Michael Smith News

SHOWTIME has ordered a ten-episode second season of THE L WORD: GENERATION Q, the sequel to the groundbreaking drama series THE L WORD®. Season one has followed the intermingled lives of Bette Porter (Jennifer Beals), Shane McCutcheon (Katherine Moennig) and Alice Pieszecki (Leisha Hailey), along with new characters Dani Nùñez (Arienne Mandi), Micah Lee (Leo Sheng), Finley (Jacqueline Toboni), Sophie Suarez (Rosanny Zayas) and Gigi (Sepideh Moafi), as they experience love, heartbreak, sex, setbacks and success in L.A. Currently airing Sundays at 10 p.m. ET/PT, season one is executive produced by showrunner Marja-Lewis Ryan (The Four-Faced Liar, 6 Balloons), with series creator Ilene Chaiken, Kristen Campo, Allyce Ozarski, Steph Green (pilot), and original series stars Jennifer Beals, Katherine Moennig and Leisha Hailey. The season finale is set to air on January 26. The announcement was made today at the Television Critics Association's Winter Press Tour.

FOX has shared a new sneak peek at 9-1-1: LONE STAR, which premieres with a special two-night event, Sunday, Jan. 19 (10:00-11:10 PM ET/7:00-8:10 PM PT live to all time zones), following the NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME,  and Monday, Jan. 20 (8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT).

 Bergen County Players, one of America's longest-running little theater companies, is pleased to continue its 2019-2020 season with the Tony-nominated play, 33 Variations. Written by Moisés Kaufman (The Laramie Project) and directed by Steve Bell, 33 Variations will be performed at the Little Firehouse Theatre in Oradell from January 11th through February 1st, 2020. 

Due to overwhelming demand, Awakening Events today announced the spring extension of the Michael W. Smith 35 Years Of Friends Tour.  The 17-city spring tour comes on the heels of a widely popular fall run that celebrated 14 sold out dates.  “The fans made it clear, they want more Michael W. Smith, and the momentum of finishing this fall with all 10 of the final 10 shows being sold out left no doubt that we needed to extend this tour,” said Curtis Pinkerton Director of Marketing at Awakening Events.

What happens when 1880 Western bandits are brought back to life in Azusa, CA by a space alien? Sam Shepard's The Unseen Hand joins Odyssey Theatre Ensemble's 50th Anniversary a?oeCirca '69a?? Season of significant and adventurous plays that premiered around the time of the company's inception, coupled with Shepard's gritty and audacious Killer's Head. Longtime Shepard collaborator Darrell Larson directs both plays for a Jan. 18 opening at the Odyssey Theatre in West L.A., where performances will continue through March 8.

AT THIS PERFORMANCEa??  returns to The Green Room 42 featuring Standbys and Understudies from LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS; HAMILTON; THE LIGHTNING THIEF: THE PERCY JACKSON MUSICAL and WICKED on MONDAY, DECEMBER 2ND at 7PM.

The Arthur Miller Foundation's annual Arthur Miller Foundation Honors will be hosted by Bradley Cooper. The evening will celebrate the power of public school arts education and honor those who have made significant contributions to the arts in their own way. Steven Spielberg & Kate Capshaw have signed on to Co-Chair the event alongside Rebecca Miller, Sandi Farkas, Janine & Michael Smith.  Honors to take place on November 18, 2019 at Second Floor in New York City. The celebration will raise funds for the Foundation's public school theater education programs, featuring notable talent from film, television, and Broadway.  This year, the foundation will feature the songs of Cole Porter, directed by Tony Award Winner Michael Mayer. The evening will include one-night only performances, including appearances by Tony & Drama Desk Award Winner, Sutton Foster, Emmy and Golden Globe Award Winner, Darren Criss, Obie and Drama Desk Award Winner, Raúl Esparza, Tony Award Winner, Lena Hall, Grammy & Emmy Award Winner, Christopher Jackson, and Winner of the Hoofer Award for tap artistry, Ayodele Casel.

FOX is announcing premiere dates for FLIRTY DANCING (Dec. 29), LAST MAN STANDING (Jan. 2), DEPUTY (Jan. 2), GORDON RAMSAY'S 24 HOURS TO HELL AND BACK (Jan. 7), 9-1-1: LONE STAR (Jan. 19, following the NFC Championship Game, and Jan. 20), OUTMATCHED (Jan. 23), THE MASKED SINGER (Feb. 2, following Super Bowl LIV), LEGO MASTERS (Feb. 5) and DUNCANVILLE (Feb. 16). Additionally, 9-1-1 and EMPIRE will return in the spring, when new dramas FILTHY RICH and neXt also will premiere.

