Rich Frank News

The cast of THE BOOK OF MORMON will sign copies of the show's Original Broadway Cast Recording from Ghostlight Records on Tuesday, May 17 at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre (230 West 49th Street).

East West Players (EWP), the nation's largest producing organization of Asian American artistic work and the longest-running professional theatre of color in the country, announces its 46th Anniversary Season of three new works and a seminal musical classic.

Artistic Director Gregory Boyd announced that the Alley Theatre's 65th Season beginning in September 2011 will include two world premieres, Elizabeth Egloff's epic play Ether Dome and Theresa Rebeck's black comedy What We're Up Against, (the latter in a rolling world premiere that includes theatres in San Francisco and Chicago), and the Outer Critics Circle Award-winning rock musical The Toxic Avenger by Joe DiPietro and David Bryan, winners of last year's Best Musical Tony Award for Memphis.

USA Network continues to expand its portfolio of character driven original series with 13 projects in development from industry heavyweights including Nathan Lane, Mark Gordon and Kara DioGuardi, plus Parkes/MacDonald Productions, it was announced today by Chris McCumber and Jeff Wachtel, co-presidents, USA.

Stage, film and television actress Ginnifer Goodwin ('Big Love', He's Just Not That Into You) will play Carnelle Scott in an industry reading of Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Beth Henley's comedy THE MISS FIRECRACKER CONTEST this Thursday, April 28th. Tony Award winning actress Judith Ivey directs.

FX has set its summer schedule with the return of two critically acclaimed original series and the premiere of a new original comedy. Wilfred, FX's newest original comedy, and the second season of Louie will premiere on Thursday, June 23 at 10:00 PM ET/PT and 10:30 PM ET/PT, respectively. Rescue Me returns for its final season on Tuesday, July 12 at 10:00 PM ET/PT.

THE PEARL THEATRE COMPANY (J.R. Sullivan, Artistic Director; Shira Beckerman, Managing Director) announces its 2011-2012 season at New York City Center Stage II with a four-play set spanning from the 1590s to the 1950s. With works by Eugène Ionesco, William Shakespeare, Bernard Shaw, and Eugene O'Neill, the 28th Season for The Pearl begins September 13, 2011 and concludes April 15, 2012. Subscriptions for the season are now on sale, while single tickets will become available beginning in August through CityTix® at New York City Center.

Ghostlight Records has confirmed the May 10th (digital and physical) release of the Original Broadway Cast Recording of Lincoln Center Theater's production of WOMEN ON THE VERGE OF A NERVOUS BREAKDOWN, featuring book by Jeffrey Lane, and music and lyrics by David Yazbek

The Drama Desk and Obie Award-winning Keen Company (Carl Forsman, Artistic Director/Wayne Kelton, Executive Director) today announced the cast for the 25th Anniversary production of Benefactors. Carl Forsman will direct a cast that includes Vivienne Benesch (appeared opposite Maggie Smith in the London revival of Edward Albee's The Lady from Dubuque; OBIE winner for Lee Blessing's Going to St. Ives), Daniel Jenkins (Love Child, Mary Poppins, Tony nominee for Big River), Deanne Lorette (La Bete), and Stephen Barker Turner (Rinne Groff's Compulsion opposite Mandy Patinkin).

GLAAD Media Award recipients were announced in 25 of this year's 32 media categories at the 22nd Annual GLAAD Media Awards presented nationally by RÖKK Vodka and locally by American Airlines and Prudential at the Marriott Marquis Times Square in New York on Saturday night. Additional awards will be presented in Los Angeles on April 10 at the Westin Bonaventure, and in San Francisco on May 14 at the San Francisco Marriott Marquis.

Rich has now written his farewell column for the New York Times, in which he looks back on his career at the paper as first the theatre critic and until now as an op-ed columnist. In it, he notes that 'Of all the things I've done at The Times, there may be none I'm prouder of than, in my critic's days, championing 'Sunday in the Park with George,' Stephen Sondheim's and James Lapine's 1984 musical about two artists in two different eras restless to create something new. For a quarter-century now, the show's climactic song has inspired countless people in all walks of life when the time has come to take a leap. 'Stop worrying where you're going,' the Sondheim lyric goes. 'Move on.'

