BroadwayWorld is excited to report initial casting for The Public Theater's New York premiere of HEAD OF PASSES, written by Tarell Alvin McCraney and directed by Tina Landau. Phylicia Rashad returns to The Public to play 'Shelah' in this deeply moving new drama about family, acceptance, and the power of faith. Rashad last appeared at The Public in THE STORY by Tracey Scott Wilson in 2003. HEAD OF PASSES begins previews on Tuesday, March 15 in the Newman Theater with an official press opening on Monday, March 28.
Thus, we are happy to present the return of one our most popular features: The Nashville Theater Calendar, a comprehensive - maybe even exhaustive (lord knows we're exhausted from putting it together, gathering all the info from all over the interwebs!) - listing of theatrical openings for the 2015/16 season. We'll update the calendar every Monday, clearing out the shows that have closed and adding additional information on the shows still to come. Something's missing? That's an easy fix: just send us a message here, on Facebook, or by email at jeffreyellis37215@att.com.
Might I offer some perhaps unsolicited advice? If you are dreading the upcoming holidays - Thanksgiving is just under three weeks away and Christmas is fast on its heels - and the typical upheaval precipitated by a trip 'over the river and through the woods' into the bosom of your family's particular brand of dysfunction, perhaps taking in a performance of ACT 1's production of Tracy Letts' August: Osage County would help you to gain some much-needed perspective. Because, trust me, your family (no matter how off-the-rails they may be at any given moment) can only compare favorably to the extended Weston clan of Pawhuska, Oklahoma.
Leading the cast are three stage veterans who have been delighting local audiences for years: Debbie Kraski, Dietz Osborne and Layne Sasser, three names that are sure to attract the attention of theater-goers in the Nashville area. They agreed to take on our Friday Five questions in anticipation of tonight's opening, giving answers we feel certain will encourage you to go see them in their latest onstage adventure.
Halloween's all done in, there are still three weeks ahead before we officially give thanks, and Christmas - and all its accompanying frenzy and frivolity - is about seven weeks away! So what's there to do for all the theatrical types jonesing for a trip to make believe? Plenty! Theater companies all over middle Tennessee are showing off their best and brightest, with a number of eagerly anticipated shows opening this weekend and/or continuing from their earlier opening nights and next Tuesday there's a sparkling new Broadway musical swinging through Music City to entertain you…
Steppenwolf Theatre Company's world-renowned ensemble will join more than 600 members of Chicago's corporate, civic and cultural communities to celebrate 40 years of groundbreaking theater at Gala 2016 on Saturday, May 14, 2016 at Steppenwolf, 1650 N Halsted St. New this year, members of Steppenwolf's ensemble -- Artistic Director Anna D. Shapiro and her husband, ensemble member Ian Barford, as well as ensemble member Tracy Letts and his wife, actress Carrie Coon -- will co-chair the event alongside Board Chair Nora Daley and Sean Conroy, Caroline and Keating Crown and Liz and Eric Lefkofsky, bringing an exciting mix of artistic and board collaboration to the event.
Rehearsals are underway for Steppenwolf Theatre Company's Chicago premiere production of DOMESTICATED, a scandalously entertaining play written and directed by ensemble member Bruce Norris, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Clybourne Park, The Qualms and The Pain and The Itch. Featuring ensemble member Tom Irwin as publicly shamed politician Bill Pulver opposite venerable Chicago actress Mary Beth Fisher, who plays his wife, DOMESTICATED begins previews December 3, 2015 (press performances are December 12 at 3pm and December 15 at 7:30pm; opening night is December 13) and runs through February 7, 2016 in the Downstairs Theatre.
Sometimes it seems there is so much theater happening that it's difficult to keep track of it all. From personal experience, despite all the datebooks, smart phones, tablets, desktop computers and laptops...it's hard to keep everything straight in this wacky business of the show.
