THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST Enters Final Weeks of Performances

Final weeks have begun for the limited engagement of Roundabout Theatre Company's critically acclaimed and Tony nominated production of Oscar Wilde's comedy The Importance of Being Earnest, directed by and starring Brian Bedford as "Lady Bracknell." The final performance of the 28-week run will be Sunday, June 26th at the American Airlines Theatre on Broadway (227 West 42nd St.).

A 17-week extension was previously announced but due to scheduling conflicts for David Furr and Charlotte Parry, the production will play a 16-week extension through Sunday, June 26th. The limited run was originally scheduled to run through March 6th, 2011.

The Importance of Being Earnest cast also features Brian Murray as "Rev. Canon Chasuble," Jayne Houdyshell as "Miss Prism," Jessie Austrian as "Gwendolen Fairfax," Santino Fontana as "Algernon Moncrieff," David Furr as "John Worthing," Tim MacDonald as "Merriman," Paul O'Brien as "Lane," Charlotte Parry as "Cecily Cardew" and Amanda Leigh Cobb as "Servant."

The Importance of Being Earnest is a glorious comedy of mistaken identity, which ridicules codes of propriety and etiquette. Dashing men-about-town John Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff pursue fair ladies Gwendolen Fairfax and Cecily Cardew. Matters are complicated by the imaginary characters invented by both men to cover their on-the-sly activities - not to mention the disapproval of Gwendolen's mother, the formidable Lady Bracknell.

The Importance of Being Earnest has received a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play (Brian Bedford), an Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Featured Actor (Brian Bedford) and has been nominated for three Tony ® Awards including Best Revival of a Play, Best Actor (Brian Bedford) and Best Costumes (Desmond Heeley).

Through June 28th, this celebrated production of The Importance of Being Earnest will be screened in HD on cinema screens across the world. The live performance was captured using seven HD cameras and features the original Roundabout Broadway company. For more information: www.earnesthd.com

The Stratford Shakespeare Festival presented an acclaimed production of The Importance of Being Earnest, directed by and starring Brian Bedford, in 2009.

TICKET INFORMATION:
Tickets are available by calling Roundabout Ticket Services at (212)719-1300, online at www.roundabouttheatre.org or at the American Airlines Box Office (227 West 42nd Street). Ticket prices range from $72.00-122.00.

To become a Roundabout subscriber visit www.roundabouttheatre.org or call Roundabout Ticket Services (212)719-1300.

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE:
The Importance of Being Earnest plays Tuesday evening at 7:00PM, Wednesday through Saturday evening at 8:00PM with Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2:00PM.

Roundabout Theatre Company is a not-for-profit theatre dedicated to providing a nurturing artistic home for theatre artists at all stages of their careers where the widest possible audience can experience their work at affordable prices. Roundabout fulfills its mission each season through the revival of classic plays and musicals; development and production of new works by established playwrights and emerging
writers; educational initiatives that enrich the lives of children and adults; and a subscription model and audience outreach programs that cultivate loyal audiences.

Roundabout Theatre Company currently produces at three permanent homes each of which is designed specifically to enhance the needs of the Roundabout's mission. Off-Broadway, the Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre, which houses the Laura Pels Theatre and Black Box Theatre, with its simple sophisticated design is perfectly suited to showcasing new plays. The grandeur of its Broadway home on 42nd Street, American Airlines Theatre, sets the ideal stage for the classics. Roundabout's Studio 54 provides an exciting and intimate Broadway venue for its musical and special event productions. Together these three distinctive venues serve to enhance the work on each of its stages.

 

American Airlines is the official airline of Roundabout Theatre Company. Roundabout productions are made possible, in part, with public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs; the New York State Council on the Arts, celebrating 50 years of building strong, creative communities in New York State's 62 counties; and the City of New York Theater Subdistrict Council, LDC and the City of New York.

Roundabout Theatre Company's current 2010-2011 season features Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest, starring and directed by Brian Bedford; Anything Goes starring Sutton Foster & Joel Grey, directed & choreographed by Kathleen Marshall; Dart, Stoller & Butler's The People in the Picture, starring Donna Murphy, directed by Leonard Foglia; Stone, Meehan & Yeston's Death Takes a Holiday, directed by Doug Hughes.

Roundabout Theatre Company's 2011-2012 season will feature Bob Fosse's Dancin', directed by Graciela Daniele; Terence Rattigan's Man And Boy, starring Frank Langella; Stephen Karam's Sons of the Prophet, directed by Peter DuBois; John Osborne's Look Back in Anger, directed by Sam Gold; Andrew Hinderaker's Suicide, Incorporated, directed by Jason Moore.