Mac Pirkle News

In celebration of Womena??s Equality Day and the Centennial of the 19th Amendment, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley and The Womana??s Club of Palo Alto will present a virtual performance of excerpts and songs from the dynamic musical Perfect 36, with lyrics and book by Laura Harrington, music by Mel Marvin, and direction by Mac Pirkle. Set in 1920, Perfect 36 honors the indomitable spirit of the suffragettes as they battle to secure a 36-state majority to ratify the 19th Amendment. The online event will take place at 5:30pm PDT on Wednesday, August 26th. Giovanna Sardelli, TheatreWorksa?? Artistic Associate and Director of New Works, will host the event and engage in a conversation with Laura Harrington, the showa??s book writer and lyricist. A link to stream the show will be available at TheatreWorks.org for no charge, although donations are encouraged to support TheatreWorks and The Womana??s Club of Palo Alto. BroadwayWorld recently spoke with Giovanna Sardelli from her hometown of Las Vegas where shea??s been sheltering in place with family until she can safely return to her actual home base in New York City. In addition to her role at TheatreWorks, Sardelli is enjoying quite a remarkable career as a director at theaters across the U.S., and has built a track record of developing close working relationships with notable playwrights such as Pulitzer Prize finalist Rajiv Joseph and Olivier Award winner Matthew Lopez. Talking to Sardelli, ita??s clear why she is so constantly in demand. She is naturally engaging, inherently upbeat without being saccharine, and passionate about expanding the possibilities of theater. Her excitement about the chance to work closely with TheatreWorksa?? new Artistic Director Tim Bond to tackle new challenges is palpable.

In celebration of Women's Equality Day and the Centennial of the 19th Amendment, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley and The Woman's Club of Palo Alto present a virtual performance of excerpts and songs from Perfect 36, with lyrics and book by Laura Harrington, music by Mel Marvin, and direction by Mac Pirkle.

GOOD MORNING, THEATERATI! It's Monday, May 8, and it looks to be a beautiful spring day in Nashville (so live life dramatically), prompting us to ask the musical question: Do reviews matter anymore?

Hear ye, hear ye…Music City Confidential is back! Which means, of course, that I've heard an awful lot of scuttlebutt since last week's column went live on the interwebs - or, more likely, that I am trying to avoid boring and mundane stuff like packing - I'll let you decide what my motivation truly is...

Sometimes it seems there is so much theater happening that it's difficult to keep track of it all. From personal experience, despite all the datebooks, smart phones, tablets, desktop computers and laptops...it's hard to keep everything straight in this wacky business of the show.

Scot Copeland, longtime producing artistic director of Nashville Children's Theatre and one of the world's leading proponents of theater for younger audiences, died during the overnight hours of February 25 from an apparent heart attack. He is survived by his wife, Rene Dunshee Copeland, producing artistic director of Nashville Repertory Theatre, his two sons, many family members and countless 'chosen family' and friends all over the world.

Today's spotlight falls upon Michael Bouson and Joe Correll, two of the loveliest people I've ever known. Creative and imaginative, they brought their hilarious hijinks to the stage when they founded The Avante Garage Comedy Repertory Theatre, a comedy improv/musical theater company that set stages afire throughout Music City, introducing some of the region's best-loved performers to audiences who still remember every joke, every laugh and every song. Now living in Los Angeles, where they are both involved in television production, Michael and Joe made a triumphant return to Nashville in late August, when they were saluted at The First Night Honors of 2014.

Today's spotlight falls upon Chambers Stevens, who defines the word "multi-hyphenate." (Seriously, look in a dictionary-they still make dictionaries, don't they?-and you'll find his headshot next to the word.) He is an actor-director-playwright-acting coach-producer-consultant-husband-and-father. And in 2012, he was recognized as a First Night Honoree for the role he has played in the development of theater in Tennessee.

More importantly, perhaps, since I know where the bodies are buried-both literally and figuratively-I am provided a unique perspective on the personalities that have shaped theater in Tennessee for at least the past 30 years (I was five years old when I started in this gig). Today you will be introduced to one of the finest actors to ever walk onto a Tennessee stage via our brand new feature series…WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Our first subject is Mark Delabarre, who who spoke with us from his home in New York City.

