April 29, 2009

Huntington's Spotlight Spectacular

"Tony and Drama Desk Award winner and theatre and television star Kelly Bishop (best known for her roles in A Chorus Line, Dirty Dancing, Becky Shaw, and "Gilmore Girls") will host the Huntington Theatre Company's 2009 Spotlight Spectacular! gala benefit on Monday, May 4, 2009 at the Sheraton Boston Hotel and Towers. The evening will feature musical performances by Grammy Award-winning pop icon Maureen McGovern ("The Morning After") and OBIE and Theatre World Award winner Euan Morton." ....read more at Broadwayworld.com


For more info about our spectacular gala benefit click here.

April 28, 2009

Sidewalk - Under Construction

The trees are gone - and our sidewalks are getting ripped up, again.

The Boston Herald calls it like they see it, and WBZ TV ran a feature about Boston's most expensive sidewalk. Hopefully the new design will be more accessible, and we'll get some trees back.

The city says it will take 3-4 weeks. So audiences coming to early performances of Pirates! should give themselves an extra few minutes to get to the Boston University Theatre.


April 25, 2009

Pirates! Under Construction



Here's a slide show for your viewing pleasure. Updated 4/28. I will update it again when I get new photos - so come back soon to check it out.


Help - I need more photos! There's still 4 minutes of overture left....

Cast, Crew, Staff - break out your cameras and send your "under construction" photos my way. Email, or drop them in PROD/Shared/4 the blog

Pirates! Full casting announced

THE HUNTINGTON CONCLUDES 2008-2009 SEASON WITH
RAUCOUS AND ROWDY ADAPTATION
OF GILBERT & SULLIVAN CLASSIC,
PIRATES! (OR, GILBERT AND SULLIVAN PLUNDER’D)

WHAT: Huntington Theatre Company presents Pirates! (or, Gilbert and Sullivan Plunder’d), an adaptation of the Gilbert and Sullivan classic The Pirates of Penzance that updates the script and moves the action to the Caribbean but contains the original music.

WHEN: May 15 – June 14, 2009

WHERE: The Huntington’s main stage – the Boston University Theatre, 264 Huntington Avenue, Boston

The masterful work of Gilbert and Sullivan returns to the Huntington Theatre Company stage for the conclusion of its 2008-2009 Season. Pirates! (or, Gilbert and Sullivan Plunder’d) transports the action of The Pirates of Penzance, the classic operetta about a Pirate King and his motley band; a dutiful pirate apprentice and his nurse; a modern Major-General and his virgin wards; and a Sergeant of Police and his skittish force to the Caribbean in a raucous and rowdy update complete with swordfights, sex appeal, and Sullivan’s original music. Gordon Greenberg (Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris), Nell Benjamin (Legally Blonde, the Musical), and John McDaniel (“The Rosie O’Donnell Show”) co-conceived the adaptation.

The Huntington’s production of Pirates! is helmed by co-conceiver Gordon Greenberg, who directed earlier versions of the piece at the Goodspeed Opera House and the Paper Mill Playhouse to much acclaim. The production includes a cast of 22 and features Steve Kazee (110 in the Shade opposite Audra MacDonald on Broadway) as the Pirate King, Tony Award winner Cady Huffman (Ulla in The Producers: The New Mel Brooks Musical) as Ruth, Ed Dixon (Broadway’s Sunday in the Park with George) as Major-General Stanley, and Mel Johnson, Jr. (Broadway’s The Lion King) as the Sergeant of Police. Anderson Davis (Broadway’s Les Miserables) plays Frederic, the pirate apprentice, and Farah Alvin (Broadway’s Grease!) recreates the role of Mabel, which she previously played at Paper Mill and Goodspeed.

As in the original, Pirates! tells the story of a motley band of pirates, their dutiful apprentice Frederic who longs for the day when he can be freed from his servitude, and his nursemaid, the “piratical maid of all-work,” Ruth. When the pirates discover a beautiful bevy of young women, they make plans to marry. But when the girls’ guardian, Major-General Stanley, pleads that this act would leave him, an orphan, alone in the world, the similarly orphaned Pirates withdraw. Riddled with guilt over lying to the pirates, Stanley is comforted by his wards, which encourage a nervous regiment of police to go forth and face likely slaughter at the hands of the frightening pirates. Meanwhile, as Frederic prepares to join the Police in their charge against the pirates, he is visited by his nurse and the Pirate King who inform him that, upon examination of the facts of his indenture, his servitude is not, in fact, complete and he must return to their band.

