Contact:
Andrew M. Horn, Executive Director, (917) 692-5440
Mailing Address:
Theatre Address:
Telephone: 845.786.2873
Fax:
845.786.3638
Website:
www.penguinrep.org
FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Beth Fowler & Richard Kline to Star
in 2011 Season Opener, Tom Dudzick’s
Greetings!
Penguin’s 34th Season Also Features
Plays by Deborah Zoe Laufer, Donald Margulies & Mat Smart
April 17, 2011 -- Stony Point, NY
–
Two-time Tony Award nominee Beth
Fowler and Richard Kline, known to millions of TV watchers as “Larry” on the
classic sitcom Three’s Company,
will star in
Greetings!, Tom Dudzick’s
heartwarming comedy about a family blessed by an unexpected miracle, at
Penguin Rep Theatre,
artistic director
Joe Brancato and executive director
Andrew M. Horn announced today.
Greetings!
is the first of four mainstage productions selected for the nonprofit
professional theatre’s 34th year in operation and will kick off the 2011
season at Penguin’s intimate, 108-seat theatre in Stony Point (Rockland
County), New York beginning May 20.
Greetings! will be
performed through June 12.
“We are happy to have Tom Dudzick,
author of Over the Tavern and
Miracle on South Division Street, back for the third year in a row
to start a new season at Penguin Rep,” says Mr. Brancato. “And we’re
also thrilled to welcome back Richard Kline, who starred at Penguin in
Ten Percent of Molly Snyder in 2008 and recently toured the country
as the Wizard of Oz in the National Company of
Wicked, joined by the incomparable Beth Fowler.” Ms. Fowler
originated the role of Mrs. Potts in the Broadway production of
Beauty and the Beast and was
nominated for Tony Awards for her performances in
The Boy from Oz and
Sweeney Todd.
The remainder of the cast of
Greetings! under Thomas
Caruso’s direction includes
Jonathan Fielding, Rusty Ross
and Rachel Stern.
Mr. Caruso directed
Around the World in 80 Days
and Over the Tavern for
Penguin Rep last season, and Ten
Percent of Molly Snyder in 2008. He recently directed a reading of
the new musical
Southern Comfort by
Julianne Wick Davis & Dan Collins, starring Annette O’Toole (Playwrights
Horizons)—a top finalist for the prestigious Richard Rodgers award;
Alex Davis: Man Of the Year, produced by Ruth and
Steven Hendel (Knitting Factory),
Abbie
(Off-Broadway),
The Chalks, An American Family In
Three Chords, a new musical (Bay Street Theatre),
and the film version of
Zombie, based
on the novella by Joyce Carol Oates.
Jonathan Fielding (Mickey Gorski)’s
credits include the recent production of John Kolvenbach’s
Love Song at 59 East 59 Street
Theaters, and the Broadway productions of
Pygmalion at Roundabout
Theatre and The Seagull at the
Walter Kerr. He also performed in
The Heavens Are Hung in Black for the grand re-opening of the Ford’s
Theatre in Washington, D.C.
Rusty Ross (Andy Gorski), who
previously appeared at Penguin Rep in the world premiere of Tom
Dudzick’s Our Lady of South Division Street (now titled
Miracle on South Division Street), starred in the original cast of
Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole
Christmas! on Broadway, and reprised his role when the production
returned in 2007. He recently performed the role of Professor in the
national tour of the
Lincoln Center Theater production of
South Pacific.
Rachel Stern (Randi Stein) was seen
in the Broadway productions of
Shrek: The Musical, High
Fidelity and Tarzan.
The production team for
Greetings! includes
designers Patricia E. Doherty
(costumes), James J. Fenton
(set), Martin E. Vreeland
(lights), and Colin Whitely
(sound); and stage manager C.
Renee Alexander.
Performance days and times for
Greetings! are: Thursdays,
Fridays, and Saturday nights at 8:00 p.m., with matinees on Saturdays at
4:00 p.m. and Sundays at 2:00 p.m.
Following
Greetings! is the New York
premiere of Deborah Zoe Laufer's
Sirens, a romantic comedy
about finding one's muse and falling in love with your spouse all over
again (July 8 – July 31). Summer 2011 brings
Shipwrecked! An Entertainment
for audiences young and old by Pulitzer Prize winner
Donald Margulies (August 12 - September 4). Closing the season will
be the New York premiere of Mat
Smart's heartfelt new play,
Samuel J. and K., about a pair of brothers finding their game,
their lives and their bond challenged as never before (October 14 -
November 6).
Subscriptions to 2011 mainstage
productions are on sale now and start as low as $92 for the four plays.
Individual tickets are priced at $34
each. Discounts are available for groups of 10 or more and young people
(30 and under). A special reduced-priced weekday matinee
performance of Greetings! is slated for
Friday, May 20 at 2:00 p.m.
