Joe Orton News

LOOT, a 1965 satirical farce -- a bizarre, dark parody of an English drawing room comedy -- by British enfant terrible Joe Orton, is a difficult production. Desert Rose Playhouse, in Rancho Mirage, California, pulls it off. Excellent acting and directing result in a great deal of hilarity.

John Lahr, long-time drama critic for The New Yorker and winner of the 2015 National Book Critics Circle Award for his acclaimed biography Tennessee Williams: Mad Pilgrimage of the Flesh, returns to Theatre for a New Audience for a talk about his new book, JOY RIDE: Show People and Their Shows, with one of its subjects: MacArthur Fellow and two-time Pulitzer Prize nominee Sarah Ruhl (The Clean House, In The Next Room). Mr. Lahr and Ms. Ruhl will speak on Wednesday, October 7, at 7:00pm at the Polonsky Shakespeare Center, 262 Ashland Place. 

Gary Naylor sees a comedy set in the unlikely environment of Central Baghdad, as the war of 2003 gets underway and Saddam begins his long journey to his awful demise.

John Lahr, long-time drama critic for The New Yorker and winner of the 2015 National Book Critics Circle Award for his acclaimed biography Tennessee Williams: Mad Pilgrimage of the Flesh, will talk about his newest book, JOY RIDE: Show People and Their Shows (W. W. Norton: September 21, 2015), a collection of some of his most popular and engaging New Yorker pieces, which puts the plays on Mr. Lahr's watch in the context of the lives of the artists who created them. Lahr will speak on Wednesday, October 7, at 7:00pm at Polonsky Shakespeare Center, 262 Ashland Place. 

As one of the busiest touring theatre companies in the UK, it is a rare treat to hear from London Classic Theatre's Artistic Director Michael Cabot in the midst of their Anniversary season. BWW:UK talks to Cabot about the company's progression over the years and some of his personal highlights along the way.

The Man Who Had All the Luck is Arthur Miller's rarely performed first produced play. Searchingly philosophical and vehemently political, it intimates much that will take centre stage in his better- known work for decades to come. This revival in Miller's centenary year will be the second production from renowned theatre company End of Moving Walkway, whose critically acclaimed Oh, the Humanity and Other Good Intentions was nominated for a What's On Stage Award and two Off West End Awards. The play runs tonight, September 2nd, through September 26th, 2015. Press Night: September 4th, 2015, 7pm.

Aurora Theatre Company opens its 24th season with the Bay Area Premiere of award-winning playwright Marisa Wegrzyn's (Hickorydickory, The Butcher of Baraboo) MUD BLUE SKY.

Westport Country Playhouse announces its 2016 season, featuring two Tony Award-winning plays in repertory, an Off-Broadway hit, a new thriller by a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, a witty comedy by Joe Orton, and a reimagined musical by Lerner and Loewe.  The works will be staged next year from May through October. Under the artistic direction of Mark Lamos, 2016 will mark the Connecticut professional theater's 86th season.  2016 season subscriptions are now on sale.

Lucky Chick has been selected to be part of the 2015 New York International Fringe Festival (FringeNYC). Written by and starring Felicity Seidel, the solo show is a comedic story of how a young girl got swept up into a crazy drug and sex-fueled world alongside her older boyfriend, Bob Weir of The Grateful Dead.

Fringe first timer is bringing his new, no holds barred adaptation of a best selling American autobiography to the Edinburgh stage.

Lucky Chick has been selected to be part of the 2015 New York International Fringe Festival (FringeNYC). Written by and starring Felicity Seidel, the solo show is a comedic story of how a young girl got swept up into a crazy drug and sex-fueled world alongside her older boyfriend, Bob Weir of The Grateful Dead.

Aurora Theatre Company opens its 24th season with the Bay Area Premiere of award-winning playwright Marisa Wegrzyn's (Hickorydickory, The Butcher of Baraboo) MUD BLUE SKY.

VITAMIN Q, a revue comprised of musical numbers by Eric Lane Barnes, now appearing at Desert Rose Playhouse, is hilariously funny and appropriate for gay-friendly audiences from teenagers on up.

SUICIDE NOTES: In Their Own Words is a gripping one hour play that uses real suicide notes and performed by four actors in the vein of The Vagina Monologues and Love Letters. Stan Zimmerman, a TV and film veteran and award winning theatre writer/director, returns to Hollywood Fringe Festival for his three straight year. But this time, he departs from his usual comedy ventures to create this unique theatrical piece after loosing a close friend to suicide three years ago.

The University of Washington School of Drama, under the leadership of Executive Director Todd London, is proud to announce its 75th Anniversary Season. This historic season will celebrate, honor, and build upon the School of Drama's deep connections to Seattle's theatre community and serve as a bridge between the School's rich history and its future.

The John Drew Theater at Guild Hall in East Hampton presents Arthur Miller's award-winning American classic All My Sons starring Alec Baldwin and Laurie Metcalf and directed by Stephen Hamilton. The play will run Tuesdays through Sundays, tonight, June 9, through June 28, and is produced by Guild Hall in association with Roy Furman and Ellen Myers.

SUICIDE NOTES: In Their Own Words is a gripping one hour play that uses real suicide notes and performed by four actors in the vein of The Vagina Monologues and Love Letters. Stan Zimmerman, a TV and film veteran and award winning theatre writer/director, returns to Hollywood Fringe Festival for his three straight year. But this time, he departs from his usual comedy ventures to create this unique theatrical piece after loosing a close friend to suicide three years ago.

Dialogue with Three Chords (D3C) wrap their fourth year of punk rock basement theatre with a performance where D3C co-founders Stephen Gracia and Michael LoPorto again team with alma-mater Brooklyn College to present 'Gunshot. Silence. (An Evening of Noir Plays).' The performance is a collection new plays of Joe Orton influenced Noir that mix absurdity, heartbreak, and bloody mayhem. This partnership with Brooklyn College's BFA Acting program pairs undergrads with D3C's seasoned collective actors. The performance will feature live music from Tommy Lombardozzi. Admission is free, with a $3 suggested donation. The show starts at 8pm on May 21 at Dennehy's on 63 Carmine Street, New York, NY 10014. 

Dialogue with Three Chords (D3C) wrap their fourth year of punk rock basement theatre with a performance where D3C co-founders Stephen Gracia and Michael LoPorto again team with alma-mater Brooklyn College to present 'Gunshot. Silence. (An Evening of Noir Plays)." The performance is a collection new plays of Joe Orton influenced Noir that mix absurdity, heartbreak, and bloody mayhem. This partnership with Brooklyn College's BFA Acting program pairs undergrads with D3C's seasoned collective actors. The performance will feature live music from Tommy Lombardozzi. Admission is free, with a $3 suggested donation. The show starts at 8pm on May 21 at Dennehy's on 63 Carmine Street, New York, NY 10014. 

Palm Beach Dramaworks concludes its fifteenth anniversary season with Lanie Robertson's Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill, a moving and surprisingly joyous look back at the too-short, turbulent life of the legendary Billie Holiday. Lady Day opens at  the Don & Ann Brown Theatre tonight, May 15 and continues through June 7.