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Joan Hotchkis, who appeared as Oscar Madison’s girlfriend on ABC’s The Odd Couple and in films including Breezy and Ode to Billie Joe before becoming a playwright, screenwriter and feminist performance artist, has died. She was 95.

Hotchkis died Sept. 27 of congestive heart failure in Los Angeles, her daughter, Paula Chambers, announced.

A member of The Actors Studio, Hotchkis played the wife of William Windom’s James Thurber-like cartoonist on the high-concept NBC comedy My World and Welcome to It in 1969-70 and the lascivious Lydia on the five-days-a-week syndicated sitcom The Life and Times of Eddie Roberts in 1980.

In 1974, Hotchkis wrote her first play, Legacy, about a day when an upper-class housewife suffers a mental and emotional breakdown. She starred in the one-woman drama, directed by noted Method acting teacher Eric Morris, at Actors Studio West in Los Angeles.

Hotchkis...

This past weekend, Two River Theater kicked off their summer season with the brand-new Plaza Players Series featuring Tony-Nominated writer and composer Joe Iconis Be More Chill, Love in Hate Nation, Lauren Marcus Be More Chill, Love in Hate Nationand band membersSeth Eliser Once, Eric William Morris Be More Chill, The Ballad of Little Jo,Songbird, andNygel D. Robinson Beau The Musical.

Tony Award Winner Ali Stroker Broadway Oklahoma Deaf West's Spring Awakening Lilli Cooper Broadway Tootsie, Tony Nominee Spongebob Squarepants, Teal Wicks Broadway The Cher Show Finding Neverland, Ciara Renee Broadway Frozen Big Fish, Eric William Morris Broadway King Kong, Alyse Alan Louis Broadway Amelie The Public Soft Power, Danny Gardner Broadway On the Town, Jennifer Blood Broadway Matilda Violet, Alexis Floyd aoeThe Bold Typea have joined this week's lineup for Seniorly Presents Curtain Up a live show created in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Manhattan Theatre Club’s world premiere of Richard Greenberg’s The Perplexed has completed its cast with Gregg Edelman and Eric William Morris.

With previews at the major Off Broadway venue set to begin Feb. 11 and opening March 3, Edelman and Morris join the previously announced cast of Patrick Breen, Margaret Colin, Tess Frazer, Anna Itty, Ilana Levine, Zane Pais, Jd Taylor and Frank Wood.

To be directed by Mtc Artistic Director Lynne Meadow, the new work from the Take Me Out playwright follows two families whose lives have been tumultuously intertwined for decades.

The synopsis: The families gather in the massive library of a Fifth Avenue apartment to celebrate the nuptials of their children. Nothing goes smoothly and as the big moment approaches, the burning question is: can everyone put aside long-smoldering jealousies and deep-seated grudges and just get through the ceremony?...

Two of Broadway’s more imposing figures are calling it quits: King Kong and The Cher Show have posted closing notices, the latest exits in the annual post-Tony culling.

Each production will play its final performance on Sunday, Aug. 18.

Though Cher star Stephanie J. Block and costume designer Bob Mackie won Tony Awards at the ceremony June 9, the wins apparently didn’t translate into a big enough box office boost to keep the beat going on. For the week ending June 23 – a prime week for the post-Tony b.o. benefits to make themselves known – The Cher Show grossed $858,578, about 58% of its potential at the Neil Simon Theatre.

Written by Rick Elice, directed by Jason Moore and starring Block, Teal Wicks and Micaela Diamond as Cher at various points in her life, the jukebox bio-musical opened Dec. 3, 2018, to mixed reviews, with most critics praising Block even when less than dazzled with the glitzy rest.

The Actors Fund, the national human services organization for everyone in performing arts and entertainment, announced today their lineup of performers to pay special tribute to this year's honorees at their Annual Gala on Monday, April 29, 2019. Michael Urie Harvey Fierstein's Torch Song hosts the evening that will include performances by Amber Gray Hadestown, Beth Leavel, Michael Potts, Matthew Sklar The Prom, Damon Daunno,Rebecca Naomi Jones Rodgers amp Hammerstein's Oklahoma, Sarah Stiles Tootsie and a special appearance by Chairman of The Actors Fund Brian Stokes Mitchell. Luke Hawkins amp Evan Ruggiero will open the Gala with an original tap dance number. Additional presenters and guests include Annette Bening,Kenny Leon, Jawan M. Jackson, Tony Kushner, Will Roland, Brandon Uranowitz, Eric William Morris, Celia Keenan-Bolger, Gideon Glick and more. Performers and guests are subjects to change.

