Lisa Rothe News

The League of Professional Theatre Women (Kelli Lynn Harrison & Catherine Porter, Co-Presidents) will present the 2019 Theatre Women Awards at The Sheen Center for Thought & Culture (18 Bleecker Street, New York, NY 10012) on Monday, March 25 beginning at 6:30pm (doors open at 6pm). Tickets ($85-$250) are available for advance purchase at www.theatrewomen.org.

Kansas City, MO-Kansas City Repertory Theatre on Monday evening announced the 2019/2020 prospective season in front of a packed Posinelli Conference Center audience including members of the news media. Executive Director Angela Gieras, Interim Artistic Director Jason Chanos, and Assistant Artistic Director Kim Martin- Cotton announced the plays and musicals slated for the new season beginning in September 2019 at the Spencer Theatre on the UMKC campus and at the Copaken Stage downtown.

Kansas City Repertory Theatre offered local audiences a sneak peek at their 2019/2020 season this evening at a special invitation-only event for Subscribers and local press, announcing the featured plays and musicals slated for next season at its two venues, Spencer Theatre, and Copaken Stage.

Theatre Bay Area, the third-largest regional theatre service organization in North America, held its fifth annual TBA Awards Celebration on Monday, November 5. The event took place at the Herbst Theatre with almost 700 people in attendance.

Irish Repertory Theatre announced today the next production on the W. Scott McLucas Studio Stage, and an upcoming special event.

Voyage Theater Company/PARTS UNKNOWN Play Reading Series will present a staged reading of acclaimed Turkish playwright Sedef Ecer's e-smuggler.com, in a new English-language translation by Amelia Parenteau, directed by Lisa Rothe, at the 53rd Street New York Public Library (18 W 53 Street, across the street from MOMA), Thur October 18 at 7pm. Admission is FREE and open to the public, but reservations are highly encouraged. Please RSVP here. The performance will run approximately 70 minutes, with no intermission.

Samuel French has announced the winners of the 2018 Samuel French Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival, the nation's premier short play competition.

Irish Repertory Theatre, the New York home for Irish and Irish-American theatre, will celebrate their 30th Anniversary this fall with a special public block party. The event, which is free and open to all ages, will be held on Saturday, September 15, 2018, 30 years to the day from the first-ever Irish Rep performance. Featured performers at the block party will include Tony Award winner Bill Irwin (Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?) and Leeyna Rideout (War Horse), each of whom have conceived and will star in their own respective solo shows at Irish Rep this fall.

Samuel French announces that award-winning playwright and cabaret artist Charles Busch (The Tale of the Allergist's Wife, Psycho Beach Party, Vampire Lesbians of Sodom) has happily stepped in for the previously announced Lauren Yee (The King of the Yees, The Great Leap, The Hatmaker's Wife) who had to recuse herself due to a scheduling conflict.

The Samuel French Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival, the nation's premier short play competition, takes place August 21-25 at The Vineyard's Dimson 15th Street Theatre. Chosen from over 850 submissions from the U.S. and abroad, 30 finalist plays and musicals, each running 10-30 minutes in length, will be presented. The Saturday, August 25th presentation is the culmination of the week-long festival at which the Samuel French staff will choose the winning six pieces for licensing and publication in an anthology.

Due to popular response, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley has added a performance of Hold These Truths, with an additional matinee 2pm Saturday, August 4. Written by Jeanne Sakata and opening TheatreWorks's 49th season, Hold These Truths tells the inspiring true story of Gordon Hirabayashi, a Japanese-American student who fought internment to a relocation camp during World War II. This Northern California premiere celebrates the human spirit as it chronicles Hirabayashi's journey from college in Seattle all the way to the Supreme Court, and eventually to a Presidential Medal of Freedom.