Bergen County Players (BCP) continues its 87th season with A Comedy of Tenors, written by Ken Ludwig and directed by Bill Kaufman. A Comedy of Tenors runs October 26th through November 16th, with curtain at 8 pm on Fridays and Saturdays, and 2 pm on Sundays. All performances will take place at the Little Firehouse Theatre, 298 Kinderkamack Road in Oradell. Tickets may be purchased online at www.bcplayers.org, by calling 201-261-4200 or by visiting the box office during regular box office hours.

Meet the SOB who runs the USA!  Rivertown Theaters gets in the timely election mode with the laugh-a-minute upcoming show “November” starring Bob Edes, one of the most acclaimed actors in New Orleans, running October 25 – November 10.  

The Sound Inside began performances, Saturday, September 14, and officially opened last night, October 17, on Broadway at Studio 54 (254 West 54th Street). We're taking you to the star-studded red carpet below!

Autumn in Rochester doesn't only conjure dreams of apple picking and cider. With Halloween just around the corner, the fall season delights in nightmares as well. Screen Play's production of FRANKENSTEIN: A LIVE RADIO PLAY delivers a nostalgic introduction to this annual festival of horror. The story told stays true to Mary Shelley's gothic classic, but the twist in this production lies with the style of the telling. Set in the sound studio of local radio station WHAM in the 1940s, Philip Grecian's adaptation comes to life. Music, old-fashioned sound effects and nine voice actors retell the famous tale, which delves into human psyche, hubris and over-vaulting ambition. Many consider the novel by Mary Shelley to be first work in the genre of science fiction as she questions man's role as a caretaker of nature and cautions for a need to make thoughtful decisions regarding scientific progress.

