Matthew Cowles News

Broadway fans had plenty of reasons to celebrate this year, with dozens of shows having opened since January, hundreds of actors having made their debuts, and many more having returned to the stage for critically acclaimed performances. Not all news was good though, as we also suffered a loss of an incredible amount of talent. Below, BroadwayWorld sends a fond farewell to those who passed away in 2014.

As BroadwayWorld reported last week, actor and playwright Matthew Cowles passed away in his home on May 22nd at 69 years old. Below, BroadwayWorld remembers the ate actor.

Actor and playwright Matthew Cowles passed away on May 22nd. His manager Tsu Tsu Stanton tweeted, '#Matthew Cowles passed away on 5/22.I had the pleasure of being his manager. He was a very gifted and kind man who loved life and everyone.'

Good morning, BroadwayWorld! Because we know all our readers eat, sleep and breathe Broadway, what could be better than waking up to it? Today's big news: It's Memorial Day! Chill out and catch up on SUBMISSIONS ONLY, and have fun partying with friends and family.

OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network is hosting a summer fling for soap fans as the network has acquired the first 40 episodes of The OnLine Network's reprisal of the popular daytime dramas 'All My Children' and 'One Life to Live' for a special exclusive 10-week limited engagement.

Playing on Air, a new public radio show that features short stage plays performed by great American actors, is now available online for listening, streaming and downloading.

FAMILY ON BOARD, written and directed by George Pogatsia, may be short in length but boasts a cast tailored for the big-screen. The film features a stellar, hand-selected cast who collectively have garnered numerous Golden Globe, Emmy, SAG and Academy Award nominations and wins.

First Light Theater Group, in association with The Pyramid Media Company and 9Squared Entertainment, present the World Premiere of THIRST: a spell for Christabel, a new play by Monika Bustamante, based on the unfinished gothic poem 'Christabel' by Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834). Directed by Elena Araoz and produced by David Davoli on an Off-Broadway contract, previews begin March 10th at HERE Arts Center. Opening is slated for Tuesday, March 17th. THIRST: a spell for Christabel retells Coleridge's gothic story in an abandoned forest suffering from an apocalyptic drought. Christabel and her father, stubborn hold-outs in the dying woods, are visited by a mysterious and opportunistic woman who quickly transforms their quiet world. Soon they must choose between her frightening, seductive promises and the quickly diminishing safety of the life they've always known. THIRST: a spell for Christabel will feature Matthew Cowles (Veronika Decides to Die, Life on Mars, Oz), Lori Funk, and Elizabeth Gross as Christabel, with set by Susan Zeeman Rogers, costumes by Chloe Chapin, lighting by Justin Townsend, and sound design by Arielle Edwards. Stage management will be by Rosie Goldman.

First Light Theater Group invites you to the World Premiere of THIRST: a spell for Christabel. This new play by Monika Bustamante, based on the unfinished gothic poem 'Christabel' by Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834), is produced on an Off-Broadway contract at HERE Arts Center (145 6th Avenue between Spring and Broome). Performances run March 10 - April 12.

First Light Theater Group invites you to the World Premiere of THIRST: a spell for Christabel. This new play by Monika Bustamante, based on the unfinished gothic poem 'Christabel' by Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834), is produced on an Off-Broadway contract at HERE Arts Center (145 6th Avenue between Spring and Broome). Performances run March 10 - April 12.

First Light Theater Group, in association with The Pyramid Media Company and 9Squared Entertainment, present the World Premiere of THIRST: a spell for Christabel, a new play by Monika Bustamante, based on the unfinished gothic poem 'Christabel' by Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834). Directed by Elena Araoz and produced by David Davoli on an Off-Broadway contract, previews begin March 10th at HERE Arts Center. Opening is slated for Tuesday, March 17th. THIRST: a spell for Christabel retells Coleridge's gothic story in an abandoned forest suffering from an apocalyptic drought. Christabel and her father, stubborn hold-outs in the dying woods, are visited by a mysterious and opportunistic woman who quickly transforms their quiet world. Soon they must choose between her frightening, seductive promises and the quickly diminishing safety of the life they've always known.

First Light Theater Group, in association with The Pyramid Media Company and 9Squared Entertainment, present the World Premiere of THIRST: a spell for Christabel, a new play by Monika Bustamante, based on the unfinished gothic poem 'Christabel' by Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834). Directed by Elena Araoz and produced by David Davoli on an Off-Broadway contract, previews begin March 10th at HERE Arts Center. Opening is slated for Tuesday, March 17th. THIRST: a spell for Christabel retells Coleridge's gothic story in an abandoned forest suffering from an apocalyptic drought. Christabel and her father, stubborn hold-outs in the dying woods, are visited by a mysterious and opportunistic woman who quickly transforms their quiet world. Soon they must choose between her frightening, seductive promises and the quickly diminishing safety of the life they've always known. THIRST: a spell for Christabel will feature Matthew Cowles (Veronika Decides to Die, Life on Mars, Oz), Lori Funk, and Elizabeth Gross as Christabel, with set by Susan Zeeman Rogers, costumes by Chloe Chapin, lighting by Justin Townsend, and sound design by Arielle Edwards. Stage management will be by Rosie Goldman.

Roundabout Theatre Company's (Todd Haimes, Artistic Director) presented a once-in-a-lifetime gala concert reading of Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler's enchanting, Tony Award?-winning masterpiece A Little Night Music on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 7:30PM at Studio 54 (254 West 54th St.). The starry cast and crowd arrived at the after party and BroadwayWorld's cameras were there!

2008 Tony Award Winner Mark Rylance will appear in a one-night-only performance of NICE FISH! The thrilling adventures of ice fishermen. (Or what Robert did in his holidays before he met Gretchen), a new work based on the poems of Louis Jenkins at 8:00p.m. on Monday, December 15 at Theatre Row Theatres (410 W. 42nd Street).

The Rise of Dorothy Hale, the new mystery/thriller by Myra Bairstow, directed by Pamela Hall, welcomes Purva Bedi, Dina Ann Comolli, and Matthew Cowles to the cast, joining remaining cast members Patrick Boll, Laura Koffman, and Mark LaMura, beginning Monday November 12.

The Year of Magical Thinking, starring Vanessa Redgrave and based on the best-selling memoir by Joan Didion, opened at the Booth Theatre on March 29th, and BroadwayWorld was there for the star-studded evening!

Carole Shelley will assume the role of Lady Bracknell for the one-night-only performance of Oscar Wilde's classic comedy of manners The Importance of Being Earnest on Monday, March 19 with a 6:00pm reception and a 7:30pm performance at Theatre Row (410 West 42nd Street) to benefit Resonance Ensemble's 2007 season.

A one-night-only performance of Oscar Wilde's classic comedy of manners The Importance of Being Earnest to benefit Resonance Ensemble's 2007 season will be presented on Monday, March 19 with a 6:00pm reception and a 7:30pm performance at Theatre Row

Kathleen Turner, who received a Tony nomination for her work as Martha in the recent revival of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, will star opposite theatre veteran Matthew Cowles in a reading of Samuel Beckett's absurdist classic Happy Days

Keira Naughton, Jana Robbins and more will join the previously-announced F. Murray Abraham and Deborah S. Craig in the March 27th reading of Charles L. Mee's The Mail Order Bride