William Hayes News

Palm Beach Dramaworks has announced that in celebration of the company's 20th anniversary, its popular Dramalogue: Talking Theatre! series is back, having been transformed into a weekly virtual program that can be seen every Friday evening from 7:30pm to 8:30pm.

Michael McKeever's The People Downstairs, commissioned by Palm Beach Dramaworks and scheduled to be the company's next world premiere, will be presented by The Dramaworkshop in two live, virtual readings on Wednesday, June 24, at 3pm and 7pm. Each reading will be followed by a virtual Q and A.

The adage a?oethe show must go ona?? has been a theatre credo since at least the mid-nineteenth century. But at this moment in time when shows, quite rightly, cannot go on, Palm Beach Dramaworks is ramping up its efforts to connect with its audience.

It was a starry night at the Kravis Center's Cohen Pavilion on January 25, with starbursts of lights on the walls, centerpieces of flowers with jutting stars and framed photos of famous child stars, and most important, starry-eyed burgeoning artists showcasing their talent before enthralled guests. That was the scene at Palm Beach Dramaworks' 2020 Gala: a?oeA Star is Born,a?? which celebrated an up-and-coming generation of gifted artists and highlighted the company's many education initiatives that nurture creativity and ignite the imagination. Marilyn Meyerhoff and Sam Feldman were the Gala Chairs. 

Palm Beach Dramaworks will celebrate its twentieth anniversary season by paying tribute to its past and stepping in to the future.

When television was in its infancy, few actors were as beloved as Gertrude Berg and few shows were as popular as The Goldbergs, the gentle comedy that she created, starred in, wrote, and produced. The program began on radio in 1929, and 20 years later became one of TV's earliest sitcoms. For her portrayal of Molly Goldberg, the matriarch of a Jewish family living in the Bronx, Berg was the first recipient of an Emmy Award for Best Actress.  

Five fascinating, evolving plays will receive readings by some of South Florida's finest actors from January 10-12, when The Dramaworkshop hosts Palm Beach Dramaworks' second annual New Year/New Plays Festival. A huge hit during its inaugural season, the Festival provides playwrights with the invaluable opportunity to hear their words performed in front of a live audience, which is instrumental to the development and growth of a play. Audiences not only share in the excitement of seeing something brand new, but have the chance to offer feedback to the playwrights.

Red Pill Players, a rising African American improv group in Atlanta, was announced as the second recipient of The Jamie Hawkins-Gaar Memorial Scholarship at Dad's Garage Theatre. The scholarship, dedicated to promoting diversity and inclusion within Atlanta's improv community, honors the life and legacy Jamie Hawkins-Gaar, who was an improviser and friend of Dad's Garage.

Palm Beach Dramaworks Producing Artistic Director William Hayes and GableStage Producing Artistic Director Joseph Adler are pleased to announce that their companies will be working together to co-produce the world premiere of Ordinary Americans, a play by Joseph McDonough based on actual events in the lives of Gertrude Berg and Philip Loeb, stars of television's groundbreaking sitcom,The Goldbergs, which premiered on CBS in 1949. As previously announced, Ordinary Americans will be staged at PBD from December 6 - 29, 2019. It will then move on to GableStage from January 18 - February 16, 2020. Hayes will direct, and South Florida favorite Elizabeth Dimon will star as Berg. The rest of the cast and artistic team will be announced at a later date.    

GableStage Producing Artistic Director Joseph Adler and Palm Beach Dramaworks Producing Artistic Director William Hayes are pleased to announce that their companies will be working together to co-produce the world premiere of Ordinary Americans, a play by Joseph McDonough based on actual events in the lives of Gertrude Berg and Philip Loeb, stars of television's groundbreaking sitcom, The Goldbergs, which premiered on CBS in 1949.

Palm Beach Dramaworks is delighted to announce that Michael Amico, the company's production manager and premier set designer, was honored by the Florida Professional Theatres Association (FPTA) with the Vic Award for being "one of Florida's most creative scenic designers" and in recognition of "his years of work in theatre production."

Fences, August Wilson's towering, Pulitzer Prize-winning drama about an embittered black man denied his dream and the soul-searing wounds he inflicts on his family, opens at Palm Beach Dramaworks on Friday, March 29 (8pm) at the Don & Ann Brown Theatre. Performances continue through April 21, with specially priced previews on March 27 and 28.

The sounds infusing the lobby of the Kravis Center's Cohen Pavilion on March 16 were voices from a bygone era, those that filled the airwaves when radio reigned and families gathered 'round to listen to all kinds of programs - not just music but mysteries, comedies, adventure stories, and police procedurals.

Fences, August Wilson's towering, Pulitzer Prize-winning drama about an embittered black man denied his dream and the soul-searing wounds he inflicts on his family, opens at Palm Beach Dramaworks on Friday, March 29 (8pm) at the Don & Ann Brown Theatre. Performances continue through April 21, with specially priced previews on March 27 and 28.

Fences, August Wilson's towering, Pulitzer Prize-winning drama about an embittered black man denied his dream and the soul-searing wounds he inflicts on his family, opens at Palm Beach Dramaworks on Friday, March 29 (8pm) at the Don & Ann Brown Theatre. Performances continue through April 21, with specially priced previews on March 27 and 28.

Palm Beach Dramaworks is delighted to announce its newest education initiative, The Academy@pbd, a summer program for teenagers that provides them with the opportunity to appear in a musical or play and also offers rigorous training in stage management and acting in a safe, positive environment.

The Spitfire Grill, a warm and uplifting show by James Valcq (book and music) and Fred Alley (book and lyrics) about starting over and second chances, forgiveness and redemption, becomes the first musical to be produced by Palm Beach Dramaworks as part of its subscription season. This internationally beloved work opens on February 1 and runs through February 24, with specially priced previews on January 30 and 31. Bruce Linser directs.

A world premiere and four popular, critically acclaimed works make up Palm Beach Dramaworks' 2019-2020 season, it was announced today by Producing Artistic Director William Hayes.

The new year is a time of new beginnings. Palm Beach Dramaworks will usher in 2019 with the introduction of a program that gives the general public a first look at plays so new, they're still evolving. The Dramaworkshop's first-ever New Year/New Plays Festival will take place over the weekend of January 4-6, when five plays will receive readings on PBD's mainstage. Saturday's program will also include a discussion, "Regional Theatre and the Development of New American Plays," featuring panelists of industry professionals from major organizations.

The new year is a time of new beginnings. Palm Beach Dramaworks will usher in 2019 with the introduction of a program that gives the general public a first look at plays so new, they're still evolving. The Dramaworkshop's first-ever New Year/New Plays Festival will take place over the weekend of January 4-6, when five plays will receive readings on PBD's mainstage. Saturday's program will also include a discussion, "Regional Theatre and the Development of New American Plays," featuring panelists of industry professionals from major organizations.