Later Life 1993 - Articles Page 17.8

Polarity Ensemble Theatre presents the world premiere of Never the Bridesmaid, a sweet, funny, life-affirming comedy by Chicago playwright Bill Jepsen. Directed by award-winning director Richard Shavzin, Never the Bridesmaid runs at the Polarity space at the Josephinum Academy, 1500 N. Bell St. in the Wicker Park neighborhood of Chicago, February 26 through April 7, 2013.

Veteran writer, director, producer and actor Carl Reiner, along with seven-time SAG Award winner and 18-time nominee Alec Baldwin, will present the SAG 49th Life Achievement Award to Dick Van Dyke at the 19th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards, executive producer and director Jeff Margolis announced today.

The Old Globe today announced the complete cast and creative team of its 100th anniversary production of the George Bernard Shaw classic Pygmalion. Starring Tony Award winner Robert Sean Leonard (The Invention of Love, Born Yesterday) as Professor Henry Higgins and Charlotte Parry (The Importance of Being Earnest, The Real Thing) as Eliza Doolittle, the production coincides with the 100th anniversary of Pygmalion's 1913 premiere in Vienna, Austria. Directed by Nicholas Martin (Butley, Present Laughter), Pygmalion will run on the Donald and Darlene Shiley Stage in the Old Globe Theatre, part of the Globe's Conrad Prebys Theatre Center, Jan. 12 - Feb. 17, 2013. Preview performances run Jan. 12 - Jan. 16. Opening night is Thursday, Jan. 17 at 8:00 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online at www.TheOldGlobe.org, by phone at (619) 23-GLOBE or by visiting the Box Office at 1363 Old Globe Way in Balboa Park.

Today we have the honor of talking to an actor equally skilled in comedy and drama who is now a playwright and director in his own right, with his new play, BULLET FOR ADOLF, being a New York stage hit - the one and only Woody Harrelson. A huge Hollywood star who has appeared in countless recognizable and beloved film properties over the last twenty-five years - from Oliver Stone's NATURAL BORN KILLERS, Milos Foreman's THE PEOPLE VS. LARRY FLYNT, Robert Altman's A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION and many more notables (not to mention his many comedies, ranging from WHITE MEN CAN'T JUMP to ZOMBIELAND), all the way up to his most recent screen appearances in THE MESSENGER, RAMPART and the international smash hit franchise-kick-off THE HUNGER GAMES - with a special focus on his new Broadway play which he co-wrote and directed, A BULLET FOR ADOLF - in this chat, Woody and I cover the bases. Covering his career from understudying in Neil Simon's BILOXI BLUES on Broadway and his subsequent big break on CHEERS to his string of iconic film portrayals, Harrelson and I shine a light on his theatrical side while he also elucidates the process that finally brought the story of BULLET FOR ADOLF to the theatrical stage, sharing the true life tale behind its characters, location, plot and themes along the way and opening up about possibilities for the play's future - West End, perhaps? Maybe a film? Plus, Harrelson also looks ahead to the many exciting projects coming up in the next several weeks and months now that A BULLET FOR ADOLF has settled in to an extended run at New World Stages, now on sale through October 21 - such as working with fellow InDepth InterView participant Philip Seymour Hoffman and the rest of the starry assortment of players on the highly anticipated THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE and its subsequent sequels (which begin shooting this week in Atlanta, GA); sharing the small screen with Matthew McConaughey on a new HBO thriller/serial-killer-themed anthology series titled TRUE DETECTIVES; starring in SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS, written and directed by celebrated playwright and filmmaker Martin McDonagh; even sharing his candid impressions and adoration of his favorite state of the union, Hawaii - all of that and much, much more!

David Zwirner has announced the gallery's third solo exhibition of drawings and three-dimensional works by Al Taylor. On view at the gallery's 519 West 19th Street space, the exhibition will present a comprehensive examination of two individual series by the artist: Pass the Peas (1991-92) and Can Studys [sic] from 1993, as well as a related group of works entitled Cans and Hoops (1993) which bridge the evolution between the two series. 'Pass the Peas' and 'Can Studys' will be on view from today, September 7 through October 27, 2012, with an opening reception set for tonight, September 7th from 6 to 8 p.m.

David Zwirner has announced the gallery's third solo exhibition of drawings and three-dimensional works by Al Taylor. On view at the gallery's 519 West 19th Street space, the exhibition will present a comprehensive examination of two individual series by the artist: Pass the Peas (1991-92) and Can Studys [sic] from 1993, as well as a related group of works entitled Cans and Hoops (1993) which bridge the evolution between the two series. 'Pass the Peas' and 'Can Studys' will be on view from September 7 through October 27, 2012, with an opening reception set for Friday, September 7th from 6 to 8 p.m.