To
order tickets or for further information, visit Penguin Rep’s website at
www.penguinrep.org or call
845-786-2873.
Penguin Rep Theatre gratefully acknowledges general operating support
from the New York State Council on the Arts, a public agency celebrating 60
years of building strong, creative communities in New York State’s 62
counties; the County of Rockland,
the Shubert Foundation, the
Cory and Bob Donnalley Charitable
Foundation, and the Arts Fund
For Rockland (a program of the Arts Council of Rockland).
Greetings!
A comedy by Tom Dudzick
Directed by Thomas Caruso
May 20 – June 12, 2011
When Andy Gorski returns home from New York for the holidays accompanied
by his new fiancée, cultures collide, beliefs are challenged, and truths
are told as only Tom Dudzick, author of
Miracle on South Division Street
and Over the Tavern, can tell
them. Join us for a hilarious and heartwarming visit with a family
blessed by an unexpected miracle.
AUDIENCE ENHANCEMENT
EVENTS
Audience members are
invited to enrich their theatre-going experience without any additional
charge by participating in any of Penguin Rep Theatre's special events
during the run of
Greetings!.
Opening Reception:
Join the cast and creative team after the 2:00 pm matinee performance on
Sunday, May 22 for cake and coffee.
Post-Show Discussion:
Learn more about the play and production and share your thoughts with
fellow audience members in a discussion with the cast and artistic
director Joe Brancato following the show on Friday, May 27.
Pre-Show Tasting:
Enjoy a tasting from a local chef or restaurant (TBA) before the 4:00 pm
matinee performance on Saturday, May 28.
2011 Mainstage Productions
New York Premiere!
Sirens
A romantic comedy by Deborah Zoe Laufer
Directed by Joe Brancato
July 8 – July 31, 2011
Sy, a middle-aged composer with writer’s block, has posted his photo on
Facebook, but it’s from his wedding and he’s cropped his wife Rose out
of the picture! Next the couple’s 25th anniversary cruise to
the Greek Isles takes a wild and unforeseen turn. The New York premiere
of a romantic comedy about finding one’s muse and falling in love with
your spouse all over again.
Shipwrecked! An Entertainment
A comedy by Donald Margulies
Directed by Thomas Caruso
August 12 – September 4, 2011
Audiences young and old will enjoy this imaginative play based on the
true story of Louis de Rougemont who mesmerized Victorian England -- and
the world -- with his incredible tale of being stranded on an island for
30 years. From Pulitzer Prize winner Donald Margulies,
Shipwrecked! is filled with
theatrical magic and “good old fashioned yarn spinning” (The New York
Times).
New York Premiere!
Samuel J. and K.
A play by Mat Smart
Directed by Joe Brancato
October 14 – November 6, 2011
A simple game of pickup basketball has higher stakes than two brothers
could ever imagine. When Samuel J. surprises his adopted brother K. with
a graduation gift of a trip to Africa to explore his roots, they find
their game, their lives, and their bond challenged as never before. The
New York premiere of a heartfelt new play about conflict, identity and
the boundless reach of family.
2011 Children’s Theatre
North, South, East & Jim West
A Theatreworks USA Presentation
Starring Jim West
July 19 & July 21, 2011
Performances: 11:00 a.m. & 1:30 p.m.
Travel the globe in this multicultural extravaganza of puppeteering
including a giant dragon from China, a Native American totem pole, and a
hand shadow spider from Africa.
Sweet Potato Pie & Such
A Theatreworks USA Presentation
Starring Queen Nur
July 20, 2011 at 1:30 p.m.
Storyteller Queen Nur returns with her tasty treat of stories, songs and
dance. This highly energetic performance will delight all ages.
Special Event! One Performance Only
Robert Wuhl’s Assume the Position
Starring Emmy Award-winner Robert Wuhl
At SUNY Rockland Community College, Suffern, NY
Saturday, September 10, 2011 at 8:00 p.m.
History is a wonderfully funny thing – if only it was true! – as actor
and comedian Robert Wuhl (best known as
Arli$$) takes us on a wise and
uproariously comic romp through the facts and myths behind the ol’ “Red,
White and Blue”. Assume the
Position is an all-new follow-up to the Emmy Award winner’s
acclaimed HBO special.
Special Event! One Performance Only
My Mother’s Italian, My Father’s Jewish & I’m in Therapy
The Off Broadway hit comedy by Steve Solomon
At SUNY Rockland Community College, Suffern, NY
Saturday, October 1, 2011 at 8:30 p.m.
Twice the holidays. Twice the hollering. Twice the guilt. Direct from
the sold-out, extended Off Broadway run,
Italian + Jewish = Therapy is
one part lasagna, one part kreplach and two parts Prozac. Author Steve
Solomon combines comic voices, sound effects and astounding
characterizations to tell stories of the wacky side of the human
condition.