Thornton Wilder News

THEATER TALK celebrates the 50th Anniversary of Hello, Dolly! with a trio of guests, each with a different association with the long-running show. Actress Sondra Lee was the production's original Minnie Fay; Lee Roy Reams was Cornelius in the 1978 revival and directed the second revival in 1995; and dancer Marge Champion, married to the show's director-choreographer Gower Champion, was present at the show's creation. The 1964 mega-hit was a musical adaptation of Thornton Wilder's The Matchmaker, with a book by Michael Stewart, score by 26-year-old Jerry Herman and produced by the notorious David Merrick. The show's original cast included: Carol Channing, David Burns, Charles Nelson Reilly, Eileen Brennan and Ms. Lee. It ran for a record-breaking 2,844 performances from Jan. 15, 1964 to Dec. 27, 1970 and won 10 Tony Awards, a record it held for 35 years.

Red Bull Theater will present the 30th Anniversary Revival of Charles Ludlam's The Mystery of Irma Vep, starring Arnie Burton and Robert Sella, directed by Everett Quinton. The Mystery of Irma Vep will have scenic design by John Arnone, costume design by Ramona Ponce, lighting design by Peter West, and sound design by Brandon Wolcott.

Transport Group, the Drama Desk and OBIE award-winning theatre company, has announced that its acclaimed production of Almost, Maine, written by John Cariani and directed by Jack Cummings III, will be taped for the Theatre on Film and Tape Archive of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts on February 27. Almost, Maine opened February 4.

American Symphony Orchestra's 2014-2015 season explores Strauss's marriage music, posthumous discoveries, 20th century darkness, Mona Lisa the opera, and a special holiday presentation - the journey to 'Botsteinburg' continues...

Berkshire Theatre Group and Artistic Director/CEO, Kate Maguire have announced the Summer 2014 Theatre Season offering classic works coupled with contemporary plays.

Tony Award-winning Trinity Repertory Company, under the leadership of The Richard L. Bready Artistic Director Curt Columbus and Executive Director Michael Gennaro has announced their 2014-2015 season line-up of plays.

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 Harold Clurman Playwrights Division, a program of the Stella Adler Studio of Acting, has chosen actor/writer Dennis Staroselsky as it's Playwright-in-Residence for 2014. Previous residents include Halley Feiffer, Mia Chung, Anton Dudley, Christina Gorman, Zayd Dohrn, and Peter Nickowitz. Over seventy writers submitted applications and full-length plays for consideration in the merit-based annual search.

The Media Theatre has a 2014-15 Broadway Series season which mingles the old with the new--contemporary musicals which have a wide-ranging appeal and classics which demonstrate strong staying power.

The Brown University/Trinity Rep MFA Programs presents Thornton Wilder's profoundly philosophical and epic comedic-drama, The Skin of Our Teeth, directed by Taibi Magar (Brown/Trinity Rep MFA Programs '14). Propelling through time and place, the Antrobus family perseveres against an ice age, politics, and world war, only to discover that some things never change. A raw awakening to the depths of human survival, The Skin of our Teeth, exposes the meaning behind faith and the nature behind what it truly means to be a family. Performances run February 27 through March 9 in the Pell Chafee Performance Center, 87 Empire Street, Providence. General admission $12, and $6 for students and seniors. Tickets are on-sale now at the Trinity Rep box office, by phone (401) 351-4242, and online at www.trinityrep.com.

No matter what the groundhog said on February 2nd, February will kick start an early spring with shows of every variety setting up shop in Des Moines.

Bravo to Les Waters, the play's director and Actors Theatre's artistic head, who plunges in and finds the play's true essence, making it a moving, lingering, even haunting experience.

American Repertory Ballet will present revivals and world premieres at venues across the state - from Mahwah to Princeton - February through May, 2014. The spring season features two performances of Artistic Director Douglas Martin's acclaimed Romeo and Juliet, the world premiere of Douglas Martin's Firebird and the company premiere of Kirk Peterson's Afternoon of a Faun at McCarter Theatre, a world premiere choreographed by former Joffrey Ballet star Trinette Singleton, and American Repertory Ballet's Diamond Gala - celebrating 60 years since the founding of the organization in 1954.

JS: Robert Encila's company, Studio Connections, has become a respected force in the theatre landscape in southern Arizona. I asked him how theatre came to be his career.

Artistic Director Les Waters and Managing Director Jennifer Bielstein have announced that Actors Theatre continues its 50th Anniversary Season with Thornton Wilder's Our Town. Widely regarded as one of the finest plays ever written by an American, Our Town will be directed by Obie-award winning director Les Waters. The production, part of the Brown-Forman Series, will begin previews tonight, January 21, open on January 23 and run through February 9, 2014.

The Theatre @ Boston Court presents Se Llama Cristina, by Octavio Solis, directed by Robert Castro. This production is the final stop on the National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere, which included productions at The Magic Theater in San Francisco and Kitchen Dog in Dallas. Opening night is Saturday, January 25, 2014 on the Main Stage at Boston Court Performing Arts Center, 70 North Mentor Avenue.

Red Bull Theater presents the Off Broadway revival of Loot by Joe Orton. Red Bull Artistic Director Jesse Berger directs a company that includes Rebecca Brooksher (Fay), Eric Martin Brown (Meadows), Jarlath Conroy (McLeavy), Ryan Garbayo (Dennis), Rocco Sisto (Truscott), and Nick Westrate (Hal). Loot has scenic design by Narelle Sissons, costume design by Sara Jean Tosetti, lighting design by Scott Zielinski, and sound design by Brad Berridge. Opening Thursday January 16th, this limited engagement continues through February 9th only at Lucille Lortel Theater (121 Christopher Street).

The Public Theater will kick off the spring season of Public Forum Drama Club, a 'book club for plays' that will feature one-night-only readings and discussions of great works of dramatic literature. Curated by Jeremy McCarter, the popular Public Forum series presents the theater of ideas: conversations and performances with leading voices in politics, media, and the arts.

Ted Sod: Will you tell us about yourself? Where were you born and educated? When did you decide you wanted to direct?

The 2013/14 Kogod Cradle Series continues in the new year with the Helen Hayes Award-winning Commedia dell'Arte troupe Faction of Fools, who are bringing their devilish sense of humor and trademark masked comedy style to Thornton Wilder's classic Our Town. The following month, award-winning Resident Playwright Samuel D. Hunter (The Whale) invites audiences to join him for open workshops for two of the new plays created during his residency, Lewiston and Clarkston. In March, the six members of the inaugural Playwrights' Arena (Norman Allen, Randy Baker, Jacqueline E. Lawton, Heather McDonald, Danielle Mohlman and Shawn Northrip) will introduce selections from the six plays they have each been working on independently as part of their yearlong collaborative program. Our Town runs January 9-12, 2014, Lewiston and Clarkston run February 6-9, 2014 and Playwrights' Arena-A Weekend of New Work runs March 6-9, 2014 in the Arlene and Robert Kogod Cradle.