John Moran News

'Exciting' is not a word normally associated with productions of Thornton Wilder's Our Town. Heartwarming? Sure. Chilling? When its climax is done well, certainly. But director David Cromer's non-traditional take on the play - which remains completely faithful to the author's text and themes - is one of the most exciting theatre events of the season.

WHY WON'T YOU LET ME BE GREAT!!! is a group show inspired by Kanye West's ground-breaking, 'Thom Yorke in the Strip Club' crossover pop album 808s & Heartbreak. Conceived by Brendan Kennedy and presented by Neal Medlyn and Catch in association with Performance Space 122, the evening-length performance will feature work by a vast array of downtown superstars showing pieces inspired by each song from the album, much as the Joffrey Ballet's (in)famous Billboards choreographed the songs of Prince.

WHY WON'T YOU LET ME BE GREAT!!! is a group show inspired by Kanye West's ground-breaking, 'Thom Yorke in the Strip Club' crossover pop album 808s & Heartbreak. Conceived by Brendan Kennedy and presented by Neal Medlyn and Catch in association with Performance Space 122, the evening-length performance will feature work by a vast array of downtown superstars showing pieces inspired by each song from the album, much as the Joffrey Ballet's (in)famous Billboards choreographed the songs of Prince.

Strawdog Theatre Company completes their 21st season with Peter Barnes' dark comedy 'Red Noses,' directed by House Theatre's Matt Hawkins. In Barnes' 1985 Olivier Award-winning play, the Black Plague has wiped out half of Europe's 14th century population, so God gives the young priest Father Flote a special mission to save his suffering people ... make ?em laugh

Today's Broadway Blogs on BroadwayWorld.com from Sunday, March 1, 2009.

JOSEPH KECKLER will present HUMAN JUKEBOX at La MaMa from February 20th thru March 8th. Two pieces, CAT LADY & HUMAN JUKEBOX, recently presented at the Dublin Fringe & Dixon Place, will be presented under the single title HUMAN JUKEBOX. Human Jukebox Written & Performed by Joseph Keckler, Directed by Elizabeth Gimbel A mother who transforms her living room into a psychological theatre using cats as actors & who claims she can remember any song & a son who compulsively records, imagines & relives experiences. In this solo play with songs, New York writer/singer/performance artist JOSEPH KECKLER moves in & out of myriad characters, using his soaring, operatic voice & rich storytelling to spin a meditation -- at turns comic & dark -- on memory, death & fantasy. JOSEPH KECKLER is a theatre artist & singer who has performed evenings of his short form & excerpted work, accompanied by a live band, at Spiegelworld & The Zipper Factory. In 2008, he played Death, a role written for him in John Moran's experimental opera, Saori's Birthday, at Performance Space 122.

Strawdog Theatre Company completes their 21st season with Peter Barnes' dark comedy 'Red Noses,' directed by House Theatre's Matt Hawkins. In Barnes' 1985 Olivier Award-winning play, the Black Plague has wiped out half of Europe's 14th century population, so God gives the young priest Father Flote a special mission to save his suffering people ... make 'em laugh. Flote gathers a band of desperately untalented misfits, turns them into clowns and together they search for salvation with hilarity. Hawkins, who also directed House's hit production of 'Hatfield & McCoy,' makes his Strawdog directing debut with a 23-person cast. 'Red Noses' runs about two hours and ten minutes with one intermission, and includes free admittance to Strawdog Late Night following the Friday and Saturday shows (Late Night schedule available at www.strawdog.org).

Opening Doors Theatre Company announces the first two productions in their 3rd season of Closing Notice productions for 2009: FADE OUT, FADE IN (1964) - First ever NYC revival! Music by Jule Styne Book and Lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green Directed by Suzanne Adams Choreographed by Christine Schwalenberg Stage Manager: Billie Di Stefano Musical Direction by Jessica Stewart. Cast - Sarah Cooney, Hector Coris, Brian DeCaluwe*, Sarah Lilley, Jean McCormick*, Patrick John Moran*, Michael Vitaly Sazonov*, Lawrence Street* (Broadway's Urinetown), Rob Ventre*, Lexi Windsor*

JOSEPH KECKLER will present HUMAN JUKEBOX at La MaMa from February 20th thru March 8th. Two pieces, CAT LADY & HUMAN JUKEBOX, recently presented at the Dublin Fringe & Dixon Place, will be presented under the single title HUMAN JUKEBOX. Human Jukebox Written & Performed by Joseph Keckler, Directed by Elizabeth Gimbel A mother who transforms her living room into a psychological theatre using cats as actors & who claims she can remember any song & a son who compulsively records, imagines & relives experiences. In this solo play with songs, New York writer/singer/performance artist JOSEPH KECKLER moves in & out of myriad characters, using his soaring, operatic voice & rich storytelling to spin a meditation -- at turns comic & dark -- on memory, death & fantasy. JOSEPH KECKLER is a theatre artist & singer who has performed evenings of his short form & excerpted work, accompanied by a live band, at Spiegelworld & The Zipper Factory. In 2008, he played Death, a role written for him in John Moran's experimental opera, Saori's Birthday, at Performance Space 122.