Manhattan Theatre Club News

Manhattan Theatre Club has announced a final extension for the critically acclaimed world premiere of Heisenberg due to overwhelming demand from audiences.

The world premiere production of 'How to be a Rock Critic' opens tonight, June 17 at 8 p.m. and continues through June 28 in a limited engagement of 12 performances at the Center Theatre Group/Kirk Douglas Theatre. Based on the writing of Lester Bangs, the rock critic who reached iconic status in the 1970s with his passionate, intellectually honest writing, 'How to be a Rock Critic' will be performed in the theatre's rehearsal space, Upstairs@KDT. Presented as part of DouglasPlus, it is a co-production with South Coast Repertory. Scroll down for a look at the cast in action!

Geffen Playhouse welcomes Ari Brand (Broadway The Neil Simon Plays; Off-Broadway My Name is Asher Lev), Molly Ephraim (ABC's Last Man Standing, Broadway Into the Woods, Fiddler on the Roof; film Paranormal Activity), Lili Fuller (Hulu's Complete Works) and Raviv Ullman (Off-Broadway Sticks and Bones, title character in Disney's Phil of the Future) as the cast for its West Coast premiere production of Bad Jews by Joshua Harmon, directed by Matt Shakman, who is the artistic director of the Black Dahlia Theatre, a Geffen playhouse alumni (Good People, Wait Until Dark) and a noted television director (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Mad Men).

HEADVOICE, a new musical featuring book, music and lyrics by Ethan Andersen, will be presented in the 2015 New York Musical Theatre Festival.

Just last night, Manhattan Theatre Club honored Executive Producer Barry Grove with a tribute on stage at the Samuel J. Friedman theatre, celebrating 40 years at MTC.  BroadwayWorld was there for the special night and you can check out photos below!

Bay Street Theater has announced that FIVE PRESIDENTS, the new play by Emmy Award-winning writer Rick Cleveland (Six Feet Under, The West Wing, and House of Cards), will extend its run for an additional week due to popular demand. The production will now run from June 23-July 19. 

Manhattan Theatre Club celebrates Executive Producer Barry Grove's 40th anniversary with the organization tonight, June 15.

The world premiere production of 'How to be a Rock Critic' opens Wednesday, June 17 at 8 p.m. and continues through June 28 in a limited engagement of 12 performances at the Center Theatre Group/Kirk Douglas Theatre. Based on the writing of Lester Bangs, the rock critic who reached iconic status in the 1970s with his passionate, intellectually honest writing, 'How to be a Rock Critic' will be performed in the theatre's rehearsal space, Upstairs@KDT. Presented as part of DouglasPlus, it is a co-production with South Coast Repertory. Scroll down for a first look at the cast in action!

Manhattan Theatre Club has announced a two-week extension for the critically acclaimed world premiere of Heisenberg, the new play by Tony Award and two-time Olivier Award winner Simon Stephens (The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Punk Rock), directed by Drama Desk Award winner Mark Brokaw (The Lyons, How I Learned to Drive), starring Denis Arndt (The Night Alive at Geffen Playhouse, 'The Practice') and Tony and Emmy Award winner Mary-Louise Parker (Proof, 'Weeds').

The Perry-Mansfield New Works Festival (perry-mansfield.org/events/3/new-works-festival) now in its 18th year, brings performing arts professionals together in the Rocky Mountains to continue Perry-Mansfield's founding principle of nurturing new talent through new work. This year's festival, taking place this weekend, June 12-13 in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, will feature new works from some of America's most prestigious theater companies: Atlantic Theater Company, Denver Center for the Performing Arts Theatre Company, Primary Stages, andSouth Coast Repertory. The companies will showcase four different new works in partnership with Perry-Mansfield.

Final casting has been set for the 2015 Planet Connections Theatre Festivity's Playwrights For A Cause, set to take place at 7:30pm on Sunday, June 14, 2015 at New York Theatre Workshop, 79 East 4th Street, on Sunday, June 14 at 7:30 pm. The evening, which will benefit the non-profit National Coalition Against Censorship, will showcase world premiere one-act plays by three acclaimed playwrights: Israel Horovitz's Breaking Phillip Glass and Erik Ehn's Her Speech, both directed by Planet Connections Theatre Festivity founder and PFAC Producing Artistic Curator Glory Kadigan, and Halley Feiffer's A Play About New Mexico, directed by Gaye Taylor Upchurch.

Manhattan Theatre Club will celebrate Executive Producer Barry Grove's 40th anniversary with the organization on Monday, June 15.

BAD WITH MONEY, Ben Rimalower's new play about spending beyond his means -- performed in rep with his first piece PATTI ISSUES -- will conclude its run at The Duplex (61 Christopher Street at Seventh Avenue) on June 21.

Lynne Meadow (Artistic Director) and Barry Grove (Executive Producer) has just announced Manhattan Theatre Club will produce the world premiere of Prodigal Son, the new play written and directed by Tony, Pulitzer Prize, and Academy Award winner John Patrick Shanley.

Brandon Victor Dixon and Steven Pasquale will join the previously announced Sutton Foster in Andrew Lippa's The Wild Party, running July 15 - 18, 2015 at New York City Center. (NOTE: Brandon Victor Dixon will replace the previously announced Joshua Henry, who has had a scheduling conflict.) The production will be directed by Leigh Silverman, with choreography by Sonya Tayeh. Jeanine Tesori is the Artistic Director of Encores! Off-Center and Chris Fenwick is Music Director.

Acclaimed stage and film actress Glenne Headly will assume the role of Brenda Drexel opposite Jason Alexander as Norman Drexel, in Larry David's hit comedy about a death in the family, Fish In the Dark beginning tonight, June 9 at the Cort Theater (138 West 48th Street).

Bad Jews runs tonight, June 9 through July 19, 2015 (opening night is June 17, 2015) in the Gil Cates Theater at the Geffen Playhouse.

Manhattan Theatre Club presents the New York premiere of Of Good Stock, the new play by Melissa Ross, directed by MTC's award-winning Artistic Director Lynne Meadow. The limited engagement begins previews tonight, June 4, for a Tuesday, June 30 opening night at MTC at New York City Center - Stage I (131 West 55th Street).

Industry folks will get a chance to see the newest musical by the writing/producing duo Charlie Schulman & Michael Roberts (aka The Schulberts), The Goldstein Variations, directed by Daniel Kutner. The musical, which is slated to open Off-Broadway in October 2015, will be presented in concert Monday, June 8 at 7pm at the Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater at 5 West 63rd Street. 

A double-bill Equity Approved Showcase of Stacey Sargeant's Buh Wha' Trouble is Dis? and Lizabeth Sipes' Bug Bite will be presented on Monday, June 15th at 8:30pm and Tuesday, June 16th at 6:30pm at The Treehouse Theatre (154 W 29th Street).