Eric Schaeffer News

Signature Theatre Again Takes a Gamble and Succeeds

Signature Theatre presents Partial Eclipse, a rock song cycle by Matt Conner directed by Artistic Director Eric Schaeffer, running June 10 through 13 in Signature?s MAX Theatre. Written by the composer of the musical Nevermore, Partial Eclipse is a fascinating evening of songs about six strangers all on the never-ending quest for love and happiness. With titles ranging from ?Cinderella? to ?Bed and Breakfast? to ?Sympathy,? Conner?s songs evoke visions of love from the simple to the edgy in the straight, gay, and lesbian worlds. Six of Signature?s favorite actor/singers, Kurt Boehm, Eleasha Gamble, Sam Ludwig, Eric Ulloa, Weslie Woodley, and Rachel Zampelli, will perform the song cycle accompanied by a four-man rock band.

The cast of the smash hit Million Dollar Quartet, Chicago's beloved musical inspired by the famed 1956 recording session that brought together legendary rock ?n' roll icons Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Elvis Presley, will be performing a free concert at the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park this summer, on Tuesday, June 2, 2009, at 6:30 p.m.

BroadwayWorld Presents The 2009 Tony Award Honorees for Non-Competitive Categories

On Monday, May 5, the Tony Administration Committee revealed the names of a quartet of honorees who are to be recognized in the four non-competitive Tony categories. Composer/lyricist Jerry Herman, Virginia's Signature Theatre, and longtime press agent Shirley Herz will be honored at the 63rd annual Tony Awards ceremony on June 7. Actress/writer Phyllis Newman will receive the newest Tony Award for her volunteer work as an advocate for women's health.

Epic in vision and scope, Giant chronicles The Life and times of cattleman Jordan 'Bick' Benedict, his naïve young society wife, and their family in the sweeping panorama of Texas, the land that brings them together and almost splits them apart. A sensational story of power, love, lust, and bigotry among the wealthy Anglo cattle barons and oil tycoons, and the downtrodden Mexican-Americans who work for them, Giant is based on the classic novel by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Edna Ferber, which also inspired the film starring James Dean, ElizaBeth Taylor, and Rock Hudson. Written by Michael John LaChiusa, considered one of today's most intelligent and innovative musical theater composers, Giant is the first work produced through Signature's multi-year American Musical Voices Project.

Eric Schaeffer, Artistic Director of Signature Theatre, presents the world premiere production of the musical Giant by composer Michael John LaChiusa and playwright Sybille Pearson.

At a black-tie Gala Benefit on Monday night at the Embassy of Italy, Signature Theatre feted Stephen Sondheim, the greatest living composer/lyricist of American musical theatre, with both music and a new award established in the composer's name.

At a black-tie Gala Benefit on Monday night at the Embassy of Italy, Signature Theatre feted Stephen Sondheim, the greatest living composer/lyricist of American musical theatre, with both music and a new award established in the composer's name.

At a black-tie Gala Benefit on Monday night at the Embassy of Italy, Signature Theatre feted Stephen Sondheim, the greatest living composer/lyricist of American musical theatre, with both music and a new award established in the composer's name. The theatre company, nationally known for its Sondheim productions, inaugurated the ?Sondheim Award' which will be presented annually to individuals for their career contributions in interpreting, supporting, and collaborating on Mr. Sondheim's musical works.

Eric Schaeffer, the Artistic Director of Signature Theatre, tonight announced that Signature will honor Stephen Sondheim at a Gala Benefit in April and establish an annual award as a tribute to America's most influential contemporary musical theater composer. Signature will salute Mr. Sondheim at a black-tie Gala Celebration on Monday, April 27, 2009, in Washington, DC highlighted by a musical tribute, festive dinner, and dancing and inaugurate an annual honor to be known in future years as The Sondheim Award.

Tony Award® winners Bernadette Peters and Michael Cerveris, and Washington area favorites Will Gartshore and Eleasha Gamble will salute Stephen Sondheim on April 27, when the great musical theater composer is celebrated at Signature Theatre's first annual Sondheim Award Gala at the Embassy of Italy in Washington, DC.

This fall, from September 10 ? 27, Signature Theatre will continue its exploration of the music of the great songwriting team of John Kander and Fred Ebb with a new concert performance of some of the illustrious duo?s most popular songs. Following up Signature?s highly praised 2008 Kander & Ebb Celebration, ?First You Dream? The Kander & Ebb Concert will highlight the breadth of their songbook?from their early musical Flora, the Red Menace through hits like Cabaret and Chicago to their most recent show, The Visit, one of Signature?s recent hits. The Kander & Ebb Concert will feature some of Signature and Broadway?s favorite singers accompanied by Broadway-sized 18-piece onstage orchestra in The Max Theatre.

t was a boisterous crowd that filled the seats of the beautifully restored Warner Theatre where the Greater Washington theater community came together to applaud itself and recognize those artists who achieved greatness during the past theater season. How many people attended shows this past season? Would you believe close to two million people, the highest attendance in four years?

At last night?s 25th annual Helen Hayes Awards ceremony saluting excellence in Washington, DC area theater, Signature Theatre took home the leading number of honors for the evening, receiving 39 nominations and ultimately ten awards for its theatrical work in 2008. The black-tie event took place at The Warner Theatre in Washington, DC.

The 25th Annual Helen Hayes Awards were presented last night as one of our nation's most prestigious cultural events. Nearly 2,000 theatre artists and supporters filled the majestic Warner Theatre in downtown DC for an evening of dazzling entertainment replete with humor, celebration, and great tributes to Washington area professional theatre.

Tony Award® winners Bernadette Peters and Michael Cerveris, and Washington area favorites Will Gartshore and Eleasha Gamble will salute Stephen Sondheim on April 27, when the great musical theater composer is celebrated at Signature Theatre's first annual Sondheim Award Gala at the Embassy of Italy in Washington, DC.

Eric Schaeffer, Artistic Director of Signature Theatre, today announced casting for the world premiere production of the musical Giant by composer Michael John LaChiusa and playwright Sybille Pearson.

Signature Theatre's Artistic Director Eric Schaeffer today announced Signature's 20th anniversary season, saluting the two decades that have led the company to its position as one of the nation's leading forces in musical theater. The company will present a world premiere musical through its innovative American Musical Voices Project; a masterpiece by the composer for which the company is renowned, Stephen Sondheim; the Washington premiere of a recent Broadway hit; and the reinvention of a classic musical, supporting Signature's 'much-deserved reputation for excellence in revisionist musical theater' (Chicago Tribune).

Eric Schaeffer, Artistic Director of Signature Theatre, today announced casting for the world premiere production of the musical Giant by composer Michael John LaChiusa and playwright Sybille Pearson.