4 Below - 1956 - Off-Off-Broadway Articles Page 6

(WASHINGTON)—Washington National Opera (WNO), led by Artistic Director Francesca Zambello, today announced its 60th anniversary season, one that highlights classic, contemporary, and American works. The 2015-2016 season includes a new-to-Washington staging of Bizet's Carmen, the world premiere of a newly revised version of Appomattox by composer Philip Glass and librettist Christopher Hampton, a revival of WNO's charming holiday production of Hansel and Gretel, the company premiere of Kurt Weill's Lost in the Stars in a gripping production from Cape Town Opera, and WNO's first complete staging of Wagner's extraordinary four-part Ring Cycle, with a world-class cast under the direction of Francesca Zambello and featuring the WNO Orchestra conducted by WNO Music Director Philippe Auguin. Highlights from the 2015-2016 season will be performed by the WNO Orchestra and special guests at a free preview concert on Wednesday, May 20, 2015 at 6 p.m. as part of the Kennedy Center Millennium Stage.

Houston, January 29, 2015-Houston Grand Opera's (HGO) 2015-16 season showcases the vibrant and diverse artistic mix that marks HGO as a leading 21st-century American opera company: Wagner's Siegfried, the third installment of La Fura dels Baus's imaginative Ring cycle featuring a new generation of Wagnerians; the world premiere of Carlisle Floyd's Prince of Players; Dvo?ak's fairy tale rarity Rusalka; a holiday revival of family favorite The Little Prince from the award-winning composer Rachel Portman and librettist Nicholas Wright; a new production of The Marriage of Figaro and a new-to-Houston Eugene Onegin; a beloved core production, Tosca; and the Houston debut of Broadway sensation Rob Ashford's take on the classic musical Carousel. Through its community collaboration program HGOco, the company will present two additional world premieres: O Columbia, a chamber opera by composer Gregory Spears and librettist Royce Vavrek that examines the past, present, and future of the American spirit of exploration; and another chamber opera, by composer David Hanlon and librettist Stephanie Fleischmann, about the impact of hurricanes on the Texas Gulf coast.

Broadway fans had plenty of reasons to celebrate this year, with dozens of shows having opened since January, hundreds of actors having made their debuts, and many more having returned to the stage for critically acclaimed performances. Not all news was good though, as we also suffered a loss of an incredible amount of talent. Below, BroadwayWorld sends a fond farewell to those who passed away in 2014.

During the final month of the popular Smithsonian exhibition What's Up, Doc? The Animation Art of Chuck Jones -- closing Monday, January 19 -- Museum of the Moving Image will be celebrating animation in its galleries, theaters, and classrooms. In conjunction with the Chuck Jones exhibition, this holiday period, the Museum is presenting daily screenings of classic Chuck Jones cartoons and "Stop Motion Shapes," family animation workshops inspired by the legendary animator. In addition, the Museum will present the contemporary animated features Coraline (in 3-D), Ratatouille, Toy Story 2, The Wind Rises, and others.

BroadwayWorld.com continues our exclusive content series, in collaboration with The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, which delves into the library's unparalleled archives, and resources. Below, check out a piece by Barbara Cohen-Stratyner, Ph. D., Judy R. and Alfred A. Rosenberg Curator of Exhibitions, Shelby Cullom Davis Museum, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts on PETER PAN:

The New York Public Library has announced its upcoming theater programs for this winter. Details below!

Trick or Treat with getTV this Halloween, as the network conjures a monster marathon loaded with witches, ghosts, vampires, and a slew of genre icons, today, October 31.

Trick or Treat with getTV this Halloween, as the network conjures a monster marathon loaded with witches, ghosts, vampires, and a slew of genre icons, on Friday, October 31.

Hou Hsiao-hsien, the leading figure of the Taiwanese New Cinema movement, is one of the most important and influential filmmakers to emerge over the past three decades. His sensuous, richly textured work, marked by elegantly staged long takes and an elliptical approach to storytelling, can be seen in such widely acclaimed films as Flowers of Shanghai, A City of Sadness, Dust in the Wind, and Flight of the Red Balloon. His modernist formalism was complemented by a humanist touch expressed most strongly in films that addressed Taiwan's history and identity, often laced with Hou's own memories. From today, September 12 through October 17, 2014, Museum of the Moving Image will present Also like Life: The Films of Hou Hsiao-hsien-the first comprehensive Hou retrospective in New York since 1999. It includes all of Hou's seventeen feature films as director, presented on film (including two new 35mm prints), as well as rare shorts, and a selection of related films, among them Olivier Assayas's documentary HHH: A Portrait of Hou Hsiao-hsien, Edward Yang's seminal Taipei Story (starring, and co-written by, Hou), and Wu Nien-jen's rarely shown A Borrowed Life.

REDCAT, CalArts' Downtown Center for Contemporary Arts, located in the Walt Disney Concert Hall Complex is renowned for its innovative visual, performing and multimedia arts programming. In the Fall of 2014 REDCAT begins its second decade presenting the most influential artists from around the world, as well as Los Angeles' own creative voices.

Hottest Articles on BroadwayWorld.com from this weekend Sunday, July 27, 2014 - Sunday, July 27, 2014.

