San Jose Rep Announces 2007-08 Season

San Jose Repertory Theatre, under the art direction of Timothy Near, announced their 2007-2008 Season with five of six plays.  Near has assembled an entertaining, captivating and challenging season, balancing the revelations and excitement of contemporary plays with the thrill of seeing the classics innovatively interpreted and produced, a hallmark for Near and San Jose Rep.

The 2007-2008 Subscription Season is filled with romance, intrigue, suspense, music and laughter! Five of the six plays are announced as:

Triumph of Love
September 22 – October 21, 2007
The exciting collaboration with California Shakespeare Theater launches the season with the World Premiere Adaptation of Triumph of Love, by Pierre Marivaux, one of France's most influential playwrights.  This beautifully stylish 18th century romantic comedy is full of delicious deception, gender confusions and all the complexities of l'amour. A beautiful young princess disguises herself as a man in order to win the love of a prince. The princess Leonide learns her throne rightfully belongs to Agis, who is in exile and was raised as her enemy. Bedazzled by Agis, the mischievous Leonide will stop at nothing to charm his heart and win his affection. The wildly creative and imaginative Lillian Garrett-Groag returns to the Rep to mount a world premiere of her own adaptation of this elegantly composed classic.

This Wonderful Life
November 24 – December 23, 2007
Surrender to the charms of the holiday season with This Wonderful Life by Steve Murray; conceived by Mark Setlock. This visually stunning holiday stage adaptation of the perennially popular holiday film It's A Wonderful Life will capture your heart and captivate your spirit. A witty holiday spectacle brimming with nostalgia and imagination, it's a one-man tour de force as he seamlessly and with breakneck pace plays 35 characters, and while doing so reminds us of the power of perspective and friendship…the perfect holiday gift.

Tranced
January 26 – February 24, 2008
The new play by Robert Clyman calls into question the concept of 'truth' and explores the powerful art of persuasion. In this chilling psychological thriller, Philip is a highly respected psychiatrist famous for using "trancing," a form of hypnotism, to help his patients uncover suppressed memories. When he trances Azmera, a foreign grad student, he learns that her secret could have profound consequences for thousands of people in an African village. Enlisting the aid of an ambitious reporter with connections to the Director of African Affairs, Philip is pulled into a suspenseful vortex that calls into question the very nature of truth.

Souvenir
March 22 – April 20, 2008
The Regional Premiere of this play with music by Stephen Temperley, is wildly funny play and will put a song on everyone's lips! Dubbed by her critics as the "Dire Diva of Din," Florence Foster Jenkins, a real-life socialite, enjoyed a remarkably successful concert career even though she was unburdened by talent and deliriously tone-deaf. Lost in her vision of music, her accompanist, Cosme McMoon, grows to admire, respect and even protect the diva's triumphant spirit. This beloved Broadway hit is a tribute to friendship and a salute to one woman's unwavering belief in herself. This will speak to anyone who's ever held onto a dream.

Jekyll and Hyde
May 10 – June 8, 2008
Novelist Jeffrey Hatcher sets out on a new journey.  His new play will investigate and attempt to answer the question, "What happened on the night Henry Jekyll died?" Hatcher's new adaptation of Jekyll and Hyde, based on Robert Lewis Stevenson's intriguing Victorian tale of split personality, explores the conflicting depths of good and evil within humanity. The tortured but often funny and charming soul of Edward Hyde is revealed as he longs for the Henry Jekyll persona, while simultaneously desiring to be free of the spell that compels him to such wicked and deplorable acts.

Subscriptions are now available to renewing subscribers and reservations are being taken for new subscriptions.  Prices begin at $222 for a six play subscription.  For subscription tickets, call 408-367-7255 or buy online at www.SJRep.com.

To post a comment, you must register and login.