Hershey Felder as Irving Berlin will now begin performances tonight October 30th, 2015 in Felder's Chicago theatrical home, the Royal George Theatre , 1641 N. Halsted Street, Chicago
Steppenwolf Theatre Company presents the highly anticipated Chicago premiere production of Annie Baker's The Flick, winner of the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Directed by Dexter Bullard, the cast features Will Allan, Danny McCarthy, Caroline Neff and Travis Turner. The Flick runs February 4 - May 8, 2016 in the Upstairs Theatre. Tickets ($20 - $89) are now on sale through Audience Services (1650 N Halsted), 312-335-1650 or steppenwolf.org.
As previously reported, United Scenic Artists Local USA 829 recently started a campaign to nudge its members and constituents to speak out against The New York Times' recent decision to leave out the names of shows' designers when listing credits for theatre productions at the end of reviews.
Tracy Letts' acclaimed play about a dysfunctional family coming to terms with one another - August: Osage County - opens at Nashville's iconic Darkhorse Theater on November 6, directed by Bradley Moore and featuring a veritable who's who of Nashville actors. August: Osage County, running through November 21, is presented by ACT 1 as its second show of the 2015-16 season.
The Theatre School at DePaul University (John Culbert, Dean) is pleased to present The 2015 Awards for Excellence in the Arts gala on Monday, November 9, 2015, in the Atlantic Ballroom of the Radisson Blu Aqua Hotel. The Radisson Blu is located at 221 North Columbus Drive. The event will begin with a 6 PM cocktail reception, followed by dinner and program at 7 PM, and will conclude with a dessert reception.
Traubert Productions presents Tracy Letts' KILLER JOE at The Players' Ring in Portsmouth, NH. Performance dates are tonight, October 16 - November 1, 2015. Todays at 8pm. Saturday 10/17 and 10/24 at 8pm. Special Saturday 10/31 at 9pm after The Portsmouth Halloween Parade. Sunday 10/18 and 10/25 at 7pm. Sunday 11/1 at 3pm. Directed by Todd Hunter. The Players' Ring is located at 105 Marcy Street, near Prescott Park. Tickets are $15-cash or credit at the door or online at http://playersring.org/box-office/ . Phone reservations can be made at 603.436.8123.
Agnes is a tough, drug and booze-fueled, down-and-out bartender living in a seedy motel room somewhere in Oklahoma when her lesbian best friend brings a paranoid drifter named Peter over for a night of snorting, smoking and drinking. When Peter's conspiratorial stories begin to infiltrate Agnes's mind and convince her that their room is infested, their horrific love story quickly descends into a downward spiral of co-dependency, blood and bugs.
Rogue Machine presents the World Premiere of Ovation Award winning playwright Jonathan Caren's NEED TO KNOW, directed by Bart DeLorenzo and opening at 7pm Sunday, October 25, 2015.
Center Theatre Group presents 'Sandbox@CTG: An Open Conversation with Playwright Will Eno,' in the rehearsal room at the Kirk Douglas Theatre for a special one-night-only DouglasPlus event, Monday, November 2, 2015, at 8 p.m.
The Trap Door Theatre is set to present The Fairytale Lives of Russian Girls. The show opens October 15 and runs through November 21. For more information or to make reservations go to www.trapdoortheatre.com, or call 773-384-0494.
Traubert Productions presents Tracy Letts' KILLER JOE at The Players' Ring in Portsmouth, NH. Performance dates are October 16 - November 1, 2015. Fridays at 8pm. Saturday 10/17 and 10/24 at 8pm. Special Saturday 10/31 at 9pm after The Portsmouth Halloween Parade. Sunday 10/18 and 10/25 at 7pm. Sunday 11/1 at 3pm. Directed by Todd Hunter. The Players' Ring is located at 105 Marcy Street, near Prescott Park. Tickets are $15-cash or credit at the door or online at http://playersring.org/box-office/ . Phone reservations can be made at 603.436.8123.
