Boston Premieres of WITCH, HURRICAN DIANE and More Announced for Huntington's Return To Live Performances In August 2021

The Huntington announces the return to live, in-person performances following an incomparable year-and-a-half of stages left dark because of the global pandemic. The 7-play season will begin on August 27, 2021 and take place primarily at the Wimberly Theatre in the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA in the South End while The Huntington Theatre undergoes a transformational renovation; one production will take place at the Emerson Cutler Majestic Theatre.

"It is with great joy and deep gratitude that The Huntington announces our 40th season," says Managing Director Michael Maso. "The reopening of our stages will be a powerfully emotional moment for our city, one that all of us at The Huntington are greatly looking forward to sharing with audiences in person this fall."

The Huntington's 21/22 lineup features an incredible range of compelling stories told by playwrights, directors, and actors to whom The Huntington had committed prior to the pandemic and who reflect the diversity of our city and our nation. From stories deeply rooted in Boston's history, to contemporary comedies, local and world premieres, and a recent Broadway smash, The Huntington season offers both artists and audiences the opportunity to share a collective experience and build community, while exploring relevant and broad reaching topics that encourage us to think, feel, and connect. (See below for the full list of titles and details.)

"The Huntington is a national treasure to playwrights because it's that rare kind of theatre willing to take risks on untested writers, unconventional narratives, and early-phase work," states Mike Lew, playwright of next season's Teenage Dick and of Tiger Style! which The Huntington produced as an audio play during the pandemic. "The idea of going back to The Huntington and presenting this play after not seeing my collaborators in person for two years is already giving me chills."

"It feels so right that The Huntington would be one of the first productions I will have coming back out of our imposed hiatus," says Lydia R. Diamond, playwright of The Bluest Eye which was postponed from last season and will get its due in late January 2022. "There's nothing like sitting next to people and taking in a piece of art, and the interaction between an audience and the actors. There's nothing like live theatre."

Director Kimberly Senior, whose world premiere production of Kirsten Greenidge's Our Daughters, Like Pillars was one week away from its first performance at the start of the lockdown in Massachusetts in March 2020, is delighted to return to the theatre: "The opportunity to laugh at the same time, to sigh at the same time! There are scientific studies about how our hearts start beating at the same rhythm when we're in the theatre together - and we are so craving that connection. We have a lot a lot of stories to tell, and I'm excited to have the opportunity to share them."

In order to return to the theatre safely to share these stories, The Huntington has made upgrades to the air filtration system and modified the already excellent ventilation at the Calderwood Pavilion, has invested in sanitization equipment to ensure all surfaces are thoroughly sanitized on a regular basis, and has added touchless hand sanitizer stations throughout the building.

The safety of audiences, artists, and staff members is a top priority for The Huntington, and the theatre will only reopen when it is safe to do so and in compliance with any ongoing governmental regulations.

For ticket holders who are not ready or able to return to live, in-person performances next season, The Huntington is planning to offer a digital recording option for productions at the Calderwood Pavilion.

"I am very much looking forward to being back in rehearsals," says Kirsten Greenidge, author of next season's world premiere plays Our Daughters, Like Pillars and Common Ground Revisited. "I've been experiencing a lot of content right now, but alone in my room by myself. And to be able to have that communal experience will be beautiful and wonderful, and extremely beneficial to me as a person, as a human being."

THE HUNTINGTON'S 21/22 SEASON:

Boston Premiere

HURRICANE DIANE

by Madeleine George

Directed by Jenny Koons

The Huntington Calderwood/BCA

August 27 - September 26, 2021

Batten down the hatches! A high-intensity force of nature is blowing into town: Hurricane Diane, the roof-raising new comedy by Pulitzer Prize finalist Madeleine George. In the suburbs of the Garden State, the Greek God Dionysus returns from the heavens in the guise of a butch gardener named Diane, who's hell bent on reversing climate change and restoring earthly order by seducing a band of mortal followers. Why not begin with four real housewives from New Jersey?

The New York Times calls it an "astonishing, perfect storm of timely tragicomedy." And New York Magazine raves, "Hilarious and full of keen observation and profound human affection... there's so much to celebrate!" Jenny Koons (Speechless, the new Blue Man Group North American Tour) directs.

Boston Premiere

WITCH

by Jen Silverman

Directed by Rebecca Bradshaw

The Huntington Calderwood/BCA

October 15 - November 14, 2021

This fiendishly funny new play follows an alluring devil named Scratch as he arrives in the country village of Edmonton, and he promises to make the darkest dreams of its locals come true in exchange for their souls. When he meets Elizabeth Sawyer, she should be the easiest to convince - she's an outcast, branded as a witch for years. So why does she resist Scratch's deal? This subversive, inventive work by Jen Silverman (The Roommate) is a free adaptation of a 1621 Jacobean comedy recreated with a modern sensibility, and is "devilishly clever and deliciously laugh-packed" (StageSceneLA). Directing is Boston's Rebecca Bradshaw.

