In April - 1915 - Broadway Articles Page 19

Soho Rep has again extended the New York premiere of Jackie Sibblies Drury's We Are Proud to Present a Presentation …, directed by Eric Ting, this time to December 16. Tickets to the American premiere of Nature Theater of Oklahoma's epic serial Life and Times: Episodes 1-4-a Soho Rep production presented by The Public Theater as a special engagement of the Under the Radar Festival 2013-are now on sale. And Soho Rep announces the production that will conclude its 2012-13 season: the world premiere of Lucas Hnath's A Public Reading of an Unproduced Screenplay About the Death of Walt Disney, directed by Soho Rep Artistic Director Sarah Benson (April 30 - May 26, 2013).

Honoring the work and legacy of one of the great jazz composers and collaborators, the Music Institute of Chicago presents a Billy Strayhorn Festival October 26-28. The festival, presented in partnership with Billy Strayhorn Songs Inc., a family corporation of the Strayhorn heirs, includes two star-studded concerts featuring trumpet great Terell Stafford and a screening of the award-winning film Billy Strayhorn: Lush Life followed by a panel discussion. The festival takes place at Nichols Concert Hall, 1490 Chicago Avenue, Evanston.

Fountain Hills Theater has announced its exciting 2012-13 Season. In what may be the most ambitious season yet presented, FHT brings six great Mainstage shows, four shows mounted in the all-new Mainstage Too, four productions in the Youth Theater and two special engagements. Note that Mainstage Too is brand new this season - when the Youth Theater is dark, FHT will be presenting smaller comedies, plays and musicals in this venue. See full details below.

Center Theatre Group Artistic Director Michael Ritchie has set the 2012-2013 season at the CTG/Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City. In a season of contrasts - of surprising comedy and startling drama, the 2012-2013 season at the Kirk Douglas Theatre will include the magical and mystical hi-jinks of the CTG-commissioned "Elephant Room" by Trey Lyford, Geoff Sobelle and Steve Cuiffo; the acclaimed Gate Theatre Dublin production of the Beckett classic "Krapp's Last Tape" with one of Britain's greatest actors, John Hurt; the comic genius of The Second City with their unique, satirical twist on a Dickens's favorite - "A Christmas Carol: Twist Your Dickens!" written by Peter Gwinn and Bobby Mort; the world premiere of the otherworldly drama "The Nether" by the 2012 Susan Blackburn Smith prize-winning playwright Jennifer Haley; and the world premiere of the powerful boxing drama "The Royale" by Los Angeles playwright Marco Ramirez.

In case you missed it in the "Showtune Mosh Pit" column last week, here is my full listing of musical theater shows (plus three special concert events) happening in Chicago this summer. Click on the name of each show for a link to more information. And enjoy!

The latest in unauthorized gossip and buzz from the heart of Chicago's showtune video bars, and musical theater news from Chicago to Broadway. The non-Equity Jeff Awards are Monday night, and we've compiled our first ever Summer Musical Theatre Guide! Here are 35 listings for your viewing pleasure....

Sir Patrick Stewart, Peabody Award-winning star of stage and screen, Shakespeare plays and science-fiction blockbusters, will be the host of the 71st Annual George Foster Peabody Awards ceremony tonight, May 21, at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City.

The headline performers for the next two Opera Nights at the Enrico Caruso Room at Grotta Azzurra Ristorante in Little Italy have been announced: Cabaret star Shana Farr and tenor John Carelli will share the bill on tonight, May 8, and Dan Singer and Jacqueline Thompson will headline on Tuesday, May 15.

The headline performers for the next two Opera Nights at the Enrico Caruso Room at Grotta Azzurra Ristorante in Little Italy have been announced: Cabaret star Shana Farr and tenor John Carelli will share the bill on Tuesday, May 8, and Dan Singer and Jacqueline Thompson will headline on Tuesday, May 15.

April 27 through May 13, Pontine Theatre premieres its original stage adaptation of stories by George Savary Wasson at its West End Studio Theatre located in Portsmouth NH.

Catalina Bar & Grill will present "A Birthday Tribute To Billie Holiday" starring Billie Holiday's pianist Corky Hale and singer Freda Payne, with Special Guest, singer Tricia Tahara for One Night Only!!! The performance will be presented on Wednesday, April 25, 2012 at 8:30 p.m. at Catalina Bar & Grill; 6725 West Sunset Boulevard (just east of North Highland Avenue); Los Angeles, CA 90028. There is $20 Cover Charge. Valet Parking is available.

