Broadway To Vegas

Copyright: January 14, 2018
By: Laura Deni
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2018 CES SHOW IN LAS VEGAS DOMINATED BY SEX, CELEBRITIES AND A BLACK OUT

LE Electronics used the blackout to their advantage when they posted this stunning picture of their product. Photo: LE Twitter

For many attending the 2018 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, a closed to the public trade event, which ended January 12, 2018, the high point was a major power outage which hit CES, leaving parts of the world’s largest consumer electronics show in darkness on Wednesday for two hours.

CES explained in a statement that the outage was caused by "condensation from heavy rainfall" that sparked a flashover on one of the building's transformers.

Showing their creativity and ability to turn immediate darkness into the glow of publicity was LG Electronics, which showcased its line of products.

“Even without power, #CES2018 still can’t match the perfect black of an #LGOLEDTV. #CESBlackOut,” it tweeted, posting an amazing and beautiful photo.

While the blackout may be what the attendees talk about once they return home, it was sex that got all the play during the show.

Catering to the geeks, some of whom seem to have issues relating well to human females, were digital assistant gadgets including sex toys, pole dancing robots and mechanical "humans" with "sex organs" which can "satisfy" - moving the old fashioned blow up doll into the current century.

For decades CES geeks have been noted for not frequenting casinos or attending Las Vegas Strip Resort entertainment shows. Attending stripper shows is a different matter. Capitalizing on the digital guys spending time at gentleman's clubs was Sapphire, which temporarily "employed" two mechanized pole dancers to bump and grind it for the patrons. Instead of patrons sticking money in g-strings, the stiletto-heeled cyborgs had tip buckets at their feet with clever signs saying “MIT bound” and “need money for batteries.”

“Come watch sparks fly as the Robo Twins shake their hardware and leave everyone wondering if those double Ds are real or made in ‘Silicone’ Valley,” the Sapphire Gentlemen’s Club said in an announcement, inviting tech geeks spend their time and money at the strip joint, which was first reported by The Daily Beast.

They were put into play by a British artist who got creative with scrap metal, old mannequins and CCTV cameras. Their gyrating backsides got the movement going thanks to power from discarded windshield-wiper motors.

Old fashion sex dolls received face lifts, hairdos and wardrobes.

Remember Harmony - the sexy mannequin meant to please? Make way for Solana.

RealDoll sex robot inventor Matt McMullen stayed typical to the male middle age sterotype of ditching the old broad for a new one. He unveiled Solana - so doing by removing Harmony's face on stage at a CES demonstration with Engadget. He simple swapped out Harmony's face for a new one.

There are also settings for 18 different personality types from happy to sensual, shy to talkative.

Abyss Creations' Harmony RealDoll bot has 30 different faces to choose from, 16 body types, breasts from AA to triple F, 19 different nipple types from 'perky' to 'puffy', and 11 different types of genitalia.

Not to ignore women who are asserting themselves, the sexbot creator announced that he was developing male sexbots with bodies that can respond to touch and move, telling interviewer Trout that the "men" would "actually able to be stimulated and become aroused."

Once the fake guys learn to take out the garbage, they should become big sellers.

Not all of the robots were about sex. One artificial intelligence creation was an avid Scrabble player. The gadgets with a purpose are being used in restaurants and hotels to assist the wait staff.

Sony's pet pooch Aibo.

Want a best friend, but your landlord doesn't allow pets? Consider Sony's adorable Aibo dog. You don't have to feed or clean up after it and it's evolved to the point where it can detect one household member from another.

The new and improved fake bow-wow had learned some new tricks since it was first introduced in 1999 and sold out in 20 minutes. The new breed can now find a bone or ball, dance, lie down or give a high five.

The constructed pooch now has OLED puppy eyes, which make it look more realistic and Aibo's expressions are endearing.

Called a companion dog, Aibo understands English and Japanese, with more languages in the dog park.

Not getting as much coverage as sex or robots - but extremely important - were exhibits with serious possibilities for assisting the handicap and improving mental function and physical dexterity of the public in general.

New mobility scooter devices are lighter, easier to navigate, go father on one electrical charge and retail for only a few hundred dollars rather than one to two thousand.

The CES get together maintained its reputation as a meeting place for movers and shakers to schmooze and perhaps deal. Guests at MediaLink’s annual Executive Dinner at the Consumer Electronics Show were entertained by Grammy-nominated singer James Bay.

