Aurora Theatre Company presents the Bay Area Premiere of WITTENBERG, David Davalos' audacious comedy about reason versus faith. Josh Costello (San Francisco Playhouse, Marin Theatre Company, Impact Theatre) directs this smarty-pants celebration of history, language, academia, and religion, featuring Dan Hiatt (The Arsonists), Elizabeth Carter (Trouble in Mind), Jeremy Kahn, and Michael Stevenson. WITTENBERG plays April 4 through May 4 at the Aurora Theatre in Berkeley. For tickets ($32-60) and information the public can call (510) 843-4822 or visit auroratheatre.org.
The internationally acclaimed L.A. Theatre Works is bringing its unique, hybrid radio theater-style production of The Graduate to the McCallum Theatre tonight, February 25 at 8:00 pm.
Ford's Theatre Society 2013-2014 season continues with the quirky Tony-winning musical comedy 'The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,' directed by Peter Flynn, March 14 through May 17, 2014, at Ford's Theatre (511 Tenth Street NW, Washington, D.C.). The production features a local Washington cast of Helen Hayes Award nominees as six awkward adolescents and their proctors, all working through a daunting and hilarious championship quest.
Performances begin tonight for Roundabout Theatre Company's third annual Roundabout Underground Reading Series. The actors involved in the series include: Pico Alexander, Fred Applegate, De'Adre Aziza, David Aaron Baker, Cassie Beck, Michael Chernus, Diane Davis, Dashiell Eaves, Ryan Eggold, Lisa Emery, Sue Jean Kim, Chad Kimball, Jessica Love, Lizbeth Mackay, Annie McNamara, Alex Mickiewicz, Aaron Clifton Moten, Olivia Oguma, Tonya Pinkins, Paul Pontrelli, Conrad Ricamora, Reg Rogers, Debra Jo Rupp, Campbell Scott and Max von Essen.
After an initial workshop showcase at the new St. James Theatre in London and recent reading at Ken Davenport Studios in New York, which featured Tony Award nominated actress Anita Gillette, 41N 50W makes a 10 performance UK premiere at Southampton's SeaCity Museum. This new play written by Robert Neal Marshall and produced by Baltimore TheatreWorks is being presented within walking distance from where TITANIC set sail in 1912. Performances run April 10th - 19th at 7:30pm. A special opening night event will celebrate SeaCity museum's 2nd birthday with a portion of the evening's proceeds donated to a maritime charity. The April 14th performance will be followed by a memorial service in remembrance of souls lost on TITANIC. The British Titanic Society will also host an invited performance of the play as part of their 2014 Convention.
Dragon's brand new 2nd Stages series launches in March. This new series will give local theatre makers the opportunity to fully produce their passion projects with the support of an established theatre company. This dynamic pairing will create an exciting new set of theatre options in downtown Redwood City.
The Garden Theatre will present the Central Florida Premiere of the gripping Broadway drama 33 Variations, March 14 - 30, 2014, with shows Fridays at 8pm, Saturdays at 2pm & 8pm, and Sundays at 2pm. In addition, an Industry Night performance will be offered Monday, March 24 at 8pm.
The Shakespeare Theatre Company is proud to present Buyer & Cellar as a part of its STC Presentation Series. Written by Jonathan Tolins and directed by Stephen Brackett, Buyer & Cellar will launch its North American tour in Chicago in May before coming to D.C. Buyer & Cellar had its world premiere in April 2013 at Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, where it received rave reviews and played a sold-out, extended run before transferring to the Barrow Street Theatre where it opened June 24, 2013. Buyer & Cellar stars Michael Urie (Ugly Betty) as a struggling (and recently fired) L.A. actor named Alex More, who finds himself taking an odd job working in the Malibu basement of a Hollywood mega-star (and though her name is not mentioned, there are numerous similarities to Barbara Streisand). When the A-lister makes a rare appearance one day, the comedy launches into an outrageous look at fame and the price that accompanies it. Buyer & Cellar will run from June 20-29, 2014, at STC's Sidney Harman Hall (610 F Street NW).
Berkshire Theatre Group and Artistic Director/CEO, Kate Maguire have announced the Summer 2014 Theatre Season offering classic works coupled with contemporary plays.
Gulfshore Playhouse will present the hilarious-whodunit-meets-screwball comedy, Ken Ludwig's The Game's Afoot tonight, February 21st through March 16th, with a $25 preview performance on February 20th.