The context surrounding an image, or its isolation without context, addresses the question of how the framing and re-framing of images influences our understanding of what we see and more broadly, of history. This exhibition brings together Sarah Charlesworth, Juan Manuel Echavarria, Felix Gonzalez-Torres, Alfredo Jaar, Emily Jacir, Susan Meiselas, and Krzysztof Wodiczko, who demonstrate exceptional moral and formal rigor in their analysis of contemporary reality.

Today in 2008, A Catered Affair opened at the Walter Kerr Theatre, where it ran for 116 performances. A Catered Affair is a musical with a book by Harvey Fierstein and music and lyrics by John Bucchino. It is based on both the 1956 film The Catered Affair written by Gore Vidal and the original 1955 teleplay by Paddy Chayefsky, set in 1953 in the Bronx. John Doyle directed the production, which starred Fierstein, Faith Prince and Tom Wopat.

Today in 2001, the first Broadway revival of Bells Are Ringing opened at the Plymouth Theatre (now the Gerald Shoenfeld Theatre), where it ran for 68 performances. Bells Are Ringing is a musical with a book and lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green and music by Jule Styne. The story revolves around Ella, who works at an answering service and the characters that she meets there. The original Broadway production, directed by Jerome Robbins and choreographed by Robbins and Bob Fosse, opened on November 29, 1956 at the Shubert Theatre, where it ran for slightly more than two years, and starred Judy Holliday as Ella and Sydney Chaplin as Jeff Moss.

This spring, the Museum of Arts and Design presents its latest cinema series, Go Nightclubbing Archive, featuring selections from a historic video archive of the burgeoning New York punk scene from 1975 to 1980. In partnership with NYU's Fales Library, which recently acquired the archive, MAD will premiere ten individual screenings that draw from over 200 hours of remastered footage by Emily Armstrong and Pat Ivers.

The Laguna Playhouse Executive and Artistic Directors, Karen Wood and Ann E. Wareham are thrilled to present screen legend Leslie Caron, in her first Southern California theatrical performance in over 25 years! SIX DANCE LESSONS IN SIX WEEKS, written by Richard Alfieri, with choreography by Donna McKechnie (A Chorus Line) and directed by Michael Arabian (Waiting for Godot). SIX DANCE LESSONS IN SIX WEEKS will also feature 6-time Ovation Award-winning actor David Engel. "What an honor to have on our stage the incomparable Leslie Caron and the multi-talented David Engel," remarks Wood. "It's a dream cast and a dream come true. With Michael Arabian and Donna McKechnie directing and choreographing, this has to be one of the most anticipated productions in the Playhouse's storied history,' adds Wareham. SIX DANCE LESSONS IN SIX WEEKS will begin previews on Saturday, April 26 and will open on Saturday, May 3 at 7:30pm and run through Sunday, June 8, 2014 at the Laguna Playhouse, 606 Laguna Canyon Road in Laguna Beach.

The Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts has announced its March 2014 events. Details below!

Following NBC's announcement of PETER PAN as its next live, mega-TV musical, set to air December 4, 2014, Bill Murray showed us his best singing -- and flying -- chops on LETTERMAN. Check out his 'audition' for the lead role in PETER PAN below!

On the heels of an announcement yesterday by NBC that their next live musical would be PETER PAN, speculation has already started on who will play the leads.

The Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts has announced its March 2014 events. Details below!

In The Line King's Library: Al Hirschfeld at The New York Public Library, The Library for the Performing Arts presents the largest exhibition of Al Hirschfeld's artwork and archival material from its collection. On display through January 4, 2014, in the Library for the Performing Art's Oenslager Gallery, the free, multimedia exhibition celebrates the Al Hirschfeld Foundation's latest gift of Hirschfeld papers and objects to the Library, and commemorates the 110th anniversary of his birth. BroadwayWorld brings you a special sneak peek of the exhibit below!

Holly Madison took the stage in Las Vegas for the first time in more than a year during a special encore performance of MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET at Harrah's Las Vegas. Performing on the 57th anniversary of the actual date that inspired the hit show, Dec. 4, 1956, Holly sang 'The Lady Loves Me' from the hit movie 'Viva Las Vegas' alongside the cast during the finale. Donning a stunning dress and period hair, Holly sang a beautiful and fun rendition of the Elvis and Ann-Margret duet that had the audience on their feet, clapping and cheering. Click below to watch Madison in action onstage!

The greatest franchise in theatrical animated shorts is returning to Boomerang this October, having last appeared on the 24-hour classic animation network in May 2007. Warner Bros. immortal LOONEY TUNES-featuring legendary icons Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Elmer Fudd, Roadrunner & Wile E. Coyote and others-will begin airing as a one-hour block on Saturday and Sunday mornings at 7 a.m. (ET) starting today, Oct. 5.

Stratosphere headliner Frankie Moreno joined the cast of the smash-hit musical MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET at Harrah's Las Vegas for a special guest encore appearance, performing the Jerry Lee Lewis hit,"Rockin' My Life Away." Watch a video of the performance below!

THE BEAST WITH FIVE FINGERS and THE BOWERY BOYS among Warner Archive Collections newest releases.