At the event co-hosted by Condé Nast and Universal Music Group were Michael Kassan, Michele Anthony, Bob Sauerberg, Shari Redstone, Tim Armstrong, Maverick Carter, Aryeh Bourkoff and Casey Wasserman. Also at the powwow were execs from GE, Bank of America, Samsung and Omnicom.

Celebrities have always been an important part of CES. This year was no exception.

Celebrity speakers included Olympic medalist Nastia Liukin on The Future of Fan Engagement – Digital influencer and star Gigi Gorgeous on Stealing the Show: Best in Brand Storytelling – Former NBA star Baron Davis speaking on The New Age of Hitmaking - actor Norman Reedus was one of the headliners in a conversation: The Walking Dead - Ella USA Editor-in-Chief Nina Garcia on The Female Equation: A Global Dialogue of Connection + Support.

Conversationally closing out the convention on Friday were WPP CEO Sir Martin Sorrell speaking about his experiences and his company and MLB pitcher Trevor May in Between Sports and Esports.

Celebrity appearances included: Singer and actor Ray J, Professional stock car driver Cassie Gannis, Rapper Iggy Azalea, rock musician Joe Perry, country singer Clare Dunn, celebrity fisherman Peter Miller and gamer Johnathan “Fatal1ty” Wendel.

Actor Neil Patrick Harris was there and so were Guitarist Tommy Shaw, Rock band STYX, Musician Slash, Olympic medalist Usain Bolt and North America Scrabble Champion Will Anderson.

Hip-hop artist Delyric Oracle, Former NBA star Shaquille O’Neal, R&B singer Akon and Professional squash athlete Miguel A. Rodriguez delighted fans as did former NFL star Terrell Owens and NBA stars Chris Webber, Baron Davis, Dennis Scott, Isiah Thomas and WNBA player Elena Delle Donne.

Former WWE star Natalie Eva Marie appeared. So did Dr. Mehmet Oz, but not before coming to the aid of a stricken passenger on his flight to Las Vegas.










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ART AND ABOUT

BRITISH ARTIST CORNELIA PARKER'S

There Must Be Some Kind of Way Out of Here, used fragments of Hendrix's staircase. Photo: Frith Street Gallery/DIA

installation There Must Be Some Kind of Way Out of Here, constructed in mixed media from fragments of the staircase in what was the home of legendary musician Jimi Hendrix, located at 23 Brook Street in London, will star in the Detroit Institute of Arts' new gallery which opened January 12, 2018.

Hendrix occupied the flat, located next to the Handel House Museum, from 1968-69. German composer George Frideric Handel occupied the home 200 years before Hendrix.

The DIA purchase the work from London's Frith Street Gallery.

Parker is best known for large-scale installations such as Cold Dark Matter: An Exploded View (1991) - first shown at the Chisenhale Gallery in Bow, East London – for which she had a garden shed blown up by the British Army and suspended the fragments as if suspending the explosion process in time. In the center was a light which cast the shadows of the wood dramatically on the walls of the room. This inspired an orchestral composition of the same name by Joo Yeon Sir.

In contrast, in 1997 at the Turner Prize exhibition, Parker exhibited Mass (Colder Darker Matter) (1997), suspending the charred remains of a church that had been struck by lightning in Texas. Eight years later, Parker made a companion piece Anti-Mass (2005), using charcoal from a black congregation church in Kentucky, which had been destroyed by arson.

In 2016 Parker became the first female artist to be commissioned to create a new work for the Roof Garden of the Met in New York. Transitional Object (PsychoBarn) is a scaled down replica of the house from the 1960 Hitchcock film Psycho and was constructed using a salvaged red barn.

SWEET CHARITY

PRINCE HARRY AND MEGHAN MARKLE

Harry and Meghan chatted to young people in the @ReprezentRadio program. Photo: Kensington Palace.

last Tuesday, January 9, visited the London studios of Reprezent 107.3FM, a youth-orientated radio station which trains hundreds of young people every year in media and employment skill.

The engaged couple met on air hosts as well as staff and training personnel to learn about its work supporting young people.

The Reprezent training program was established in 2008 in response to an alarming rise in knife crime, to help young people develop and socialize through radio.

Training hundreds of young people every year to develop useful skills and help progress to further education and employment opportunities, over 4,000 young people have been through the Reprezent program.

