Stage West to Present SEXY LAUNDRY

) What do you do when the zing seems to have gone out of your marriage? That's the question facing Henry and Alice, as Stage West presents Michele Riml's Sexy Laundry, a co-production with WaterTower Theatre, beginning a 5-week run at Stage West on Thursday, December 31.

After 25 years of bliss, Alice and Henry are having marital problems. Alice has decided they need to re-kindle the flame of their dormant love life with a weekend in an upscale, swanky hotel room. "The L is the hottest new hotel in the city. It's a synthesis of Eastern design and Western sensibility," she informs Henry. And to boost the odds, she has brought along a copy of Sex for Dummies and a willingness to try things. Henry, on the other hand, has brought only his bad attitude, looking at the book with suspicion and dread. As the evening unfolds, they share their erotic fantasies, exchange recriminations, and take turns confessing the details of their personal mid-life crises as the play moves from comic, to serious, and back again. Henry and Alice's touching and hilarious rediscovery of themselves and the strength of their marriage is sure to entertain and resonate with audience members.

Michele Riml is a critically acclaimed playwright from Vancouver, British Columbia. Her plays have been produced across Canada and in the U.S. including the Globe Theatre, The Grand, the Arts Club Theatre and the Belfry. Other plays include Miss Teen, Under The Influence, RAGE (winner of the 2005 Sydney Risk prize for Outstanding Original Play), and the acclaimed Poster Boys, which premiered at the Arts Club Theatre in 2008. Her plays for young audiences, commissioned by Green Thumb Theatre for Young People, include Cool, Invisible Girl, The Skinny Lie and Tree Boy. Michele was nominated for the 2008 Siminovitch Prize.

Sexy Laundry is directed by Terry Martin, Producing Artistic Director at WaterTower Theatre. The cast features Wendy Welch, last as Stage West as Sonia in Vanya & Sonia & Masha & Spike, as Alice, and Bob Hess, seen as Efram in Uptown Players' The Nance, as Henry. Welch and Hess played these same roles in WaterTower's acclaimed Studio presentation of this play last year, as well as the just-concluded Main Stage production.

The set will be designed by Clare Floyd DeVries, with lighting by Michael O'Brien. Sound design is by Kelsey Leigh Ervi, while props are by Tish Mussey.

Sexy Laundry will preview Thursday, December 31 at 7:30 and Friday, January 1 at 8:00, and will run through Sunday, January 31. Performance times will be Thursday evenings at 7:30, Friday and Saturday evenings at 8:00, with Sunday matinees at 3:00. The opening night reception will be Saturday, January 2. Ticket prices range from $31 to $35, with discounts for the preview performance, and for students, seniors, and military. Food service is available 90 minutes prior to performances (reservations are necessary), and the Friday Prix Fixe special (dinner and show for $45) will be available beginning January 8. Reservations and information are available through the Box Office (817-784-9378), or on the website, www.stagewest.org.

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