Dan Hiatt News

BWW Review: MARK TWAIN'S RIVER OF SONG at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley is a musical/historical ride down the mighty Mississippi guided by famed chronicler Mark Twain

TheatreWorks Silicon Valley continues its 50th Anniversary Season with the West Coast premiere of Mark Twain's River of Song. Charting a journey down the Mississippi River, this rousing new musical shares the humorous and heartwarming stories of one of its most famous chroniclers, Mark Twain. Developed by Randal Myler and Dan Wheetman, creators of TheatreWorks favorites Fire on the Mountain and Tony-nominated It Ain't Nothin' But the Blues, this rollicking adventure features guitars, banjos, and harmonicas in a music-filled voyage that will have audiences tapping their toes. Directed by Randal Myler, Mark Twain's River of Song will be presented October 2-27, 2019 (press opening: October 5) at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, 500 Castro Street, Mountain View. For tickets ($30-$100) and more information the public may visit TheatreWorks.org or call (650) 463-1960.

BroadwayWorld recently caught up with Bay Area theater mainstay Dan Hiatt while he was in the midst of rehearsals for TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's new musical a?oeMark Twain's River of Songa?? in which he plays the title role.  Mr. Hiatt discussed his process for finding the character of Twain, and also shared some insights from his remarkably rich career, having worked with most every high-profile theater company in the Bay Area over the past 25 years.

TheatreWorks Silicon Valley continues its 50th Anniversary Season with the West Coast premiere of Mark Twain's River of Song. Charting a journey down the Mississippi River, this rousing new musical shares the humorous and heartwarming stories of one of its most famous chroniclers, Mark Twain.

TheatreWorks Silicon Valley continues its 50th Anniversary Season with the West Coast premiere of Mark Twain's River of Song. Charting a journey down the Mississippi River, this rousing new musical shares the humorous and heartwarming stories of one of its most famous chroniclers, Mark Twain. Developed by Randal Myler and Dan Wheetman, creators of TheatreWorks favorites Fire on the Mountain and Tony-nominated It Ain't Nothin' But the Blues, this rollicking adventure features guitars, banjos, and harmonicas in a music-filled voyage that will have audiences tapping their toes.

Playwrights Foundation, the West Coast's premiere launchpad for exceptional emerging playwrights has named the artistic teams, actors and daily schedule for the 2019 Bay Area Playwrights Festival (BAPF). The 2019 Bay Area Playwrights Festival runs July 19-28, 2019 at Potrero Stage at the base of San Francisco's Potrero hill.

Vanity Fair, William Thackery's 19th century exploration of female conventions and ambition as seen through the discerning eyes of Kate Hamill (Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park) is a delight for the eyes and a thoughtful female perspective on gender roles that continue to evolve today. With its sparkling cast of seven actors playing dozens of roles and first-rate direction by Jessica Stone, Thackery's carnival-like satire of British society portrayed through the cunning, strong-willed Becky Sharp is as contemporary today as it was shocking in its day.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) Artistic Director Pam MacKinnon announced the full cast and creative team for Vanity Fair, acclaimed playwright Kate Hamill's rollicking new stage adaptation of William Thackeray's classic 19th-century novel that pops with 21st-century spirit. Ambitious Becky Sharp may not have been born with wealth or status, but she's determined to attain both-at any cost. Armed with fierce wit and calculating charm, Becky forges her own path through London's high society, dealing herself into a game she was never invited to play. Displaying the celebrated audacity and verve that she brought to her adaptation of Sense & Sensibility, Hamill conjures an inventive and lively period drama that combines a fierce contemporary edge with the theatricality of Victorian Burlesque.

Mean Girls, Big Little Lies, Heathers, Broad City, Thelma and Louise, Parks and Recreation, Sex and the City…These are some of the better known vehicles for female friendship that inhabit our pop culture universe. Paling in comparison to the numerous portrayals of male friendships and "bromances", too often these relationships center on competition or jealousy, on getting the guy. Very few take a deeper, more comprehensive dive into the complexity of female companionship. Even fewer are the product of female authors, directors, playwrights, etc.

Following the success of her Sense and Sensibility at the Folger Theatre in 2016, Wall Street Journal's Playwright of the Year 2017 Kate Hamill, returns to D.C. with her adaptation of William Makepeace Thackeray's classic novel Vanity Fair. Hamill's vibrant and colorful tale about society's foibles is a co-production with San Francisco's American Conservatory Theater. Directed by Jessica Stone and featuring Rebekah Brockman as Becky Sharp, the production will run at the Lansburgh Theatre (450 7th Street, NW) from February 26 through March 31, 2019.

