This Weekend’s Highlights:
Friday, January 27
Wuthering Heights, adapted & directed by Emma Rice, featuring Sam Archer (Lockwood/EdgarLinton/The Moors), Leah Brotherhead (Catherine), Georgia Bruce (Isabella Linton/Little Linton/The Moors), Lloyd Gorman (Mr. Earnshaw/The Moors), TJ Holmes (Dr. Kenneth/The Moors), Jordan Laviniere (Leader of the Yorkshire Moors), Tama Phethean (Hindley Earnshaw/Hareton Earnshaw/The Moors), Eleanor Sutton (Frances Earnshaw/Catherine Linton/The Moors), and Liam Tamne (Heathcliff), with Stephanie Elstob, opens at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre.
A Distinct Society, world premiere by Kareem Fahmy, directed by Giovanna Sardelli, featuring Vaneh Assadourian (Shirin), Corey Jones (Bruce), Abdullah Khalil (Peyman), Carrie Paff (Manon), and Emmet Smith (Delcan), opens at Utah’s Pioneer Playhouse.
Katrina, world premiere by La Darrion Williams, directed by Jazmine Nichelle, featuring Antwan Alexander II, Cassandra Carmona, John Goodwin, Zenarra James, and Jessica Perkins, opens at North Hollywood’s Loft Ensemble.
Sylvia, world premiere by Kate Prince, Priva Parmar, Josh Cohen, DJ Walde & Tachia Newall, directed by Kate Prince, featuring Kelly Agbowu (Mrs. Flora “The General” Drummond/Mrs. Savoy), Verity Blyth (Clementine Churchill/Mrs. Scurr/Kitty), Bradley Charles (Lord Cromer/Richard Pankhurst/Alan), Kimmy Edwards (Emily Davison/Lillie Hardie/Mrs. Watkins), Alex Gaumond (Keir Hardie), Jade Hackett (Lady Jennie Churchill/Mrs. Payne/Edith Garrud), Stevie Hutchinson (Lloyd George/Lord Curzon), Kate Ivory Jordan (Annie Kenney/Norah Smyth), Kandaka Moore (Mrs. Parsons/Sophia Singh), Razak Osman (Harry Pankhurst/Sir Almroth Wright/Asquith/King George V), Jay Perry (Winston Churchill/George Lansbury), Kirstie Skivington (Adela Pankhurst/Mrs. Bird), Sweeney (Silvio Corio), and Ellena Vincent (Christabel Pankhurst), with Sinead Long, Jaye Marshall, Antoine Murray-Straughan, Malachi Welch, and Hannah Khemoh, begins previews at London’s Old Vic.
Wolf Play, by Hansol Jung, directed by Dustin Wills, featuring Christopher Bannow (Peter), Esco Jouléy (Ash), Brian Quijada (Ryan), Nicole Villamil (Robin), and Mitchell Winter (Wolf), begins previews at Off-Broadway’s MCC Theater.
Secret Hour, world premiere by Jenny Stafford, directed by Margaret E. Hall, featuring Marina Shay (Professor Kate Gordon), Joshua David Robinson (Ben), and Whit K. Lee (Leaf), begins previews at Albany’s Capital Rep.
Saturday, January 28
Toni Stone, by Lydia R. Diamond, directed by Ron OJ Parson, featuring Tracey Bonner (Toni Stone), Kai Ealy (King Tut), Joseph Aaron Johnson (Elzie), Chiké Johnson (Alberga), Travis Knight (Stretch), Victor Musoni (Jimmy), Jon Hudson Odom (Millie), Edgar Miguel Sanchez (Spec), and Terence Sims (Woody), with Jabari Khaliq, Krystel McNeil, and Matty Robinson, opens at Chicago’s Goodman Theatre.
Preludes, by Dave Malloy, directed by Courtney O’Connor, featuring Aimee Doherty, Will McGarrahan, Anthony Pires jr., Dan Prior, Kayla Shimizu, and Dan Rodriguez, with Allison Beauregard and Matthew Zahnziger, opens at Boston’s Lyric Stage Company.
