David Henry Hwang News

The Herb Alpert Foundation and California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) have awarded the 17th Alpert Award in the Arts to five exceptional mid-career artists. The award, an annual prize of $75,000, recognizes past performance and future promise to artists working in Dance, Film/Video, Music, Theatre and Visual Arts, the five major fields of investigation at CalArts.

The Public Theater and 3-Legged Dog have been invited by Director General Noam Semel to perform their acclaimed production of THE HUMAN SCALE at The Cameri Theatre in Tel Aviv, Israel, making it the first American production at The Cameri in its 66-year history. Written and performed by Pulitzer Prize-winner Lawrence Wright and directed by Public Theater Artistic Director Oskar Eustis, THE HUMAN SCALE will make its Israeli premiere on Wednesday, May 18 and run through Saturday, May 21 at Cameri Theatre 4, located at 18 Shaul Hamelech Boulevard.

The 56th Annual Obie Awards were given out at a ceremony last night at Webster Hall in Greenwich Village. The event was co-hosted by S. Epatha Merkerson and David Hyde Pierce, and the awards were presented by Alec Baldwin, Andrew Rannells, Arian Moayad, Frank Wood, Jim Parsons, John Larroquette, Liev Schreiber, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Mamie Gummer, Margaret Colin, Nina Arianda, Patina Miller, and Rose Hemingway. Anthony Rapp, of the original cast of the Obie Award-winning musical RENT and his band from the musical WITHOUT YOU performed at the ceremony.

The 56th Annual Obie Awards were given out at a ceremony last night at Webster Hall in Greenwich Village. The event was co-hosted by S. Epatha Merkerson and David Hyde Pierce, and the awards were presented by Alec Baldwin, Andrew Rannells, Arian Moayad, Frank Wood, Jim Parsons, John Larroquette, Liev Schreiber, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Mamie Gummer, Margaret Colin,Nina Arianda, Patina Miller, and Rose Hemingway. Anthony Rapp, of the original cast of the Obie Award-winning musical RENT and his band from the musical WITHOUT YOU performed at the ceremony.

Following a successful run at Georgetown University, GU's Theater and Performance Studies Program and Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater present Tennessee Williams' most autobiographical work The Glass Menagerie in conjunction with The Glass Menagerie Project.

David Hyde Pierce and S. Epatha Merkerson are set to co-host the 56th annual Obie Awards. The ceremony will be held at Webster Hall May 16. Additionally, Nina Arianda, Alec Baldwin, Margaret Colin, Mamie Gummer, Rose Hemingway, John Larroquette, Robert Sean Leonard, Patina Miller, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Arian Moayed, Lee Pace, Jim Parsons, and Andrew Ranells are set to present.

San Diego Asian American Repertory Theater (SDAART), in residence at La Jolla Playhouse, presents Flower Drum Song: A Musical Revival in Concert.

East West Players (EWP), the nation's premier Asian American theatre, continues its 45th Anniversary season, themed Shake It Up, with the world premiere hip hop musical, KRUNK FU BATTLE BATTLE, with book by Qui Nguyen, Lyrics by Beau Sia, Vocal Music by Marc Macalintal, Dance Music provided by Rynan Paguio and Jason Tyler Chong, Musical Direction by Marc Macalintal, and Choreography by Jason Tyler Chong.

The American Theatre Wing (Theodore S. Chapin, Chairman, Board of Trustees) today announced that Heather Hitchens has been appointed as the organization's next Executive Director. The decision was made at a meeting of the American Theatre Wing's Board of Trustees on Wednesday, May 4. Hitchens is an energetic and nationally recognized arts executive, with nearly 20 years of experience in performing arts administration, policy, and program development. She most recently served as the Executive Director of the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA), the oldest and largest state arts agency in the country, with a budget of $40 million. Hitchens will begin her tenure as Executive Director on July 5, succeeding Howard Sherman, who has been the Wing's Executive Director for 8 years and concludes his tenure on June 30. During her four year tenure at NYSCA, Hitchens oversaw the distribution of over $123 million in grants to more than 2,000 New York State organizations in every artistic discipline. She also fostered closer collaboration and partnerships between the arts and other sectors including tourism, economic development, and parks, and in collaboration with a number of public and private funding sources, launched the Cultural Data Project, which is developing more comprehensive and reliable data about the impact of the arts in New York State. Prior to working with the NYSCA, Hitchens served as the CEO of the Delaware Symphony Orchestra and the renowned national arts organization Meet The Composer, where she established a multi-million dollar endowment fund and fostered a thirty-fold increase in individual giving. She holds an M.S. in Arts Administration from Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA and a B.M. in Percussion/Music Business from DePauw, Greencastle, IN. "The Wing is a uniquely collaborative organization," said Theodore S. Chapin, Chairman 0f the Board of Trustees. "Our fruitful and long-term partnership with the Broadway League in bestowing the Tony Awards is a key element of the Wing, as are our various media, educational, and grant-giving programs. Howard Sherman brought the Wing into modern times, expanding, creating and widening the scope of the activities with intelligence and skill, and his contributions have made the Wing a more important place. Building on what Howard achieved, our extraordinary search committee did yeoman service, and their choice of Heather Hitchens speaks well for us all. From my vantage point as Chairman, I feel Heather is the perfect person to guide us into the next phase of collaborations, mining new opportunities and strengthening old ones." "I am absolutely thrilled to become the American Theatre Wing's next Executive Director," enthused Heather Hitchens. "It is a tremendous opportunity to continue my life's work in advancing exceptional artists and their craft, and to return to the place that my career began and a place that I love - the theatre. I look forward to working with the Wing's board and staff to continue showcasing and supporting artistic excellence and innovation in the national theatre community." Search Committee-member and Tony Award®-winning playwright David Henry Hwang added, "From an impressive pool of final candidates, Heather Hitchens emerged as the Search Committee's unanimous choice. Her knowledge of the cultural sector is second to none, she has elevated every organization with which she has been associated, and she possesses a clear and practical vision to advance the Wing's mission. With Heather as our new Executive Director, the American Theatre Wing is poised to take a major step forward to support artistic excellence in the theatre." The American Theatre Wing (Theodore S. Chapin, Chairman, Board of Trustees; Howard Sherman, Executive Director) is a not-for-profit organization best known as the creator of the Antoinette Perry "Tony" Awards®, which it presents annually with The Broadway League. In addition to "Downstage Center," "In The Wings," "Working in the Theatre," and a host of other online resources, The Wing operates many activities, all dedicated to recognizing excellence and supporting education in theatre, including SpringboardNYC, the Theatre Intern Group, the National Theatre Company Grants and the Jonathan Larson Grants. Visitors to americantheatrewing.org can listen to, watch or download from ATW's extensive media collection, and learn more about all of its programming for students, aspiring and working professionals, and audiences who want to learn more about the making of theatre. Follow ATW on Facebook.com/TheAmericanTheatreWing, youtube.com/americantheatrewing and Twitter.com/TheWing.

