Birth and After Birth - 2006 - Off-Broadway Articles Page 15

The human condition of gays in contemporary Russia mirrors life in a phantasmagoric insane asylum. That's the view of a new play, 'That Queer Blind Silence' (www.thatqueerblindsilence.com) by emigre playwright Sophia Romma. Her political farce, written in English but in the style of Russian Expressionism, depicts the ordeals of a fictional figure skater whose character was inspired partly by the life and career of bronze medalist Johnny Weir. Underground International Voices of Theatre, in association with The O'Neill Film and Theatrical Foundation, will present the play's world premiere run August 5 to 23 at 13th Street Repertory Company, 50 West 13th Street, NYC, directed by John Beshaw-Farrell. Ten percent of ticket sales will be donated to Underground International Voices of Theatre to support that organization's efforts for equal rights of the LGBTQ community in the Russian Federation.

The 'Song of Purple Summer' might be heard - and seen - once more on Broadway.

So, this month, I am taking over sole duties that I normally share with Jeff Walker, and composing a list of 10 showtunes all about births and birthdays.

SPRING AWAKENING's original Wendla on Broadway, Lea Michele recently attended Deaf West's SPRING AWAKENING and stopped by after the show to post for pictures with the cast. Check out pics below!

BroadwayWorld.com has learned that the highly-acclaimed production of SPRING AWAKENING currently running through June 14 at Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts is in active talks for a transfer to New York City after the show's West Coast run.

In conjunction with the Jewish Museum's exhibition, Revolution of the Eye: Modern Art and the Birth of American Television, on view through September 20, 2015, the Jewish Museum, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and Cooper Union are co-presenting a series of programs from May to July.

The Downtown Urban Theater Festival (Reg E. Gaines, Artistic Director) will present its 13th annual season in New York City today, May 13th - 30th, 2015.

PA Performing Arts for Young Audiences (PAPAYA) wraps up its 2015 International Series with an appearance by spoken word artists The Mayhem Poets. Inspiring audiences with the power of language, these beat box bards take center stage as part of PAPAYA at the Bride, an International Family Series presented in partnership with the Painted Bride Art Center. The Mayhem Poets will have seven performances, including three school matinees today, May 13-17.

The Downtown Urban Theater Festival announces that acclaimed playwright/director/actor Danny Hoch will receive the 2015 DUTF Playwright Masters Award at this year's Opening Night event, which will take place tonight, May 12th at 8:00 p.m. at 40/40 Club (6 West 25th Street, NYC). 

In conjunction with the Jewish Museum's exhibition, Revolution of the Eye: Modern Art and the Birth of American Television, on view from May 1 through September 20, 2015, the Jewish Museum, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and Cooper Union are co-presenting a series of programs from May to July.

The Downtown Urban Theater Festival (Reg E. Gaines, Artistic Director) will present its 13th annual season in New York City from May 13th - 30th, 2015. 

The Downtown Urban Theater Festival (Reg E. Gaines, Artistic Director) will present its 13th annual season in New York City from May 13th - 30th, 2015.

PA Performing Arts for Young Audiences (PAPAYA) wraps up its 2015 International Series with an appearance by spoken word  artists The Mayhem Poets.  Inspiring audiences with the power of language, these beat box bards take center stage as part of PAPAYA at the Bride, an International Family Series presented in partnership with the Painted Bride Art Center. The Mayhem Poets will have seven performances, including three school matinees May 13-17. Shows will take place at the Painted Bride Art Center, 230 Vine Street, Philadelphia.  Tickets for PAPAYA at the Bride public performances are $20 for adults, $15 for students, and $12 for youth (12 and under).   For tickets visit www.PAPAYAlive.org or www.paintedbride.org or call the Bride Box office at 215.925.9914.

?The Downtown Urban Theater Festival announces that acclaimed playwright/director/actor Danny Hoch will receive the 2015 DUTF Playwright Masters Award at this year's Opening Night event, which will take place on Tuesday, May 12th at 8:00 p.m. at 40/40 Club (6 West 25th Street, NYC). 

