Huntering & Gathering Rounds Out Primary Stages Season

Primary Stages has announced the final play selection for its 2007-2008 season: the world premiere of Hunting and Gathering by Brooke Berman.  The new play joins the previously announced 23rd season of three New York premieres -- Opus by Michael Hollinger, Dividing the Estate by Horton Foote, and Something You Did by Willy Holtzman.

Opening the 23rd season of new works by American playwrights is the New York premiere of Opus by Michael Hollinger.  "A world-renowned string quartet struggles to prepare for their highest-profile performance when the violist, and founder of the quartet, mysteriously disappears.  When a young woman is hired as the replacement, her musical gifts inspire the musicians, and they decide on short notice to abandon their friendly Pachelbel Canon program and to replace it with Beethoven's difficult Opus 131.  The rehearsal room becomes a pressure cooker as passions rise, personalities clash, and the musicians are forced to tackle the ephemeral nature of their life's work," state press notes.

Opus was awarded the 2006 Barrymore Award for Outstanding New Play and Outstanding Direction of a Play by Terrence J. Nolan for its world premiere in Philadelphia.  Mr. Nolen recreates this award-winning production when performances begin July 24, 2007 for a limited run through September 1, 2007.  Opening night is Tuesday, August 7, 2007 at 7:00 p.m.

Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Horton Foote, one of America's leading dramatists, returns to Primary Stages with Dividing The Estate.  "Considered the Chekhov of small town America, and known for his intimate and affectionate explorations of ordinary people and their often extraordinary souls, Mr. Foote's 13-character human comedy is about a family that must confront its past as it prepares for its future with foxy cunning and hypocritical virtue."  With direction by Michael Wilson, Dividing The Estate begins performances September 18, 2007- continuing through October 27, 2007. Opening night is Tuesday, October 2, 2007 at 7:00 p.m.

Receiving its world premiere just after the new year is Hunting and Gathering by Brooke Berman with direction by Leigh Silverman. The drama "focuses on four interconnected New Yorkers, absorbed by the universe of Craig's List, laptops, and Scandinavian furniture, who seek a home in a world of temporary sublets, couch-surfing and unstable love." Performances begin January 22, 2008 for a limited run through March 1, 2008.  Opening night is Tuesday, February 5, 2008 at 7:00 p.m.

Closing out the 2007-2008 season is the New York premiere of Something You Did by Willy Holtzman "that tells the story of a notorious sixties radical who has served nearly 30 years in prison for her part in the accidental killing of a police officer during an explosive war protest.  Now eligible for parole in a post 9/11 world where bombing is terrorism and dissent, treason, how much can she be faulted for having too much consciousness and bringing the war home?  A powerful topical and provocative drama, Something You Did examines the responsibility of citizens for the actions of their government. The director will be announced shortly.  Performances begin March 18, 2008 for a run through April 26, 2008.  Opening night is Tuesday, April 1, 2008 at 7:00 p.m."

A 4-play subscription package is available for $185 by calling TicketCentral at (212) 279-4200 or online at www.TicketCentral.com.   For additional information about Primary Stages, please visit the website at www.primarystages.com.