Gloucester Stage Company Announces 2020 Season
By: Stephi Wild Mar. 24, 2020
Gloucester Stage Company Artistic Director Robert Walsh and Managing Director Christopher Griffith are proud to announce Gloucester Stage's 2020 season of professional theater on Boston's North Shore.
"We are tremendously excited to announce our 2020 season which will once again provide an engaging and eclectic roster of plays including several recent hits from New York and a world premiere!", shares Artistic Director Walsh, "Eager to build on the success of our 40th anniversary season, we are proud to present the first regional premieres of plays that have captivated audiences in extended runs Off-Broadway. Equally, with the rest of the world, we are observing the precautions surrounding COVID-19 and will continue to keep our patrons informed on our capacity to produce."
Managing Director Griffith adds, "We've curated a season of stories that will take full advantage of our intimate stage and give audiences a powerful encounter with world-class plays. Productions that celebrate different perspectives and examine our beliefs, start a conversation on stage that follows us into the lobby and ride home. Inviting our patrons to join us again on Cape Ann this summer will be dependent on the health of our community, but I believe live theatre will provide necessary catharsis in alleviating our post-distancing blues."
TINY BEAUTIFUL THINGS
June 5 - June 28
Based on the book by New York Times Best Selling Author Cheryl Strayed
Adapted for the Stage by Academy Award Nominee Nia Vardalos
Co-Conceived by Marshall Heyman, Thomas Kail & Nia Vardalos
Directed by Rebecca Bradshawo
Based on Cheryl Strayed's New York Times best-selling memoir, Tiny Beautiful Things is a celebration of the simple beauty of being human, and explores Cheryl Strayed's journey as the unpaid, anonymous advice columnist Dear Sugar. Over the years, thousands of people turned to Sugar for words of wisdom, compassion, and hope. At first unsure of herself, Sugar finds a way to weave her own life experiences full of laughter and hope together with the deep yearning and heartrending questions from her readers.
Adapted for the stage by Nia Vardalos, the Academy Award-nominated writer of My Big Fat Greek Wedding, and co-created by Vardalos, Wall Street Journal columnist Marshall Heyman, and the Tony Award winning director of Hamilton, Thomas Kail. Tiny Beautiful Things premiered at The Public Theater for a sold-out run starring Vardalos as Sugar and directed by Kail. Tiny Beautiful Things runs June 5 through June 28. Performances are Wednesday through Saturday at 7:30 pm and Saturday and Sunday at 2:00 pm at Gloucester Stage Company, 267 East Main Street, Gloucester, MA.
Ken Ludwig's BASKERVILLE
July 10 - August 2
A Sherlock Holmes Mystery
Directed by Jim O'Connoro
From Tony Award winning playwright Ken Ludwig, comes Baskerville, a fast-paced comedy following the iconic detective, and his sidekick, Dr. Watson, as they solve one of their most notorious cases. The duo must crack the mystery of "The Hound of the Baskervilles" before a family curse dooms its newest heir. Holmes and Watson investigate a dizzying web of clues along with three actors who deftly portray more than 40 characters, providing a hauntingly fun ride for audiences of all ages.
Led by distinguished professor of theater and award-winning director, Jim O'Connor, Ken Ludwig's Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery runs from July 10 through August 2. Performances are Wednesday through Saturday at 7:30 pm and Saturday and Sunday at 2:00 pm. at Gloucester Stage Company, 267 East Main Street, Gloucester, MA.
SEARED
August 7 - August 30
A REGIONAL PREMIERE
FIRST PRODUCTION SINCE SOLD-OUT OFF-BROADWAY RUN
Directed by Victoria Gruenberg
Seared is the new comedy by critically-acclaimed playwright Theresa Rebeck (Bernhardt/Hamlet, Bad Dates, Spike Heels, among others). A prolific and widely produced playwright, Rebeck is the most Broadway-produced female playwright of our time. Seared sets the table in a small New York restaurant and explores where art ends and commerce begins. When brilliant, hot-headed chef Harry scores a glowing mention of his signature scallops in a high profile magazine, his business partner, Mike, sees major profits within reach. The only problem is that the temperamental Harry refuses to cash in and recreate his masterpiece for the masses.
Originally commissioned and produced by the San Francisco Playhouse, Seared premiered Off-Broadway October 2019 at MCC Theater Space after an East Coast premiere at the Williamstown Theatre Festival. Directed by Victoria Gruenberg, who previously assisted Tony nominee Moritz von Stuelpnagel, Theresa Rebeck's Seared, runs from August 7 through August 30. Performances are Wednesday through Saturday at 7:30 pm and Saturday and Sunday at 2:00 pm at Gloucester Stage Company, 267 East Main Street, Gloucester, MA.
