William Yanesh News

Adapted for family audiences from the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical, BIG RIVER: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn tells the story of Huck and his friend Jim, a slave, as they travel along the mighty Mississippi River. Huck tries to help Jim escape to freedom and reunite with his family.

Adapted for family audiences from the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical, BIG RIVER: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn tells the story of Huck and his friend Jim, a slave, as they travel along the mighty Mississippi River. Huck tries to help Jim escape to freedom and reunite with his family.

The 1985 Broadway season might have been one of the weakest on record for musicals; in fact, only three shows were nominated for Best Musical at the Tony Awards that year. We had an Ellie Greenwich jukebox musical (Leader of the Pack), one of Harold Prince's big budget disasters (Grind), and a musical based on Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Big River). Needless to say, at least in my opinion, Big River won the Tony Award for Best Musical and several other awards in part due to a lack of competition. Despite some catchy songs by Roger “King of the Road” Miller the show suffered, in my opinion anyhow, from there simply being too much of it. William Hauptman's book tried to focus on multiple stories as opposed to having Huck and his relationship with runaway slave Jim be the true heart.

Adventure Theatre MTC (ATMTC), recent recipient of a Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Play or Musical Adaptation, takes a mighty leap down the Mississippi River with Huckleberry Finn's Big River, revised from Tony Award winning musical Big River, adapted from the classic Mark Twain book. With the support of over 100 consensus organizers (individuals and organizations serving the black community), this revision uses the original music and lyrics by Roger Miller with new arrangements and orchestrations by William Yanesh. Additionally, this revision, expands the role of Jim, now the same age as Huckleberry, and removes offensive language.

Adventure Theatre MTC (ATMTC), recent recipient of a Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Play or Musical Adaptation, brings to the stage the world premiere musical, Blueberries for Sal, written by Washington, D.C. Helen Hayes Nominated playwrights Michael J. Bobbitt and Sandra Eskin and featuring new music and lyrics by William Yanesh (Caps for Sale, Winnie the Pooh). Celebrating the 70th anniversary of the book by Robert McCloskey, this female helmed musical is recommended for all ages and closes October 28, 2018.

Fats Domino once sang, 'I found my thrill, on Blueberry Hill.' He might have been channeling little Sal, the central character in Robert McCloskey's 1948 picture book, Blueberries for Sal. The book which in its almost 70 year existence, has been cited in many best of lists and was an award a Caldecott Honor in 1949. And finally, Adventure Theatre MTC has turned it into a delightful stage adaptation which is now playing through October 21, 2018 at Glen Echo Park.

Adventure Theatre MTC (ATMTC), recent recipient of a Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Play or Musical Adaptation, brings to the stage the world premiere musical, Blueberries for Sal, written by Washington, D.C. Helen Hayes Nominated playwrights Michael J. Bobbitt and Sandra Eskin and featuring new music and lyrics by William Yanesh (Caps for Sale). Celebrating the 70th anniversary of the book by Robert McCloskey, this female helmed musical is recommended for all ages and opens September 21, 2018. Tickets are $20 each and can be purchased online at www.adventuretheatre-mtc.org or by calling 301-634-2270.

Arena Stage announces casting for Cole Porter's madcap seafaring musical, Anything Goes

Signature's 29th season begins with record-breaking 29th Sondheim production!

Adventure Theatre MTC (ATMTC), recipient of 8 Helen Hayes awards, including its most recent win for Outstanding Original Play or Musical Adaptation, 2018, brings to the stage familiar friends, new and old, as they learn to navigate the world in its action-packed 67th season. A season of classic and beloved stories featuring the wonderful imaginations of children, this season promises to be one of Adventure Theatre MTC's biggest adventures yet.

It is always exciting when you sit in a theater to see the world premiere of a new musical. The Arena Stage's Kreeger Theater was a buzz in anticipation of SNOW CHILD which is a co-production with Alaska's Perseverance Theatre. Why Perseverance? Well, Arena Stage's Artistic Director Molly Smith actually grew up in Alaska, returned there after schooling and founded the Perseverance Theatre in Juneau. She served as Artistic Director there for 19 years before coming to Arena Stage. Four years ago, Smith and Perseverance Artistic Director Art Rotch discussed the idea for an adaptation for SNOW CHILD.

While the musical is not quite perfect, it's the strongest one I've seen this season in the DC area. I hope it has a future life beyond the production in Juneau later this year. It deserves it.

Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater announces the full cast and creative team for the world-premiere musical Snow Child, based on Eowyn Ivey's Pulitzer Prize-nominated novel. Infused with a score that combines Alaskan string band-traditions with contemporary musical theater, Snow Child follows a couple rebuilding their lives in the Alaskan wilderness when they meet a magical and mysterious snow child who transforms them.

We all have bad days; it's inevitable. Something happens to us every once in a while that turns our day from good to bad. However, nothing can top the day that twelve-year-old Alexander has in Adventure Theatre's latest offering, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.

Adventure Theatre MTC (ATMTC), recent recipient of three 2017 Helen Hayes Awards, brings to the stage the musical version of a day gone wrong in Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, directed by Cara Gabriel. Based on the popular book by Judith Viorst, this production is recommended for all ages and opens February 9, 2018. Tickets are $19.50 each and can be purchased online at www.adventuretheatre-mtc.org or by calling 301-634-2270.

What happens when the cr me de la cr me of the DC theater community come together to create a brand-new theater for young audiences musical at the Kennedy Center? The answer is theatrical magic, that's what.

Click below to go inside rehearsals and see the company perform 'Animals, Animals' from the world premiere Kennedy Center commission, Me... Jane: The Dreams & Adventures of Young Jane Goodall, a new musical based on Patrick McDonnell's Caldecott Honor Book!

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts presents a world premiere Kennedy Center commission, Me Jane: The Dreams & Adventures of Young Jane Goodall, a new musical based on Patrick McDonnell's Caldecott Honor Book.

Waltz right in to see Signature's Artistic Director Eric Schaeffer's stunning classic rendition on the musical A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC.

Following weeks of high demand, Signature Theatre is happy to announce that Jesus Christ Superstar will play for an added ninth week - an addition of seven performances between July 5 and July 9.