Shirley Valentine to Bring DENISE SIMONE to Liberty Theatre, 8/7-9

Shirley Valentine is back by popular demand for three nights only! Company of Fools presents this critically acclaimed Tony-nominated one-woman show starring Denise Simone August 7-9 at the Liberty Theatre in Hailey.

Inside Mrs. Joe Bradshaw - a mother of two grown children - is the former Shirley Valentine longing to get out. Her hope and self-confidence badly shattered by school, marriage and life, she is reduced to talking to the kitchen wall while preparing her husband's

evening meal - (to be on the table as he opens the front door every night). As she sips a glass of wine she dreams of drinking in a country where the grape is grown. Her friend offers her a holiday in Greece. With great trepidation and a lot of forward planning, Shirley

seizes the opportunity and goes, where she encounters a totally different lifestyle. This humorous and touching play reminds us all that it's never too late to change your life!

This production marks Ms. Simone's fourth turn in this tour-de-force role, having performed it in Hailey in 2003 and 2005, as well as in Boise and Sandpoint. "Bringing Shirley Valentine back is like bringing a dear friend out for a visit," said Simone "and she's such a fun

friend - we just want to share her with the whole valley!"

The full creative team for Shirley Valentine includes John Glenn (Direction), Joe Lavigne (Set Designer), Ann Price (Dialect Coach) and K.O. Ogilvie (Stage Manager).

About Willy Russell (Playwright)

Willy Russell won the 1989 Tony Award, Drama Desk Award for Best Play and Oliver Award for Best Comedy of the Year for Shirley Valentine. His worldwide hit play and movie Educating Rita won London's SWET Award for Best Comedy, and in 1981, an Academy Award nomination for screenplay adaptation.

Born in Liverpool, Russell left school at 15 to become a hairdresser before returning to education and becoming a teacher. While training to become a teacher, he wrote his first play, When the Reds, which premiered at the Edinburgh Festival. Russell's adaptation of Alan Plater's Tigers are Coming O.K. was his debut professional work, presented in Liverpool in 1973. This was followed by John Paul George Ringo... and Bert, which moved from Liverpool to the West End, winning the Evening Standard and London Theatre Critics Awards for Best Musical. Russell was also commissioned to write a play for the Royal Shakespeare Company. The result, Educating Rita, ran on the West End for two years, has been performed all over the world and was made into a motion picture starring Michael Caine and Julie Walters. Blood Brothers opened in Liverpool in 1983, before subsequently moving to the West End.

In addition to the film Educating Rita, Russell wrote screenplays for the movie versions of Shirley Valentine and Dancing Thru The Dark based on his play Stags and Hens. His plays have been translated into almost every language, with productions currently running in Japan, Australia, South America, Scandinavia and Europe.

Denise Simone is a founding member and Core Company Artist of Company of Fools as well an accomplished actor, director, teacher and playwright with over 30 years experience in the world of professional nonprofit theatre. Simone's acting credits including Margie in Good People, Polly in Other Desert Cities, multiple roles in The Syringa Tree, Lou in Welcome Home Jenny Sutter, Becca in Rabbit Hole, Karen in Dinner With Friends, Gretta in James Joyce's The Dead, Terry in Side Man, May in Fool For Love starring Bruce Willis, Li'l Bit in How I Learned To Drive, and Roberta in Danny and the Deep Blue Sea for Company of Fools. As a playwright, Simone has had four plays produced in the United States. Her childrens' play on adoption, Me and My Families, toured for over four years and served as a recruitment tool for Virginia adoption agencies looking to match families with special needs children. Simone has taught theatre and creative writing classes in Virginia and Idaho, at Company of Fools, Richmond's School for the Performing Arts, St. Catherine's and the Henrico's Center for the Arts. She also created and implemented Company of Fools' innovative in-school program Stages of Wonder, which just completed its 17th year.

Tickets are $35 for full price, $25 for seniors and Center members and $10 for students (18 and under). There is also a SPECIAL GROUP RATE - groups of 6 or more receive $25 tickets.

Tickets may be purchased online at companyoffools.org, by phone at 208.578.9122 or at the Liberty Theatre box office starting one hour prior to curtain. Company of Fools' box office is located at the Liberty Theatre, 110 N. Main Street in Hailey, with hours from 10 AM to 4 PM, Monday through Friday. All seats are reserved.

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