Life With Mother - 1948 - Broadway Articles Page 9

Almost thirty years after DRIVING MISS DAISY had its premiere Off-Broadway, this play still feels remarkably relevant today. The intimate setting at Act II Playhouse works well for this play as the audience immediately connects with the story. DRIVING MISS DAISY focuses on an older Southern woman, Daisy, and her chauffer, Hoke Colburn. At its heart, this play is about companionship and how friendship can transcend any barrier of race or creed. In addition, this show's cast is perfectly suited to their roles as they draw the audience into the story while heartwarmingly depicting the growing friendship between Daisy and Hoke. DRIVING MISS DAISY at Act II Playhouse, under the direction of James J. Christy, is a brilliant production complete with masterful performances.

Tennessee Williams published Summer and Smoke in 1948 and revised and rewrote it in 1964 as The Eccentricities of a Nightingale. Summer and Smoke is the popular, much revived version despite the fact Tennessee himself among many critics considered the second version to be the most lyrical representation of Miss Alma, the Spanish word for soul. In both plays singer/music teacher Alma Winemiller (Tara Battani), daughter of an Episcopalean minister (Jeffrey Markle), is passionately in love with her neighbor young Dr. John Buchanan (Gregory James) and when that love is gradually unrequited rather than become a miserable spinster, after a long struggle of illness and isolation, she turns to prostitution. In a handsome production of Summer and Smoke at Actors co-op, Williams' debate between the flesh and the spirit, body vs. soul, is still burning with poetic truth after almost 70 years.

The 68th season of the Festival d'Aix-en-Provence, under the leadership of General Manager Bernard Foccroulle, will present an international roster of artists in six major vocal productions plus an opera-in-concert from June 30 - July 20. New Festival productions this year are Mozart's Cosi fan tutte directed by Christophe Honore and conducted by Louis Langree with the Freiburger Barockorchester; Debussy's Pelleas et Melisande led by Esa-Pekka Salonen with the Philharmonia Orchestra; and completing the Festival's Handel Cycle, Il Trionfo del tempo e del disinganno conducted by Emmanuelle Haimwith Le Concert d'Astree. In addition, the 2016 season will feature a concert version of Rameau's Zoroastre with Raphael Pichon leading the orchestra and choir of the Ensemble Pygmalion.

 Every season must reflect the mission of the company and for the past 13 years, Sean Murray has crafted uniquely Cygnet seasons that reflect the commitment to 'startle the soul, embrace diversity and ignite debate.' This year is no exception. The seven productions in Season 14 range from the traditional to the avant-garde and include two musical theatre classics, a two-show repertory by a Pulitzer prize-winning playwright, the return of a holiday favorite and two contemporary works sure to shock and amaze.

This week at FEINSTEIN'S/54 BELOW, Broadway's Supper Club, presents some of the brightest stars from Broadway, cabaret, jazz and beyond. To purchase tickets or for more information, visitwww.54Below.com/Feinsteins or call (646) 476-3551.

Broadway's 40 theatres aren't the only places to catch performances from your favorite stars! Well after Broadway orchestras begin their overtures, ensemble members take their dance breaks, and performers belt out their eleven o'clock numbers, the party continues at various cabaret venues throughout New York City. Below, BroadwayWorld brings you some cabaret highlights for this week as picked by our theatre editors, including: Neil Bartram: 'New Songs for a New Year'; Broadway Is A Drag: Celebrating Drag Queens for BC/EFA; Lorna Luft at 54 Below; 54 Sings Kiss Me Kate; and Melba Moore: I Got Love.

'Eric Bentley's Brecht-Eisler Songbook,' the debut CD from soprano actress Karyn Levitt, will be available from Roven Records today, October 30.

New Worlds Theatre Project (Ellen Perecman, Producing Artistic Director) has announced that it will present the world premiere of David Pinski's comic tragedy, Professor Brenner, directed by Paul Takacs, in a translation by Ellen Perecman, beginning Sunday, November 1 at 2pm at HERE, 145 Sixth Avenue. The opening night is set for Monday, November 2 at 7pm.