The Spoon River Anthology travels to Brooklyn where it will receive an all-new production, conceived & directed Jimmy Maize, with music by Eli Zoller, choreography by Jon Cooper & Marine Sialelli, and music direction by Ethan Wagner, and featuring a cast of one-hundred performers, The limited engagement begins performances tonight, April 24 and will continue through this Saturday, April 28 at the Invisible Dog Art Center (51 Bergen Street in Brooklyn).

The Chicago Sinfonietta, under the leadership of Music Director Mei-Ann Chen, will present Past Tense, Future Tense at Symphony Center, 220 S. Michigan Avenue, Chicago on Thursday, April 19, at 7:30 pm. Past Tense; Future Tense pays homage to the orchestra's inception under Paul Freeman in 1987 and will celebrate the orchestra's anniversary with throw back ticket prices of $18 each (for this concert only). Additionally, children's tickets are free with the purchase of adult admission.

Edgar Lee Masters' epic work, The Spoon River Anthology, receives an all-new production, of unprecedented scale and scope, conceived & directed Jimmy Maize, with music by Eli Zoller, choreography by Jon Cooper & Marine Sialelli, and music direction by Ethan Wagner, and featuring a cast of one-hundred performers, with two special limited engagements: April 18 - 21 at The Riverside Theatre.

The new Enrico Caruso Room will feature a weekly Tuesday Night Opera Series starting April 17, showcasing a pair of talented professional opera performers each week, and a weekly Thursday Night Open Mic Series starting April 26, where singers will perform two musical pieces each. The singers on both nights will be supported by David Schaeffer on keyboard.

Edgar Lee Masters' epic work, The Spoon River Anthology, receives an all-new production, of unprecedented scale and scope, conceived & directed Jimmy Maize, with music by Eli Zoller, choreography by Jon Cooper & Marine Sialelli, and music direction by Ethan Wagner, and featuring a cast of one-hundred performers, with two special limited engagements: April 18 - 21 at The Riverside Theatre (91 Claremont Avenue located inside the Riverside Church between 120th and 122nd Streets), in association with Columbia University School of the Arts; and April 24 - 28 at the Invisible Dog Art Center (51 Bergen Street in Brooklyn).

Eric Rosen has announced his selections for Kansas City Repertory Theatre's 2012-13 season, his fifth year as the theatre's artistic director.

Cesear's Forum will present two one-act plays, ELEGY FOR A LADY by Arthur Miller and THREE WOMEN by Sylvia Plath, in an April-May engagement at Kennedy's Down Under, PlayhouseSquare, Cleveland. The show will play 4/13 to 5/26.

Drury Lane Theatre, 100 Drury Lane, known for producing acclaimed, innovative and classic musicals and comedies, announces its 2012-2013 season featuring five glorious films brought to new life on stage.

Drury Lane Theatre, 100 Drury Lane, known for producing acclaimed, innovative and classic musicals and comedies, announces its 2012-2013 season featuring five glorious films brought to new life on stage.

Noted performer and music historian, Benjamin Sears has an unprecedented familiarity with both Irving Berlin's work and the writings about him, much of which he has brought together in the new, The Irving Berlin Reader, part of the Readers on American Music Series from Oxford University Press, available in stores on April 6, 2012.

April 27 through May 13, Pontine Theatre premieres its original stage adaptation of stories by George Savary Wasson at its West End Studio Theatre located in Portsmouth NH.

Tune in to PBS tonight, April 6, 2012 at 8:00p.m. for Live From Lincoln Center's telecast of Renee Fleming in a special intimate concert from the Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse.

Subscriptions are now on sale for the Columbus Symphony's 2012-13 Masterworks and Pops seasons. Masterworks will continue to present eight concerts at the Ohio Theatre and four concerts at the Southern Theatre. All Pops concerts will remain at the Ohio Theatre.

To celebrate Jazz Appreciation Month, Louis Armstrong House Museum (LAHM) Historic House Tours will highlight one-of-a-kind portraits featured in Louis and Lucille's home by noted artists: Calvin Bailey, Tony Bennett, Samuel Countee and LeRoy Neiman throughout the month of April.