Mary Ann News

On the special Thanksgiving episode airing November 22, comedy legend Carol Burnett will guest as Steve McGarrett's quirky Aunt Deb. TVGuide gives an exclusive first look at the appearance!

Today, October 24, the not-for-profit development group Musical Mondays Theatre Lab will launch its 14th season with a new name and a very heavy organizational heart. This summer, after years of presenting promising new musicals at the Snapple Theatre Center on Thursdays (because that was the only slot that was open in the schedule), the MMTL Board of Directors voted to change the organization's name to Manhattan Musical Theatre Lab (thereby retaining the corporate initials) with the vote and complete blessing of the group's founder and Co-Artistic Director Richard 'Bick' Goss. Less than a month later, Goss died from complications of Parkinson's disease. The director, choreographer and former Bob Fosse dancer was 75.

I decided to take in one of the Sheldon's coffee concerts earlier this week, and though some snarled traffic kept me from enjoying the coffee portion of the bill, I arrived in time for the concert. I was rewarded for my efforts by witnessing the performance of a tremendously talented group of musicians collectively known as Miss Jubilee and the Humdingers. This was, indeed, time well spent.

VocalEssence announces today that it is moving the first concert of its 45th season, There Was a Child, to Central Lutheran Church in Minneapolis. The concert will still be held at its original time, on Sun., Oct. 27 at 4 p.m., and the 3 p.m. Concert Conversation with MPR's John Birge and composer Jonathan Dove will still take place before the performance.

In Spider's Web, the queen of suspense, Agatha Christie, spins a tale of murder, blackmail and deception. In a mysterious mansion, one woman tries to solve a murder while keeping her guests entertained and her family out of trouble! Complete with secret rooms, vanishing bodies, and signature plot twists, this tangled web will ensnare you in mystery and mayhem.

In celebration of National Coming Out Day, and in honor of the political achievements of the local LGBT community, Lambda Archives of San Diego (LASD) will be hosting an open reception of its latest exhibit, "20 Years at the Table," on Oct. 11 from 5 - 7:30 p.m.

Children's theater advocate Kids Acts Philippines presents its musical adaptation of "Mulan," based on the Chinese poem "The Ballad of Mulan," featuring music by Eugene Belbis, and book and lyrics by Luigi Nacario, at Star Theater, Star City Compound, Cultural Center of the Philippines Complex, Pasay City from Thursday, October 3 to Saturday, October 5.

Like a phoenix rising from the ashes. Nassau County's newest state of the art theater and special events venue, The Space at Westbury opened September 17 on the site of the long abandoned, graffiti-filled eyesore, the historic Westbury Theater. The vision of developer Cyrus Hakakian and his Lowe Properties partners, the project has been nine years in the making but is now open for business. Scroll down for photos!

The latest offering from the Shakespeare Theatre of NJ delves into the life of George Eliot: one of the most accomplished, and most unconventional, novelists of the Victorian era.

The Huntington Theatre Company presents a concert version of Jason Robert Brown's powerful contemporary musical The Last Five Years for three performances only November 23 and 24. Adam Kantor (Rent, Avenue Q) and Betsy Wolfe (The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Everyday Rapture) play the two twenty-something New Yorkers who dive head-first into marriage, fueled by the optimism of finding 'the one.' Winner of Drama Desk Drama Awards for Outstanding Music and Outstanding Lyrics, The Last Five Years takes a bold look at one young couple's hope that love endures the test of time.

4000 Miles by Amy Herzog is directed by Northlight Theatre Artistic Associate Kimberly Senior and features Emjoy Gavino, Caroline Neff, Josh Salt and Mary Ann Thebus, running now through October 20, 2013. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!

CHARLOTTE'S WEB by Joseph Robinette, based on the book by E.B. White, is directed by Greg Banks on the Children's Theatre Company's UnitedHealth Group Stage, running now through October 27, 2013. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast below!

The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey will launch the Fall portion of its 2013 Season with the world premiere of A Most Dangerous Womanwritten by Cathy Tempelsman and directed by Tony-Award winner Richard Maltby, Jr. A Most Dangerous Woman, which explores the extraordinary life of Mary AnnEvans - better known by her pen name George Eliot - begins performances on September 18 at The Shakespeare Theatre's Main Stage - The F.M. Kirby Shakespeare Theatre. Responding to the exceptional interest in this new play about the famed Victorian author, The Shakespeare Theatre has extended the run and added six performances to the schedule. Performances of A Most Dangerous Woman will now continue through October 12th. Check out a first look below!

Milwaukee Chamber Theatre (MCT) continues its 2013-2014 theatre season with the Milwaukee premiere of THE DETECTIVE'S WIFE by Keith Huff, today, September 18 - October 13, 2013.

The Tony Awards telecast took home four Emmys including Outstanding Special Class Program, Outstanding Musical Direction and Outstanding Musics and Lyrics for 'If I Had Time' with lyrics by Adam Schlesinger and music by David Javerbaum.

Joe Famularo, who grew up with his Italian-American family in New York when the Great Depression was in full swing, recounts his youth, and how his family's love for authentic Italian food helped them weather those difficult days. The narrative of his book, Crazy for Italian Food, primarily occurs in Hell's Kitchen, on the far west side of Manhattan. At the time, the area was populated with Italian immigrant families, along with Irish, German and Jewish communities, and at that time, Italian cuisine was the most popular, as it is today.

After nearly nine months of meticulous preparation, LES MISERABLES opens today, September 6th and runs through the 29th at the Baldwin Theatre in downtown Royal Oak.

Featuring one of the most compelling casts of characters ever depicted in a miniseries made for TV, by some of the most ideally cast actors ever assembled for an adaptation of any kind, TALES OF THE CITY arrives on DVD just in time for the twentieth anniversary of the controversial cultural touchstone first airing on PBS to jeers, cheers and many, many tears.

BOB: Blessed Be The Dysfunction That Binds, a new American play based on the true story of one Rhode Island family's experience with mental illness and the United States healthcare system, will receive its New York premiere at The Abingdon Theatre. Performances begin tonight, September 5, 2013.