Westport Country Playhouse To Present Symposium With Lincoln Center Theater's Bernard Gersten 8/30

Westport Country Playhouse will present a Sunday Symposium titled, "‘That Championship Season': Rediscovering an American Classic," following the Sunday, August 30, 3 p.m. matinee performance of "That Championship Season." Guest speaker will be Bernard Gersten, executive producer of Lincoln Center Theater and former associate producer of The Public Theater in New York (1960 - 1978), in which capacity he was the associate producer of the original production of "That Championship Season."

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, Tony Award and New York Drama Critics Circle Award, "That Championship Season," written by Jason Miller and directed by Mark Lamos, is the first production to be directed by Lamos since he was named artistic director in February 2009 at the historic theater in Westport, Connecticut.

The Playhouse Sunday Symposium program, free and open to the public, provides the audience with guest speakers' in-depth insights and observations about the production, followed by an interactive dialogue. David Kennedy, Westport Country Playhouse associate artistic director, will moderate the Sunday Symposium. It is open to all, including those who attend a performance of "That Championship Season" at another time. The Sunday Symposium is supported, in part, by the White Barn Program of the Lucille Lortel Foundation.

"Though lesser known than other American classics, ‘That Championship Season' is one of the most vital American dramas of the seventies, so I'm glad we have this opportunity to explore Miller's signature work in greater depth," said Kennedy. "And since Bernie Gersten was there at the beginning, I'm sure he'll offer a unique perspective on that first production, the play's impact on the Theatre World of the time, and its lasting importance in the American canon. It's sure to be a fantastic conversation."

Bernard Gersten has been the executive producer of Lincoln Center Theater since its re-establishment in 1985, in partnership with Gregory Mosher through 1991 and with Andre Bishop as artistic director since then, producing 121 productions over the last 24 years, including "The Coast of Utopia" and "A Delicate Balance." Lincoln Center Theater has produced "The House of Blue Leaves" and "Via Dolorosa" for the Public Broadcasting System, as well as, for "Live from Lincoln Center," "The Light in the Piazza," "Contact," "Twelfth Night" and "Comedy of Errors." Gersten was producer of the NBC documentary film "Voices of Sarafina!" From 1960 to 1978, he was the associate producer of the New York Shakespeare Festival for, among other works, "That Championship Season," "A Chorus Line" and "Hair." Gersten was executive vice president of Zoetrope Studios, executive producer of Francis Ford Coppola's "One from the Heart," and co-producer of the live-orchestra presentations throughout the world of Abel Gance's "Napoleon." He was the vice president of Radio City Music Hall and executive producer of "Porgy and Bess" and "Ice." Mr. Gersten has been an adjunct professor of Theater Administration at New York University, Yale School of Drama and Columbia University School of the Arts.

"That Championship Season" takes place at a reunion of a high school basketball coach, now retired, and four members of the team that he guided to the state championship 20 years earlier. As the evening progresses, secrets are revealed, loyalties tested and the foundation of their long-held dreams is found to be fraudulent. A play of savage humor and giant passions, "That Championship Season" probes the darker aspects of the American creed of success.

The full schedule for "That Championship Season" will run from August 25 - September 12, with performances Tuesday at 8 p.m., Wednesday at 2 and 8 p.m., Thursday and Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 4 and 8 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m.

Westport Country Playhouse, a not-for-profit theater, serves as a treasured home for the performing arts and is a cultural landmark for Connecticut. Under the artistic direction of Mark Lamos and management direction of Michael Ross, The Playhouse creates quality productions of new and classic plays that enlighten, enrich and engage a diverse community of theater lovers, artists and students. The Playhouse's rich history dates back to 1931, when New York theatre producer Lawrence Langner created a Broadway-quality stage within an 1830s tannery. The Playhouse quickly became an established stop on the New England "straw hat circuit" of summer stock theatres. Now celebrating its 79th season, Westport Country Playhouse has produced more than 700 plays, 36 of which later transferred to Broadway, most recently the world premiere of "Thurgood" and a revival of Thornton Wilder's "Our Town" with Paul Newman, and in earlier years "Come Back, Little Sheba" with Shirley Booth, "The Trip to Bountiful" with Lillian Gish, and "Butterflies Are Free" with Keir Dullea and Blythe Danner. For its artistic excellence, The Playhouse received a 2005 Governor's Arts Award and a 2000 "Connecticut Treasure" recognition. It was also designated as an Official Project of Save America's Treasures by the National Trust for Historic Preservation and is entered on the Connecticut State Register of Historic Places. Following a multi-million dollar renovation completed in 2005, The Playhouse transformed into a year-round, state-of-the-art producing theater, which has preserved its original charm and character. In addition to a full season of theatrical productions, The Playhouse serves as a community resource, presenting educational programming and workshops; a children's theater series; symposiums; music; films; and readings.

For more information or ticket purchases, call the box office at (203) 227-4177, or toll-free at 1-888-927-7529, or visit 25 Powers Court, off Route 1, Westport. Tickets may be purchased online at www.westportplayhouse.org.

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