Prince Harry and Meghan will continue their joint royal appearances with a visit on January 18 to Cardiff, for a day showcasing some of the rich culture and heritage of Wales. During a tour of 2,000-year-old Cardiff Castle, the engaged couple will attend the Welsh Culture Festival where they'll see performances from musicians and poets, meet prominent athletes and learn about how organizations are promoting the Welsh language and cultural identity.

Then they'll visit Star Hub, a community leisure center in Tremorfa to see how the center uses sport to engage young people. They will also visit Street Games, a charity which helps young people living in disadvantaged communities access sports.

PROCEEDS FROM BETTE MIDLER'S final appearance tonight, Sunday, January 14, in Hello, Dolly! will benefit the Actors Fund. Individual tickets for the sold out performance were priced from $250 to $10,000.

The hit musical, at the Shubert Theatre, goes on a two week hiatus, reopening on January 20 with a new talented cast: two-time Tony winner Bernadette Peters as Dolly, four-time Tony nominee Victor Garber as Horace Vandergelder, and Olivier nominee Charlie Stemp as Barnaby Tucker.

HARLEM STAGE WINTER BENEFIT takes place January 16, 2018 at the venue in New York City.

This intimate evening will feature jazz icon Dee Dee Bridgewater and singing sensation Wé McDonald, of The Voice fame, as they pay tribute to the legendary Ella Fitzgerald in honor of her centennial. Wé McDonald will be accompanied by organ and piano prodigy, Matthew Whitaker.

"This intimate evening includes a pre-concert champagne reception, star-studded performance, and VIP shuttle transportation to the private after party." Tickets: $250-$1,000.

24th ANNUAL LADY IN RED GALA took place January 5 at The Breakers in Palm Beach, Florida raising more than $1 million to assist the American Humane Association in its programs helping military veterans with PTSD and those that rescue and shelter, and treat dogs, cats and other animals during natural disasters.

More than 600 turned out to enjoy cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, music by the Palm Beach Symphony and selfies with featured entertainer Jay Leno. dine, participate in a live auction, then more entertainment by Leno and then the Fab Four, followed by dancing to the music of Soul Survivor. The singing twins Will and Anthony Nunziata also added to the evening.

SPREADING THE WORD

THE DRAMA LEAGUE DIRECTORFEST 2018 is a multi-week, New York city-wide festival focusing on the art of contemporary stage directing. For its 34th year, the festival, which kicks off this week-end will include four fully-staged productions, a showcase evening of new musicals, staged readings, discussion panels, books signings, workshops and conversations with America’s most notable directors.

Productions include: Storne, Still by Gabrielle Reisman, directed by Bonnie Gabel, Pork Kidneys to Soothe Despair by Alejandro Ricaño, translated by Daniel Jáquez, directed by Rebecca Martinez, FOB by David Henry Hwang, directed by Flordelino Lagundino, Disco Pigs by Enda Walsh, directed by Matt Dickson, Group and She Persisted a Leo Shull Foundation for the Arts Spotlight Event | a musical evening directed by Laura Brandel and Group A Directors Project Alumni Staged Reading by Alex Rubin, directed by Ilana Ransom Toeplitz.

Plus conversations and events with Anne Bogart, Damon Kiely, Anne Kauffman, Robert O'Haram Kimberly Senior and George C. Wolfe.

The Creative Team includes: Executive Artistic Director – Gabriel Stelian Shanks. Producer – Travis LeMont Ballenger. Production Manager – Brandon Pape. Scenic Designer – Reid Thompson. Lighting Designer – Lois Catanzaro. Costume Designer – Lauren Gaston. Sound Designer – Justin Propper. Sound Designer – Mike Tracey. Marketing & Media Associate - David Paul Kay. Program Director – Sherri Eden Barber.

Choreographer – Ling Tang. Fight Director – Sean Bradley. Casting by Harriet Bass Casting, Michael Cassara Casting, Stephen DeAngelis Casting and Stephanie Klapper Casting.

CUBA GOODING, JR will make his British stage and musical debut as lawyer Billy Flynn in the revival of Chicago which opens in March at the Phoenix Theatre.

LES MISERABLES

Dominic West as Jean Valjean, David Oyelowo as Javert and Lily Collins as Fantine.