Today, luxury tea brand, TEALEAVES, released Language of Aroma: A Documentary on Communicating a Forgotten Sense, that asks the question: what if we could recognize, understand and communicate aroma? How might we connect with ourselves and the world? It features leading experts including Margaret Price, Principal of Inclusive Design at Microsoft, Laurie Pressman, VP of Pantone, Game of Thrones Language Creator, David J. Peterson and Wolfgang Georgsdorf, the inventor of a scent organ capable of helping depressed people. Our sense of smell is hardwired to dictate comfort, fear, and mate selection, yet in a recent study by McCann Worldgroup, 53% of 16-22 year olds stated that they would rather give up their sense of smell than their smartphones. With technology, threatening to erode the emphasis we place on our senses, TEALEAVES drew in the knowledge of experts like sommeliers, chefs, aroma scientists and designers to explore the importance of aroma in our experience of the world, and the difficulty in describing it without a learned vocabulary. 'The world of aroma has traditionally borrowed its language from the other senses. We often refer to aroma in every other way - music, tactility, taste...Anything but actual aroma,' says Lana Sutherland Co-Founder and CEO of TEALEAVES. "When we craft custom blends for our clients, just like the world of wine, we describe the aromatic experience in metaphors, which are inaccessible and unique to us." 'However, inclusivity is in the nature of tea: We see tea as both a catalyst for conversation as well as a companion in quiet moments of introspection. The beverage has a long history of being a sign of welcoming, respect and hospitality, of bringing people together across cultural barriers and differences, but when we lack that shared vocabulary to bring words to those experiences, we are unable to share those moments,' says Lana Sutherland. To understand aroma from the angle of Inclusive Design, TEALEAVES partnered with Microsoft Design, a leader in the field of accessibility, to explore visuals, texture, form, and other means of aromatic communication. 'This exploration is important in highlighting the ways aroma can positively impact society. It's particularly interesting as we explore how to evolve the inclusive design practice at Microsoft in new directions embracing all senses. How might we apply inclusive principles to aroma? Just imagine the possibilities,' says Margaret Price, Principal Design Strategist at Microsoft. 'Aroma has the ability to inspire or transport, ultimately enhancing the human experience. People have multiple senses working together at any given time. When one sense cannot be used, how can another? Our role as experience creators isn't to 'fix' what someone is 'missing' but to fully leverage the way we interact with the world.' The documentary can be viewed online at languageofaroma.com/documentary Language of Aroma was released through an online experience, languageofaroma.com, a collaboration between TEALEAVES, Microsoft Design, global color authority PANTONE and UBC Science that showcases the creative ways in which aroma can be communicated through the left and right brain. The experience features the tea cocktail, tea entree and tea dessert creations of 17 world-renowned chefs and mixologists using TEALEAVES Classic Teabags and the PANTONE color pairing as muse, and has gained traction among foodies. This exploration is the second in a three part series by TEALEAVES entitled 'PALATE,' which explores three main design elements of tea blending: Color, Aroma and Taste. Language Of Aroma builds upon TEALEAVES' previous film Color In Sight, which dove into the importance of the detail of color in design featuring top brands including Nike, OPI, Herman Miller, Pantone, and artists such as KidRobot and Frank Kozik, which was also featured at SxSW 2017. Language of Aroma was featured at a panel at SXSW 2019 in Austin Texas, March 10, which brought together several experts featured in the film over a panel session to discuss inclusive design and the language of aroma. Language of Aroma Events: SXSW 2019: Sunday March 10th Language of Aroma was selected for a panel at SXSW 2019 in Austin Texas, which brought together several experts featured in the film over a panel session to discuss inclusive design and the language of aroma. Location: JW Marriott, Austin TX, Time: 11:00am-12:00pm local time NYCxDesign: Thursday May 16, 2019 Events: Language of Aroma Part I: Making Sense of Scents: Experiencing Aroma Language of Aroma Part II: Making Sense of Scents: Explorations in Aroma with Cooper Hewitt, Microsoft & TEALEAVES Location: Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum 2 E 91st St, New York Time: Museum Hours, 10 am - 6 pm Los Angeles Design Festival: June 20-23 Time & Date: TBA Location: Row DTLA San Francisco Design Week: June 26 Time & Date: June 26, Time TBA Location: The Battery Seattle Design Festival: August 16-25, 2019 Time & Location: TBA Language of Aroma features the following experts of industry and academia: - Lana Sutherland, Co-founder and CEO, TEALEAVES - Dr. Rachel Herz, Adjunct Professor, Brown University - Eric Spangenberg, Dean of Paul Merage School of Business, University of California, Irvine - Margaret Price, Principal Design Strategist, Microsoft - Dr. Joerg Bohlmann, Professor and Distinguished Scholar at University of British Columbia and Michael Smith Laboratories - Nicolas Lambert, Executive Pastry Chef, Four Seasons Hotel Lion Palace St. Petersburg - Frederick Ammons, Winemaker, Rudd Oakville Estates Winery - Dawn Goldworm, Co-founder, Creative Director and In-house Nose at 12.29 - Saskia Wilson-Brown, Founder & Executive Director, Institute for Art and Olfaction - Wolfgang Georgsdorf, Multimedia Artist - David J. Peterson Language Creator, Game of Thrones - Laurie Pressman, Vice President, Pantone Color Institute - Robert Sulatycky, Head Coach, Bocuse D'Or Team USA Brand partners include: - Microsoft Design - Pantone - Bocuse D'Or Team USA - Brown University - Institute for Art and Olfaction - University of British Columbia Faculty of Science - University of California, Irvine - 12.29 - Rudd Oakville Estate - Four Seasons Hong Kong About TEALEAVES Established in 1994, TEALEAVES is one of the very few tea blenders in the world, known for crafting the highest quality teas in small batches by hand. TEALEAVES strives for perfection, driven by the never-ending quest to make the perfect cup of tea. With the philosophy of inspiring creativity and connections through the art of blending, TEALEAVES has gripped the hearts and minds five-star hotels and Michelin Star chefs, worldwide, as their tea brand of choice for over two decades. Sourcing ingredients from over 90 countries and keeping only 1% of the tea leaves presented to them from the world's highest grade gardens, TEALEAVES hopes to stay people's 'cup of tea' for generations to come, whether in a five-star environment or in the luxury of one's home. More information is available at TEALEAVES.com. About Microsoft Microsoft is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential. Microsoft Design is the pioneer of Inclusive Design in the technology industry. More information is available at TEALEAVES.com. Aroma adds color to your world. #LanguageOfAroma

The best of Broadway gathered at the Golden Theatre last night, October 6, to celebrate the arrival of Slave Play, the acclaimed new play by Jeremy O. Harris, directed by Robert O'Hara, opens tonight, October 6, at Broadway's Golden Theatre (252 West 45th Street). Broadway World was there for the big night and we're taking you to the red carpet below!

Wagner College Theatre kicks off the 2019-20 Mainstage Season with the Tony Award-winning EVITA, the international hit musical from Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber, with performances October 3-13 in the Main Hall Theatre.

AT THIS PERFORMANCEa?? celebrates its 16th anniversary and returns to The Green Room 42 featuring Standbys and Understudies from Moulin Rouge; Ain't Too Proud; Broadway Bounty Hunter; Frozen; Kiss Me, Kate; Be More Chill; Alice By Heart; School Of Rock; and Bandstand on Monday, October 7th at 7pm.

If you can imagine Rossini's IL BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA with all its comedy but without any of its great arias, you can begin to imagine why Sergei Prokofiev's LOVE FOR THREE ORANGES isn't only anyone's top-ten list of favorite operas. Yet Alessandro Talevi's wild-eyed production at Opera Philadelphia's O19 Festival somehow manages to make the audience laugh itself silly and tap its foot with glee at the famous march that was such a big hit in the composer's time, that he grew sick of it.