Michael Matthews News

Digital arts journal Stage Raw announces the nominees for its fifth annual Stage Raw Theater Awards, to be held Monday night September 9, 2019, at Los Angeles Theatre Center, 514 S. Spring Street. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. Tickets will go on sale Wednesday August 7, 2019. The Stage Raw Theater Awards honor the finest work performed on Los Angeles area stages of 99-seats or fewer, and are selected by a jury of Stage Raw critics. This year's awards celebrate work performed between June 1, 2018 and May 31, 2019.

Tony Award-winning actress, Daisy Eagan, makes her Edinburgh Festival Fringe debut in a new thriller by Steve Yockey (a writer of CW's Supernatural, MTV's Scream). Directed by Michael Matthews (director of Edinburgh Festival hit all-male production of The Bacchae) and designed by an award-winning creative team including, Cricket S. Myers (Tony Award-nominee for Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo), Sleeping Giant is a modern thriller told through a series of intimate, darkly comic, and sometimes startling vignettes about the lengths people go to when they desperately want something to believe in.

NBC Sports' coverage of the 106th Tour de France on NBCSN has delivered the most-watched start to the event since 2016, averaging 290,000 viewers – up 23% from last year (235,000) through Stage 4.

Presented by Celebration, The Los Angeles Intimate Theatre Premiere of "The Producers" opened Friday, June 28, 2019 at the Lex Theatre in Hollywood to a sold-out crowd and garnered a deserved standing ovation at curtain. It's RuPaul meets Mel Brooks in this delicious rendition of a show that's been recreated a gazillion times, but I assure you, never quite like this! From top to bottom, the entire production was first class, perfectly cast with triple-threaters, going all out in production values as well. The original book, by Mel Brooks, Direction and Choreography by Susan Stroman, Music by Thomas Meehan and Lyrics by Mel Brooks has been united with the Artistic Direction of Michael A. Shepperd, Produced by Andrew Carlberg and Rebecca Eisenberg, Michael Matthews, Director, Musical Direction by Anthony Zediker and fabulous Choreography by Janet Roston.  And What a Team!    

Celebration, under the artistic direction of Michael A. Shepperd, presents the second show in its 2019 season, the Los Angeles intimate theatre premiere of THE PRODUCERS, A New Mel Brooks Musical, book by Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan, music and lyrics by Mel Brooks, choreography by Janet Roston, musical direction by Anthony Zediker, produced by Andrew Carlberg and Rebecca Eisenberg and directed by Michael Matthews. 

Center Theatre Group has announced casting for the second annual L.A. Writers' Workshop Festival: New Plays Forged in L.A., a one-day event at the Kirk Douglas Theatre celebrating some of the freshest and most thrilling voices in modern American theatre. The festival will take place on June 29 from 1 to 9 p.m. with readings of three new plays by three L.A. Writers' Workshop participants from throughout the program's 14-year history. The readings include "Campaign" by Laura Jacqmin, directed by Monty Cole; "Sleeping Giant" by Steve Yockey, directed by Michael Matthews; and "Confederates" by Dominique Morisseau, directed by Goldie Patrick.

Celebration, under the artistic direction of Michael A. Shepperd, presents the second show in its 2019 season, the Los Angeles intimate theatre premiere of THE PRODUCERS, A New Mel Brooks Musical, book by Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan, music and lyrics by Mel Brooks, choreography by Janet Roston, musical direction by Anthony Zediker, produced by Andrew Carlberg and Rebecca Eisenberg and directed by Michael Matthews.

Almost everyone has fallen on hard times. Sometimes they're financial, sometimes they're emotional, sometimes they're both. It's how we get through them that defines us. A deep look into who we are, and what we will do to survive those times, David Lindsay-Abaire's 2011 play Good People explores all of that and more.

