Today’s Highlights:
Peter Pan Goes Wrong, by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer & Henry Shields, directed by directed by Adam Meggido, featuring Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer, Henry Shields, Chris Leask, Ellie Morris, Charlie Russell, Greg Tannahill, and Nancy Zamit, opens at Broadway’s Ethel Barrymore Theatre. 
Neil Patrick Harris continues with the company through Apr. 30.
The World Goes ‘Round, directed by Kevin S. McAllister, featuring Nova Y. Payton (Woman 1), Natascia Diaz (Woman 2), Karen Vincent (Woman 3), and Harris Milgrim (male roles), with Ben Clark and MaryKate Brouillet, opens at MD’s Olney Theatre.
44 – THE unOFFICIAL, unSANCTIONED OBAMA MUSICAL (As Told through the Hazy Recollection of Joe Biden), by Eli Bauman & Jon “Bowzer” Bauman, directed by Bauman, featuring T.J. Wilkins (Barak Obama) Shanice (Michelle Obama), Kevin Bailey (John Boehner), Larry Cedar (Mitch McConnell), Chad Doreck (Joe Biden), Kelly Dorney (Hillary Clinton), Kitten Kuroi (Voice of the People), Jane Papageorge (Sarah Palin), Dino Shorté (Herman Cain), Jeff Summer (Lindsay Graham), and Michael Uribes (Ted Cruz), opens at Hollywood’s Bourbon Room.
Murder on the Links, written & directed by Steven Dietz, featuring Kim Morgan Dean, Jennifer Erdmann, Brian Mackey, Jessica Mosher, Omri Schein, and Matthew Salazar-Thompson, opens at CA’s North Coast Rep.
Murder on the Orient Express, adapted by Ken Ludwig, directed by Casey Hushion, featuring Leanne Antonio (Mary Debenham), Gisela Chípe (Countess Andrenvi), anthony Cochrane (Hercule Poirot), Donna English (Princess Dragomiroff), Stephanie Gibson (Greta Ohlsson), Alex Mandell (Hector MacQueen), Graham Stevens (Michel/Headwaiter), Mark Jude Sullivan (Col. Arbuthnot/Samuel Ratchett), Evan Zes (Monsieur Bouc), and Karen Ziemba (Helen Hubbard, with Emily Harvey, Kelsey Rainwater, Alex Syiek, and Price Waldman, begins previews at NJ’s Paper Mill Playhouse.
Al Pacino in conversation about his career, moderated by David Rubenstein, both live & livestreamed at 7 PM at NYC’s 92Y.
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Broadway Grosses for the week ending Apr. 16.
Click here for the complete analysis.
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Dancers Over 40 Presents: We Think You’re Just Sensational, DAME – Angela! The Ensemble Salutes Angela Lansbury, A Panel and Performance will take place Mon. May 15 at 8 PM at Off-Broadway’s Actors’ Temple Theatre, hosted by Kurt Peterson. 
The event will include performances and a panel discussion.
(alumni from Lansbury shows): Sarah Rice, Kurt Peterson, and Karen Murphy.
Sheridan Beecher, Anthony Marciona, Richard Sabellico, Sarah Rice, Karen Murphy, Pamela Hall, Jane Coleman, Rex Reed, Sondra Lee, Josh Ellis, Clark Bason, Charles Kirsch, Caroline Kirsch, Mary Zahn, Larry Fuller, and Diana Baffa-Brill.
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The Dramatist Guild has announced its 2023 Award recipients, which will be presented Mon. May 15 at Off-Broadway’s Joe’s Pub.
Lifetime Achievement Award: Jules Feiffer and Gretchen Cryer & Nancy Ford
Hull-Warriner Award: Samuel D. Hunter & Sanaz Toossi
Flora Roberts Award: Caridad Svich
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Pasadena’s A Noise Within has announced its 2023-24 season:
The Bluest Eye (Aug. 27 – Sept. 4), adapted by Lydia R. Diamond, directed by Andi Chapman. Three young Black girls strive to make sense of love, sisterhood, abuse, and hate.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Oct. 8-Nov. 12), directed by Geoff Elliott & Julia Rodriguez-Elliott.
