in a changing world. An irreverent comedy that turns historical atrocities on their heads in a Tarantino-esque romp, it's a collaboration that brings CCM drama students to Know Theatre's stage for a twisted history you never learned in school.

A wide range of stories and voices comprise Goodman Theatre's 2015/2016 Season-a 'Big-Bold-Brilliant' line-up, beginning this month.

Asolo Repertory Theatre presents the sixth annual New Stages Tour, an FSU/Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training production of William Shakespeare's TWELFTH NIGHT, which will perform throughout October and November 2015.

Trinity Repertory Company invites the public to celebrate the performing arts in Rhode Island and beyond as the host of the first annual season kickoff party, tonight, August 22, 2015.

Tony Award-winning Trinity Repertory Company, under the leadership of Richard L. Bready Artistic Director Curt Columbus kicks off their 2015-2016 season, Rebels, Renegades and Pioneers with William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, directed by Associate Artistic Director Tyler Dobrowsky. Julius Caesar runs September 10- October 11, 2015 in Trinity Rep's Dowling Theater. Tickets are available at www.trinityrep.com, by calling (401) 351-4242 or at the theater's box office at 201 Washington St., Providence.

Tony Award-winning Trinity Repertory Company, under the leadership of Richard L. Bready Artistic Director Curt Columbus, announces tickets to their 2015-2016 season will be available to the general public on August 17, 2015. Tickets for New England holiday favorite, A Christmas Carol, go on exclusive pre-sale on August 17 and to the general public on August 20. Tickets to all performances will be available online at www.trinityrep.com, by calling (401) 351-4242 or at the box office at 201 Washington St., Providence.

Two River Theater, under the leadership of Artistic Director John Dias and Managing Director Michael Hurst, kicks off its fifth annual Crossing Borders festival of new plays by Latino writers.

The Latina/o Theatre Commons (LTC) proudly welcomes powerhouse directors paired with eight playwrights for the groundbreaking Carnaval 2015-a theatre festival of New Latina/o work at The Theatre School at DePaul University, 2350 N. Racine, Chicago, this weekend, July 23-25.

Trinity Repertory Company invites the public to celebrate the performing arts in Rhode Island and beyond as the host of the first annual season kickoff party, Saturday, August 22, 2015.