The Players Theatre News

On Friday, February 20th, The Spotlight Cabaret will present an incredible cast of Broadway and Off-Broadway performers performing new music by Julia Meinwald. Everything is Nice features Manoel Felciano (Broadway's Sweeney Todd, Cabaret, and Jesus Christ Super Star), Nick Blaemire (Broadway's Cry Baby, Things to Ruin at the Zipper), Katrina Dideriksen (Hairspray Las Vegas, Jerry Springer: The Opera at Carnegie Hall), Lauren Worsham (Candide at City Opera, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Beer, Weston Playhouse's Light in the Piazza) and Dustin Sullivan (Reduced Shakespeare Company, Ann of Green Gables with TheatreWorks), with Liz Carbonell and Mary Ann Shaub.

Legendary Late Night TV personality Joe Franklin was always one to do things his own way. So why should his birthday be any different. This year Franklin will be celebrating his birthday - what he is calling his 39th birthday! - by attending an invitation only, industry reading of Charles Messina's new play 'A Room of My Own' at the Players Theater in Greenwich Village. The play is being presented by NahNotOutsideMyHouse! Productions Inc. in association with Shortened Attention Span and producer Al Messina.

Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU) and Back Stage will host the networking panel, Pitch Perfect: How to Present Your Projects (and What a Producer Should Be Looking For) on Wednesday, February 18 at 7:30pm at The Players Theatre, 115 MacDougal Street (below W. 3rd Street), NYC. Panelists include Michael Feingold, literary consultant for Theater for a New Audience, former literary manager of Yale Repertory Theater, and critic for The Village Voice; and Michael Nassar, producer, general manager and former associate artistic director of the O'Neill Center, dramaturge at The Public Theater, Manhattan Theatre Club and 7 Devils PW Conference.

Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU) presents the first WRITER-PRODUCER SPEED DATE on Sunday, March 1 at 5:30pm and 6:30pm at The Players Theatre, 115 MacDougal Street (below W. 3rd Street), NYC.

On Friday, February 20th, The Spotlight Cabaret will present an incredible cast of Broadway and Off-Broadway performers performing new music by Julia Meinwald. Everything is Nice features Manoel Felciano (Broadway's Sweeney Todd, Cabaret, and Jesus Christ Super Star), Nick Blaemire (Broadway's Cry Baby, Things to Ruin at the Zipper), Katrina Dideriksen (Hairspray Las Vegas, Jerry Springer: The Opera at Carnegie Hall), Lauren Worsham (Candide at City Opera, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Beer, Weston Playhouse's Light in the Piazza) and Dustin Sullivan (Reduced Shakespeare Company, Ann of Green Gables with TheatreWorks), with Liz Carbonell and Mary Ann Shaub.

OBERON THEATRE ENSEMBLE is pleased to announce Winter Rep 2009, celebrating the company?s 12th Anniversary Repertory Season. The company will be presenting William Shakespeare?s Much About Nothing in conjunction with the series called, American Rapture, which includes Hello Out There by William Saroyan and world premiere plays by Alex Dinelaris (nominated Lucile Lortel/Drama Desks).

Literally Alive Theatre's new musical, 'Treasure Island', with music by Michael Sgouros, book and lyrics by Brenda Bell, will open February 11th and run through May 10th at the Players Theatre located at 115 MacDougal Street (between West 3rd and Bleecker) in the West Village. The production, which is based on the classic novel written by Robert Louis Stevenson in 1883, celebrates courage, adventure, and as the character Dr. Livesey says 'the wisdom of youth'. The story follows the tale of Jim Hawkins, played Peter Pan-style by Meg Lanzarone, as a young lad whose life changes forever the day a mysterious old sea captain stubbles into his parents inn. Jim meets suspicious sea men including Black Dog and the blind man Pew, all of whom are after just one thing - the old captains treasure map!

Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU) and Back Stage will host the networking panel, Pitch Perfect: How to Present Your Projects (and What a Producer Should Be Looking For) on Wednesday, February 18 at 7:30pm at The Players Theatre, 115 MacDougal Street (below W. 3rd Street), NYC. Panelists include Michael Feingold, literary consultant for Theater for a New Audience, former literary manager of Yale Repertory Theater, and critic for The Village Voice; and Michael Nassar, producer, general manager and former associate artistic director of the O'Neill Center, dramaturge at The Public Theater, Manhattan Theatre Club and 7 Devils PW Conference.

The Clockwork Theatre is pleased to announce the cast for their upcoming production of CHERRY SMOKE by JAMES McMANUS (winner of the 2006 Princess Grace Playwriting Award), directed by JADE KING CARROLL. The title role of Cherry will be portrayed by MARIANNA McCLELLAN, with JAY ROHLOFF playing opposite her in the role of Fish. Mr. Rohloff, who serves as Clockwork's Artistic Director, was most recently seen in the company's revival of Caryl Churchill's A Number at Theatre Row in September, 2008, for which he received praise for portraying a man and two very unique clones of that man.

