3) Dixies Happy Hour to Be Presented by Theaters Across the US on New Streaming Platform
8) South Street Seaport Museum Monthly Sea Chantey & Maritime Music Live Sing-Along 3/7
9) Story Pirates New Album and Podcast Episodes
10) SuperYou, New Musical to Premiere on Broadway on Demand 3/5
11) Voyeur Extends with New Route, Cast and Scenes Through 4/3
12) The Wild Presents Happy Days By Samuel Beckett 3/5-3/13 Streaming & On Demand
1) An Outbreak Infects Higher Education in Pandemic Drama PremiereADJUST THE PROCEDURENow Streaming through March 7 on Stellar
Spin Cycle in association with JCS Theater Company presents the World Premiere of ADJUST THE PROCEDURE, a new play by Jake Shore (The Devil Is On The Loose With An Axe In Marshalltown, Holy Moly, and Down The Mountain And Across The Stream) conceived during the pandemic and created with Zoom theater in mind. The fully realized production runs through March 7 on Stellar. Tickets are $10, available at www.SpinCycleNYC.com
It's early Fall 2020 and the pandemic consumes a Manhattan university. In addition to tracking rising cases of COVID on campus, the school's administrators face immigration problems, suicide threats, and professors losing their minds. But in the midst of all the madness, it's the internal bureaucratic battles that threaten the school's preservation. Over the course of two conflict-ridden Zoom meetings, ADJUST THE PROCEDURE gives audiences a rare peek into the business of higher education at a moment of multiple reckonings.
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2) Brooklyn's Asase Yaa
Cultural Arts Foundation
to Launch
"It Was All A Dream" -
20th Anniversary Virtual Special
Friday, March 5, 2021 at 7pm
The venerable Brooklyn-based non-profit, Asase Yaa Cultural Arts Foundation, whose core tenets are to Enrich, Educate, Entertain African history art forms and history through its programs for children to adults, has announced its "It Was All A Dream," 20th Anniversary. They are kicking off their year-long celebration with a "It's All A Dream" Virtual Special on Friday, March 5, 2021 from 7-7:30pm ET. Viewers can watch the special on Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/asaseyaa/, and Facebook, https://fb.me/e/Mefo2j4g
The 30-minute Special will feature performances by the Asase Yaa African American Dance Theater, Asase Yaa Youth Ensemble, and vocalist Amma Whatt. It will also include guest speakers, Kofi Osei/Executive Director, Inez Williams/Director of Operations, Yao Ababio/Founder &Artistic Director, African American Dance Theater, Zakiya Harris/Artistic Director, School of the Arts, Jawana Johnson/Board Member, and a special 20th Anniversary Retrospective Video. The Special is produced by the Asase Cultural Arts Foundation Productions, and filmed and edited by Mickella Solutions, Inc.
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3) WRITER & COMEDIAN KRIS ANDERSSON LAUNCHES A FIRST OF ITS KIND STREAMING PLATFORM THAT ALLOWS VIRTUAL PRODUCTIONS TO PLAY SIMULTANEOUSLY THROUGH MULTIPLE VENUES, IN VARIOUS TIME ZONES, MAXIMIZING AUDIENCE AND REVENUE FOR STRUGGLING
THEATERS AND ARTS CENTERS ACROSS AMERICA
THE YET UNNAMED SERVICE IS BEING LAUNCHED WITH THE WORLD PREMIERE OF
“DIXIE’S HAPPY HOUR”
A FOLLOWUP TO THE SMASH HIT DRAMA DESK AWARD NOMINATED
OFF-BROADAY SHOW “DIXIE’S TUPPERWARE PARTY”
Kris Andersson, actor, writer and comedian behind the famed drag persona Dixie Longate, and creator of the smash hit Drama Desk Award nominated off-Broadway show, Dixie's Tupperware Party, has partnered with the streaming company Stream Ally to launch a new platform (name soon to be announced) that allows virtual productions the ability to stream simultaneously, through multiple venues, in various time zones - maximizing audience and revenue for participating theaters. 22 arts centers and theaters across the country are currently utilizing the new service by presenting the world premiere of Andersson’s new comedy “DIXIE’S HAPPY HOUR” – delivering it as a fundraiser where they each keep 80% of the profit from ticket sales.
