MISERY to Take the Stage in Stephen King's Hometown

Penobscot Theatre Company will present William Goldman's chilling dramatization of Stephen King's Misery, a Maine premiere. The production will run October 12 through November 5 at the Bangor Opera House, in the heart of Stephen King's hometown.

"Stephen King has more #1 Fans per capita in Bangor than anywhere in the world," said Producing Artistic Director Bari Newport, "including everyone in this company, so we're honor-bound to bring this classic to life in fully satisfying fashion. It will be miserable alright, and our audience is going to love it!"

First published in 1987, Misery tells the story of best-selling author Paul Sheldon, who is rescued from a car crash by his self-proclaimed "number one fan" Annie Wilkes. Annie secrets him away in her remote home and attends to his injuries, but when she discovers a plot twist in Sheldon's latest romance novel, things take a dark turn and Paul finds himself writing as if his life were dependent on it. And it is.

William Goldman penned the screenplay for the 1990 film adaptation starring Kathy Bates, who earned an Oscar as Annie; and he scripted this play, which ran on Broadway in 2015, starring Bruce Willis and Laurie Metcalf. Though other scripts have circulated, Goldman's attracted Newport's attention as it holds faithfully to King's story. "In Bangor, we deeply appreciate Stephen King as a philanthropist and community leader, but above all, he's a writer! No one creates characters, establishes sense of place and builds tension like King. He's the master."

Newport is directing the Penobscot Theatre Company production, assisted by Ben Layman who is also cast in the role of the unlucky sheriff. Regional powerhouses AJ Mooney of Bangor and James Konicek (AEA) of Washington, DC. are playing Annie and Paul. Mooney was last seen on the Penobscot Theatre Company stage in the transformative performance of Estelle in The Full Monty. In addition to his extensive credits at leading theatres in and around the Capitol, Konicek is well known for his voice work. He is featured in the popular video game Fallout 4 and the 2015 documentary Last Days of the Nazis.

To create Annie's world and accomplish the advanced technical feats required of this psychological horror thriller, Newport has assembled a top-notch team including stage manager Adrienne Wells (AEA), Tricia Hobbs (scenic design), Kevin Koski (costume designer), Scout Hough (lighting design), Ben Wetzel and Belinda Hobbs (props design), Katie Guzzi (sound design), fight choreographer Angela Bonacasa and special effects expert Eric Anderson.

Show tickets are available online at www.penobscottheatre.org or through the box office, located at 131 Main Street, Bangor; (207) 942-3333.

As a special offering for Stephen King's other Number One Fans, Penobscot Theatre Company will auction three first-edition copies of Misery, the novel, autographed by the author. Each will be auctioned separately, one following the 5:00 pm Opening Night performance, October 14; one following the 3:00 pm performance, October 15; and one following the final performance, 3 pm, November 5. Bidding will start at $250, and the auction will be open to both ticket holders, and members of the public who wish to bid in person. Collectors who are unable to participate in person may place an absentee bid up until Friday, October 13 at 5:00 pm for the first two auctions, and Saturday, November 4 at 5:00pm for the Final Auction. Contact Gerald Winters for details about absentee bidding atgw@geraldwinters.com.

Penobscot Theatre Company is America's Northeastern-most professional, year round theatre company, owners of the historic Bangor Opera House,a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization, producing a wide variety of plays and musicals each season. For a complete list of show times, pricing and more information about the season visit www.penobscottheatre.org.

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