Tennessee Repertory opens its 30th season of live, professional theatre with Stephen Sondheim's musical Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Sweeney Todd runs October 4 -October 25 at TPAC's Johnson Theater (with preview performances tonight and tomorrow, October 2 - 3). Tennessee Rep's 2008 production of this multiple Tony Award-winning musical had a completely sold out run, and was a smash hit with critics and theatre-goers alike.

Tennessee Repertory opens its 30th season of live, professional theatre with Stephen Sondheim's musical Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Sweeney Todd runs October 4 -October 25 at TPAC's Johnson Theater (with preview performances October 2 - 3). Tennessee Rep's 2008 production of this multiple Tony Award-winning musical had a completely sold out run, and was a smash hit with critics and theatre-goers alike.

The world premiere of a brand-spanking new musical with Broadway in its sights, a relatively young but awe-inspiring theater company and a sparkling, witty new play about Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald led the list of Tennessee's outstanding theatrical achievements in 2012 that was revealed Sunday night at Midwinter's First Night. Photographer Rick Malkin was on hand to capture the evening's highlights with his camera.

The world premiere of a brand-spanking new musical with Broadway in its sights, a relatively young but awe-inspiring theater company and a sparkling, witty new play about Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald led the list of Tennessee's outstanding theatrical achievements in 2012 that was revealed Sunday night at Midwinter's First Night.

It's been a busy year in Nashville theater in 2012, with audiences treated to a whole slate of theatrical offerings spanning multiple genres-from productions of time-honored classics to new and original contemporary works, from dramas to comedies, from straight plays to musicals-and giving local theater-goers more opportunities than ever before to be challenged by the onstage magic created by some of Tennessee's most talented and gifted artists.

Dressed to the nines-despite forecasts of thunderstorms and a tornado watch that hung over the region-theater people from throughout Tennessee gathered at Belmont University's Bill and Carole Troutt Theatre on Sunday night for the 2013 First Night Honors. Hosted by Holly Shepherd and Joel Diggs, the gala evening honored eight leading lights of Tennessee theater as they were recognized as members of the First Night Class of 2013 Honorees.

Nashville and the Tennessee Performing Arts Center (TPAC) end their run of the world premiere of "The Nutty Professor" Musical today, August 19, 2012. Directed by Jerry Lewis, the show is a new musical comedy based on the 1963 film of the same name.

Apparently, it is Elvis Week in Nashville (at least according to the fine folks at Loveless Cafe), so before we head out to the theater for a full weekend of show openings and the like, a trip to West Nashville for a slice of the Loveless' Elvis pie is in order (for the uninitiated, that's peanut butter, banana, bacon and homemade whipped cream-the four basic food groups, according to The King.), so before we slip into a diabetic coma, here's installment #7 of Music City Confidential, all the news that's fit to print from onstage, offstage, backstage and beyond…

It's becomes very clear very quickly, when talking to Rupert Holmes, that writing the libretto for The Nutty Professor-which paired him with composer Marvin Hamlisch-has been an astonishing and inspiring experience for the man whose resume is filled with noteworthy achievements in theater, music, publishing and, practically, any endeavor of self-expression that one can name. Yet, as Holmes remembers his friend, his collaborator and his fellow musical theater legend, it is apparent that Hamlisch's sudden death this week has left an indelible imprint upon him.

Nashville and the Tennessee Performing Arts Center (TPAC) host the Broadway-bound world premiere of "The Nutty Professor" Musical. Directed by Jerry Lewis, the show is a new musical comedy based on the 1963 film of the same name. The Broadway at TPAC Special Event began previews on July 24, and officially opened on July 31- running through August 19 in TPAC's James K. Polk Theater. Featuring music by Oscar, Emmy, th erecently deceased Tony and Pulitzer Prize winner Marvin Hamlisch (A Chorus Line) and a book and lyrics by three-time Tony Award winner Rupert Holmes (The Mystery of Edwin Drood), "The Nutty Professor" is a musical treat for the whole family, based on the classic 1963 film in which Lewis starred and co-wrote. BroadwayWorld brings you highlights from the Broadway-bound production below!