That’s Taye Diggs – yes, the guy who gave Stella her groove back. “Hold up, though – is this not madness? Black America’s most eligible bachelor is about to play a glammed-out Teutonic genderqueer mash-up of Nico and Axl Rose?”
Category: theatre
Ireland Gives Brian Friel His Own Theatre Festival
“Details will be announced on Monday for the Lughnasa International Friel Festival which will have, at its heart, a production of one of Friel’s plays presented on both sides of the border in Donegal and Belfast. … The festival will be directed by Séan Doran, who is also in charge of the Samuel Beckett festival, now in its fourth year and due to open next week in Enniskillen.”
Tennessee Preachers Try – And Fail – To Stop Youth Theater Production Of ‘Rent’
“In a scenario out of Footloose, a Tullahoma clergyman tried to unite local church leaders in opposition to a production of the musical Rent, performed by a mostly teen-aged cast. … [But] the only outward protest was a prayer circle of three to four people outside the theatre on opening night.” (includes Q&A with the show’s director)
When Theatre Folk Strike Back At Mean Old Critics
Douglas Gordon taking an axe to the wall of a theatre after bad reviews of his new production is but one tiny example. Critic Michael Billington offers some more – including Steven Berkoff’s notorious death threat.
Sex Workers Use Theatre To Campaign For Their Rights And Safety In Malawi
“Through theatre, the women in the group tell their stories to the people who need to hear them most: police officers, brothel owners, clients, men. The audience gathers in a circle and, in the midst of them, the women act out a scenario where they have been abused or mistreated. They then invite their audience to suggest how the story could have played out differently.”
How To Get College Students Interested In Dramaturgy
Don’t have a program: “There was no designated person whose function was to understand the world of the play, to speak up for the playwright and her intent, to argue for the sanctity of the script. That work struck me as vital. Every conversation I had about student theatre I would pull back to this lack of focus on the text. The text must be the crux of all discussion and choices in the theatre.”
‘Spring Awakening’ Revival Requires Actors Who Can Sign, Not Sing
“David J. Kurs, Deaf West’s artistic director, said gestural eloquence — clear, articulate signing — was one of the main qualities the creative team was looking for. So was rhythmic ability. Like hearing people, he said, only some deaf people can follow a beat.”
The President Took His Daughters To Broadway To See Hamilton
“As Mr. Obama was ushered to his aisle seat in Row K, the audience applauded thunderously and snapped cellphone photos, in open defiance of a recorded warning from George III, played by Jonathan Groff.”
“I Don’t Think She Looked Up At The Stage, Except To Register A Laugh” – Patti LuPone In Her Own Words On The Cell-Phone Incident
The actress/folk hero explains what exactly the audience member whose phone she took away was doing, where in the theater the offender was sitting, and why her nonstop texting was distracting everyone else in the house. (Patti also reminds us that she’s never stopped a show because of a cell phone or texting.) (audio)
Director Takes An Ax To Theatre After Bad Reviews
The Turner Prize-winning artist hacked the wall of a theater where his play has opened to largely negative reviews. Douglas Gordon directs Charlotte Rampling in “Neck of the Woods,” a twist on the Red Riding Hood story running at the Manchester International Festival.