Robert Askins News

City Theatre Artistic Director Tracy Brigden has announced the full lineup for 2016-2017, the South Side company's 42nd Season.

Unicorn Theatre, under the artistic leadership of Producing Artistic Director Cynthia Levin, announces the 43rd season of thought-provoking new plays. The new season will open September 7, 2016 and include eight regular season shows. Subscriptions for the new season are on sale now. In addition to a full line up of new productions to Kansas City, the Unicorn will also continue the In-Progress New Play Reading Series, bringing scripts in development and under consideration for production in upcoming seasons before the public. More details on the season will follow this summer.

Lone Star Theatre Company will present THE POWER PLAYS: Six Plays about Strong Texas Women. The event includes six new one-act plays by Robert Askins Playwright Fellows Alan Charnock, Emily Comisar, Judith Leora, and Nilsa Reyna plus special guest playwrights Maxwell Martinez and Ryan Ramirez. 

The CHICAGO ONE-MINUTE PLAY FESTIVAL (#1MPF) returns with a twist: the sixth annual event will celebrate the works of all women and women-identified playwrights and directors.

Ensemble Studio Theatre (EST) and Page Seventy-Three Productions (Page 73) have announced complete casting for KENTUCKY, written by Leah Nanako Winkler, and directed by Morgan Gould.

Black Lab Theatre announced today that Crude, a new dark comedy by Jordan Jaffe, will play a strictly limited world premiere engagement at Theater 511 at Ars Nova (511 West 54th Street) for an Ars Nova Fling, as part of Black Lab Theatre's new play development program, 'The Pipeline."

After producing ten Main Stage shows in ten months to celebrate its tenth anniversary season, The Onyx has settled into a more comfortable groove.

The One-Minute Play Festival (1MPF) (Dominic D'Andrea, Producing Artistic Director & Caitlin Wees, Associate Producer) and Perseverance Theatre (Art Rotch, Artistic Director & Joshua Lowman, Anchorage General Manager) continue their dynamic partnership for The 3rd Annual Alaska One-minute Play Festival with part of the proceeds to benefit The Alaska Native Voices Project, dedicated to serving and uplifting native Alaskan artists.

Philadelphia Theatre Company has just announced its 2016/17 season, with four plays and one musical that showcase work by some of the most exciting and provocative playwrights in America.

Victory Gardens Theater, under the continued leadership of Artistic Director Chay Yew, announces the lineup for its 2016-2017 Season. Victory Gardens' 42nd Season will include the Chicago Premieres of Hand to God by Robert Askins, directed by Gary Griffin; Native Gardens by Karen Zacarias, directed by Marti Lyons; and the World Premieres of Roz and Ray by Karen Hartman, directed by Artistic Director Chay Yew; A Wonder in My Soul by Ensemble Playwright Marcus Gardley, directed by Artistic Director Chay Yew; and Queen by Madhuri Shekar, directed by Artistic Associate Joanie Schultz. The 42nd Season will also include a Bonus Series featuring the Chicago Premieres of Wrestling Jerusalem written and performed by Aaron Davidman, directed by Michael John Garces; St. Jude written and performed by Ensemble Playwright Luis Alfaro; and A Little Bit Not Normal written and performed by Arlene Malinowski.

Two powerhouse American musicals, THE SCOTTSBORO BOYS and THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY;  two acclaimed contemporary plays, GRAND CONCOURSE and SIGNIFICANT OTHER; and the riotous Broadway comedy HAND TO GOD will each enjoy their New England premiere as part of SpeakEasy Stage Company's 2016-2017 Season, the company's Founder and Producing Artistic Director Paul Daigneault announced today.

City Theatre Artistic Director Tracy Brigden has announced three plays of the six-show 2016-17 season. The South Side company's 42nd season includes a trio of exciting Pittsburgh premieres: Hand to God by Robert Askins, Feeding the Dragon written and performed by Sharon Washington, and The Royale by Marco Ramirez. 'I am really excited about next season at City Theatre where we have culled the hottest new plays for our Pittsburgh audience. Where else can you find a vivid new voice, a theatrical history lesson, and a rollicking and irreverent Broadway hit all at one theatre? Stay tuned for the next installment of three more new plays-coming soon!'

Judith Leora's SHOWPONY will receive it's first staged reading tonight for Lone Star Theatre Co as part of their on-going Texas Reads series. When a diverse group of women are randomly thrown together, they quickly realize that their cultural training has put them directly in opposition to each other, whether as workhorses, show-ponies or race-horses. Will they figure out how to get past their assigned roles and see each other as people? 

MCC Theater announced today that it will break ground on its first permanent home on March 22, 2016. Set to open in 2018, the space will unite MCC's diverse roster of programs under one roof for the first time in the company's three-decade history. The new facility will also allow MCC to expand its programming and establish it as a cultural anchor within the Clinton neighborhood. One of New York's leading nonprofit Off-Broadway companies, the institution fosters the dynamic exchange of ideas between artists, audiences, and young people through its productions of world, American, and New York premiere plays and musicals, a robust playwright development initiative, and one of the nation's leading arts education programs.

Phoenix Theatre of Indianapolis announces the Regional Premiere of HAND TO GOD opening June 16, 2016 on the Livia and Steve Russell Stage. This production runs through July 17, with Mark Routhier serving as director. Phoenix Theatre will produce the first U.S. production outside New York.

In this third year, PUBLIC STUDIO will present PRETTY HUNGER by Public Theater Emerging Writers Group alumna Patricia Ione Lloyd, directed by Martha Banta, running March 10 through March 19. The second show, TEENAGE DICK by Mike Lew, will be directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel and run March 24 through April 2.

Let's see what the critics had to say...

Robert Askins' Hand to God has been raking in the stars on Broadway, and now this controversial new play and its demonic hand puppet have swift footed over to hijack the Vaudeville Theatre, West End. There is no doubting this play is base, vulgar and utterly outrageous, but when the puppetry makes Avenue Q look like a nice show to take your grandma, then we're happy to switch gear for some laugh-out-loud silliness.

After its phenomenal run on and off Broadway, the critically acclaimed five times Tony Award nominated play HAND TO GOD (including Best New Play and Best Director) makes its way to London's West End officially opens at the Vaudeville Theatre tonight 15 February 2016.

After its phenomenal run on and off Broadway, the critically acclaimed five times Tony Award nominated play HAND TO GOD (including Best New Play and Best Director) is currently in previews in London's West End and will open at the Vaudeville Theatre on 15 February 2016. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!