Dallas Theater Center Ends Run of THE BEAUTY PLAYS by Neil LaBute, 5/23

Neil LaBute's plays - The Shape of Things, Fat Pig, and straight from its Broadway run for its regional premiere, the three-time Tony Award-nominated reasons to be pretty - will end its repertory run by Dallas Theater Center May 23 in the intimate 103-seat Studio Theatre at the Wyly Theatre.

Described by The New Yorker as "the best new playwright to emerge in the past decade...a genius," LaBute has written three hit plays dealing with the complexities of romantic relationships, sexual politics and physical appearance. Comprising a trilogy of plays linked by theme, though without recurring characters or a connected plot, the plays each reflect on their common themes in unique and distinctive ways. Though each play has had immensely successful productions in New York and London, the three plays have never been performed in repertory.

DTC Resident Acting Company member Matthew Gray directs The Shape of Things, DTC Artistic Director Kevin Moriarty directs Fat Pig, and Associate Artist Joel Ferrell directs reasons to be pretty.

"Neil LaBute is one of the most dynamic, surprising, and controversial writers in the American theater. Over the past decade, he has consistently and unabashedly ripped off the façade of contemporary American society, writing with truthfulness and a scalpel-like precision. Using both biting comedy and heart-breaking drama as his tools, his work confronts deeply personal and familiar issues that most people think about but are rarely brave enough to discuss in our daily lives," says Moriarty. "Presenting these three plays in the Studio Theatre, where every seat is just feet away from the stage, will create a level of intimacy between the actors and the audience, providing playgoers with a new and powerful experience in the Wyly Theatre."

The Shape of Things (Feb. 23 - May 9; opening March 5)
Directed by Matthew Gray
In The Shape of Things, the first to open in the trilogy, Adam (Steven Walters), a shy, overweight college student embarks on an extreme transformational journey after falling in love with sexy and confident graduate art student Evelyn (Southern Methodist University Meadows School of the Arts Abbey Siegworth). SMU's Aleisha Force and DTC Resident Acting Company Member and Associate Artist Lee Trull complete the cast as Jenny and Philip.

Fat Pig (March 12 - May 9; opening March 19)
Directed by Kevin Moriarty
DTC Resident Acting Company Member Christina Vela reprises her role from Kitchen Dog Theater's 2007 production as Helen, a plus-size librarian who catches the attention of Tom (Regan Adair), an in-shape, successful professional. As their relationship blossoms, Tom struggles with navigating the dynamics of his relationships with vain colleagues Jeannie (Aleisha Force) and Carter (Steven Walters) who judge him for his romantic decision, forcing Tom to come to terms with his own preconceptions of the importance of conventional good looks.

reasons to be pretty (April 2 - May 23; opening April 9)
Directed by Joel Ferrell
In its regional premiere straight from Broadway, LaBute's Tony Award-nominated play brutally confronts America's obsession with physical beauty and the way people communicate with each other. When Steph (Christina Vela) gets wind of her boyfriend Greg's (Lee Trull) comments about a co-worker's pretty face, their relationship is thrown into turmoil. Their friends (Regan Adair and Abbey Siegworth) are pulled into the fray and all are forced to confront a sea of deceit, infidelity, and betrayed trust in their journey to understand the power and dangers of beauty in contemporary America. A New York Times Critics' Pick and on the 2008 top ten lists of TIME Magazine and The Associated Press.

The design team for The Beauty Plays includes Donna Marquet (set designer), Ric Leal (costume designer), Driscoll Otto (lighting designer), and Bruce Richardson (sound designer).

"The Beauty Plays is an opportunity for Dallas to see three razor-sharp plays representative of a decade of LaBute's work," Moriarty says. "Experiencing this series is sure to open an interesting conversation among audiences about the convoluted politics and power dynamics of relationships with friends, lovers and colleagues."

One of the leading regional theaters in the country, Dallas Theater Center (DTC) produces new, contemporary and classic plays and musicals to an audience of more than 90,000 North Texas residents annually. DTC is a resident company of the AT&T Performing Arts Center and presents its mainstage season at the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre. DTC engages, entertains and inspires a diverse community by creating experiences that stimulate new ways of thinking and living by consistently producing plays, educational programs and other initiatives that are of the highest quality and reach the broadest possible constituency.

DTC gratefully acknowledges the support of our season sponsors: American Airlines, The Dallas Morning News, Dallas Office of Cultural Affairs, National Endowment for the Arts, TACA, TCA and WFAA.

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