South Coast Repertory News

Alley Theatre Artistic Director Gregory Boyd announces the cast and creative team for recent Tony Award-winning comedy Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike. Appearing in titles roles are Resident Actor Jeffrey Bean as Vanya, Sharon Lockwood returning to the Alley as Sonia, Alley Artist Josie de Guzman returning as Masha, and Resident Actor Jay Sullivan as Spike. Rounding out the cast and making their Alley debuts are Rachael Holmes as Cassandra and Sarah Nealis as Nina. Jonathan Moscone, Artistic Director of California Shakespeare Theater, helms the production and returns after having directed the Alley's 2011 production of Amadeus.

The manicured life of an actor-turned-politician and his impeccable wife is upset when relatives arrive at their Palm Springs home for the holidays - including daughter Brooke who's about to publish a tell-all memoir. caryn desai [sic] directs Jon Robin Baitz's Other Desert Cities, opening June 6 at International City Theatre in the Long Beach Performing Arts Center. Two low-priced previews take place on June 4 and June 5.

The heartwarming and hilarious one-man show, Snowflake, starring Gale LaJoye returns to Segerstrom Center for the Arts this weekend, April 26 & 27 in Samueli Theater.

Segerstrom Center for the Arts has announced its 2014 - 2015 Family Series. Eight shows will feature an array of talented international artists who will entertain and inspire families gathered for the spontaneous thrill and joy of live theater. Each performance will be preceded by an hour of free audience engagement activities themed to the show. Performances are in the Center's Samueli Theater unless otherwise noted.

Yoshiki, Asia's foremost rock icon and multi talented music superstar, will bring his new live show, Yoshiki Classical, to Segerstrom Center for the Arts for a special one-night-only concert tonight, April 25 at 8 p.m. in the Renee and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall.

International rock icon Yoshiki has announced three new concert dates across Asia to his highly anticipated Yoshiki Classical tour. X Japan's founder and leader will bring his first classical concert tour to Taipei, Taiwan, as well as, Tokyo and Osaka, Japan. The newly added concert dates follow Yoshiki's recently announced Bangkok, Thailand performance. Yoshiki, Asia's foremost rock icon and multi talented music superstar, will embark on the Yoshiki Classical tour at Segerstrom Center for the Arts tonight, April 25 at 8 p.m. in the Renee and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall before setting off across North America, Europe and Asia, culminating in Yoshiki's native Japan.

Experience something(s) new: Three world premiere productions and four new play readings during South Coast Repertory's 2014 Pacific Playwrights Festival this weekend, April 25-27.

Tanya Barfield's provocative drama The Call completes San Jose Repertory Theatre's 2014-2015 seven-show anniversary season in the sixth show slot (May 14 - June 7). This sensitive drama boldly tackles multi-racial adoption, identity and parenthood with razor sharp honesty and respect. When Annie and Peter decide to adopt a child they look toward Africa. But it isn't long before their anxiety over adoption and identity threaten their fantasies of parenthood in this powerful yet intimate look at the yearnings of motherhood, doubts and good intentions.

Today, South Coast Repertory announced the actors cast for four new-play readings as part of SCR's Pacific Playwrights Festival, which runs April 25-27. Single and packaged tickets are available online at www.scr.org.

The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts presents the West Coast premiere of A Coffin in Egypt, a new chamber opera in one act, based on the play, A Coffin in Egypt by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Horton Foote, for three performances only tonight, April 23 and April 25 and 27 in the Bram Goldsmith Theater.

Singer and songwriter Amos Lee will make his Segerstrom Center for the Arts debut on Wednesday, August 6 at 8 p.m. in the Renee and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall as part of the second leg of his 2014 Mountains of Sorrow, Rivers of Song Tour. His recent fall and winter headline tour included sold-out shows at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, ACL Live in Austin and the Beacon Theatre in New York City. Lee will be joined by band members, Freddie Berman, drums; Zach Djanikian, mandolin; Annie Clements, bass and vocals; Andy Keenan, guitar, banjo and vocals; and Jaron Olevsky, keyboards.

Jack and the Giant Beanstalk by Linda Daugherty, directed by Mercy Vasquez, will be presented by South Coast Repertory's Junior Players today, April 22-23 and April 29-30 in the Nicholas Studio. Tickets are $10 and available online at www.scr.org.

The New Group presents the New York premiere of Annapurna by Sharr White, directed by Bart DeLorenzo and featuring Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman, in a limited Off-Broadway engagement through June 1. Official Opening Night is tonight, April 21 at 7:00pm, at The New Group @ Theatre Row (The Acorn Theatre, 410 West 42nd Street).

Theatre Seven of Chicago and Stage Left Theatre announce the upcoming world premiere of Principal Principle, written by Theatre Seven Associate Artist Joe Zarrow and directed by Stage Left ensemble member Scott Bishop. Principal Principle is the third production of Stage Left's 32nd season and the second production of Theatre Seven's eighth season. Press opening is tonight, April 18th at 8:00 PM at Theater Wit, 1229 W Belmont. The production runs through May 18th.

Touching, richly-staged and beautifully-acted, REST---Samuel D. Hunter's oh-so-engrossing and oh-so-funny new play now having its world premiere at Costa Mesa's South Coast Repertory through April 27---presents a disheartening reality of life we all must face sooner or later: that getting older is, for the most part, no fun, especially as one enters the twilight phase of their time on the planet. While that description suggests an overtly sad story, what really hits you as a delightful surprise is the amount of wit and humor that it contains, even as the play's overarching dark themes are hovering.

American Theater Company announces a new partnership with The Araca Group (Broadway producers of Urinetown, Frankie and Johnny in the Claire de Lune, The Wedding Singer, Lend Me a Tenor, and A View From the Bridge, among others) in the development of new American plays in Chicago. The two organizations will partner to produce AracaWorks: Chicago, a weekend of readings of world premiere American plays from August 7-9, 2014 in Chicago. One of the three plays will receive a year of development, including a workshop production the following summer at ATC.

49TH Parallel in association the multi-award-winning NoHo Arts Center Ensemble (NoHo ACE), are thrilled to present the Los Angeles premiere of a new play, BE A GOOD LITTLE WIDOW, written by Bekah Brunstetter (OOHRAH!) and directed by Sara Botsford. BE A GOOD LITTLE WIDOW will preview tonight, April 17 at 8pm and will open on Friday, April 18 at 8pm and run for six weeks through Sunday, May 25, 2014 at the NoHo Arts Center, 11136 Magnolia Blvd. (at Lankershim) in North Hollywood.

Theatre Exile closes its 17th season with the Philadelphia premiere of Annapurna, a moving and explosive new play by critically acclaimed, emerging Broadway playwright Sharr White. Driven by the emotionally charged relationship between a husband and wife, Exile's production stars Barrymore Award-winning actors Pearce Bunting (Exile's A Behanding in Spokane, HBO's Boardwalk Empire) and Catharine Slusar (Iron, Any Given Monday) as Ulysses and Emma. Performances run today, April 17 - May 11 in Theatre Exile's South Philadelphia Studio X.

Having dazzled critics and audiences in the West Coast and Midwest, 'Four Clowns' (www.fourclowns.org), conceived and directed by Jeremy Aluma, makes its too-brief East Coast debut May 23 to June 1 in The Club at La MaMa. In a madcap evening, four foul-mouthed, wonderfully dressed and finely face-painted clowns--a sad one, an angry one, a nervous one and a mischevous one--re-enact iconic life experiences to show how human pain is both unique and universal. The Huffington Post called it 'a drama that focuses on the epic though squalid journey of our four heroes through childhood, adolescence and adulthood. The result is as sobering as the voyage is outlandish….daring and energetic, weird and wonderful.'

The Colony Theatre is thrilled to present Ian Buchanan and Mariette Hartley starring in THE LION IN WINTER, written by James Goldman and directed by Stephanie Vlahos. THE LION IN WINTER will preview tonight, April 16; Thursday, April 17; and Friday, April 18 at 8:00pm and will open on Saturday, April 19 at 8:00pm and continue through Sunday, May 18 at The Colony Theatre, 555 N. Third Street (at Cypress) adjacent to the Burbank Town Center Mall.