Collaborators Greenberg, Benjamin, and McDaniel have transferred the action of the original to the Caribbean, putting a Pirates of the Caribbean-like spin on the classic operetta. Benjamin has contributed to the original book and penned new lyrics for some of the classic songs to move them to the new setting while keeping the spirit of Gilbert’s trademark wit. Choreographer Denis Jones (She Loves Me at the Huntington) will infuse the piece with a contemporary musical comedy style and athletic, swashbuckling dance numbers.

“The humor of the original Pirates text is based on Victorian social values and morals,” says Greenberg. “The idea of having pirates in Penzance, an inland town, was a joke in and of itself — it’s like saying ‘the Pirates of Newton.’ Even the subtitle of the piece, The Slave of Duty, was a jab at Victorian social conventions about morality and duty. By taking these ideas and folding them into a new, contemporary context where they really hit home, we’ve been able to get to the core of what Gilbert and Sullivan were trying to do. I feel our adaptation is right up the creators’ street. They were famous for plundering from others and from themselves and making light of social themes of the day, and that is exactly what we’ve done.”

Gordon Greenberg (Co-Conceiver/Director) directed the Drama Desk and Drama League Award-nominated revival of Jacques Brel is Alive and Well…, Happy Days (national tour), Pirates! at Goodspeed Musicals and the Paper Mill Playhouse, Working (Old Globe , Asolo Rep), which he also revised, Band Geeks (Goodspeed Musicals, also co-writer), The Baker’s Wife (Paper Mill Playhouse, Goodspeed Musicals), 1776 (Paper Mill Playhouse), and Peter Pan (national tour).

Nell Benjamin (Co-Conceiver/Additional book and lyrics) received a Tony Award nomination with her husband Lawrence O’Keefe for their score and a Drama Desk Award nomination for their music and lyrics for Legally Blonde, the Musical. The pair also received an Ovation Award for The Mice. Benjamin wrote the lyrics for Sarah, Plain and Tall, won the Kleban Award for Lyrics, and is the recipient of a Jonathan Larson Foundation grant. Her television work includes “Unhappily Ever After,” Animal Planet’s “Whoa! Sunday with Mo Rocca,” and the new “Electric Company.”

John McDaniel (Co-Conceiver/Music Supervisor) received two Emmy Awards for his work on “The Rosie O’Donnell Show” where he led the band for its six-year run. He served as the arranger and conductor for “A Rosie Christmas” and for four years of Comedy Central’s “Friar’s Roasts,” and as arranger for three Tony Awards presentations. On Broadway, he served as producer, music supervisor, arranger, and orchestrator for Brooklyn, the Musical, music director/arranger for Grease!, and conductor for Chicago, among others.

“The Huntington enjoys a rich tradition of presenting Gilbert and Sullivan on our stage,” says Huntington Artistic Director Peter DuBois. “Pirates! is a terrific adaptation of the classic – audiences will see Gilbert & Sullivan's fingerprints all over as they experience the dynamic, new twist Gordon, Nell, and John have infused in the piece by re-imagining it in a musical comedy style.” DuBois continues, “Gilbert and Sullivan were brilliant political satirists – the Jon Stewarts and Stephen Colberts of their time. This adaptation brings that spirit of satire into a more contemporary context, while maintaining the beauty and skill of Gilbert and Sullivan's brilliantly silly music and rhymes.”

