They Wrote That? - 2004 - Off-Broadway Articles Page 20

After its sold-out 2018 debut, the biennale MOVING BODY - MOVING IMAGE Festival, conceived and curated by the accomplished choreographer, dancer, teacher, and filmmaker Gabri Christa, returns to Barnard College.

THE LEGEND OF ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS, a family-friendly, fun world premiere musical, comes to First Stage this March. Based on the bestselling book by Drew Daywalt and illustrated by Adam Rex, First Stage Playwright in Residence John Maclay wrote the book and lyrics with Eric Nordin, also doing music and lyrics. First Stage favorite Kelly Doherty, (outstanding as Miss Trunchbull in last season's hit MATILDA The Musical), will be making her First Stage directing debut with this production.

Anyone with connections to any form of Pop Culture within the last two decades is sure to have come into contact with the 2004 smash-hit Mean Girls the film of the same name, which was written by Tina Fey and Mark Waters. From the moment Queen-Bee Regina George portrayed in the film by Rachel McAdams terrorized North Shore High and victimized not only girls but boys alike Mean Girls earned its Cult-worthy status. With quotable lines such as, a?oeThat's so Fetch..a?? and a?oeOn Wednesdays We Wear Pinka??a?? and moments like Jingle Bell Rock, Tina Fey, and cast produced a Comedy-Hit that is still relevant two decades later. Now a full year and a half later Mean Girls which is still in residence at the August Wilson Theatre in New York City where the Broadway Cast has been continuously blowing the roof off of North Shore High since August of 2018, audiences all across the U.S. get to experience this relevant and outstanding cultural phenomenon.

In 'Grandma's Quilt' by Karen A. Brown, an elderly poor, unpretentious Black woman in rural Arkansas is sewing a quilt as the final act of her life. Each scrap of material is a prism into a chapter of her family's past. As she reflects on each period, she transforms into younger versions of herself to lead us through the history that she intends to pass on to her granddaughter. One actress portrays the old woman at six points in her life as well as the granddaughter. Negro Ensemble Company, Inc. will present the play's New York premiere March 11 to 21 at Theatre 80 St. Marks, 80 St. Marks Place. Two performers will share the unusual acting challenge of playing what is essentially seven characters: author Karen A. Brown from March 11 to 14 and actress Deidre Monique Benton from March 18 to 21. Director is Anthony Jay Hamilton.

Jackalope's 12th season continues with the Chicago premiere of Fast Company, written by Carla Ching, directed by Kaiser Ahmed*, with the full cast and production team announced below.

Set against the backdrop of an evolving Britain of the 70s, this fresh production shows the classic Mike Leigh satire in a new light. Performed in traverse with intimate on-stage seating offering audience the chance to join Beverly and Laurence's soireé, bringing them closer to the experience.

The Kimmel Center Cultural Campus, along with Resident Company support from Philadelphia Chamber Music Society and The Philadelphia Orchestra, celebrates Women's History Month in March 2020 with an array of programming honoring a breadth of female artistry and expression. Additionally, in conjunction with the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, Philadelphia and Drexel University's Vision 2020's 'Women 100' National Women's Equality Initiative will host a series of events, including the Seat at the Table FREE and interactive exhibition, opening in March and running through September in the Kimmel Center's Commonwealth Plaza.

The Public Theater (Artistic Director, Oskar Eustis; Executive Director, Patrick Willingham) will begin performances for the world premiere of the new play COAL COUNTRY, written by Jessica Blank and Erik Jensen with original music by Steve Earle, on Tuesday, February 18 with a Joseph Papp Free Preview performance in the Anspacher Theater. Directed by Jessica Blank, this riveting new work will run through Sunday, March 29, with an official press opening on Tuesday, March 3.

The Sandra Feinstein-Gamm Theatre (The Gamm) stages Assassins, Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman's revue-style musical examining the motives of notorious Americans who take aim at the president of the United States-and what they believe is their best shot at the American Dream.

Love Quirks is a new musical fable based on actual events as a group of thirty-somethings explore the trials and tribulations of love, friendship, and all the blurry lines in-between. Love Quirks features an original score of quirky, neurotic, and poignant songs by composer/lyricist Seth Bisen-Hersh and a script by Mark Childers filled with laughter, pathos, and lots of sexual tension. Love Quirks will begin previews at St. Luke's Theatre on Monday, February 24th with an official opening of Monday, March 16th.

Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU) will present the workshop How to Write a Musical That Works Part Two: Conflicts & Obstacles on Sunday February 23, 2020 from 10am to 6pm at Studios 150, 150 W. 46th Street, 7th floor, NYC. Submission deadline is Wednesday 2/12. E-mail TRUStaff1@gmail.com or register online at https://truonline.org/events/feedback-workshop2-2020/.

