Odds & Ends: Michael Urie to Return as Drama Desk Awards Host & More

Here's a quick roundup of stories you might have missed today and this weekend.

Michael Urie to Return as Drama Desk Awards Host
Michael Urie, recent star of Torch Song, will head home this spring, taking on duties as host of the Drama Desk Awards for the fourth time. The 2019 ceremony will be held at NYC's Town Hall on June 2 at 8:00pm; nominations will be announced on April 25. Celebrated for his screen turn on Ugly Betty, Urie won Drama Desks for Buyer & Cellar and The Temperamentals. The Drama Desk Awards are the only major theater honors for which productions on Broadway, off-Broadway and off-off Broadway compete against each other in the same categories.

Laura Benanti to Join Michael Keaton & Stanley Tucci in New Film
Laura Benanti, the megastar currently leading the cast of My Fair Lady on Broadway, has been cast in a new screen project, according to Deadline. The Tony winner will appear in What Is Life Worth, a motion picture based on the memoir of D.C. insider Kenneth Feinberg, who fought off cynicism when he was put in charge of the 9/11 Fund. Benanti will play the widow of an NYC firefighter who lost his life on 9/11. The cast will also include Oscar nominee Michael Keaton and Tony nominee Stanley Tucci.

Star-Studded Steel Magnolias Reading Set for May in NYC
Off-Broadway's Abingdon Theatre Company will bring together a talent-packed group of actresses this spring for a reading of Robert Harling's heartwarming comedy Steel Magnolias. Emmy winner Blanche Baker, who originated the role of Shelby in the play, will direct the reading, set to be held at its original off-Broadway home, the Lucille Lortel Theatre, on May 20 at 7:00pm. The cast will include Tony nominee Brenda Braxton (Smokey Joe's Cafe) as Truvy, Lisa Brescia (Dear Evan Hansen) as M'Lynn, five-time Tony nominee Sandy Duncan (Peter Pan) as Clairee, Julie Klausner (Difficult People) as Annelle, Tony nominee Nancy Opel (Wicked) as Ouiser and Carrie St. Louis (Kinky Boots) as Shelby. Steel Magnolias first opened off-Broadway at the Lortel in 1987; it was adapted into a star-packed film in 1989, with a Broadway production debuting in 2005.