UMKC Theatre to Present 'DESIRE', Based on Stories by Tennessee Williams

UMKC Theatre continues its 2016-2017 season with Desire: An Evening of Plays Based on Six Stories by Tennessee Williams. Directed by Darren Sextro, Desire will preview Nov. 25 - Nov. 29, open Nov. 30 and run through Dec.10 at Studio 116, James C. Olson Performing Arts Center, on the UMKC campus.

Tennessee Williams's life-changing short stories depict loss of innocence, coming of age, fighting loneliness and isolation, and what it means to love and to lose it. Adapted by some of America's leading playwrights, including Elizabeth Egloff, Marcus Gardley, Rebecca Gilman, David Grimm, John Guare and Beth Henley, Williams's striking stories explode off the page.

Director Darren Sextro stated, "This is a rarity, these six Tennessee Williams theatrical works that have never been seen anywhere else except in their original productions by The Acting Company in NYC last year. These six plays, based on his short stories, are shot through with clues to his later masterpieces, not-so-subtle hints of what would turn into The Glass Menagerie, A Streetcar Named Desire, and Suddenly, Last Summer, for example."

The principals include Chioma Anyanwu, Amy Billroth-Maclurg, Jay Love, Heather Lawler, Duncan McIntyre, Ken Sandberg, Megan Sells and Charlie Spillers. Scenic design by Mark Exline, lighting design by Ashley Kok and sound design by Jonathan Robertson. Costume designers are L.A. Clevenson, Zoe Still, and Stella Tag. Afton Earp serves as stage manager.

Darren Sextro is a member of the Artistic Board for Kansas City Actors Theatre and is a past board member of the Heart of America Shakespeare Festival. Over the past decade, he has directed nearly 25 productions on regional stages, including most recently The Way We Get By and Buyer & Cellar for the Unicorn Theatre; Crimes of the Heart for Kansas City Actors Theatre, The House of Yes for The Fishtank; Kindertransport and To Kill a Mockingbird for the White Theatre; and God of Carnage and ART for The Wright Opera House (Ouray, CO).

There will be a series of pre- and post-performance panel discussions with local and student organizations. For more information contact Sadie DeSantis at desantiss@umkc.edu.

Season tickets are available for all five productions for $73. Single ticket adult prices are $20 for any performance. All UMKC faculty and staff tickets are $13 and UMKC student tickets are $10 for any performance (limit one per ID). Senior (60+) ticket prices are $15. For tickets, call the Central Ticket Office at (816) 235-6222 or purchase online here.

Monday nights are traditionally "dark" as that is the actors' day off. However, UMKC Theatre will again provide an Industry Night for each production so that theatre professionals and others will have one opportunity to see UMKC Theatre performances on a Monday. Admission to all Monday night shows is only $12 per person and, good news, is open to the general public.

Parking for Grant Hall Theatre ticketed productions is available on level 4 only of the multi-level parking structure at 52nd and Rockhill. Parking for Performing Arts Center ticketed productions is available on level 5 only of the multi-level parking structure at 50th between Cherry and Oak (Park near the Northeast Tower and use the elevated crosswalk back to the PAC.)

UMKC Theatre has been ranked by U.S. News & World Report among the top graduate theatre training programs in the country. Graduates from UMKC Theatre are invited to the most prestigious New York and Los Angeles professional reviews and auditions to exhibit their work and secure positions with national and international performing companies. We build bridges. We assist the creative student in making the journey to becoming a creative professional. The practice of the department is to vigorously educate students in the many arts, crafts and traditions of theatre, and provide a basis for future careers in the creative industries. Our program offers intensive hands-on experience while at the same time fostering analytical and contextual skills. The practical experience of theatre-making occurs not only within the performing venues of UMKC, but also in professional theatres in Kansas City. Theatre is a passion. We seek it, we train for it and we embody it. UMKC Theatre is accredited by the National Association of Schools of Theatre (NAST) and the University/Resident Theatre Association (U/RTA).

The University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC), one of four University of Missouri campuses, is a public university serving more than 14,000 undergraduate, graduate and professional students. UMKC engages with the community and economy based on a three-part mission: visual and performing arts, health sciences, and urban engagement. UMKC has been designated as Missouri's Campus for the Arts. More information is available online at www.umkctheatre.org.

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