THE CAST
The cast is led by:

  • Steve Kazee (Broadway: 110 in the Shade with Audra MacDonald, To Be or Not to Be, Spamalot; Helen Hayes Award Nominee for The Subject Was Roses) as the Pirate King;
  • Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle Award winner Cady Huffman (Broadway: The Producers: The New Mel Brooks Musical, Steel Pier, The Will Rogers Follies;) as Ruth;
  • Drama Desk Award nominee Ed Dixon (Broadway: Sunday in the Park with George, Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas, The Iceman Cometh, Les Miserables) as Major General Stanley;
  • Anderson Davis (Broadway: Les Miserables; New York’s City Center Encores!: Damn Yankees) as Frederic
  • Farah Alvin (Broadway: Grease!, Saturday Night Fever, Nine) as Mabel;
  • Mel Johnson, Jr. (Broadway: The Lion King, The Rink, On the 20th Century; the film Total Recall) as the Sergeant of Police;
  • Caesar Samayoa (Broadway: Hot Feet; Off Broadway: Four Guys Named Jose… and una Mujer Named Maria) as Samuel; and
  • Julia Osborne (Regional: A Little Night Music at Baltimore Centerstage; Half a Sixpence at Goodspeed Musicals) as Edith.


The Ensemble includes:

Krista Buccellato (Anne and Emmett at Emerson College)
Wes Hart (national tour of Urban Cowboy)
Sam Kiernan (national tour of Gypsy);
Douglas I. Lyons (national tour of Rent);
Chris Messina (North American and Asian tours of Hairspray),
Brittney A. Morello (Carousel at the Summer Theatre in Meredith Village),
Michael Rossmy (Cymbeline on Broadway);
Joel Perez (Cabaret at New Repertory Theatre);
Dave Schoonover (Grind at The York Theatre Company);
Kristen Sergeant (Tonya and Nancy: The Opera);
Christopher Sergeeff (West Side Story at Theatre Under the Stars);
Erica Spyres (IRNE Award for A Light in the Piazza at SpeakEasy Stage Company);
Victor J. Wisenhart (West End production of West Side Story); and
Sarah Ziegler (Iolanthe at the Boston Conservatory).


PRODUCTION ARTISTS
The creative team for Pirates! (or, Gilbert and Sullivan Plunder’d) includes choreographer Denis Jones (She Loves Me for the Huntington), musical director/conductor F. Wade Russo (Company for the Huntington, By Jeeves on Broadway), scenic designer Rob Bissinger (Broadway: Funny Girl; Off Broadway: Jacques Brel is Alive and Well…), costume designer David C. Woolard (Broadway: West Side Story, Dividing the Estate), lighting designer Jeff Croiter (Brendan for the Huntington; Broadway: Kiki and Herb on Broadway), and sound designers Drew Levy and Tony Smolenski IV(She Loves Me for the Huntington). Production stage manager is Gail P. Luna; stage manager is Carola Morrone.

April 22, 2009

Volunteer Ushers Needed

Can't afford tickets? Or just want to lend a hand? We're currently looking for volunteer ushers at the Calderwood Pavilion. Click here for more info. Click here to sign up to usher performances of The Miracle at Naples

The Miracle at Naples, a world premiere by David Grimm, directed by Peter DuBois, April 3 through May 9, 2009 at the Huntington Theatre Company's second stage; The Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA.
Buy tickets online or call 617 266-0800.

April 17, 2009

Hot Tickets - The Miracle at Naples

Ticket sales for this weekends performances of The Miracle at Naples are HOT HOT HOT - but we're not sold out YET.

Here are some tips for making sure you get a seat.

1) Buy in advance - availability is better a few weeks out.

2) Check our website regularly. Additional tickets COULD become available at any time.

3) Call the Box Office at 617 266-0800 if you don't see what you want online. If you don't have any luck try again a little closer to curtain time.

4) Head to the Box Office in person. Get here at least an hour before curtain. Additional tickets COULD become available at any time. We have a wait list when necessary.

And if you are a subscriber and are not planning to use your tickets - call us (617 266-0800) and let us know. You can donate your tickets back - or you may be able to swap for a future performance. Either way we get a chance to get someone into your unused seats.

"Fantastic! Raunchy potent comedy! The audience is having a blast!" - Boston Herald.

Read audience comments here...

The Miracle at Naples
, a world premiere by David Grimm, directed by Peter DuBois, April 3 through May 9, 2009 at the Huntington Theatre Company's second stage; The Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA.
Buy tickets online or call 617 266-0800.

April 16, 2009

Elliot Norton Award Nominations

The Huntington secured 12 nominations in 8 categories for the 2009 Norton's.

