Susan Smith News

Previews begin tomorrow, today, March 20 for the Playwrights Horizons (Tim Sanford, Artistic Director; Leslie Marcus, Managing Director) world premiere of IOWA, a new musical play written by Susan Smith Blackburn Prize finalist Jenny Schwartz (God's Ear, Somewhere Fun), music by Todd Almond (Stage Kiss at PH, Kansas City Choir Boy, The Tempest, On the Levee) and lyrics by Mr. Almond and Ms. Schwartz. Directed by two-time Obie Award winner Ken Rus Schmoll (Red Dog Howls, Middletown, What Once We Felt; next season's Antlia Pneumatica at PH), the musical play will be the fifth production of the theater company's 2014/2015 Season.

Following critically acclaimed workshop presentations, McCasland's plays will return to NYC in a month-long festival celebrating the young playwright. Together with The Clarion Theatre, they'll present six plays beginning on May 6th, 2015, with a company of actors performing in repertory. All of the plays focus on historical figures, including Laurette Taylor, Billie Holiday, Tennessee Williams, Gertrude Stein, Lillian Hellman and more.

Olivier Award-winning playwright Katori Hall returns to Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater with the world premiere of her most personal project to date-the fierce comedy-drama The Blood Quilt. Hall is an inaugural resident playwright of Arena Stage's American Voices New Play Institute, and The Blood Quilt is one of three plays from Hall receiving world premieres around the country this season. Hall reunites with director and Howard University alumna Kamilah Forbes (artistic director of the Hip-Hop Theater Festival) following their Broadway collaboration on The Mountaintop. The Blood Quilt runs April 24-June 7, 2015 in the Kreeger Theater.

Lynne Meadow (Artistic Director) and Barry Grove (Executive Producer) just announced two productions for Manhattan Theatre Club's upcoming 2015-2016 theatrical season. MTC's Off-Broadway season at New York City Center (131 West 55th Street) will feature the American premiere of Incognito by Nick Payne, directed by Tony Award winner Doug Hughes and Important Hats of the Twentieth Century, the world premiere comedy by Nick Jones, directed by Moritz Von Stuelpnagel.

MCC THEATER has announced that the New York premiere of Jennifer Haley's The Nether directed by Anne Kaufman will receive the distinct honor of being filmed for the Theatre on Film and Tape Archive for the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center. The filming will take place during the Friday, March 20th performance. The Nether recently extended performances through Sunday, March 29, 2015. The production opened on Tuesday, February 24th at the Lucille Lortel Theatre (121 Christopher Street). For info and tickets, please visit www.mcctheater.org.

WAM Theatre has announced the line-up for its second season of Fresh Takes Staged Readings at No. Six Depot Roastery and Cafe in West Stockbridge. The first series last year sold out all five readings, and whetted the appetites of area audiences for more professional readings of plays that explore the lives and experiences of women and girls. Each reading is followed by a talkback with the actors and directors.

The League of Professional Theatre Women honored actor Kathleen Chalfant and four other female artists at its annual awards ceremony.

Hampstead Theatre's critically acclaimed production Di and Viv and Rose opened at the Vaudeville Theatre on 29 January 2015 and will now close early tonight 14 March 2015, according to the show's website.

Playwrights Horizons is now accepting entries for its popular LIVEforFIVE online lottery for up to two $5 tickets each to the world premiere of IOWA, a new musical play written by Susan Smith Blackburn Prize finalist Jenny Schwartz (God's Ear, Somewhere Fun), music by Todd Almond (Stage Kiss at PH, Kansas City Choir Boy, The Tempest, On the Levee) and lyrics by Mr. Almond and Ms. Schwartz. Directed by two-time Obie Award winner Ken Rus Schmoll (Red Dog Howls, Middletown, What Once We Felt; next season's just-announced Antlia Pneumatica by Anne Washburn at PH), the musical play will be the fifth production of the theater company's 2014/2015 Season.

Capital Stage continues its 10th Anniversary Season with the Sacramento Premiere of Pulitzer Prize Finalist RAPTURE, BLISTER, BURN by Gina Gionfriddo. Called 'A Shrewd, incisive, thoroughly winning comedy,' by The Boston Globe, RAPTURE, BLISTER, BURN marks the Capital Stage directorial debut of frequent Capital Stage collaborator Shannon Mahoney (MAPLE & VINE, CLYBOURNE PARK, ENRON). RAPTURE, BLISTER, BURN will run from tonight, March 11 through April 12, with a Press Opening on Saturday March 14, 2015.

YELLOW SOUND LABEL has released the Off-Broadway cast recording of the new musical The Memory Show today online via Amazon.com, Spotify and other digital outlets.

MCC THEATER has announced that the New York premiere of Jennifer Haley's The Nether directed by Anne Kaufman has now extended for a final time through Sunday, March 29, 2015.

Theatre Club has announced the lineup for this spring's Ernst C. Stiefel Reading Series.

San Francisco Playhouse (Bill English, Artistic Director; Susi Damilano, Producing Director) continues its sixth season of the Sandbox Series of new plays with the National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere of Lauren Yee's in a word. Giovanna Sardelli will direct.

The Martin E. Segal Theatre Center at the CUNY Graduate Center announces its Spring 2015 season of public programs. The Segal Center's 2015 Spring season offers ten new public events beginning on March 9 -- featuring contemporary theatre and performing artists from around the world -- including the annual three-day PEN World Voices International Play Festival, and retrospectives of the work of formidable American artists Lee Breur and Richard Foreman. All free.

Thanks to the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Brooklyn-based theatre company Colt Coeur (Dry Land by Ruby Rae Spiegel, Everything is Ours, by Nikole Beckwith) has commissioned playwright Amelia Roper to create an original play over the next year, with an eye towards production in the company's 2015-2016 season.

Steppenwolf Theatre Company Artistic Director Martha Lavey announced today the 2015/16 Subscription Season, which marks the company's 40th anniversary.

Tarragon Theatre and Volcano Theatre proudly present their co-production of the world premiere of Infinity, written by one of Canada's most prolific and acclaimed writers, 2014 Trillium Award winner and a Tarragon playwright-in-residence, Hannah Moscovitch. A shocking, funny and revelatory elegy to time and love, Infinity opens Wednesday April 1 and runs to Sunday May 3 (previewing from March 25) in Tarragon's Extraspace, directed by Volcano's Artistic Director Ross Manson.