The Realistic Jones, by Will Eno, directed by Judy Hegarty-Lovett, featuring Joe Spano (Bob), Faline England (Pony), Conor Lovett (John), and Sorcha Fox (Jennifer), opens at Ventura’s Rubicon Theatre.
As You Like It, directed by Josie Rourke, featuring Leah Harvey (Rosalind), Rose Ayling-Ellis (Celia), Alfred Enoch (Orlando), Tom Mison (Touchstone), Martha Plimpton (Jaques), Tom Mison (Touchstone), Allie Daniel (Amiens), Tom Edden (Duke Frederick), Dickon Gough (Charles), Gabriella Leon (Audrey), Mary Malone (Phoebe), Syakira Moeladi (Hisperia), Cal Watson (Le Beau), June Watson (Adam/Corin), and Ben Wiggins (Oliver), closes at London’s Sohoplace Theatre.
Salt Water Moon, by David French, directed by Peter Kavanagh, featuring Bryony Miller and Joseph Potter, closes at London’s Finborough Theatre.
OHIO workshop production, created & performed by The Bengsons, directed by Caitlin Sullivan & Anne Kauffman, closes at Actors Theatre of Louisville.
Sunday, January 29
Staged, world premiere by Martin Bergman & Rita Rudner, directed by Bergman, featuring Rita Rudner (Fenella Fennington) and Mike McShane (Jarvis Haverly), with Annie Abrams, Kelly Holden Bashar, Brian Jones, Brian Lohmann, Patrick Vest, and Lindsey Young, opens at Laguna Playhouse.
The Piano Lesson, by August Wilson, directed by Latanya Richardson Jackson, featuring Samuel L. Jackson (Doaker Charles), Danielle Brooks (Bernice), John David Washington (Boy Willie), Trai Byers (Avery), Ray Fisher (Lymon), April Matthis (Grace), and Michael Potts (Winning Boy), closes at Broadway’s Ethel Barrymore Theatre.
Animal Magnetism reading, by Elizabeth Inchbald, directed by José Zayas, featuring Amir Arison, Carson Elrod, Yonatan Gebeyehu, Brad Oscar, Cara Ricketts, and Alexandra Silber, concludes FREE streaming at Off-Broadway’s Red Bull Theater.
Into the Woods, directed & choreographed by Matthew Gardiner, featuring Christopher Bloch (Narrator/Mysterious Man), Kurt Boehm (Steward), Simone Brown (Rapunzel), Alex De Bard (Little Red Riding Hood), Sherri L. Edelen (Jack’s Mother), Crystal J. Freeman (Cinderella’s Mother/Granny), Vincent Kempski (Cinderella’s Prince/Wolf), Jake Loewenthal (The Baker), David Merino (Jack), Adelina Mitchell (Florinda), Katie Mariko Murray (Cinderella), Nova Y. Payton (The Witch), Lawrence Redmond (Cinderella’s Father), Maria Rizzo (Cinderella’s Stepmother), Paul Scanlan (Rapunzel’s Prince), Erin Weaver (The Baker’s Wife), and Chani Wereley (Lucinda), and Phylicia Rashad (Voice of the Giant), with Drake Leach, Julia Wheeler Lennon, Dylan Toms, and Cassandra Victoria, closes at VA’s Signature Theatre.
Mean Girls national tour, by Tina Fey, Jeff Richmond & Nell Benjamin, directed & choreographed by Casey Nicholaw, featuring Danielle Wade (Cady Heron), Mariah Rose Faith (Regina George), Megan Masako Haley (Gretchen Wieners, and Jonalyn Saxer (Karen Smith), Eric Huffman (Damian Hubbard), Gaelen Gilliland (Mrs. Heron/Ms. Norbury)/Mrs. George), Adante Carter (Aaron Samuels), Kabir Bery (Kevin Gnapoor), and Lawrence E. Street (Mr. Duvall, with Mary Kate Morrissey, Janis Sarkisian, English Bernhardt, DeShawn Bowens, Will Branner, Morgan Bryant, Sarah Crane, Ixchel Cuellar, Mary Beth Donahoe, Niani Feelings, Sky Flaherty, Samuel Gerber, Fernell Hogan II, Asia Marie Kreitz, Olivia Renteria, Grace Romanello, Sydney Mei Ruf-Wong, Marcus Shane, Kaitlyn Louise Smith, David Wright Jr. and Blake Zelesnikar, closes at LA’s Pantages Theatre.