Congratulations to all!! And the nominees are:

OUTSTANDING VISITING PRODUCTION
Wishful Drinking, Huntington Theatre Company


OUTSTANDING DESIGN, LARGE COMPANY
James Noone (set), The Corn Is Green (Huntington Theatre Company)
Francis O’Connor (set and costumes), Two Men of Florence (Huntington Theatre Company)
Douglas W. Schmidt (set), Rock ’n’ Roll (Huntington Theatre Company, in association with American Conservatory Theater)

We've got a lock on this category... Click here to comment and tell us which production YOU would give the Outstanding Design award to.


OUTSTANDING DIRECTOR, LARGE COMPANY
Nicholas Martin, She Loves Me and The Corn Is Green (Huntington Theatre Company)
Carey Perloff, Rock ’n’ Roll (Huntington Theatre Company, in association with American Conservatory Theater)


OUTSTANDING ACTOR, LARGE COMPANY
Brooks Ashmanskas, She Loves Me (Huntington Theatre Company)


OUTSTANDING ACTRESS, LARGE COMPANY
Kate Burton, The Corn Is Green (Huntington Theatre Company)
Cigdem Onat, The Cry of the Reed (Huntington Theatre Company)

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION BY A LARGE COMPANY
The Corn Is Green, Huntington Theatre Company
Rock ’n’ Roll, Huntington Theatre Company, in association with American Conservatory Theater

OUTSTANDING MUSICAL PRODUCTION
She Loves Me, Huntington Theatre Company


See the full list of nominees at stagesource.org

April 14, 2009

Pirates! One Day Sale - April 24


For one day only, tickets to select performances of Pirates are just $27! Don't miss your chance to see early performances of this swashbuckling musical at fantastic one-day-only prices! Bring your friends!

Performances available:
Friday, May 15 at 8pm; Saturday, May 16 at 8pm; Monday, May 18 at 7:30pm; Tuesday, May 19 at 7:30pm; Thursday, May 21 at 7:30pm; Saturday, May 23 at 2pm

Click here for more info


Set sail for the Caribbean with this raucous and rowdy musical comedy classic, complete with swordfights, sex appeal, and all of the much-beloved songs from Gilbert and Sullivan. While this young, brilliant creative team has left the original music intact, they've adapted the book in a way that promises it won't be your grandmother's Gilbert and Sullivan.



"A rousing and riotous adaptation. It's jolly-roger good fun!"
— Variety


Click here for prelim casting News (Ed Dixon - Major General, Cady Huffman - Ruth)


Pirates! (or Gilbert and Sullivan Plunder'd) by Gilbert and Sullivan, directed by Gordon Greenburg, May 15 through June 14, 2009 at The Huntington Theatre Company's Mainstage, The Boston University Theatre, 264 Huntington Ave, Boston MA 02115. Buy tickets online or call 617 266-0800.

April 13, 2009

The Miracle at Naples - Your Comments

Here is where YOU get to comment about your experience at The Miracle at Naples.


Love is a central theme in The Miracle at Naples and the message is delivered with humor. How did the play tickle your funny bone and tug at your heartstrings? What moments did you most identify with?

While the play is set in 1580's Italy, with the roots of it's style in Comedia dell'Arte, there are also lots of modern influences and colloquialisms mixed in. Did you feel the stamp of other comedy styles in this piece? How did this mix help tell the story?


Did you stay after the performance at the Calderwood Lounge to discuss the play with fellow audience members?


Cast members Pedro Pascal, Lucy DeVito, and Christina Pumariega mingle with patrons at the Calderwood Lounge following a preview performance of The Miracle at Naples

Click here to comment

The Miracle at Naples, a world premiere by David Grimm, directed by Peter DuBois, April 3 through May 9, 2009 at the Huntington Theatre Company's second stage: the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA.
Buy tickets online or call 617 266-0800. Photos: T. Charles Erickson.

April 9, 2009

The Miracle at Naples - The Happy Couples

Love in all it's forms....

The Company Arrives

Don Bertolino (Dick Latessa) reunites with Francescina (Alma Cuervo)


Tristano (Pedro Pascal) woos Flamina (Christina Pumariega)


Flamina woos Matteo (Gregory Wooddell)

Tristano and Mateo woo each other


Flaminia falls for Giancarlo (Alfredo Narciso)

Flaminia consoles LaPicolla (Lucy DeVito)

La Piccola gets her man


and Francescina and Don Bertolino - afterglow

The Miracle at Naples, a world premiere by David Grimm, directed by Peter DuBois, April 3 through May 9, 2009 at the Huntington Theatre Company's second stage: the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA.
Buy tickets online or call 617 266-0800. Photos: T. Charles Erickson. Rated V for Very Adult Comedy.

