Kathy Najimy News

Second Stage Theatre (Carole Rothman, Artistic Director; Ellen Richard, Executive Director) will conclude its 30th Anniversary mainstage season with the New York premiere of VANITIES, a new musical written by Jack Heifner, featuring music and lyrics by David Kirshenbaum, directed by Judith Ivey. With musical staging by Dan Knechtges, VANITIES will feature Lauren Kennedy, Sarah Stiles, and Anneliese van der Pol and will begin preview performances on Thursday, July 2. Opening night is Thursday, July 16 at 6:30pm

Cyndi Lauper launches the True Colors Fund's Summer Online Auction, which includes celebrity experiences and autographed memorabilia in support of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) and straight ally community.

Street Theatre Company, a non-profit arts organization dedicated to professional, affordable and accessible theatrical performances in Middle Tennessee, announces that it will present the unique combination of Tuesdays with Morrie and Parallel Lives at Art Space Nashville in Madison, TN, June 18 - July 19, 2009. Parallel Lives will show Thursdays and Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. and Tuesdays with Morrie will show Fridays at 8:00 p.m. and Sundays at 2:00 p.m.. Tickets are $14/adults and $12 for students & seniors.

Following a critically acclaimed season which included the Pulitzer Prize finalist Becky Shaw and the Broadway transfer of its musical hit Next to Normal, Second Stage Theatre (Carole Rothman, Artistic Director; Ellen Richard, Executive Director) has announced three of the four plays scheduled for its upcoming 31st Season.

A new play written and directed by Paul Weitz and the rain-check run of the latest Douglas Carter Beane play are set for the 2009-10 season at Off Broadway's Second Stage Theater according to a report in Variety.

At its annual awards ceremony GLAAD recognized Prop 8: The Musical, a video created for FunnyorDie.com in response to the passage of Proposition 8, a California ballot initiative which eliminated the right to marry for same-sex couples. Directed by Adam Shankman and written by Marc Shaiman, the video received over one million hits on its first day online. During the show, Miss Coco Peru and the Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles performed the song live onstage. Shankman accepted the award on behalf of the team of creators.

For this one-night-only event, Broadway performers will join the 2ST Board of Trustees to perform 'The Quest for Fame,' featuring the Great White Way's best show-stopping numbers in this spring gala benefit for the acclaimed off-Broadway theatre company.

Second Stage Theatre (Carole Rothman, Artistic Director; Ellen Richard, Executive Director) will conclude its 30th Anniversary mainstage season with the New York premiere of VANITIES, a new musical written by Jack Heifner, featuring music and lyrics by David Kirshenbaum, directed by Judith Ivey.

March 2, 2009 Los Angeles - The Off-Broadway hit ?Back to Bacharach and David? will have a short 23 performance engagement at The Music Box @ Fonda April 15 to May 17 (opening April 19).

Broadway favorite Sherie Rene Scott is not the 'Sherie Rene Scott' diva character appearing in EVERYDAY RAPTURE, but that doesn't mean everyone knows that yet.

Second Stage Theatre (Carole Rothman, Artistic Director; Ellen Richard, Executive Director) will launch its 31st season this fall with the New York premiere of Anna Deavere Smith's LET ME DOWN EASY. Conceived, written, and performed by Ms. Smith and directed by Leonard Foglia, LET ME DOWN EASY will begin preview performances on Tuesday, September 15 and will officially open in early October.

For this one-night-only event, Broadway performers will join the 2ST Board of Trustees to perform 'The Quest for Fame,' featuring the Great White Way's best show-stopping numbers in this spring gala benefit for the acclaimed off-Broadway theatre company.

Completing its 30th Anniversary Season, Second Stage Theatre (Carole Rothman, Artistic Director; Ellen Richard, Executive Director) will present EVERYDAY RAPTURE, written by Dick Scanlan (Tony nominee for Thoroughly Modern Millie) and Sherie Rene Scott (Tony nominee for Dirty Rotten Scoundrels), with musical supervision by Tom Kitt (Next to Normal, High Fidelity), directed by Michael Mayer (Tony Award winner for Spring Awakening).

It was five decades ago that Tom and Dick Smothers first took the stage together and the Smothers Brothers 50th Anniversary Tour, presented by WCBS-FM and Rrazz Entertainment and coming to the Bergen Performing Arts Center on April 24th, celebrates their success.

OSO at The Southampton Inn, 91 Hill Street in Southampton continues its popular 'Dinner and...' Series featuring a 3 course gourmet dinner and conversations with luminaries in The Hamptons with a very special evening featuring three Hamptonites who have delighted audiences on stages across the East End: Josh Perl founder of The Naked Stages, Josh Gladstone Artistic Director, John Drew Theatre at Guild Hall and Watermill Center Artist in Residence writer/actor/director/choreographer Kate Mueth. The trio will give audiences a brief preview of the upcoming Naked Stages Marathon at Guild Hall; what special events are planned for the 2009 Season and do a short performance in an intimate salon like atmosphere.

The Off-Broadway hit ?Back to Bacharach and David? will have a short 23 performance engagement at The Music Box @ Fonda April 15 to May 17 (opening April 19). ?Back to Bacharach and David? is a night of amazing voices, comedy, and a tribute to the brilliant songs that Burt Bacharach and Hal David wrote from 1960 to 1970.

Passion, piety, and the enticement of power sparks a once in a lifetime historic event. Based on the enduring account of a young scholar's rise to the papacy, and brought to life by the original producer of HAIR on Broadway, this musical extravaganza unleashes one of the most controversial stories in the history of mankind. A cast of 26 professionals, an award winning team, and live music create this stunning premiere, for a limited run at the Stella Adler Theatre in Hollywood.

Second Stage Theatre (Carole Rothman, Artistic Director; Ellen Richard, Executive Director) will present EVERYDAY RAPTURE, written by Dick Scanlan (Tony nominee for Thoroughly Modern Millie) and Sherie Rene Scott (Tony nominee for Dirty Rotten Scoundrels), with musical supervision by Tom Kitt (Next to Normal, High Fidelity), directed by Michael Mayer (Tony Award winner for Spring Awakening).

Second Stage Theatre (Carole Rothman, Artistic Director; Ellen Richard, Executive Director) has announced the two plays which will be presented as part of the company's seventh annual Second Stage Theatre Uptown Series this summer: Zakiyyah Alexander's 10 Things To Do Before I Die, directed by Jackson Gay, and Lila Rose Kaplan's Wildflower, directed by 2008 Callaway Award winner Giovanna Sardelli.

Theatre World Award-winner Mary Birdsong ('Reno 911!'), 'American Idol' and Broadway star Diana DeGarmo, West End musical actor and 'American idol' contestant Tom Lowe, and musical and film actress Tressa Thomas have been cast in 'Back to Bacharach and David,' the Off-Broadway hit having a 23-performance limited engagement, April 15 to May 17 (press opening April 19) at The Music Box @ Fonda, 6126 Hollywood Blvd. in Hollywood.