Boston Premiere

TEENAGE DICK

by Mike Lew

Directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel

Produced in association with Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company

The Huntington Calderwood/BCA

December 3, 2021 - January 2, 2022

As the winter formal gives way to a glorious spring fling at Roseland High School, we enter the world of Mike Lew's darkly funny, modern-day spin on Richard III. Tony Award nominee Moritz von Stuelpnagel (Hand to God on Broadway, Tiger Style! at The Huntington) directs this ruthless and hilarious new play about a young man who, after years of torment by his classmates for his cerebral palsy, decides to campaign for student body president. But is it better to be loved or feared? And how far will he go to realize his ambition? The New York Times calls it, "moving, exciting, and profoundly eye-opening."

THE BLUEST EYE

Novel by Toni Morrison

Adapted by Lydia R. Diamond

Directed by Awoye Timpo

The Huntington Calderwood/BCA

January 28 - February 27, 2022

Celebrate the legacy of Pulitzer and Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison's acclaimed debut novel The Bluest Eye. Brought to life as a tremendously moving theatrical event by Boston favorite Lydia R. Diamond (Stick Fly, Smart People at The Huntington) and acclaimed director Awoye Timpo, The Bluest Eye tells the story of Pecola, a young Black girl who believes everything in her world would be made wonderful if only she had blue eyes. Enthralling, gorgeously written, and incredibly emotional, The Bluest Eye asks powerful questions concerning racism, beauty, and identity with stunning grace and subtlety.

Pulitzer Prize Finalist

WHAT THE CONSTITUTION MEANS TO ME

by Heidi Schreck

Directed by Oliver Butler

Emerson Cutler Majestic Theatre

February 22 - March 20, 2022

Following a smash run on Broadway, Heidi Schreck's timely, hilarious and deeply felt play breathes new life into our country's most important document. Fifteen-year-old Heidi Schreck paid her college tuition by speaking in debate competitions across the country; now older, she tells the story of four generations of extraordinary women in her family whose lives were shaped by the Constitution. The New York Times hails it as the "best and most important new play of the season." And Time Out New York says it's "something every citizen must see." Acclaimed original director Oliver Butler returns to helm this production.

World Premiere

OUR DAUGHTERS, LIKE PILLARS

by Kirsten Greenidge

Directed by Kimberly Senior

The Huntington Calderwood/BCA

April 8 - May 8, 2022

Lavinia is bringing her sisters and mother on a much-needed family vacation. She has planned the week to the smallest detail - antiquing in the afternoons, grilled steaks for dinner, absolutely no cellphones allowed - and if Lavinia gets her way, they will stay forever. What will her sisters have to say? An epic and funny saga about a contemporary Black family from Boston local Kirsten Greenidge (Luck of the Irish), Our Daughters, Like Pillars asks about the ties that bind us to our families. How do sisters hold each other up and hold each other back? Will togetherness split this family apart, or can it bring them together? Kimberly Senior (Sweat and The Niceties at The Huntington) directs.

World Premiere

COMMON GROUND REVISITED

Conceived by Melia Bensussen and Kirsten Greenidge

Adapted by Kirsten Greenidge

Directed by Melia Bensussen

Based in part on and inspired by the book Common Ground: A Turbulent Decade in the Lives of Three American Families by J. Anthony Lukas

Originally commissioned and developed by The Huntington with ArtsEmerson

The Huntington Calderwood/BCA

May 27 - June 26, 2022

This riveting and intricately woven world premiere play brings Boston's history to life in the 1960s and '70s, culminating in three families' experiences in court-mandated busing. Diverse in both race and class, what can these families' experiences tell us about our own time? Especially when Boston Public Schools are more segregated now than they were in 1974. Common Ground Revisited is inspired by Anthony Lukas' landmark Pulitzer Prize-winning book, which The New York Times praises as an "epic of American city life." Developed with ArtsEmerson, this unique work comes from Obie Award winners Melia Bensussen and Kirsten Greenidge, reteaming for the first time since their acclaimed Huntington production of Luck of the Irish, in collaboration with 12-person cast of locally-based actors.

Season tickets to The Huntington's 21/22 season are now on sale. The Huntington has made major changes to their season ticket packages this year, to simplify and streamline the available options and make subscribing easier and more accessible to all.

A 7-play season ticket package starts at $364, and a 3-play package starts at $156, and a variety of options are available. FlexPass packages (a minimum of 4 tickets to be used for any show and which never expire) are available now for redemption for the current season and beyond. The Huntington has entirely eliminated exchange fees for season ticket holders and now offers extended payment plans (up to 9 installments).

Season tickets may be renewed or purchased by calling Huntington Ticketing Services at 617 266 0800 or by visiting huntingtontheatre.org/seasontickets. Groups of 10 or more can place orders by calling 617 273 1657. High school and middle school groups interested in attending should email education@huntingtontheatre.org for more information.

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