Some Voices - 1998 - Off-Broadway Articles Page 18

Bad times make great art, so this year's Brooklyn Film Festival (BFF) should be amazing! And so BFF announces today the film lineup for its 21st edition: THRESHOLD. Like an aircraft entering the threshold on runway “21,” BFF takes off on Friday, June 1st at returning venue: Wythe Hotel in Williamsburg. Over the course of the 10-day festival, BFF proudly presents film programs at Wythe Hotel, nearby returning venue Windmill Studios in Greenpoint, and five more screening venues throughout Brooklyn. BFF will announce its opening night film soon. Festival tickets go on sale on Monday, May 14, 2018, at http://www.brooklynfilmfestival.org/tickets/.

Zullo/RawMovement presents the Queerly Contemporary Festival on Saturday, June 9, 2018 at 7:30pm at City Center Studio 4, 130 West 56th Street, NYC. Doors open at 7pm for a gallery exhibit with works by Ricardo Francis.

This August, New York City will host the first ever Classical Bridge, an international music festival, academy and conference designed to build bridges through the music. Presented by New York Concert Artists & Associates (NYCA), the inaugural event runs August 4 - 11 at Merkin Concert Hall atKaufman Music Center (129 West 67th Street, between Broadway & Amsterdam Ave), Symphony Space (2537 Broadway, at 96th Street), and Steinway Hall (1133 Avenue of the Americas at 44th Street). For tickets. reservations and more information visit www.ClassicalBridge.org.

Rivendell Theatre Ensemble (RTE), Chicago's only Equity theatre dedicated to producing new work with women at the core will add four performances to the run The Cake by Bekah Brunstetter, directed by Lauren Shouse, and featuring RTE Founders Tara Mallen and Keith Kupferer, RTE Member Krystel McNeil, with Tuckie White.  Eight performances have been added to the run, which must close June 2, 2018 at Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, 5779 N. Ridge Avenue in Chicago. 

Continuing the momentum created with the current season launch of its Music Knows No Borders series, Executive Director Thor Steingraber unveils the Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts' 2018-19 Season, which features four world premieres, two American premieres, several of the world's greatest orchestras, innovative jazz programs, two tributes to Hollywood legends, Broadway classics plus artists from 18 different nations who will appear on stage at The Soraya next season.  New Subscription Series tickets will go on sale May 1, 2018.

On the occasion of the 20-year mark of Matthew Shepard's tragic death, the Ford Theatres presents Considering Matthew Shepard, on Friday, June 15 and Saturday June 16 at 8:30pm, in association with Chris Isaacson Presents. Part of the 2018 Season and the IGNITE @ the FORD! series, Considering Matthew Shepard is performed by the 30-member GRAMMY Award-winning Conspirare choir, and composed and conducted by its GRAMMY Award-winning artistic director, Craig Hella Johnson. 

World premieres of an oratorio about the Underground Railroad that sets narratives of slaves running for freedom and their lives, and a work that sets poems calling for peace in Farsi, Spanish, Hebrew, Arabic, and English: Sanctuary Road, music by Paul Moravec and text by Mark Campbell based upon the writings of William Still, a conductor for the Underground Railroad; and We Are One for chorus and orchestra by Behzad Ranjbaran, both completed within the last year, will be given their first performances by the Oratorio Society of New York (OSNY) led by Music Director Kent Tritle as the culminating concert of the OSNY's 145th season on Monday, May 7, 2018, at Carnegie Hall.

Vineyard Theatre's Artistic Directors Douglas Aibel and Sarah Stern and Managing Director Suzanne Appel announce an initial line-up of stars set for the 2018 Gala Fundraiser celebrating Tony Award-winning director Michael Mayer and the award-winning theatre company's 35th Anniversary. The annual Gala Fundraiser will take place on Monday, May 14, 2018, beginning at 6:30pm at Edison Ballroom (240 West 47th Street). Cody Lassen is the 35th Anniversary Gala Chair and Audible, Inc. is the lead corporate sponsor of the event.

A soulful retelling of L. Frank Baum's beloved The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, The Wiz combines fairy-tale glamour with street smarts to make a classic fantasy sparkle for today.  And our directors and choreographer will bring a blast of New Orleans Creole magic to this production!  Winner of seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical and Best Score, The Wiz ingeniously mixes rock, gospel, soul, and jazz, and features hits like 'Ease on Down the Road,' 'A Brand New Day,' and 'Home.'

