Award-Winning Retro Productions Presents AND MISS REARDON DRINKS A LITTLE

Award-winning Retro Productions, under the Artistic Direction of Heather E. Cunningham, will present the critically acclaimed play, And Miss Reardon Drinks A Little. The production runs May 5th through May 20th at the Gene Frankel Theatre. Shay Gines, a Founding Executive Director of the New York Innovative Theatre Awards, directs. This is the 50th anniversary of And Miss Reardon Drinks A Little. The play was originally produced in Los Angles in 1967, and in 1971 the comedy opened on Broadway at the Morosco Theatre.

Artistic Director Heather E. Cunningham explains what drew her to the play and why it's still so relevant, "The more I read it - and the more I read about the year we are setting it in 1968 - the more fascinating it becomes in the context of our past - these four educated women in this apartment being told what to think and how to feel and how they should be living their lives by the only MAN in the room - it perfectly encapsulates the struggle at the beginning of feminism and now. It's eerie to realize how little has changed."

And Miss Reardon Drinks A Little is an often biting and occasionally touching black comedy of the late 60s that centers on the lives of the three Reardon sisters, whose father abandoned the family long ago, and whose mother has recently passed away. The sisters, now adults and all working in the New York City public school system, have come to a crossroads - the youngest sister, having barely survived a scandalous incident at school, has suffered a nervous breakdown. When the married sister comes back to the childhood apartment the two unmarried sisters now share in an effort to commit her sibling to an institution, the built-up resentments of the last decade are pushed to the forefront. Should Anna be committed? Is it in her best interest or is it just easier for Ceil if she doesn't have to care for her? Is it selfish of Catherine to want to keep her at home? Who is strongest in this fight of wills - and does Catherine really need another cocktail?

The cast features Wynne Anders (Off-Broadway Claymont/Emerging Artists Theatre), Christopher Borg (Charles Busch's Judith of Bethulia/Theatre for the New City), Heather E. Cunningham (NYIT Award for Best Actress in An Appeal To The Woman Of The House/Retro), Rebecca Holt (Broadway How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying with Matthew Broderick and Megan Mullally), Amanda Jones (Off-Broadway Candida/Jean Cocteau Repertory), Sean J. Moran (Widows directed by Hal Brooks at 59E59), and Sara Thigpen (NYIT Award for Best Actress in Burning the old Man Jo/Boomerang Theatre).

The creative team includes set design by Jack & Rebecca Cunningham, costume design by Ben Philipp, lighting design by Asa Lipton, sound design by DeLisa M. White, properties design by Sara Slagle, and stage management by Elizabeth Ramsay.

All performances take place at the Gene Frankel Theatre, 24 Bond Street (Between Lafayette & Bowery), New York, NY 10012. Subways: 6 to Bleecker Street, B/D/F/M to Broadway/Lafayette. Tickets are $25.00 (adults), $22.00 (students/seniors), and are available at www.retroproductions.org - $10.00 student rush tickets are available at the box office 15 minutes prior to curtain (cash only).

Show Dates:

Friday, May 5th at 8:00 pm (Opening Night)

Saturday, May 6th at 8:00 pm

Sunday, May 7th at 2:00 pm

Monday, May 8th at 8:00 pm

Thursday, May 11th at 8:00 pm

Friday, May 12th at 8:00 pm

Saturday, May 13th at 8:00 pm

Sunday, May 14th at 2:00 pm

Wednesday, May 17th at 8:00 pm

Thursday, May 18th at 8:00 pm

Friday, May 19th at 8:00 pm

Saturday, May 20th at 8:00 pm

Paul Zindel (Playwright) was an award-winning American playwright, educator, and young adult author, who was born in Staten Island. His plays include the Pulitzer Prize-winning The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds, And Miss Reardon Drinks a Little, Let Me Hear You Whisper, The Secret Affairs of Mildred Wild, The Ladies Should Be in Bed, A Destiny with Half Moon Street, and Amulets Against the Dragon Forces. Mr. Zindel wrote numerous young adult books including The Pigman, My Hamburger, and David & Della. He also wrote several screenplays and made for television movies. www.paulzindel.com

Shay Gines (Director) is an award-winning producer, actress, and director. She has directed in theatres across the country including: Rough for Theatre at the Occidental Theater in Eagle Rock, California; Where's My Lunch at Touchstone Theatre in Pennsylvania; and The Trojan Women with the Greek Festival in Salt Lake City, Utah. Favorite New York directing credits includes: My Alice with Esperance Theatre Company, Red Suitcase with Rising Sun Performance Company, and First Communion with Emerging Artists Theatre Company. Ms. Gines is a Founding Executive Director of the New York Innovative Theatre Awards and the Off-Off-Broadway Editor for Theatre World, the annual pictorial and statistical record of the American theatre.

About Retro Productions:

Retro Productions (Heather E. Cunningham, Artistic Director) was founded in 2005 with the mission to present works of retro theatre. Retro is defined as "involving, relating to, or reminiscent of things past (American Heritage Dictionary)." Retro Productions strives to tell good theatrical stories which have an historical perspective - with an emphasis on the 20th century - in order to broaden our own understanding of the world we live in. Over the past 12 years, Retro has produced 19 plays including the 2015 critically acclaimed production of The Butter and Egg Man and The Runner Stumbles which was moved to an off-Broadway run by The Bleecker Company in 2011.

Retro Productions has received 22 New York Innovative Theatre Awards nominations since 2008 - including 2 wins for Outstanding Actress in a Lead, for Kristen Vaughan (Benefactors by Michael Frayn in 2011) and Heather E. Cunningham (An Appeal to the Woman of the House by Christie Perfetti Williams in 2014). Nominations include Outstanding Production of a Revival for The Butter and Egg Man in 2015, Outstanding Production of a Play for An Appeal to the Woman of the House in 2014, Benefactors in 2011 and The Desk Set in 2010, Outstanding Original Full-length script for An Appeal to the Woman of the House in 2014, Outstanding Ensemble for Benefactors in 2011, as well as acting and design award nominations. www.retroproductions.org