Read on for more theatre news you may have missed in today's headlines.
Minnie Driver Joins Modern R&J Retelling Rosaline
Oscar nominee Minnie Driver has joined the cast of the upcoming film Rosaline, Deadline reports. The modern retelling of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet stars Kaitlyn Dever (the upcoming Dear Evan Hansen film) in the title role of Juliet's cousin and Romeo's spurned love. Driver will take on the role of The Nurse in the updated classic, based on the book When You Were Mine by Rebecca Serle. Driver can also be seen as Queen Beatrice in the upcoming movie musical Cinderella, debuting on Amazon Prime Video September 3.
A.J. Holmes' Solo Show Yeah, But Not Right Now
Broadway's A.J. Holmes (did he really legally change his first name to "Broadway's?") will perform his solo show Yeah, But Not Right Now for a limited six-week run at Soho Playhouse beginning September 9. In the original show of songs, stories, and stand-up, Holmes (The Book of Mormon) shares the most embarrassing and humiliating moments of his life in his quest for validation (i.e. that name change). The production is directed by Caitlin Cook and features a set design by Scott Pask, sound design by Craig Bundy, lighting design by Brandon Bogel, and costume design by Jama McMahon. The show runs through October 17. Visit SohoPlayhouse.com for tickets.
New Georges Announces Fall 2021 Season
Three theatre projects have been announced for the New Georges fall 2021 season—two in-person productions through the New Georges’ Supported Productions program, and one performed entirely in Google Sheets. Islander is a New Georges Supported Production being presented by Televiolet at HERE August 19–September 4. Playwright Liza Birkenmeier and director Katie Brook collaborated on the creation of the work, which consists of verbatim NHL coverage from the New York Islanders’ 2017–2018 season, repurposed to make a new comedy about male fragility and shame. Tickets for Islander are available here. The second Supported Production is Exits, created, produced, and performed by Rachel Gita Karp, Deneen Reynolds-Knott, Emerie Snyder, and Dina Vovsi. The piece is an audio-theatrical journey through the Fort Greene neighborhood of Brooklyn and will have live site-specific performances September 30–October 4 as well as a self-guided soundwalk available in October. Finally, New Georges presents Future Wife: Party in A Spreadsheet, created by Sarah Blush, ruth tang, Yonatan Gebeyehu, Nazareth Hassan, Aaron van Scyoc, and Bailey Williams. Inspired by Marie Foulston's Party in a Google Doc, the production is an adaptation of tang's play Future Wife and will be performed in Google Sheets. Tickets for the September 17–20 run, available here, are limited.
Troy Iwata and Chris Medlin Repair a Mechanical Heart
Be More Chill's Troy Iwata and Diana's Chris Medlin will lead an industry presentation of the new musical How to Repair a Mechanical Heart. Based on the novel of the same name by JC Lillis, the romantic comedy centers on two guys who meet in a fan fiction chat group and plan a road trip to a television show convention. The musical is conceived and directed by Marc Eardley and features a book and lyrics by Jay Falzone and music by Trent Jeffords. Rounding out the cast are Ben Bogen (Frozen), Nick Eibler (The Prom), Tiffany Engen (Rock of Ages), Hillary Fisher, Alan H. Green (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory), Maria Habeeb, Trey Harrington, Mara Jill Herman, Pilar Martinez, Ben Roseberry (The Lion King), Stephen Smith, and Lily Talevski. How to Repair a Mechanical Heart is produced by Karen Gunn of Soiree Fair Inc., in association with Get Naked LLC.
