ALL MY SONS, HAY FEVER et al. Set for Juilliard's Drama Division 2011-2012 Season

Juilliard's Drama Division announces the complete schedule for its 2011-2012 season of fully-staged productions featuring students in their fourth and final year of acting training at Juilliard. This season's plays include Arthur Miller's All My Sons, directed by Harris Yulin, October 19-23; Juilliard alumnus Nathan Jackson's Broke-ology, directed by Kent Gash, November 10-14; and Noel Coward's Hay Fever, directed by Dakin Matthews, December 8-12. The Drama Division is led by James Houghton, Richard Rodgers Director of Drama.

Juilliard's Drama Division also presents 4th year repertory in February 2012, which includes Goldoni's The World in the Moon, directed by Orlando Pabotoy; Athol Fugard's My Children! My Africa!, directed by Jonathan Rosenberg; and Annie Baker's Circle Mirror Transformation, directed by Lila Neugebauer. (The complete schedule with synopses follows at the end of this press release.)

The 2011-2012 season opens with the classic drama All My Sons by Arthur Miller, directed by Harris Yulin, with performances on Wednesday, October 19, Thursday, October 20, and Friday, October 21 at 8 PM; Saturday, October 22 at 2 PM and 8 PM; and Sunday, October 23 at 7 PM.

Director Harris Yulin is an acclaimed actor with extensive credits in theater, film, and television. He made his 1963 off-Broadway acting debut in Next Time I'll Sing for You. Mr. Yulin's movie work includes the roles of Wild Bill Hickok in the 1971 revisionist Western Doc, Bernstein in the 1983 remake of Scarface, and King Edward in 1996's Looking for Richard, a contemporary spin on Shakespeare's Richard III. He is a frequent master class teacher for the 3rd year drama students at The Juilliard School and returned to Juilliard last season to direct David Auburn's Proof. He also directed Shakespeare's A Winter's Tale in 2007 at Juilliard.

The season continues with Juilliard alumnus Nathan Jackson's Broke-ology, directed by Kent Gash. Written by Juilliard Playwrights Program alumnus Nathan Louis Jackson, Broke-ology premiered at Lincoln Center Theater in 2009, the same year MR. Jackson graduated from Juilliard. Performances take place on Thursday, November 10 and Friday, November 11 at 8 PM; Saturday, November 12 at 2 PM and 8 PM; Sunday, November 13 at 7 PM; and Monday, November 14 at 8 PM.

Director Kent Gash is currently the director of the NYU Tisch School of the Arts New Studio on Broadway: Music Theatre and Acting. He is the former associate artistic director of The ALLIANCE THEATRE at the Woodruff and recipient of the 2007 Tony Award for sustained excellence in the American Regional theatre, where he directed Duke Ellington's Sophisticated Ladies, Jelly's Last Jam, Topdog/Underdog, Pacific Overtures, among many others. Recent regional productions include Mahalia (Cleveland Playhouse), Crowns, Gee's Bend, and Pure Confidence (Denver Center Theatre Company). His New York credits include Miss Ever's Boys (Melting Pot Theatre Company), Call the Children Home (Primary Stages), the concert presentation of Duke Ellington's Beggar's Holiday, and the first Off-Broadway revival of Home, among others. He has directed Shakespeare Santa Cruz and served as the associate artistic director of the Alabama Shakespeare Festival (1999-2001). Mr. Gash serves on the Board of the Alliance for Inclusion in the Arts.

Noel Coward's comedy, Hay Fever, directed by Dakin Matthews, follows with performances on Thursday, December 8 and Friday, December 9 at 8 PM; Saturday, December 10 at 2 PM and 8 PM; Sunday, December 11 at 7 PM; and Monday, December 12 at 8 PM. Written by Noel Coward in 1924, Hay Fever was first produced in 1925.

