Illana Stein News

On Sunday, March 26 at 8pm the March edition of New York Madness will celebrate Women's History Month with a lineup of all women writers.

The American Repertory Theater reunites with Oregon Shakespeare Festival Artistic Director Bill Rauch to present FINGERSMITH, Alexa Junge's adaptation of Sarah Waters' 2002 novel of the same name. The playwright's Herculean effort capsulizes the 582-page opus into a taut two-hour drama enhanced by exceptional performances and outstanding production design. Words are insufficient to praise the central trio of women - Tracee Chimo, Christina Bennett Lind, and Kristine Nielsen - who inhabit all the layers of the fascinating characters in this Victorian thriller.

Judith Leora's SHOWPONY will receive it's first staged reading tonight for Lone Star Theatre Co as part of their on-going Texas Reads series. When a diverse group of women are randomly thrown together, they quickly realize that their cultural training has put them directly in opposition to each other, whether as workhorses, show-ponies or race-horses. Will they figure out how to get past their assigned roles and see each other as people? 

Taking the gender parity problem head-on New York Madness is bringing to the stage a Special All-Women writers and directors edition of their short play festival, a mainstay of NYC's Indie Theater Community. NYMadness has produced at HERE Theater, Cherry Lane Theatre, Ensemble Studios Theatre, INTAR Theater, ESPA Primary Stages and many more across the city. Since inception six years ago NYMadness has been a leader on gender parity maintaining a 50/50 even split men/women on their roster. With a focus on emerging artists, NYM hosts a hot night of short plays all based on a Theme announced one week prior to the event. The Theme for this special edition is appropriately dubbed, SMASHING THE PATRIARCHY Madness. 

Rehearsals recently began for Theatre for a New Audience's production of William Shakespeare's PERICLES directed by Trevor Nunn, featuring OBIE Award-winner Christian Camargo in the title role and leading a diverse company of 22 actors. PERICLES begins previews February 14 for an opening February 25. It is scheduled to run through March 27. BroadwayWorld has a sneak peek at the company in rehearsal below!

Amphibian Stage Productions (Kathleen Culebro, Artistic Director) has announced the creative team for its third developmental staged reading of the 2015 season, Daedalus by David Davalos.

NYMadness Season Launch, RACIAL MADNESS with Featured Guest Neil LaBute (The Way We Get By, Bash: Latter-Day Plays, Outer Critics Circle Award for Fat Pig, Independent Spirit Award for In the Company of Men, Reasons to be Pretty, Reason to be Happy, American Academy Arts and Letters.)

The Pearl Theatre Company begins its 2015-2016 season with Bedlam Theater Artistic Director Eric Tucker's fresh take on William Shakespeare's classic A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, following a highly successful engagement of the production at the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival this summer. Check out photos from the production below!

The Pearl THeatre Company just concluded ther 2014-15 season with a world premiere adaptation of Moliere's Don Juan,  The Don Juan legend sees Heaven and Earth coming together in an outlandish partnership to seal the fate of one deliciously unrepentant rascal. BroadwayWorld takes you inside opening night below!

On Monday, May 18th, Shark Eat Muffin Theatre Co. will present an industry reading of Catie O' Keefe's latest play, 'Fantasies and Nightmares', directed by NY based, Illana Stein (The Pearl Theatre Co).

After a highly successful reading at Covent Garden's Bates Theatre this past July, the new play The Lady Revealed, will receive another starry reading on Monday, March 16th (3PM) at New Dramatists (424 West 44th Street). Based on the life and works of A.L. Rowse, the reading will feature Bianca Amato, David Hywel-Baynes, Geoffrey Beevers, Patricia Conolly, Anthony Heald, Merritt Janson, T. Ryder Smith, Sam Underwood and Jake McCready. Written by Dr. Andrew B. Harris the reading will be directed by Illana Stein (Associate Director Tamburlaine the Great at Theatre for a New Audience) along with Broadway's Belasco Theatre manager Steffi Wallis working with New Dramatists as producer.

Dallas playwright Ruth Cantrell's new play, REMNANTS OF A DREAM will receive a staged reading on November 3rd with Lone Star Theatre Co. The play is presented as part of Lone Star Theatre Co.'s on-going TEXAS READS series.

New York Madness (NYM) is about to start its Fifth Season. With a focus on emerging artists, NYM hosts a hot night of short plays based on a theme proposed by the more established Featured Guest. The Theme is announced one week prior to the event. NYM has been hosted by the Cherry Lane Theatre, Ensemble Studio Theatre, ESPA/Primary Stages, INTAR Theatre, IATI Theater and they will be at The COW (Former home of The Living Theatre) for their Season Launch on September 21st at 8pm. The Season Launch will include Featured Guest Chisa Hutchinson (Blue Man Group, New York NeoFuturists, Partial Comfort, Atlantic Theater Company, Rattlestick Theater, New Dramatists) along with playwrights Cecilia Copeland*, Judith Leora*, Shaun Bennet Fountleroy, Jeffrey James Keyes, and more TBA. (*denotes Founding Member)

Richard Brinsley Sheridan's classic romantic romp, The Rivals, returns to The Pearl for the hilarious story of Lydia Languish who is... languishing. She can imagine nothing more romantic than eloping with the impoverished Captain Beverly. Little does she know that 'Beverly' is really Jack Absolute, a wealthy aristocrat who fears the truth of his identity isn't nearly romantic enough for Miss Languish's taste. How will he win her-from himself?

Fresh from their critically acclaimed, sold out productions of Twelfth Night, Much Ado About Nothing, Euripides' The Bacchae, and Macbeth, The Queens Players returns for their debut performance in the newly redesigned Little Theatre with a magical, Night Circus reimagining of William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. Director Illana Stein's vision of the dichotomy between the monochromatic mortal world of Athens and the black-light drenched, twilight infused circus-realm of the fairies will bring audiences right 'into the tent' so to speak. True love will be tested, two worlds will collide, and mischief will be made!

Fresh from their critically acclaimed, sold out productions of Twelfth Night, Much Ado About Nothing, Euripides' The Bacchae, and Macbeth, The Queens Players returns for its debut performance in the newly redesigned Little Theatre with a magical, Night Circus reimagining of William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. BroadwayWorld has a sneak peek at the cast below!

Fresh from their critically acclaimed, sold out productions of Twelfth Night, Much Ado About Nothing, Euripides' The Bacchae, and Macbeth, The Queens Players returns for their debut performance in the newly redesigned Little Theatre with a magical, Night Circus reimagining of William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. Director Illana Stein's vision of the dichotomy between the monochromatic mortal world of Athens and the black-light drenched, twilight infused circus-realm of the fairies will bring audiences right 'into the tent' so to speak. True love will be tested, two worlds will collide, and mischief will be made!

Amphibian Stage Productions is set to present a staged reading of Lee Blessing's drama, Two Rooms. Illana Stein directs the first 'Phibs at The Modern' reading of 2012 on January 30 at 7 PM.

Amphibian Stage Productions is set to present a staged reading of Lee Blessing's drama, Two Rooms. Illana Stein directs the first 'Phibs at The Modern' reading of 2012 on January 30 at 7 PM.