A Christmas Carol (Dec. 1-24)
Sweeney Todd (Feb. 11 – Mar. 17, 2024)
King Hedley II (Mar. 31 – Apr. 28), by August Wilson, directed by Gregg T. Daniel
Misalliance (May 12 – June 9), by George Bernard Shaw, directed by Guillermo Cienfuegos.
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Evita will run May 17 – July 16 (opening May 25) at Cambridge’s A.R.T., directed by Sammi Cannold, with choreography by Emily Maltby & Valeria Solomonoff, and music direction by Mona Seyed-Bolorforosh.
Shereen Pimentel (Eva Perón), Gabriel Burrafato (Magaldi), Omar Lopez-Cepero (Che), Caesar Samayoa (Perón), and Naomi Serrano (Mistress), with Martín AlmirÓn, Julian Alvarez, Adrienne Balducci, Leah Barsky, Bianca Bulgarelli, Camila Cardona, Melody Celatti, Esteban Domenichini, Rebecca Eichenberger, Sean Ewing, Nicole Fernandez-Coffaro, David Michael Garry, Eddie Gutierrez, Eric Anthony Lopez, Jonatan Lujan, Caleb Marshall-Villarreal, IldaMason, Jeremiah Valentino Porter, Leonay Shepherd, Maria Cristina Posada Slye, Sky Vaux Fuller, Marissa Barragán, Matthew Bautista, Isabella Lopez, and Miguel Angel Vasquez.
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Colin Carberry & Glenn Patterson’s Good Vibrations: A Punk Rock Musical will run June 14 – July 9 (opening June 18) at the Irish Arts Center, directed by Des Kennedy, with music direction by Katie Richardson, and choreography by Jennifer Rooney
Cat Barter (Marilyn Hyndman), Connor Burnside (Billy Doherty), Darren Franklin (Dave), Mary Maguire (George Hooley), Odhrán McNulty (Mrs. Hooley/Mrs. Sharkey), Jolene O’Hara (Polly), Gavin Peden (Brian Young), Dylan Reid (Feargal Sharkey/Greg Owen), Glen Wallace (Terry Hooley), and Jayne Wisener (Ruth Carr),
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The world premiere of ALI will run in Fall 2024 (dates TBA) at Ali’s hometown of Louisville at the Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts, written & directed by Clint Dyer, with choreography & Fight choreography by Rich + Tone Talauega.
Casting, link, and additional information TBA.
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Red Bull Theater & Fiasco Theater will present Francis Beaumont’s The Knight of the Burning Pestle, to run Apr. 17 – May 13 (opening Apr. 27) at the Lucille Lortel Theatre, directed by Noah Brody & Emily Young.
Jessie Austrian, Royer Bockus, Tina Chilip, Paul L. coffer, Devin E. Haqq, Tersa Avia Lim, Darius Pierce, Ben Steinfeld, Paco Tolson, and Tatiana Wechsler.
A joyful celebration of the universal capacity to improvise. This delightful Elizabethan comedy is a rough and rowdy romp. As a group of players gather to presents the play about the elopement of star-crossed lovers, they are abruptly interrupted a grocer and his wife. They have a different kind of play in mind – an outrageous hero’s quest for derring -do… The Knight of the Burning Pestle. And they know just the fellow to star – their apprentice, Rafe. This new subplot – invented on the fly – takes over the stage in surprising and disruptive ways. Everyone shares in the triumph of love and the singular, anything-can-happen adventure that is live theater.
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Sweeney Todd will run May 16 – July 9 at VA’s Signature Theatre, directed by Sarna Lapine, with music direction by Bon Kalbfleisch, and choreography by Alison Solomon.
