Chris Winfield News

Neil Simon's Pulitzer Prize-winning dramedy Lost in Yonkers followed his autobiographical trio Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues and Broadway Bound. Critics started to take him seriously as a playwright with these plays for he was writing about his own family's life experiences. Lost in Yonkers is set in 1942 in Yonkers, New York where Grandma Kurnitz (Loraine Shields) and her daughter Bella (Roslyn Cohn) run the family confectionery store and live in a modest apartment upstairs. Now in a stunning production at the GROUP rep, Larry Eisenberg directs a perfectly cast ensemble who make the play shine brightly through October 22. Humor is Simon's best suit. This is drama, but... there is plenty of comedy emanating

The Group Rep presents Neil Simon's Tony and Pulitzer Prize-winning comedic drama directedby Larry Eisenberg, produced by Doug Haverty.

Director/Actor/Writer LARRY EISENBERG earned his MFA from CalArts, received a DramaLogue Award for the world premiere adaptation of Isaac Bashevis Singer's Stories for Children and has directed numerous productions at GRT. His favorites include The Poor of New York, Trip to Bountiful, Over the River and Through the Woods and his original play, Nautilus, which was later turned into a feature film. He currently serves as one of the two co-artistic directors at the Group Rep. He is currently directing Lost in Yonkers at Group rep which will have its official opening Friday, September 8. Written by Steve Peterson

The Group Rep presents Neil Simon's Tony and Pulitzer Prize-winning comedic drama directedby Larry Eisenberg, produced by Doug Haverty.

The Group Rep extends their well-received production of Agatha Christie's New York Critic's Circle Award-winning play, Witness for the Prosecution, directed by Jules Aaron and featuring Guest Artist Salome Jens, a mystery about a man on trial for murder whose enigmatic wife is called as a 'witness for the prosecution' whereupon a series of plot twists, deceptions and lies are dramatically uncovered. Scroll down for a first look at the cast in action!

There's nothing like a good old fashioned mystery to keep you on the edge of your theatre seat, especially one that's written by the grande dame of the genre Agatha Christie. The Mousetrap was one of the longest running plays on the West End for umpteen years. As I sat at Group rep Friday night watching Witness for the Prosecution, which is rarely revived, I really tuned in to the dialogue. It is so well constructed, and the dozen or so characters are deliciously humorous. I am happy to report that the new production at Group rep directed by skilled veteran Jules Aaron and starring guest artist Salome Jens and Larry Eisenberg is akin to a jolly good rollercoaster ride. It's delightfully entertaining and can be seen through March 12.

The Group Rep is entering its 43rd year of continuous operation and proudly announces its newest Season containing an exciting collection of original and classic theatrical offerings.  These will explore the reasons people do the things they do and offer the audience a portal into the motives that drive a fascinating array of complicated human beings.

The annual dysfunctional family Christmas gathering? Oy! This family lives in Minnesota. Double oy!! Issue at hand: not one of the family members is anywhere near to being happy. Mom (Belinda Howell) is in denial, keeping her breast cancer a secret, her doctor son Michael (Patrick Burke) has been mysteriously separated from wife Jill (Rebekah Dunn) for three months, other son Carl (Greg D. Barnett), a struggling writer, is estranged from his girlfriend Rita, and daughter Stacey (Truett Jean Butler) is gay and separated from her partner, who hasn't yet told her parents about their relationship. Then there's obnoxious intruder Uncle Bob (Fox Carney) who does his best to upset everyone with his disgustingly uber jovial disposition, and Grandma (Marcia Rodd), with a tongue that could cut glass, who sashays around them all with digs, jibes and a whole barrel of insulting fun. Doug Engalla has skillfully directed a superb cast of players who only have to speak Phil Olson's hysterically funny lines to get laughs. It's a howler a la Neil Simon with a laugh about every two seconds, and each character has that dry infectious Minnesota accent that makes you double over every time you hear it.

The Group Rep presents the world premiere comedy A Nice Family Christmas written by Phil Olson, directed by Doug Engalla, produced by Alyson York.

The Group Rep presents the world premiere comedy A Nice Family Christmas written by Phil Olson, directed by Doug Engalla, produced by Alyson York.

The 2003 film Calendar Girls was produced in the US with a British cast starring Helen Mirren and Julie Walters. It is a delightful comedy and a sweet ode to women, who, dissatisfied with many lifestyle choices, try quite earnestly to raise the bar. In 2008 it was made into a play and has been a best seller in the UK, probably because it takes place in and pays homage to Yorkshire. Now under Larry Eisenberg's keen and caring direction, Calendar Girls, rarely produced in the US, has a sturdy production with a sterling cast at Group rep in NoHo through October 9.

