Women's Project News

Estelle Parsons, the legendary actress and star of Broadway's August: Osage County; Lucia Hwong Gordon, instrumentalist and composer; Susan K. Reed, editor-in-chief of O, The Oprah Magazine; and Susan Sobbott, President of American Express OPEN, will be declared Women of Achievement by Women's Project, America's oldest and largest stage company dedicated to producing theater created by women, at ceremonies Monday evening, March 2, in the grand ballroom of the Pierre Hotel, 2 East 61st Street at 5th Avenue.

24th Annual Women's Project 'Women of Achievement Awards' Gala to take place on 3/2/09 The Women's Project Theater is dedicated to producing and promoting theater created by women.

Emmy-nominated Paul Anthony Stewart stars as Raskolnikov in a gripping 90-minute adaptation of Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment at The Cleveland Play House. In addition to numerous New York and regional theatre roles, Stewart, who was nominated for his recurring role on 'Guiding Light,' recently appeared on Broadway in the revivals of Fiddler on the Roof and Cyrano - The Musical. Performed with only three actors, the adaptation of Crime and Punishment by Marilyn Campbell and Cut Columbus is being helmed by the acclaimed director of the 2005 Play House production of I Am My Own Wife, Anders Cato. Crime and Punishment begins in the Drury Theatre at The Cleveland Play House on Friday, February 27 and runs through Sunday, March 22, 2009. Tickets are on sale now at The Cleveland Play House box office by calling 216.795.7000 ext 4 or online at www.clevelandplayhouse.com. Crime and Punishment is presented in promotional partnership with National City and Baker & Hostetler.

Estelle Parsons, the legendary actress and star of Broadway's August: Osage County; Lucia Hwong Gordon, instrumentalist and composer; Susan K. Reed, editor-in-chief of O, The Oprah Magazine; and Susan Sobbott, President of American Express OPEN, will be declared Women of Achievement by Women's Project, America's oldest and largest stage company dedicated to producing theater created by women, at ceremonies Monday evening, March 2, in the grand ballroom of the Pierre Hotel, 2 East 61st Street at 5th Avenue.

McCarter Theatre Center announces the complete cast of William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, directed by Rebecca Taichman. A co-production with Washington, D.C.'s Shakespeare Theatre Company, Twelfth Night begins performances in the Matthews Theatre on Tuesday, March 10 and runs until March 29. (Press opening Friday, March 13). Shipwrecked in a foreign land without family, friends or possessions-what's a girl to do? Identity is under siege in the labyrinth of misconceptions that is Twelfth Night, Shakespeare's bewitching comedy of unquenchable desire, self-deception and misdirected love. This fantastical, timeless production-helmed by rising-star director Rebecca Taichman-is a real sensualist's delight: full of longing 'all as hungry as the sea' and awash in ethereal charm.

On Monday Evening, February 23 at 7:00 PM, six New York theater institutions will participate in a special panel discussion featuring five current and upcoming Off-Broadway shows. Harlem Stage (150 Convent Avenue at West 135th Street) will host producing companies Classical Theatre of Harlem, Manhattan Theatre Club, Playwrights Horizons, The Public Theater and Signature Theatre Company in an evening titled I'VE KNOWN RIVERS: A Conversation with Christina Anderson, Charles Fuller, Lynn Nottage & Liesl Tommy. The event marks a unique collaborative effort between six New York theater institutions: a panel discussion in which five gifted African-American theater artists - all of whom have projects happening almost simultaneously at five of New York's most respected non-profit theaters - will discuss their lives, work, and current projects. Moderated by actress Sabrina LeBeauf (Three Sisters, Classical Theatre of Harlem in partnership with Harlem Stage, February/March), the evening's four panelists will be Christina Anderson (author, Inked Baby, Playwrights Horizons, March/April), Charles Fuller (author, Zooman and the Sign, Signature Theatre Company, March/April), Lynn Nottage (author, Ruined, Manhattan Theater Club, January-March) and Liesl Tommy (director, The Good Negro, The Public Theater, March/April). The event title comes from a poem by Langston Hughes, 'The Negro Speaks of Rivers.'

