American Theatre Wing's Downstage Center Featuring Brian d'Arcy James Available Now As Podcast

The American Theatre Wing has announced that Tony Award-nominee Brian d'Arcy James (currently playing the title role in Shrek), is the next guest on their popular interview show, "Downstage Center."

Hosted by American Theatre Wing Executive Director Howard Sherman, "Downstage Center" features weekly in-depth interviews with the leading artists and professionals working on stage today. James' interview is available as a podcast beginning (Monday, 8/10) through iTunes or an RSS feed. Click here to subscribe.

On the second episode since the return of "Downstage Center," Brian d'Arcy James talks about the opportunities and limitations of creating Shrek, the title character in the Broadway musical drawn from the first of the blockbuster animated films. He also discusses his journey from Michigan to the New York stage and the two dominant strains on his resume - serious Irish plays (including Public Enemy, The Good Thief, Port Authority and The Lieutenant of Inishmore) and serious new musicals (Floyd Collins, Titanic, Lippa's The Wild Party, Sweet Smell of Success and the Off-Broadway production of Next to Normal). Along the way, he also touches upon his roles in the original Broadway production of Blood Brothers, the directorial expertise of Nicholas Hytner and Tina Landau, the experience of replacing Norbert Leo Butz in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels -- and explains his familial bond to TV's most famous dolphin, Flipper.

The American Theatre Wing (Theodore S. Chapin, Chairman of the Board of Directors; Howard Sherman, Executive Director) is best known as the creator of the Antoinette Perry "Tony" Awards®, which it presents annually with The Broadway League. In addition to "Downstage Center," The Wing sponsors many activities, all dedicated to recognizing excellence and supporting education in theatre. These programs include "Working in the Theatre," a weekly television program on CUNY TV which gathers panels of theater artists to discuss their crafts; "Guides to Careers in the Theatre," a video series developed for schools and libraries; a grants program for New York City not-for-profit theatre companies, which has awarded nearly $3 million since its inception; the Theatre Intern Group, a career development program for young professionals; SpringboardNYC, a two-week college-to-career boot camp for young performers moving to NYC; and the Jonathan Larson® Grants, given annually to honor emerging composers, lyricists and book writers. Visitors to www.americantheatrewing.org can listen to archive episodes of "Downstage Center," all as free, on-demand streaming audio and podcast and can view or download an archive of "Working in the Theatre" episodes.

For additional information about "Downstage Center" and all American Theatre Wing programs, go to americantheatrewing.org.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride/Retna Ltd.