Signature Theatre's WHAT I DID LAST SUMMER Begins Tonight

Signature Theatre presents What I Did Last Summer, written by A.R. Gurney and directed by Jim Simpson. The production runs tonight, April 28 to June 7 with a May 17 opening night in The Irene Diamond Stage at The Pershing Square Signature Center (480 West 42nd Street between 9th and 10th Avenues).

All tickets for the initial run of the production are $25 as part of the Signature Ticket Initiative: A Generation of Access. To purchase tickets for all Signature productions, call Ticket Services at 212-244-7529 (Tues. - Sun., 11am - 6pm) or visit signaturetheatre.org.

The cast includes Pico Alexander (MCC's Punk Rock) as Ted, Juliet Brett (The New Group's The Jacksonian) as Bonny, Noah Galvin (NYTW's Love and Information) as Charlie, Carolyn McCormick (Signature's The Open House) as Grace, Kate McGonigle (Off-Broadway debut) as Elsie, Tony Award nominee Kristine Nielsen (Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike) as Anna Trumbull.

The design team includes Michael Yeargan (Scenic Design), Claudia Brown (Costume Design), Brian Aldous (Lighting Design), Janie Bullard (Sound Design), John Narun (Projection Design). Donald Fried is the Production Stage Manager. Casting by Telsey + Company, William Cantler, CSA.

Supplemental programming has been set for What I Did Last Summer. There will be post-show talkbacks on May 5, 21, 26 and June 2. Talkbacks brought to you by American Express. Signature will also continue its Page to Stage series on May 6 at 6 p.m. with a discussion between playwright A.R. Gurney and director Jim Simpson about the development process, from initial idea to final production. These events are free and open to the public. No reservations required

Signature recently announced programming for its 2015-16 25th Anniversary Season. To purchase subscriptions for next season, as well as tickets for all Signature productions, call Ticket Services at 212-244-7529 (Tues. - Sun., 11am - 6pm) or visit signaturetheatre.org.

Tickets to the initial runs of all Signature productions at The Pershing Square Signature Center are $25, part of the groundbreaking Signature Ticket Initiative: A Generation of Access, a program that guarantees affordable and accessible tickets to every Signature production through 2031. Serving as a model for theatres and performing arts organizations across the country, the Initiative was founded in 2005 and is made possible by lead partner The Pershing Square Foundation. Additional support provided by the Howard Gilman Foundation, Margot Adams and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.

Signature Theatre exists to honor and celebrate the playwright. Founded in 1991 by James Houghton, Signature makes an extended commitment to a playwright's body of work, and during this journey, the writer is engaged in every aspect of the creative process. By championing in-depth explorations of a playwright's body of work, Signature delivers an intimate and immersive journey into the playwright's singular vision. In 2014 Signature became the first New York City theatre to receive the Regional Theatre Tony Award.

Signature serves its mission through its permanent home at The Pershing Square Signature Center, a three-theatre facility on West 42nd Street designed by Frank Gehry Architects to host Signature's three distinct playwrights' residencies and foster a cultural community. At the Center, opened in January 2012, Signature continues its founding Playwright-in-Residence model as Residency One, a first-of-its-kind, intensive exploration of a single writer's body of work. Residency Five, the only program of its kind, was launched at the Center to support multiple playwrights as they build bodies of work by guaranteeing each writer three productions over a five-year period. The Legacy Program, launched during Signature's 10th Anniversary, invites writers from both residencies back for productions of premiere or earlier plays.

The Pershing Square Signature Center is a major contribution to New York City's cultural landscape and provides a venue for cultural organizations that supports and encourages collaboration among artists throughout the space. In addition to its three intimate theatres, the Center features a studio theatre, rehearsal studio, and a public café, bar and bookstore. Through the Signature Ticket Initiative: A Generation of Access, Signature has also made an unprecedented commitment to making its productions accessible by underwriting the cost of initial run tickets, currently priced at $25, through 2031.

Signature has presented entire seasons of the work of Edward Albee, Lee Blessing, Horton Foote, Maria Irene Fornes, Athol Fugard, John Guare, David Henry Hwang, Bill Irwin, Adrienne Kennedy, Tony Kushner, Romulus Linney, Charles Mee, Arthur Miller, Sam Shepard, Paula Vogel, August Wilson, Lanford Wilson, and a season celebrating the historic Negro Ensemble Company. In addition to the Regional Theatre Tony Award, Signature's productions and its resident writers have been recognized with the Pulitzer Prize, Lucille Lortel Awards, Obie Awards, Drama Desk Awards, and AUDELCO Awards, among many other distinctions.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride