Studs Terkel News

See the full schedule of January and February events at Carnegie Hall below!

'Working: A Musical' is driven by the honest words of real people sharing why they work at what they do. The show is packed with with monologues and songs of people working various jobs put to music. The result of the varying talent of multiple composers sadly gives the show periodically draggy lyrics and music.

Arizona Opera's electrifying premiere of the new American opera Riders of the Purple Sage will be released for broadcast nationally on November 25, 2017.

From January 14-March 24, 2018, Carnegie Hall presents The '60s: The Years that Changed America, a citywide festival exploring the turbulent decade that was the 1960s through the lens of arts and culture, including music's role as a meaningful vehicle to inspire social change.

Chicago Danztheatre Ensemble has announced that they are a recipient of the MacArthur International Collaborations Fund, a $50,000 grant awarded in collaboration with Erica Mott Production and Ezzat Ezzat Contemporary Dance Company for The Mycelial Cycle.

From tonight, October 19, to November 19, Woodie King Jr.'s New Federal Theatre, in association with Castillo Theatre, will present the Off-Broadway debut of 'FREIGHT: the five incarnations of Abel Green' by Howard L. Craft, directed by Joseph Megel, starring J. Alphonse Nicholson, at Castillo Theater, 543 West 42nd Street.

Bobby Moresco is an Academy Award-winning writer, director and producer, hailing from Hell's Kitchen, New York. In 2007, Moresco received an Oscar for co-writing the feature film CRASH . Other features include, Academy Award-winner MILLION DOLLAR BABY and 10TH & WOLF , starring James Marsden, which was his directorial debut. Moresco's TV credits include EZ Streets , Falcone , and The Black Donnellys . He is currently producing WORKING at the Whitefire Theatre to play Thursdays October 12-November 9. by Steve Peterson

From October 19 to November 19, Woodie King Jr.'s New Federal Theatre, in association with Castillo Theatre, will present the Off-Broadway debut of 'FREIGHT: the five incarnations of Abel Green' by Howard L. Craft, directed by Joseph Megel, starring J. Alphonse Nicholson, at Castillo Theater, 543 West 42nd Street.

Villanova Theatre will kick off the 2017-2018 season with the iconic musical Godspell, directed by Philadelphia favorite Matt Pfeiffer, who took home the Barrymore Award for Best Direction of a Play two years in a row.

Arizona Opera's electrifying premiere of the new American opera Riders of the Purple Sage will be released for broadcast nationally on November 25, 2017.

We spend a large percentage of our lives working in some way or another. Whether someone works in a trade (Ironworker, Stonemason), an office (Project Manager, Receptionist), in the home, or anywhere in-between, working is something that is an integral part of who we are. For some, a person's profession drives their identity, and for others, a job is just something to pay the bills. In all cases, what we do all day and how we feel about what we do serves as a fascinating study, and one that author, Studs Terkel took on over 40 years ago in his 1974 book Working. In the book, Mr. Terkel interviewed over one hundred American workers of all professions (from Fireman to Hooker) and asked them to talk about their jobs. Soon after, Stephen Schwartz (WICKED, GODSPELL) and Nina Faso adapted the book and collected a stellar group of musicians, including James Taylor, Craig Carnelia and Mary Rodgers to help set some of those stories to music. Thus was born WORKING: A MUSICAL, which the Opera House Players in Broad Brook are performing as the opening show to their 2017-2018 season.

Villanova Theatre will kick off the 2017-2018 season with the iconic musical Godspell, directed by Philadelphia favorite Matt Pfeiffer, who took home the Barrymore Award for Best Direction of a Play two years in a row.

Carnegie Hall's 2017-2018 season is around the corner, and we are looking forward to a variety of exceptional programming and exciting new projects. Listed below are jazz, pop, and world music highlights for the coming season.

Opera House Players, Inc. proudly presents WORKING as its season opener September 8 through September 24th at the Broad Brook Opera House. WORKING is a musical based on the best-selling 1974 book of the same name by oral historian and radio commentator, Studs Terkel.  Told in a series of vignettes, WORKING gives a voice to the often-overlooked men and women of the American workforce. The personal stories and songs they share about what they do for a living and how they do it whether funny, wise, or challenging…are never less than inspirational. Nominated for six Tony Awards, this classic has been updated featuring new songs by HAMILTON creator Lin-Manuel Miranda, along with favorites by Stephen Schwartz (WICKED, PIPPIN), James Taylor, and more!

WORKING is the extraordinary genre-defining musical from Grammy and Academy Award-winner Stephen Schwartz (Wicked, Godspell) based on Studs Terkel's best-selling book of interviews with the American workforce: Working: People Talk About What They Do All Day and How They Feel About What They Do. The show has been adapted by Stephen Schwartz and Nina Faso, the creators of Godspell and Rags, with additional contributions by Gordon Greenberg.

With Wicked going strong across the world, and Hamilton a few months away from its much anticipated West End transfer, it seems like the perfect time for the European première of a reworked musical that features compositions from the pens of both Stephen Schwartz and Lin-Manuel Miranda, as well as many others. It continues Southwark Playhouse's varied season, hot on the heels of The Cardinal.

Directed by Luke Sheppard (In The Heights) the cast of Working includes Gillian Bevan (Teachers, Holby City), Dean Chisnall (Shrek, Blood Brothers), Krysten Cummings (Rent), Siubhan Harrison (Guys and Dolls), Peter Polycarpou (City of Angels, Miss Saigon, Oklahoma) and Liam Tamne (Rocky Horror, Les Miserables,The Phantom of the Opera). Completing the cast are rising stars Patrick Coulter, Nicola Espallardo, Izuka Hoyle, Luke Latchman, Huon Mackley and Kerri Norville, who are all making their professional debut. Check out a first look at the cast in action below!

Old Town School of Folk Music, with the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE), is pleased to announce a free, city-wide concert series, Soundtrack of the City, taking place June 8 - August 20, 2017.

Below, go inside rehearsal for the European Premiere of Stephen Schwartz's WORKING, which will run at the Southwark Playhouse from 2 June until 8 July with a National press night on 7 June!