Sam Shepard News

There's a great moment in Cecil B. DeMille's gloriously overblown epic, The Ten Commandments, when Sir Cedric Hardwicke, playing Pharaoh Sethi, upon discovering that his beloved son Moses is really Hebrew, makes a proclamation that the name of Moses must be stricken from the history books, despite his many heroic accomplishments for Egypt, and that his name never be spoken again.  Moses, as far as Egypt was concerned, will have never existed.

Robert Patrick, that legendary pioneer of Gay Theatre, may spend most of his time on that other coast these days, but his heart always remains at a little storefront on Cornelia Street that once housed the birthplace of Off-Off Broadway, the Caffe Cino.  One of my first assignments for BroadwayWorld was an interview with that remarkably colorful playwright, where he shared vivid memories of that exciting time in American theatre when he and the likes of Sam Shepard, Lanford Wilson and John Guare enjoyed complete artistic freedom in seeing their early efforts staged.  Bernadette Peters starred in the original one-act version of Dames At Sea on the tiny Cino stage.

Magic Theatre announced that Steve Yockey's Octopus, a co-production with San Francisco's Encore Theatre Company, will replace the previously announced Wendy MacLeod's Birnham Woods as the sixth play of its 2007-08 Season of New Plays.

Evenstar Films (Jesus' Son) will present free staged readings of Des Moines, a new play by acclaimed author Denis Johnson, winner of the 2007 National Book Award for Tree of Smoke. Directed by Will Patton, it will be presented for five performances beginning February 26 at The Flea Theater.

Singer/Songwriter Amanda Green is set to join previously announced host Elaine Stritch as Theater for the New City honors award-winning playwright and longtime TNC supporter Edward Albee in celebration of his highly distinguished 50-year career with 'Love 'n' Courage' at National Arts Club on February 10.

The Screen Actors' Guild (SAG) Awards will be held at the Los Angeles Shrine Exposition Center, to be broadcast live on TNT and TBS at 8PM. Top winners included Kevin Kline, Ruby Dee, Queen Latifah, Julie Christine, 'No Country for Old Men,' 'The Sopranos,' '30 Rock,' and 'The Office.'

The West End production of Fiddler on the Roof will close February 16.

Cinna Productions is pleased to announce the World Premiere of Mark Twain's Blues, a new play with songs by Walt Stepp about a lecture by the famed author that's interrupted by the arrival of two of his most famous characters who accuse Twain of betrayal. Directed by Tom Herman with Music Direction by David Wolfson and Choreography by James Beaudry, the production runs from February 15 through March 8 with an opening scheduled for February 21 at Altered Stages.

Theater for the New City will hold its annual 'Love 'n' Courage' benefit hosted by Elaine Stritch, with guests including Edward Albee, Bill Irwin, Marian Seldes and Tammy Grimes on Sunday, February 10 at 6:30PM at the National Arts Club.

Expanding on its 50-year history of developing new plays and cultivating new voices for the American Theater, The Public Theater has announced the 12 members of the inaugural Emerging Writers Group, a new program launching next month that targets playwrights at the earliest stages in their careers and nurtures their artistic growth by providing necessary resources and support.

Magic Theatre continues its 2007-08 Season of New Plays with the world premiere of Edna O'Brien's Tir na nOg ('Land of Youth') performs February 23 - March 23, 2008 at Magic's Sam Shepard Theatre.

Francis Fisher and Paul Ben Victor, star in 'Sexy Laundry,' opening February 8 at the Hayworth Theater.

The nominations for the 14th Annual Screen Actors' Guild Awards were announced on Thursday, December 20 at the Silver Screen Theater, West Hollywood, CA.

Further casting has been announced for the two night only concert version of the smash hit London musical Jerry Springer The Opera which will play Carnegie Hall for two nights only on January 29 and 30, 2008. Joining Harvey Keitel are Max von Essen, Emily Skinner, Linda Balgord, Lawrence Clayton, Luke Grooms, Sean Jennes, Patricia Phillips, Sam Kitchin and Laura Shoop.

Magic Theatre announced a two-week extension for the critically-acclaimed world premiere production of The Crowd You're In With by Rebecca Gilman, directed by Amy Glazer with the closing performance on Saturday, December 22 at 8PM.

Additional events and participants were also announced today for Culture Project's ambitious 'A Question of Impeachment series,' which will gather the world's foremost thinkers, scholars and activists to explore the real case for impeaching Bush and Cheney.

Magic Theatre continues its 2007-08 Season of New Plays with a world premiere play by Pulitzer Prize-nominated playwright Rebecca Gilman, The Crowd You're In With directed by Gilman's long-time collaborator and Magic Theatre favorite Amy Glazer. The Crowd You're In With is a recipient of an Edgerton Foundation New American Plays Award and performs November 10 - December 9 at Magic's Sam Shepard Theatre

Academy Award nominated actor Harvey Keitel will star in the title role in Jerry Springer - The Opera in Concert. The smash hit musical and historic four-time winner of London's Best Musical prizes will play Carnegie Hall for two nights only on Tuesday, January 29 and Wednesday, January 30, 2008.

The New Group's world premiere of Things We Want by Jonathan Marc Sherman begins performances tonight October 22 at Theatre Row, directed by Ethan Hawke.

The Signature Theatre Company 2006-2007 season productions of August Wilson's Two Trains Running and King Hedley II have been nominated for 16 AUDELCO Awards, which recognize excellence in black theatre. The winners will be announced on November 19 at a ceremony held at Aaron Davis Hall.