DIXIE’S HAPPY HOUR is being made available (free of charge) to theaters across the country - from big arts centers down to small indie theaters. Theaters that present the production are able to keep 80% of ticket sales. The other 20% goes to cover the cost of the production and the streaming service itself. The theaters market the show to their patrons and subscribers. The new platform integrates with the theater's ticketing system and delivers the stream to the ticket holders. Now, on any one given night, the show can be seen from multiple theaters across the country. Audiences are not coming to the streaming service, they are going directly to the theaters themselves, just as they always have, pre-pandemic. The platform entices arts centers to reach out to local content creators and theater artists who didn’t have an opportunity to get into these arts centers or theaters before, a bridge between them and the centers to stream new content.
DIXIE’S HAPPY HOUR first premiered in January at Starlight Amphitheater in Kansas City and is a fitting show to launch the platform. Right now, the world needs a drinking buddy - and there’s no one more qualified for the job than Alabama’s favorite daughter and America’s favorite bar hopper, Dixie Longate – a gal who’s never too far away from a cocktail. Audiences spend an evening with Dixie on an uproariously raucous joyride where she shares stories that prove happiness isn’t only found at the bottom of a margarita glass. It’s an uplifting story that challenges the audience to search for their personal happy hours by looking for the good in even the most complicated situations.
Tickets start at $35 per household. A continuously updating list of participating theaters and information about the show can be found at http://DixiesHappyHour.com *********************************************************************
4) FOOD FOR THOUGHT PRODUCTIONS
The Award-Winning Theatre Company
OPENS 2021 SEASON
With A New Theme – We Persist!
And Two Comedies
CHRISTOPHER DURANG’S
FOR WHOM THE SOUTHERN BELLE TOLLS
(A Parody On Tennessee Williams’ “The Glass Menagerie”)
Starring
Blanche Baker, Nathan Darrow & Jeremy Beck
And
TENNESSEE WILLIAMS’ LIFEBOAT DRILL
Starring
Bob Dishy and Judy Graubart
Followed by a Q&A With The Casts & Two Exciting Special Guests
March 8th, 2021 at 2:00pm
Live At Theatre 80 St. Marks
And Zoomed Out To The World
FOOD FOR THOUGHT PRODUCTIONS, now in its 21st year, continues celebrating the oft-neglected one-act play and theatre at its best with Award-winning actors, writers and directors, with a tremendously fun opening on March 8th, 2021.
The first production of our 2021 season is on March 8th at Theater 80 St. Marks with two plays and some very special guests for the Q&A. “For Whom The Southern Belle Tolls,” a hilarious parody of Tennessee Williams’ “The Glass Menagerie” by Christopher Durang. Directed by Antony Marsellis, the play will star Blanche Baker, Nathan Darrow & Jeremy Beck. And, the second show, Tennessee Williams’ “Lifeboat Drill,” a very funny piece about an older couple on a boat, starring
Bob Dishy and Judy Graubart.
All will join Susan Charlotte for Q&A, as well as Special Zoom Guest Christopher Durang, who has been part of the FFTP company for years and says, “I’ll take anything Susan Charlotte dishes out. Because she always serves up great theatre, big stars and fantastic food.” And talk about persistence…90-year-old Caroll Baker will also join the Q & A with her thoughts about Williams.
The next date is March 29th featuring Part I of A.R. Gurney’s humorous, touching and poignant satire “The Dining Room”.
April 19th—FFTP offers up “I Can’t Remember Anything” by Arthur Miller starring Bob Dishy who starred in the play 20 years ago. Revolving around a widow, her husband’s best friend and her inability to remember much of the past, this compelling drama is filled with humor throughout.
May 24th will bring “The Hairdresser” by Susan Charlotte. A light comedy turns into a serious drama with a twist ending. A six-time Tony nominated actress insists on the perfect haircut from her hairdresser/best friend. She is going to the ‘Tonys’ later that evening and hopes to win.
And June 28th has slotted in Part II of A.R. Gurney’s “The Dining Room” ending the first
half of the season on a humorous and entertaining note.
Other dates set for FFTP productions are July 26th, Sept. 13th, Oct. 25th, Nov. 22nd and Dec. 20th. Many of the performances will actually have two one-acts included in the event. Besides those mentioned above, there will be plays by the likes of Neil LaBute, Dorothy Parker, Horton Foote and performances by Tony Roberts, Larry Pine, Penny Fuller and Laila Robins and more.