April 8, 2009

The Miracle at Naples - Video


Behind the Scenes Video of The Miracle at Naples


Lucy DeVito invites you to come see the show!


Lucy's parents pose with the company following last night's performance.
Front Row: Peter DuBois , Lucy DeVito (La Piccola), Rhea Perlman , Danny DeVito
Back Row: Dick Latessa (Don Bertolino), Pedro Pascal (Tristano), Alfredo Narciso (Giancarlo), Alma Cuervo (Francescina), Gregory Wooddell (Matteo), Christina Pumariega (Flaminia) and David Grimm

The Miracle at Naples, a world premiere by David Grimm, directed by Peter DuBois, April 3 through May 9, 2009 at the Huntington Theatre Company's second stage: the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA.
Buy tickets online or call 617 266-0800. Rated V for Very Adult Comedy.

April 7, 2009

2009-2010 Season Announced


HUNTINGTON THEATRE COMPANY ANNOUNCES 2009-2010 SEASON:

ARTISTS VOGEL, GIONFRIDDO, DIAMOND, LEON, AND MCGOVERN ALL IN RESIDENCE; AUGUST WILSON’S VOICE RETURNS

(BOSTON) – The Huntington Theatre Company announces today its 2009-2010 Season. The bold, diverse, and entertaining lineup includes the return of August Wilson’s voice to his artistic home at the Huntington with the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award- winning Fences. It will be coupled with a spring production of Huntington Playwriting Fellow Lydia R. Diamond's groundbreaking new play Stick Fly, uniting the great African-American voice of the Huntington and American theatre's past with a thrilling and incisive new voice.

The season also includes a new American Christmas musical celebration from Pulitzer Prize winner Paula Vogel that will engage the Greater Boston community; a world premiere musical exploration of the music and moments of the Baby Boomer generation starring Broadway performer and Grammy Award-winning pop icon Maureen McGovern; and the regional premiere of Gina Gionfriddo's critically acclaimed Becky Shaw, helmed by Huntington Artistic Director Peter DuBois direct from its smash hit Off Broadway run, commencing a multi-year Huntington celebration of American comedy.

THE 2009-2010 SEASON LINEUP


FENCES,” the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winner by August Wilson, directed by Kenny Leon, September 11 – October 11, 2009 at the Huntington’s main stage, the Boston University Theatre


Maureen McGovern in “A LONG AND WINDING ROAD,” a world premiere one-woman musical memoir co-conceived by Maureen McGovern and Philip Himburg, directed by Philip Himburg, presented in cooperation with Arena Stage, October 9 – November 15, 2009 at the Huntington’s Stanford Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts

A CIVIL WAR CHRISTMAS: AN AMERICAN MUSICAL CELEBRATION,” a distinctly American holiday event by Paula Vogel with music supervised, arranged, and orchestrated by Daryl Waters, November 13 – December 13, 2009 at the B.U. Theatre


BECKY SHAW,” the regional premiere of Huntington Artistic Director Peter DuBois’ smash hit production of Gina Gionfriddo’s comedy, January 8 – February 7, 2010 at the B.U. Theatre


TBA, March 5 – April 4, 2010 at the B.U. Theatre

STICK FLY,” a New England premiere by Huntington Playwriting Fellow Lydia R. Diamond, directed by Kenny Leon, presented in cooperation with Arena Stage, March 26 – May 1, 2010 at the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA


TBA, May 14 – June 13, 2010 at the B.U. Theatre

Huntington Theatre Company Artistic Director Peter DuBois has composed a lineup that celebrates the diversity of the theatrical art form as well as the diversity of Boston. DuBois says, “This upcoming season offers Boston audiences a collection of bold, entertaining, and extraordinary theatrical events: masterful contemporary classics and new works; sharp, insightful comedies that use humor to illuminate our shared human experience; powerful evenings of music that transport and entertain us; and the birth of a new tradition – an intelligent and distinctly American holiday play with music that will draw upon and celebrate the artistic riches that our local community has to offer – all created by some of our country’s and our city’s most gifted established and emerging writers, directors, and performers.