As a special homage to Theodore Mann, Circle in the Square's co-founder, artistic director, and co-producer who passed away on February 24th of this year, Circle in the Square Theatre School is inviting the theater-going public, the theater community and those who worked with him to share their remembrances of Mann and the over 175 productions that he with Jose Quintero, and later with Paul Libin brought to the stage.

The first documentary to tell George Herbert Walker Bush's story in his own words, the exclusive HBO presentation 41 is a rare, intimate glimpse at the life and times of the 41st president of the United States.

On Tuesday, May 29th, President Barack Obama will award the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The Medal of Freedom is our Nation's highest civilian honor, presented to individuals who have made especially meritorious contributions to the security or national interests of the United States, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors. The Medals will be presented at the White House in an afternoon ceremony.

On Tuesday, May 29th, President Barack Obama will award the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The Medal of Freedom is our Nation's highest civilian honor, presented to individuals who have made especially meritorious contributions to the security or national interests of the United States, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors. The Medals will be presented at the White House in an afternoon ceremony.

The Old Globe's 2012-13 Season will feature the World Premieres of two new musicals: Allegiance - A New American Musical by Jay Kuo and Lorenzo Thione and A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder by Robert L. Freedman and Steven Lutvak. The season also includes George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion in celebration of the classic play's 100th anniversary and the World Premiere of a new adaptation of Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House by Anne-Charlotte Hanes Harvey and Kirsten Brandt. Two recent Broadway hits will make their San Diego debuts at the Globe: David Lindsay-Abaire's Good People and Jon Robin Baitz's Other Desert Cities. Rounding out the season are the West Coast Premiere of Bekah Brunstetter's Be a Good Little Widow and the Southern California Premiere of Tarell Alvin McCraney's The Brothers Size.

The first documentary to tell George Herbert Walker Bush's story in his own words, the exclusive HBO presentation 41 is a rare, intimate glimpse at the life and times of the 41st president of the United States.

BASE Entertainment has just announced that DINER, a new musical based on the critically acclaimed 1982 film with a book by Academy Award winner and original DINER screenwriter Barry Levinson and music & lyrics by 9-time Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow, will have its pre-Broadway world premiere at San Francisco's SHN Curran Theatre (445 Geary Street). Directed and choreographed by Tony Award winner Kathleen Marshall, DINER will play a strictly limited four week engagement from Tuesday, October 23, 2012, through Sunday, November 18, 2012, with an opening night of Friday, November 2, 2012. Due to these confirmed San Francisco dates DINER will now bow on Broadway in the spring of 2013, instead of the fall of 2012 as previously announced. Design team and casting will be announced at a later date.

Producers Broadway Across America (John Gore, Thomas B. McGrath, Beth Williams), Howard Kagan and Barry Brown have just announced that the new Broadway musical TUCK EVERLASTING will have its pre-Broadway world premiere at Boston's Citi Performing Arts Center Colonial Theatre (106 Boylston Street) in June of 2013. With a book by Tony Award nominee Claudia Shear (Dirty Blonde), music by Chris Miller (The Burnt Part Boys), lyrics by Nathan Tysen (The Burnt Part Boys) and directed and choreographed by Tony Award winner Casey Nicholaw (The Book of Mormon), TUCK EVERLASTING is based on the novel by Natalie Babbitt. Broadway production details, design team and casting for TUCK EVERLASTING will be announced at a later date.

Casting is announced for "Morning's at Seven," a Script in Hand play reading of the Tony Award-winning comedy by Paul Osborn, at Westport Country Playhouse, on Monday, February 13, 7 p.m. Tickets to the one-night-only event are $15.