The performances will be available live via Zoom as well as a limited in-theatre ‘audience’ who will be part of a documentary being filmed on FFTP. The entire FFT series will be presented at Theatre 80 St. Marks. Tickets for the ‘live’ performance are free to first-come patrons, who have agreed to be part of the documentary on FFTP. All social distancing precautions will be respected. There will be a medical professional onsite to check temperatures and audience members must wear masks and have recently tested negative for Covid-19. There will be a nominal charge for the streaming. For additional information and tickets please contact FFTP at: 646-366-9340 or email: info@foodforthoughtproductions.com
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5) Jagged Live In NYC
A Broadway Reunion Concert
SPECIAL ENCORE AIRING
TO BENEFIT RAINN, LEARN TO COPE, GLAAD & COLOR OF CHANGE
SATURDAY, MARCH 6 AT 7:00PM ET
STREAMED WORLDWIDE EXCLUSIVELY ON STELLAR
Featuring the Cast of the 15-time Tony Award-nominated Jagged Little Pill:
Elizabeth Stanley, Celia Rose Gooding, Sean Allan Krill, Derek Klena,
Lauren Patten, Kathryn Gallagher, Antonio Cipriano and more
On Stage at Shubert Studios in the Heart of New York’s Theater District
Directed by Tony Award winner Diane Paulus
JAGGED LITTLE PILL Producers Vivek J. Tiwary, Arvind Ethan David and Eva Price are pleased to announce that the musical’s hit concert event Jagged Live In NYC: A Broadway Reunion Concert – a global livestream of the one-night-only onstage reunion of the Broadway cast – will have a special Encore Airing on Saturday, March 6 at 7:00PM ET, to fully benefit the charitable organizations RAINN, Learn to Cope, GLAAD and Color of Change. Available exclusively on the premium streaming platform Stellar (www.stellartickets.com), worldwide audiences will now have one more chance to experience a night of searing performances from Tony Award nominees Elizabeth Stanley, Celia Rose Gooding, Sean Allan Krill, Derek Klena, Lauren Patten, Kathryn Gallagher, Antonio Cipriano, and more, alongside the Jagged Little Broadway Band. The concert will also be followed by a special live Q&A session with members of the musical’s cast.
Tickets to the encore stream of the event are free, with a suggested donation that will directly support the vital work of these charitable organizations: RAINN, the nation’s largest anti-sexual violence organization. (rainn.org); Learn to Cope, a non-profit support network offering education and resources for parents and family members coping with a loved one addicted to opiates or other drugs (learn2cope.org); GLAAD, a dynamic media force that tackles tough issues to shape the narrative, provoke dialogue and rewrite the script for LGBTQ acceptance (glaad.org); and Color of Change, the nation’s largest online racial justice organization, helping people respond effectively to injustice in the world (colorofchange.org). *********************************************************************
6) New Musical
MILL GIRLS
Connects Generations with Interactive EP
Starring Nikki Renée Daniels, Alysha Deslorieux,
and Nikhil Saboo
Album Drops on Monday, March 8, International Women’s Day
Mill Girls, a new musical with music and lyrics by Diana Lawrence (Mary Page Marlowe, Diana & the Dishes, BMI) and book by Samantha Beach (The Snare), conceived and directed by Jess McLeod (Hamilton, There’s Always the Hudson), will release an Interactive EP on Monday, March 8, 2021 in celebration of International Women’s Day. The interactive component is a virtual petition signing and social sharing to be featured by the Lowell National Historical Park.
Mill Girls follows a year in the life of Agnes, a weaver who transforms from farmer’s daughter to poet with the encouragement of her fellow mill girls and from poet to activist when the corporation lengthens the workday. The young women who worked in the 1840s Lowell, MA textile mills were smart, fierce, determined girls who created America’s first women’s literary magazine despite working 12-hour days and fought back when their rights were threatened.
The EP includes four songs from the show performed by Hamilton alums Nikki Renée Daniels (Company, The Book of Mormon), Alysha Deslorieux (Once On This Island, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”) and Nikhil Saboo (Mean Girls), Chicago actors Bri Sudia (Wonderful Town) and Lucy Godinez (Into the Woods), and a bonus track of historical context by Lowell National Park Ranger Allison Horrocks and UMass-Lowell Professor Robert Forrant.
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7) NAI-NI CHEN DANCE COMPANY
Announces
The Bridge
Virtual Dance Institute
of boundary-breaking dance experiences
Free One-Hour Company Class on Zoom
Open to All Dancers at an Intermediate to Advanced Level
March 1-5, 2021
In the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, the Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company has established a new dance institute through Zoom, The Bridge. The Institute's aim is to bring together dancers, choreographers and directors around the world to experience the master teachers of color whose practices are embedded in the community and are focused on advancing the art of dance that transform the personal, environmental and metaphysical spaces. Interested dancers can join the class by registering on Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company's website: http://nainichen.org/company-class.