“I am particularly thrilled to embark on two projects that will engage our audience in conversations extending beyond a single night at our theatre,” DuBois continues. “Through two plays, we will explore issues of class in the lives of African-American families, led by acclaimed director Kenny Leon. I know our audience will welcome Kenny back to the Huntington and respond to the themes that August Wilson and Lydia R. Diamond illuminate with such beautiful language and vivid characters in Wilson’s magnificent Fences and Huntington Playwriting Fellow Diamond’s pioneering Stick Fly.

“This season we kick off a multi-year series of American comedy. First up will be my production of Gina Gionfriddo’s comedy Becky Shaw, which I am bringing from New York to my artistic home at the Huntington. Gina’s play will be the start of an ongoing festival about the history and future of American comedy, which we will continue to explore in subsequent seasons through dialogues with artists, readings, and full productions at both the Boston University and Wimberly Theaters.

“In my first season, our audience told me that as they travel between our homes at the Boston University Theatre and the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA, they value the terrific variety of theatrical experiences that only the Huntington can bring to Boston, and that is what we will deliver in 2009-2010.”

Huntington Managing Director Michael Maso says, “In his second season, Peter will build on the artistry, vision and passion he brought to his first. For over a quarter-century, the Huntington has served as Boston’s flagship theatre, and with Peter’s dynamic and diverse artistic programming for the next season, we will continue to bring great theatrical work to Boston, New England, and the nation.”

MORE ON THE SHOWS

FENCES” is the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning sixth chapter in August Wilson’s groundbreaking ten-play cycle of the 20th century African-American experience and tells the story of a man whose dreams were stalled by racial prejudice and his son who instead sees a world of opportunity. It will be helmed by acclaimed Wilson collaborator and interpreter Kenny Leon, artistic director of the Kennedy Center’s recent month-long celebration of Wilson’s cycle. DuBois says, “The Huntington provided August with an artistic home throughout his career and Kenny has been such an important part of that special relationship, directing Gem of the Ocean and Radio Golf here and on Broadway in recent years. Our audience has told me that they’re eager to reconnect with August’s work. Fences is one of only two plays from his magnificent opus that we have not yet produced, and I’m thrilled that in the coming season we will take one step closer to completing his cycle with one of his greatest.”

STICK FLY” is a smart, moving, and funny portrait of a complicated family by Huntington Playwriting Fellow Lydia R. Diamond. Sparks fly and long-hidden secrets are revealed when the LeVay brothers bring their new girlfriends – one white and one black -- to Martha’s Vineyard to meet their upper class African-American parents. Kenny Leon directs. DuBois says, “We’re thrilled to present Lydia’s powerful, new, voice to Boston with this trailblazing play. The conversation August started last century now continues in the 21st. Lydia will be in residence for the season, continuing to shape Stick Fly and developing ideas for future projects here in her home town.”

Diamond says, “Starting with my acceptance into the Huntington Playwriting Fellows program, every part of the Huntington has extended itself to me. It’s an especially wonderful artistic home because I live in Boston. I’ve worked with few theatres that have so made good in production with regard to their voiced dedication to new work. I know that the Huntington will give Stick Fly a wonderful production.”

A CIVIL WAR CHRISTMAS,” by Pulitzer Prize winner Paula Vogel (How I Learned to Drive) is set on Christmas Eve 1864 and weaves the stories of the President and Mrs. Lincoln, a young rebel soldier, an escaped slave, and more into a moving tapestry of collective American experience. DuBois says, “Paula is one of our strongest contemporary American voices. Her writing is consistently innovative and intellectually rich. With A Civil War Christmas, she’s given a great gift to us all: a new American Christmas celebration. Paula and I have known each other since I was a student at Brown University, and I’m honored to offer her a creative home at the Huntington.” In the spirit of the play’s expansive and inclusive story, the Huntington will bring various Greater Boston communities together for the production, including Boston artists and local choirs who will perform Christmas carols prior to performances.

