Kevin R. Free News

New Jersey Performing Arts Center (President and CEO John Schreiber) and Two River Theater (Artistic Director John Dias and Managing Director Michael Hurst) announced today the full cast of Meredith Willson's The Music Man, a concert version of the classic Tony Award-winning musical, directed by Obie Award-winner Robert O'Hara, with music direction by Kenny J. Seymour. America's favorite musical about big brass bands and small-town spirit will be performed by an African-American cast. The River City, Iowa setting will be based on historical accounts of black communities established during the Great Migration as former slaves moved across the U.S. following the Civil War.

For the first time in The Fire This Time Festival history Season Five will feature a fully realized production of a full-length play, Lord's Resistance, by Season Two playwright Camille Darby, directed by Christopher Burris. The production will play six performances at The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street between 2nd Avenue and Bowery) January 22-31, Wednesday through Friday at 7:30pm. Tickets ($15) are available online at www.horseTRADE.info or by calling Smarttix at 212-868-4444.

BAAD! The Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance proudly presents LOS NUTCRACKERS: A CHRISTMAS CARAJO, written by Charles Rice-Gonzalez, directed by Christopher Burris. The play, returning to BAAD!'s stage for the tenth exciting year, interweaves two holiday classics, The Nutcracker and A Christmas Carol, and creates a queer, Latino play about a gay couple who go on a psychedelic trip through their lives one Christmas Eve. The play will be presented December 6, 7, 12, 13, 14, 20 and 21 at 8pm, and on Saturday, December 21 at 3pm at the new BAAD!, 2474 Westchester Avenue in the Westchester Square section of the Bronx. Tickets are $25 with discounts offered for seniors, groups and Bronx residents and members of BAAD!, BCA and NALAC. For reservations call 718-918-2110 or visit www.BronxAcademyOfArtsAndDance.org. To purchase tickets online visit BrownPaperTickets.com. BAAD! can be reached by the #6 train to Westchester Square.

For the fifth year in a row Horse Trade Theater Group will present The Fire This Time Festival (TFTT), providing a platform for talented early-career playwrights of African and African-American descent to explore new voices, styles, and challenging new directions for 21st century performing arts in order to move beyond common misconceptions of what's possible in 'black theater.'

In celebration of the LGBTQ community and its advocates, the NEW YORK NEO-FUTURISTS will perform a special, one-weekend-only version of their ongoing, award-winning show Too Much Light Makes The Baby Go Blind featuring 30 short plays in 60 minutes. This year's performance will feature 30 original LGBTQ-themed plays, including world-premiers and fan favorites from years past.

Last night was the premiere of FADE TO BLACK, an innovative 10 minute play festival promoting and supporting original works created by African-American artists. This showcase is the creative brainchild of Denise O'Neal of WMGE, LLC and Leighza Walker of LeighzaLand Productions, and it is a true first for the Houston theater community. Thankfully, these extraordinary women have already placed FADE TO BLACK on next year's calendar with the intentions of creating an annual event that centers around encouraging and producing new works written by African-American playwrights.

In celebration of the LGBTQ community and its advocates, the NEW YORK NEO-FUTURISTS will perform a special, one-weekend-only version of their ongoing, award-winning show Too Much Light Makes The Baby Go Blind featuring 30 short plays in 60 minutes. This year's performance will feature 30 original LGBTQ-themed plays, including world-premiers and fan favorites from years past.

After 15 years Horse Trade Theater Group is sad to announce that they will no longer be operating out of The Red Room, a 32-seat theater located on the third floor of 85 East 4th Street. The landlord has decided to repurpose the space, and it will no longer be a performing arts venue. Horse Trade will be searching for a new third venue, and in the meantime will continue to operate out of The Kraine Theater at 85 East 4th Street and UNDER St. Marks at 94 St. Marks Place, for the foreseeable future. Horse Trade couldn't let The Red Room go without a proper send-off! So the month of March will be full of special events in The Red Room, as they say goodbye to a beloved East Village staple.

