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THEATRE

“My Fair Lady” At 60: A Linguist Takes A Look

It is no coincidence that women and working-class people (and Cockneys who are often seen as emblematic of the working class) often bear the brunt of accent prejudice. - The Conversation

British Film And Drama Schools Aren’t Exactly Filled With Working-Class Students

Actor Naomi Scott, who didn’t go to drama school, would like to change the chances for young working-class Brits interested in acting with material support. “We can do our small bit to maybe help some people have a clearer path to what they want to do.” - BBC

The Emergency Tailors Of New York Comic Con

"Armed with glue guns, zip ties, Popsicle sticks and safety pins, the Paladins of Cosplay come ready to fix.” - The New York Times

John Leguizamo Has Written His First Play For More Than One Actor

Not to worry: it's still about Hispanic Americans, and he's still starring. "Not bragging on myself, but Molière wrote all his plays for himself and he was the lead in all his plays," Leguizamo says. "So I’m fancying myself a little bit as a Latin Molière." - The Washington Post (MSN)

How Julie Taymor Staged “The Lion King” And Made It The Most Successful Musical In History

"Her work's distinctly international flavour and its heavy use of masks and puppetry inspired by Indonesian and Japanese traditions didn't necessarily scream family-friendly commercial juggernaut. Nonetheless, (Disney Theatricals chief) Thomas Schumacher had a hunch Taymor's highly visual style of theatre could be just the thing." - BBC

Fragments From Two Lost Plays By Euripides Discovered

The text — 98 lines, of which only 20 were previously known, from the plays Ino and Polyidus — were written on a piece of parchment found in the ancient village of Philadelphia, 62 miles southwest of Cairo. - History Today

This Revival Of Yellow Face On Broadway Is Not, In Fact, Bad

That’s because it’s the play Yellow Face, by David Henry Hwang, that "centers around a fictionalized playwright named DHH.” - Gothamist

How To Become A Blue Man

"They must become expert drummers. They’ll also learn to spit paint onto a spinning canvas, catch a dozen rapid-fire marshmallows in their mouths and then be prepared for absolutely anything the audience might throw at them. Hundreds audition every year across the globe. Only a handful ultimately get hired." - WBEZ (Chicago)

How American Sign Language Is Transforming “American Idiot”

"Now, this revival of that show is proving, with gusto, that American Idiot can be yet another thing: a near-scientific study of the innumerable ways to give somebody the finger." - The New York Times

“Suffs” To Close On Broadway

The show has struggled to sell enough tickets to defray its running costs, and on Friday night the producers announced that it would close on Jan. 5. At the time of its closing, it will have had 24 previews and 301 regular performances. The show announced plans for a national tour in September 2025. - NY Times

Seattle’s Book-It Theatre Rises Again

This new incarnation of Book-It will not be a producing company. They are not hiring a staff or planning a full season. You cannot buy a subscription. They’re starting with one show, a co-production running Oct. 10-20 at Vashon Repertory Theatre. After that? They’re not sure yet. - Seattle Times

As Broadway Adjusts To Public Outcry, The Question Of How And When To Dim The Lights Goes On

“The lights-dimming ritual, which goes back decades, has been an increasingly fraught one for the nine entities that own and operate Broadway theaters.” - The New York Times

Fleetwood Mac’s Sound Engineer Sues “Stereophonic” Playwright David Adjmi For Plagiarism

"The complaint alleges that Stereophonic is an 'unauthorized adaptation' of Kenneth Caillat’s 2012 memoir, Making Rumours: The Inside Story of the Classic Fleetwood Mac Album (which he co-wrote with Steven Stiefel) about his time as a sound engineer (later promoted to co-producer) of one of the most popular albums in history." - TheaterMania

Cal Shakes Gives Up Its Struggle And Will Shut Down

One of the largest nonprofit theaters in the Bay Area, the California Shakespeare Theater for 50 years offered high-quality outdoor productions and theater education programs. The company has had financial troubles for several years; an emergency campaign last summer raised $350,000 to complete this season's one production. - San Francisco Chronicle (MSN)

Using Mali’s Traditional Theater As Psychiatric Treatment

Koteba, a traditional form of theater by Mali’s largest ethnic group, the Bambara, mixes acting, singing and dancing to work through villagers' problems and offer satire. At one of Bamako's largest hospitals, koteba is being used to help psychiatric patients in a country desperately short of mental health professionals. - AP

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