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THEATRE

Breaking Cultural Ground With An Iranian American Play

Avaaz is "not just a personal story, it’s also a Persian New Year celebration taking center stage at the Denver Center Theater Company this month. The production marks a milestone as the first major Iranian American play to be staged in Colorado.” - Colorado Public Radio

Actor Anne-Marie Duff Says Live Theatre Is Thrilling

Sure, she’s appeared in movies and series, but Duff loves the stage. “It’s just like you and me. ... As soon as you say ‘I love you’ to someone on stage, the whole room will gasp. How fucking sexy is that? You feel like a rock star.” - The Observer (UK)

That Time When Bill Nighy Liberated Shakespeare And Shaw From The Library

It was all to impress a young woman at drama school auditions. - BBC

Good Night, Sweet Bay Area Theatres

“After the loss of so many theatres here, the closure of Cutting Ball and Cal Shakes, both leaders in their respective genres, feels like a sacrifice too great to bear. Their impact on the region was enormous—and so is their loss.” - American Theatre

Is A New Generation Of Theatre Critics Around The Corner?

The 1950s undoubtedly gave us some of the most significant critics in history, but there’s no value in being intimidated by them. Golden generations are made in hindsight – the next one might be closer than we think. - The Stage

“Sleep No More” Announces Yet Another Closing Date For Its 14-Year New York Run

The immersive, site-specific adaptation of Macbeth has been threatening to pack it up for roughly a year. Producers originally said that the show would end performances on January 28, 2024, but several extensions have been announced since then due to popular demand. - Variety

Haunting The Theater: How Directors And Designers Depict Ghosts On Stage

From the 200-year-old trick known as Pepper's Ghost to holograms and deepfakes, "a whole host of techniques have been developed to demonstrate the concept of 'spirit' onstage, ranging from mindblowingly complicated to deceptively simple." - Playbill

Staging A Musical In A Working Swimming Pool Onstage

No, this isn't a site-specific production at an outdoor pool or the Y. Flint Rep in Michigan actually installed onstage a working swimming pool — complete with filters, temperature control, pool noodles, squirt guns, and rubber duckies — for its staging of Godspell. - Playbill

Canadian Playwright Under Attack For “Pretendianism”

Jani Lauzon has maintained she is Métis and her play 1939—now touring Canada—is based on her father’s experience at a residential school. What if none of it is true? - The Walrus

Here’s Why They Have To Charge So Much For Tickets To A Good Haunted House

The owner of Blood Manor, one of New York's top Halloween attractions, explains how much he has to spend every year — not just on performers and animatronic figures, but makeup (up to $20,000 for 23 nights), stage blood, fog, and odors. Not to mention insurance and year-round rent. - The New York Times

New UK Anti-Terrorism Law Adds Security Obligations To Theatres

While theatre leaders have stressed that they are committed to the safety of their audiences, they have also pointed out that Martyn’s Law – officially, the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Bill – could stretch the resources of already cash-strapped venues. - The Stage

Here’s How To Get Cheaper Broadway Tickets, Even At The Holidays

That’s right, tourists (and New Yorkers), there are some ways to find those deals - though not, perhaps, if you want to see Robert Downey Jr or Rachel Zegler. - NPR

What Play Could Possibly Lure Robert Downey Jr To Broadway?

A play about the future of writing - and large language models, aka AI. - The New York Times

Pig Iron’s MFA Program In Devised Theater, Left Orphaned By Collapse Of UArts, Finds New Home

"The Pig Iron School for Advanced Performance Training will become part of Rowan University in New Jersey, almost four months after it was cast adrift following the sudden closure of the University of the Arts in Philadelphia." - WHYY (Philadelphia)

Are We In A Crisis Of Storytelling?

“A country is only the stories it tells itself about itself.” It’s James Graham's contention that, since the 2008 financial crisis, the West has struggled to tell a coherent story about itself. We’re all living in our own realities; everything is fractured through the digital world. - The New Yorker

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