Ars Nova And Me.

Apparently, this was announced last week.  I didn’t know they had gone public, otherwise I’d have told you sooner:

Play Group is Ars Nova’s vibrant and eclectic group of emerging writers who gather twice a month at Ars Nova to share new work and get peer feedback. The group offers members the chance to develop their plays with peer support, form collaborative relationships and build a strong sense of community within Ars Nova. In addition, members receive dramaturgical support and artistic matchmaking advice from the Ars Nova artistic staff, priority consideration for Ars Nova’s reading series (Out Loud) and industry exposure through a culminating group production at Ars Nova. Members of Play Group ‘09 will create a show to be presented in January 2010.

New members were selected after a competitive open application process and join for a two-year residency. The group is led by Director of Artistic Development, Emily Shooltz, who said: “The response to our call for applications was incredible, and the 2009 group represents a thrilling range of voices, styles and experience. Play Group is at the heart of our community of artists. It will be a privilege to have these writers here creating new work and inspiring one another this year.”

New Play Group members include Kristoffer Diaz, Zayd Dohrn, Tasha Gordon-Solmon, Amy Herzog, Samuel D. Hunter, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, Matthew Lopez and Janine Nabers. They join second-year members: Annie Baker, Bekah Brunstetter, Dylan Dawson, Steven Levenson and Samuel Brett Williams. Full bios for the 2009 Play Group are included below.

Sweet.

West Side, Reviewed in Variety.

So the first review I’ve read says…it’s great:

A half century after its world premiere at D.C.’s National Theater, “West Side Story” returns to the same venue for another pre-Broadway engagement. This time, it’s the much anticipated bilingual version revised and helmed by original librettist Arthur Laurents to provide maximum relevance for today’s auds. He’s done it just right — a sincere and energetic production that still dazzles with Jerome Robbins’ riveting choreography and the landmark Bernstein-Sondheim score. It could be the perfect tonic for Broadway’s economic blues.

I’m not so sure still. The introduction of the Spanish concerns me (although Lin-Manuel Miranda’s presence eases my fears a bit), and I don’t how to feel about the changes to Krupke. Then there’s the fact that I don’t usually agree with Variety on much of anything. But still–I’d rather the reviews be good than bad.

UPDATE: The reviews all seem to be pretty good.

Bad Musical Ideas, Continued.

I just came across a casting notice for something called Oz, The Musical.  Turns out it’s a new musical adaptation of The Wizard of Oz, and while I’m not sure the world needs another musical adaptation of The Wizard of Oz, it’s certainly much better than the alternative: a musical adaptation of HBO’s Oz, which is the first thing that came to my mind.   I mentioned the title to Barry Bonds, and his response (and our ensuing conversation) was telling:

[12:25] Smichovsky: i just read a casting notice for “Oz, The Musical”
[12:25] BarryBonds: wait, what
[12:25] BarryBonds: hold on
[12:26] BarryBonds: i have to go shut everything in my life down right now so i can pay attention to this…
[12:26] BarryBonds: wait, what?
[12:26] Smichovsky: no, no, no
[12:26] Smichovsky: it ended up being about the wizard
[12:26] Smichovsky: i was nervous for a second there
[12:26] BarryBonds: okay, i’m gonna go start my life back up again
[12:27] BarryBonds: thank you
[12:27] BarryBonds: i was trying to choreagraph the Adebisi rape scenes
[12:27] Smichovsky: no, no you weren’t.
[12:27] Smichovsky: i’m not allowing that.
[12:27] BarryBonds: okay, just the music for it