It's been almost ten years since the Wildcats first crowded the halls of East High School, singing of a new start, the status quo, and of course, the big game. The first of three HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL movies debuted on January 20, 2006, quickly becoming the most successful Disney Channel Original Movie ever produced. Launching the careers of a then-unknown set of teenagers, lots has happened to the cast since the last film wrapped in 2008. Much of the cast has continued in the musical tradition of the trilogy, taking on various roles in other musicals on stage and screen. Later this Spring, Vanessa Hudgens will become the second of the group to make her Broadway debut, as the title character in Gigi. In honor of her big debut, BroadwayWorld is recapping you on what's been up with the rest of the gang since Senior Year!

New York's guitar pop mystics, Portraiture are proud to release their debut music video for the single, “I Am Wrong” today.

The Downtown Theater Festival (Reg E. Gaines, Artistic Director) proudly announces that its 13th annual season will take place in New York City from May 13th - 30th, 2015.

The two-time Grammy nominee and Rhythm & Blues Pioneer Award winner Bettye LaVette comes to Pepperdine University's Smothers Theatre tonight, March 4 at 8 p.m.

The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust and the Humanities Center of Carnegie Mellon University announce the launch of the inaugural Pittsburgh Humanities Festival, scheduled for March 26-29, 2015. The Festival will take place throughout Pittsburgh's Cultural District and neighboring locales.

Orpheus Chamber Orchestra today announced its 43rd season at Carnegie Hall, opening with a premiere by Wolfgang Rihm performed with soloists Jan Vogler and Mira Wang on October 15 and closing with Pinchas Zukerman on March 19. Additional concerts feature Augustin Hadelich on December 5 and Khatia Buniatishvili on January 30.

In celebration INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY on March 8th, 2015, Janak Khendry Dance Company presents WOMEN LIBERATED.

Royal Shakespeare Company has announed its Stratford-Upon Avon winter 2015 artistic program, including making the 600th anniversary of Agincourt and continues Shakespeare's Histories with Gregory Doran's production of Henry V, also screened 'Live from Stratford-upon-Avon' to cinemas and schools, Jonathan Munby's acclaimed production of Ella Hickson's Wendy & Peter Pan returns to the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, two new plays premiere in the Swan Theatre - Hecuba by Marina Carr, directed by Erica Whyman, and Queen Anne by Helen Edmundson, directed by Natalie Abrahami and Congreve's Love for Love - first RSC staging of this glorious Restoration Comedy, directed by Selina Cadell.

At first glance, the musicals THE COLOR PURPLE, CALVIN BERGER, and LA CAGE AUX FOLLES may not seem to have much in common. The settings couldn't be more different - the rural South in the early 20th century, a modern day high school, and a drag club in 1970s France. But since I happened to see them all on the same weekend, I couldn't help but draw parallels between them. All three musicals all speak to themes of beauty, identity, self-worth, and having the courage to be who you really are, despite what the world is telling you. In THE COLOR PURPLE, a young, poor, black woman is told that she's ugly and worthless, but after a lifelong journey she arrives at a place of strength and self-love. CALVIN BERGER sets the classic play Cyrano de Bergerac in a modern high school, where a young man feels that his large nose prevents him from getting what he wants in life and chooses to hide behind the handsome popular guy, both of whom eventually learn it's better to be loved for who you are. Finally, in LA CAGE AUX FOLLES, a middle aged man who feels more comfortable dressed as a woman is asked by his own son to hide who he is, but confidently declares 'I am who I am!' Another thing these three musicals have in common is that they can all currently be seen on Twin Cities stages featuring talented local casts. Read on for more details on each, pick one that suits your fancy, and go see a local musical that just may inspire you to love you you really are!

The two-time Grammy nominee and Rhythm & Blues Pioneer Award winner Bettye LaVette comes to Pepperdine University's Smothers Theatre on Wednesday, March 4 at 8 p.m.

The Joyce Theater Foundation presents the long-awaited NYC return of the UK's Royal Ballet – first time in over 11 years – at the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center beginning with a gala performance on June 23, followed by two mix-billed programs of works by Frederick Ashton, Kenneth MacMillan, Wayne McGregor, Liam Scarlett and Christopher Wheeldon through June 28. Tickets for The Royal Ballet can be arranged online at www.DavidHKochTheater.com or by calling (212)-496-0600.