Richard Wright News

a?oeThis project wouldn't neatly fit into any of the niches I'm really familiar with in Boston theatre. Black actors are still discussing permission. How is permission granted? Who gives out the permission? I realized there is really no permission needed throughout this process.a??

a??a??a??a??a??a??a??The Drama League has announced the 2020 Drama League Awards Nominees for Outstanding Production of a Play, Outstanding Revival of a Play, Outstanding Production of a Musical, Outstanding Revival of a Musical, and the much- coveted Distinguished Performance Award.

Wynn Handman, the famed New York acting teacher and Artistic Director of The American Place Theatre, died at home April 11, 2020 of Covid-19 related pneumonia. He was 97.

American Blues Theater, under the continued leadership of Artistic Director Gwendolyn Whiteside, announces the lineup for its 2020-2021 Season, a?oeBreaking Boundariesa??. American Blues' 35th Season will include the Chicago Premiere of Airness by Chelsea Marcantel, directed by Gwendolyn Whiteside; the World Premiere of Alma by Benjamin Benne, directed by Ana Velazquez; August Wilson's Fences, directed by Monty Cole; the 19th annual production of It's a Wonderful Life: Live in Chicago! from Frank Capra's film, directed by Gwendolyn Whiteside and music directed by Michael Mahler. All performances in the 2020-2021 season will take place at Stage 773, located at 1225 W Belmont Ave, Chicago.

STXfilms has released the new trailer for BRAHMS: THE BOY II. Unaware of the terrifying history of Heelshire Mansion, a young family moves into a guest house on the estate where their young son soon makes an unsettling new friend, an eerily life-like doll he calls Brahms.

Unaware of the terrifying history of Heelshire Mansion, a young family moves into a guest house on the estate where their young son soon makes an unsettling new friend, an eerilylife-like doll he calls Brahms.

Dominique Morisseau's Pipeline, which continues Nashville Repertory Theatre's 35th season, is an emotionally driven work of contemporary eloquence and power, a play which audiences should experience in hopes of opening their eyes to the institutional prejudice and bias that exists in this country a?" whether we care to admit it or not. At least, that's the initial takeaway for theater-goers who are giving a cursory review of what they've just seen onstage at Tennessee Performing Arts Center's Andrew Johnson Theatre.

Playwright Dominique Morisseau is a gifted rising voice in the theater, recognized with a 2018 Macarthur 'Genius' Grant. Her straight play PIPELINE centers contemporary lives we see on stage too rarely: an anguished black mother trying to keep her teenage son safe, and her financially successful ex-husband, estranged from both of them. Because Morisseau drops us into both public and private school dilemmas for people of color, we gain insight into the deep inequities in our educational systems in this country, though this never feels like an 'issue play' for two reasons: there is no grasping for simple resolutions and the characters are so thoroughly imagined.

PlayMakers Repertory Company proudly opens its 2019/20 Mainstage season with Nambi E. Kelley's powerful and heart-stopping adaptation of Richard Wright's “Native Son”. Directed by Colette Robert, and featuring original music by G. Clausen, the production runs from September 11 to 29, 2019. 

About Face Theatre announces the addition of five new artists to the company's roster of Artistic Associates. Along with Artistic Director Megan Carney, the Artistic Associates represent the company's core artistic community whose creative focus helps shape About Face Theatre's theatrical productions and outreach.

The Acting Company (Founded by John Houseman and Margot Harley; Ian Belknap, Artistic Director; Elisa Spencer-Kaplan, Executive Director) today announced casting for the final reading in the 23rd John McDonald Salon Reading Series, Letters from Prison, a curated evening from adapter Dakin Matthews (To Kill a Mockingbird) that collects the original letters of acclaimed literary and historic figures to explore the nature of justice and imprisonment, from the Bible to the present day. The reading will take place on Tuesday, August 13 at 7 PM at the Duke on 42nd Street (229 W. 42nd Street, New York, NY). Tickets are available now online at www.theactingcompany.org or by phone at (212) 258-3111. The reading will be followed by a complimentary reception with the cast.

First Floor Theater announces their eighth season, featuring one world premiere and two Chicago premieres.First Floor Theater announce their eighth season, featuring one world premiere and two Chicago premieres.

The Acting Company has announced the 2019 Summer Repertory Season, along with complete casting and creative teams. Native Son and Measure for Measure will play July 14 through August 24, 2019 at the Duke on 42nd Street (229 W. 42nd Street), with opening night for both plays set for Sunday, July 28, 2019. Single tickets and subscription packages are on sale now.

The Acting Company (Founded by John Houseman and Margot Harley; Ian Belknap, Artistic Director; Elisa Spencer-Kaplan, Executive Director) announced casting today for the next reading in the 23rd John McDonald Salon Reading Series, Jessica Swale's Olivier Award-winning, music-filled comedy Nell Gwynn. The reading will take place on Monday, June 24 at 7 PM at the Mainstage Theater at Playwrights Horizons (416 W. 42nd Street, New York, NY). Tickets are available now online at www.theactingcompany.org.

The American Theatre Critics Association (ATCA) has selected three finalists for the Francesca Primus Prize, sponsored by ATCA and the Francesca Ronnie Primus Foundation. The award, presented annually since 1997, recognizes the best work by an emerging woman playwright who has not yet achieved national prominence.

The Acting Company announces the cast and creative teams for its 2019 Summer Repertory Season. Native Son and Measure for Measure will play July 14 through August 24, 2019 at the Duke on 42nd Street (229 W. 42nd Street), with opening night for both plays set for Sunday, July 28, 2019. Single tickets and subscription packages are on sale now.

The Acting Company (Founded by John Houseman and Margot Harley; Ian Belknap, Artistic Director; Elisa Spencer-Kaplan, Executive Director) announced casting today for the second reading in the 23rd John McDonald Salon Reading Series, Frederick Knott's classic thriller Wait Until Dark. The reading will take place on Monday, May 20 at 7 PM at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater at Playwrights Horizons (416 W. 42nd Street, New York, NY). Tickets are available now online at www.theactingcompany.org.

NATIVE SON, a novel written in 1940 by Richard Wright, tells the story of 20-year of Bigger Thomas, an African American youth living in utter poverty in a poor area on Chicago's South Side in 1939. While not apologizing for Bigger's crimes, Wright portrays a systemic inevitability behind them, making the case that there is no escape from his destiny since he is the inevitable product of the society in which he has lived since birth, faced by expectations imposed upon him by others tasked to teach him the proper way for a Black man to live in society. It is often said that those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. This is certainly the case in Wright's original story which could have been written today, given the similar news stories filling the airwaves right now involving police beatings of Black men and gun violence leading to senseless murders.