Underbelly News

Houston, TX band Rainchild will be opening for the legendary David Allen Coe at the 18th St. Pier, Bar & Grill in San Leon, Texas on April 30th.

Oh, for the love of God, we get it, we get it: The superwomen – who might best be described as the superheroines of Nashville's theaterati and assorted non-stagey types – of SuperMAS love each other, admire each other's mad musical theater skills and get along as well as a bunch of Canadians trying to out-courteous one another! But just imagine how much fun it would be if the quintet of superior performers could somehow show us the seamy underbelly of their interactions and artistic collaborations, exposing us to the histrionics of the Real Housewives reality of their relationships…complete with overturned tables, repeated air kisses and trips to faraway lands where they redefine the term “ugly Americans.”

Great news tonight! Geffen Playhouse has just announced a starry cast for its world premiere production of BIG SKY, written by Pulitzer Prize finalist Alexandra Gersten-Vassilaros.

The Playwrights' Center and Jerome Foundation are pleased to announce the 2016-17 Jerome Fellows, Many Voices Fellows and Many Voices Mentees. The Jerome Fellowship for emerging playwrights is the Jerome Foundation's longest-awarded program, entering its 40th year. The Many Voices Fellowship was created in 1994 in partnership with the Jerome Foundation and significantly expanded in 2013.

Boundless Theatre Company will present the New York Premiere of Octavio Solis' PROSPECT, directed by Elena Araoz (Architecture of Becoming with Women's Project) at the 64E 4th Street Theater (64 East 4th Street between 2nd Avenue and Bowery), May 19-June 5 with performances on Thu 5/19, Wed 5/25, Thu 5/26 & Thu 6/2 at 7pm, Fri 5/20, Sat 5/21, Fri 5/27, Fri 6/3 & Sat 6/4 at 8pm, Sun 5/22 & 6/5 at 3pm, and Sat 6/4 at 2pm. Tickets ($18) are available online atwww.boundlesstheatre.org or by calling 212-868-4444. 

One of the more clearly visible technical aspects of a show for average theatre-goers is the set. What isn't quite as clear is just what goes into the creation of the world the characters inhabit in the play you are seeing. Set design, sometimes called scenic design, is the art of designing and creating the sets used in plays or movies. At times, designing can be as simple as arranging a few pieces of furniture on a stage. That type of set design is not what one things of, however, when one talks to set designer, Lisa Laratta, the subject of this edition of Tech Talk.

Shows are opening, shows are closing and Fiddler on the Roof is back onstage for Actors Pointe Theatre Company while Tom Sawyer takes a bow at Springhouse Theatre in Smyrna! Obviously, the 2016 theater season continues to reveal itself at a breakneck pace, giving audiences a veritable buffet of offerings from which to choose.

HOME is delighted to announce the return of ¡VIVA! Spanish & Latin American Festival for its 22nd edition across 18 days of films and events this April.

1972: The Future of Sex was born from The Wardrobe Ensemble reflecting on their own attitudes towards sex in 2015 and using the prism of their parents' generation to explore relationships. The production is set again the glittering backdrop of Ziggy Stardust's first appearance on TOTP, feminist literature and Deepthroat to tell the story of three intertwined couples having sex for the first time. The production previously won the Stage Award for Acting Excellence in 2015 and began its UK tour in Bristol at the Wardrobe Theatre earlier in March.

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.

As ID's first serialized docuseries, the six-part series THE VANISHING WOMEN will premiere on Monday, June 6 at 10/9.

The life experiences of all law enforcement agents and officers is one of great excitement, but Secret Service agents, due to the dual criminal and protective missions have some unique experiences that very few law enforcement agents get the opportunity to experience. In this explosive and entertaining memoir following 'Criminals & Presidents' (published by AuthorHouse), Tim Wood takes readers from the nasty, dirty streets of a crime filled big city to Pennsylvania Avenue and the glitz of the White House.

?GCT is proud to present one of Tennessee Williams' most popular plays.  A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE tells the story of fragile Southern belle, Blanche, who leaves the family plantation house and moves to New Orleans to live with her sister, Stella, and her animalistic husband, Stanley. Once there, she quickly gets a gritty life lesson in the steamy underbelly of 1940s French Quarter life.

On May 6th, 2016, Civic Theatre will open ASSASSINS, which will be produced in Civic's historic 19th Street Theatre and will run through Sunday, May 22nd.

Easter Monday - a group of Irish nationalists stage a rebellion against the ruling British government in Ireland in an attempt to establish an Irish Republic. Some 1,600 rebels seize prominent buildings in Dublin and clash with British troops on the streets of the capital. Within a week, the insurrection is suppressed and more than 2,000 people are dead or injured. The leaders of the rebellion are executed. A few years later an Irish Free State is established. Yet, over the following century the events of that week and their immediate aftermath have cast a long shadow over Ireland and continue to shape Anglo-Irish relations today.

Ahead of the full 2016 season announcement from Paines Plough, With A Little Bit Of Luck by Sabrina Mahfouz will begin a UK tour on 13 April at The Garage in Norwich. Part play and part gig With A Little Bit Of Luck is produced by Paines Plough and Latitude Festival and will tour to 29 venues across the UK. The tour will finish at London's iconic Roundhouse from 14 - 18 June as part of The Last Word Festival.

The 17th Havana Film Festival New York presents an exceptional program in celebration of the diversity of voices found today in Cuban and Latin American cinema and the inspirational stories they tell.

Behind the curtain of the big top, no one is laughing harder than the saddest clown of them all. Philadelphia Artists' Collective, in partnership with Philadelphia School of Circus Arts, presents the Philadelphia premiere of He Who Gets Slapped, from March 30 to April 16, 2016, at Broad Street Ministry (315 S. Broad Street).

On the heels of its season one finale, SHOWTIME has picked up the revelatory documentary series DARK NET for a second season.