Alley Theatre presents the world premiere of a new comedy by Theresa Rebeck, Fool. In Rebeck's new comedy, two kings get together and place a wager on their fools - a jester competition, and the funniest one gets to keep his head. Two evil minions have a lot to say about this, but not as much as the kitchen wench. And what's the queen been up to all night? A dramatical comical farcical tragical play about power, love and laughter, set in a medieval kitchen. Adult Language, Adult Situations, Beheadings.
The Brand Signature Series at Aurora Theatre continues with The Unauthorized Autobiography of Samantha Brown by New York's best young composers, Kait Kerrigan and Brain Lowdermilk. The show runs March 13 through April 6, 2014. Samantha Brown is a girl who has what every teenager wants: brains, a boyfriend, functional parents and an acceptance letter to the college of her choice. Yet she sits in her car with her bags packed and can't turn the key in the ignition. At the crossroads to adulthood, will Samantha come to terms with her parents' expectations, her first love, and a lost friendship and start the car, drive away and find freedom?
TheatreWorks, the nationally acclaimed theatre of Silicon Valley, presents ONCE ON THIS ISLAND from the Tony Award-winning creators of Ragtime. A timeless legend filled with joy, heartache, and adventure, ONCE ON THIS ISLAND, winner of the Oliver Award for Best New Musical, boasts a score pulsing with irresistible Caribbean beats by Tony Award-winner Stephen Flaherty, with book and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens. TheatreWorks Artistic Director Robert Kelley will direct this uplifting musical, which takes its story from a book by Rosa Guy, in turn inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's 'The Little Mermaid.' Choreographed by award-winning director, choreographer, and actor Gerry McIntyre, ONCE ON THIS ISLAND plays March 5-30, 2014 (press opening March 8) at TheatreWorks at the Lucie Stern Theatre in Palo Alto. For tickets and information the public may visit www.theatreworks.org or call (650) 463-1960.
Matthew Lopez's Somewhere, the captivating, dance-filled saga of a Puerto Rican family in 1959 New York City, springs to life April 3 to May 4 in its East Coast Premiere at Hartford Stage. By the author of the critically-acclaimed The Whipping Man, which garnered rave reviews at Hartford Stage in 2012, Somewhere will feature Priscilla Lopez (Morales in the original cast of A Chorus Line) and will be directed by Giovanna Sardelli, with original music by Tony Award winner Bill Sherman and choreography by Greg Graham.
Word for Word presents "36 Stories by Sam Shepard" arranged for the stage and directed by Amy Kossow opening with a press night on Saturday May 24 8pm, running through June 22 (previews May 21-23) at Z Space's second venue, Z Below, at 470 Florida Street. Last year the Magic Theatre spearheaded a multi-theater celebration of Shepard's 70th birthday when they opened their season with Shepard's Pulitzer Prize-winning 'Buried Child.' Other companies participating in the celebration have been Crowded Fire, American Conservatory Theater in collaboration with Intersection for the Arts/Campo Santo and Word for Word.
The Drama League (Gabriel Shanks, Executive Director; Roger T. Danforth, Artistic Director) has announced the ten artists and theater ensembles chosen to develop new plays and musicals as part of the 2014 Artist Residency Program. The development of these works, which include two 2014 Artists In Residence, Rachel Dickstein/Ripe Time and Jeremy Bloom/Rady&Bloom, will be held at The Drama League Theater Center (32 Avenue of the Americas) in Tribeca from March-July 2014.
The internationally acclaimed L.A. Theatre Works is bringing its unique, hybrid radio theater-style production of The Graduate to the McCallum Theatre on February 25 at 8:00 pm. The sly and witty coming-of-age story of a young and innocent college grad seduced by an older woman was a theatrical sensation when it premiered at the Gielgud Theatre in London's West End, then transferred to Broadway. LA based actor Brian Tichnell plays the slightly neurotic Benjamin Bratton in this critically acclaimed production. I had the opportunity to chat with Tichnell about the production. Here are a few excerpts from that conversation.
Some of my smartest Memphis Callboard colleagues put their heads together and made a list of ALL the local theatre companies in Memphis. Some are community efforts, others are professional, all contribute to making our ever-growing arts community so much fun!
The American Dream takes on a Latin Beat, as Cabrillo Music Theatre will present the regional professional premiers of this "new classic" - the multi-Tony-winning Best Musical of 2008, IN THE HEIGHTS. IN THE HEIGHTS fuses contemporary music with timeless family struggles, and its' warmth, humor and joyful message resonates with all ages. IN THE HEIGHTS opens on Friday, March 28, 2014, playing until Sunday, April 6th, at the 1,800-seat Kavli Theatre at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza, located at 2100 Thousand Oaks Boulevard in Thousand Oaks.