Octavio Solis News

The Theatre @ Boston Court presents Se Llama Cristina, by Octavio Solis, directed by Robert Castro. This production is the final stop on the National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere, which included productions at The Magic Theater in San Francisco and Kitchen Dog in Dallas. Opening night is Saturday, January 25, 2014 on the Main Stage at Boston Court Performing Arts Center, 70 North Mentor Avenue.

Word for Word presents "36 Stories by Sam Shepard" arranged for the stage and directed by Amy Kossow opening with a press night on Saturday May 24 8pm, running through June 22 (previews May 21-23) at Z Space's second venue, Z Below, at 470 Florida Street. For this year-long celebration of Sam Shepard's 70th birthday, Magic Theatre spearheaded revivals of his most acclaimed works in theaters all across the Bay Area. "What sets "36 Stories by Sam Shepard" apart is that these are Shepherd's prose stories, turned into performance, the only completely new work created for the celebration..." remarks Word for Word co-artistic director Susan Harloe. "Word for Word was invited to create an original work by adapting his prose for the stage." Company member Amy Kossow spent a year sifting through five of Mr. Shepard's collections of short stories, eventually choosing to begin with a single story, set, simply enough, in a roadside diner. The resulting script, "36 Stories by Sam Shepard", weaves together tales of his beloved great American desert highways, the endless lonesome roads along which one may meet any type of fellow wanderer.

The Theatre @ Boston Court presents Se Llama Cristina, by Octavio Solis, directed by Robert Castro. This production is the final stop on the National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere, which included productions at The Magic Theater in San Francisco and Kitchen Dog in Dallas. Opening night is Saturday, January 25, 2014 on the Main Stage at Boston Court Performing Arts Center, 70 North Mentor Avenue.

Magic Theatre will welcome back Obie Award-winning playwright Taylor Mac with the world premiere of Hir. The production is directed by Niegel Smith and will run January 29 - February 23, 2014 at Magic Theatre, Fort Mason Center, Building D, 3rd Floor. Press Dates are February 6-9, 2014.

Marin Theatre Company, in association with Lorraine Hansberry Theatre, announces the casting of its spring production of August Wilson's Fences, directed by Derrick Sanders. Fences, which won the 1987 Pulitzer Prize and 1987 and 2010 Tony Awards, will feature veteran film and television actor Carl Lumbly as Troy Maxson, Steven Anthony Jones, the artistic director of Lorraine Hansberry Theatre, as Jim Bono and award-winning actor, playwright and director Margo Hall as Rose, as well as Oregon Shakespeare Festival's Eddy Ray Jackson as Cory, Adrian Roberts as Gabriel and Tyee Tilghman as Lyons. MTC's production of Fences will run from April 10 through May 4.

Magic Theatre welcomes award-winning playwright Victor Lodato and Obie Award-winning composer Polly Pen with the world premiere of their musical Arlington. This unique musical production runs tonight, November 13 - December 8, 2013.

Intersection for the Arts and the California Shakespeare Theater come together this fall to co-produce the Califas Festival, a six week-long immersive, story-filled play yard of music, visual art, performance, and more in the area in and around Intersection's headquarters. The Festival is the culminating event of the Califas Project, a year of multimedia creative exploration in communities around the state including productions of Richard Montoya's The River at Campo Santo this past March, and American Night at Cal Shakes in June.

Magic Theatre welcomes award-winning playwright Victor Lodato and Obie Award-winning composer Polly Pen with the world premiere of their musical Arlington. This unique musical production runs November 13 - December 8, 2013.

YALE REPERTORY THEATRE continues to support MARIE ANTOINETTE by David Adjmi, commissioned by Yale Rep, now in previews at Off-Broadway's Soho Rep.

