Charles Mac News

Casting is complete for Theatre Aspen's upcoming summer season, reported Artistic Director Paige Price. The award-winning regional theatre unveils the brand new Hurst Theatre in Rio Grande Park on June 24th with two musicals and a comedy. The new theatre tent was installed during a snow storm on May 19th, work on the interior will begin immediately.

The New York Times reports this morning that producer Jeffrey Richards held a reading of THE FRONT PAGE, directed by Daniel Sullivan which starred Nathan Lane, Billy Crudup, John Larroquette and Dan Lauria. The paper reports that it was organized to hear if the play was commercially viable, with no word on whether it will enter a full production, or if producers will be after this cast to star.

Rattlestick Playwrights Theater today announced its roster of plays for 2011-12, the award-winning company's 17th season. The all world-premiere season will feature new works by Dan Klores, Dael Orlandersmith, Daniel Talbott, José Rivera, David Adjmi and a play written by Academy-Award nominee Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network).

Casting is complete for Theatre Aspen's upcoming summer season, reported Artistic Director Paige Price. The award-winning regional theatre unveils the brand new Hurst Theatre in Rio Grande Park on June 24th with two musicals and a comedy. The new theatre tent was installed during a snow storm on May 19th, work on the interior will begin immediately.

Casting is complete for Theatre Aspen's upcoming summer season, reported Artistic Director Paige Price. The award-winning regional theatre unveils the brand new Hurst Theatre in Rio Grande Park on June 24th with two musicals and a comedy. The new theatre tent was installed during a snow storm on May 19th, work on the interior will begin immediately.

Writer, director, and co-composer Daniel Beaty, Grammy Award-winning co-composers Jamal Joseph and Charles Mack, and the cast of Tearing Down The Walls (Dietrice Bolden, Kelechi Ezie, Rumando Kelley, Jevon McFerrin, Adrienne C. Moore, and Umi Shakti) were joined by celebrity guests including Ruby Dee and Damon Dash on the show's opening night, May 12.

Daniel Beaty, writer, director and co-composer of Tearing Down The Walls, has been nominated for a Drama Desk Award, Drama League Award and Outer Critics Circle Award for his acclaimed production of Through the Night. Through the Night has also been honored with 2011 Lucille Lortel Award and United Solo uAward nominations for Best Solo Show, two LA Stage Alliance Ovation Awards for the show's 2010 Geffen Playhouse run (Lead Actor in a Play and Sound Design), the 2010 Voice of Change Award, and the 2010 Vivian Robinson AUDELCO Recognition Award for Outstanding Solo Performance. For his acclaimed solo show Emergency!, Beaty received the 2007 OBIE Award for Excellence in Off-Broadway Writing and Performing and the 2007 Vivian Robinson AUDELCO Recognition Award for Outstanding Solo Performance. Tearing Down the Walls begins performances at The Riverside Theatre (91 Claremont Avenue) on Friday, May 6 and will officially open on Thursday, May 12. (Through the Night also premiered at The Riverside Theatre.) Infused with soulful music, impassioned spoken word and laugh-out-loud humor, Tearing Down The Walls tells the story of the residents of a tight-knit Harlem community upended and pushed to the limit by life's challenges, but who find hope in the most unusual places. The cast features Dietrice Bolden, Umi Shakti, Adrienne C. Moore, Rumando Kelley, Jevon McFerrin, and Kelechi Ezie. The creative team includes Oscar and Grammy-nominated songwriting team Jamal Joseph & Charles Mack, along with Beaty, (Music), Dell Howlett (Choreography), Bryan Collier (Scenic and Projections Design), Catherine Fisher (Costume Design) and Andrew Merkel (Lighting Design). The playing schedule during previews will be Friday, May 6 at 8:00 p.m., Saturday, May 7 at 8:00 p.m., Sunday, May 8 at 3:00 p.m., Tuesday, May 10 at 8:00 p.m., and Wednesday, May 11 at 8:00 p.m. After opening night the playing schedule will be Thursday, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8:00 p.m., with 3:00 p.m. matinees on Saturdays and Sundays. Tickets are available via theriversidetheatre.org or (212) 870-6784. All preview tickets are $15.00, and all regular performance tickets are $25.00. Tickets purchased before April 15 will be $10 (previews) and $20 (regular performances). Opening night tickets are available for purchase at $50, and include exclusive access to the VIP reception, which will include an exhibit of original artwork by Bryan Collier.

