Max Vernon News

The European premiere of new LGBTQ+ musical THE VIEW UPSTAIRS opens at Soho Theatre on 18 July running until 24 August.

Under the thoughtful direction of Cheryl Denson, the cast and creative team of THE VIEW UPSTAIRS approaches the story of the Upstairs Lounge Fire with an incredible amount of compassion and authenticity that comes to audiences at a critical moment.

Just in time for LGBTQ Pride Month, and on the cusp of the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots, SpeakEasy Stage Company presents the New England premiere of the Off-Broadway musical THE VIEW UPSTAIRS in the Plaza Theatre at the Boston Center for the Arts. Inspired by a little-known historical event, Max Vernon pays tribute to '70s gay culture and the victims of the firebombing of the UpStairs Lounge in the French Quarter of New Orleans in 1973. Although 32 people perished (the deadliest assault on a gay bar prior to the 2016 shooting at the Pulse nightclub which killed 49 people), Vernon's book and score focus on the personalities of the archetypal characters, the challenges they faced in that era, and the strong ties they forged to make a life in the homosexual community.

Uptown Players continues its 2018-2019 season with the regional premiere of The View Upstairs, by Max Vernon, running June 21 - July 7, 2019. The all-star cast assembled for this 2017 off-broadway hit includes the return to the Kalita Humphreys Theater of Blake McIver and New York Cabaret Singer, William Blake.

On Sunday, June 2, 2019, following the 3PM matinee performance, SpeakEasy Stage will present a panel of musical theatre experts and practitioners for a closer look at its current production of The View UpStairs by Max Vernon.

Max Vernon's new musical The View UpStairs sees its Bay Area premiere in Ed Decker's appealing production at the New Conservatory Theatre. This is a time-traveling tale that allows multiple generations of the gay community to intermingle and confront the complexities of building queer communities throughout the ages in the charming UpStairs Lounge in New Orleans, the site of one of the most violent incidents in the gay liberation movement of the 1970s. 

BWW Review: THE VIEW UPSTAIRS at New Conservatory Theatre Center follows a time-travelling millennial back to the historic Upstairs Lounge in 1973.

From May 31 through June 22, 2019, SpeakEasy Stage Company will proudly present the New England Premiere production of the acclaimed Off-Broadway musical THE VIEW UPSTAIRS.

Tyrone Huntley will star as Wes in the European premiere of new LGBTQ+ musical THE VIEW UPSTAIRS, which runs from 18 July to 24 August at Soho Theatre, with a press night on Tuesday 23 July and a special gala night in aid of the Albert Kennedy Trust (AKT) on 24 July.

The National Alliance for Musical Theatre (NAMT) announces 11 awards granted from their Frank Young Fund for New Musicals(formerly known as the National Fund for New Musicals), and six awards granted from their Innovation & Exploration Fund.

The 2019 Lucille Lortel Awards for Outstanding Achievement Off-Broadway were handed out last night to recipients in 19 categories, with one special award and three honorary awards also bestowed. The Lortel Awards were distributed in a ceremony at NYU Skirball Center hosted by Drama Desk Award-nominated writer and performer of The New One, Mike Birbiglia. The Lucille Lortel Awards are produced by the Off-Broadway League by special arrangement with the Lucille Lortel Theatre Foundation. Additional support is provided by TDF.

Founding Executive Director Kathy Evans announced the 27 writers of nine new musicals for Rhinebeck Writers Retreat's summer weeklong residencies. This year's artists include Obie-winner Heather Christian, Kleban-winner Brian Crawley, TV and film writers Bekah Brunstetter (THIS IS US) and Cinco Paul (DESPICABLE ME), inaugural Stephen Schwartz Award winner Oliver Houser, and ASCAP Foundation scholarship winner Khiyon Hursey. The musicals cover a wide range of subjects. Four have LGBTQ themes: a historical look at Florida in the 1950s (IN A SUNSHINE STATE), a Palestinian/Israeli love story (BORDERS), a modern coming of age of a young black man (SEAN'S STORY PART I | THE AWAKENING), and a fantasy queer rock musical celebrating lady love (TL;DR: THELMA LOUISE; DYKE REMIX). Two are darkly comedic historical musicals: one featuring Mary Magdelene (A.D. 16) and the second a WWII plot to foil Hitler (OPERATION MINCEMEAT). Other subjects include the opioid crisis (ALMOST HEAVEN), the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 (THE GOLDEN SPIKE), and a mystery involving a woman with a sleep disorder (NARCOLEPSY).

