The nationally and internationally admired Contemporary American Theater Festival (CATF) at Shepherd University celebrates the publication of Plays by Women of the Contemporary American Theater Festival. Four Seasons Books in Shepherdstown, a CATF partner, will host a release party on Thursday, February 28th from 7-9pm. Guests are able to reserve their copy of the anthology by contacting Four Seasons. This event is free and open to the public.
Magic Window Productions will present the Off-Broadway Premiere of RANDOM ACTS, a drama written and performed by Obie Award winner Renata Hinrichs (A Simple Heart, Debbie Does Dallas, Einstein's Dreams). Directed by Jessi D. Hill, previews begin February 14 at TBG Mainstage Theatre. Opening is set for Wednesday, February 20.
Today Keen Artistic Director Jonathan Silverstein announced the cast for the New York premiere of Surely Goodness and Mercy, a truly Keen story about an exceptional boy living a troubled life in Newark, NJ who does a good deed for an often unnoticed person. Sarita Covington, Jay Mazyck, Brenda Pressley, Courtney Thomas, and Cezar Williams will star under Jessi D. Hill's direction. The design team includes Lee Savage (scenic), Nicole Wee (costumes), Devorah Kengmana (lighting), and Sadah Espii Proctor (sound).
The Dramatists Guild Foundation Fellows program will begin accepting applications for the 2019-2020 Fellows class on Friday, February 1st. They will close at midnight, Eastern time, on March 12.
The League of Professional Theatre Women (Kelli Lynn Harrison and Catherine Porter, Co-Presidents), an organization which has been leading the gender parity conversation and championing women in the professional theatre for over 35 years, will present the 2019 Theatre Women Awards at The Sheen Center for Thought & Culture (18 Bleecker Street, New York, NY 10012) on Monday, March 25 at 7pm (doors open at 6:30pm). For more information on the 2019 Theatre Women Awards, and to purchase tickets, please visit www.theatrewomen.org.
Today, influencer and talent manager ChiChi Anyanwu of the NYC Black Theater Network, Marcia Pendelton, President of Walk Tall Girl Productions/Black Theater Online, and the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture (Kevin Young, Director, Schomburg Center) announced BLACK PLAYWRIGHTS: THEY SPEAK. WHO LISTENS? A Black Theater Winter Preview: Broadway and Off-Broadway Edition. The event is scheduled at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture (515 Malcolm X Blvd) on Monday, January 28, 2019 at 6:30 p.m. Four-time Tony Award-winning producer Ron Simons of SimonSays Entertainment (A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, Porgy & Bess, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, Jitney) will host the program whose purpose is to bring attention to the unprecedented number of plays by black playwrights being produced on Broadway and Off-Broadway this season.
Magic Theatre (Loretta Greco, Artistic Director and Jaimie Mayer, Managing Director) has announced dates for 2018's Martha Heasley Cox Virgin Play Festival, which will take place December 9 - 14, 2018. The public play readings kick off on Sunday, December 9 at 4:00 p.m. with THE FOUR CORNERS, a new play by Ashlin Halfnight (Magic Theatre's THE RESTING PLACE), followed by Ricardo Perez Gonzalez's DON'T EAT THE MANGOS at 7:00 pm.
The Alley Theatre announces the line-up for the 2019 Alley All New Festival, January 18 - January 27, 2019. The fourth annual Festival will feature a world premiere production, readings and workshop performances of five new plays, as well as an Early Draft Preview of a new musical. Festival playwrights include Robert Askins, Hilary Bettis, Glen Berger, Chisa Hutchinson, Claire Kiechel, Don Nguyen, and Lawrence Wright. Special packages are available for the final weekend of the Festival and include prime seating at all presentations, exclusive artist access, and meals between performances. Packages can be booked now at alleytheatre.org/allnew or by calling the Box Office at 713-220-5700. Advance reservations for individual events are recommended and can be made on November 26 at alleytheatre.org. All readings and workshop performances are free and open to the public.
Abingdon Theatre Company held their special one-night-only gala event on Monday, October 22 at The Edison Ballroom. The evening, honoring two-time Tony Award winner Donna Murphy (Hello, Dolly!; Passion; Wonderful Town), was hosted by Randy Rainbow.
