FIREFLIES World Premiere, SMALL MOUTH SOUNDS and More Slated for Long Wharf Theatre's 2017-18 Season

Long Wharf Theatre announces its 53rd season: a riotous farce, an uplifting musical, a quest for enlightenment, and stories of love, empathy, and friendship.

Subscriptions are currently available. For more information, visit longwharf.org or call 203-787-4282.

The season will begin with the Obie Award-winning hit Small Mouth Sounds, August 30 to September 24, 2017 on Stage II. Bess Wohl's play takes place in a particularly unique milieu, following the lives of six runaways who embark on a silent retreat. "Small Mouth Sounds is a wonderful new play about seekers," Edelstein said.

Long Wharf Theatre continues its commitment to new work with the world premiere romance Fireflies, written by Tony Award nominee Matthew Barber. The production will take place from October 11 through November 5, 2017 on the Mainstage. "Fireflies is a story about overcoming judgement and fear in order to create a real human connection. It's a universal story," Edelstein said.

Chaim Potok's classic novel The Chosen will be seen in a stunning adaptation by Aaron Posner. The Chosen, a story of fathers and sons in 1940s Brooklyn, will take place on the Mainstage from November 22 through December 17, 2017. "This is a beautiful story about the complicated relationship between parents and their children and how a friendship grows," Edelstein said.

Noted playwright Julia Cho received some of her earliest accolades for her work at Long Wharf Theatre. She returns with her newest play, a thrilling exercise in empathy called Office Hour, performed January 17 through February 11, 2018 on Stage II. "This will be the provocation of the year. Julia's play is about the world we live in now. There will be a lot to talk about," Edelstein said.

Sherlock Holmes is on the case in Baskerville, a farce that has slayed audiences all over the country. Tony Award-nominee Ken Ludwig's comic masterpiece will run from February 28 through March 25, 2018 on the Mainstage. "Baskerville is both a homage to Sherlock Holmes and a send up at the same time. It is a really funny, crazy comedy. I think people will love it," Edelstein said.

The season will conclude with a glorious gospel musical Crowns, written by ReGina Taylor, and presented in a co-production the McCarter Theatre. "Crowns tells the story of African-American women in and around their church, with joyous music at the heart of the piece," Edelstein said.

For more information or to purchase tickets, visit longwharf.org or call 203-787-4282.

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2017-18 Season:

SMALL MOUTH SOUNDS

THE OBIE AWARD-WINNING HIT

By Bess Wohl

Directed by Rachel Chavkin

AUGUST 30 - SEPT 24, 2017

In the overwhelming quiet of the woods, six runaways from city life embark on a silent retreat. As these strangers confront internal demons both profound and absurd, their vows of silence collide with the achingly human need to connect. Filled with awkward and insightful humor, Small Mouth Sounds is the unique and compassionate new play that asks how we address life's biggest questions when words fail us. This 2016 Critics' Pick (The New York Times, New York Magazine, Time Out New York) was written by Drama Desk Award winner Bess Wohl (Pretty Filthy) and directed by Obie Award winner Rachel Chavkin (Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812). The New York Times says, "It leaves you moved, refreshed and even enlightened." The Huffington Post calls it "a play unlike any other." And Variety calls it "flawless."

STAGE II

FIREFLIES

A WORLD PREMIERE ROMANCE

By Matthew Barber

Directed by Gordon Edelstein

OCT 11 - NOV 5, 2017

Eleanor Bannister, a retired schoolteacher, lives a sleepy life in tiny Groverdell, Texas. She's taught almost everyone in town. She even has her own shelf at the town library - "Miss Bannister Recommends." She is, in a word, orderly. Until one night, when walking alone through the brambles barefoot and in her nightgown, she encounters Abel Brown, a mysterious drifteR. Brown has been wandering around town, looking for houses to fix and, rumor has it, widows to talk to. Brown is nothing but a drifter, but despite their obvious differences, Eleanor and Abel find themselves drawn to each other. This beautiful new romance by Matthew Barber, Tony Award-nominated author of Enchanted April, shows that connection can be found in the unlikeliest of places and in the unlikeliest of ways.

CLAIRE TOW STAGE IN THE C. NEWTON SCHENCK III THEATRE

THE CHOSEN

A MOVING FAMILY DRAMA

Adapted by Aaron Posner and Chaim Potok from the novel by Chaim Potok

NOV 22 - DEC 17, 2017

Brilliant young men from rival yeshivas, Reuven and Danny first meet on a baseball diamond. When Danny fells Reuven with a line drive in the heat of competition, the two boys start a tentative and unique friendship. Growing up in The Shadows of imposing and impressive fathers, the young men question their places in the world. Set against the backdrop of 1940s Brooklyn and the specter of war, Posner's adaptation of Chaim Potok's award-winning novel is a story of fathers and sons, tradition, modernity, and the difficult choices one must to make to achieve understanding.

CLAIRE TOW STAGE IN THE C. NEWTON SCHENCK III THEATRE

OFFICE HOUR

THRILLING & THOUGHT-PROVOKING

By Julia Cho

JAN 17 - FEB 11, 2018

A college student hides behind dark glasses, a baseball cap pulled low, and writings that disturb and provoke. Is he just venting or is he really troubled? Gina, his writing professor, is the only one willing to get close, to try to understand what the student is going through. But at what peril to herself? The newest play from Obie Award-winning playwright Julia Cho is a thrilling ride through the psyches of two people learning to empathize with one another. "Office Hour has undeniable topicality ... This is a small play, but before you realize it, its rippling current has taken you far from the safety of shore," said the Los Angeles Times.

STAGE II

BASKERVILLE

A SHERLOCK HOLMES COMIC MYSTERY

By Ken Ludwig

FEB 28 - MARCH 25, 2018

A wild hellhound prowls the moors of Devonshire, dispatching the male heirs of the Baskerville line one by one. Sherlock Holmes is on the case. To find the ingenious killer, Holmes and Watson must brave the desolate moors before a family curse dooms its newest heir. Can our heroes discover the truth in time? Comedic genius and Tony Award-winner Ken Ludwig (Lend Me a Tenor, Moon Over Buffalo) transforms Arthur Conan Doyle's classic The Hound of the Baskervilles into a murderously funny adventure. Watch as our intrepid investigators try to escape a dizzying web of clues, silly accents, disguises, and deceit as five actors deftly portray more than forty characters. Join the fun and see how far from elementary the truth can be. Baskerville is a fast-paced and joyful comedy teeming with theatrical inventiveness. "Baskerville is a madcap sendup of what you might hold dear about that Doyle classic, done up in the style of The 39 Steps," said DC Theatre Scene.

CLAIRE TOW STAGE IN THE C. NEWTON SCHENCK III THEATRE

CROWNS

A JOYOUS GOSPEL MUSICAL

In Association with McCarter Theatre Center

Written and Directed by ReGina Taylor

Adapted from the book by Michael Cunningham and Craig Marberry

APRIL 18 - MAY 13, 2018

Yolonda is a tough girl from Brooklyn who is proud of her status as a true New Yorker. A family tragedy sends her to live in South Carolina with her grandmother, Mother Shaw. Surrounded by a circle of powerful women, Yolonda learns the "hat queen rules", awakening in her a deep sense of who she is and where she comes from. Crowns weaves together compelling stories and glorious gospel music to create a tapestry of voices that transcend time and place. Inspiring and stirring, the Chicago Tribune says, "There is something about Crowns that warms the soul."

CLAIRE TOW STAGE IN THE C. NEWTON SCHENCK III THEATRE

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