Rep Stage Announces its 2011-12 Season; Features Or, Barrymore

Producing Artistic Director Michael Stebbins announces the lineup for the 19th season of Rep Stage, the award-winning professional theatre in residence at Howard Community College (HCC), featuring rarely seen plays produced with the creative and quality staging that audiences have come to expect. The 2011-12 season includes a regional premiere of an historical and hysterical biographical farce directed by Michael Stebbins; an early Lynn Nottage play (Pulitzer Prize winner for "Ruined") set in the majestic French court of Louis XIV; playwright Dael Orlandersmith's poetic and compelling story of two childhood friends struggling with many issues, including race, in the Gullah community in South Carolina; and Helen Hayes Award-winner and Rep Stage favorite Nigel Reed takes to the boards as stage and screen idol John Barrymore. Also included is a new Salon Series featuring some of Rep Stage's favorite artists.

Rep Stage's 2011-12 season includes:

"Or,"
A regional premiere by Liz Duffy Adams
Directed by Michael Stebbins
August 31 to September 18, 2011

Liz Duffy Adams' 2009 Off-Broadway sleeper hit touches on the free love of the 60's - the 1660s - and is based on real life playwright Aphra Behn and her romantic spy romps through Restoration England while trying to break into the boys' playwrighting club. "Or," features Jason Odell Williams ("Two by J. M. Barrie: The New Word and The Old Lady Shows Her Medals"), Christine Demuth ("Two by J. M. Barrie: The New Word and The Old Lady Shows Her Medals," "A Dickens of a Carol," "The Glass Menagerie") and Broadway alum Charlotte Cohn in her Rep Stage debut.

"Barrymore"
By William Luce
Directed by Steven Carpenter
October 26 to November 13, 2011

William Luce's "Barrymore" reunites director Steven Carpenter with Helen Hayes Award-winning actor Nigel Reed following their successful pairing on Rep's production of "Trumbo: Red, White and Blacklisted." The play finds actor John Barrymore renting a Broadway theatre in 1942 - one month prior to his death - as he prepares to make a comeback to the stage. Haunted by ghosts, ex-wives, family, fellow thespians, and the follies of his past, he attempts to bring himself back to life through the aid of memories and a helpful stage manager.

"Yellowman"
By Dael Orlandersmith
Directed by Kasi Campbell
February 8 to February 26, 2012

Directed by Helen Hayes Award-winner Kasi Campbell, Dael Orlandersmith's 2002 Off-Broadway hit is called an "unsparing...hard and piercing drama" by The New York Times. "Yellowman" details the relationship between Eugene, a fair-skinned black man, and Alma, a dark-skinned black woman, as they struggle with issues of intraracial prejudice, domestic violence, and young love. "Yellowman" was a 2002 Pulitzer Prize finalist for drama.

"Las Meninas"
By Lynn Nottage
Directed by Eve Muson
April 18 to May 6, 2012

Rep Stage closes the 2011-12 season with Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage's "Las Meninas." Set in the court of France's Louis XIV, it is an irreverent and incisive reconsideration of the historical scandal involving Queen Marie-Therese and a unique gift from Africa. Eve Muson, director of Rep's recent production of "Speech & Debate," helms the season closer.

Subscription Information
Season subscriptions and tickets go on sale July 1 online at www.repstage.org or by calling the Box Office at 443-518-1500.

Rep Stage's 2011-12 Salon Series will include:

"The Guys"
By Anne Nelson
September 9 to 11, 2011

Based on a true story, "The Guys" focuses on an NYC fire captain who lost eight men in the collapse of the World Trade Center towers and the editor who helps him write the eulogies he must deliver.

"The Poe Show"
October 21 to 24, 2011

Tony Tsendeas, nationally recognized interpreter of Edgar Allan Poe's writings, returns to Rep Stage to share words and works by the master of the macabre.

"Holidays on Ice"
By David Sedaris
December 16 to 19, 2011

Rep Stage's producing artistic director, Michael Stebbins, brings Sedaris' caustic holiday essays to life and adds a dash(er) of pessimism to the season.

"Rep Stage Revue: Spotlighting YOU!"
March 30 to April 1, 2012

Have a special talent that you'd love to share on the stage? Rep Stage invites aspiring entertainers to sign up for an audition date and time, where they will have three minutes to showcase their talents before a panel of judges and theatre professionals. Selected acts will appear in "Rep Stage Revue: Spotlighting YOU!" Prepare today to become a star tomorrow!

The Rep Stage 2011-2012 season continues to provide theatre lovers with free events such as the Rep Stage Reading Series, pre-show lectures, post-show discussions, and Wednesday Pay-What-You-Can performances.

Please note that all titles, prices, and schedules are subject to change.

For more information on the 2011-12 season, visit www.repstage.org or call the Box Office at 443-518-1500.

About Rep Stage
Rep Stage, a professional Equity theatre in residence at Howard Community College, celebrates its 19th year with the 2011-12 season. Rep Stage is a member of TCG and League of Washington Theatres. Performances are made possible by the Maryland State Arts Council, an agency funded by the state of Maryland and National Endowment for the Arts, and generous individual contributions. Howard Bank is Rep Stage's 2011-12 season partner.

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