REASONS TO BE PRETTY Playwright LaBute To Make Rare NYC Appearances 5/9, 5/10

The best new Broadway play of the season* Reasons To Be Pretty will welcome its playwright Neil LaBute to New York City this weekend for an unprecedented series of rare public appearances. LaBute and director Terry Kinney will participate in an event at Borders in the Time Warner Center (10 Columbus Circle) this Saturday, 5/9 at 5:00 p.m. The appearance will include a performance from Reasons To Be Pretty, a question and answer session with the author and director and a book signing. The event is offered free of charge and books and dvds will be available for purchase. For more information, visit www.borders.com.

In addition, intimate post-show discussions with LaBute will take place on stage immediately following the Saturday, 5/9 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, 5/10 3:00 p.m. performances. Moderators for the conversations will be announced shortly. LaBute will talk about the themes in his plays, offer insight into his Broadway debut and provide the opportunity for audience members to ask the prolific author questions about what they've just seen. The post-show conversations will be offered free of charge to anyone purchasing a ticket to that performance.

Marin Ireland, Steven Pasquale, Piper Perabo and Thomas Sadoski star in the four-person play. Terry Kinney directs. Reasons To Be Pretty was recently nominated for 2 Outer Critics Circle Awards, including Outstanding New Broadway Play, 3 Drama League Awards, including Distinguished Production of a Play and 4 Drama Desk Awards, including Outstanding Play.

The current schedule for Reasons To Be Pretty is Monday at 8:00 p.m., Tuesday at 7:00 p.m.. Wednesday at 2:00 & 8:00 p.m., Friday at 8:00 p.m., Saturday at 2:00 & 8:00 p.m. and Sunday at 3:00 p.m. Tickets are on sale for all performances through www.telecharge.com.

Reasons To Be Pretty confronts America's obsession with physical beauty headlong. In Neil LaBute's new play, Greg's (Sadoski) tight-knit social circle is thrown into turmoil when his off-handed remarks about a female co-worker's pretty face (and his girlfriend's lack thereof) get back to said girlfriend (Ireland). But that's just the beginning.

This play marks the sixth collaboration between MCC Theater and LaBute, who is MCC's Resident Playwright. Reasons To Be Pretty puts a final, ferocious cap on a trilogy of plays that began with The Shape of Things and Fat Pig. Performances of the four-character play began Off Broadway at the Lucille Lortel Theatre on May 14, 2008 and the critically acclaimed production continued through July 5, 2008.

Scenic Design is by David Gallo, Costume Design is by Sarah J. Holden, Lighting Design is by David Weiner and Music & Sound Design is by Rob Milburn & Michael Bodeen.

Reasons To Be Pretty is produced on Broadway by Jeffrey Richards, Jerry Frankel, MCC Theater, Gary Goddard Entertainment, Ted Snowdon, Doug Nevin/Erica Lynn Schwartz, Ronald Frankel/Bat-Barry Productions, Kathleen Seidel, Kelpie Arts, LLC, Jam Theatricals, Rachel Helson/Heather Provost, Scott M. Delman, in association with MCC Theater (Robert LuPone, Bernard Telsey, Artistic Directors; William Cantler, Associate Artistic Director; Blake West, Executive Director).

For more information, visit www.reasonstobepretty.com.