Director Dakin Matthews is artistic director of Andak Stage Company, former artistic director of California Actors Theater, Berkeley Shakespeare Festival, and the Antaneus Company, and an emeritus professor of English from Cal State, East Bay. He recently appeared in The Public Theater's Shakespeare in the Park as Provost/Lafew in the rotating productions of All's Well That Ends Well and Measure for Measure in Central Park. Mr. Matthews has completed verse translations of six seventeenth-century Spanish comedies, four of which have had professional, award-winning productions. Mr. Matthews also is an actor, director, playwright, dramaturge, teacher, and Shakespeare scholar. As an actor for such companies as ACT in San Francisco, The Old Globe in San Diego, the Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles, South Coast Repertory Theatre, and numerous summer festivals, he has specialized in Shakespearean roles. Mr. Matthews is a member of both the Motion Picture and Television Academies, and has appeared in more than 25 films (including True Grit, 2010) and 250 television shows. He has directed at ACT, Trinity Rep, Denver Center Theatre, San Jose Rep, The Old Globe, California Actors Theatre, Berkeley Shakespeare Festival, and many others. Mr. Matthews' handbook on verse-speaking, Shakespeare Spoken Here, has been used in universities and training programs; he has taught and directed in professional training programs - at Juilliard, the American Conservatory Theater, Cal Arts, and USD/Old Globe.

Juilliard's Drama Division presents 4th year repertory from February 15-26, 2012 featuring three additional plays that will run in rotation: The World in the Moon by Goldoni, directed by Orlando Pabotoy; My Children!, My Africa!, by Athol Fugard, directed by Jonathan Rosenberg; and Circle Mirror Transformation by Annie Baker, directed by Lila Neugebauer.

Juilliard fourth-year actors (Group 41) appearing in these productions are: Scott Aiello, Clint Allen, Grantham Coleman, Carmela Corbett, Michael Curran-Dursano, Richard Dent, Jordan Geiger, Gabriella Grier, Alex Hanna, Jeremie Harris, Claire Karpen, Kahyun Kim, Sekou Laidlow, Ismenia Mendes, Julia Ogilvie, Carolyn Smith, Phillipa Soo, and Ginny Veale.

While Juilliard Drama Division performances aren't open for review, we invite you to enjoy these productions featuring the next generation of American actors. All performances take place in the Stephanie P. McClelland Drama Theater at Juilliard (155 West 65th Street, 4th Floor). FREE tickets will be available to the public for each production, two weeks prior to the opening date of each show, and a wait list for each performance will begin one hour prior to the start of the show. For more information, call the Juilliard Box Office at (212) 769-7406 or visit the Web site at www.juilliard.edu.

Juilliard's Drama Division, co-founded in 1968 by John Houseman and Michel St. Denis, is an intensive four-year conservatory program. In its 40-plus year history, the Drama Division has developed the talents of some of our most distinguished artists of stage and screen; they work across the country and internationally, acting, directing, writing, and teaching. Under the current leadership of Richard Rodgers Director of the Drama Division, James Houghton, the Juilliard Drama Division continues to uphold the best traditions of classical training and repertory while making the creation of new work one of the cornerstones of the program.

The Lila Acheson Wallace American Playwrights Program, created in 1993, has been led by Marsha Norman and Christopher Durang since 1994. Other esteemed playwrights who have led Juilliard's up-and-coming writers include John Guare and Terrence McNally, who co-created the program with Drama Division director Michael Kahn, as well as  Jon Robin Baitz and Romulus Linney. The program is now in its 18th season and offers one-year, tuition-free, graduate level fellowships to four new writers each year. Alumni of the program include: David Lindsay-Abaire, who received the prestigious Pulitzer Prize for Rabbit Hole in 2007 and David Auburn, who received the Pulitzer Prize for Proof in 2001. Other notable alumni recognition includes Guggenheim Fellow, Steinberg Playwright and Whiting Writers' Award winner Bathsheba Doran; Olivier Award and Susan Smith Blackburn Award recipient Katori Hall; Obie Award winner Sam Hunter; Helen Merrill and Lilly Awards winner Deborah Zoe Laufer; and Pulitzer Prize finalist and recipient of the Benjamin H. Danks Award in Drama from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, Adam Rapp.

