5 Books Every Directing Student Should Read
Whether you want to direct in a community theatre setting or be the next hit Broadway director, every directing student must have a strong educational foundation. While learning from experience is always beneficial, there is nothing wrong with taking direction (no pun intended!) from the directing pros. Here are the top five directing books that every directing student should read at least once in their life!
EDDIE WEN' GO Comes to UHM Kennedy Theatre in January
The University of Hawai'i at Mānoa's Department of Theatre + Dance and Kennedy Theatre are pleased to transition back to live and in-person performances beginning with the much-anticipated production, Eddie Wen' Go: The Story of the Upside-Down Canoe, directed by Associate Professor Mark Branner, head of the Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA) Program at UHM.
LEWIS & TOLKIEN: OF WARDROBES AND RINGS to Come to The Sheen Center
Lewis & Tolkien: Of Wardrobes and Rings, written by and featuring David Payne and directed by Marc Whitmore,will make its New York debut at the Black Box Theater at The Sheen Center for Thought & Culture. Performances began on May 23 with opening night scheduled for May 31, the engagement runs throughJune 14.
Tony, OBIE, and Drama Desk Award Winner Pam Mackinnon Named New Artistic Director At American Conservatory Theater
Following an extensive nationwide search,American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) Board of Trustees and Executive Director Peter Pastreich today named Tony, OBIE, and Drama Desk Award winner Pam MacKinnon the new artistic director of San Francisco's premier nonprofit theater organization. MacKinnon succeeds Carey Perloff who will depart from American Conservatory Theater at the end of the 2017-18 season after 25 years at the helm. MacKinnon will begin planning the 2018-19 season alongside Perloff effective immediately. In addition, she will begin partnering with the leaders of A.C.T.'s world-class actor training programs and ever-expanding community programs, ensuring A.C.T. continues its role as the Bay Area's leading theater arts educational organization.
BWW Interview: Director/Actress Linda Kerns Discusses THE MAN WHO CAME TO DINNER at Actors Co-op
Linda Kerns has a made a name for herself as both an actress and director. As an actress: Broadway: NINE (Original Cast), Big River, National Tours: Les Miserables, Beauty and the Beast (LA), Wicked (LA). The movie TITANIC, LAWeekly Award (Best Musical Performance) for Into the Woods at Actors Co-op. As a director: World Premiere Matthew Goldsby's Makin' Hay, Pride and Prejudice, I Do, I Do!, And Then There Were None, Going to St. Ives, among others. She is currently directing the classic The Man Who Came to Dinner at Actors Co-op to open Friday November 3.
BEACHES Playwright Thom Thomas Passes Away at 80
THOM THOMAS, script writer for stage, TV and film, succumbed to acute leukemia in Los Angeles on December 2, 2015. Recently Thomas co-wrote with Iris Rainer Dart the book for Beaches, The Musical, adapted from Dart's popular novel. Beaches had a tryout in Chicago at the Drury Lane Theatre this past summer, and a Broadway transfer is pending availability of a theater. Currently Astrablu Media, Inc. holds the rights to Thomas's completed screenplay adaptation of the novel, Vanished, with production planned for spring of 2016.
THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL with Carol Mayo Jenkins to Play Clarence Brown Mainstage, 2/20-3/9
The award-winning 'The Trip to Bountiful' starring Carol Mayo Jenkins will play on the Clarence Brown Mainstage February 20 - March 9, 2014. The heartwarming play tells the story of Carrie Watts, an elderly woman who yearns to return to her home in Bountiful, Texas one last time, against the wishes of her overprotective son and domineering daughter-in-law. Written by one of America's greatest writers, Horton Foote, 'The Trip to Bountiful' is an unforgettable portrait of a woman with incredible strength and dignity,
Harry Hamlin & More to be Honored at A.C.T.s' Conservatory Awards Luncheon, 10/28
American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) is proud to announce the recipients of the 2013-14 Conservatory Awards, which recognizes and honors outstanding alumni of A.C.T.'s award-winning actor training program and pays tribute to donors and organizations who have provided significant support to the Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.) Program Scholarship Fund. The third annual Conservatory Awards luncheon raises necessary funding for M.F.A. Program scholarships while celebrating A.C.T.'s accomplishments with award winners and current M.F.A. Program students. The winners of the five awards to be presented are Emmy Award-nominated actor and A.C.T. M.F.A. Program honorary graduate Harry Hamlin, who receives The Edward Hastings Career Achievement Award; actress of stage and screen Heidi Armbruster, who receives The Rising Star Award; actor and Shakespeare Iraq drama teacher Peter Friedrich, who receives the Contribution to the Field Award; Joan W. Sadler, who receive The Benefactor Award; and Wells Fargo, which receives The Champion Award. The star-studded event will take placeMonday, October 28, 2013, at 11:30 a.m. in the Veranda Ballroom at San Francisco's Four Seasons Hotel. Tickets and table sponsorships are now available. For information about the event, visit http://www.act-sf.org/conservatoryawards, or contact Luz Perez, Director of Special Events, at415.439.2470 or lperez@act-sf.org.
Nominee Reactions: Danny Burstein '6am in LA but Damn Good!'
'I feel pretty damn good! I'm exhausted because it's six in the morning here in LA, but it still feels pretty damn good! My phone started buzzing and I ran to my computer because I wasn't sure. People were texting me and saying 'I'm crossing my fingers to you' and stuff like that. So, I ran to my computer and because we're in this housing, first you have to enter your log in information and I couldn't get it to work. I'm like 'Why now?!' I finally got it to work and it was only after a friend sent me a text saying 'CONGRATULATIONS' that I thought 'Thank God!' I'm in tech right now so I'll spend the rest of the day in tech until midnight, but for this I'll do it!'
Charles Dillingham to Join The Pasadena Playhouse as Interim Executive Director
The Board of Directors of The Pasadena Playhouse (Sheldon Epps, Artistic Director) announced today that Charles Dillingham will serve as interim Executive Director of the theatre during the transition period following Stephen Eich's departure and as The Playhouse launches a national search for a new Executive Director. Dillingham's services are being provided by Arts Consulting Group (ACG), a national consulting firm where he is Vice President. Until he joined ACG in June of 2011 he had been managing director of Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles for twenty years.
A.C.T. Hosts Memorial for Edward Hastings, 1/22
American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) will host a memorial for the late Edward Hastings, who was one of the company's original members and served as A.C.T.'s second artistic director from 1986 to 1992. The event will take place on Sunday, January 22, 2012, at 7 p.m., on the stage of the American Conservatory Theater (415 Geary Street, San Francisco, CA).