Made to Dance in Burning Buildings by Anya Pearson is an explosive mix of poetry, theatre, and violent and visceral contemporary dance, which poses the question: how do we heal from trauma?

Semyon Bychkov will return to the New York Philharmonic to conduct two weeks of programs, including the 50th anniversary of a Philharmonic commission, artist debuts, and symphonic cornerstones. In the first week, Mr. Bychkov will conduct Mendelssohn's Piano Concerto No. 1, with soloist Bertrand Chamayou in his Philharmonic debut; Shostakovich's Symphony No. 5; and Brahms's Tragic Overture, Thursday, May 17, 2018, at 7:30 p.m.; Friday, May 18 at 8:00 p.m.; Saturday, May 19 at 8:00 p.m.; and Tuesday, May 22 at 7:30 p.m. 

From Harry Houdini, to baseball, to Booker T. Washington, to the American Dream, Des Moines Playhouse's production of Ragtime covers a lot of ground - ten years to be exact. In presenting an encyclopedic glance of these ten years from 1902 - 1912, the musical, with book by Terrence McNally, lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, and music by Stephen Flaherty, slowly becomes a big ball of dense nostalgia with glimpses of heart every now and then. But that seems to be a bigger problem with the intent of the show to nicely wrap up ten years of history in under three hours rather than The Des Moines Playhouse's production. Yes, The Des Moines Playhouse's production (directed by John W. Viars)  is grand, beautiful, heartfelt and absolutely delicious to listen to, which makes it an excellent season closer for the company as they head into their 100th season and a renovated theatre.

Made to Dance in Burning Buildings by Anya Pearson is an explosive mix of poetry, theatre, and violent and visceral contemporary dance, which poses the question: how do we heal from trauma?

Cuba's rich musical traditions explode onstage as three next-generation Cuban jazz artists converge for the first time on the Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts Stage (The Soraya) on Saturday, April 21 for one performance only. Grammy-nominated, Afro-Latin percussionist-singer Pedrito Martinez brings his earth-shaking drumming, vocalist Dayme Arocena lets loose her powerful voice that breaks free like a cry from Havana, and Grammy-nominated, composer and producer Roberto Fonseca demonstrates why The New York Times called him "a charismatic spark plug of a pianist."

Telemundo announced today additional music superstars to join the line-up of performers at the upcoming 2018 Billboard Latin Music Awards. Rapper and social media powerhouse, Cardi B, popular Colombian singer, J Balvin, Colombian reggaeton singer and songwriter, Karol G,renowned rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer, Quavo, and international superstar Ricky Martinjoin the previously announced slate of performers at the awards ceremony including Calibre 50, Chayanne, Christian Nodal, CNCO, Maluma, Maná, Nicky Jam, Ozuna and Sofia Reyes. The most prestigious awards show in the Latin music world is celebrating 20 years on Telemundo, broadcasting live on Thursday, April 26 at 7pm/6c, starting with the arrival of the stars on the red carpet at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. The show will also air simultaneously on Spanish-language entertainment cable network, Universo. Tickets to the Billboard Latin Music Awards are now on sale at AXS.com, Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino box offices or by calling (702) 632-7777.

The Las Vegas Philharmonic and Music Director Donato Cabrera announced the 2018 - 2019 concert season today, which will include 13 performances from September 15, 2018 - May 11, 2019 at The Smith Center for the Performing Arts.  This marks the orchestra's 20th concert season and Cabrera's 5th season as Music Director for the Las Vegas Philharmonic.  The upcoming season begins with works by Leonard Bernstein as part of a world-wide celebration of his 100th birthday and the orchestra performs selections from West Side Story and Candide.  Other composers featuring prominently in the new season include Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Mozart, Tchaikovsky, John Williams and others. The critically-acclaimed horror film Psycho will be presented in full on the large screen with the orchestra performing the entire spine-tingling score live in a concert for film and music lovers alike in October.   In November, a piano concerto composed by Philip Glass and commissioned by the Las Vegas Philharmonic as part of a consortium of orchestras will be performed by pianist Simone Dinnerstein.  Two holiday concerts in December will delight with nostalgia and feature a special reading of 'Twas the Night Before Christmas as well as powerful vocal performances by Kristen Hertzenberg and Travis Cloer.  Once again, we dedicate an entire evening to epic film scores by John Williams and perform music spanning four decades of fan favorites from films including Star Wars, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Harry Potter, and Memoirs of a Geisha in January.  The orchestra features two of its own principal musicians, De Ann Letourneau (violin) and Andrew Smith (cello), as guest soloists in February's An Evening of Brahms.  For the first time, the orchestra is joined by the group Time For Three, an American trio that boasts an uncommon mix of virtuosity and showmanship on music from Bach to Brahms in addition to originals and their own arrangements of everything from bluegrass to mash-ups of hits by the Beatles, Justin Timberlake and more at the March 2019 concert.  In April, the second installment of the Music Unwound initiative with the National Endowment for the Humanities explores Czech composer Antonin Dvo?ak and his New World Symphony.  The Philharmonic's chorus-in-residence, the Las Vegas Master Singers will perform at the holiday concerts in addition to May's presentation of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9. Marking the third year of the orchestra's American German Cultural Exchange Fellowship, violinist Thomas Reif will perform Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto in May's season finale. In a finale befitting a 20th Anniversary celebration, acclaimed vocalists Felicia Moore (soprano), Kelley O'Connor (Grammy Award-winning mezzo-soprano), Sean Panikkar (tenor) and Raymond Aceto (bass) will also perform on Beethoven's Symphony No. 9.