Victor Hugo's classic French epic will have a new adaptation, written by award-winning screenwriter Andrew Davies. It will be directed by Tom Shankland.

Leading an all star cast are Dominic West as Jean Valjean, and David Oyelowo as Javert. They are joined by Lily Collins in the role of Fantine.

The distinguished British cast also includes Adeel Akhtar and Olivia Colman as Monsieur and Madame Thénardier, Ellie Bamber as Cosette, Josh O’Connor as Marius and Erin Kellyman as Éponine.

Multi award-winning screenwriter "will go back to the original novel and delve deep into the many layers of Hugo’s story, reveling in Jean Valjean and Javert’s cat-and-mouse relationship, against the epic backdrop of France at a time of civil unrest. With a striking intensity and relevance to us today, the novel is testimony to the struggles of France’s underclass and how far they must go to survive. The six-part television adaptation of the renowned book will vividly and faithfully bring to life the vibrant and engaging characters, the spectacular and authentic imagery and, above all, the incredible yet accessible story that was Hugo’s lifework."

The drama was commissioned by Charlotte Moore, Director of BBC Content. Filming will begin in February 2018 in Belgium and Northern France. The series is the latest creation from Masterpiece/BBC and will air in America on PBS.

SINGIN' IN THE RAIN Experience the “No. 1 Greatest Movie Musical” (American Film Institute) with Arthur Freed’s lyrics and Nacio Herb Brown’s music performed live by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Richard Kaufman. Singin’ in the Rain, starring Gene Kelly, Donald O’Connor and Debbie Reynolds, features some of the most iconic dance sequences and enduring songs ever to grace the silver screen. January 19, 2018 at Symphony Center in Chicago.

JAY KHOLOS whose A Stoop on Orchard Street: enjoyed a 16 month off-Broadway engagement that also included a second company in South Florida and a national touring production - to date having been performed over 1,000 times - is busy working on a new musical Jew Store, based on a best-selling Memoir written by the late Stella Suberman. Kholos reports: "We recently opened in Cincinnati to sold-out shows and performed in Nashville as well. I am working on the hopeful target of an open-ended engagement in New York by 2019."

IAMA THEATRE COMPANY January Reading Series presents staged readings of four new plays over the course of one weekend in this semi-annual series.

Thursday, January 18: Absolution by Brooke Berman, directed by Jamie Salka.
Friday, January 19: The Opportunities of Extinction by Samantha Chanse, directed by Murielle Zuker.
Saturday, January 20: Tin by Josh Lawson, directed by Jennifer Chambers.
Sunday, January 21: Marvel-ous Monica by Sarah Tuft, directed by Thomas Sadoski.

All reading are at the IAMA Theatre Company in Los Angeles, CA.

BRITNEY SPEARS who reportedly sang her Las Vegas swan song at Planet Hollywood on New Year's Eve is all over the gossip highway with chatter that she hasn't given up on performing in Sin City. US Weekly was the first to report that Spears had committed to a multishow residency at The Park Theater in 2019.

Lady Gaga opens at The Park in December. The venue's lineup also includes Bruno Mars, Cher and Ricky Martin.

THE SOAP MYTH starring Tony & Drama Desk Award-Nominee Johanna Day and seven-time Emmy Award-Winner Ed Asner in the east coast concert reading tour of Jeff Cohen’s acclaimed play directed by Pam Berlin. Day will perform the dual roles of holocaust scholar Esther Feinman and holocaust denier Brenda Goodsen.

The cast also includes, Ned Eisenberg and Blair Baker.

The Soap Myth takes place more than a half century after the end of WWII when a young journalist sets out to write an article about a cantankerous Holocaust survivor and his crusade regarding the Nazi atrocity of soap. The play dramatically explores how a person survives and questions who has the right to write history - those who have lived it and remember, those who study and protect it, or those who would seek to distort and desecrate its very existence.

The Soap Myth was originally produced Off-Broadway at the Roundabout Theater in 2012 by the National Jewish Theater Foundation. A film of that production was broadcast nationally on PBS and is in the permanent collection of Britain’s Digital Theatre.

Serving as a tribute to International Holocaust Remembrance Day, the tour will begin on Monday, January 22, 2018 at the The Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts in Miami Beach Florida, and will conclude on Thursday, February 1 at Hofstra University on Long Island.