Musical legends Mariah Carey, Annie Lennox / Dave Stewart p/k/a Eurythmics, Ernie Isley / Marvin Isley / O'Kelly Isley / Ronald Isley / Rudolph Isley / Chris Jasper p/k/a The Isley Brothers, Steve Miller, Chad Hugo / Pharrell Williams p/k/a The Neptunes, Rick Nowels and William “Mickey” Stevenson will become the latest inductees of the Songwriters Hall of Fame at the organization's 51st Annual Induction and Awards Dinner. These legendary songwriters wrote mega-hits such as, 'Vision of Love,”  “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This),” “Shout,” “The Joker,” “Hollaback Girl,” “Heaven is a Place on Earth,” and “Dancing In The Street.” The star-studded induction event is slated for Thursday, June 11th at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City. Additional special award honorees will be announced soon.

Two Time Tony Award and Grammy Winner Michael Cerveris Plays first solo show in Chicago in 16 years Saturday, February 1st, 2020 at The Wine Goddess.

Mozart knew a thing or two about how to please an audience. The great German composer wrote his Piano Concerto No. 22 to be performed in 1786 during Lent when the theaters and opera houses were closed in Vienna in observance of the Christian season just prior to Easter. But the previous December, he gave a workshop performance during the intermission of an oratorio titled Esther by composer Karl Ditters von Dittersdorf.

Singer, songwriter, film actor (City of God), and Rio native Seu Jorge is the reigning king of samba-funk: a sound, born in the 1960s, that merges Brazil's trademark dance rhythm with soul, R&B, hip-hop, and other black pop styles from the U.S. His hits, notably a?oeCarolina,a?? a?oeAmiga da Minha Mulhera?? (My Woman's Friend), and a?oeBurguesinhaa?? (Bourgeois Girl), are as irresistibly danceable as the best of Motown. Later he branched out into bossa nova as well as the songs of David Bowie, which he sang in Portuguese in Wes Anderson's 2004 film The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. Bowie raved about a?oethis new level of beauty which he has imbued them with.a?? He now stars in the Netflix crime drama Irmandade (Brotherhood).

BroadwayWorld would like to congratulate Jerry Mitchell and Ricky Schroeder on their recent engagement!

A new production of THE BOY FRIEND by Sandy Wilson, the deliriously happy and joyful musical about young love, middle-aged love and older love, will be the final show of the 2019-20 Mirvish Subscription Season. Coming direct from an acclaimed, sell-out season at the prolific Menier Chocolate Factory in London and prior to a West End transfer, THE BOY FRIEND will be performed March 31 to May 3, 2020 at Toronto's Princess of Wales Theatre.

Adam Chanler-Berat, Tavi Gevinson, and Andy Grotelueschen have joined the upcoming Classic Stage Company revival of Assassins. They will play the roles of John Hinckley Jr., Squeaky Fromme, and Samuel Byck respectively.

Toronto rock duo Bedouin Soundclash just released their critically-acclaimed fifth studio album MASS via Easy Star Records/Mr. Bongo/Sony Canada. The duo is currently touring with Matisyahu with a handful of northeast dates to close out 2019.

The Public Theater (Artistic Director, Oskar Eustis; Executive Director, Patrick Willingham) announced complete casting today for the world premiere of the new play COAL COUNTRY, written by Jessica Blank and Erik Jensen with original music by Steve Earle. Directed by Jessica Blank, this riveting new work will begin performances in the Anspacher Theater with a Joseph Papp Free Preview performance on Tuesday, February 18. COAL COUNTRY will run through Sunday, March 29, with an official press opening on Tuesday, March 3.

The Actors Fund, the national human services organization for everyone in performing arts and entertainment, will hold its Annual Gala on Monday, April 6, 2020. The evening will celebrate Tony Award-winning actor Matthew Broderick and Emmy Award-winning actor, producer and designer Sarah Jessica Parker; Tony Award-winning actor and Chairman of The Actors Fund Brian Stokes Mitchell; Academy Award-winning producer, co-owner of the New York Football Giants, and philanthropist Steve Tisch; and American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) President Richard L. Trumka as they receive The Actors Fund's Medal of Honor.

The Old Globe's 2020 Summer Season brings to Balboa Park an extraordinarily talented group of artists who will delight audiences with their unique takes on four great works of theatre. The season incudes a classic American musical, a new adaptation of a 20th century thriller, and two of Shakespeare's masterworks on our outdoor stage.

Adapted from German master dramatist Bertolt Brecht's play The Good Person of Szechwan, this musical exposes both the good and evil of humanity, prompting the audience to ponder hard choices between morality and reality.

OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network announced today the directorial lineup and additional casting for the first installment of the anticipated new romantic anthology drama “Cherish the Day,” created and executive produced by Emmy® winner/Academy Award®-nominee Ava DuVernay (“Queen Sugar,” “When They See Us”). The series from Warner Horizon Scripted Television added Michael Beach, Anne-Marie Johnson and Kellee Stewart in recurring roles. They join previously announced series regulars Xosha Roquemore, Alano Miller and legendary Emmy®-winning actress Cicely Tyson. The DuVernay led series recently announced it achieved full gender parity with a production crew of over 50% women, including 18 female department heads. 

Showcasing another impactful intersection of arts and technology, the Georgia Tech Office of Arts will present choreographer and disability arts innovator Alice Sheppard and the Kinetic Light team for the Atlanta premiere of a?oeDESCENTa?? at the Ferst Center for the Arts on Nov. 23 at 8 p.m.