00The Tony Awards Administration Committee met for the third time in the 2018-2019 Broadway season, and announced eligibility rulings for the 73rd Annual Tony Awards. Seven productions were discussed in the meeting: “King Kong,” “Choir Boy,” “True West,” “Be More Chill,” “Kiss Me Kate,” “Ain’t Too Proud – The Life and Times of the Temptations” and “What the Constitution Means to Me.”

The committee made the following decisions:

Christiani Pitts and Eric William Morris will be eligible for Lead Actress/Actor in a Musical for their respective performances in “King Kong.”

Peter England’s projection design will be considered eligible along with his scenic design in the Best Scenic Design of a Musical category, for “King Kong.”

Jeremy Pope will be considered eligible for Lead Actor in a Play for his performance in “Choir Boy.”

Will Roland will be considered eligible for Lead Actor in a Musical category for his performance in “Be More Chill.

Playwrights Kenneth Lonergan, Harvey Fierstein and Mart Crowley – each of whom had older works produced on Broadway this season – will be eligible for Tony Awards, the Tony administration committee has determined.

The eligibilities were among a raft of such rulings made by the committee today in the third of four planned meetings. Other rulings focused mostly on category eligibility for performers in ensemble cast productions.

In the cases of Crowley and Lonergan, the two playwrights will benefit from a new Tony rule that allows living authors and composers of plays and musicals that had not previously been staged on Broadway to be eligible along with the producers in the Best Revival of a Play/Musical category. This season, Crowley’s The Boys in the Band and Lonergan’s The Waverly Gallery were staged on Broadway after debuting years ago Off Broadway..

As for Fierstein, he’s eligible for this season’s Torch Song due to another new rule: Authors and composers of Best Revival nominees are eligible with producers even if those authors and composers have previously won Tonys for the works – so long as the revivals have been “substantially reworked.” (Fierstein made significant changes to the former Torch Song Trilogy for the recent Torch Song).

Other determinations made today by the committee:

Christiani Pitts and Eric William Morris will be considered eligible in the Best Performance by an Actress/Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical categories for their respective performances in King Kong; Peter England’s projection design will be considered eligible along with his scenic design in the Best Scenic Design of a Musical category, for his work on King Kong Jeremy Pope will be considered eligible in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play category for his performance in Choir Boy Will Roland will be considered eligible in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical category for his performance in Be More Chill; Beowulf Boritt and Alex Basco Koch will be considered jointly eligible in the Best Scenic Design of a Musical category for their work on Be More Chill; Corbin Bleu will be considered eligible in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical category for his performance in Kiss Me, Kate; Derrick Baskin will be considered eligible in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical category for his performance in Ain’t Too Proud – The Life and Times of the Temptations; Robert Brill and Peter Nigrini will be considered jointly eligible in the Best Scenic Design of a Musical category for their work on Ain’t Too Proud – The Life and Times of the Temptations; Heidi Schreck will be considered eligible in the Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play category for her performance in What the Constitution Means to Me.

Nominations for the 2019 Tony Awards will be announced April 30. The 73rd Annual Tony Awards will air live on Sunday, June 9 at 8 Pm Et/delayed Pt) from New York’s Radio City Music Hall on CBS. James Corden will host.

1967: Dark Shadows' Maggie remained frustrated locked in a cell.

1983: General Hospital faced a hostage crisis.

1993: As the World Turns' Hal and Barbara were remarried.

1996: All My Children's Hayley and Brian wanted to relive their prom."All true histories contain instruction; though, in some, the treasure may be hard to find, and when found, so trivial in quantity that the dry, shrivelled kernel scarcely compensates for the trouble of cracking the nut."

― Anne Brontë in "Agnes Grey"

"Today in Soap Opera History" is a collection of the most memorable, interesting and influential events in the history of scripted, serialized programs. From birthdays and anniversaries to scandals and controversies, every day this column celebrates the soap opera in American culture.

On this date in...

1967: On Dark Shadows, locked in a cell in the Old House basement, Maggie Evans (Kathryn Leigh Scott) opened the music box when...

The invitation proclaimed An Evening of Pure Joy and the Barrington Stage Company's NYC Benefit held at The Friars Club last night surpassed all expectations. A star studded roster from the Bsc actors bench filled the Friars Club with song as Tony Award Winning ComposerLyricist William Finn presented Joe Iconis with the William Finn Award for Innovation and Excellence in Musical Theatre. Julianne Boyd, artistic director and founder of Barrington Stage Company, Mary Ann Quinson, Board Chair, and Marita O'Dea Glodt, opened the evenings festivities. The Sro guests in the legendary Friars Club were entertained by Bsc performers, Jennette Bayardelle, Allison Blackwell, Ellen Harvey, Lauren Marcus, Kyle Dean Massey, Jeff McCarthy, Anastasia Mccluskey, Anne L. Nathan, Will Roland, Scarlett Strallen, Will Swenson,Jason Sweetooth Williams,Eric William Morris, and Stephanie Umoh. Musical direction was by Darren Cohen.