On Monday Evening, February 23 at 7:00 PM, six New York theater institutions will participate in a special panel discussion featuring five current and upcoming Off-Broadway shows. Harlem Stage (150 Convent Avenue at West 135th Street) will host producing companies Classical Theatre of Harlem, Manhattan Theatre Club, Playwrights Horizons, The Public Theater and Signature Theatre Company in an evening titled I'VE KNOWN RIVERS: A Conversation with Christina Anderson, Charles Fuller, Lynn Nottage & Liesl Tommy.

24th Annual Women's Project 'Women of Achievement Awards' Gala to take place on 3/2/09 The Women's Project Theater is dedicated to producing and promoting theater created by women.

Bristol Riverside Theatre continues its America Rising: Voices of Today reading series with Zakiyyah Alexander's SICK?. This reading will take place Sunday, February 15 at 5 p.m. at St. James Parish Hall, 225 Walnut Street in Bristol. Subscriptions are $45, $40 for BRT members, and individual reading tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students. Tickets include entertainment and a soul food dinner. Conceived, produced and directed by Artistic Associate Adam Goldstein, the America Rising: Voices of Today staged reading series is a celebration of culture and language. Presented in partnership with Temple University's MFA graduate acting program, the series opens the door to the hottest new voices of the American theatre.

The Men's Auxiliary of Women's Project theater company will hold its Valentine's Day Bake Sale Saturday, February 14, from 5:30 to 7:30 pm followed by a performance of Virginia Woolf's only play, Freshwater directed by Anne Bogart, at Women's Project, 424 West 55th Street. 'Men know that the way to reach a women's heart is through her stomach. We have found a new way for men with a talent for the palate to participate in the development of Women's Project,' said Producing Artistic Director Julie Crosby, who volunteered her own significant other to head the Men's Auxiliary. 'The Men's Auxiliary Valentine's Day Bake Sale will put our men's skills to the test. We will also vote to see which guy delivers the tastiest sweets and award prizes to the men with the best goods.'

24th Annual Women's Project 'Women of Achievement Awards' Gala to take place on 3/2/09 The Women's Project Theater is dedicated to producing and promoting theater created by women.

Yale Repertory Theatre (James Bundy, Artistic Director; Victoria Nolan, Managing Director) presents the east coast premiere of Lydia by Octavio Solis, directed by Juliette Carrillo at Yale Repertory Theatre (1120 Chapel Street, at York Street) beginning February 6 through February 28. Opening Night is Thursday, February 12. Lydia features music composed by Chris Webb; sets by Andrew Boyce; costumes by Amanda Seymour; lighting by Jesse Belsky; sound design, additional music, and arrangements by David Molina; voice and dialect by Beth McGuire; fight direction by Rick Sordelet; dramaturgy by Matt Cornish; and stage management by Donald E. Claxon.

YALE REPERTORY THEATRE (James Bundy, Artistic Director; Victoria Nolan, Managing Director) presents the east coast premiere of LYDIA by OCTAVIO SOLIS, directed by JULIETTE CARRILLO at Yale Repertory Theatre (1120 Chapel Street, at York Street) beginning February 6 through February 28. Opening Night is Thursday, February 12. LYDIA features music composed by Chris Webb; sets by Andrew Boyce; costumes by Amanda Seymour; lighting by Jesse Belsky; sound design, additional music, and arrangements by David Molina; voice and dialect by Beth McGuire; fight direction by Rick Sordelet; dramaturgy by Matt Cornish; and stage management by Donald E. Claxon. The cast of LYDIA includes Carlo Alb?n, Christian Barillas, Stephanie Beatriz, Armando Dur?n, Catalina Maynard, Onahoua Rodriguez, and Tony Sancho.

Bristol Riverside Theatre continues its America Rising: Voices of Today reading series with Zakiyyah Alexander's SICK?. This reading will take place Sunday, February 15 at 5 p.m. at St. James Parish Hall, 225 Walnut Street in Bristol. Subscriptions are $45, $40 for BRT members, and individual reading tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students. Tickets include entertainment and a soul food dinner. Conceived, produced and directed by Artistic Associate Adam Goldstein, the America Rising: Voices of Today staged reading series is a celebration of culture and language. Presented in partnership with Temple University's MFA graduate acting program, the series opens the door to the hottest new voices of the American theatre.