Life of Pi, by Lolita Chakrabarti, directed by Max Webster, featuring Brian Thomas Abraham (Cook/Voice of Richard Parker), Rajesh Bose (Father/Ghost Father), Avery Glymph (Father Martin/Admiral Jackson), Mahira Kakkar (Nurse/Amma/Orange Juice), Kirstin Louie (Lulu Chen), Salma Shaw (Mrs. Biology Kumar/Zaida Khan), Sathya Sridharan (Mamaji/Pandit-ji), Daisuke Tsuji (Mr. Okamoto/Captain), and Sonya Venugopal (Rani/Ghost Rani), with Usman Ali Ishaq, Mahnaz Damania, Ema Paranjpe, David Shih, Nikki Calonge, Fred Davis, Rowan Magee, Jonathan David Martin, Betsy Rosen, Celia Mei Rubin, Scarlet Wilderink, and Andrew Wilson, closes at Cambridge’s A.R.T.
Here You Come Again, by Bruce Vilanch, Gabriel Barre & Tricia Paoluccio, directed by Barre, featuring Tricia Paoluccio and Jamison Stern, closes at Pittsburgh CLO.
Final Interview, world premiere by Gabriel Oliva, directed by Katierose Donahue-Enriquez, featuring Dana Deryuck, Colleen Foy, Frank Martinelli, Gabriel Oliva, and Brian Stanton, closes at West LA’s Pico Playhouse.
**********************
York Theatre Company has announced that a revised version of Jack Heifner & David Kirshenbaum’s Vanities – The Musical will run Mar. 22 – Apr. 22 (opening Mar. 30) at Theatre at St. Jean’s, directed & choreographed by Will Pomerantz, with music direction by Deborah Abramson, and choreography by Shannon Lewis.
TBA
A heartfelt and humorous chronicle of the lives of Joanne, Kathy, and Mary — tracing them from their late teen years through adulthood. They grow and change, testing the limits of what they thought they knew about themselves, as well as the narrow views of women society has presented them.
**********************
Luis Alfaro’s Mojada: A Medea in Los Angeles will run Mar. 10 – Apr. 1 (opening Mar. 16) at Yale Rep, directed by Laurie Woolery.
Romar Fernandez, Alejandro Hernández, Alma Martinez, Camila Moreno, nancy Rodriguez, and Mónica Sánchez.
Medea, a Mexican seamstress of extraordinary skill, barely survived the perilous border crossing into the United stages and lives uneasily in a borrowed Los Angeles house with her husband Hason and their young son Acan: the tension between their traditional values and assimilation is a matter of life and death.
**********************
Broadway Bound: The Musicals That Never Came to Broadway will take place Wed. Feb. 15 at 7 PM at NYC’s 54 Below, directed by Robert W. Schneider, with music direction by Michael Lavine.
Stephen Schwartz, Major Attaway, Mike Cefalo, Hilary cole, Erin Davie, Roger Dawley, Aaron Gooden, Debbie Gravitte, A.J. Holmes, Joe Iconis, Bruce Landery, Kelly Lester, Timmy Lewis, Richard Maltby, T. Oliver Reid, Bryan George Rowell, and Mark William.
**********************
“Carol Burnett: 90 Years of Laughter + Love” will premiere its 2-hour special on Wed. Apr. 26 at 7 PM on NBC, and will then begin streaming on Thurs. Apr. 27 on Peacock.
Bernadette Peters, Billy Porter, Kristin Chenoweth, Jane Lynch and Katy Perry.
**********************
The Acting Company will present a reading of Neil Bartlett’s translation of The Misanthrope on Mon. Feb. 6 at 7 PM at Off-Broadway’s Peter Jay Sharp Theater, directed by Devin Brain.