Nathaniel Stampley (Sweeney Todd), Bryonha Marie (Mrs. Lovett), Rayanne Gonzales (Begger Woman), Ian McEuen (Adolpho Pirelli), Katie Mariko Murray (Johanna), Christopher Michael Richardson (Beedle Bamford), Paul Scanlan (Anthony), Harrison Smith (Tobias), and John Leslie Wolfe (Judge Turpin), with Benjamin Lurye, Jimmy Mavrikes, Bob McDonald, Adelina Mitchell, Crystal Mosser, Lawrence Redmond, Katherine Riddle, Sarah Anne Sillers, Chani Wereley, Julia Wheeler Lennon, Rebecca Madeira, Dylan Toms, and Hank Kolnitz.
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The national tour of Hadestown will return to the Ahmanson Theatre Oct. 3-15.
Casting and link TBA.
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Complete casting has been announced for Gary Kupper, Larry Marshak & Rose Caiola’s Rock & Roll Man, which will begin previews June 2 and open June 21 at New World Stages, directed by Randal Myler, with choreography by Stephanie Klemons, and music direction by Dave Keyes.
Constantine Maroulis (Alan Freed), Joe Pantoliano (Morris Livy/Leo Mintz), Bob Ari (Hoover), Rodrick Covington (Little Richard), and Valisia Lekae (LaVern Baker, with Jamonte D. Bruten, Andy Christopher, AJ Davis, Autumn Guzzardi, Anna Hertel, Dominique Scott, Eric B. Turner, Joe Barbara, Kaye Clater, Lawrence Dandridge, Chase Peacock, and Bronwyn Tarboton.
The musical takes place on the final day of Freed’s life. In a fever dream, prosecutor J. Edgar Hoover and defense attorney Little Richard face off with Freed’s legacy at stake.
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In 2021, Center Theatre Group’s Artistic Director Michael Ritchie announced his departure. It was recently announced that he will be replaced by Snehal Desai.
Click here for additional information.
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Playwrights Horizons & MCC Theater will present the world premiere of John J. Caswell, Jr.’s Wet Brain, to run May 17 – June 25 at Playwright Horizons, directed by Dustin Wills.
Frankie J. Alvarez, Ceci Fernández, Julio Monge, and Arturo Luís Soria.
In a crumbling house in Arizona, a family haunted by addiction — and hardened into smart-asses — wrestles with the alcoholic ruin of its patriarch… who may or may not be repeatedly abducted by aliens. With humor and horror, Johhn J. Caswell, Jr. brings us the transfixing story of a family mining the depths of loss, traveling lightyears to find a language for closure.
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Christopher Durang’s Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike will run Apr. 29 – June 4 at Venice, CA’s Pacific Resident Theatre, directed by Victoria Pearlman.
Brad Greenquist, Cyndy Fujikawa, Martha Hackett, Miranda Wynne, Zach Kanner, and Tania Getty.
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The national tour of Charles Fuller’s A Soldier’s Play will run May 23 – June 25 (opening May 24) at the Ahmanson Theatre, directed by Kenny Leon.
Norm Lewis (Captain Richard Davenport), Eugene Lee (Sergeant Vernon C. Waters), Will Adams (Corporal Bernard Cobb), Sheldon D. Brown (Private C.J. Memphis, Malik Esoj Childs (Private Tony Smalls), William Connell (Captain Charles Taylor), Alex Michael Givens (Corporal Ellis), Matthew Goodrich (Captain Wilcox), Chattan Mayes (Lieutenant Byrd), Branden Davon Lindsay (Private Louis Henson), Tarik Lowe (Private First-Class Melvin Petersn), and Howard W. Overshown (Private James Wilkie), with Brandon Alvión, Ja’Quán Cole, charles Evertt, Al’Jaleel McGhee.
In 1944, on a Louisiana Army base, two shots ring out. A Black sergeant is murdered. And a series of interrogations triggers a gripping barrage of questions about sacrifice, service, and identity in America.