Odds & Ends: Ari'el Stachel, Kyle Selig & Heidi Blickenstaff to Present at 2018 Jimmy Awards & More

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

Ari'el Stachel, Kyle Selig & Heidi Blickenstaff to Present at 2018 Jimmy Awards
The Broadway League has announced a lineup of talented stars set to present at the 10th annual Jimmy Awards! The yearly ceremony honoring the best in high-school musical-theater performance will take place on June 25 at 7:30pm at the Minskoff Theatre. The presenter list includes 2018 Tony winner Ari'el Stachel (The Band's Visit), Kyle Selig (Mean Girls), Jai'Len Christine Li Josey (SpongeBob SquarePants), Nathan Salstone (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child) and upcoming Freaky Friday movie stars Heidi Blickenstaff and Cozi Zuehlsdorff. The two-hour talent showcase will be hosted by the previously announced Tony winner Laura Benanti.

Straight White Men Star Ty Defoe to Debut New Work Off-Broadway
Grammy winner Ty Defoe, the multi-talented creative who will soon make his Broadway debut in the cast of Straight White Men, is premiering the original work Ajijaak on Turtle Island as part of New Victory Theater's 2018-2019 season. The original performance piece featuring puppets from Jim Henson's Creature Shop is set to run from March 1-10, 2019 at the acclaimed NYC children's theater. Ajijaak on Turtle Island is written by Defoe and features music by Kevin Tarrant, Grammy nominee Dawn Avery and Grammy winner Larry Mitchell. Also of note in the upcoming New Victory Theater season is a U.S. premiere stage version of Jules Verne's Around the World in 80 Days, adapted by Emmy nominee Laura Eason (House of Cards, Sex with Strangers) and directed by Theresa Heskins. The new stage take on the classic work features a cast of eight who play more than 125 characters. The production will run from May 10-19, 2019. For a full look at the New Victory Theater's 2018-2019 season, click here.

Karen Ziemba & More to Lead Off-Broadway Revival of Shaw's Heartbreak House
A group of stage favorites have been announced to star in a new off-Broadway staging of George Bernard Shaw's classic comedy Heartbreak House. David Staller will direct the production set to begin previews at Theatre Row on August 28 with an opening scheduled for September 9. Heartbreak House brings a wildly disparate group of people together in the English countryside over a September weekend to make major decisions about their future. The company will include Tony winner Karen Ziemba as Hesione Hushabye, Tony nominee Alison Fraser as Lady Ariadne Utterword, Tony nominee Tom Hewitt as Hector Hushabye, Lenny Wolpe as Mazzini Dunn, Kimberly Immanuel as Ellie Dunn, Raphael Nash Thompson as Captain Shotover, Derek Smith as Boss Mangan and Jeff Hiller as Nurse Guinness/Randall Utterword/The Burglar. Heartbreak House will play a limited engagement through September 29.