Kelley Curran (Celimene), Elizabeth Stahlmann (Arsinoe), Rufus Collins (Oronte), Ben Horner (Philinte), Chukwudi Iwuji (Alceste), and Nikki Massoud (Eliante).
A comedy of manners transports the formal court of Louis XIV into a Hollywood film studio, while retaining the rhymed couplets and verse of classical French.
**********************
In rehearsal for Sunset Boulevard, which will run Feb. 1-8 at the Kennedy Center:
Video 1: Stephanie J. Block sings “As If We Never Said Goodby”
Video 2 : Derek Klena sings “Sunset Boulevard”
**********************
Cabaret, directed by Michael Weber, has been extended through Mar. 5 at Chicago’s Porchlight Music Theatre.
Josh Walker (The Emcee), Erica Stephan (Sally Bowles), Samuel B. Jackson (Clifford Bradshaw), Mary Robin Roth (Fraulein Schneider), Josiah Haugen (Ernst Ludwig), Mark David Kaplan (Herr Schultz), Neala Barron (Fraulein “Fritzie” Kost), Tim Foszcz (Herman), Frankie Leo Bennett (Emcee and Max standby), Morgan DiFonzo (Texas), Julia Fleckenstein (Helga), Haley Gustafson (Frenchie), Natalie Henry (Rosie), Shane Roberie (Max), Lance Spencer (Victor), TJ Tapp (Lulu), Shaun White (Bobby), and Evan Wilhelm (Hans), with Cam Turner and Jordan Beyeler.
**********************
The world premiere of Molly Beach Murphy, Jeanna Phillips, Annie Tippe & Alex Thrailkill’s Cowboy Bob will run Mar. 3-26 at Houston’s Alley Theatre, directed & choreographed by Annie Tippe.
Jackie Burns (Peggy Jo Tallas), Ashley Pérez Flanagan (Rena), Adam Gibbs (Cop Hank), Brandon Hearnsberger (Manager Bill), Susan Koozin (Jerry “Ma” Tallas), Julia Krohn (Kathy), Camryn Nunley (Cop Roy), Jamila Sabares-Klemm (Tanya), and Nathaniel Tenenbaum (Stan).
The story of one of the FBI’s most unusual suspects through the eyes of a chain-restaurant waitress desperate to buck her flavorless life.
**********************
The national tour of Company has announced its initial touring schedule:
Fisher Theater (Detroit) Oct. 17-29, 2023
Buell Theatre (Denver) May 22 – June 2, 2024
Paramount Theatre (Seattle) – July 23-28, 2024
… and more TBA.
**********************
The world premiere of Martin Yousif Zebari’s Layalina will run Mar. 3 – Apr. 2 at Chicago’s Goodman Theatre, directed by Sivan Battat.
Waseem Alzer (Sahir/Amin), Atra Asdou (Karima Layal), Ali Louis Bourzgui (Young Mazin/Yousif), Mattico David (Yasir/Mazin), and Becca Khalil (Young Layal/Marwa).
In Layalina, it’s 2003 in Baghdad, and newly-wed Layal and her family prepare to immigrate to a Chicago suburb. Seventeen years later, Layal’s life looks unimaginably different from what she had envisioned two decades prior, as she and her siblings explore queerness, face their grief, and discover what it takes to make a home in a new place.
**********************
Plays for the Plague Year returns to Joe’s Pub Apr. 5-30.
On Mar. 13, 2020, as theaters shut their doors and so many of us went into lockdown, playwright Suzan-Lori Parks picked up her pen and her guitar and set out to write a play every day. What emerged is a breathtaking anthology of plays and songs that chronicle our collective experience and the hope and perseverance that occurred throughout that troubling year. The 2023 plays are TBA.
**********************
Next to Normal will run Aug. 12 – Oct. 7 at the Donmar Warehouse, directed by Michael Longhurst.
Caissie Levy (Diana), Trevor Dion Nicholas (Dr. Madden/Dr. Fine), and more TBA.