Fiona Shaw News

The Chicago Humanities Festival (CHF) announcesJourneys as the theme for the 25th Anniversary Fall Festival. More than 80 programs will take place in and around Chicago Oct. 25-Nov. 9, 2014 as part of the annual arts and ideas festival. Confirmed 2014 presenters include jazz composer-pianist Vijay Iyer, NYU professor and scholar of travel narratives Mary Louise Pratt, Top Chef Masters winnerMarcus Samuelsson, graphic novelist Marjane Satrapi, TV/film actress Victoria Tennant, and author/playwright Colm Toibin. A complete schedule will be released in August at chicagohumanities.org/journeys. Tickets to the 25th Anniversary Chicago Humanities Festival go on sale to CHF members on Tuesday, Sept. 2 and to the general public on Monday, Sept. 8.

59E59 Theaters will welcome HighTide Festival Theatre with the US premiere of PEDDLING, written and performed by Harry Melling, and directed by Steven Atkinson. PEDDLING begins performances tonight, April 23 for a limited engagement through Sunday, May 18.

The world's largest solo theatre festival based in New York will present its second European showcase May 27 - 31, 2014 at Teatr Syrena in Warsaw, Poland. Recipient of the Order of the British Empire and two-time Laurence Olivier Award winner Fiona Shaw will open this year's United Solo Europe with her remarks on solo theatre. The performers participating in the European showcase come from Finland, Sweden, Poland, USA, and Italy. The program includes a show by five-time Grammy nominee LynnMarie Rink and one directed by Austin Pendleton, as well as a solo version of "Hamlet" and a magic piece about the discovery of an Alfred Hitchcock film. The full lineup can be found below.

piece by piece productions and Rising Phoenix Repertory in association with Rattlestick Playwrights Theater will present the world premiere of A Fable, written by David Van Asselt and directed by Daniel Talbott, beginning Saturday, May 3 at 7pm at the Cherry Lane Theatre, 38 Commerce Street. The opening night is set for Thursday, May 22 at 7pm. A Fable is scheduled to run through Sunday, June 28.

59E59 Theaters will welcome HighTide Festival Theatre with the US premiere of PEDDLING, written and performed by Harry Melling, and directed by Steven Atkinson. PEDDLING begins performances on Wednesday, April 23 for a limited engagement through Sunday, May 18. Press Opening is Tuesday, April 29 at 7:30 PM. The performance schedule is Tuesday - Thursday at 7:30 PM; Friday at 8:30 PM; Saturday at 2:30 PM & 8:30 PM; and Sunday at 3:30 PM & 7:30 PM. Performances are at 59E59 Theaters (59 East 59th Street, between Park and Madison Avenues). Single tickets are $25 ($17.50 for 59E59 Members). To purchase tickets, call Ticket Central at (212) 279-4200 or go to www.59e59.org.

Roundabout Theatre Company's production of Machinal, starring Rebecca Hall and directed by Lindsay Turner, will conclude its limited engagement on March 2, 2014 at 2:00PM.

The Performing Arts Center at the World Trade Center ('the PAC') today announces the establishment of a core team of artistic leaders: David Lan (Artistic Director of London's Young Vic) as Consulting Artistic Director; Lucy Sexton (artist, producer, and Director of the New York Dance & Performance Awards (aka The Bessies)) as Associate Artistic Director; and Andy Hayles, Managing Partner of Charcoalblue (London's National Theatre, Chicago's Steppenwolf Theatre, and the future home of Brooklyn's St. Ann's Warehouse), as theater design consultant. Stephen Daldry (director of the films The Hours, Billy Elliot, The Reader and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, and of Billy Elliot the Musical, and former Artistic Director of London's Gate Theatre and Royal Court Theatre) has joined the PAC's Board of Directors. The artistic team is collaborating with the PAC's staff, board and numerous consultants to create a place that is unique on the cultural landscapes of New York, the United States and the world.

Samuel Beckett's Happy Days starring Juliet Stevenson, opened at the Young Vic. Let's see what the critics had to say:

The Susan Smith Blackburn Prize has announced 10 Finalists for its prestigious playwriting award, now celebrating its thirty-sixth year. Chosen from over 100 submitted plays, the Finalists are

The fifth annual United Solo Theatre Festival invites local and international artists to submit their shows to the world's largest solo theatre festival. World premieres and already-produced shows are equally welcome. Submitted proposals may represent storytelling, improv, dance, musical, puppetry, multimedia, stand-up, magic, tragedy, comedy, and other forms of solo performance. Selected shows will be presented between September 18 and November 23, 2014 at Theatre Row in New York City. The deadline for submissions is Monday, March 3, 2014.

London and New York (1/2/14) ATG's Sir Howard Panter and Rosemary Squire OBE have topped the The Stage 100 for a fifth consecutive year, equaling the record-breaking run previously set by Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber. It firmly establishes Squire as the most prominent woman in British theatre of the modern era. The exclusive list, compiled annually by the industry's leading newspaper, ranks the powerhouses of British theatre.

Another new year, and time to look forward once more to all the exciting treats the West End has in store for 2014.

Today, check out BWW's production shots from shows that opened in 2013, and catch up on anything that you might have missed within the last 12 months!

A formidable British trio visits THEATER TALK for an intelligent and humorous look at the challenges of bringing the production of two existential plays, Harold Pinter's No Man's Land and Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot, to an alternating, repertory-style engagement on Broadway (at the Cort Theatre).

Roundabout Theatre Company's production of Machinal, starring Rebecca Hall, written by Sophie Treadwell and directed by Lyndsey Turner, begins previews tomorrow, Friday, December 20 at 8:00PM.

A formidable British trio visits THEATER TALK for an intelligent and humorous look at the challenges of bringing the production of two existential plays, Harold Pinter's No Man's Land and Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot, to an alternating, repertory-style engagement on Broadway (at the Cort Theatre).

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge and directed by Phyllida Lloyd, composed by Mel Mercier, with lighting design by Jean Kalman and Mike Gunning, set design by Chloe Obolensky and choreography by Kim Brandstrup, will play the BAM Harvey Theater (651 Fulton St), tonight, December 10 - 22, 2013 as part of the Next Wave Festival.

Marina Poplavskaya and Peter Mattei take on the roles of the lovestruck Tatiana and the imperious Onegin in Deborah Warner's new production of Tchaikovsky's fateful romance, which opened the Met season in September, directed by Fiona Shaw. Rolando Villazón is Lenski, Onegin's friend-turned-rival, in his first performances on the Met stage since 2009. Russian maestro Alexander Vedernikov makes his company debut on the podium. Check out a sneak peek below!

The fourth annual United Solo Theatre Festival concluded its run on November 24, 2013 at Theatre Row on 42nd Street in New York City. An awards ceremony was held that night, following the eight-week-long lineup of the world's largest solo theatre festival, which offered more than 120 productions this season.

Tonight, November 23, Deborah Warner's new production of Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin, which opened the current Met season, will return with a new cast in the central roles.