Tony Taccone News

Berkeley Repertory Theatre concludes its season with another new play, Dael Orlandersmith's BLACK N BLUE BOYS/BROKEN MEN. This world premiere introduces audiences to children and adults forging identities in families fractured by abuse. Each relates a story that transforms these challenges into a celebration of our capacity to survive. Orlandersmith created this show after becoming a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize with Yellowman, and she brings these characters to life with the help of Obie Award-winning director Chay Yew. (more...)

Berkeley Repertory Theatre announced the cast and creative team for its world premiere of Eve Ensler’s EMOTIONAL CREATURE. This positive and propulsive new show – from the Tony Award-winning playwright, performer, and activist who created The Vagina Monologues – features a choreographer, a composer, four top designers, and an ensemble of talented young women. Directed by Obie Award-winner Jo Bonney, Emotional Creature plays only 36 performances in the Roda Theatre. The limited engagement at Berkeley Rep begins previews on June 14, opens June 22, and runs through July 15. The lead producers of this premiere are Wayne Jordan and Quinn Delaney, Marjorie Randolph, and Jack and Betty Schafer; the executive producer is the Strauch Kulhanjian Family. The development of this production has been supported in part by The Mosse Artistic Development Fund. (more...)

Jo Schuman Silver, producer of Steve Silver’s Beach Blanket Babylon, announced today the selection of nine Bay Area finalists for the Steve Silver Foundation and Beach Blanket Babylon “Scholarship for the Arts.” One winner in each category will be presented with a check for $10,000 towards their college education. (more...)

Today Tony Taccone, artistic director of Berkeley Repertory Theatre, revealed two new plays that heÂ’s selected to complete the Tony Award-winning nonprofitÂ’s 45th season. In keeping with its reputation for debuting smart and adventurous shows, the Theatre presents the world premiere of Fallaci, written by Lawrence Wright and directed by Gregory Mosher, and the West Coast premiere of Dear Elizabeth, the latest collaboration from Sarah Ruhl and Les Waters. (more...)

Last night, April 28, at the Four Seasons San Francisco, more than 380 people celebrated Tony Award-winning Berkeley Repertory Theatre with actor Rita Moreno, who hosted an evening for theatre lovers, gourmands, and philanthropists. Moreno entertained the crowd with a series of songs and jokes. A gala held each year to benefit Berkeley Rep, ONSTAGE raised more than $510,000 to support the nonprofitÂ’s artistic efforts and its education and outreach programs for the local community. (more...)

The Boston College Theatre Department, in partnership with the University's 2012 Arts Festival, will present an April 26 free, public symposium on artistic leadership in the American theater. It will feature three prominent artistic directors of important theater organizations, all Boston College alumni. (more...)

This July, 40 of the nationÂ’s most prominent and promising writers, directors, and composers will be in residence at Berkeley Repertory Theatre in a new laboratory for collaboration. Today, the renowned nonprofit announced 13 selections for the inaugural summer lab at The Ground Floor, Berkeley RepÂ’s Center for the Creation and Development of New Work. During an intense four-week period, dozens of artists will live, dine, create, and collaborate at the TheatreÂ’s new campus in West Berkeley. (more...)

Boston College alumnus and accomplished theater director Tony Taccone—artistic director of the Berkeley Repertory Theatre in Berkeley, California, one of the most prominent regional theaters in the country—returns to campus this month as the special guest and alumni honoree at the University’s 14th annual Arts Festival, which will be held April 26-28, 2012. Taccone will make a number of public appearances while on campus. (more...)

On April 28, Berkeley Repertory Theatre presents its ONSTAGE gala! Actress Rita Moreno hosts an evening at the Four Seasons San Francisco, featuring a gourmet dinner, wines and spirits, and an opportunity to bid on getaways and culinary adventures. (more...)

Theatre Bay Area and the research firm WolfBrown will present the findings contained in Counting New Beans: Intrinsic Impact and the Value of Art at JoeÂ’s Pub on Wednesday, March 21 from 9am-12pm. (more...)

On April 28, Berkeley Repertory Theatre presents its ONSTAGE gala! Actress Rita Moreno hosts an evening at the Four Seasons San Francisco, featuring a gourmet dinner, wines and spirits, and an opportunity to bid on getaways and culinary adventures. (more...)

Theatre Bay Area and the research firm WolfBrown announce the completion of the book Counting New Beans: Intrinsic Impact and the Value of Art. The book contains the final report of “Measuring the Intrinsic Impact of Live Theatre,” and interviews with more than 20 prominent artistic directors in the United States, and essays by industry thought-leaders Diane Ragsdale, Arlene Goldbard, Rebecca Novick, and more. A book tour will launch March 12 in Chicago, and will visit eight cities in the United States including Minneapolis, Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. Counting New Beans: Intrinsic Impact and the Value of Art is now available for purchase at www.theatrebayarea.org/intrinsicimpact. Also available on the site are the executive summary of the work and interview excerpts, available free of charge. (more...)

Skewered throughout with up-to-the-moment pop culture references and liberally laced with sight gags, jokes and everything but the kitchen sink, "A Doctor In Spite of Himself" is a must-see dose of depravity that may require you to get stitches due to its propensity to provoke sidesplitting laughter! (more...)

Theatre Bay Area and the research firm WolfBrown will present the findings contained in Counting New Beans: Intrinsic Impact and the Value of Art at JoeÂ’s Pub on Wednesday, March 21 from 9am-12pm. (more...)

Berkeley Repertory Theatre invites audiences to a love story that could only unfold In Paris. This spring – for 20 performances only – legendary performer Mikhail Baryshnikov takes the stage with Anna Sinyakina and a talented ensemble assembled by visionary director Dmitry Krymov. (more...)

Theatre Bay Area and the research firm WolfBrown announce the completion of the book Counting New Beans: Intrinsic Impact and the Value of Art. The book contains the final report of “Measuring the Intrinsic Impact of Live Theatre,” and interviews with more than 20 prominent artistic directors in the United States, and essays by industry thought-leaders Diane Ragsdale, Arlene Goldbard, Rebecca Novick, and more. A book tour will launch March 12 in Chicago, and will visit eight cities in the United States including Minneapolis, Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. Counting New Beans: Intrinsic Impact and the Value of Art is now available for purchase at www.theatrebayarea.org/intrinsicimpact. Also available on the site are the executive summary of the work and interview excerpts, available free of charge. (more...)

The Tony Award-winning Berkeley Repertory Theatre announces a new year of plays. The upcoming season features an array of accomplished artists who have collectively earned nine Obie Awards and three Tony Awards – David Henry Hwang, Denis O’Hare, Lisa Peterson, Leigh Silverman, Mark Wing-Davey, and Mary Zimmerman – while introducing local audiences to exceptional young writer Dan LeFranc. (more...)

Skewered throughout with up-to-the-moment pop culture references and liberally laced with sight gags, jokes and everything but the kitchen sink, "A Doctor In Spite of Himself" is a must-see dose of depravity that may require you to get stitches due to its propensity to provoke sidesplitting laughter! (more...)

Opening night for “Ghost Light” at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre saw luminaries from the world of politics converging for the production - a play that examines the struggle of a son coming to grips with the death of his father, San Francisco Mayor George Moscone, who was assassinated in 1978. (more...)

Opening night for “Ghost Light” at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre saw luminaries from the world of politics converging for the production - a play that examines the struggle of a son coming to grips with the death of his father, San Francisco Mayor George Moscone, who was assassinated in 1978. (more...)