The entire entertainment world is reeling. We have lost one of our most iconic pop, R&B and soundtrack performers this evening - as well as a formidable movie star in her own right - Whitney Houston was just reported dead at the age of 48. Having had one of the most successful and most multimedia of careers of any multi-hyphenate star in recent memory, Houston scored multiple Grammys and racked up countless nominations over the course of her multi-decade recording career, yet her most notable contributions to the world of music reside in her outstanding soundtrack work - most of all, the songs for the film in which she made the transition into feature film leading lady, 1992's THE BODYGUARD. The biggest hit from THE BODYGUARD's blockbuster soundtrack was undoubtedly Houston's rendition of a Dolly Parton song originally recorded in 1974 and later made famous by Parton in the feature film version of the Broadway hit THE BEST LITTLE WHOREHOUSE IN TEXAS, "I Will Always Love You". In addition to Houston's sensational work on that mega-selling soundtrack - one of the Top 5 best-selling soundtracks of all time - she also provided her dramatic and vocal skills to the multi-platinum soundtracks to THE PREACHER'S WIFE and WAITING TO EXHALE, both films which she also starred in to much box office success. An Oscar-winning duet with Mariah Carey, "When You Believe" by WICKED's Stephen Schwartz from THE PRINCE OF EGYPT is yet another diadem in Houston's triple crown of accomplishments in the realms of music, film and television - having dominated all. Theatre fans may know Houston best for her incomparable portrayal of the Fairy Godmother in the incredibly successful 1997 ABC TV adaptation of Rodgers & Hammerstein's CINDERELLA starring Brandy and produced by Craig Zadan and Neil Meron. In addition to Houston's contributions to THE BODYGUARD, THE PREACHER'S WIFE, WAITING TO EXHALE, THE PRINCE OF EGYPT and CINDERELLA, Houston also rose to fame early in her career for her rendition of "Home" from THE WIZ on THE Merv Griffin SHOW, as well as made a mark with a Cissy Houston duet on the CHESS international smash, "I Know Him So Well" on her second hit album. The last project Houston was working on prior to her death on Saturday night was the feature film musical SPARKLE, co-starring AMERICAN IDOL winner and Broadway standout Jordin Sparks. SPARKLE reportedly completed production of principal photography and soundtrack sessions, though it is not clear when the musical remake will now be released in light of Houston's unexpected death. No matter the circumstances of her life and death, Whitney Houston most surely left a legacy that will never be forgotten by those that adored her for her vast multitude of talents and many notable accomplishments in all areas of entertainment.

As BroadwayWorld previously announced, Gerald Goehring, Michael F. Mitri and Dorothy Berloni are developing BECAUSE OF WINN-DIXIE, a new Broadway musical based on the popular 2000 novel by Kate DeCamillo. Casting for a developmental reading is currently underway and set to take place in early March. This is set to be followed by an out of town engagement and Broadway production, the timing of which will be confirmed at a later date.

Casting is announced for "Morning's at Seven," a Script in Hand play reading of the Tony Award-winning comedy by Paul Osborn, at Westport Country Playhouse, on Monday, February 13, 7 p.m. Tickets to the one-night-only event are $15.

Nashville productions of Aida and The Color Purple highlight the 63rd season announced today by Circle Players, the community theatre that's been treating audiences to award-winning shows since 1949. In addition, the company will mount a production of The Piano Lesson, the August Wilson classic that was first produced by Circle Players in its 1993-94 season, the acclaimed musical Next to Normal (which is currently running in Memphis in its Tennessee premiere starring Belmont University graduate Ben Laxton and will be produced later this season by Boiler Room Theatre), and the regional premiere of Band Geeks, an all-youth production directed by Catherine McTamaney.

Gerald Goehring, Michael F. Mitri and Dorothy Berloni are developing BECAUSE OF WINN-DIXIE, a new Broadway musical based on the popular 2000 novel by Kate DeCamillo. A developmental reading will be staged in early 2012, followed by an out of town engagement and Broadway production, the timing of which will be confirmed at a later date.

Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater is set to present Oregon Shakespeare Festival's production of Bill Cain's Equivocation in the first collaboration between Arena Stage and OSF.

'Tiny Kushner: An Evening of Short Plays by Tony Kushner' opens the Zeitgeist Stage Company 2011-2012 season with a tasting menu of five short plays by the prize-winning playwright. Richard Nixon's analyst and Laura Bush are just two of the amazing real life characters who transition from the headlines to the stage.

BASE Entertainment (Co-CEO's Scott Zeiger and Brian Becker) announced that DINER, a new musical inspired by the critically acclaimed 1982 film, will come to Broadway in the fall of 2012. With a book by Academy Award and Emmy Award winner Barry Levinson and music & lyrics by Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow, DINER will be directed and choreographed by Tony Award winner Kathleen Marshall. DINER marks the Broadway debut of both Barry Levinson and Sheryl Crow. Prior to its Broadway bow, DINER will play a limited out of town engagement in a city TBD in the summer of 2012. Design team and casting will be announced at a later date.

Renowned actress, producer and humanitarian Mary Tyler Moore will receive Screen Actors Guild (SAG)'s most prestigious accolade - the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award. Moore created a new paradigm for female leads in television, won top honors for her courageous performances in film, television and on stage, produced some of the most lauded television programs of all time, and for thirty years, has served as a tireless advocate giving hope to all those afflicted with Type 1 diabetes.

TACT/The Actors Company Theatre has announced its 2011/2012 Season. The critically-acclaimed company dedicated to presenting neglected or rarely produced plays of literary merit will offer Mainstage productions of Children by A.R. Gurney, and Lost in Yonkers by Neil Simon at The Beckett Theatre at Theatre Row.