The Group Rep presents Tim Firth's comedy CALENDAR GIRLS, based on the motion picture by Juliette Towhidi and Firth, directed by Larry Eisenberg, and produced for the Group Rep by Drina Durazo. The show runs tonight, August 26, through October 9, 2016, and BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!

The Group Rep presents the world premiere of Gus Krieger's THE ARMADILLO NECKTIE, directed by Drina Durazo, produced by Troy Whitaker. The jet black comedy takes place on the border of Iraq and Iran where U.S. Army Colonel Ulysses Simpson Armadillo with help from his trusty Executive Officer Buckley Dunham, has been searching tirelessly for the native insurgents who, years ago, murdered his beloved wife.  

Musical geniuses of yesteryear like Vivaldi, Handel, Mozart or Bach ... ah, a chosen few who left an unparalleled legacy...but not without bitter resentment and treachery from rivals, some talented, some not... Remember Amadeus by Peter Schaeffer? Salieri stopped at nothing to thwart Mozart's success. Well, now Itamar Moses pits not one, but seven musicians against one another for the coveted position of choirmaster/organist after Johann Kunau dies literally at the organ at Thomaskirche, Leipzig in 1722. There's a flurry of fanciful farce amongst the competitiveness currently onstage in Moses's Bach at Leipzig at Group rep, directed by the brilliant Calvin Remsberg and boasting a devilishly versatile cast, through May 1.

birthday. He is dying of cancer but is told that he is suffering from a spastic colon. Mendacity. Margaret (Madeline Fair) denies gossip that she and husband Brick (Daniel Kaemon) are sleeping apart. The denial is a lie. Gooper (Todd Andrew Ball) and wife Mae (Kyra Schwartz) swear to have Big Daddy's back. More mendacity. Brick denies unspeakable devotion to football pal Skipper. Mendacity, mendacity, mendacity. The plantation reeks of it. The only truth that exists is that Big Daddy does hate his relationship with Big Mama (Diane Frank) and is not afraid to tell it to the world.The Pollitt family give new meaning to the word dysfunction. Who would want to celebrate anything with them? But somehow Tennessee Williams manages to get us to care for Maggie, Brick, Big Daddy and Big Mama. Gooper, Mae and their no.neck monster children... we can definitely live without. Now in an appealing production at Group rep directed meticulously by L. Flint Esquerra and with an outstanding cast, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof still manages to grab hold and move us.

The Group Rep Co-Artistic Directors Larry Eisenberg and Chris Winfield have announced the company's exciting 42nd Season and the opening of a new performance space on the second floor of the Lonny Chapman Theatre in North Hollywood, CA. 

From the moment you enter the Group rep theatre and see a warmup football practice onstage, the tone for the play is set. You are about to watch, breathe, eat and sleep football. At least that is what Vince Lombardi did as head coach of the Green Bay Packers from 1959-1968. Now onstage at the theatre in NoHo, LOMBARDI, an LA premiere, has no great dramatic plot or conflict but is true to form, an excellent slice.of.life character study of the man of the hour whom the play is named after. Boasting brilliant direction from Gregg T. Daniel and an outstanding cast of six, LOMBARDI, like a good football season, should pack 'em in.

It is refreshing in this day and age to see an attempt to create a new musical. With few exceptions, it appears to be a dying art. If not, we would not be witnessing a raft of old steady revivals on Broadway, off-Broadway and in regional venues across the globe. Doug Haverty and Adryan Russ, no strangers to successful musical ventures, have taken the topic of love and have created Love Again, a bold effort at showing the intermingling of different aspects of love with a semi-large cast. Under the steady hand of Kay Cole all manage to shine in one form or another and a lot of it works delightfully. There's much potential with some more work and readjustments to the book. Many of the songs are quite lovely, and love, in all of its shades and colors, is always a treat to experience. Love Again has its niche at Group rep in NoHo through June 28.

The Group Rep presents the world premiere musical Love Again, book by Doug Haverty, music by Adryan Russ, lyrics by Russ and Haverty, directed by Kay Cole, produced by Richard Alan Woody and Jon Cortez for The Group Rep, with musical direction by Richard Berent.

The Group Rep presents the world premiere musical Love Again, book by Doug Haverty, music by Adryan Russ, lyrics by Russ and Haverty, directed by Kay Cole, produced by Richard Alan Woody and Jon Cortez for The Group Rep, with musical direction by Richard Berent.