Peter Johnson News

ENSEMBLE THEATRE COMPANY (ETC) presents the fourth show of its 40th Anniversary Season, the Southern California premiere of the stunning and wildly popular novel by Jonathan Safran Foer, EVERYTHING IS ILLUMINATED, adapted by Simon Block and directed by Jonathan Fox. EVERYTHING IS ILLUMINATED begins previews on Thursday, April 11, opens on Saturday, April 13 at 8:00pm, and runs through Sunday, April 28, 2019 at The New Vic, 33 W. Victoria Street in Santa Barbara.

ENSEMBLE THEATRE COMPANY (ETC) presents the fourth show of its 40th Anniversary Season, the Southern California premiere of the stunning and wildly popular novel by Jonathan Safran Foer, EVERYTHING IS ILLUMINATED, adapted by Simon Block and directed by Jonathan Fox.

There's always a buzz when Ballet Black take to the main stage, their popular programmes contrasting dramatic and playful storytelling in a lively showcase of powerful choreography.

Chanhassen Dinner Theatres (CDT) is decked for the holidays and offers twelve ways to celebrate the season in 2018. On the Main Stage is IRVING BERLIN'S HOLIDAY INN. This Chanhassen Dinner Theatres' 50th anniversary hit is a new staging that was reimagined for the Broadway stage in 2016 and is based on the classic 1942 film of the same title starring Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire. It celebrates seven holidays from Thanksgiving to the Fourth of July and is the quintessential season showstopper. With over 20 Irving Berlin classic tunes and 13 celebratory production numbers, guests will be delighted with this entertainment spectacular for all ages.

How do you "fix" the misogyny of Shakespeare's now antiquated THE TAMING OF THE SHREW? For playwright Amy Freed, it means injecting it with a noticeable dose of equality empowerment, and then shifting its characters' traits and motivations as if written from a female's perspective. That is the premise of South Coast Repertory's latest World Premiere production SHREW!-which continues performances in Costa Mesa through April 21. The results? A funny but flawed update with good intentions.

Playwright Amy Freed has always been a Shakespeare fan. Her breakout hit, The Beard of Avon (SCR-commissioned and premiered, 2001), was a smart, funny look at the controversy surrounding the authorship of Shakespeare's plays. Now comes SHREW! (March 24-April 21, Segerstrom Stage), in which Freed has re-imagined The Bard's play, The Taming of the Shrew, as a wickedly funny love story of two people who find their way to true, deep and mutual love. Art Manke directs SHREW!, which is an anchor production of the 2018 Pacific Playwrights Festival. Tickets are available at www.scr.org.

Trinity Repertory Company will open Karen Zacarias' Native Gardens in April. This hilarious comedy of being neighborly brings commentary on the American Dream, the racial divide, and what happens when we build fictional (and literal) fences.

The Winnipeg New Music Festival's (WNMF) unique relationship with Iceland its innovative composers and their uniquely evocative music has evolved over a number of seasons. This year is the 100th anniversary of an important milestone in Icelandic history: the Danish Icelandic Act, a pivotal point in Iceland's history and journey to independence. In celebration of that event, the 2018 Festival (running Jan. 27-Feb. 2, 2018) presents multiple world premieres by Icelandic composers including a major new work for orchestra and choir by Hilmar rn Hilmarsson on January 31.

Chicago Shakespeare Theater (CST) begins rehearsals for Short Shakespeare! A Midsummer Night's Dream a 75-minute abridgment of William Shakespeare's riotous tale of mismatched love among mischievous fairies, young lovers and an amateur theatrical troupe of local workers. Directed and adapted by Jess McLeod and featuring a power-packed ensemble cast, this production will bring the magic to life for 1,000 students each day in the innovative, new venue The Yard at Chicago Shakespeare during its six-week run. Short Shakespeare! A Midsummer Night's Dream will be performed for the public on Saturdays February 3 March 10, 2018 at 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.

CYMBELINE proves to be a technical and emotional success- Director Michael J. Arndt consistently produces above-university-level work which constantly challenges his student actors.

The Cape Dance Company, under the artistic direction of Debbie Turner, returns to Cape Town's Artscape Theatre in November 2017 with INTERPLAY. After a successful season at the National Arts Festival, the company is delighted to present this season comprising two programmes of works that reflect the diversity of the company and its broad repertoire.

The Oregon Shakespeare Festival invites audiences to "be our guest" for a Falstaffian romp through merry old Windsor; a heroic, Homeric journey home to Ithaka; and a revelatory musical journey of self-discovery when its outdoor theatre opens the weekend of June 16-18. The Allen Elizabethan Theatre will feature The Merry Wives of Windsor, directed by Dawn Monique Williams; The Odyssey, adapted and directed by Mary Zimmerman; and Disney's Beauty and the Beast, directed by Eric Tucker. Previews begin June 6, and all three shows will run through the weekend of October 13-15.

Grammy winning fingerpicker Pat Donohue's devotion to acoustic guitar has made him an American standard, as he echoes the tones of Robert Johnson, Blind Blake, Merle Travis or Muddy Waters.

The Oregon Shakespeare Festival will open William Shakespeare's Richard II, directed by Bill Rauch, on July 9 in the Thomas Theatre. Preview performances are offered July 5, 7 and 8. Due to popular demand, additional performances have been added on July 12, 27, Sept. 14, 27, October 18 and 25.

Road Less Traveled Productions (RLTP) presents its final production of the 2015-2016 season with the WNY premiere of FARRAGUT NORTH by Beau Willimon, opening Today April 29th. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!

Road Less Traveled Productions (RLTP) presents its final production of the 2015-2016 season with the WNY premiere of FARRAGUT NORTH by Beau Willimon, opening Friday April 29th. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!

Idly Bent presents the World Premiere of award winning Director-Playwright Reed Arnold's new play, ALL IS FAIR (or Oblivion Wrought), at the Dorie Theatre in Hollywood, CA, opening today, April 8th for eleven performances through Sunday, April 24, 2016.

Idly Bent presents the World Premiere of award winning Director-Playwright Reed Arnold's new play, ALL IS FAIR (or Oblivion Wrought), at the Dorie Theatre in Hollywood, CA, opening on Friday, April 8th for eleven performances through Sunday, April 24, 2016.

The Tony Award-winning Oregon Shakespeare Festival will launch its 81st year with preview performances beginning on February 19, and the season officially kicking off Friday night, February 26 in the Angus Bowmer Theatre with Shakespeare's Twelfth Night (director, Christopher Liam Moore).

Happy Holidays! It's the last week to vote for the 2015 BroadwayWorld Los Angeles Regional Awards! Check out the latest live stats as of December 18. Nominations were reader-submitted and after the nomination period ended, BroadwayWorld's local editors proofed the list for eligibility and errors. Voting runs through December 31!