Theater and movie star Richard Dreyfuss (pictured) will return to the London stage in January to appear at the Old Vic in the world premiere of Complicit, directed by Kevin Spacey. Back in 2004, Dreyfuss was slated to star in the original London company of The Producers but had to withdraw just days before previews were to begin. He was replaced by the original Broadway star, Nathan Lane. Dreyfuss can currently be seen in Oliver Stone’s bio-pic W, playing Dick Cheney.

Up next for the Irish Classical Theatre Company, Ah Wilderness!, the third play in the company’s five-year Eugene O’Neill retrospective. The playwright’s only comedy will be directed by Greg Natale and will star Dan Walker, Kelli Bocock-Natale, Richard Wesp, Kristen Tripp Kelley, Eliza Maher, and Gerry Maher. The production opens January 16. Interestingly, two of O’Neill’s plays were the basis for Broadway musicals, Ah Wilderness! became Take me Along, and Anna Christie became New Girl in Town.

Speaking of musicals, the ICTC will now present the Neil Simon/Marvin Hamlisch/Carole Bayer Sager musical They’re Playing Our Song in the June 5-28 slot, replacing the previously announced Fadographs. The latter is Vincent O’Neill’s adaptation of the second half of Finnegans Wake, and will now be produced at a later date.

Musicalfare is replacing 2 Pianos 4 Hands with an original work by Randy Kramer, American Rhapsody. Centering around the story of Gershwin’s classic Rhapsody in Blue, the production will star Kramer at the piano and John Fredo, Tim White, and Loraine O’Donnell. The show will also feature choreography by Jon Lehrer and dancers from his company, LehrerDance.

The comedy Is He Dead?, one of the pleasant surprises of last year’s Broadway season, will be presented at the Kavinoky January 9-February 8. The piece was written by Mark Twain in 1898 but was never performed. It was discovered by a Twain scholar in 2002 and was then adapted by playwright David Ives, having its world premiere on Broadway in the 2007-08 season. The local production will be directed by Paul Todaro and will star John Warren, Norm Sham, Kate LoConti, Ellen Horst, Jim Maloy, Tim Newell, Tom Zindle, and Barbara Link LaRou. Set in France in the 1840s, the plot involves a group of struggling artists who stage the death of their mentor in order to increase the value of his work. Costumes will be designed by Dixon Reynolds.

The Kavinoky is now presenting the comedy Heroes (through December 7), starring David Lamb, Vincent O’Neill, and Norm Sham. The play had its American premiere in Los Angeles back in 2007 starring Len Cariou, Richard Benjamin, and George Segal and it was supposed to head to Broadway but those plans never materialized. Now the comedy will finally make it to New York, off-Broadway, beginning February 24 with a cast headed by John Cullum and Tony Roberts.

Road Less Traveled Productions will present the world premiere of Darryl Schneider’s Twice Around January 23-February 15. Directed by Doug Weyand, the production will star Louis Colaiacovo, Kelly Jakiel, Nicole Cimato, and Tom LaChiusa. Schneider won an Artie Award for his play War Room. Also coming up in January, Alec Baldwin returns to RLTP to appear in a reading of David Mamet’s Speed the Plow, opposite Brian Mysliwy and Kelly Jakiel. This fundraiser for the company will take place on January 31 at 8pm at Rockwell Hall with a private reception at 6pm at Burchfield-Penney Art Center. For information, call 629-3069.

The touring production of the musical Annie will play Shea’s December 19 & 20. The tour started as the show’s 30th anniversary tour. Can you believe the musical opened on Broadway in 1977?

BUA’s The New Century will have a special Theater Community Night performance on Sunday, November 30 at 7pm at Main Street Cabaret. The production stars Caitlin Coleman, Jimmy Janowski, Kelli Bocock Natale, Arianna Boykins, and Mike Seitz.