JUILLIARD DRAMA DIVISION
2011-2012 CALENDAR OF EVENTS

ALL MY SONS
By Arthur Miller
Directed by Harris Yulin

Wednesday, October 19 (8 PM), Thursday, October 20 (8 PM), Friday, October 21 (8 PM), Saturday, October 22
(2 and 8 PM), and Sunday, October 23 (7 PM)

When Chris Keller announces his intent to marry Ann, his deceased brother's fiancé, the Keller family must finally come to terms with the death of its oldest son. Kate, the family's matriarch, wishes to preserve her dead son's memory and is staunchly opposed to the betrothal while her husband, Joe, has another concern about the union. Ann is the daughter of Joe's former business partner and their company manufactured aircraft parts during the war effort. Joe blames Ann's father for knowingly shipping faulty parts, and he is suspicious of Ann's recent return to the suburbs and acceptance into his family. As stories from the past are exposed and the Keller family comes to terms with their personal legacy, what unfolds is a stark criticism of the American DreaM. Miller has said that All My Sons puts the "whole world to a moral test, challenging the audience itself."

BROKE-OLOGY
By Nathan Jackson
Directed by Kent Gash

Thursday, November 10 ( 8 PM), Friday, November 11 (8 PM), Saturday, November 12 (2 and 8 PM), Sunday, November 13 (7 PM), and Monday, November 14 (8 PM)

Two sons reunite at the home of their ailing father and find themselves at odds as to the best way to manage their father's physical and emotional deterioration. The family patriarch suffers from the degenerative illness multiple sclerosis, but equally debilitating is the grief he harbors over the death of his wife who passed 15 years prior. While the boys learn new stories of the sacrifices their father made for the family, they question their own dreams of individual freedom. Written by Juilliard Playwrights Program alumnus Nathan Louis Jackson, Broke-ology is an intimate and lightly comic observation of two generations of African-American men struggling to carve out a brighter future while remaining bound to the past.
Broke-ology premiered at Lincoln Center Theatre in 2009, the same year MR. Jackson graduated from Juilliard.

HAY FEVER
By Noel Coward
Directed by Dakin Matthews

Thursday, December 8 (8 PM), Friday, December 9 (8 PM), Saturday, December 10 (2 and 8 PM), Sunday, December 11 (7 PM), and Monday, December 12 (8 PM)

A comedy of manners, Hay Fever, begins when each of the four unconventional members of the artistic Bliss family invite a guest to their country house for the weekend. Flirtation, parlour games and mock arguments abound leaving the troubled guests bewildered as a benign family quarrel escalates into a frenzy of accusations. Known for his enduring wit, sophistication and theatricality, Mr. Coward is now seen as a major influence in English-language comedies. However, when first produced in 1925, the playwright commented that the initial reviews of Hay Fever were "far from effusive." When the play was broadcast on television in 1960, The Times called it "...one of the most perfectly engineered comedies of the century."

4th Year Repertory - February 15 - 26, 2012

THE WORLD IN THE MOON
By Goldoni - Directed by Orlando Pabotoy

Adapted from the opera, Il Mondo Della Luna by Carlo Goldoni, The World in the Moon evokes the 16th century style of Commedia dell'arte, an improvised comedic tradition of theatrical storytelling. When Ecclitico, an impostor-astrologer, unsuccessfully asks for the hand of wealthy Buonafede's daughter, the suitor resorts to trickery convincing the old man that an enchanted telescope reveals a "world in the moon." But, in order to visit the moon, Buonafede must relinquish all earthly possessions, including his daughter. Ecclitico then stages a trip to the moon, transporting Buonafede not to the moon but to the charlatan's backyard peopled with actors that improvise the dream society of a lunar landscape. This retelling of Goldoni's magical libretto is adapted and directed by Julliard's Drama Division alumnus, Orlando Pabotoy.
Director Orlando Pabotoy has served on the faculty of Tisch School for the Arts at NYU and has taught at Juilliard, University of Texas in Austin, Bard College, Ramapo College, The Old Globe, UCSD, Cal Arts, Cal State Long Beach, and at The Actors Center in New York. He was a recipient of the 1997 John Houseman Award, a 1998 Fox Fellowship and a 2003 Obie Award. In addition to teaching, Mr. Pabotoy is a successful director and actor. As a director, he has created, assisted, and stage/co-staged shows for the Juilliard Drama Division (most recently Molière's Scapin in 2008). As an actor, he has appeared in The Public Theater's Shakespeare in the Park, New York Theater Workshops, the Metropolitan Opera House, The Old Globe, and Yale Repertory Company.
MY CHILDREN! MY AFRICA!
By Athol Fugard - Directed by Jonathan Rosenberg