As a virtual dance institute, The Bridge will invite world renowned as well as up and coming dancers and choreographer to come to guest teach the class. Advanced/Intermediate level professional or pre-professional dancers who are looking to explore beyond their own boundaries and looking for new dance experiences are encouraged to participate. The core program is based on Nai-Ni Chen's Kinetic Spiral, which is a cross-cultural dance vocabulary that integrates the Chinese martial arts philosophy in TaiChi with contemporary dance practices she studied in America. Guest artists will cover a wide range of folk and classical dance styles.
Week of 3/1/2021
The Bridge Class schedule:
Monday Yuka Notsuka (Kinetic Spiral)
Tuesday Rei Akazawa-Smith (Modern (Taylor Inspired) at 11am
Wednesday Nai-Ni Chen (Kinetic Spiral) at 11am
Thursday Greta Campo (Kinetic Spiral) at 11am
Friday Amalia Suryani (West Sumatra Indonesian Dance) at 11am
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8) South Street Seaport Museum
Announces Monthly Virtual
Sea Chanteys and Maritime Music Live Sing-Along
Sunday, March 7, 2021 at 2pm ET
South Street Seaport Museum's monthly sea-music event Sea Chanteys and Maritime Music - the original NYC chantey sing, now made popular on TikTok - continues virtually on Sunday, March 7, 2021 at 2pm ET. From our living rooms and kitchens, join a round-robin of shared songs featuring members of The New York Packet and friends. Listen in, lead a song, and belt out the choruses for your neighbors to hear on the first Sunday of every month. The event is FREE. Sign up here to receive the Zoom link 24 hours prior: bit.ly/ChanteyMar7
After years of meeting in person on the historic tall ship Wavertree, the event moved online in April 2020. Now in its second year of virtual incarnation, South Street Seaport Museum's Virtual Chantey Sing has evolved into the preeminent virtual chantey sing in the world, featuring professionals and amateurs, old salts and new initiates, from across the street, across the country, and across the pond. South Street Seaport Museum actively recruits and supports new and diverse singers for each sing.
Each online singalong includes a virtual look at some objects from the Museum's collection related to the songs being sung. Many singalongs also include a virtual visit to one of the Museum's ships and a chat with a member of the crew.
The next virtual Chantey Sings will take place on Sunday, April 4, 2021 at 2pm ET, hosted by Bonnie Milner - RSVP at bit.ly/ChanteyApr4. *********************************************************************
9) The Story Pirates Release 1st Song from 4th Album:
The Strawberry Band
Loving and hilarious homage to concept album is entirely inspired by real kids’ story ideas
The Story Pirates will release their fourth family music album, The Strawberry Band, on April 2nd. Every song on the adventurous mock concept album was inspired by a kid’s idea, including today’s first single, “Fun Crazy Weird Hair Store,” by a 9 year old named Sylvia from New Jersey. The Strawberry Band features songwriting and performances by noted Broadway talent and is available for pre-orders today on various music platforms.
"The Strawberry Band” is a Beatles-esque song based on a story by Nathaniel, a 5-year-old Californian. The fictional British rock band has big dreams. Trouble is, they turn into strawberries whenever they perform. The seedy crew decides to create a concept album, and they reappear throughout the album to avoid a strawberry-eating shark, ending up in a psychedelic freakout before the final track, “I Have a Cookie” (performed by Broadway’s Eddie Cooper). The Strawberry Band’s songs tell compelling and hilarious stories about musical cinnamon buns, weird sisters, a wingless fairy, and a dreamy little hedgehog
The Story Pirates Podcast
Season 4 Continues on March 4th
The Story Pirates are a nationally renowned group of top comedians, musicians, best-selling authors and highly engaged teachers with more than 15 years of experience creating content that celebrates the imaginations of kids. Their previous studio albums -- Cats Sit on You, Backstroke Raptor and Nothing Is Impossible -- have all won critical acclaim, international radio play and national awards.
Season 4 of the Story Pirates Podcast (Gimlet Media) resumes on March 4th with a Johnny Cash-style song “I’m Toast, Man!,” adapted from a story by 6 year old Sam from New York, and a new story, “The Adventures of Harold Jordan,” adapted from a story by a 9 year old Phoebe from Iowa. The episode will include special guest Maulik Pancholy (30 Rock, Phineas and Ferb). In all, 20 more episodes of the podcast (which has been streamed more than 35 million times overall) will unroll weekly through July 2021.
The Story Pirates are also producing nine more episodes of SPTV. Story Pirates Creator Club members have full access to this show, which helps kids use their awesome imaginations to write great stories. Each week, Story Pirate Alex takes viewers on hilarious adventures showcasing original stories written by real kids and providing creative writing lessons filled with music, sketch comedy, and helpful tips from teaching artists. Episodes are currently airing on KLCS public television in Los Angeles and will be included in NYC public television station Thirteen's summer programs. Sample episodes also stream on YouTube.