National New Play Network, an alliance of professional theaters that collaborate in innovative ways to develop, produce, and extend the life of new plays, is pleased to announce the 17th annual National Showcase of New Plays . NNPN and B Street Theatre will host the National Showcase of New Plays from December 7-9, presenting readings of six production-ready new plays to more than 150 NNPN Core and Associate Members, Affiliated Artists, independent theater-makers, and invited guests.
Cleveland Public Theatre (CPT) is proud to announce that Rastus and Hattie, a new play written by Lisa Langford, Cleveland Public Theatre's 2018/2019 Nord Family Foundation Playwright Fellow and longtime CPT artist, was selected alongside 5 new plays to be read at NNPN's 17th annual National Showcase of New Plays this December in Sacramento, California.
Abingdon Theatre Company will launch their 26th season with a special one-night-only gala event on Monday, October 22 at The Edison Ballroom. The evening honors two-time Tony winner Donna Murphy (Hello, Dolly!; Passion; Wonderful Town).
National New Play Network (NNPN), the country's alliance of professional theaters that collaborate in innovative ways to develop, produce, and extend the life of new plays, has added three new Core Members: Silk Road Rising (Chicago), Company One (Boston), and City Theatre Company (Pittsburgh). As of the date of this release, NNPN has 114 Members Theaters, comprised of 32 Cores and 82 Associates.
Audible Inc., has announced the upcoming slate of productions at the Minetta Lane Theatre. The slate includes dynamic writing and performances from Patti Smith, Aasif Mandvi and Isaac Gomez, as well as Chisa Hutchinson. All performances will be recorded as Audible Original productions.
PlayPenn, the nationally-recognized new play development organization based in Philadelphia, is proud to announce their Fall 2018 Education offerings, which include both courses in Philadelphia and around-the-globe via a unique online platform. The organization is pleased to welcome new PlayPenn Education Director Julia Bumke, who has curated an amazing assortment of classes with world-class theater artists who will share their talent and craft with writers of all skill levels.
Samuel French announces that award-winning playwright and cabaret artist Charles Busch (The Tale of the Allergist's Wife, Psycho Beach Party, Vampire Lesbians of Sodom) has happily stepped in for the previously announced Lauren Yee (The King of the Yees, The Great Leap, The Hatmaker's Wife) who had to recuse herself due to a scheduling conflict.
The Samuel French Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival, the nation's premier short play competition, takes place August 21-25 at The Vineyard's Dimson 15th Street Theatre. Chosen from over 850 submissions from the U.S. and abroad, 30 finalist plays and musicals, each running 10-30 minutes in length, will be presented. The Saturday, August 25th presentation is the culmination of the week-long festival at which the Samuel French staff will choose the winning six pieces for licensing and publication in an anthology.
Today Keen Artistic Director Jonathan Silverstein announced his plans for the upcoming season: 'I am thrilled to announce Keen Company's 19th season, two uplifting stories about the big impact of small actions. This fall Keen will produce our fourth intimate musical, the first NY revival of Adam Gwon's Ordinary Days. I've been a fan of Adam's work for years and am so excited to work with him to bring this beloved musical to life in a brand new production with new orchestrations. Ordinary Days beautifully depicts the search for connection and how one person's actions can influence complete strangers. In the spring we will present the New York premiere of Surely Goodness and Mercy, a truly Keen story about an exceptional boy living a troubled life in Newark, NJ who does a good deed for an often unnoticed person. Chisa is a rare writer who speaks to our complicated times today with a full heart and a singular voice. I am thrilled to welcome her into the Keen family,' said Silverstein.
The Dramatists Guild of America is pleased to announce the co-recipients of the 2018 Lanford Wilson Award are Isaac Gomez and R. Eric Thomas. Their awards will be presented at the Guild's award ceremony, during their national conference, on Saturday, July 28, 2018, at the Hilton Midtown in New York.
Samuel French's Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival, the nation's premier short play competition, is excited to open 2018 ticket sales with an announcement of this year's Top 30 playwrights.
