GREAT EXPECTATIONS Comes to Town Hall Theatre For The Holidays

Town Hall Theatre "Lost & Found" Season 2018/19 continues with our holiday offering: the West Coast Premiere of GREAT EXPECTATIONS, an adventure-packed adaptation of the classic Dickens' coming-of-age story by Gale Childs Daly. GREAT EXPECTATIONS will have 12 performances, including two previews, November 29 through December 16, 2018, at Town Hall Theatre Company, 3535 School Street, in Lafayette, CA. Tickets are $18 - $30, and are available through the Box Office at (925) 283-1557 or online at www.TownHallTheatre.com.

THT will host three Special Events for GREAT EXPECTATIONS: Opening Night gala on Saturday, December 1, 2018; LIT UP at Town Hall, a literary salon, on Wednesday, December 5, 2018; and Theatre Club, our post-show talk-back with complimentary wine, on Friday, December 7, 2018. We welcome audiences to enjoy THT's full bar and entertainment in our lobby one hour before performances.

On a bleak Christmas Eve, in a marshy churchyard, an escaped convict grabs our hero, a young orphan named Pip, at knife point - and the boy's life is forever altered! Pip's act of kindness, and a mysterious benefactor, lead to a series of surprises as we follow Pip's journey from rags to riches, through love and loss, and revenge to redemption. Along the way he learns some hard-earned lessons and ultimately comes to realize his great expectations. Six quick-changing actors portray dozens of curious and intriguing characters in Daly's taut new adaptation of Dickens' timeless classic novel.

THT's production of GREAT EXPECTATIONS is directed by THT's Managing Director Dennis Markam, and showcases an ensemble of multi-generational Bay Area performers. Salim Razawi is featured as Pip, with Marisa Darabi, Nathan Emley, Madison Gerringer, Erin Gould and Kira Zabrowski playing Dickens' host of colorful characters, from the convict Magwich to haughty Estella and frozen-in-time Miss Havisham. Kenneth Greenwell and Tatiana Torres alternate in portraying Pip as a youth; and Loren Breidenbach and Charlotte Ying Levy alternate in the role of young Estella.

"This adaptation manages to capture Dickens' novel in one whirlwind journey," says Artistic Director Susan E. Evans. "Daly uses just a handful of actors and keeps them jumping off the page. Adventure, romance and a ghost story, with suspense, humor and heart! There's always a lot of Dickens around during the holiday season; Town Hall's GREAT EXPECTATIONS offers audiences a pretty terrific change of pace."

THT's production also features an award-winning creative team with credits from around the Bay Area: Martin Flynn (scenic design); Delayne Medoff (lighting design); Michael Kelly (sound design); Denise Altaffer (costume design); and Kate Saville (properties design).

The world premiere of GREAT EXPECTATIONS was produced in 2013 by the Strawdog Theatre Company, Chicago, and enjoyed a successful run at Baltimore's Everyman Theatre in 2017.

GALE CHILDS DALY has been a playwright, director, teacher and actor. A graduate of the Goodman School of Drama (now DePaul University), Daly has worked at The Goodman Theatre, The Alley Theatre, the Great Lakes Shakespeare Festival, the Great River Shakespeare Festival and the Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts, among others. As a playwright, she has adapted Great Expectations, The Secret Garden, The Story of Opal and The Lament for Ignacio Sanchez. Directing credits include The Government Inspector, Julius Caesar and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead. Daly currently works as a freelance director, teacher and text coach in the Midwest.

DENNIS MARKAM has previously directed Woman in Mind, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (Shellie Nominee) and Pygmalion for Town Hall Theatre's Main Stage. He has also appeared, as an actor, as John Dashwood, Sir John Middleton, and others in Sense & Sensibility (Shellie Nominee), Louis in Angels in America (Shellie Award Winner), Robert Chiltern in An Ideal Husband, and Yvan in Art, among others. As an actor and director, Mr. Markam has worked with Central Works, Contra Costa Civic Theatre, Diablo Actors' Ensemble, Fantasy Forum Actors' Ensemble, and others. Mr. Markam has served as a Teaching Artist at Town Hall since 2008 and Managing Director since 2014.

Established in 1944 as the Dramateurs, Town Hall Theatre turned 74 this year, making it the oldest continuously active theatre in Contra Costa County. Town Hall Theatre was awarded Best Theatre Troupe 2016 in Diablo Magazines, Best of The East Bay, and is the past recipient of numerous Shellie Awards, and four regional 2016 Theatre Bay Area Awards. THT is also home to an extensive children's educational program, twice voted the "Best Children's Theatre Company" by Bay Area Parent Magazine. THT's 102-year old historical building is managed by the Lafayette Association (LIA). Town Hall Theatre Company is located at 3535 School Street, in Lafayette, CA 94549. The Box Office is open Tuesday through Friday, 4:00 to 6:00PM, and Saturday, 2:00-4:00 pm, and can be reached at 925.283.1557. Information is also available at www.TownHallTheatre.com.

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