Matthew Dean News

Clubbed Thumb (Maria Striar, Producing Artistic Director; Michael Bulger, Associate Artistic Director; Quinn Metal Corbin, Advancement Director) announced today complete casting for the return engagement of Ethan Lipton's TUMACHO, directed by Tony Award nominee Leigh Silverman.

This winter and spring, Joe's Pub a?" a program and venue of The Public Theater a?" is honoring new voices in musical theater through a variety of shows. From Broadway performers in concert to new musicals presented in the concert setting, there's something for every fan of musicals happening this season. Audiences are invited to celebrate the art of musical theater in non-conventional yet intimate ways with returning artists and new faces alike at Joe's Pub.

The Drama League presents DirectorFest, the only festival in the United States dedicated to the art of contemporary stage directing. The festival series that began January 10, 2020 continues with an evening of short plays probing the complexity of relationships with The Sporting Life of Icarus Jones by Marcus Gardley, directed by Chika Ike, and The Drowning Girls by Beth Graham, Charlie Tomlinson, and Daniela Vlaskalic, directed by Rebecca Marzalek-Kelly. The limited engagement begins Friday, January 24, 2020 at 7:30pm for three performances through January 25, 2020 at The New Ohio Theatre (154 Christopher Street). Tickets are priced at $45 Premium Seating | $25 General Seating | $20 Drama League/SDC/AEA/DG Members.

The Drama League presents DirectorFest,  the only festival in the United States dedicated to the art of contemporary stage directing. Launching the 2020 series is the musical Hello Again, with Book, Music and Lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa, Music Direction by Jesse Kissel, and Directed by 2019 Drama League Leo Shull Musical Directing Fellow Ben Randle.

The Drama League (Artistic Director Gabriel Stelian-Shanks, Executive Director Bevin Ross) announced today the acting company for the 36th annual DirectorFest, the only festival in the United States dedicated to the art of contemporary stage directing. Directorfest will take place January 10 - February 4, 2020 at various locations around NYC: The New Ohio Theatre (154 Christopher Street), The Drama League Theater Center (32 Avenue of the Americas), LaGuardia Performing Arts Center (31-10 Thomson Avenue), and Joe's Pub (425 Lafayette Street). For festival details and tickets, visit directorfest.org or call (212) 244-9494 x102.

Tickets are now on sale for the 36th annual Directorfest, the only festival in the United States dedicated to the art of stage directing. Known for its history as an identifier of the next generation of directing talent, the festival will include six fully-staged productions, a showcase concert of a new play-with-music, a town hall, and conversations with directors including 2017 Tony Award Winner Rebecca Taichman (Indecent), 2014 Tony Award Winner & 2010 Drama League Founders Award for Excellence in Directing Kenny Leon (A Soldier's Play), and Intimacy Director Claire Warden (HBO's 'Mrs. Fletcher').

The Drama League announced today the 2020 line-up of DirectorFest: The 36th Annual Directors Festival, the only festival in the United States dedicated to the art of contemporary stage directing. For its 36th year, the festival will include six fully-staged productions, a showcase concert of a new musical, a town hall, and conversations with directors including 2017 Tony Award Winner Rebecca Taichman (Indecent), 2014 Tony Award Winner and 2010 Drama League Founders Award for Excellence in Directing Kenny Leon (A Soldier's Play), and Intimacy Director Claire Warden (HBO's Mrs. Fletcher).

Dael Orlandersmith celebrates her 60th birthday with a special benefit evening at the Wild Project. The event takes place on Saturday, November 23 at 7 pm at Wild Project (195 E. 3rd Street, between Avenues A & B). Tickets are $60 - $100 (including food and drink) and will benefit the Wild Project's mission and programming. Advance tickets can be purchased online at http://www.thewildproject.com.

Thomas Wolfe--famed for his novels including “Look Homeward, Angel”--is also remembered for the quotable title of one of his short stories: “Only the Dead Know Brooklyn.” Judging my weekend at Opera Philadelphia's O19 opera festival, and its two world premieres, DENIS & KATYA and LET ME DIE, he could have also written “Only the Dead Know Philadelphia” (though it might have missed the priceless Brooklyn accents used in the story by this southern writer).

The last time a well-known actor not especially noted for singing graced a major New York stage with a one-person autobiographical musical that focused on personal tragedy, it was Suzanne Somer's unmissably jaw-dropping narcissistic spectacle, THE BLONDE IN THE THUNDERBIRD.  But fear not, playgoers, for while David Cale does provide quite a few original ditties to augment his childhood memoir, WE'RE ONLY ALIVE FOR A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME, his not-quite-Sinatra-level vocals are way more suited for this captivating presentation than a more elegant songbird's trill.

The New York premiere of WE'RE ONLY ALIVE FOR A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME, written and performed by David Cale, with music co-written by Matthew Dean Marsh, and directed by Robert Falls, runs through Sunday, July 14.

The New York premiere of WE'RE ONLY ALIVE FOR A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME, written and performed by David Cale, with music co-written by Matthew Dean Marsh, and directed by Robert Falls, runs through Sunday, July 14.

We've got a first look at the New York premiere of WE'RE ONLY ALIVE FOR A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME, written and performed byDavid Cale, with music co-written by Matthew Dean Marsh, and directed by Robert Falls. WE'RE ONLY ALIVE… runs through Sunday, July 14 with an official press opening on Thursday, June 27.

The Public Theater (Artistic Director, Oskar Eustis; Executive Director, Patrick Willingham) will begin performances for the acclaimed production WE'RE ONLY ALIVE FOR A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME on Thursday, June 13 with a Joseph Papp Free Preview.

Proof of Love opened just last night, May 14 at the Minetta Lane Theatre (18 Minetta Lane, between MacDougal & 6th Avenue - one block south of W. 3rd Street), Audible's creative home for live performances in New York.

The Public Theater will begin performances for the acclaimed production WE'RE ONLY ALIVE FOR A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME on Thursday, June 13 with a Joseph Papp Free Preview. Written and performed by David Cale, with music co-written with Matthew Dean Marsh, the musical memoir is directed by Robert Falls, in a co-production with Goodman Theatre. Cale's acclaimed autobiographical solo-show runs 90 minutes and plays through Sunday, July 14, with an official press opening on Thursday, June 27.

Ucross, a prestigious artist residency program and creative laboratory for the arts, today announced the recipients of its Spring 2019 fellowships. 54 visual artists, writers, playwrights, composers and more were selected from nearly 400 applicants to utilize uninterrupted time, studio space, and living accommodations on Ucross's 20,000-acre ranch at the foothills of the Bighorn Mountains.

The Public Theater announced today that the New York premiere of WE'RE ONLY ALIVE FOR A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME has been added to The Public's 2018-19 Season.

It's not uncommon for artists to create beauty from the pain of their own pasts, but few do it as bravely and poignantly as David Cale in WE'RE ONLY ALIVE FOR A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME. Staged in the Goodman Theatre's largest venue and programmed as the subscription season opener, this 90-minute, one-man show packs an emotional punch in the most understated of ways.