REPARATIONS
September 4 - September 27
A REGIONAL PREMIERE
FIRST PRODUCTION SINCE NYC WORLD PREMIERE
Written by James Sheldon
Directed by Myriam Cyr
Gloucester Stage proudly presents the first regional production of James Sheldon's poignant new play, Reparations, since its world premiere Off Broadway at the Billie Holiday Theatre in November 2019. The story begins when Ginny, a successful book editor, invites a young, black aspiring author, Reg, to her apartment after a boozy book party. She wakes up to find that a night of tenderness and passion is turning into a tumultuous morning-after when he threatens to reveal a dark secret from her past. As family friends join them for an ill-timed paella feast, all four are soon embroiled in whether the young writer is due his restitution. Personal revelations lead to laughs, tears, and coming to terms with racial injustice and personal betrayal in this poignant new play by James Sheldon. Poet Laureate and critically acclaimed actor, Myriam Cyr directs.
Reparations runs from September 4 through September 27. Performances are Wednesday through Saturday at 7:30 pm and Saturday and Sunday at 2:00 pm at Gloucester Stage Company, 267 East Main Street, Gloucester, MA.
Think of Me Tuesday
October 2 - October 18
A WORLD PREMIERE
COMING FROM A SOLD-OUT NEVERDARK LAST SUMMER
Written by Ken Riaf
Directed by Robert Walsho
Think of Me Tuesday tells the story of Jim "Buddy" Chum, a mayoral candidate who continues to run in election after election in the same tattered tweed suit jacket, never deterred by the years of embarrassing losses at the polls or being the longtime target of neighbors' jokes in his hometown of Fishtown, Massachusetts. After yet another failed campaign, a freak accident puts this improbable hero in the city's captain chair. Newly minted mayor Jim 'Buddy' Chum is immediately faced with a quixotic turmoil bigger than any one man can handle in the world premiere of Think of Me Tuesday.
Gloucester resident and playwright, Ken Riaf, returns to Gloucester Stage with his newest play after the hit world premiere of My Station In Life. Think of Me Tuesday reunites Riaf with the 2018 Elliot Norton Award winning My Station in Life actor Ken Baltin who returns to GSC to play Jim "Buddy" Chum. Acclaimed Boston actress Jacqueline Parker who recently directed Broken, Healed and Holding On at GSC and appeared in GSC's sold out 2019 Never Dark staged reading of the new work also returns for the production. Think of Me Tuesday runs from October 2 through October 18. Performances are Wednesday through Saturday at 7:30 pm and Saturday and Sunday at 2:00 pm at Gloucester Stage Company, 267 East Main Street, Gloucester, MA.
SINGLE TICKET PRICES: Single Ticket prices range from $15 to $48 with discounts available for previews, senior citizens, military families, college students, and youth under 18 years of age. For detailed ticket information visit www.gloucesterstage.com
SUBSCRIPTIONS: Season Packages start at $167 for 5 tickets to use for any show and include early access to seating, no online fees, and free ticket exchanges. Subscribers also have the ability to reserve their favorite seats for the entire season. Packages can be purchased or renewed by calling the Box Office at 978.281.4433 or by visiting gloucesterstage.com/subscribe
PAY WHAT YOU WISH: Gloucester Stage is committed to inclusion and diversity, especially socio-economic status. Pay What You Wish performances are the first Saturday Matinee (2pm) of each production, allowing access to the arts for all. No one is turned away for lack of funds and donations can be made before or after the show.
CAPE ANN NIGHTS: Enriching our local community is key to our mission impact. Residents of Cape Ann (Gloucester, Rockport, Manchester and Essex) can access $25 discount tickets to previews and Wednesday night performances. Limit of 2 (two) per household. Tickets can be purchased by calling the Box Office 978.281.4433, with a valid address.
ABOUT THE COMPANY: Gloucester Stage Company is Boston's North Shore premier professional, nonprofit theater company. Located in a century-old repurposed brick warehouse on the edge of the Atlantic and at the entrance to the Rocky Neck Cultural District, the intimate venue has provided the setting for premiering award-winning new works and rousing classics over the past four decades. Presenting professional productions of intellectually stimulating and socially relevant theater since its inception, Gloucester Stage has developed a highly engaged audience, eager to experience the power of live theater.
For further information, call the Box Office at 978-281-4433 or visit www.gloucesterstage.com
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