Vogel says, “I am thrilled to join the Huntington Theatre Company and Peter DuBois this coming season with my newest work. The play itself begins with the writing of ‘I Heard the Bells On Christmas Day,’ penned by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow just across the river from the Huntington. It's wonderful to produce the work in Boston, a place that was so actively involved in the Union effort during the Civil War, and wonderful, too, to produce the work in a theatre that has enriched the city and American theatre for decades. I am excited about working on the piece where friends and younger members of my family reside, for this work was written especially for the children in our family. I hope to become as involved as I can with the community during our production of A Civil War Christmas. I am particularly proud and happy to work with Peter, an artist I have long admired – many hopes come to fruition in this alignment at the Huntington, and I am lucky and grateful to work there.”

A LONG AND WINDING ROAD” is Broadway performer and Grammy Award-winning pop icon Maureen McGovern’s moving one-woman musical memoir that celebrates the moments that define the Baby Boomer Generation. It includes songs by Bob Dylan, Carole King, Randy Newman, and others. “Maureen is an amazing performer and truly warm human being,” says DuBois. “We have been helping her develop this personal piece about the music that has inspired her throughout her career. In this disorienting time of uncertainty and change in our country, revisiting the great American songs that inspired a generation with hope and purpose is cathartic and inspiring."

Peter's invaluable guidance helped greatly in the development of A Long and Winding Road,” says McGovern, “and I am so grateful to him and the Huntington Theatre Company for providing a nurturing workshop environment with invited audiences this spring. I'm looking forward to returning to the Huntington with the piece in the fall."

BECKY SHAW” is a wickedly funny comedy of bad manners by “Law & Order” writer/producer Gina Gionfriddo about a newly married couple that fix up two romantically challenged friends on a blind date that goes bad. Artistic Director Peter DuBois brings the original production of his latest New York smash hit to Boston. “Gina has written a smart and sophisticated comedy that skillfully examines human behavior and personal relationships while making us laugh,” says DuBois. “This is exactly what great comedy should do. Gina now has a home here at the Huntington and we look forward to a long and rich collaboration together.” “Peter and I have been friends and collaborators for over a decade,” says Gionfriddo. “He's been with this play since the first draft -- asking me all the right questions and pushing me to fully realize these characters and ideas. I'm thrilled he's bringing Becky Shaw to his artistic home, the Huntington.

Two additional titles will be announced in the coming weeks, including a classic. “There are two world-class artists with whom we’re eager to work next year, and we’re just ironing out the scheduling details at this time,” explains DuBois.

SUBSCRIPTIONS ON SALE NOW

The Huntington’s 2009-2010 subscriptions, on sale now, are more flexible than ever, available in 4-, 5-, 6-, and 7-play packages. Prices remain the same as last year, and subscribers save up to 50 percent on full-price tickets to individual shows.

Subscriptions may be renewed or purchased online at huntingtontheatre.org or by calling the Huntington Box Office at 617 266-0800. Groups of 10 or more can place orders at 617 273-1665. Individual tickets for all shows will go on sale in August.

Learn more at www.huntingtontheatre.org.


IRNE Winners!

Congrats to all of the IRNE winners last night! Here's the ones that are extra special to us

In the large theatre category:

Jose Rivera - Best New Play - Boleros for the Disenchanted
Nicholas Martin - Best Director (Musical) - She Loves Me
Huntington Theatre Company - Best Musical - She Loves Me

small theatre category:

Huntington staffer Ben Emerson - Best Sound Design - The Seafarer (Speakeasy Stage Company)

and a shout out to the History Boys (Speakeasy) who won Best Play, and Best Ensemble - an ensemble that had many Huntington/BU connections including Jared Craig, Joe Lanza and Karl Baker Olson.



The Huntington Theatre Company's revival of She Loves Me. Photo: T. Charles Erickson.

April 6, 2009

Two Men of Florence closes

It was a big weekend at the B.U. Theatre for our final four performances of Two Men of Florence. Great shows, full houses, lots of special guests, and standing ovations. Congrats to all on the success of this production.


Here's Richard Goodwin, Doris Kearns Goodwin and Kevin Spacey with the company of Two Men of Florence.

The show was taken out of the theatre last night, and we're now packing it up for storage so it will be ready for it's continuing life when the time comes.