Patricia Richardson to Return to Bucks County Playhouse in OTHER DESERT CITIES

Four-time Emmy nominee Patricia Richardson will star in the Broadway hit play, "Other Desert Cities" by Jon Robin Baitz at Bucks County Playhouse (BCP) - returning to where she appeared in a record-breaking, star-studded production of "Steel Magnolias" last summer.

Richardson is not the only artist returning to the Playhouse for "Other Desert Cities," which will be directed at the Playhouse by Sheryl Kaller. Executive Producer Robyn Goodman, Producing Director Alexander Fraser and Producers Stephen Kocis and Josh Fiedler announced Richardson's appearance and other production details for "Other Desert Cities," which launches a limited run at Bucks County Playhouse beginning Friday, August 18 and concluding September 2. The official opening night is Saturday, August 19. The 2017 Bucks County Playhouse Season is sponsored by Bank of America.

"The jolt of excitement emulating from the family reunion at the center of 'Other Desert Cities' is virtually matched by the artistic reunion we are having at the Playhouse with this production," says Producing Director Alexander Fraser. "We are thrilled to welcome back director Sheryl Kaller who helmed Terrence McNally's 'Mothers and Sons' here prior to Broadway, and two of our favorite actresses, Patricia Richardson from 'Steel Magnolias' and Deirdre Madigan from 'Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike.' Along with Clarke Dunham, whose scenic designs first graced the Bucks County Playhouse stage in the 1960s, and an incomparable trio of actors who are making their Playhouse debuts, we can't wait to see the drama and intrigue of Jon Robin Baitz's play come to life in the hands of this extraordinary team."

Family intrigue abounds. Cocktails are poured and Christmas Eve reservations are made and the zingers fly as Brooke Wyeth returns to her parents' Palm Springs home toting an explosive, about-to-be-published tell-all memoir. While she's ready to battle it out for their blessing to publish the book, nothing prepares her for what her parents have in store!

Richardson (TV's "Home Improvement" and BCP's "Steel Magnolias") stars as Polly Wyeth. Kevin Kilner (Broadway's "The Glass Menagerie" and TV's "House of Cards") plays her husband Lymon. Deirdre Madigan (Broadway's "After the Night and the Music" and BCP's "Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike") is Silda, Liza J. Bennett ("12 Years a Slave" and Broadway's "Merchant of Venice" with Al Pacino) is Brooke Wyeth and Charles Socarides ("Sons of Prophets" and TV's "When We Rise") is Trip Wyeth. Casting is by Caparelliotis Casting.

The creative team features Clarke Dunham (Scenic Designer), Michael Gilliam (Lighting Designer), Nicole V. Moody (Costume Designer) and Alex Neumann (Sound Designer). Joanna Muhlfelder is Production Stage Manager.

"Other Desert Cities" will play the following schedule: Tuesdays at 7:30 p.m., Wednesdays at 2:00 p.m., Thursdays at 2:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., Fridays at 8:00 p.m. (except September 1 at 7:00 p.m.), Saturdays at 2:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., and Sundays at 2:00 p.m. There is an additional evening performance on Wednesday, August 30 at 7:30 p.m. The opening night performance on Saturday, August 12 will be at 7:30 p.m. The Playhouse will hold a special LGBT Night performance with a post-show talkback on Tuesday, August 22 and a Ladies Night performance on August 31. Fireworks follow the show on September 1.

Single tickets to "Other Desert Cities" are on sale now. Tickets range from $40 - $75. Special rates for groups of 10 or more. For complete details, and to purchase tickets, please visit buckscountyplayhouse.org, call 215-862-2121, or visit the box office at 70 South Main Street, New Hope, PA.

Bucks County Playhouse, a nonprofit 501(c)3 organization, is the oldest and largest professional Equity performing arts center in Bucks County. Under the direction of Tony Award-winning producers, Alexander Fraser and Robyn Goodman, the Playhouse provides first class professional theatrical entertainment as well as community events, partnerships and arts education programming for visitors and residents of New Hope, Doylestown, Lambertville and the Delaware Valley.

Located between Philadelphia and New York, Bucks County Playhouse opened in 1939 in a converted 1790 gristmill after a group of community activists, led by Broadway orchestrator Don Walker and playwright Moss Hart, rallied to save the building. The Playhouse quickly became one of the country's most famous regional theaters, featuring a roster of American theatrical royalty including Helen Hayes, Kitty Carlisle, George S. Kaufman, Grace Kelly, Robert Redford, Bert Lahr, Walter Matthau, Angela Lansbury, Bernadette Peters, Alan Alda, Tyne Daly, Liza Minnelli and Audra McDonald and remained in continuous operation until December 2010. In 2012, the Playhouse re-opened thanks to the efforts of the Bridge Street Foundation, the nonprofit family foundation of Kevin and Sherri Daugherty, and Broadway producer Jed Bernstein.

Since its renovation, significaNT Productions include Terrence McNally's "Mothers and Sons" starring Tyne Daly, which moved to Broadway and was nominated for two Tony Awards, and "Misery" by William Goldman based on the Stephen King novel which also went on to a Broadway run in the 2015-16 season. Two of the Playhouse's receNT Productions -- "Company" starring Justin Guarini, and William Finn's "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" -- were named by Wall Street Journal to its "Best of Theatre" list for 2015. The Playhouse's productions of "Steel Magnolias" and "Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story" broke box office records in 2016. "Buddy" returned in 2017 and transferred to the Kimmel Center, where it became the first regional theatre invited to perform at the prestigious venue. Thanks to the Bridge Street Foundation and their vision for the New Hope waterfront, the Playhouse is currently in construction mode - as it adds 4,000 square foot riverfront cafe and bar that is expected to open in 2018.