So Patti Lupone is opening a new cabaret space in New York called 54 Below. (It's below the former Studio 54, now home to Roundabout Theatre Co.) I was struck by this promo that hit my...
I was going to post about the Dramatists Guild Fund's 50th Anniversary Gala which was assembled impeccably by its Executive Director Rachel Routh, but Tari Stratton did such a fine job herse…
Here's a lovely paragraph from Tammy Ryan's blog post about Pittsburgh theatre from the perspective of the playwright. The post just appeared yesterday on HowlRound. When I first moved to Pi…
I once heard a talk by the Artistic Director of one of the country's largest and most respected children's theatres. One of the great benefits of writing for kids, he said, was the response …
The New York Times attempts to explain the recent closing of CARRIE by interviewing producers not connected to the show. That's sort of like asking executives at Sprint, Verizon and T-Mobile…
Commercial theatre in New York is a financial long shot at the best of times. Only twenty to twenty-five percent of Broadway shows turn a profit. Those odds get a lot longer for straight pla…
Imagine for a moment if two of the most brilliant plays now running in New York by two of our most imaginative living playwrights--David Ives and Edward Albee--had been subjected to the sort…
If there was any doubt at all that the exhibition business is in serious trouble, look no further than this email promo that just hit my INBox. I have to admit, I admire the can-do attitude.…
What are the optimum conditions for creative output, particularly as regards working solo or in a group? (David Licata in a recent post praises artist residencies for the fertile conditions …
Artwork for Ghost poster.
So…War Horse. It's a juggernaut. It won six Oliviers. It won five Tonys. It won Best Play on both sides of the pond. It has been made into a giganto new movie by Steven Spielberg that...
"It's a strange, compulsive business, the urge to make plays. To act in them, or write 'em, or produce 'em. It's no use appealing to reason." That's Henry James counseling a friend in Author…
So, I've been visiting a loved one in a nursing home recently. And I find myself fascinated by the way the staff -- doctors, nurses, social workers, etc. etc. -- speak to old people. It's a.…
John Hurt, the superb British actor, gave an entertaining and enlightening interview this week on the "Charlie Rose Show." Hurt is currently appearing in Samuel Beckett's play Krapp's Last T…
I recently completed a three-day workshop of my latest play. And it got me thinking about the usual developmental path new work takes in this country. Outside the sphere of developmental gat…
Saw The Cherry Orchard at Classic Stage Co. the other night. The production is a lot of fun. Most of the performances are stellar. Especially outstanding (no big surprise) is Alvin Epstein i…
As reported on the Chicago Tribune's Theater Loop blog: According to Theatre Facts 2010, the annual research snapshot released by the TCG lobbying and support organization, subscription inco…
I hate reading plays. There's no excuse for it. I'm a playwright. I have to read plays. But I hate it. A friend of mine, Paul Meshejian, is the artistic director of PlayPenn. He is taking...
Down For the Count I knew it was bad, but I didn't know it was THIS bad. A friend forwarded an email to me at the end of last week, announcing the closing of an Off-Off Broadway theatre spa…
Just got back from trudging through sleet and snow in October to see the single performance given by storyteller extraordinaire, Antonio Sacre at the United Solo Festival at Theater Row. Thi…
And what better way to celebrate the Broadway revival of Godspell than to start lobbying for a similar revival of Pippin. Wouldn't it have been a wonder to have lived to see Michael Jackson …
This arrived in my INBox today. First of all, I should just say up front that, I don't know playwright Thomas Higgins' work and I make no judgments about it 'til I see this play... which,...
"I don't want a full house at the Winter Garden Theatre. I want 90 people who just came out the worst rain storm in the city's history. These are people who are alive, on the planet....
Recently, I saw a couple of plays that made me wonder: does a good play matter? Does it matter if a play is well written? Does it matter if a play is well acted? Are these...