This year 2018 marks two decades that David Hill has been the Bach Choir's Director of Music.

Laguna Playhouse is proud to announce a very special event, the Coyote Stageworks, Founding Artistic Director Chuck Yates, production of Bets Malone starring as Mae West in DIRTY BLONDE, written by Claudia Shear and directed James W. Gruessing, Jr.. DIRTY BLONDE will perform six performances only, Thursday, April 26 through Sunday, April 29 at Laguna Playhouse, 606 Laguna Canyon Road in Laguna Beach.

Esther and Schmuli are shy young Orthodox Jews embarking on an arranged marriage, despite barely knowing each other. Abe and Julia are high-profile celebrities embarking on a dangerously flirtatious correspondence, despite being married to other people. On the surface, the lives of these two couples couldn't be more different. But Anna Ziegler's funny, insightful, and mysterious new drama explores the hidden connections between seemingly disparate people, drawing audiences into an intriguing puzzle and a deeply sympathetic look at modern love.

Joe's Pub at The Public is thrilled to announce a new showcase presented in association with Showtime Networks, called The SHOWTIME Salon Series, launching in May 2018. For nearly two decades, SHOWTIME and Joe's Pub have shared something significant: a commitment to producing and presenting groundbreaking programming that showcases and celebrates LGBTQ+ communities. SHOWTIME and Joe's Pub will present this yearlong initiative with monthly live shows that will feature artists ranging from Alan Cumming to Mx Justin Vivian Bond to Murray Hill to Ryan Raftery.

MCC Theater is thrilled to announce four new productions for its 32nd Season in the Theater's new, permanent home. The season includes an exciting mix of world and New York premieres from artists both familiar and new to MCC audiences-each fulfilling MCC's longtime commitment to bold, risk-taking works from the most vital voices working in theater today.

World premieres of an oratorio about the Underground Railroad that sets narratives of slaves running for freedom and their lives, and a work that sets poems calling for peace in Farsi, Spanish, Hebrew, Arabic, and English: Sanctuary Road, music by Paul Moravec and text by Mark Campbell based upon the writings of William Still, a conductor for the Underground Railroad; and We Are One for chorus and orchestra by Behzad Ranjbaran, both completed within the last year, will be given their first performances by the Oratorio Society of New York (OSNY) led by Music Director Kent Tritle as the culminating concert of the OSNY's 145th season on Monday, May 7, 2018, at Carnegie Hall.

Rivendell Theatre Ensemble (RTE), Chicago's only Equity theatre dedicated to producing new work with women at the core, announces the Midwest premiere of The Cake by Bekah Brunstetter, directed by Lauren Shouse, and featuring RTE Founders Tara Mallen and Keith Kupferer, RTE Member Krystel McNeil, with Tuckie White.

Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater announces the full cast and creative team for the world-premiere musical Snow Child, based on Eowyn Ivey's Pulitzer Prize-nominated novel. Infused with a score that combines Alaskan string band-traditions with contemporary musical theater, Snow Child follows a couple rebuilding their lives in the Alaskan wilderness when they meet a magical and mysterious snow child who transforms them.

American Composers Orchestra (ACO) continues its 2017-2018 season, under the leadership of Artistic Director Derek Bermel, Music Director George Manahan, and President Edward Yim, with Dreamscapes, on Friday, April 6, 2018 at 7:30pm at Carnegie Hall's Zankel Hall (57th St. and 7th Ave.).