Playwrights Horizons Launches Online Lottery for First Preview of STAGE KISS

Playwrights Horizon begins accepting entries today, Wednesday, January 29, for its popular LIVEforFIVE online lottery for $5 tickets to the New York premiere of Stage Kiss, a new play by two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist and Tony Award nominee Sarah Ruhl (Dead Man's Cell Phone at PH, The Clean House, In the Next Room..., Eurydice) and directed by Rebecca Taichman (Milk Like Sugar at PH, Marie Antoinette, Ms.Ruhl's Orlando, The Scene, Luck of the Irish).

The LIVEforFIVE lottery for Stage Kiss will be for tickets to the first preview on Friday evening, February 7 at 8PM at Playwrights Horizons' Mainstage Theater (416 West 42nd Street). The production has an Opening Night set for Sunday, March 2 at 7PM and will play a limited engagement through Sunday, March 23.

A ticketing initiative created in 2007 as part of Playwrights Horizons' Arts Access program, LIVEforFIVE makes a limited number of $5 tickets available for the first preview performance of each Playwrights Horizons production through a lottery via the company's website (www.PHnyc.org).

Details for the LIVEforFIVE lottery are as follows: beginning today, theatergoers can enter the lottery by filling out an entry form at www.PHnyc.org. Entries will be accepted until Monday, February 3 at 12 Noon. Winners of the lottery will be notified via email no later than 3PM on Monday, February 3 with instructions on how to book their $5 tickets. Unclaimed tickets will be offered via email to a limited standby list starting at 12 Noon on Tuesday, February 4 on a first-come, first-served basis. One or two tickets may be purchased for $5 each. 75 tickets will be available via the lottery.

The cast of Stage Kiss features Todd Almond (Public Works' The Tempest, People Are Wrong!, composer/lyricist of On the Levee), Clea Alsip (L(y)RE), Michael Cyril Creighton (The Vietnamization of NJ, Blood Play, WGA winner for "Jack in a Box"), SAG Award nominee Dominic Fumusa (Ms. Ruhl's Passion Play, Tape, Take Me Out, [sic], Kevin Peyton on "Nurse Jackie"), Emma Galvin (Lidless, Our Town, Blood Play), Tony Award nominee Jessica Hecht (Lobster Alice and Plunge at PH, The Assembled Parties, A View from the Bridge, Harvey, The Last Night of Ballyhoo), Tony Award nominee Daniel Jenkins (Big River, Golden Boy, Billy Elliot, Mary Poppins, Angels in America) and Patrick Kerr (The Ritz, Endgame, The Warrior Ant, Jeffrey, The Devils).

Art imitates Life. Life imitates Art. When two actors with a history (Ms. Hecht and Mr. Fumusa) are thrown together as romantic leads in a forgotten 1930s melodrama, they quickly lose touch with reality as the story onstage follows them offstage. Sarah Ruhl's singular voice returns to Playwrights Horizons with Stage Kiss, a charming tale about what happens when lovers share a Stage Kiss - or when actors share a real one.

The production features scenic design by Obie Award winner Neil Patel, costume design by Tony Award winner Susan Hilferty, lighting design by Peter Kaczorowski and sound design by Matt Hubbs. Original music is by Todd Almond, choreography is by Sam Pinkleton and hair and wig design is by Tom Watson. Production Stage Manager is Cole P. Bonenberger.

The performance schedule for Stage Kiss will be Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 7PM, Thursdays and Fridays at 8PM, Saturdays at 2:30 PM & 8PM and Sundays at 2:30 PM & 7:30 PM. The Thursday, February 20 evening performance has a 7PM curtain and the Tuesday, February 25 evening performance has an 8PM curtain. Single tickets, $75-95, may be purchased online via www.TicketCentral.com, by phone at (212) 279-4200 (Noon-8pm daily) and in person at the Ticket Central Box Office, 416 West 42nd Street (between Ninth & Tenth Avenues).

Through the new ticketing program FIRST ROW SUNDAYS, launched this season, Playwrights Horizons makes available front row tickets for all Sunday evening performances. Tickets, $25 each, will be available for those age 30 years and younger and can be purchased in advance online via www.TicketCentral.com, by phone at (212) 279-4200 (Noon-8pm daily), or in person at the Ticket Central Box Office, 416 West 42nd Street (between Ninth & Tenth Avenues). Tickets are limited to one per customer and are subject to availability. Purchased tickets for FIRST ROW SUNDAYS can be picked up one hour before curtain on the day of the performance, with proof of age required at the door.

Also reflecting Playwrights Horizons' ongoing commitment to making its productions more affordable to younger audiences, the theater company will offer HOTtix, $25 rush tickets, subject to availability, day of performance only, starting one hour before showtime to patrons aged 30 and under. Proof of age required. One ticket per person, per purchase. Cash only.

LIVEforFIVE, FIRST ROW SUNDAYS and HOTtix are three of Playwrights Horizons' popular Arts Access initiatives, which allow the institution to reach out to those who may not be able to afford the cost of a full-price theater ticket. This program is supported, in part, by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, McGraw Hill Financial and an Anonymous Individual Donor.

Following Stage Kiss, the Playwrights Horizons' 2013/2014 Season will continue with YOUR MOTHER'S COPY OF THE KAMA SUTRA, the World Premiere of a new play by Kirk Lynn, directed by Anne Kauffman (March 28-May 11). The season will conclude with FLY BY NIGHT: A NEW MUSICAL, conceived by Kim Rosenstock, written by Will Connolly, Michael Mitnick and Ms. Rosenstock, directed by Carolyn Cantor (May 16-June 29).

Two ticket packages to Playwrights Horizons' 2013/2014 season are still available: FlexPass (4+ tickets, $45-50 per ticket); and Membership ($55 membership fee + one ticket at $40 or less for any or all shows, as desired). In addition to discounts on all season productions, subscribers receive priority booking and seating, ticket exchange privileges, parking and dining discounts, and exclusive mailings of Playwrights Horizons Bulletins. Packages are available at www.TicketCentral.com.

Patron Program Memberships begin at $1,500 (all but $550 is tax-deductible) and include two house seats to all Playwrights Horizons productions, reserved only for Patrons, as well as a variety of exclusive benefits including invitations to attend special events with artists, staff and board members.

STAGE KISS has received generous support from the Tobin Theatre Arts Fund, the Elroy and Terry Krumholz Foundation and the Laura Pels International Foundation for Theater.

Playwrights Horizons' season productions are generously supported in part by The Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.

Playwrights Horizons is supported in part by public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. In addition, Playwrights Horizons receives major support from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, the Peter Jay Sharp Foundation and the Time Warner Foundation.