SPTV gives kids permission to get weird as they write the stories only they can write.
In fact, The Story Pirates are always looking for kids’ ideas. Parents and teachers are invited to submit kids’ stories and drawings any time by going to StoryPirates.com. *********************************************************************
10) THE NEW MUSICAL
SuperYou
BOOK/MUSIC/LYRICS/ARRANGEMENTS BY
LOURDS LANE
DIRECTED AND CHOREOGRAPHED BY
JOANN M. HUNTER
WILL MAKE ONLINE WORLD PREMIERE
DURING WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH
FRIDAY, MARCH 5 AT 8:00 PM ET
ONLY ON
BROADWAY ON DEMAND
PREMIERE EVENT TO ALSO INCLUDE
VIRTUAL RED-CARPET HOSTED BY PLAYBILL.COM
AND ‘STAGE DOOR’ AFTER-PARTY
FEATURING CAST AND CREATIVE TEAM MEMBERS
Broadway On Demand, the theater-focused streaming platform, is proud to present the online world premiere of the drive-in concert production of the new musical SuperYou by Lourds Lane, the journey of a woman who reconnects with her dreams when her superheroine creations come to life, during Women’s History Month, Friday, March 5 at 8:00 PM ET.
Prior to the online premiere Playbill.com will host a special virtual red-carpet event Friday, March 5 at 7:30 PM ET to celebrate the premiere of the film, featuring interviews with the cast and creative team sharing insight on how this unique live performance came together, how the film was made, and how SuperYou has pivoted and grown amid the pandemic.
An exclusive “Stage Door” after-party event with cast and creatives will also follow the premiere at 9:00 PM ET.
SuperYou was previously scheduled to open at the Daryl Roth Theatre in May, of 2020, but was forced to shut down due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Exactly one month after the date the show was to open in NYC, SuperYou became the first theatrical show to safely perform live during the pandemic – giving a concert performance for two nights to a sold-out audience at a drive-in, in Amenia, NY in June of 2020. To stay socially distant, the cast performed on the backs of five pick-up trucks.
The concert performance and the behind-the-scenes footage depicted in the hour -long movie, “SuperYou the Musical Drive-in Concert,” tells the heartwarming story of resilience, overcoming obstacles, and an unshakeable faith in one’s vision. With over forty Broadway veterans coming together in belief of a singular mission, the movie is an inspiring reminder that now more than ever, the world needs a superhero. That superhero is you.
Following the Playbill red-carpet pre-show event, SuperYou will premiere on Broadway on Demand on Friday, March 5 at 8:00 PM ET, followed by a “Stage Door” after-party with the cast and creatives at 9:00 PM ET. Premiere tickets are $12.95 and can be purchased at BroadwayOnDemand.com.
Following the premiere, SuperYou will be available On Demand through Thursday, April 1, 2021 for $3.95 / ticket.
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11) Pandemic-Friendly Hit Announces Revised Production & Added Dates
VOYEUR: THE WINDOWS OF TOULOUSE-LAUTREC
Now through April , 2021
Bated Breath Theatre Company announces another extension of its live hit VOYEUR: THE WINDOWS OF TOULOUSE-LAUTREC through April 3, 2021. As of March 6, the company will begin performing a new "Spring 2021 Edition" of the show that will guide audiences along a new route ending at Greenwich House. The updated VOYEUR also features new performers, new scenes, new stops, and new surprises along the way.
VOYEUR is an open air, immersive theatrical experience that guides an intimate eight-person audience through the dreams of iconic artist Toulouse-Lautrec as he recalls his final absinthe-laced years living and working in Montmartre. It is a unique blend of theater, dance, art, walking tour, live music and puppetry. The sidewalks, doorways and windows of Greenwich Village become the setting for VOYEUR as live accompaniment collides with the city’s soundscape, transporting attendees into the bohemian world of 1899 Paris.
VOYEUR: THE WINDOWS OF TOULOUSE-LAUTREC runs September 30, 2020 – April 3, 2021. The performance begins at The Duplex, 61 Christopher Street at 7th Avenue South. Performance dates and times vary. See web site for complete schedule. Running time is approximately 1 hour. Audience members must be able to climb stairs and be on their feet for the duration of the performance. Tickets are $84 for General Admission or $94 including a pre-show, themed cocktail. Visit www.unmakinglautrecplay.com for times, tickets and further details. *********************************************************************