Talking to Don Imus this morning, legendary New York Times writer (and soon to be New York Magazine writer) Frank Rich said 'There is no way to fix a show this far into previews, according to Broadway history... it's a fool's errand at this point, if you know, follow history.' That said however, he also revealed that he has not seen the show, which has been in previews for months, because 'life is too short.'

The Drama Desk and Obie Award-winning Keen Company (Carl Forsman, Artistic Director/Wayne Kelton, Executive Director) today announced the cast for the 25th Anniversary production of Benefactors. Carl Forsman will direct a cast that includes Vivienne Benesch (appeared opposite Maggie Smith in the London revival of Edward Albee's The Lady from Dubuque; OBIE winner for Lee Blessing's Going to St. Ives), Daniel Jenkins (Love Child, Mary Poppins, Tony nominee for Big River), Deanne Lorette (La Bete), and Stephen Barker Turner (Rinne Groff's Compulsion opposite Mandy Patinkin).

Due to the recent blast of snowy and icy weather, Civic Theatre of Allentown will delay performances of Lanford Wilson's Tony-nominated play, "Fifth of July," by one week. The show, which was previously scheduled to open on February 18, will now begin performances on Thursday, February 24 and will run through Saturday, March 5. Patrons holding tickets for cancelled performances are asked to contact the Civic Theatre Box Office at 610-432-8943 to receive tickets for a new date.

New York Magazine editor-in-chief Adam Moss announced today that Frank Rich will be joining the magazine, beginning in June. Rich will be an essayist for the magazine, writing monthly on politics and culture, and serve as an editor-at-large, editing a special monthly section anchored by his essay. He will also be a commentator on nymag.com, engaging in regular dialogues on the news of the week.

The Alliance Theatre Lab was founded by Adalberto Acevedo in 2001 as The Modern Stage. After three years of successful shows that included the South Florida premieres of Seascape with Sharks and Dancer by Don Nigro, Hellcab by Will Kern and Nocturne by Adam Rapp, the theatre took some time off to regroup, add new members, and refocus their mission statement. In 2005 the theatre resurfaced as The Alliance Theatre Lab, and went on to present critically acclaimed productions of Burn This by Lanford Wilson, Danny and the Deep Blue Sea by John Patrick Shanley, Sexual Perversity in Chicago by David Mamet and Orphans by Lyle Kessler. In 2009, The Alliance produced its first full season. Together, the new Alliance has refocused the company as an ensemble of theatre artists that focus on contemporary works that Provoke, Challenge and Engage the audience.

A haunting American classic, THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL marks the first Cleveland Play House production of a work by Pulitzer Prize- and Academy Award-winner Horton Foote, and the world-premiere performance of this play by an African-American cast. Receiving the blessing of Hallie Foote, daughter of the playwright, this co-production with Round House Theatre is helmed by Timothy Douglas and stars preeminent African-American actress Lizan Mitchell as Carrie Watts. THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL begins in the Drury Theatre at Cleveland Play House on Friday, February 4 and runs through Sunday, February 27, 2011. Tickets are available at Cleveland Play House box office by calling 216.795.7000 ext 4 or online at www.clevelandplayhouse.com. THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL is presented with support from US Bank, Turner Construction, Cuyahoga Arts and Culture, and the Ohio Arts Council.

Broadway's Will Chase will be tonight's guest star on the season finale of the USA network's Royal Pains. Chase will play MS patient Benjamin Richards, a Hamptonite hosting his annual MS Fundraiser, and looks to hire someone to launch his foundation's new philanthropic effort- a fleet of mobile medical clinics in developing nations. When Benjamin experiences symptoms associated with MS flare-ups, HankMed treats him and discovers something altogether different is effecting his health.

Due to the recent blast of snowy and icy weather, Civic Theatre of Allentown will delay performances of Lanford Wilson's Tony-nominated play, "Fifth of July," by one week. The show, which was previously scheduled to open on February 18, will now begin performances on Thursday, February 24 and will run through Saturday, March 5. Patrons holding tickets for cancelled performances are asked to contact the Civic Theatre Box Office at 610-432-8943 to receive tickets for a new date.

Lanford Wilson's Tony-nominated Fifth of July, called the "wisest and funniest play of its generation" by the New York Times, will make its Lehigh Valley debut when it opens in Civic's 19th Street Theatre on Friday, February 18th.