Laurence Olivier News

The Broadway premiere of End of the Rainbow, a new play with music, begins previews tonight at the Belasco Theatre.Opening night is set for Monday, April 2. Michael Cumpsty, Tom Pelphrey and Jay Russell join two-time Oliver Award-winner Tracie Bennett in Peter Quilter's acclaimed play about the legendary Judy Garland, directed by the Tony® Award winning Terry Johnson.

According to the Mirror, actress Amanda Holden is set to host 'Superstar,' the new reality show in which Andrew Lloyd Webber will search for the character of Jesus in the JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR tour. 'Superstar' is set to begin filming this summer and will air on ITV1.

Stepping Out With My Baby-The Songs of Irving Berlin will perform in Three Stages on March 17, 8 pm and March 18, 2 pm & 7 pm. Tickets are $39-$45; they are available online at www.threestages.net or from Three Stages Ticket Office at 916-608-6888 from 10 am to 6 pm, Monday through Saturday, and two hours before show time. Three Stages is located on the west side of Folsom Lake College campus in Folsom, CA, facing East Bidwell Street.

The New Orleans premiere of Disney's THE LION KING opens tonight, Friday, March 16 at 8 p.m. at the Mahalia Jackson Theater for a limited engagement of five weeks through Sunday, April 15. In New Orleans, THE LION KING plays Tuesday through Saturday evenings at 8 p.m., Sunday evenings at 6:30 p.m. and matinees on Saturdays at 2 p.m. and Sundays at 1 p.m., with an additional performance on Thursday, April 12 at 2 p.m.

TOUCHING DOWN: NORTHWESTERN SONGWRITERS IN CONCERT will come to the End Stage Theatre at The Pershing Square Signature Center (480 West 42nd Street) for one night only on Monday, March 19, 2012 at 7:30PM. The concert will feature original songs by eight undergraduate Northwestern University seniors.

Garth Fagan, founder and artistic director of the award-winning and internationally-acclaimed Garth Fagan Dance and the Tony Award-winning choreographer of The Lion King, will be honored with the 2012 Essie Calhoun Diversity in the Arts Award at a benefit celebrating community engagement and diversity in the arts at Geva Theatre Center on Monday, March 19th.

The nominations for the Laurence Olivier Awards will be broadcast live via the Olivier Awards website at 12pm on March the 15th, 2012. The Society of London Theatre will announce the nominees at an event in the Mayfair Hotel in London.

Michael Attenborough will direct Eduardo de Filippo's Filumena in a new English version by Tanya Ronder running at the Almeida from 15 March - 12 May 2012, with press night on 22 March at 7pm. Designs are by Robert Jones, with lighting by Tim Mitchell and sound by John Leonard. Filumena is sponsored by Pinsent Masons.

Disney's landmark musical event, THE LION KING, will celebrate another remarkable milestone when it plays its 5,960th performance at 2:00p.m. on Wednesday, March 14, 2012 to become the sixth longest-running show in Broadway history. THE LION KING moves up the top ten list of Broadway long runs, surpassing Oh! Calcutta! (with 5959 performances).

After premiering at the Toronto Film Festival in September 2011, the acclaimed film BARRYMORE starring Academy Award® winner Christopher Plummer, directed & adapted by Érik Canuel, will be shown at select cinemas in Canada beginning in May 2012 and throughout the United States, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and other countries in October 2012.

Anchor Bay Entertainment announces that MY WEEK WITH MARILYN, the critically acclaimed film starring three-time Oscar® nominee Michelle Williams, will be coming out on Blu-ray™ and DVD March 13th, 2012.

Anchor Bay Entertainment and The Weinstein Company announced today the Blu-ray and DVD release of the 'warm, wonderful and enchanting' (Rex Reed, The New York Observer) film, MY WEEK WITH MARILYN, starring three-time Academy Award nominee Michelle Williams.

The Society of London Theatre has today announced the shortlist for the BBC Radio 2 Olivier Audience Award. The public will vote for the overall winner. The shortlisted shows are BILLY ELLIOT, JERSEY BOYS, LES MISÉRABLES and WICKED.

The nominations for the Laurence Olivier Awards will be broadcast live via the Olivier Awards website at 12pm on March the 15th, 2012. The Society of London Theatre will announce the nominees at an event in the Mayfair Hotel in London.

Chicago Shakespeare Theater (CST) presents its 25th Anniversary Season production of The Feast: an intimate Tempest, an original CST commission and artistic collaboration with Redmoon.

Coward's comedic genius is on full display in Private Lives, which follows the saga of perpetually dueling lovers Amanda and Elyot, two divorcees who unwittingly book adjoining rooms while honeymooning with their new spouses. They soon realize the folly of their new marriages and impulsively flee together to Paris, only to be caught days later by their jilted spouses. This stylish, savvy and still-timely comedy is loaded with pointed barbs about modern romance and the people we can't live with-or without.

FEINSTEIN'S AT LOEWS REGENCY continues its Winter/Spring 2012 season with the debut of three time Tony Award-nominated singer and actress Judy Kuhn through tonight. See the photos of her performance below!

New Edgecliff Theatre today announced an exciting addition to NET's performance line up with the regional premiere of Conor McPherson's "St. Nicholas". This chilling one-man show features NET Executive Director Michael Shooner and is directed by Brian Robertson. "St. Nicholas" will run in NET's newly-created major production slot, Feb. 23-March 10.

The Open Fist Theatre Company has announced the next production in their 2012 season, MOON OVER BUFFALO, written by Ken Ludwig and directed by Bjørn Johnson, featuring fight choreography by B.H. Barry.

Northlight Theatre, under the direction of Artistic Director BJ Jones and Executive Director Timothy J. Evans, presents Ten Chimneys by Jeffrey Hatcher, directed by Artistic Director BJ Jones. The production runsMarch 9 - April 15, 2012 at Northlight Theatre, 9501 Skokie Blvd. The press opening is on Friday, March 16, 2012.