The Theatre @ Boston Court announces its 2014 Season. The season begins January 26 with Se Llama Cristina, by Octavio Solis, a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere. The spring production is the World Premiere of Everything You Touch, by Sheila Callaghan, a Co-Production with Rattlestick Playwrights Theater. The summer brings a co-production with Circle X Theater Company on a West Coast PremiereStupid F*cking Bird, by Aaron Posner. The season closes in the fall with Samuel Beckett's Happy Days featuring Brooke Adams, directed by Andrei Belgrader. All productions will appear on the Main Stage at Boston Court Performing Arts Center, 70 North Mentor Avenue.

The National Pastime Theater will present the Chicago premiere of Octavio Solis' Pulitzer Prize nominated play 'Lydia' opening Friday, October 4 at 8pm.

Octavio Solis is a prolific Latin American playwright with over 20 plays and numerous awards to his credit, or so I'm told. His drama Bethlehem, now playing in San Antonio, won the 2002 Latino Playwriting Award, but after seeing the show (my first introduction to Solis's work), I'm not exactly sure why. His text is the glaring weak link of the production. While the cast is fantastic, the text is a jumbled, long, and puzzling mess that seems more concerned with creating an 'ew' factor than an entertainment factor.

To mark the the 20th Anniversary of both Word for Word and Z Space, the Word for Word Charter Members present 'In Friendship: Stories by Zona Gale', opening with a press night on Saturday August 17, 8pm and running through September 8 (previews today, August 14 -16) at Z Space's new second venue, Z Below, at 470 Florida Street.

Opens August 22nd and closes September 7th; shows are Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights at 8pm. Special byProxy events are: The Designer Reveal-August 19th 8pm; Thought/Talk-August 31st 10:30pm; and the Final Curtain Party-September 7th, 10:30pm. All events take place at the Overtime Theater at 1203 Camden St, SATX 78215. Free parking can be found on site. Tickets are $10-15 for general admission; cash/check/credit/debit accepted at the door; reservations and tickets available online. Please visit proxytheatre.org or call 210-807-8646 for reservations or questions.

The Kenneth Rainin Foundation recently awarded one of its four first-round Impact Grants to Magic Theatre, the Bay Area's original home for new plays and playwrights. Magic Theatre will use this three-year capacity building grant to support fund development, board development, and audience assessment. Magic Theatre's capacity building activities for the next three years will be supported by a grant of $150,000.

To mark the the 20th Anniversary of both Word for Word and Z Space, the Word for Word Charter Members present 'In Friendship: Stories by Zona Gale', opening with a press night on Saturday August 17, 8pm and running through September 8 (previews August 14 -16) at Z Space's new second venue, Z Below, at 470 Florida Street.

Sundance Institute today announced the seven projects selected to participate in the 2013 Theatre Lab, July 8-28 at the Sundance Resort in Utah. Under the supervision of Philip Himberg, Artistic Director, and Producing Director Christopher Hibma, the Theatre Lab is the centerpiece of the Sundance Institute's Theatre Program's year-round work and is designed to support emerging and established artists and to create a place where their original work can be effectively mentored and challenged.

Join Teatro Luna for a staged reading of You, Me & Tuno by Milta Ortiz, winner of the 2013 Diane Rodriguez Award for the Advancement of Latina Voices in Theatre. The reading will be directed by Jacob Padron and roduced by Alexandra Meda* today, May 11, 2013 at 2pm at Stage773, 1225 W. Belmont, Chicago, IL.

Join Teatro Luna for a staged reading of You, Me & Tuno by Milta Ortiz, winner of the 2013 Diane Rodriguez Award for the Advancement of Latina Voices in Theatre. The reading will be directed by Jacob Padron and roduced by Alexandra Meda* on Saturday, May 11, 2013 at 2pm at Stage773, 1225 W. Belmont, Chicago, IL.

Anderson Lawfer, artistic director of Strawdog Theatre Company's Hugen Hall, is proud to announce the world premiere of The Hunting Of The Snark, based on the poem by Lewis Carroll and directed by Josh Sobel, May 6 - May 28 at Strawdog Theatre Hugen Hall, 3829 North Broadway Street.