SummerStage and the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre Present PELLEAS ET MELISANDE

City Parks Foundation has announced a new commissioned, site-specific work debuting at the historic Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre in Central Park this October. Pelléas et Mélisande, directed, choreographed, and designed by Luca Veggetti, with puppets and stage objects by visual artist Moe Yoshida, fuses dance with the art of puppetry. The work was inspired by Belgian playwright Maurice Maeterlinck's 1892 symbolist play Pelléas et Mélisande, and is set to the music of celebrated Austrian composer Arnold Schoenberg's powerful score of the same title.

Pelléas et Mélisande will run from October 5-8 and will feature one live dancer/puppeteer, Morgan Hurst, alongside two of the Swedish Cottage's very own marionette puppeteers: Kevin White and Douglas Strich. The performance is a story of fateful love, set to Schoenberg's symphonic poem from his late romantic period that mirrors scene-by-scene the structure and content of Maeterlinck's original play.

To celebrate this limited engagement, the Swedish Cottage is offering two ticket options. A picnic & performance ticket ($35, advance purchase only) that includes a picnic event one hour before the show on the lawn outside the Cottage in Central Park and featuring a picnic bag, food & beverages as well as a ticket to the performance. A performance-only general admission ticket is also available ($15 advance/$20 doors).

Following the success of last year's production Oltra mar, the Swedish Cottage, an historic space that is beloved by generations of children, will once again be converted into a black box theater for adults for an intimate and immersive performance. Pelléas et Mélisande reflects City Parks Foundation's interest in connecting and celebrating New York City's exceptional variety of culture, while advancing new forms of artistic expression, catalyzing collaboration between artists working in traditional and contemporary puppetry, and activating the historic building as a stage for new work.

"We are thrilled to present Luca Veggetti's visionary take on the classic Pelléas et Mélisande story at the Swedish Cottage," said longtime Swedish Cottage Artistic Director Bruce Cannon. "Our mission at the Swedish Cottage is to carry on the art of traditionAl Marionette puppetry, while presenting original works that will appeal to contemporary audiences. Veggetti's innovative production beautifully incorporates marionettes with modern choreography as well as shadow and rod puppetry to illustrate Pelléas et Mélisande's timeless themes of love and destruction."

Pelléas et Mélisande is the third commissioned piece by Veggetti for the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre.

SHOW CREDITS
Stage direction, choreography and stage design: Luca Veggetti
Music: Arnold Schoenberg's Pelleas und Melisande op.5 (1907)
Puppets and artistic collaboration: Moe Yoshida
Lighting design: Alex Bartenieff
Based on themes and motifs from the play Pelléas et Mélisande by Maurice Maeterlinck

SHOW TIMES & RESERVATIONS
Show times for the general public are below. The show is approximately 45 minutes. Doors open at 6:30 PM. For the picnic & performance ticket package, arrival time is 5:30 PM.

• Thursday, October 5 at 7 PM
• Friday, October 6 at 7 PM
• Saturday, October 7 at 7 PM
• Sunday, October 8 at 7 PM

Show is recommended for adults ages 16 and older.

To guarantee admission, purchase tickets online at http://www.cityparksfoundation.org/arts/swedish-cottage-marionette-theatre/.

Ticket prices are: $15 in advance / $20 day of show for general admission and $35 for the picnic & performance ticket (advance purchase only). Tickets are sold at the door, only when available. For ticketing questions, please call the Swedish Cottage at 212-988-9093.

The Swedish Cottage is located in Central Park at 81st Street and Central Park West, just south of the Delacorte Theater. For more information, maps and walking directions, please visit http://www.cityparksfoundation.org/arts/swedish-cottage-marionette-theatre/.