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The Vineyard Theatre (108 East 15th Street) will present the New York premiere of THIS BEAUTIFUL CITY, in a co-production with Los Angeles' Center Theatre Group, with previews set to begin February 3 prior to its official press opening February 22. Steven Cosson directs. Created by The Civilians, written by Steven Cosson and Jim Lewis, with music and lyrics by Michael Friedman, THIS BEAUTIFUL CITY is a provocative new play with music about the growth of the evangelical movement in Colorado Springs, created by the documentary theatre company The Civilians. THIS BEAUTIFUL CITY was created from interviews by Emily Ackerman, Marsha Stephanie Blake, Brad Heberlee, Stephen Plunkett, Alison Weller and the authors with actual persons over the course of 10 weeks in Colorado Springs. Every leading church in the area participated in the project, as did numerous civic organizations, progressive activists, and individuals from all walks of life.

Due to the overwhelming audience and critical response Sardi's management has scheduled additional Saturday evening concerts with Broadway star, James Barbour. The new concert series, entitled 'LOVE SONGS' will premiere on Saturday, January 31st and continue through Saturday, February 28th at Broadway's premiere destination, SARDI'S (234 West 44th Street - between Broadway & Eighth Avenue). Musical Direction is by Jeremy Roberts. Morgan James will be Mr. Barbour's Special Guest Artist on Friday, February 13.Morgan James most recently played Sheila in 'Hair' at Arizona Theatre Company. New York: Featured soloist in Bernstein's 'Mass' with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra at Carnegie Hall and The Kennedy Center, conducted by Marin Alsop (cast recording, Naxos); 'The Addams Family' workshop; Pre-Broadway workshop of 'Godspell'. Regional credits include: 'Pirates', Paper Mill Playhouse; 'The Human Comedy', Barrington Stage Co.; Mabel in 'The Pirates of Penzance', Kansas City Repertory The

When you're in the audience at a play about breast cancer, you don't expect to laugh a lot. But in Andrea Lepcio's top-notch play, spontaneous applause tends to break out.

Brian Friel's elegiac play is being given a first-rate revival by the Irish Repertory Theater.

Daniel Radcliffe, the young star of Peter Shaffer's play EQUUS on Broadway (Broadhurst Theatre, 235 W. 44 St.) --will be honored with his very own caricature unveiling at the world famous Broadway eatery, Sardi's Restaurant (234 West 44th Street) on Thursday, January 29th. Radcliffe joins the ranks of Broadway royalty whom have been honored with a caricature on the famous walls of Sardi's Restaurant.EQUUS will conclude its 22-week engagement as scheduled on Broadway on February 8th, 2009. The play opened in September 2008 at the Broadhurst Theatre, marking the Broadway debut of Daniel Radcliffe. Mr. Radcliffe stars in the revival of Peter Shaffer's play opposite Tony Award winner Richard Griffiths ('The History Boys'). Thea Sharrock directs this production, which marks EQUUS first time on Broadway since its debuted and won the Tony Award for Best Play 35 years ago. Daniel Radcliffe is the internationally-renowned star of the 'Harry Potter' films and will begin shooting the final 'Har

Young Jean Lee, a Korean-american writer, set out to challenge theatergoers over their own racial biases in her new play "The Shipment."

John Updike, the prolific writer who was an enduring presence in post-war literature and a chronicler of the loves and losses of small-town America, has died of lung cancer aged 76.His publishing house, Alfred Knopf, announced the death in a hospice in Massachusetts, saying Updike was 'one of our greatest writers and he will be sorely missed.'In a writing career that began in the early 1950s at the New Yorker magazine, and kept on going like a literary powerhouse until the very end, Updike conjured up more than 50 books and explored virtually every form open to him. On top of a steady stream of essays, literary criticism and short stories, in addition to the more than 20 novels, beyond the poetry, there was a play Buchanan Dying and a memoir Self- Consciousness.Since his first book, a poetry collection, was published in 1958, there has only been five years without a new Updike book on the shelves.Despite the quantity, Updike maintained a quality in his work daunting even to much less p

She defends her sister in a new blog.Ashlee Simpson has posted a blog blasting newsers for weighing in on her big sis' Jessica's curvy figure. "Since when did a woman's weight become newsworthy," Ashlee blogs on her MySpace page. "I am completely disgusted by the headlines concerning my sister's weight. A week after the inauguration and with such a feeling of hope in the air for our country, I find it completely embarrassing and belittling to all women to read about a woman's weight or figure as a headline on Fox News. "All women come in different shapes, sizes, and forms and just because you're a celebrity, there shouldn't be a different standard," Ashlee says.

Elisabeth Hasselbeck of 'The View' and her husband, Tim, who played for the Arizona Cardinals, are about to be outnumbered.

Original New York cast members Jeremy Beck, Mike Doyle (Law and Order: SVU), Sevan Greene and Waleed F. Zuaiter head the cast under the guidance of original director Pippin Parker when L.A. Theatre Works presents the West Coast premiere of Betrayed, the haunting new play by award winning writer and journalist George Packer. Five performances take place February 18-22 at the Skirball Cultural Center where they will be recorded to air on LATW's nationally syndicated public radio theater series, The Play's The Thing.In early 2007, George Packer published an article in The New Yorker about Iraqi interpreters who jeopardized their lives on behalf of the Americans in Iraq, yet were provided with little or no U.S. protection or security. The article drew national attention to the humanitarian crisis and moral scandal. Based on Mr. Packer's interviews in Baghdad, Betrayed tells the story of three young Iraqis - two men and one woman - who were motivated to risk everything by America's promis