Jessica Lewis - Page 204

Broadway South Africa's second annual Holiday party will feature Nikki Blonsky and Shoshana Bean, which will be held at the Minskoff Theater on Monday, December 14 at 7pm.

SESSIONS, the musical about the everyday life of a New York therapist and his patients, will close after the matinee (3PM) on Sunday, January 3rd at the Algonquin Theater. SESSIONS is directed by Thomas Cote and written by Albert M. Tapper (From Where I Stand, Broadway: The Golden Age), produced by Jason Hewitt and Tony Sportiello/Algonquin Theater Productions. The musical began at The Peter Jay Sharp Theater in 2007 where it played 109 performances prior to moving to the Algonquin Theater in 2008 where it played 61 previews will have played 360 performances. SESSIONS stars Robert Newman, a two-time Daytime Emmy nominee for his longtime work as Joshua Lewis on 'Guiding Light.'

Primary Stages has announced its upcoming 26th season of new works with the three productions: the New York premiere of Secrets of the Trade by Jonathan Tolins; the world premieres of a new musical, In Transit with book, music and lyrics by Kristen Anderson-Lopez, James-Allen Ford, Russ Kaplan and Sara Wordsworth; and a new comedy, Black Tie, by A.R. Gurney, at Primary Stages at 59E59 Theaters (59 East 59th Street).

Beginning tomorrow, December 5, The Celebrity SkiFest is returning to Deer Valley Resort, as the resort kicks off the winter season with the invitational event on December 5 and 6. For the event, olympic ski legends will be paired with television and film celebrities as they compete in giant slalom races on Birdseye run. The SkiFest is free to spectators, and the public can watch the races take place on Saturday at 1 p.m. and Sunday at 12 p.m.

Among the 2010 inductees into the New Jersey Hall of Fame are Frankie Valli and stage and screen star Susan Sarandon. They, along with the additional thirteen honorees, will be honored at a gala on May 2 at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center.

Broadway and small screen star Kristin Chenoweth will star in the upcoming Lifetime movie 12 Men of Christmas, based on the popular novel Decent Exposure by Phillipa Ashley. In this romantic comedy, a down-on-her-luck public relations executive uses her media savvy to generate some excitement in a small Montana town. The movie airs on Lifetime on Saturday, December 5.

Avery Brooks, Donetta Lavinia Grays, and Gretchen Hall are set to star in Centerstage's production of Let There Be Love by Kwame Kwei-Armah's. The production, directed by Jeremy B. Cohen, will run from February 10-March 7. Jeremy B.

Broadway star Sutton Foster (Shrek), will perform in concert next month at Joe's Pub on January 24. Foster, who recently starred as Carrie in the industry reading of Carrie: The Musical, will next play Nurse Fay Apple in the City Center Encores! production of Anyone Can Whistle. The Joe's Pub concert will begin at 11:30 PM.

Capital Stage has announced the next 'Out & Bold' night for the GLBT community and their friends on Wednesday, December 9, 2009. Out & Bold night is an opportunity for members and friends of the GLBT community to meet new people, re-connect with other theatre-goers, enjoy a drink, and experience Capital Stage's bold, intimate style of live theatre.

Aurora Theatre Company presents the World Premiere of lauded Chicago playwright Joel Drake Johnson's THE FIRST GRADE. Aurora Theatre Company Artistic Director Tom Ross directs this new play from Johnson, whom The Chicago Reader declared 'balances gallows humor with acute insight and compassion. He creates characters so real you wonder what will happen to them after the final blackout.' Featuring Julia Brothers and Warren David Keith, along with Rebecca Schweitzer, Paul Santiago, Tina Sanchez, and Adrian Anchondo, THE FIRST GRADE plays January 22-February 28 at the Aurora Theatre in Berkeley.

Jayne Houdyshell of Bye Bye Birdie, Well, and Wicked fame is slated to play the mother Lee Harvey Oswald, Marguerite, in The New Group's upcoming reading of Mama's Boy: The Woman Behind the Man who Killed Kennedy by Rob Urbinati. The reading will be held on December 6 as part of the theater's Dark Nights series at the Acorn Theatre at Theater Row, 7:00pm.

Even more NINE production photos have been released of all of the films stars in anticipation of the December 18th limited release in New York City before it goes wide on Christmas day, December 25!

The Stage Directors and Choreographers Society (SDC) has announced that its membership ratified several contracts at the union's annual membership meeting held this past month. Attended by over 75 directors and choreographers and presided over by Executive Board President Karen Azenberg and Executive Director Laura Penn, the meeting also included the announcement of executive board election results and the presentation of the Joe A. Callaway Awards.

On December 14 at 9:30pm, Joe's Pub will showcase the second annual concert presentation of New York City Christmas, featuring special guests Sherie Rene Scott and Raul Esparza. Tony Award winner Harriet Harris will host the event, which is being presented by ASTEP (Artists Striving to End Poverty) and Sh-K-Boom/Ghostlight Records. Stafford Arima (London's Ragtime, Altar Boyz) will direct the concert.

The 2010 Grammy Nominations were announced this morning. Carrie Fisher received a nomination in the Best Spoken Word Album category for her bestselling memoir WISHFUL DRINKING.

Liv Ullmann, living legend of cinema and theater, has just directed a production of A Streetcar Named Desire that stars Cate Blanchett and opens at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in November. While Ullmann was preparing that production, a documentary, The Sealed Orders of Liv Ullmann, captured her mentoring young actors through scenes from this same Tennessee Williams play. The Paley Center will premiere this film by four-time Academy Award nominees Kirk Simon and Karen Goodman, on December 14 at 6:30pm at The Paley Center for Media.

The only program that can compete with GLEE? One 45-year-old animated holiday special also known as 'Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer' on CBS, which drew 10.7 million viewers and a 3.8 preliminary rating among adults 18-49. This makes Rudolph the highest-rated holiday special of 2009 to date, although it's rating were 10% when it aired this same time in 2008.

Billboard's Top Cast Albums chart for week ending 12/5/2009.

Multi-platinum rock band Green Day globally premiere a brand-new version of their platinum-selling single '21 Guns' on http://www.spinner.com/aolmusic on Thursday, December 3rd. The song will ship to all radio formats on Friday, December 4th.

Spinal Tap, the heavy metal rock band led by SUPERIOR DONUTS' Michael McKean, has received two 2010 Grammy Award nominations, in the categories of 'Best Comedy Album' and 'Best Recording Package.'