Featuring a lively cast of dozens, delightful music, gorgeous costumes, and those deliciously spooky ghosts, the Bay Area's favorite holiday tradition returns as American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) presents its celebrated production of the Charles Dickens classic A Christmas Carol. Now in the theater's 42nd year of presenting the holiday classic, this version of A Christmas Carol-adapted by Paul Walsh and Carey Perloff-stays true to the heart of Dickens's timeless story of redemption and brings a playful sensibility to his rich language. A Christmas Carol runs December 6-29, 2018, at A.C.T.'s Geary Theater (415 Geary Street, San Francisco). Press night is Wednesday, December 12 at 7 p.m. Tickets (ranging in price from $10-$120) are available by calling the A.C.T. Box Office at 415-749-2228 or online at www.act-sf.org. Groups of 15 or more save up to 50% and enjoy free tickets for group leaders. For group sales, call 415-439-2424. Ticket prices are subject to change without notice.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) will present Father Comes Home from the Wars (Parts 1, 2 & 3), Pulitzer Prize winner and MacArthur "Genius" Grant recipient Suzan-Lori Parks's (Topdog/Underdog, The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess) explosively powerful and lyrical new play inspired by the Odyssey and set amid the American Civil War. Hero's master offers him a terrible choice: earn freedom by fighting for the Confederacy, or stay with the woman he loves and remain enslaved.

With the help of celebrated guest artists,American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) raised $1.2 million at its 2018 Season Gala honoring Carey Perloff and her 25-year tenure as artistic director. Proceeds from the gala, held on Saturday, April 7 at San Francisco's Four Seasons Hotel, support A.C.T.'s professional training and education and community programs reaching more than 20,000 Bay Area-based recipients each year.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) will present Father Comes Home from the Wars (Parts 1, 2 & 3) (April 25-May 20, 2018), Pulitzer Prize winner and MacArthur "Genius" Grant recipient Suzan-Lori Parks's (Topdog/Underdog, The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess) explosively powerful and lyrical new play inspired by the Odyssey and set amid the American Civil War.

Yale Repertory Theatre (James Bundy, Artistic Director; Victoria Nolan, Managing Director) presents Father Comes Home From the Wars, Parts 1, 2 & 3 by Suzan-Lori Parks, directed by Liz Diamond, March 16-April 7, at the University Theatre (222 York Street). Opening Night is Thursday, March 22. Father Comes Home From the Wars, Parts 1, 2 & 3 is a co-production with San Francisco's American Conservatory Theater, where it will play April 25-May 20.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) rings in 2018 with the first staging of Harold Pinter's mysterious classic drama, The Birthday Party (January 10 February 4, 2018). In an undisturbed English seaside town, the inhabitants of a ramshackle boarding house react to the arrival of two unsettling strangers. Where do the mysterious Goldberg and McCann come from? Who sent them? And why do they keep asking about the sole boarder, piano player Stanley? As the party guests, including flighty Lula and flirty landlady Meg, gather for Stanley's birthday, the desperate pianist is forced to confront a surreal interrogation. Featuring A.C.T. favorites Marco Barricelli and Firdous Bamji, two-time Tony Award winner Judith Ivey, and Stratford Festival star Scott Wentworth, The Birthday Party is seething with mystery, danger, and sudden humor!

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) rings in 2018 with the first staging of Harold Pinter's mysterious classic drama, The Birthday Party (January 10 February 4, 2018).

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) rings in 2018 with the first staging of Harold Pinter's mysterious classic drama, The Birthday Party (January 10 February 4, 2018).

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) kicks off its 2017-18 season with William Shakespeare's tragic masterpiece, Hamlet (September 20-October 15, 2017). Obie Award winner and 2017 Tony Award nominee (Best Featured Actor in a Play, Jitney; Satchmo at the Waldorf, A.C.T.) John Douglas Thompson leads a stellar cast of beloved Bay Area actors in Shakespeare's ghostly tale of revenge, palace intrigue, and madness. Press night for Hamlet will be held on Wednesday, September 27, 2017. BroadwayWorld has a first look at Thompson and the company in action below!

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) kicks off its 2017-18 season with Williams Shakespeare's tragic masterpiece, Hamlet (September 20-October 15, 2017).