Charles Randolph-Wright News

Big band sound transforms the Lincoln Theatre into a Duke Ellington jazz club as Arena Stage presents Duke Ellington's Sophisticated Ladies, choreographed by and starring Maurice Hines (Broadway's Sophisticated Ladies and Uptown... It's Hot!) with direction by Charles Randolph-Wright (Arena's Guys and Dolls and Blue).

Following his acclaimed run of Emergency in 2008, Obie and Ovation Award winner Daniel Beaty will end his return run to the Geffen Playhosue with his new show Through the Night, at the Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater on April 4. Directed by Charles Randolph-Wright, Through the Night is a new piece on family, community and the power of possibility.

Now through May 9, The Rep will be presenting Route 66, an all-new production, featuring some of the most popular songs of the road. The cast includes Danny Calvert, Adam Estes, Zachary Dylan Robbins, and Justin Robinson. Performances are Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:30PM, Fridays at 8PM, Saturdays at 4PM and 8PM, and Mondays at 2PM and 7PM. For tickets, visit: www.milwaukeerep.com.

As the Helen Hayes Awards ceremony on April 5th honors performances and productions from the past year, DC theatergoers will be hearing two gorgeous scores by Jason Robert Brown and Jeanine Tesori, and seeing a new opera about a boxer, a splashing pool on stage, Tyne Daley as diva Maria Callas, Maurice Hines tapping his way on the Lincoln Theatre stage, Mrs. Robinson seducing Benjamin, a red balloon thrilling young audiences, Harvey Fierstein wishing he was a rich man, tales and songs from a Scottish Jewish composer, a new children's show with lots of princesses, a little musical with the title in [ ], a triumphant mounting of a short-lived Broadway musical, and a wordless Kafka classic performed in Georgian style. The crocuses, cherry blossoms, and azaleas will be in full bloom, as the nation's capital will be awash in beautiful colors. It's the perfect time to visit and see some great shows in our DC area theatres.

Rep Stage, the professional Equity theatre in residence at Howard Community College (HCC), continues its 17th season with Eric Overmyer's 'On the Verge or The Geography of Yearning.' Mel Gussow, in his New York Times review of 'On the Verge...' wrote, 'Blending Tom Stoppard's limber linguistics with the historic overview of a Thornton Wilder, Mr. Overmyer takes his audience on a mirthful safari that leads from darkest Africa to Terra Incognita, spinning into time travel.'

Big band sound transforms the Lincoln Theatre into a Duke Ellington jazz club as Arena Stage presents Duke Ellington's Sophisticated Ladies, choreographed by and starring Maurice Hines (Broadway's Sophisticated Ladies and Uptown... It's Hot!) with direction by Charles Randolph-Wright (Arena's Guys and Dolls and Blue).

Following his acclaimed run of Emergency in 2008, Obie and Ovation Award winner Daniel Beaty returns to the Geffen Playhosue with his new show Through the Night, which runs in the Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater from March 16 to April 4. Directed by Charles Randolph-Wright, Through the Night is a new piece on family, community and the power of possibility.

Last Month, Arena Stage announced six productions and two major festivals that will inaugurate the company's new venue the Mead Center for American Theater next year. In addition to those exciting projects, Artistic Director Molly Smith is pleased to complete the 2010/11, 60th anniversary season lineup with the inclusion of the pre-Broadway world premiere of A Time to Kill-an adaptation by Rupert Holmes of the acclaimed John Grisham novel presented by special arrangement with Daryl Roth-and Let Me Down Easy, conceived, written and performed by Anna Deavere Smith. Both productions will be staged in the Mead Center's restored and remarkably intimate Kreeger Theater.

Performing Arts Fort Worth presents The Gershwin's Porgy and Bess at Bass Performance Hall on Wednesday and Thursday, March 3-4, 2010, at 8:00 p.m. Tickets are $30-$65 and are on sale now. Tickets for students with valid IDs are $10.

The Gershwins' beloved opera Porgy and Bess - recognized as an American masterpiece - plays the Aronoff Center's Procter & Gamble Hall on Wednesday, February 24, 2010 at 8:00 PM as part of the Cincinnati Arts Association's 2009-10 Season of Classic Nights Out.

Jazz and swing will thrive on U Street as Duke Ellington's music comes home to the Lincoln Theatre in Arena Stage's upcoming musical Duke Ellington's Sophisticated Ladies.

National Tour of PORGY AND BESS Plays Final Performance at Southern Theatre 2/21.

Daniel Beaty's THROUGH THE NIGHT Plays its Final Performance on 2/21 at Crossroads Theatre.

To celebrate the 75th anniversary of George Gershwin's enduring masterpiece, a new production of Porgy and Bess has been mounted-with full approval of the Gershwin estate-by veteran opera producer Michael Capasso (General Director of New York's vibrant Dicapo Opera). Featuring a stellar cast, live orchestra, and brand new sets, costumes, and lighting, this groundbreaking opera weaves a tale of prejudice, love, and tragedy. Incorporating a wealth of blues and jazz into the classical art of opera, Gershwin considered Porgy & Bess his finest work with songs such as 'Summertime' and 'It Ain't Necessarily So.' Columbus resident and OSU graduate Eric McKeever will be performing the role of Jake for the national tour which runs through June.

Arena Stage Artistic Director Molly Smith announces the D.C.-based pioneering theater company's 60th season filled with award-winning artists and projects to celebrate the grand opening of Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater. The 2010/11 inaugural season includes eight full productions, seven presentations from the National Endowment for the Arts New Play Development Program and public readings from all 30 of Edward Albee's works, totaling at least 45 projects produced and presented by Arena Stage in the inaugural year at the Mead Center. With the opening next fall, Arena Stage will fully become a national center for production, presentation, development and study of American theater.

The sights and sounds of Italy alight in Arlington's Crystal City as Arena Stage presents the lush and soaring The Light in the Piazza, directed by Arena Stage Artistic Director Molly Smith.

From February 11 through February 21 the Crossroads Theatre in New Jersey will present the World Premiere of Daniel Beaty's newest solo play THROUGH THE NIGHT, A SOUL ARIA.

Obie Award winner Daniel Beaty returns to Crossroads with the story of six interconnected African-American males ranging from ten to sixty-one per decade - as they and the people who love and support them venture through the night of events that changes these characters' lives forever. With a blend of drama, humor, poetry and music, Daniel Beaty inhabits each character through a seamless transformation in his body language, voice and emotional intention that credibly brings each character to life. 'Through the Night' will run from February 11 to 21.

Performing Arts Fort Worth presents The Gershwin's Porgy and Bess at Bass Performance Hall on Wednesday and Thursday, March 3-4, 2010, at 8:00 p.m. Tickets are $30-$65 and are on sale now. Tickets for students with valid IDs are $10.

Obie Award winner Daniel Beaty returns to Crossroads with the story of six interconnected African-American males ranging from ten to sixty-one per decade - as they and the people who love and support them venture through the night of events that changes these characters' lives forever. With a blend of drama, humor, poetry and music, Daniel Beaty inhabits each character through a seamless transformation in his body language, voice and emotional intention that credibly brings each character to life. 'Through the Night' will run from February 11 to 21.