Nell Benjamin News

On the heels of their record breaking production of LES MISERABLES, a new comedy with a very intriguing title opens Aurora Theatre's 2013-2014 Harvel Lab Series. Walter Cronkite is Dead, which runs September 19 - October 6, 2013. Get a first look at the cast below!

Dallas Theater Center launches its 2013-14 season with A Raisin in the Sun. Tre Garrett of Fort Worth's Jubilee Theatre will make his directorial debut at DTC with this Tony Award-winning play. A Raisin in the Sun begins with a Pay-What-You-Can performance tonight, September 13 and runs through Sunday, October 27 at the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre in the AT&T Performing Arts Center.

Arkansas Repertory Theatre (The Rep), the state's largest nonprofit professional theatre, has announced its 38th MainStage Season. The new season will include vibrant new artistic experiences that exemplify The Rep's mission of producing diverse work of the highest artistic standards for its Arkansas audience.

On the heels of their record breaking production of Les Miserables, a new comedy with a very intriguing title opens Aurora Theatre's 2013-2014 Harvel Lab Series. Walter Cronkite is Dead which runs September 19 - October 6, 2013.

Dallas Theater Center Artistic Director Kevin Moriarty is pleased to announce two new members of DTC's Diane and Hal Brierley Resident Acting Company - Daniel Duque-Estrada and Alex Organ.

Below, watch a sneak peek at rehearsals for 'Legally Blonde: The Musical' at Theatre Tulsa! Legally Blonde features music and lyrics by Nell Benjamin and Laurence O'Keefe and is based on the book by Heather Hach. The show will run Sept. 20-29, 2013 at Theatre Tulsa.

There's no mincing words here. If you've never seen LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL, you owe it to yourself to get to Midvale Main Street Theatre this week before its production of the show closes. It is the first, and at this point the only planned, non-student presentation of the musical in Utah, and there is little reason to believe there will be other opportunities to see it in the future. Thankfully, this production is more than worth the ticket price.

Dallas Theater Center has announced the regional premiere of Clybourne Park, running in rotating rep with A Raisin in the Sun, to launch the theater's 55th season. Clybourne Park will be directed by DTC Associate Artistic Director Joel Ferrell. Clybourne Park begins with a Pay-What-You-Can performance on Friday, October 4 and runs through Sunday, October 27 at the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre in the AT&T Performing Arts Center.

Dallas Theater Center launches its 2013-14 season with A Raisin in the Sun. Tre Garrett of Fort Worth's Jubilee Theatre will make his directorial debut at DTC with this Tony Award-winning play. A Raisin in the Sun begins with a Pay-What-You-Can performance on Friday, September 13 and runs through Sunday, October 27 at the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre in the AT&T Performing Arts Center.

I would like to take some time to introduce you to someone very special- someone many of you, if you are in the theatre profession, may already know....

Everything old is new again! Coming back to Goodspeed after seven years on the road has been wonderful. As I said before, it feels like coming home. Here at Goodspeed there have been a lot of changes; new housing being the biggest among them-- and the new housing is amazing! They all have central air, and private bathrooms with bathtubs. In my other house I shared a bathroom-but it had some old world charm to it. But having your own tub, can really make all the difference after a long day.

Hi there BWW readers!

Stages St. Louis continues their 2013 season with the musical adaptation of the 2001 Reese Witherspoon vehicle, LEGALLY BLONDE. It's a pleasant romantic comedy that, like a lot of modern musicals, pokes fun at itself, but it also features a positive message about believing in oneself. The clever compositions of Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin are a nice complement to Heather Hach's reworking of the screenplay (based on the novel by Amanda Brown). Together, they create a bubbly and enjoyable atmosphere that's as light and fluffy as a cloud, and Stages St. Louis follows that lead with a perfectly charming and delightful production.

The Connecticut Repertory Theatre (CRT) announces its 2013 - 2014 season which will include theatrical productions focused on the simplicity and beauty, as well as the awesome complexity, of love. For detailed information and tickets call the box office at 860-486-2113 or visit www.crt.uconn.edu.

BroadwayWorld.com, the largest theatre site on the Internet, is excited to announce a new feature to its comprehensive regional coverage - the Featured Regional Theater of the Week! Each week, BWW will introduce its readers to a regional theater located in one of our (over 130!) coverage cities. By exploring these different venues, their history and showcasing the production seasons, BWW continues its commitment to expand our presence in communities and cities across the United States. This Week's Featured Regional Theater: Bay Street Players at the Historic State Theatre in Eustis, FL

Manhattan Theatre Club's critically acclaimed production of THE EXPLORERS CLUB, the world premiere comedy by Tony Award nominee Nell Benjamin, directed by Marc Bruni, begins its final two weeks of performances tonight at 7 PM at MTC at New York City Center - Stage I (131 West 55th Street). The extended engagement will play its final performance on Sunday, August 4. On that date, the production will have played 26 preview performances and 54 regular performances.

Legally Blonde The Musical/book by Heather Hach/music & lyrics by Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin/directed by Tiffany Engen/Cabrillo Music Theatre/@ Fred Kavli Theatre, Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza/through July 28

Elle Woods is going to Harvard, and making her Thousand Oaks and regional professional debut as LEGALLY BLONDE: THE MUSICAL, takes the stage at the Civic Arts Plaza. This funny and heartwarming story of the college student who fights for her dignity, and finds herself along the way, has been turned from a popular movie into a bubbly and energetic Broadway show. Benefitting greatly from the original Broadway choreography of Tony Winner Jerry Mitchell (KINKY BOOTS, HAIRSPRAY), LEGALLY BLONDE: THE MUSICAL makes its regional professional premiere when it opens tonight, July 19th, 2013, and plays until Sunday, July 28th, at the 1,800-seat Kavli Theatre at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza, located at 2100 Thousand Oaks Boulevard in Thousand Oaks.

As BroadwayWorld previously announced, Because of Winn Dixie, with book and lyrics by Nell Benjamin and music by Duncan Sheik, and based on the popular 2000 novel by Kate DeCamillo, will have its word premiere this winter at Arkansas Repertory Theatre, with AVENUE Q's John Tartaglia at the helm. The production is set to run Dec. 6 - Dec. 29, 2013.

Based on the 2001 movie starring Reese Witherspoon, Legally Blonde: The Musical follows Elle Woods, a Southern California sorority girl who measures life in fashion and fun. Elle is unprepared when her "big man on campus" boyfriend, Warner, dumps her to head off to Harvard Law School. Elle decides she must do whatever it takes to win Warner back. Even if it means getting into Harvard. Along the way Elle discovers that she's more than a sorority girl and makes some fantastic friends along the way.