As popular culture continues to be fractured with the advent of new forms of media and even more forms of delivery, it is good to know that there are still some institutions that you can continue to count on for quality entertainment. The newest DVD release from PBS Distribution brings three hallowed artistic institutions together for just that purpose. Five-time Tony-winner Angela Lansbury, two-time Tony-winner James Earl Jones, and Emmy and Peabody winning series GREAT PERFORMANCES unite for a disarmingly sweet production of Alfred Uhry's Pulitzer-Prize winning play DRIVING MISS DAISY.

This month, legendary playwright, singer, editor and translator and Theatre Hall of Fame inductee Eric Bentley turned 99 years old. In celebration of this milestone and a century of his contributions to the international theatre world, a special one night-only birthday celebration has been announced: HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ERIC BENTLEY! A CENTENNIAL TRIBUTE CONCERT will take place on December 7, 2015 at 8:00 PM.

'Eric Bentley's Brecht-Eisler Songbook,' the debut CD from soprano actress Karyn Levitt, will be available from Roven Records on October 30.

Tony Manero--of Atlantis Theatrical Entertainment Group's (ATEG) 2015 Asian touring production of SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER (SNF), which is based on John Badham's '70s landmark film of the same name--would have succumbed to the evil oblivion of his own fever had it not been for one simple--yet pivotal--plot deviation. The inevitable loss that awaited him is not alien but one all too familiar to all those coming of age--and it is through recognizing this evil that he realizes, it is better not to struggle against it but to just flow with it.

Starting fittingly on July Fourth weekend, Museum of the Moving Image will present The Essential John Ford, a tribute to the consummate American filmmaker. Ford made his reputation on westerns, but worked in many genres, creating films of depth, beauty, and ambiguity. From today, July 3 through August 2, the Museum will present 20 movies directed by Ford-all on film, with some restored archival prints-including his masterpieces Young Mr. Lincoln, My Darling Clementine, The Searchers, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.

Starting fittingly on July Fourth weekend, Museum of the Moving Image will present The Essential John Ford, a tribute to the consummate American filmmaker. Ford made his reputation on westerns, but worked in many genres, creating films of depth, beauty, and ambiguity. From July 3 through August 2, the Museum will present 20 movies directed by Ford-all on film, with some restored archival prints-including his masterpieces Young Mr. Lincoln, My Darling Clementine, The Searchers, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.

Executive Chef Mark Cooper of Cooper's Seafood House in Scranton, Pennsylvania is in our 'Chef Spotlight.'

Boston theatrical royalty brightens Lyric Stage Company's LIGHT UP THE SKY, Moss Hart's classic comic valentine to the divos and divas of the stage.

The New York Philharmonic will present the U.S. Premiere of director Co?me de Bellescize's staging of Honegger's dramatic oratorio Joan of Arc at the Stake in season-finale performances conducted by Alan Gilbert and starring Academy Award-winning actress Marion Cotillard as Joan of Arc.

The Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, New York Live Arts' Resident Dance Company, today announced the launch of a new partnership with Loyola Marymount University (LMU). The partnership with the Los Angeles based university marks the first of its kind, adding to the Company's existing collegiate education programs. Spanning a total of four years, the partnership will bring the Company's works and their pedagogical and performative philosophy to LMU's campus and the Los Angeles area.

BWW Reviews: The Alley Theatre Offers An Emotional Ride With ALL MY SONS

The New York Philharmonic will present the U.S. Premiere of director Co?me de Bellescize's staging of Honegger's dramatic oratorio Joan of Arc at the Stake in season-finale performances conducted by Alan Gilbert and starring Academy Award-winning actress Marion Cotillard as Joan of Arc.

Newark, Del.

Four classic movie musicals are coming to Blu-ray today!

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.

It is now just over a month until the new stage play version of Helen Forrester's hit musical Twopence To Cross The Mersey embarks on a six-week tour of four Merseyside theatres.

Nyborg, Denmark