NahNotOutsideMyHouse! Productions Inc. in association with Shortened Attention Span Theater and Producer Al Messina is proud to announce the World Premiere Staged Reading of Charles Messina's new play A Room of My Own at the The Players Theatre Main Stage. A Room of My Own is a comedy set in the late 1970s and revolves around one wacky Italian-American family living in a small tenement apartment in Greenwich Village. Headed by a conniving, thieving matriarch, a gambling addicted patriarch, and an uncle with a secret that everyone knows, The Morelli Clan of Thompson Street is one outrageous bunch. Their struggles with debt, poverty and a Nun who they welcome into their lives is seen through the eyes of little 10 year old Carlo Morelli, a would-be writer, whose vocabulary consist mainly of four letter words. Playwright/Director Messina is best known for his work on the critically acclaimed, off-Broadway hits Mercury, about the life of rocker Freddie Mercury, and Cirque Jacqueline, about former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. He is also directing Richard Vetere's musical Be My Love, about the life of legendary tenor Mario Lanza, which is being produced by Sonny Grosso and Phil Ramone. The cast of A Room of My Own features Tony ?n Tina's Wedding stars Johnny Tammaro, Gina Ferranti, Chris DePierro, Gina Musumeci, and Carlo Rivieccio. Rounding out the stellar cast is Monica Arazi, who was last seen in John Guare's Cop Out and Talking Dog at The Gene Frankel Theater, and young John Barbieri, who starred in Messina's play Klepto last season at The Players.

Shortened Attention Span Theatre and Wide Eyed Productions are proud to present a special post-show Talk-Back with Martin Denton of nytheatre.com, following the January 25th, 3pm matinee performance of The Spin Cycle: 5 Plays by Jerrod Bogard. The Talk-Back will include playwright Jerrod Bogard and the directors of The Spin Cycle. The Spin Cycle will be performed Thursday through Saturday at 8pm with a special Sunday matinee performance on January 25th. Tickets for this and all performances can be purchased at www.TheaterMania.com, or call 212-352-3101. Tickets are $18.00.

As a disheartening number of shows are closing, Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU) opens up possibilities for tomorrow?s productions with an all-day intensive workshop about crucial aspects of raising money for theater on Saturday, January 24 from 10am?6pm at The Players Theatre, 115 MacDougal Street (below W. 3rd Street), NYC. It?s a tough economy, no doubt about it. All the more reason why people need support and the skills to go about the business of producing. Attendees will acquire basic tools and information that will help them to function effectively in these times and the better days that are surely ahead. From networking techniques to legal requirements and effective business planning, plus a wealth of first-hand experience from more than a half dozen producers who are currently active in the Broadway and off-Broadway worlds, TRU promises an informative, empowering and inspiring day.

As a disheartening number of shows are closing, Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU) opens up possibilities for tomorrow?s productions with an all-day intensive workshop about crucial aspects of raising money for theater on Saturday, January 24 from 10am?6pm at The Players Theatre, 115 MacDougal Street (below W. 3rd Street), NYC. It?s a tough economy, no doubt about it. All the more reason why people need support and the skills to go about the business of producing. Attendees will acquire basic tools and information that will help them to function effectively in these times and the better days that are surely ahead. From networking techniques to legal requirements and effective business planning, plus a wealth of first-hand experience from more than a half dozen producers who are currently active in the Broadway and off-Broadway worlds, TRU promises an informative, empowering and inspiring day.

As a disheartening number of shows are closing, Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU) opens up possibilities for tomorrow's productions with an all-day intensive workshop about crucial aspects of raising money for theater on Saturday, January 24 from 10am-6pm at The Players Theatre, 115 MacDougal Street (below W. 3rd Street), NYC.

OBERON THEATRE ENSEMBLE is pleased to announce Winter Rep 2009, celebrating the company?s 12th Anniversary Repertory Season. The company will be presenting William Shakespeare?s Much About Nothing in conjunction with the series called, American Rapture, which includes Hello Out There by William Saroyan and world premiere plays by Alex Dinelaris (nominated Lucile Lortel/Drama Desks).

Shortened Attention Span Theatre and Wide Eyed Productions are proud to present a special post-show Talk-Back with Martin Denton of nytheatre.com, following the January 25th, 3pm matinee performance of The Spin Cycle: 5 Plays by Jerrod Bogard. The Talk-Back will include playwright Jerrod Bogard and the directors of The Spin Cycle. The Spin Cycle will be performed Thursday through Saturday at 8pm with a special Sunday matinee performance on January 25th. Tickets for this and all performances can be purchased at www.TheaterMania.com, or call 212-352-3101. Tickets are $18.00.

The Players Theatre is proud to present two encore performances of Cirque Jacqueline, the revealing one-woman play about Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. Cirque Jacqueline is written and performed by Andrea Reese, and directed by Charles Messina. Performances take place December 18th and 19th, 2008 at 7:30pm. The Players Theatre Loft is located at 115 MacDougal Street (3rd Floor) between West 3rd St. & Minetta Lane in NYC. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased online at www.JackieOShow.com or by calling 1-866-811-4111.

Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU) and Back Stage will host the networking panel, How to Run That Theater Company That's Been Running Your Life, a follow-up to September's panel, on Wednesday, December 17 at 7:30pm at The Players Theatre, 115 MacDougal Street (below W. 3rd Street), NYC.

The Players Theatre is proud to present two encore performances of Cirque Jacqueline, the revealing one-woman play about Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. Cirque Jacqueline is written and performed by Andrea Reese, and directed by Charles Messina. Performances take place December 18th and 19th, 2008 at 7:30pm. The Players Theatre Loft is located at 115 MacDougal Street (3rd Floor) between West 3rd St. & Minetta Lane in NYC. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased online at http://www.JackieOShow.com or by calling 1-866-811-4111.

Shortened Attention Span Theatre and Wide Eyed Productions are joining forces this January to bring you The Spin Cycle, an evening of 5 one-act plays by Jerrod Bogard that will perform at the Players' Theatre Loft January 22nd through February 7th. The Spin Cycle will be performed Thursday through Saturday at 8pm. Special Sunday matinee performance on January 25th at 3pm. Tickets are available by calling 212-352-3101. Tickets are $18.00