Speir heads cast in Towne Centre's TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL 2/10-26

Nashville theater favorite Linda Speir takes on the role of Carrie Watts in Towne Centre Theatre's production of Horton Foote's The Trip to Bountiful, opening Thursday, February 10 and running through Saturday, February 26.

Jim Himelrick directs the poignant drama at the Brentwood theater. In addition to Speir, whose resume includes roles with numerous Nashville area companies, Himelrick's cast includes Corey Caldwell, Bev Kassis, Beth Henderson, David Thoreson, Joe Shepherd, Bob Buchholz and Ed Warr.

Foote's The Trip to Bountiful, which was made into a film starring Geraldine Paige and which resulted in Page's Academy Award win as best actress for her performance, focuses on the central character of Mrs. Watts, "an aging widow living with her son and daughter-in-law in a three-room flat in Houston, Texas. Fearing that her presence may be an imposition on others, and chafing under the watchful eye of her daughter-in-law, Mrs. Watts imagines that if she can get away and return to her old home in the town of Bountiful, she is sure to regain her strength, dignity and peace of mind. So she attempts to run away, and when she reaches a bus station on the last part of her short journey, she falls into the hands of a sheriff whom her son and daughter-in-law have put on her trail. The sheriff, a kindly fellow, allows her to complete the final stage of her journey, so she proceeds to Bountiful and makes a lonely pilgrimage to the scene of her old home. Only too soon she learns that the friends of her youth have all died or scattered, and her home is no longer the spacious mansion of her memories but a crumbling wreck. But she has the supreme satisfaction of plunging her hands into the strength-giving earth, and this leaves her with a sense of that strength and dignity that will give her the courage to survive. When her son and daughter-in-law appear on the scene to take her back to Houston, she consents to return quietly, secure in the knowledge that the remainder of her existence will be enriched as a result of her last contact with Bountiful."

Tickets are available by calling the Towne Centre Reservation Line at (615) 221-1174, online at www.townecentretheatre.com or at the box office prior to a performance. However, walk-ups are not guaranteed a seat and reservations are strongly encouraged. All ticket sales are final. Exchanges for another performance of the current show may be made up to 48 hours prior to performance, subject to availability. The Towne Centre Box Office opens 30 minutes prior to each performance. If you need handicapped seating or other special assistance, please call the theatre office at (615) 221-1173.

Curtain for is at 8 p.m. for Thursday, Friday and Saturday performances, with Sunday matinees performeda at 2:30 p.m. On Feburary 13 and 20.