The American Theatre Wing (Theodore S. Chapin, Chairman, Board of Trustees) today announced that Heather Hitchens has been appointed as the organization's next Executive Director.

The Public Theater and 3-Legged Dog have been invited by Director General Noam Semel to perform their acclaimed production of THE HUMAN SCALE at The Cameri Theatre in Tel Aviv, Israel, making it the first American production at The Cameri in its 66-year history. Written and performed by Pulitzer Prize-winner Lawrence Wright and directed by Public Theater Artistic Director Oskar Eustis, THE HUMAN SCALE will make its Israeli premiere on Wednesday, May 18 and run through Saturday, May 21 at Cameri Theatre 4, located at 18 Shaul Hamelech Boulevard.

East West Players (EWP), the nation's largest producing organization of Asian American artistic work and the longest-running professional theatre of color in the country, announces its 46th Anniversary Season of three new works and a seminal musical classic.

The Public Theater hostd the final Public Forum evening of the season, 'Tony Kushner and Oskar Eustis in Conversation,' last night, May 8. In his new play, The Intelligent Homosexual's Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures, Kushner writes movingly about politics and family in America today-plus unions, real estate and love. Kushner and Eustis discussed these topics and more, with an introduction by special guest host Cynthia Nixon.

The Public Theater (Oskar Eustis, Artistic Director; Joey Parnes Interim Executive Director) announced the final Public Forum evening of the season, 'Tony Kushner and Oskar Eustis in Conversation,' on Sunday, March 8 at 8 p.m. In his new play, The Intelligent Homosexual's Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures, Kushner writes movingly about politics and family in America today-plus unions, real estate and love. On Sunday, May 8, Kushner and Eustis will discuss these topics and more, with an introduction by special guest host Cynthia Nixon. Public Forum single tickets are $25 and go on sale beginning Thursday, April 21 at (212) 967-7555 or www.publictheater.org.

San Diego Asian American Repertory Theater (SDAART), in residence at La Jolla Playhouse, presents Flower Drum Song: A Musical Revival in Concert.

Victory Gardens Theater, home to the bold voices of world premiere theater, today announces the appointment of its new Artistic Director, Chay Yew.

Yellow Face, the nationally-acclaimed play by Tony Award winning playwright David Henry Hwang, makes its Chicago debut at Silk Road Theatre Project (SRTP), produced in association with the Goodman Theatre. Yellow Face, directed by Steve Scott, runs June 14 - July 17, 2011, in Pierce Hall at The Historic Chicago Temple Building, 77 W. Washington St, Chicag

The Village Voice, the nation's largest alternative weekly newspaper, announced that the 56th Annual Obie Awards will take place on Monday, May 16, 2011 at Webster Hall in the East Village (125 East 11th Street). The awards will be co-hosted by S. Epatha Merkerson and David Hyde Pierce.

A.C.T. Conservatory Director Melissa Smith announced today that honorary master of fine arts degrees will be conferred on longtime A.C.T. artistic family member Marco Barricelli and Senator Mark Leno, D-San Francisco.

East West Players (EWP), the nation's premier Asian American theatre, continues its 45th Anniversary Season, themed Shake It Up, with the world premiere hip hop musical, KRUNK FU BATTLE BATTLE, with book by Qui Nguyen, Lyrics by Beau Sia, Vocal Music by Marc Macalintal, Dance Music provided by Rynan Paguio of JabbaWockeeZ and Jason Tyler Chong, Musical Direction by Marc Macalintal, and Choreography by Jason Tyler Chong.