Max Vernon returned to Joe's Pub on April 23 with 'Existential Life Crisis Lullaby', a concert, featuring special guests Andy Mientus, Michael Longoria, Jo Lampert, Fancy Feast, Sophia Ramos, Helen Park, Gianna Masi, Avery Leigh Draut, Michelle Geo and Leah Lane. Ellie Heyman directed Vernon's six-month residency and series of shows at Joe's Pub.

Rhinebeck Writers Retreat is producing a reading of the new musical THE TATTOOED LADY, book by Obie-winner Erin Courtney, music and lyrics by Lucille Lortel-winner Max Vernon, and direction by Ellie Heyman. THE TATTOOED LADY was selected for Rhinebeck Writers Retreat's Triple R program, giving the writers 2 readings and a residency to do extensive development of their musical in a compressed time frame.

Following record-breaking runs at New York Theatre Workshop, Canada's Citadel Theatre, and the National Theatre, the new musical Hadestown opened on Broadway last night! BroadwayWorld was there and you can check out photos from the star-studded red carpet below!

Andy Mientus, Declan Bennett, Victoria Hamilton-Barritt, Cedric Neal and John Partridge will star as Patrick, Dale, Inez, Willie and Buddy respectively in the European premiere of new LGBTQ+ musical THE VIEW UPSTAIRS, which runs from 18 July to 24 August at Soho Theatre, with a press night on Tuesday 23 July.

MAX VERNON - the songwriter described by The New Yorker as 'equal parts Bohemia and Broadway' - will conclude his first residency at Joe's Pub, Existential Life Crisis Lullaby, on Tuesday, April 23 at 7:00 PM. Following five sold out shows in the last year, he returns with special guests Michael Longoria, Frenchie Davis, Jo Lampert, Lauren Pritchard, Andy Mientus, Fancy Feast, and Sophia Ramos. The spring shows are directed by Ellie Heyman. Vernon received the Lucille Lortel Award for Best Musical, three Drama Desk Award nominations, a Jonathan Larson Grant and the Richard Rodgers Award for his musicals The View UpStairs and KPOP, both of which had critically-acclaimed extended Off-Broadway runs in 2017. KPOP is planning a major new production later this year, and The View UpStairs will have its UK premiere in London this summer. Following a sold-out debut at the Kennedy Center in 2017, Vernon has returned to the New York nightclub stage for an exclusive engagement of high spectacle, high fashion, and high belted F sharps.

In May, New Conservatory Theatre Center is thrilled to present Max Vernon's The View UpStairs, directed by NCTC Founder & Artistic Director Ed Decker with musical direction by Kelly Crandell. When impulsive entrepreneur Wes buys a dilapidated building in the French Quarter of New Orleans, he's magically transported to its glory days: the UpStairs Lounge in 1973. Serving as a home, a church, and a gay dive-bar, the UpStairs was its own kind of paradise.  As Wes meets the larger than life lounge regulars, he learns what has been gained and lost in the fight for equality, and how the past can help guide all of us through an uncertain future.

MAX VERNON - the songwriter described by The New Yorker as "equal parts Bohemia and Broadway" - will continue his first residency at Joe's Pub, Existential Life Crisis Lullaby, tonight Tuesday, March 19 at 7:00 PM.

Just yesterday, the American Theatre Wing presented the 2019 Jonathan Larson Grants to Julia Gytri & Avi Amon (book, music and lyrics), Emily Gardner Xu Hall (book, music and lyrics), Andy Roninson (music and lyrics), and Ben Wexler (music and lyrics). Four prestigious grants of $10,000 each, as well as additional support in the form of residencies, concerts, and recording grants, totaling over $50,000, were presented at a private event at the WNYC Greene Space.