59E59 Theaters presents Songbird, which just opened lastnight, October 28, as part of its 5A Season.The cast features Ephie Aardema Parade at Lincoln Center In Concert Tony Award nominee Kate Baldwin Big Fish, Finian's Rainbow, Adam Cochran The Last Goodbye at The Old Globe, Tony Award nominee Erin Dilly Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, A Christmas Story, The Musical, Don Guillory Stickfly,Drew McVety The Last Ship, Sunday in the Park with George, Eric William Morris Coram Boy, Mamma Mia, Kacie Sheik Hair Tony Award nominee Bob Stillman Dirty Blond, Grey Gardens, and Andy Taylor Once, On The Twentieth Century.

59E59 Theaters presents Songbird, which just opened last night, October 28, as part of its 5A Season. The cast features Ephie Aardema Parade at Lincoln Center In Concert Tony Award nominee Kate Baldwin Big Fish, Finian's Rainbow, Adam Cochran The Last Goodbye at The Old Globe, Tony Award nominee Erin Dilly Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, A Christmas Story, The Musical, Don Guillory Stickfly,Drew McVety The Last Ship, Sunday in the Park with George, Eric William Morris Coram Boy, Mamma Mia, Kacie Sheik Hair Tony Award nominee Bob Stillman Dirty Blond, Grey Gardens, and Andy Taylor Once, On The Twentieth Century.

Animus Theatre Company is pleased to announce Collected Shorts by Tennessee Williams The Long Goodbye, Moony's Kid Don't Cry, The Pink Bedroom, and Talk to Me Like the Rain and Let Me Listen as their 2014-2015 Workshop Production and final production of the season. Marking the New York theatre directorial debut for acclaimed actor Matthew Lillard, the show will feature Eric William Morris. Performances begin tonight, April 24 and run through Saturday, May 2, at Theatre Row 410 West 42nd Street.

Animus Theatre Company is pleased to announce Collected Shorts by Tennessee Williams The Long Goodbye, Moony's Kid Don't Cry, The Pink Bedroom, and Talk to Me Like the Rain and Let Me Listen as their 2014-2015 Workshop Production and final production of the season. Marking the New York theatre directorial debut for acclaimed actor Matthew Lillard, the show will feature Eric William Morris. Performances begin Friday, April 24 and run through Saturday, May 2, at Theatre Row 410 West 42nd Street.

The following is a list of New York–area stage and film acting schools, teachers, and coaches organized by category and alphabetically. Each of the entries contains the following information, if applicable: name of teacher or school, address, phone and fax numbers, email address and/or website, average number of students per class, whether beginning, intermediate, or advanced students are taught, whether auditing is permitted, whether classes are ongoing or by sessions, any special emphasis used in classes or coaching, whether a work/study program is offered. Descriptions of the class, school, or coaching are provided by the instructor or institution and edited by Back Stage. Schools or teachers who have been omitted may contact, in writing, Listings, c/o Back Stage, 5055 Wilshire Blvd., 6th floor, Los Angeles, CA 90036, so that we may include you in our next list. Acting Technique/Scene Study29th Street Repertory School Of THEATRETim Corcoran,...

Getting To Know … Shameless

The love life of gay teenager Ian Gallagher (Gerard Kearns) on the U.K. series Shameless has never been easy. Whether it’s having to steal a bed just so he can have sex with his hot new boyfriend (somehow landing in prison because of it), trying to keep his ongoing affair with a married man a secret, or that fling with a homophobic drug dealer who has a strange sexual quirk (big surprise), something always comes along to make finding love (or just getting laid) a trying ordeal for poor Ian.

Gerard Kearns as Ian Gallagher

Shameless, which airs on Channel 4, the same network that brings us Hollyoaks, is a dark and perverse comedy/drama about the twisted lives of the extremely dysfunctional Gallagher family, as well as their friends and their enemies. Created by Paul Abbott, who is also the executive producer, the series...

This week we speak with Tom Chroust, former head writer of Forbidden Love. Chroust started at the show as an intern in August 1998 and eventually became head writer at Fl from July 2007 to June 2008. (He now is part of the writing team at All That Matters.)

During Chroust's tenure as head writer at Fl he shepherded the internationally loved romance between Christian Mann (Thore Schölermann) and Olli Sabel (Jo Weil). We talked to the out writer via email about that storyline, as well as other plots and characters he enjoyed working on. We also asked him what he wished he could have done differently and lots more!

German soap writer, Tom Chroust

AfterElton.com: How did you come up with the love story for Christian and Olli? Was it a story that you already had in mind in general, meaning a gay love story, or for them in particular?

Tom...