Boom Boom

Fertile Ground 2026 wrapped up last weekend, and on the whole, it was fantastic. I saw 17 shows, which included readings of plays by well-known local playwrights, new works by rising stars, and some fun genre-bending original performances. Here are my notes about the final set. If you missed my first two review roundups, find them here and here.

The 2026 Fertile Ground Festival kicks off on April 10. This annual grab bag of new works is my favorite time in Portland’s theatre calendar because it gives us a chance to see works at various stages of development, from early readings to fully staged world premieres.

The Park Theatre in Jaffrey, New Hampshire will screen the Marx Brothers first movie, The Cocoanuts on its giant screen this week. Learn more about the event here!

Blackfriars Theatre has announced its 2023-2024 Season, commemorating 74 years of locally-produced theatre in downtown Rochester, NY! The 74th Season boasts a powerhouse line-up of entertaining and engaging stories, transporting audiences from pristine 18th century estates of French artistocrats to the seedy underground nightclubs of 1930s Germany.

Classic Stage Company has announced complete programming for their 2023-2024 Season. See what shows are in the lineup, who is starring, how to purchase tickets, and more!

The Museum of Modern Art announces To Save and  Project: The 19th MoMA International Festival of Film Preservation, the latest edition of  the annual festival dedicated to celebrating newly preserved and restored films from  archives, studios, distributors, foundations, and independent filmmakers from around the world.

Discover the story behind one of the greatest musicals in history as we dive deep into the history of Broadway's longest-running American musical, John Kander, Fred Ebb, and Bob Fosse's, 'Chicago.'

Joe’s Pub has announced fall programming. This season presents incredible performances from Latine artists: Afro-Cuban jazz grooves from Dayramir González, an evening of Latin alternative music with Jessica Medina & Mai-Elka Prado, and more.

59E59 Theaters and Less Than Rent Theatre have announced the cast for The Panic of ’29 by Graham Techler (The Moderators) and directed by Max Friedman (Midnight at the Never Get).

The NEC Jazz Orchestra presents Soul on Soul – The Music of Mary Lou Williams on Thursday, December 9, 2021 at 7:30 p.m. in NEC’s Jordan Hall, 290 Huntington Avenue, Boston. Joining the ensemble will be NEC alum and pianist Carmen Staaf ’05, 2009 winner of the Mary Lou Williams Jazz Pianist Competition.

On Friday August 28, 2020, the Ed Mirvish Theatre will celebrate its 100th year. This storied venue opened exactly a century ago as the Pantages Theatre.

It's Barbra Streisand's birthday and BroadwayWorld wanted to do something special to acknowledge it, so I think we think we've got that BOX checked, celebrating an absolutely singular career and giving you a glimpse into some remarkable history.

BWW Reviewer Peter Nason chooses the best film musicals since the sound era began; see if your favorites made the list!

On behalf of the Gisela Johnson and the Johnson family, we are informing you that Emmy winning comedic actor, Arte Johnson has passed at 1:45am, July 3rd, 2019.  There are no services planned.  His ashes will be taken to his home away from home in HI, were a private ceremony will be held.

Oracles & Miracles, written by Norelle Scott, based on the best-selling novel by Stevan Eldred-Grigg, will make its North American debut at the Hollywood Fringe Festival in June.

The Frist Art Museum presents Paris 1900: City of Entertainment, an exhibition that revives the splendor of the French capital at the turn of the twentieth century, when millions visited the site of the International Exposition. Organized by the Petit Palais Museum of Fine Arts in Paris with additional loans from other Parisian museums, the exhibition will be on view in the Frist's Ingram Gallery from October 12, 2018, through January 6, 2019. The Frist is the first of three venues in the United States to present this iteration of an exhibition that was originally on view at the Petit Palais in 2014.

Ghostlight Records has released a special digital only reissue of Cole Porter's You Never Know - the 2001 World Premiere Cast Recording - today, Friday, October 6.

The Harris Theater, today, announced the return of the beloved MIX at SIX series for 2017-18. MIX at SIX, the series the Chicago Tribune said "ups the cultural ante considerably," is known for offering some of the theater's most provocative and innovative work, at a time of day that makes it one of the most accessible and engaging performance series yet. MIX at SIX is HT's signature happy hour performance series offering access to the best of music and dance - a subscription for all four performances is just $30.

STG proudly presents its Silent Movie Mondays: Flapper Era Series, running throughout the month of June.

Continuing the tradition of preserving and celebrating timeless recordings, The Recording Academy® has announced the newest additions to its vaunted GRAMMY Hall Of Fame®.

Back for its sophomore season, American Heroes Channel (AHC)'s series AMERICA: FACTS VS. FICTION embarks on all-new adventures exploring the truths and hidden secrets of the nation's past. Hosted by former Naval officer and actor/comedian, Jamie Kaler, the series uncovers surprising and unknown details of American history to draw a line in the sand separating fact and fiction.

The unofficial end of summer is here, as MTV brings its annual Video Music Awards back to Los Angeles after taking the show on the road to Brooklyn's Barclays Center a year ago. Though every VMA ceremony has a level of unpredictability, with last year's Miley Cyrus-Robin Thicke performance still disturbingly fresh in many people's minds, the question is, can anybody top it? The rumor is that Beyoncé is going to be addressing rumors about her marriage during her Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award performance. Is this going to be a good thing, or a bad thing for Jovah?

Cabaret is set in 1930s Berlin, just around the time the Nazi Party began rising to power in Germany. The Emcee, Sally Bowles and a raucous ensemble take the stage at the Kit Kat Klub nightly to tantalize the crowd, and to leave their troubles outside. But as life in pre-WWII Germany grows more and more uncertain, the club, a metaphor for the threatening state of the late Weimar Germany begins to fall apart.