The 27th Helen Hayes Awards are being presented at the historic Warner Theatre tonight, April 25, 2011. In addition to 156 theatre artists, ensembles and productions nominated in 26 categories, three special awards will be given.

TimeLine Theatre Company presents The Front Page by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur, directed by TimeLine Associate Artistic Director Nick Bowling, April 16 - June 12, 2011 (previews April 12 through April 15) at TimeLine Theatre, 615 W. Wellington Ave., Chicago. Press Opening performances are Saturday, April 16 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, April 17 at 2 p.m.

Daniel Beaty, writer, director and co-composer of Tearing Down The Walls, has been nominated for a United Solo uAward for his performance in his acclaimed solo show Through the Night (www.unitedsolo.org).

TimeLine Theatre Company, dedicated to presenting plays inspired by history that connect to today's social and political issues, has finalized its four-play 2010-11 season. The Chicago premiere of In Darfur by Winter Miller, directed by Nick Bowling, joins three previously released titles: The Chicago premiere of Frost/Nixon by Peter Morgan, the world premiere of Mastering the Art by William Brown and Doug Frew, and The Front Page by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur.

TimeLine Theatre Company presents The Front Page by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur, directed by TimeLine Associate Artistic Director Nick Bowling, April 16 - June 12, 2011 (previews April 12 through April 15) at TimeLine Theatre, 615 W. Wellington Ave., Chicago. Press Opening performances are Saturday, April 16 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, April 17 at 2 p.m.

Perseus Bayou runs February 5 through March 13 in the Annette M. and Theodore N. Lerner Family Theatre. Tickets are $10 to $22, and may be purchased online atwww.imaginationstage.org, at the Imagination Stage box office, or via phone at (301) 280-1660. Group rates are available. Box office hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.

Theatre artists and productions nominated for The 27th Annual Helen Hayes Awards were announced this evening at a press conference hosted by The National Theatre in its Helen Hayes Gallery.

BENCHED, featuring actresses Dionne Audain, Leigh Jameson and Liz Mamana, will close Sunday February 27 at the National Conservatory of Dramatic Arts, 1556 Wisconsin Avenue NW in Historic Georgetown.

TimeLine Theatre Company, named the nation's theater 'Company of the Year' for 2010 by Terry Teachout in The Wall Street Journal and 'one of the Chicago theater's most impressive growth stories' by Chris Jones in the Chicago Tribune, announces its four-play 2011-12 season

Playwright Allyson Currin and director Jessica Lefkow are pleased to announce the upcoming presentation of Allyson's newest play, BENCHED, featuring actresses Dionne Audain, Leigh Jameson and Liz Mamana.

People's Light & Theatre presents Kidnapped!, an adaptation of the Robert Louis Stevenson novel, by Ernie Joselovitz, which closes February 6, 2011. Resident Director Samantha Bellomo directs. People's Light & Theatre is located at 39 Conestoga Road, Malvern, PA 19355. For tickets call 610.644.3500 or visit PeoplesLight.org. This production is part of the TARGET Family Discovery Series.

Perseus Bayou runs February 5 through March 13 in the Annette M. and Theodore N. Lerner Family Theatre. Tickets are $10 to $22, and may be purchased online atwww.imaginationstage.org, at the Imagination Stage box office, or via phone at (301) 280-1660. Group rates are available. Box office hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.

What happens when the classic Greek myth of pride and redemption is transplanted into the rich world of post-Civil War Louisiana?