Emmy-nominated Paul Anthony Stewart stars as Raskolnikov in a gripping 90-minute adaptation of Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment at The Cleveland Play House. In addition to numerous New York and regional theatre roles, Stewart, who was nominated for his recurring role on 'Guiding Light,' recently appeared on Broadway in the revivals of Fiddler on the Roof and Cyrano - The Musical. Performed with only three actors, the adaptation of Crime and Punishment by Marilyn Campbell and Cut Columbus is being helmed by the acclaimed director of the 2005 Play House production of I Am My Own Wife, Anders Cato. Crime and Punishment begins in the Drury Theatre at The Cleveland Play House on Friday, February 27 and runs through Sunday, March 22, 2009. Tickets are on sale now at The Cleveland Play House box office by calling 216.795.7000 ext 4 or online at www.clevelandplayhouse.com. Crime and Punishment is presented in promotional partnership with National City and Baker & Hostetler.

Playwrights Horizons, under the leadership of Artistic Director Tim Sanford and Managing Director Leslie Marcus, has announced additional casting and complete details for the World Premiere of INKED BABY, a new play by 2007 Susan Smith Blackburn nominee Christina Anderson in her Off-Broadway playwriting debut. Directed by Kate Whoriskey (Fabulation at Playwrights Horizons, the current Ruined at MTC), the production will begin previews on Thursday, March 5, 2009 with an Opening Night set for Monday, March 23 at 7PM. The limited engagement will run through Sunday, April 5 at Playwrights Horizons' Peter Jay Sharp Theater (416 West 42nd Street).

Legendary designers WILLIAM IVEY LONG and BOB CROWLEY are among the four recipients of the 2009 TDF/Irene Sharaff Awards. Five-time Tony Award winning costume designer William Ivey Long will receive the 2009 TDF/Irene Sharaff Lifetime Achievement Award for theatrical costume design, and, for his achievements as both a costume and scenic designer, Bob Crowley (also a five-time Tony Award winner) will receive the TDF/Irene Sharaff Awards' special Robert L. B. Tobin Award for Lifetime Achievement in Theatrical Design at a ceremony on Friday, March 27, at the Hudson Theatre in New York City.

Berkeley Repertory Theatre greets the new year by proudly presenting its 50th world premiere, a new comedy about marriage, intimacy, and electricity from the creators of Eurydice. Celebrated playwright Sarah Ruhl and Obie Award-winning director Les Waters come together again for the debut of In the Next Room (or the vibrator play). Commissioned by Berkeley Rep and staged in the state-of-the-art Roda Theatre, this hotly anticipated play begins previews on January 30, opens February 4, and closes March 15. BART and Wells Fargo serve as season sponsors for Berkeley Rep's 41st year of fearless theatre, and the executive producer for this show is the Strauch Kulhanjian Family.

Oskar Eustis, Artistic Director of The Public Theater, has announced the 26-member Broadway cast of HAIR: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical. Newcomers to the cast include Gavin Creel, Caissie Levy and Sasha Allen, who join the rest of the tribe, who are reprising their roles from Central Park last summer. Currently in rehearsal at the Union Square Theatre, HAIR begins preview performances on Friday, March 6 at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre (302 West 45th Street, NYC) with an Opening Night set for Tuesday, March 31, 2009.

The Men's Auxiliary of Women's Project theater company will hold its Valentine's Day Bake Sale Saturday, February 14, from 5:30 to 7:30 pm followed by a performance of Virginia Woolf's only play, Freshwater directed by Anne Bogart, at Women's Project, 424 West 55th Street. 'Men know that the way to reach a women's heart is through her stomach. We have found a new way for men with a talent for the palate to participate in the development of Women's Project,' said Producing Artistic Director Julie Crosby, who volunteered her own significant other to head the Men's Auxiliary. 'The Men's Auxiliary Valentine's Day Bake Sale will put our men's skills to the test. We will also vote to see which guy delivers the tastiest sweets and award prizes to the men with the best goods.'