John Baker News

Recently signed to Melodic Revolution Records, keybordist & composer Lisa LaRue is set to release her new album “Origins” in April 2018! A double album celebrating 25 years and 11 release by LaRue, “Origins” features some of the best musicians in the business: John Payne Asia, GPS), Michael Sadler (Saga), Mitch Perry (Talas, Aerosmith), Gilli Smyth (Gong), Don Schiff (Rocket Scientist, Kracked Earth), Federico Fantacone (Orchestre Celesti) John Baker (Forever Twelve, Mars Hollow) as well as Steve Adams, Brenda K, Michael Wheeler, Merrill Hale, Svetlan Raket (Par Lindh Project), John “Yafke” Timothy, Michael Alvarez.

If it could happen to them, could it happen to you? Six everyday people-some simply in the wrong place at the wrong time-each tried, found guilty and sentenced to death. These are the stories of The Exonerated. Artistic Director of Dirt Dogs Theatre Co. (DDTCo.), Malinda L. Beckham, brings to life this critically acclaimed play, running for only three weeks at MATCH.

I am the Lord of Hartforth, an ancient village located aside Yorkshire Dales National Park in northern England. Not a lot goes on there. It is highly conservative, where people pride themselves on proper behavior. 42 miles to the south is Rylstone, an equally proper village. The Rylstone Women's Institute shot to fame with its 1999 society calendar because its distinguished ladies were photographed nude. Angela Baker, whose husband John, an assistant national park officer, died from non-Hodgkins lymphoma in July 1998 at age 54, inspiring the idea for the calendar. There were a lot of people riled up in Rylstone; this simply was not proper English protocol. When Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, was caught topless in August 1992, she was kicked out of Balmoral Castle and banned from the royal household for some 16 years. Likewise, the 11 women featured in the nudie calendar certainly raised eyebrows, even among the liberal folks; however, the women also raised £2million for leukaemia research and their publicity stunt spawned a hit movie starring Helen Mirren. The movie spawned a stage play, CALENDAR GIRLS.

Freeform, Disney's young adult television and streaming network, will premiere brand new episodes of breakout comedies “grown-ish” and “Alone Together,” as well as fan-favorite series “The Fosters” and “Beyond.” Also in February, Freeform will celebrate the 80th Anniversary of the release of the beloved Disney animated classic “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,” with an all-day marathon on Sunday, Feb. 4, beginning at 11:30 a.m. EST.

Calendar Girls' composer and lyricist Gary Barlow took to Twitter today to announce that the new musical's cast album is now available for pre-order.

Dirt Dogs Theatre Co. (DDTCo.) is seeking submissions for our inaugural Student Playwright Festival. High school seniors from the Houston metropolitan area are encouraged to submit previously unproduced one-act plays, up to 30 minutes in length forconsideration.

Dirt Dogs Theatre Co. (DDTCo.) dishes out Sancerre and Cheez-Its as the starter to its 2017-18 season, with the gritty comedy, Life X 3, by Yasmina Reza. DDTCo. Executive Director, Trevor B. Cone, is at the helm of the witty and acerbic play, which presents three versions of the same story, and runs for three weeks at MATCH. BroadwayWorld has a sneak peek at the cast in character below!

Dirt Dogs Theatre Co. (DDTCo.) dishes out Sancerre and Cheez-Its as the starter to its 2017-18 season, with the gritty comedy, Life X 3, by Yasmina Reza. DDTCo. Executive Director, Trevor B. Cone, is at the helm of the witty and acerbic play, which presents three versions of the same story, and runs for three weeks at MATCH. BroadwayWorld has a sneak peek at the cast in character below!

Progressive rock band Mars Hollow has announced that they will be recording a new album after a nearly 5-year hiatus. The announcement was made during a semi-reunion show and subsequent radio interview in June, and came on the heels of a show billed as “John Baker and Steve Mauk Perform the Music of Mars Hollow” in Chicago.

SPACE on Ryder Farm, the non-profit artist residency program located on Ryder Farm, an idyllic 200 year-old working organic farm in Brewster, New York announced its 2017 season for The Working Farm, Family Residency, Creative Solutions Symposium and Artistic Residency programs at The Players Club. In attendance were Greg Hildreth, Vella Lovell, and Colby Minifie, as well as 2017 SPACE residents Dave Malloy, Eliza Bent, and Cusi Cram. Scroll down for photos!

GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS stands the test of time because old white men are still jerks and Mamet is a genius at creating dialogue for them.

Dirt Dogs Theatre Co.'s inaugural season concludes with David Mamet's Glengarry Glen Ross. Winner of the 1984 Pulitzer Prize for drama, the biting comedy follows a group of Chicago real estate agents who desperately attempt to sell plots of undesirable land to unwitting buyers. Their tactics toward their prospects, and each other, expose the ugly underbelly of a dog-eat-dog business.

Malcolm John Baker recognizes how easy it is for terrorists to enter the U.S. 'Revenge Is Mine' (published by Xlibris UK) illustrates the current affairs of the U.S. and the issues pertaining to the entry into the country, inspired by Baker's personal cruise travel experience.

Dirt Dogs Theatre Co.'s inaugural season concludes with David Mamet's Glengarry Glen Ross. Winner of the 1984 Pulitzer Prize for drama, the biting comedy follows a group of Chicago real estate agents who desperately attempt to sell plots of undesirable land to unwitting buyers. Their tactics toward their prospects, and each other, expose the ugly underbelly of a dog-eat-dog business.

Theatre Communications Group (TCG) has announced the publication of John by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Annie Baker. The play received its world premiere in the fall of 2015 Off-Broadway at Signature Theatre in New York, in a critically lauded, extended run.

Classic Stage Company, under the leadership of Artistic Director Brian Kulick and Managing Director Jeff Griffin, today announced that acclaimed actors (and married couple) Becky Ann Baker (currently featured on "Girls") and Dylan Baker (currently featured on "The Americans") have joined the cast of its upcoming production of Henrik Ibsen's PEER GYNT, directed by Tony Award winner John Doyle, who becomes the company's new Artistic Director in July. 

Happy Holidays! It's the last week to vote for the 2015 BroadwayWorld Houston Regional Awards! Check out the latest live stats as of December 18. Nominations were reader-submitted and after the nomination period ended, BroadwayWorld's local editors proofed the list for eligibility and errors. Voting runs through December 31!