The Connection - 1959 - Off-Broadway Articles Page 10

I think it's safe to say that everyone, by now, has heard that the hills are alive with THE SOUND OF MUSIC. The Broadway musical, which starred Mary Martin in 1959 (and Julie Andrews on film six years later), is easily one of the most familiar titles in the musical theater catalog. With family audiences fawning over more contemporary classics like WICKED, THE LION KING and MATILDA, bringing back an old chestnut comes with a risk.

In mounting the world premiere of Rob Urbinati's new play, Mama's Boy, Good Theater's Artistic Director Brian P. Allen has given Maine a great gift - one of the company's finest productions - some two hours of searing psychological drama, tautly directed and brought to life by a stellar cast. Urbinati's (Death by Design, Hazelwood) two-act play explores the complex, emotionally wrought family dynamics of Lee Harvey Oswald, his mother Marguerite, his wife Marina, and his brother Robert in the time just prior to and just after the Kennedy assassination. Though the play is rooted in history and evokes indelible memories in the communal consciousness, it is less about the tragic events of 1963 and more about the personal relationships of four damaged individuals desperately seeking some connection and meaning. At the epicenter of this dysfunctional family is Marguerite Oswald, thrice married single parent to three estranged sons, a fierce and tender woman who is sees herself as victim and survivor, a woman whose own emotional demands continue to cripple her children. Returning from his defection to Russia, Lee Harvey brings with him his bewildered young wife Marina and their first child, and Urbinati examines Lee Harvey's troubled year before November 22, 1963 as he struggles to support himself and his family, find an ideology, and take hold of his manhood by freeing himself from his mother. The playwright effectively probes Lee Harvey Oswald's increasing instability, as well as his conflicts with Marina and Marguerite. Though the play offers no answers to the many riddles of the JFK assassination, it does challenge the audience to view the characters as human beings and to realize that the dreadful events at Dealey Plaza claimed the Oswald family among its victims, as well as the beloved President, his family, and a grieving nation.

Peninsula Players Theatre, America's oldest professional resident summer theater and Door County's theatrical icon, is thrilled to announce its 81st season performing June 14 through October 16, 2016. Nestled along Door County, Wisconsin's scenic shore, the award-winning acting company of Peninsula Players has been enthralling generations of audiences in its 600-plus seat, all-weather pavilion since 1935, presenting hundreds of pre-Broadway tryouts, world premieres, classic dramas, comedies and musicals.

Director Guy Norman Bee is teaming up with writer Danny White and co-writer Stacey David to create The Last Rock and Roll Show live action feature film. A campaign just launched to help with the film's pre-production stage and to gather together people who love hot rods, classic rock and roll and music's historic vintage time period.

The CUNY Dance Initiative (CDI), a university-wide residency program now in its second year, announces its fall 2015 public events.

The World Music Institute has announced its 30th Anniversary, 2015-16 season -- the debut season for Artistic Director Par Neiburger. Recognizing the ever-expanding nature of world music, Neiburger showcases the experimental and avant-garde along with the classic.

Long Beach Opera's 2016 season has been announced and includes a new production of the 1974 version of Leonard Bernstein's comic operetta Candide, winner of four Tony Awards; the world premiere of Tobin Stokes' Fallujah, with a libretto by Iraqi-American Heather Raffo, based on the story of a US Marine and his experience during the Iraq war; Suzan Hanson starring in Francis Poulenc's La Voix Humaine (The Human Voice), a moving monodrama about unrequited love; and the West Coast premiere of the video-pop opera The News by Jacob TV – the Andy Warhol of new music.  

Palm Beach Dramaworks concludes its fifteenth anniversary season with Lanie Robertson's Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill, a moving and surprisingly joyous look back at the too-short, turbulent life of the legendary Billie Holiday. Lady Day opens at  the Don & Ann Brown Theatre tonight, May 15 and continues through June 7.

Revenge will be delicious in the final production of Vancouver Opera's 2014-2015 season: Stephen Sondheim's brilliantly thrilling Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, onstage at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre for 6 performances tonight, April 25 - May 3, 2015.

Palm Beach Dramaworks concludes its fifteenth anniversary season with Lanie Robertson's Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill, a moving and surprisingly joyous look back at the too-short, turbulent life of the legendary Billie Holiday. Lady Day opens at  the Don & Ann Brown Theatre on May 15 and continues through June 7, with specially priced previews on May 13 and 14.

A massive 12,000-pound moving steel platform – and the Vancouver Opera Orchestra – will dominate the Queen Elizabeth theatre stage for VO's innovative new production of Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, opening April 25, 2015 for only 6 performances through May 3.

Revenge will be delicious in the final production of Vancouver Opera's 2014-2015 season: Stephen Sondheim's brilliantly thrilling Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, onstage at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre for 6 performances April 25 - May 3, 2015.

?Dallas Theater Center announced today complete details for the rolling world premiere of Colossal, a new play by Andrew Hinderaker. DTC artistic director Kevin Moriarty directs the Kennedy Center Jean Kennedy Smith Playwriting Award-winning play, which is choreographed by founder and artistic director of Dark Circles Contemporary Dance Joshua L. Peugh. Colossal begins with previews tonight, April 2 with a Pay-What-You-Can performance and runs through Sunday, May 3.

