John Kander News

Brent Barrett, Jenn Harris and the entire cast of SILENCE! The Musical are set to take the stage at the Upper East Side Barnes & Noble next Thursday, February 23rd at 5 PM to perform selections from the parody of the classic film The Silence of the Lambs. The Musical Director for the event will be Brian J. Nash, and the cast will sign copies of the show's newly released CD afterwards.

Theatre Memphis will open Broadway's longest running American musical, Chicago, on the Lohrey Stage March 9, 2012.

The Boston Youth Moves' Producers' Circle announces the 2012 Swellegance Gala Benefit will present two-time Tony Award winner CHITA RIVERA performing songs from her legendary Broadway career in her own concert CHITA RIVERA: MY BROADWAY at the Citi Performing Arts Center Shubert Theatre, 265 Tremont Street, Boston on Friday May 4, 2012 (8pm).

Brent Barrett, Jenn Harris and the entire cast of SILENCE! The Musical are set to take the stage at the Upper East Side Barnes & Noble next Thursday, February 23rd at 5 PM to perform selections from the hit parody of the classic film The Silence of the Lambs.

The Old Globe Theatre at the Conrad Prebys Theatre Center, San Diego, today released its four-month calendar for the March-June season, 2012, featuring musical versions of A ROOM WITH A VIEW, NOBODY LOVES YOU and THE SCOTTSBORO BOYS.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) introduces a celebrated Middle Eastern voice to the Bay Area with the West Coast premiere of Wajdi Mouawad's haunting playScorched. After receiving more than 100 productions (in several languages) worldwide, the Lebanese-Canadian writer's new play will be directed at A.C.T. by Artistic Director Carey Perloff in a beautiful translation from the original French by distinguished Canadian author Linda Gaboriau.

SILENCE! The Musical, the unauthorized parody of The Silence of the Lambs, will add Sunday evenings to the new spring playing schedule beginning March 4th at The 9th Space Theatre at Performance Space 122, 150 First Avenue (at 9th St.)

Stars of both stage and screen are set to join the celebration when the Tony and Pulitzer Prize-winning Vineyard Theatre honors Tony Award-winner Linda Lavin at the Off-Broadway company's annual Gala on Monday, March 12 beginning at 6:00pm at the Hudson Theater. Ms. Lavin made her Vineyard Theatre debut earlier this season in the critically acclaimed production of Nicky Silver's play THE LYONS.

The new, highly provocative TV commercial for this season's smash hit, SILENCE! The Musical, is set to being airing today on most major networks. SILENCE! The Musical, the unauthorized parody of The Silence of the Lambs, with book by Hunter Bell, music & lyrics by Jon and Al Kaplan, and direction & choreography by Christopher Gattelli, opened July 9, 2011 to unanimous rave reviews. The show immediately became a sold-out phenomenon and was recently selected by Time Magazine as one of the year's Top 5 Musicals.

American Blues Theater (ABT), Chicago's second oldest Equity Ensemble, is set to participate in a global benefit for the people of Japan, SHINSAI: Theatre for Japan, Sunday, March 11 at 3 p.m. at the Richard Christiansen Theater in Victory Gardens Biograph Theater, 2433 North Lincoln Ave.

Today in 1984, The Rink opend at the Martin Beck Theatre (now the Al Hirschfeld Theatre), where it ran for 204 performances. With a book by Terrence McNally, lyrics by Fred Ebb, and music by John Kander, the musical focuses on Anna, the owner of a dilapidated roller skating rink on the boardwalk of a decaying seaside resort, who has decided to sell it to developers. Complicating her plans are her prodigal daughter Angel, who returns to town seeking to reconnect with the people and places she long ago left behind. Through a series of flashbacks, revelations, and minimal forward-moving plot development, the two deal with their pasts in their attempt to reconcile and move on with their lives.

Signature Theatre is now offering theater lovers everywhere the ultimate backstage pass with Brother Russia Presents, a six-session seminar that goes behind-the-scenes of the world premiere rock musical Brother Russia, from the award-winning creators of the hit musicals The Fix and Witches of Eastwick.

The COLUMN AWARDS Board of Directors and the Executive Director/Producer announced today that Tony Award winner and Kennedy Center Honoree Chita Rivera will be the Co-host for the 13th Annual COLUMN AWARDS Gala.

Tony Nominee and Drama Desk Award winner Joshua Henry (The Scottsboro Boys, American Idiot), who is currently starring as Jake in the production of The Gershwins' PORGY AND BESS, will give a solo concert performance at The Triad Theater (158 west 72nd Street) at 9:30pm on February 20, 2012.

The story of the controversial "Mad Monk," Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin is now the subject of the new rock musical Brother Russia, which makes its world premiere at the Tony Award®-winning Signature Theatre. The new musical features Music by Dana Rowe and Book and Lyrics by John Dempsey - the award-winning creators behind The Fix (1998) and The Witches of Eastwick (2007). Directed by Signature's Artistic Director Eric Schaeffer, the production will star John Lescault (Signature's Art and The Lieutenant of Inishmore) as the infamous and enigmatic Rasputin, Natascia Diaz (Kiss of the Spider Woman at Signature, and Savage in Limbo at MetroStage), Doug Kreeger (Signature's The Visit), Amy McWilliams (Signature's The Witches of Eastwick and Urinetown), and Tracy Lynn Olivera (Les Miserables and Merrily We Roll Along at Signature). Erin Driscoll, Stephen Gregory Smith, Rachel Zampelli, Russell Sunday, Kevin McAllister, and Christopher Mueller round out the cast for this world premiere event. Brother Russia will play at Signature's MAX Theatre from March 6, 2012 through April 15, 2012. Tickets are now on sale.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) introduces a celebrated Middle Eastern voice to the Bay Area with the West Coast premiere of Wajdi Mouawad's haunting playScorched. After receiving more than 100 productions (in several languages) worldwide, the Lebanese-Canadian writer's new play will be directed at A.C.T. by Artistic Director Carey Perloff in a beautiful translation from the original French by distinguished Canadian author Linda Gaboriau.

Signature Theatre's flagship Education Program 'Signature in the Schools' will present local high school students performing in Un-American, a world premiere work by award-winning playwright Joe Calarco.

Signature Theatre today announced that the run of Hairspray will be extended for one week, through February 5th.

Following the success of Bill Irwin's season opener, Scapin, in 2010, American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) welcomes another Pickle Family Circus alumnus to its stage with Humor Abuse, Lorenzo Pisoni's celebrated one-man show cocreated with director Erica Schmidt.

Vineyard Theatre and Naked Angels announce that its world-premiere co-production of Zayd Dohrn's play OUTSIDE PEOPLE will extend one week, with performances now set to conclude on Saturday, February 4 at The Vineyard (108 E. 15 St.)