Tony-nominated LA MIRADA THEATRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS & McCOY RIGBY ENTERTAINMENT announce its 42nd season of shows with something irresistible; something courageous; something grumpy; something killer; something good - in short, a "something for everyone" season! We start off with the West Coast premiere of Hal Linden, Cathy Rigby and Ken Page starring in GRUMPY OLD MEN: THE MUSICAL; followed by the Broadway and London smash-hit, Roald Dahl's MATILDA THE MUSICAL; then, a fresh spin on the hilarious, killer black comedy ARSENIC AND OLD LACE; next, we present one of the all-time great family musicals, Rodgers and Hammerstein's masterpiece THE SOUND OF MUSIC and our season finale will find you "having the time of your life" and dancing in the aisles to ABBA and the irresistible MAMMA MIA! This phenomenal season also includes the bonus options of the legendary ENGELBERT HUMPERDINCK, country superstar TRAVIS TRITT, and the soulful sounds of THE RIGHTEOUS BROTHERS. LA MIRADA THEATRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS & McCOY RIGBY ENTERTAINMENT have everything for the young (and young at heart!) with this extraordinary season of first-class entertainment. Our Southern California subscribers and audiences are not going to want to miss a single spectacular event this coming year at La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts!

LAGUNA PLAYHOUSE is thrilled to announce its 99th season of shows!  

The Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle announced the recipients of its 50th annual awards for distinguished achievement in theatre last night, Monday, April 8, 2019, at Pasadena Playhouse. Wenzel Jones presided over the festivities, and Christopher Raymond served as music director.

Emmy nominee Angela Ingersoll appears one night only in her concert GET HAPPY: ANGELA INGERSOLL SINGS JUDY GARLAND, as seen on PBS, Saturday, April 13, 2019, at La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts, 14900 La Mirada Blvd in La Mirada. Presented in association with Artists Lounge Live.

Celebration presents the first show in its 2019 season, Drew Droege (Die, Mommie, Die!) and Matthew Wilkas starring in the Los Angeles premiere of BORN TO WIN, written by Matthew Wilkas and Mark Setlock, choreography by Janet Roston and directed by Michael Matthews.

Celebration, under the artistic direction of Michael A. Shepperd, presents the first show in its 2019 season, Drew Droege (Die, Mommie, Die!) and Matthew Wilkas starring in the Los Angeles premiere of BORN TO WIN, written by Matthew Wilkas & Mark Setlock and directed by Michael Matthews. BORN TO WIN will begin previews on Wednesday, February 13 at 8pm; will open on Friday, February 15 at 8pm, with tickets on sale through Sunday, March 31 at Celebration Theatre @ the Lex Theatre, 6760 Lexington Ave. in Los Angeles.

Actor/writer/LGBTQ cause celebre Matthew Wilkas L.A. premieres his latest theatrical piece (co-written with Mark Setlock) BORN TO WIN at the Celebration Theatre @ the Lex beginning February 13, 2019. Focusing on the shenanigans that can go on during a little girls' beauty pageant, Matthew takes the stage facing off with the always working Los Angeles Theatre darling Drew Droege. Michael Matthews directs with choreography by Janet Roston.

Celebration presents the first show in its 2019 season, Drew Droege (Die, Mommie, Die!) and Matthew Wilkas starring in the Los Angeles premiere of BORN TO WIN, written by Matthew Wilkas and Mark Setlock, choreography by Janet Roston and directed by Michael Matthews.

Celebration presents the first show in its 2019 season, Drew Droege (Die, Mommie, Die!) and Matthew Wilkas starring in the Los Angeles premiere of BORN TO WIN, written by Matthew Wilkas and Mark Setlock, choreography by Janet Roston and directed by Michael Matthews.

Celebration announced today, under the artistic direction of Michael A. Shepperd, its 2019 season of shows.  This is the Celebration's 37th season and the fourth in its home at the Lex Theatre, 6760 Lexington Ave. in Los Angeles.  

The nominees for the 29th Annual LA STAGE Alliance Ovation Awards, celebrating theatrical excellence and achievement throughout Los Angeles, were announced this week.

LAGUNA PLAYHOUSE presents the third show in its 98th season with the perfect show for Halloween, the Tony Nominated Best Play, THE SEAFARER, written by Conor McPherson (The Weir) and directed by Ovation Award winner Michael Matthews (The Graduate).  Executive Director Ellen Richard comments, "I love the writing in this play so much and we are thrilled to be presenting it, especially at this time of year." Adds Artistic Director Ann E. Wareham, "I've looked forward to producing this play for 10 years and the moment has arrived.  An exceptional cast, an extraordinary director and a play that is funny, chilling and a perfectly spooky Irish ghost story for the season!" THE SEAFARER will begin previews on Wednesday, October 17; will open on Sunday, October 21 at 5:30pm and perform through Sunday, November 4, 2018 at the Laguna Playhouse, 606 Laguna Canyon Drive in Laguna Beach.