?Dallas Theater Center announced today complete details for the rolling world premiere of Colossal, a new play by Andrew Hinderaker. DTC artistic director Kevin Moriarty directs the Kennedy Center Jean Kennedy Smith Playwriting Award-winning play, which is choreographed by founder and artistic director of Dark Circles Contemporary Dance Joshua L. Peugh. Colossal begins with previews on Thursday, April 2 with a Pay-What-You-Can performance and runs through Sunday, May 3.

This was a marvellous and memorable night at the Governor Hindmarsh Hotel.

It's that time of year again! Hollywood heavyweights are flocking to the Dolby Theatre this afternoon to attend the 87th Annual Academy Awards. Like the Golden Globes, presented earlier this year, the roster of nominees are primarily made up of film stars (well, duh!) more so than stage actors, but no fear - there are a considerable amount of this year's candidates with strong theatrical credits.

A slew of plays and musicals will open on Broadway in Spring 2015, but where there is good news, there is also sad. To make room for highly-anticipated new productions such as Finding Neverland, On the Twentieth Century and Doctor Zhivago, some of our most beloved shows must close for good. Below, BroadwayWorld salutes the shows that will soon be taking their final Broadway bows. Get your tickets now to catch them while you still can!

Netflix has shared the slate of movies and TV shows which will be available for streaming beginning January 2015. Check out the list below!

From Broadway debuts to stage veterans, this season is swarming with big screen stars. Below, BroadwayWorld brings you the backstory on this year's film-to-stage transplants. Scroll down to learn more, and be sure to let us who you're most excited to see on the Great White Way, plus which actors you'd like to make the leap!

Hello, Masters of Sex fans! Let's get to recapping the fifth episode of this fantastic season. This episode packed in a few (what I like to call) 'Oh, snap' moments. The title of the episode is called 'Giants' and I'd say that it's aptly titled. It's almost one full hour clocking in at 55 minutes so let's try to hit every minute.

A.R. Gurney's enduring romance about first loves and second chances, LOVE LETTERS, will have its first Broadway revival, beginning performances Saturday, September 13, 2014, at 8pm, at the Nederlander Theatre (208 West 41 Street).

On July 1, 2014, single tickets go on sale for Signature Theatre's 25th Anniversary Season. The 2014/15 season will bring three new musicals to life in world premieres including the world premiere of the Sheryl Crow and Barry Levinson penned musical adaptation of the 1982 movie Diner; Kid Victory by John Kander (Chicago, Cabaret) and Greg Pierce; and Soon by Nick Blaemire. The season begins with Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Pulitzer Prize-winning musical Sunday in the Park with George; and continues with the musical version of Sinclair Lewis's best-selling novel Elmer Gantry; the DC area premiere of Sex with Strangers by Laura Eason; a world premiere concert event Simply Sondheim celebrating the work of Stephen Sondheim; and Kander & Ebb's classic musical Cabaret. Tickets to all of these events as well as Signature's Cabaret and Holiday Follies concerts go on sale to the public July 1 at 10AM.

On July 1, 2014, single tickets go on sale for Signature Theatre's 25th Anniversary Season. The 2014/15 season will bring three new musicals to life in world premieres including the world premiere of the Sheryl Crow and Barry Levinson penned musical adaptation of the 1982 movie Diner; Kid Victory by John Kander (Chicago, Cabaret) and Greg Pierce; and Soon by Nick Blaemire. The season begins with Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Pulitzer Prize-winning musical Sunday in the Park with George; and continues with the musical version of Sinclair Lewis's best-selling novel Elmer Gantry; the DC area premiere of Sex with Strangers by Laura Eason; a world premiere concert event Simply Sondheim celebrating the work of Stephen Sondheim; and Kander & Ebb's classic musical Cabaret. Tickets to all of these events as well as Signature's Cabaret and Holiday Follies concerts go on sale to the public July 1 at 10AM.

A LOSS OF ROSES is concluding its limited Off-Broadway engagement tomorrow evening, June 7th at Theatre at St. Clement's, 423 West 46th Street (between Ninth & Tenth Ave.) Presented by The Peccadillo Theater Company, in association with La Femme Theatre Productions, the first NY revival of William Inge's A LOSS OF ROSES opened May 12th, 2014.

To witness an entire audience on its feet, joyfully clapping, singing, and dancing into the aisles, one might have imagined rocking at Woodstock rather than in picturesque college town of Brunswick, ME. But, indeed, the exuberance and energy that filled the Pickard Theatre on the Bowdoin campus was a tribute to the triumphant production of The Buddy Holly Story with which Maine State Music Theatre opened its 56th season. The jukebox musical which recounts the last three years in the life of rock legend Charles Hardin 'Buddy' Holly is, in many ways a perfect vehicle to showcase this company's strengths and its new optimistic and visionary artistic direction. Buddy features a largely youthful and hugely talented cast of music theatre singer-actor-musicians, dazzlingly production values, and demonstrates the company's ability to forge an intense connection with its audience.