Willem Dafoe News

The Public Theater (Artistic Director Oskar Eustis; Executive Director Andrew D. Hamingson) will begin previews Tuesday, October 27 for the world premiere of IDIOT SAVANT, written, directed and designed by Richard Foreman.

The Toronto International Film Festival is pleased to announce the addition of 7 Gala Presentations and 12 Special Presentations to the programming lineup, which runs September 10 to 19, 2009.

The Toronto International Film Festival is pleased to announce the addition of 7 Gala Presentations and 12 Special Presentations to the programming lineup, which runs September 10 to 19, 2009.

The Public Theater (Artistic Director Oskar Eustis; Executive Director Andrew D. Hamingson) announced complete casting today for the world premiere of IDIOT SAVANT, written and directed by Richard Foreman. Presented in association with Ontological-Hysteric Theater, IDIOT SAVANT will begin previews Tuesday, October 27 and continue through Sunday, December 13 with an official press opening on Wednesday, November 4 at 8 p.m. Single tickets go on sale on Tuesday, September 15.

The Toronto International Film Festival is pleased to announce the addition of 7 Gala Presentations and 12 Special Presentations to the programming lineup, which runs September 10 to 19, 2009.

The Toronto International Film Festival is pleased to announce the addition of 7 Gala Presentations and 12 Special Presentations to the programming lineup, which runs September 10 to 19, 2009.

The Off-Broadway League, the official trade organization for Off-Broadway theatres, producers and productions, is proud to highlight its member shows for the upcoming Fall 2009 season in the vibrant diverse landscape of Off-Broadway theatre.

The Toronto International Film Festival is pleased to announce the addition of 7 Gala Presentations and 12 Special Presentations to the programming lineup, which runs September 10 to 19, 2009.

The Toronto International Film Festival is pleased to announce the addition of 7 Gala Presentations and 12 Special Presentations to the programming lineup, which runs September 10 to 19, 2009.

The Public Theater's Artistic Director Oskar Eustis and Executive Director Andrew D. Hamingson announced today that the 2009-2010 Season will feature premieres by Peter Sellars, Richard Foreman, Tarell Alvin McCraney, Mike Daisey, and Suzan-Lori Parks and include performances by John Ortiz, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Willem Dafoe.

Even as it announces a new season filled with hot plays and another show bound for Broadway, Berkeley Repertory Theatre concludes its current season with the world premiere of a smart and sassy script featuring favorite local artists: You, Nero, a new comedy written by Amy Freed and directed by Sharon Ott, rules the Thrust Stage this spring. Starring Danny Scheie as the preposterous emperor of ancient Rome, You, Nero begins previews on May 15, opens May 20, and closes June 28.

The Hairy Ape follows the saga of Yank, a maritime laborer who questions his place in society when branded as 'a filthy beast' by the rich daughter of a steel industrialist. In a series of eight scenes, O'Neill chronicles Yank's struggle with 'the human condition,' caught somewhere between his own primitive nature and the more intellectually based-and emotionally vacant-upper classes. Rejected by the bourgeois of Fifth Avenue as well as his fellow workers, Yank finally seeks solace from the only creature with whom he finds kinship: an ape in the Central Park Zoo. The Provincetown Players premiered The Hairy Ape, O'Neill's sixth play, in March 1922 under the direction of frequent O'Neill collaborator Robert Edmond Jones. That production, featuring Louis Wolheim's powerful performance as Yank, moved that April to Broadway's Plymouth Theatre. In 1944, a film version of the play featured William Bendix and in the ensuing decades the play has received dozens of notable revivals around the country; perhaps the most celebrated of these was The Wooster Group's 1996 production, featuring Willem Dafoe as Yank.

Two of Chicago's acclaimed off-Loop theater troupes join Goodman Theatre's 21st century exploration of Eugene O'Neill in February and March. The Hypocrites perform The Hairy Ape February 7-21, directed by Artistic Director and Founder Sean Graney, 'one of the most insightful directors now at work in Chicago' (Chicago Sun-Times), who transforms Goodman's three-tiered Owen Bruner Theatre into the various strata of an ocean liner. The Neo-Futurists, 'one of the most imaginative experimental theater ensembles in the country' (The Economist), perform Strange Interlude March 6-8, directed by Founder Greg Allen, in a production which unites audience and actors on the stage.

Two of Chicago's acclaimed off-Loop theater troupes join Goodman Theatre's 21st century exploration of Eugene O'Neill in February and March. The Hypocrites perform The Hairy Ape February 7-21, directed by Artistic Director and Founder Sean Graney, 'one of the most insightful directors now at work in Chicago' (Chicago Sun-Times), who transforms Goodman's three-tiered Owen Bruner Theatre into the various strata of an ocean liner. The Neo-Futurists, 'one of the most imaginative experimental theater ensembles in the country' (The Economist), perform Strange Interlude March 6-8, directed by Founder Greg Allen, in a production which unites audience and actors on the stage.

In her 13 years as artistic director of Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Sharon Ott led the company to new artistic heights, national prestige, and a well-deserved Tony Award. Now, after a 12-year absence, she returns with a gripping production of Fyodor Dostoevsky's classic Crime and Punishment. The scene of this Crime is Berkeley Rep's intimate Thrust Stage, where Ott earned her reputation as a dazzling director. The show begins previews on February 27, opens March 4, and closes March 29. Its executive producers are John and Helen Meyer and Richard H. Rubin and H. Marcia Smolens, with production sponsorship from the Bernard Osher Foundation. BART and Wells Fargo are the season sponsors for Berkeley Rep's 41st year of fearless theatre.

Goodman Theatre kicks off 2009 with one of the most groundbreaking theatrical events of the last 15 years: the Chicago premiere of The Wooster Group's (New York City) critically acclaimed 1993 production of The Emperor Jones by Eugene O'Neill. Directed by Elizabeth LeCompte, this provocative story of a delusional self-appointed West Indian emperor features Kate Valk reprising her 'riveting, haunting, altogether astonishing' (The New York Times) performance of the title role, joined by Ari Fliakos and Scott Shepherd.

Roundabout Theatre Company (Todd Haimes, Artistic Director) has announced that Tony® award winner Mary-Louise Parker (Hedda Gabler), Tony® award winner Michael Cerveris (Jorgen Tesman), Paul Sparks (Ejlert Lovborg) and Peter Stormare (Judge Brack) in a new Broadway production of Hedda Gabler by Henrik Ibsen. The production features a new adaptation by Christopher Shinn and will be directed by Ian Rickson.