THE BOBBY DARIN STORY the opening show of 92Y’s American Songbook series Lyrics & Lyricists features Tony nominee Jonathan Groff portraying the multi-talented entertainer born blocks from 92Y whose dramatic life - from a rock ‘n’ roller to Brill Building songwriter and major American Songbook interpreter to Oscar -nominated actor which was cut short at the age of 37. His hit songs include Splish Splash, Dream Lover and Mack the Knife.

Billy Stritch and Andy Einhorn are co-music directors.

January 20-22 at the 92Y in New York City.

AN INDUSTRY READING of a new musical The Collins Boy with book, music, and lyrics by Brad Bass and Cari Joy, featuring Lisa Howard, takes place at Town Stages in New York City today, January 14, 2018.

Based on real-life events surrounding Christine Collins, her son Walter, and the Wineville Chicken Coop Murders of Los Angeles in 1928, the reading will feature Lisa Howard as the mother, Claudio Pestana Aguiar, Austin Bowen, Chase Crandell, Michelle Dowdy, Jacob Estes, Russell Fischer, Andrew Holder, Angelo McDonough, Chris McNiff, Aline O'Neill, Payton Pritchett, Shannon Rowland, Lauren Turner, and Declan Wagar.

JANUARY 14 is National Hot Pastrami Sandwich Day. Monday is National Fresh Squeezed Juice Day and National Strawberry Ice Cream Day. Monday is also National Hat Day and Blue Monday. Tuesday is National Fig Newton Day and International Hot and Spicy Food Day. Wednesday is National Hot Buttered Rum Day. Thursday is National Gourmet Coffee Day, Peking Duck Day and Winnie The pooh Day. Friday is National Popcorn Day and Saturday is National Buttercrunch Day and National Cheese Lover’s Day. Next Sunday, January 21, is National Hug Day, which could cure Blue Monday.

ALLEY THEATRE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR GREGORY BOYD RESIGN AMONG SEXUAL MISCONDUCT CHARGES

Gregory Boyd. Photo: youtube

Apparently acting on information that he was about to be accused of sexual misconduct, Alley Theatre artistic director Gregory Boyd 66, abruptly retired from the Alley Theater on Thursday, January 11, 2018 after 29 years with the Houston performing arts organization. Boyd gave 48 hours notice. His resignation was posted at 6 p.m. Tuesday, indicating that Thursday would be his last day.

Boyd has frequently been referred to as the most influential figure in Houston theater.

Almost immediately after Boyd stepped down the Houston Chronicle reported that several current and former employees at the Houston theatre had come forward with claims against him stating that Boyd bullied them, demonstrated abusive behavior, and inappropriately touched female actors including one person who told the paper that he "pinched her buttocks once on stage and once while she was making coffee in a break room. He made sexual comments about her to other actors, she said, and talked about the way she dressed and screamed at her on stage for the smallest of missteps."

According to the Houston Chronicle article penned by Susan Carroll, Wei-Huan Chen, and Molly Glentzer, more than a dozen current and former Alley Theatre employees described Gregory Boyd as a tyrant who frequently singled out young female actresses for verbal abuse.

Emily Trask, an actor with the company for more than two years, quit last year, citing Boyd’s verbal harassment and inappropriate touching. The actor said that she decided to leave after reporting the incident to the theatre’s staff but continuing to feel “unsafe.”

Another female actor, described the environment as “very hostile” and a “very scary place to work,” and said that she too, had reported the behavior to theatre staff.

In the allegations against Boyd, employees use words including “volatile,” “toxic,“ “cruel,” and “tyrannical.”

Females who complained indicated their complaints had been ignored.

With a budget of $18.5 million in 2016-17, the organization is among the five largest nonprofit theater companies outside of New York.

The search for a replacement is expected to take up to nine months. Longtime Alley actor and director James Black will serve as interim artistic director.

E-Book

Soft back Book

This is not your typical, totally boring textbook.

In the pages of How To Earn A Living As A Freelance Writer (the first to be lied to and the last to be paid) you'll find sex, celebrities, violence, threats, unethical editors, scummy managers and lawyers, treacherous press agents, sex discrimination; as well as a how-to for earning money by writing down words.

OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY

THE BROADWAY LEAGUE'S 20th ANNUAL DEMOGRAPHICS REPORT released last Tuesday shows that, as expected, tourists are the patrons which keep the bright lights on Broadway lit. Tourists accounted for 61% of the 13.3 million people who attended Broadway productions last season, while locals made up 22% of admissions. The remainder of tickets sold were from surrounding suburbs. The survey showed that women made up two-thirds of audiences.

However, more New York locals attended a Broadway show in 2016-2017 than any season since 1998-1999.

Patrons under the age of 18 reached 1.65 million, the highest since the analysis began two decades ago. There were an addition 1.62 million tickets purchased by theatergoers aged 18-24.

The average ticket price for a Broadway show last year was $109. The average ticket purchase for a Broadway show was 42 days before the performance.

HERSHEY FELDER'S OUR GREAT TCHAIKOVSKY has established a new all-time box office record for the 48 year-old Bay Area theatre company TheatreWorks Silicon Valley.

This newest work by acclaimed performer and playwright Felder is on track to shatter the theatre’s previous record, set last year with TheatreWorks’ presentation of Felder's, Beethoven which set a high bar as the company’s highest grossing show, amassing $637,767 in sales the day before opening. It has now been bested by Our Great Tchaikovsky, which sold more than $710,000 as of January 9, 2018.

The production runs January 10 – February 11, 2018, at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts in Mountain, View, CA.

GROUNDHOG DAY set to begin an 18-month national tour this year, has been cancelled.

Composer Tim Minchin, who earned a Tony nomination for his score, posted the announcement via Twitter without elaboration.



LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD winners have been announced by the The Recording Academy. They are: Hal Blaine, Neil Diamond, Emmylou Harris, Louis Jordan, the Meters, Queen, and Tina Turner. Bill Graham, Seymour Stein, and John Williams are Trustees Award honorees; and Tony Agnello and Richard Factor are the Technical Grammy Award recipients. A special award presentation ceremony and concert celebrating the honorees will be held in summer 2018.

The Lifetime Achievement Award celebrates performers who have made outstanding contributions of artistic significance to the field of recording, while the Trustees Award honors such contributions in areas other than performance. The Recording Academy's National Board of Trustees determines the honorees of both awards. Technical Grammy Award recipients are voted on by the Academy's Producers & Engineers Wing Advisory Council and Chapter Committees, and are ratified by the Academy's Trustees. The award is presented to individuals and companies who have made contributions of outstanding technical significance to the recording industry.



THE FLYING LOVERS OF VITEBSK written by Daniel Jamieson.

Directed by Emma Rice.

Kneehigh's award winning play with music, tracing the true story of artists Marc and Bella Chagall, as they navigate the Pogroms, the Russian Revolution, and each other.

Perhaps you’ve seen them floating over a Russian village?
Or perhaps you’ve seen her toppling forward, arms full of wild flowers,
as he arches above her head and steals a kiss.

Partners in life and on canvas, Marc and Bella are immortalized as the picture of romance. But while on canvas they flew, in life they walked through some of the most devastating times in history.

Daniel Jamieson’s The Flying Lovers of Vitebsk traces this young couple as they navigate the Pogroms, the Russian Revolution, and each other. Emma Rice’s production is drawn in a theatrical language as fluid as Chagall’s paintings, and woven throughout with music and dance inspired by Russian Jewish tradition. Winner of the Carol Tambor Best of Edinburgh Award 2017.

January 17 - February 10, 2018 at the Wilton's Music Hall, which has been a part of the community in East London for nearly 160 years.

BEGINNING by David Eldridge.

Directed by Polly Findlay.

Every story starts somewhere.
It’s the early hours of the morning and Danny’s the last straggler at Laura’s party. The flat’s in a mess. And so are they. One more drink?

The play takes place in a North London flat, where Danny is the last guest at Laura’s house party. Amid the remains of a wild night and a clear political divide, the two attempt to find common ground. An intimate look at the first fragile moments of risking your heart and taking a chance.

Justine Mitchell and Sam Troughton star as Laura and Danny.

Sets and costumes by Fly David, lighting design by Jack Knowles, sound design by Paul Arditti, and movement by Naomi Said.

Beginning is set to transfer to the West End following a sell-out run in the Dorfman at the National Theatre which plays there through November 14, 2017.

Performances transfer January 15, 2018 to the Ambassadors Theatre in London. The 10-week run will officially open on January 23. 2018.

THE HUMANS by Stephen Karam.

Directed by Bernard Havard.

