Photo Flash: Relatives of William Inge Visit Peccadillo's A LOSS OF ROSES

This past Sunday, May 18th, the sold out audience at the first NY revival of William Inge's A LOSS OF ROSES included Inge's nephew, James A. Mahan, as well as Mahan's children and grandchildren. They joined the cast onstage afterwards for a full family & company portrait. On behalf of the family, James Mahan's daughter Sandra wrote the following to the production the next day: "A heartfelt thank you for having us! We so enjoyed the play and meeting the cast. Clearly everyone involved with this production put much heartfelt energy into it. Your theater has such a very warm and inviting feel which we embraced!"

Presented by the OBIE, Lucille Lortel and Drama Desk Award-winning Peccadillo Theater Company, in association with La Femme Theatre Productions, A LOSS OF ROSES opened May 12th at Theatre at St. Clement's, 423 West 46th Street (between Ninth & Tenth Ave.) The limited engagement is set to run through June 7th.

Under Dan Wackerman's direction, A LOSS OF ROSES features Deborah Hedwall (Equus, The Heidi Chronicles, Extremities,"I'll Fly Away"), Patricia Hodges (Six Degrees of Separation, Dancing at Lughnasa, The Normal Heart, "Royal Pains"), Ben Kahre (The Commons of Pensacola, Bob Dylan: Like a Rolling Stone), Jean Lichty (Mentors, Muses & Monsters; Letting Billy; The Girl's Last Big Mistake), Gregory Perri (Some People), Jonathan Stewart ("White Collar," Perfect Crime), Fina Strazza(The Sound of Music, Once on This Island, A Little Game), Kristen Sweeney (Legally Blonde, Annie), and Marty Thomas(Wicked, The Secret Garden, Xanadu).

From William Inge, the most successful American playwright of the 1950's, comes this poignant story of a young man's struggle for independence and an older woman's search for connection. Set against the backdrop of a small midwestern town in the 1930's, their unconventional romance is filled with the promise of new beginnings as well as the possibility of scandal and rejection. The bittersweet romance about the loss of innocence garnered 22-year-old Warren Beatty a Tony Award nomination as Best Featured Actor in the 1959 Broadway production. The original cast also included Betty Field, Michael J. Pollard, Robert Webber, and Carol Haney.

William Inge is also the author of the classic plays Picnic, Bus Stop, The Dark at the Top of the Stairs, and Come Back Little Sheba. Inge won the Academy Award for his original screenplay for Splendor in the Grass, starring Warren Beatty and Natalie Wood, and directed by Elia Kazan.

Scenic & lighting design for A LOSS OF ROSES are by Harry Feiner, with video design by Mr. Feiner and Ido Levran, costume design by Marianne Custer, sound design by Dave Thomas, and wig design by Paul Huntley.

Founded in 1994, Peccadillo is devoted to the "lost classics" of the American theater - plays of obvious literary and theatrical merit which, for whatever reason, have fallen off the radar. With this production and in its 20th Anniversary season, Peccadillo continues its mission of rediscovery.

In recent years, Peccadillo has broadened its mission to include original plays and musicals that touch upon the history of the American theater. Such was the case with Jeffrey Hatcher's Ten Chimneys, a delightful comedy about the highly theatrical marriage of Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne, as well as Zero Hour, Jim Brochu's one-man show about the actor/comedian, Zero Mostel.

Artistic director Dan Wackerman won the 2005 OBIE Award for directing Elmer Rice's Counsellor at Law. Peccadillo also has earned several Outer Critics Circle nominations.

The performance schedule for A LOSS OF ROSES is Wednesday evenings at 7 PM, Thursday through Saturday evenings at 8 PM, with Sunday matinees at 3 PM. Tickets are $25 and are available through www.thepeccadillo.com or by calling (212) 352-3101.

Photos: Randy Lawson

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