Page, Plunkett, Morfogen, Matthews, Esper to Join Langella in Broadway's 'Man for All Seasons'. Patrick Page's King Henry VIII will face off against Frank Langella's Sir Thomas More, the man who lost his life standing his moral ground before the monarch, in Roundabout Theatre Company's new production of A Man for All Seasons.

Simon Gray, British Playwright of Wit and Intelligence, Dies at 71. Simon Gray, the British playwright who for four decades chronicled with sardonic wit and a cerebral style the mores of English literary and academic circles, died Aug. 7, the Guardian reported. He was diagnosed with lung cancer last year and had been in failing health.

Aquila Will Present 'Catch-22' and 'Iliad' Off-Broadway in 2008-09. Aquila Theatre, the Off-Broadway troupe attracted to the classic titles, will resurface in New York City with a world premiere adaptation Catch-22, from the novel by Joseph Heller in fall 2008, plus a spring 2009 production of Homer's Iliad.

Remains of The Theatre, Shakespeare's Early Stomping Ground, Discovered. Rows of bricks were recently uncovered by archaeologists from the Museum of London, prompting a belief that the foundation of an Elizabethan-era venue called The Theatre, where Shakespeare once acted, had been found.

National Theatre Sets London Dates for 'August: Osage County'. The cool British reserve is about to get a shot of incendiary Midwestern truth-tellin'.

Joanna Glass' 'Palmer Park', a Visit to Post-Riot Detroit, Premieres at Stratford. Stratford Shakespeare Festival's commitment to new work, in tandem with its longtime mission of producing classic titles, continues Aug. 8-Sept. 21 with the world premiere of Joanna McClelland Glass' Palmer Park.

White Christmas' Sets Opening on Broadway; Pre-Sale Begins. Irving Berlin's White Christmas will open at Broadway's Marquis Theatre Nov. 23, the Sunday before Thanksgiving, the producers announced on Aug. 19.

Cast Announced for New 'Italian Straw Hat' Musical at South Coast Rep. Daniel Blinkoff, a veteran of South Coast Repertory productions, will play a harried bridegroom in SCR's world-premiere musical An Italian Straw Hat: A Vaudeville in Costa Mesa, CA, Sept. 5-Oct. 5.

Award-Winning 'Scorched' Returns to Toronto's Tarragon Before Playing Dates Across Canada. Casting has been announced for Tarragon Theatre's remount of Scorched by Wajdi Mouawad, to play the Toronto theatre's Mainspace Sept. 2-28. It will play a mini-tour of Canadian resident theatres in fall 2008 and early 2009.

Stratford's 2009 'PhËdre' Is a Co-Pro With A.C.T.; McKenna Will Star. American Conservatory Theater announced Aug. 21 that Jean Racine's play PhËdre will be one of its productions for the 2009-10 season in a first-time co-production with Canada's world-renowned Stratford Shakespeare Festival. In recent days, Stratford announced the title, to be directed by A.C.T. artistic director Carey Perloff, for its summer 2009 slate.

Heisler, Moran and Hernandez to Conjure Antigone's Woe in 'Too Much Memory' at FringeNYC. Laura Heisler, Peter Jay Fernandez and Martin Moran are among cast members of Rising Phoenix Repertory's world premiere production of Keith Reddin and Meg Gibson's Too Much Memory, a theatrical collage borrowing elements of the ancient Greek story of Antigone, as part of the 11th Annual New York International Fringe Festival.

Submission Period Announced for Plays and Musicals Aiming for 2009 O'Neill Conferences. Attention playwrights and musical theatre writers: The Eugene O'Neill Theater Center in Waterford, CT, has announced details of its Open Submissions process for projects to be included in O'Neill's summer 2009 national new works conferences.

From Fantastick to Amazing: Actor Nick Spangler to Compete on TV's "Amazing Race". Nick Spangler, who goes on a journey into the wide, cruel world nightly as Matt in Off-Broadway's The Fantasticks, will circle the globe this fall as a competitor on the CBS reality series "The Amazing Race.".

New Song of the South. Joe DiPietro's musical, Memphis, explores the racial tensions underneath the birth of rock 'n' roll.

Philly's Prince Music Theater Revisits 'The World Goes 'Round' This Fall. Prince Music Theater in Philadelphia is planning to expand the revue of Kander & Ebb songs, The World Goes Round, for a new production to run Sept. 20-Oct. 12.

PS Classics to Release "Stage Door Johnny," a CD by Broadway Music Veteran John Miller. Longtime Broadway music coordinator John Miller, a respected behind-the-scenes guy who puts musicians together to create orchestras for musicals, makes his recording debut as vocalist, guitarist and producer of a new PS Classics album, "Stage Door Johnny.".

Grey Gardens' Joins Philadelphia Theatre Company's 2008-09 Season. Philadelphia Theatre Company will grow Grey Gardens, the Tony Award-nominated musical about eccentric relatives of Jackie Onassis, in summer 2009.

Musicals 'Belle Barth, Take Me America, Here On This Hill' and 'Killala Bay' Tested in Chicago. Stages 2008, Theatre Building Chicago's annual festival of new musicals in progress, a major Midwest showcase for dawning musicals, plays Aug. 15-17.

Barbour, Lazar, Burkhardt Sing of Best and Worst of Times in 'Tale of Two Cities', Starting Aug. 19. A Tale of Two Cities, a new musical to quicken the hearts of fans of sprawling romantic historical epics - the kind of show where characters in the shadows sing about the light of tomorrow - begins its Broadway life Aug. 19 at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre.

13' to Offer Tickets at Aug. 25 Box Office Opening. The first 100 people in line for the opening of the box office for 13, A New Musical at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre will be offered a $13 ticket price Aug. 25.