TheatreWorks Silicon Valley kicked off its 2018/19 season with Hold These Truths by Jeanne Sakata, an inspiring true story following Gordon Hirabayashi, a Japanese-American student who fought internment to a relocation camp during World War II. This Northern California premiere celebrates the human spirit as it chronicles Hirabayashi's journey from college in Seattle all the way to the Supreme Court, and eventually to a Presidential Medal of Freedom. Directed by Lisa Rothe, with Joel de la Fuente starring as Hirabayashi, Hold These Truths shares the story of a young man who passionately defends his Constitutional rights against an unexpected adversary: his own country. After a gala opening on July 15, the show continues through August 5, 2018 at the Lucie Stern Theatre, 1305 Middlefield Rd., Palo Alto. For tickets ($40-$100) and more information the public may visit TheatreWorks.org or call (650) 463-1960.

TheatreWorks Silicon Valley kicks off its 2018/19 season with Hold These Truths by Jeanne Sakata, an inspiring true story following Gordon Hirabayashi, a Japanese-American student who fought internment to a relocation camp during World War II. This Northern California premiere celebrates the human spirit as it chronicles Hirabayashi's journey from college in Seattle all the way to the Supreme Court, and eventually to a Presidential Medal of Freedom. Directed by Lisa Rothe, with Joel de la Fuente starring as Hirabayashi, Hold These Truths shares the story of a young man who passionately defends his Constitutional rights against an unexpected adversary: his own country. It will be presented July 11-August 5, 2018 (press opening: July 14) at the Lucie Stern Theatre, 1305 Middlefield Rd., Palo Alto. For tickets ($40-$100) and more information the public may visit TheatreWorks.org or call (650) 463-1960.

Irish Repertory Theatre will present world premiere of WILD ABANDON by Leenya Rideout (War Horse). Directed by Lisa Rothe (Hold These Truths), WILD ABANDON begins performances on September 19, 2018 at Irish Rep Theatre (132 West 22nd Street) on the W. Scott McLucas Studio Stage, with an opening night set for September 25, and will run through October 21, 2018.

TheatreWorks Silicon Valley kicks off its 2018/19 season with Hold These Truths by Jeanne Sakata, an inspiring true story following Gordon Hirabayashi, a Japanese-American student who fought internment to a relocation camp during World War II. This Northern California premiere celebrates the human spirit as it chronicles Hirabayashi's journey from college in Seattle all the way to the Supreme Court, and eventually to a Congressional Medal of Honor.

On Monday, May 7th The League of Professional Theatre Women (Kelli Lynn Harrison & Lisa Rothe, Co-Presidents), an organization which has been leading the gender parity conversation and championing women in the professional theatre for over 35 years, presented the final Oral History event of their 2017-18 season with two-time Tony Award winner Chita Rivera in the Bruno Walter Auditorium at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts (111 Amsterdam Avenue at 65th Street). Ms. Rivera talked about her life and illustrious career with Broadway World's lead correspondent, Richard Ridge, host of Backstage with Richard Ridge. 

The League of Professional Theatre Women (Kelli Lynn Harrison & Lisa Rothe, Co-Presidents), an organization which has been leading the gender parity conversation and championing women in the professional theatre for over 35 years, has published the third in a series of reports authored by Martha Wade Steketee with Judy Binus, on the status of women employed in New York City theatres, with the goal of changing the conversation from anecdote to action. The third report, Women Count: Women Hired Off Broadway, available attheatrewomen.org/women-count, analyzes employment in 13 professional roles - playwrights, directors, designers, and others - in 699 Off- and Off-Off-Broadway productions by 23 theatre companies for 7 complete seasons, 2010-2011 through 2016-2017 to show where women are and are not being hired.

The historic La MaMa Experimental Theater Club presents an industry reading of Michael Shayan's new queer, dark comedy, 'Tricks,' featuring Monet X Change from RuPaul's Drag Race and directed by John Michael DiResta.

On Monday, April 23, TILL SOON, ANNE(book and lyrics by Christine Toy Johnson, music by Bobby Cronin) will have its first public presentation, directed by Lisa Rothe (HOLD THESE TRUTHS). Jeremy Robin Lyons (THE MAD ONES) music directs.

Currently running through April 21st at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park's Shelterhouse Theater is Allyson Currin's world premiere play, Sooner/Later.