After 15 years Horse Trade Theater Group is sad to announce that they will no longer be operating out of The Red Room, a 32-seat theater located on the third floor of 85 East 4th Street. The landlord has decided to repurpose the space, and it will no longer be a performing arts venue. Horse Trade will be searching for a new third venue, and in the meantime will continue to operate out of The Kraine Theater at 85 East 4th Street and UNDER St. Marks at 94 St. Marks Place, for the foreseeable future. Horse Trade couldn't let The Red Room go without a proper send-off! So the month of March will be full of special events in The Red Room, as they say goodbye to a beloved East Village staple.

The African American experience is not represented solely by one voice or one style. For the fourth year in a row Horse Trade Management Group will present The Fire This Time Festival, providing a platform for talented early-career playwrights of African and African-American descent to explore new voices, styles, and challenging new directions for 21st century performing arts in order to move beyond common misconceptions of what's possible in 'black theater.' The festival's core production is a 10-minute play festival, presenting new work written by featured playwrights. Other festival programming will include a panel discussion and fully staged readings of new plays in development.

THE NEW BLACK FEST, a festival of theater, music and discussion from the African Diaspora will launch its 3rd season in October at various locations in Manhattan and Brooklyn. With support from TimeWarner and a partnership with 651 ARTS, the Festival will take place today, October 8 - 13 at various locations, including the National Black Theatre, Mark Morris Dance Center, the Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial and Education Center. All of the events are Free and open to the public.

THE NEW BLACK FEST, a festival of theater, music and discussion from the African Diaspora will launch its 3rd season in October at various locations in Manhattan and Brooklyn. With support from TimeWarner and a partnership with 651 ARTS, the Festival will take place October 8 - 13 at various locations, including the National Black Theatre, Mark Morris Dance Center, the Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial and Education Center. All of the events are Free and open to the public.

Bringing a blast of winter air to the 4th of July weekend FRIGID New York is presenting a mini-festival with some of its favorite FRIGID artists as well as energetic new Fringe Festival artists from New York and Canada, hand picked by Horse Trade Theater Group (Heidi Grumelot, Artistic Director, Erez Ziv, Managing Director).

The New Black Fest begins its third year with the announcement of The New Black Fellows-a playwriting fellowship that provides a $1000 stipend, rehearsal space and support for a new or existing projects. The inaugural playwriting fellows include Glenn Gordon, Mfoniso Udofia and Kevin R. Free.

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK: KChen takes on City Center, POTTED POTTER comes to America, MAMMA MIA! gets new leads, and so much more!

Thomas Kail's athletic and inventively theatrical directing chops (In The Heights, Lombardi, Magic/Bird) prove a perfect match for Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens' Caribbean story-theatre musical Once On This Island. The beguiling new production gracing the Paper Mill stage is full of vibrant performances and colorful stagecraft.

More than 20 years after its premiere, Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens have re-invented their first musical with Tony-nominated director Thomas Kail (In the Heights, Lombardi, Magic/Bird), choreographer Bradley Rapier (So You Think You Can Dance, Jesus Christ Superstar) and new orchestrations by music director Lynne Shankel (Disney's Beauty and the Beast, Altar Boyz). Once On This Island just opened last night, June 3, and runs through Sunday, June 24, 2012.

More than 20 years after its premiere, Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens are re-inventing their first musical with Tony-nominated director Thomas Kail (In the Heights, Lombardi, Magic/Bird), choreographer Bradley Rapier (So You Think You Can Dance, Jesus Christ Superstar) and new orchestrations by music director Lynne Shankel (Disney's Beauty and the Beast, Altar Boyz). View highlights of the production below!

More than 20 years after its premiere, Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens are re-inventing their first musical with Tony-nominated director Thomas Kail (In the Heights, Lombardi, Magic/Bird), choreographer Bradley Rapier (So You Think You Can Dance, Jesus Christ Superstar) and new orchestrations by music director Lynne Shankel (Disney's Beauty and the Beast, Altar Boyz). Once On This Island began performances on May 30, 2012, and runs through Sunday, June 24, 2012. Get a first look at the production in the photos below!

Bringing a blast of winter air to the 4th of July weekend FRIGID New York is presenting a mini-festival with some of its favorite FRIGID artists as well as energetic new Fringe Festival artists from New York and Canada, hand picked by Horse Trade Theater Group (Heidi Grumelot, Artistic Director, Erez Ziv, Managing Director).