After a sleepless night, Erik Blake brings his family from Pennsylvania to celebrate Thanksgiving at his daughter's new apartment in lower Manhattan. As darkness falls outside the crumbling pre-war duplex, mysterious things start to go bump in the night and family tensions reach a boiling point. The hopes, dreams, and fears of the American middle class are first coaxed - then shoved - into the light in this humorous, hopeful, and heart-tugging new play.

Gred Wood, Jennie Eisenhower, Alex Keiper, Mary Martello, Sharon Alexander and Ibrahim Miari.

Scenic Design: Roman Tatarowicz. Lighting Design: Shon Causer. Costume Design: Mary Folino. Sound Design: Christopher Colucci.

January 16 - March 4, 2018 at Walnut Street Theatre in Philadelphia, PA.

JOHN by Annie Baker.

Directed by James Macdonald.

The week after Thanksgiving. A Bed and Breakfast in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. A cheerful host welcomes a young couple struggling to salvage their relationship, while thousands of inanimate objects look on.

Starring Marylouise Burke, Tom Mothersdale, Anneika Rose and June Watson.

Designer: Chloe Lamford - Lighting Designer: Peter Mumford - Sound Designer: Christopher Shutt.

January 17, 2018-March 3, 2018 at the National Theatre in London.

WHO'S WHERE

THE PITTSBURGH SYMPHONY under the direction of Grammy Award-winning conductor Lucas Richman, will premiere Kathryn Bostic’s The August Wilson Symphony at Heinz Hall for the Performing Arts. Tony Award winning actress Phylicia Rashad, who both performed and directed several of Wilson’s plays, will serve as narrator for the event, reading passages from August Wilson’s plays before each movement. The August Wilson Symphony consists of 5 movements: The Great Migration, The Hill Illumined, Wiley Avenue, The Oracle of Aunt Ester, and Exalted Roads of Truth and Triumph. The movements are inspired by the 10 plays Wilson wrote based on his life experiences growing up in Pittsburgh’s Hill District. January 20, 2018 in Pittsburgh, PA.

CHICAGO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA performs Bernstein's West Side Story as Rafael Payare makes his debut leading the CSO in Bernstein's much loved Symphonic Dances from West Side Story and Bartók's popular Concerto for Orchestra. CSO Principal Bassoon Keith Buncke showcases his artistry and extraordinary agility in Mozart's lively masterpiece. January 18-20, 2018 Symphony Center in Chicago.

AN EVENING WITH DAVID SEDARIS bursting with his signature acerbic wit and razor sharp social critiques, David Sedaris takes to the stage performing new and unpublished material. January 18-19 at the Sydney Opera House in Sydney Australia.

JIM CARUSO'S CAST PARTY featuring musical director and pianist Billy Stritch, with guest Lucie Arnaz, plays at the Annenberg Theatre in Palm Springs, California, on January 20, 2018.

PAULA POUNDSTONE will be telling funny stories Friday, January 19, 2018 at The Smith Center in Las Vegas.

WYNONNA who has sold over 30-million albums worldwide spanning her remarkable 34-year career, backed by The Big Noise performs Saturday, January 20, 2018 at The Smith Center in Las Vegas.

CHER the ageless, iconic wonder returns to Las Vegas with shows at the Park Theater at the Monte Carlo, on January 17, 19 and 20th.

THE TEXAS TENORS open a two nighter January 20 at the Holland Performing Arts Center in Omaha, Nebraska.

STEVE TYRELL performs Thursday, January 18, at Cafe Carlyle in New York City.

FINAL OVATION

RAY THOMAS a flautist, vocalist and founding member of British rock group The Moody Blues died Thursday, January 4, 2018, at his home in Surrey south of London. He was 76.

In 2014 he disclosed that he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer.

He founded The Moody Blues in 1964 with fellow musicians including Mike Pinder and Denny Laine. The band is due to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio in April.

Thomas wrote several songs for the band, including Legend of a Mind and Veteran Cosmic Rocker.

Survivors include his second wife Lee, a son and grandson.

Next Column: January 21, 2018
Copyright: January 14, 2018 All Rights Reserved. Reviews, Interviews, Commentary, Photographs or Graphics from any Broadway To Vegas (TM) columns may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, utilized as leads, or used in any manner without permission, compensation and/or credit.
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Laura Deni

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