World-renowned playwright, Athol Fugard, is celebrated for dramas that are deeply personal, poetic and political. They are spawned from South Africa's apartheid era, portraying the human cost of the government's oppressive regime. In My Children! My Africa!, idealistic schoolteacher Mr. M hopes to impart his belief in non-violent protest to his most promising student, Thami. But when students begin to rise up against the injustices of apartheid, the tenuous bonds between pupil, teacher and a visiting white student are tested. Mr. M makes a desperate appeal for understanding from the audience, "One of the animals, the one called Hope, has broken loose and is looking for food... It is as dangerous as Hate and Despair would be if it ever managed to break out." A drama of both ideas and the heart, My Children! My Africa! raises questions of loyalty, betrayal and the best response to a political system that threatens to extinguish the soul of a nation. Mr. Fugard is the recipient of numerous awards including the 2011 Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in Theater.

Director Jonathan Rosenberg currently is artist-in-residence at Bard College and is returning to Juilliard after directing Eduardo Machado's Broken Eggs in 2006. His work has been produced by the Walker Art Center (Minneapolis), Dance Theater Workshop, Home for Contemporary Theater and Art, Theater for the New City, Public Theater, Flynn Theater (Burlington), Berkshire Theatre Festival, SUNY Purchase Acting Conservatory, among others. He is the recipient of both the National Endowment for the Arts Director Fellowship Award and Fox Foundation Fellowship Award.

CIRCLE MIRROR TRANSFORMATION
By Annie Baker - Directed by Lila Neugebauer

Circle Mirror Transformation charts the journey of five people participating in a "creative drama" class. As the characters learn about the rudiments of theatrical expression, the audience is privy to their awkward encounters and brief collisions as they desperately try to express themselves. The subtle power of this comic drama is in the play's emotional authenticity, painfully nuanced dialogue and deeply flawed - yet very human -- individuals. Circle Mirror Transformation premiered at Playwrights Horizons in October 2009 receiving Obie Awards for Best New American Play and Performance, Ensemble.

Lila Neugebauer's directing work has been seen at Ars Nova's ANT FEST, Ensemble Studio Theatre, Cherry Lane Studio Theatre, The Brick, Actors Theatre of Louisville, and Theater of the American South. She has developed new works through Bay Area Playwrights Festival, Dramatists Guild, EST/Youngblood, Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab, NYU Tisch Graduate Playwriting, and the Yale Playwrights Festival. As part of an artistic collection, The Mad Ones, she co-conceived and directed Samuel and Alasdair: A Personal History of the Robot War (winner of multiple New York Innovative Theatre Awards, including Outstanding Production of a Play and Outstanding Ensemble).

4th Year Repertory
February 15-26, 2012
Schedule

The World in the Moon
By Goldoni
Directed by Orlando Pabotoy

Wednesday, February 15, 2012, 8 PM
Saturday, February 18, 2012, 8 PM
Sunday, February 19, 2012, 2 PM
Thursday, February 23, 2012, 8 PM
Sunday, February 26, 2012, 8 PM

My Children! My Africa!
By Athol Fugard
Directed by Jonathan Rosenberg

Thursday, February 16, 2012, 8 PM
Sunday, February 19, 2012, 8 PM
Tuesday, February 21, 2012, 8 PM
Friday, February 24, 2012, 8 PM
Saturday, February 25, 2 PM

Circle Mirror Transformation
By Annie Baker
Directed by Lila Neugebauer

Friday, February 17, 2012, 8 PM
Saturday, February 18, 2012, 2 PM
Wednesday, February 22, 2012, 8 PM
Saturday, February 25, 2012, 8 PM
Sunday, February 26, 2012, 2 PM

ALL PERFORMANCES TAKE PLACE IN The Stephanie P. McClelland drama TheateR
The Juilliard School, 155 West 65th Street, 4th Floor, NYC

TICKET AND BOX OFFICE INFORMATION:
FREE tickets will be available to the public for each production, two weeks prior to the opening date of each show and a wait list for each performance will begin one hour prior to the start of the show. For more information, call the Janet and Leonard Kramer Box Office at Juilliard at (212) 769-7406 or visit the Web site at www.juilliard.edu.