Photo Flash: TACT’s A 'T.S. Eliot Cocktail' at Barnes & Noble

TACT/The Actors Company Theatre (Scott Alan Evans, Cynthia Harris and Simon Jones, C0-Artistic Directors), the critically-acclaimed company dedicated to presenting neglected or rarely produced plays of literary merit, offered a "sneak peek" of the 60th Anniversary production of The Cocktail Party, T. S. Eliot's profound exploration of self deception and redemption, at a special event titled "A T.S. Eliot Cocktail: An Evening of Scenes and Poetry" held on Tuesday, March 2nd at Barnes & Noble (2289 Broadway @ 82nd Street). The event, free and open to the public, provided an insightful look at the life and work of one of the world's most revered writers.

Featuring scenes from the production paired with pieces of Eliot's poetry, the evening will conclude with a Q&A with members of the company, including Cynthia Harris, Simon Jones and Jack Koenig, as well as the show's director Scott Alan Evans. For more information, please call (212) 721-5282.

In the brilliant, witty world of The Cocktail Party, T.S. Eliot's profound exploration of self-deception and redemption, Edward and Lavinia Chamberlayne are throwing a party at their fashionable London flat. The guests arrive only to discover that their hostess is nowhere to be found and a rather strange man, who no one seems to know, acts right at home. Ruthless, compassionate and funny, this "Cocktail Party" embodies the day-to-day struggles of domestic life while turning the classic ‘drawing room comedy' on its head.

Performances of The Cocktail Party begin at The Beckett Theatre (410 West 42nd Street - between 9th & 10th Avenues) on Sunday March 7th, 2010. Opening night is Wednesday, March 17th at 7:30 pm. Performances will continue through Sunday, April 10th.

The cast of The Cocktail Party includes TACT Company Members Mark Alhadeff, Cynthia Harris (TACT Co-Artistic Director), Simon Jones (TACT Co-Artistic Director), Jack Koenig and guest artists Jeremy Beck, Ben Beckley, Lauren English, Erika Rolfsrud and Celia Smith.

The creative team is comprised of Andrew Lieberman & Laura Jellinek (sets), David Toser (costumes), Aaron Copp (lights), Jill BC Du Boff & Daniel Kluger (sound), Joseph Trapanese (original music) and Lily Fairbanks (properties). Meredith Dixon is Production Stage Manager.

The Cocktail Party will have the following performance schedule: Monday, Wednesday - Friday at 7:30pm; Saturday at 2pm & 8pm; Sunday at 3pm. Tickets are $36.25 - $56.25 and are available 24/7 through Ticket Central www.ticketcentral.com or from 12noon - 8pm daily at 212-279-4200. They may also be obtained at the Theatre Row box office (410 West 42nd Street (between 9th & 10th Avenues) between 12pm and 8pm daily.
TACT/THE ACTORS COMPANY THEATRE's celebrated company of actors was drawn together in 1992 by a love of the literature of the theatre. Since that time, they have grown to become a true ensemble: a group that has developed a common vocabulary and a technique based on their specific artistic vision and collective body of work. TACT company members, whose cumulative experience includes scores of significant roles on and off Broadway, in the country's finest regional theatres and in many films and television shows, have received Emmy, Obie, Outer Critics Circle and Drama Desk Awards, in addition to several Tony nominations.

After presenting thirteen seasons of "in-concert" performances, the company took a leap forward with its 2006-07 season by presenting fully staged productions of David Storey's Home and The Sea by Edward Bond at The Beckett Theatre on Theatre Row. TACT became a resident company on Theatre Row with its 2007-08 season when they presented critically-acclaimed productions of The Runner Stumbles by Milan Stitt and The Eccentricities of a Nightingale, by Tennessee Williams, which The New York Times included in its "Top 10 Theatre Picks for 2008." The company's productions of Alan Ayckbourn's Bedroom Farce and last season's Incident at Vichy by Arthur Miller and this season's The Late Christopher Bean by Sidney Howard, became instant hits and enjoyed extended runs.