Town Hall Theatre Launches IN THE WINGS, A Staged Reading Series

Town Hall Theatre is excited to announce our new staged reading series IN THE WINGS. IN THE WINGS launches with a one-night only reading of PLACEBO, a smart, new offbeat serio-comedy by Melissa James Gibson. PLACEBO will have one performance only on November 12, 2018, at Town Hall Theatre Company, 3535 School Street, in Lafayette, CA. Tickets are $10 general admission and free to subscribers, and are available through the Box Office at (925) 283-1557 or online at www.TownHallTheatre.com.

In Gibson's surprising and inventive play, Louise is working on a placebo-controlled study of a new Viagra-type pill for women, while at home her boyfriend continues his struggle with his dissertation on Pliny the Elder. With insight and affection, PLACEBO delves into the "power of expectation," in all realms of our lives, and explores the role the mind plays in matters of relationships, love and sex.

Enjoy a sneak peek at the work of playwright Melissa James Gibson, author of Brooklyn Bridge which will have its California Premiere at Town Hall next spring!

PLACEBO is directed by Angelina LaBarre and features four talented local performers: Jarom Christopher Brown, Debbie Lynn Carriger, Justin DuPuis, and Lauren Rosi.

The world premiere of PLACEBO was produced Off-Broadway by Playwrights Horizons, Inc., in February 2015.

Melissa James Gibson's recent plays include What Rhymes with America; This; [sic]; Suitcase or, those that resemble flies from a distance; Brooklyn Bridge (with a song by Barbara Brousal) and Current Nobody. Her work has been produced and/ or developed at Playwrights Horizons, Center Theatre Group, Soho Rep, La Jolla Playhouse, The Children's Theatre Company, Steppenwolf, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, Seattle Rep, Manhattan Theatre Club and The Sundance Institute Theatre Lab among others, regionally and internationally. She has been commissioned by the Atlantic Theater Company and Second Stage Theatre, and honors and awards include an OBIE Award; Guggenheim Fellowship; Steinberg Playwright Award; Kesselring Prize; Whiting Writers Award; and Lucille Lortel Foundation Playwrights' Fellowship, among many others. She holds an MFA from the Yale School of Drama, and is a graduate of New Dramatists. Ms. Gibson is a regular writer on "The Americans" and "House of Cards."

Angelina LaBarre is a Professor of Drama at Contra Costa College. Recent directing credits with CCC include How We Got On, Exit, Pursued By a Bear, The Laramie Project, and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged. Other CA directing credits include The Merry Wives with Big Idea Theatre, Julius Caesar with Darkroom Productions, and Twelfth Night, The Sea Voyage, and The Merry Wives of Windsor with Roving Shakespeare. Other credits include Cupid's Revenge with Bad Quarto Productions (NYC), and Angels in America: The Millennium Approaches with Lake Shore Players (Minneapolis). Ms. LaBarre holds an MFA and an M.Litt. in Shakespeare and Performance from Mary Baldwin University's partner program with the American Shakespeare Center, and a BA from Sacramento State University.

Established in 1944 as the Dramateurs, Town Hall Theatre turned 74 this year, making it the oldest continuously active theatre in Contra Costa County. Town Hall Theatre was awarded Best Theatre Troupe 2016 in Diablo Magazines, Best of The East Bay, and is the past recipient of numerous Shellie Awards, and four regional 2016 Theatre Bay Area Awards. THT is also home to an extensive children's educational program, twice voted the "Best Children's Theatre Company" by Bay Area Parent Magazine. THT's 102-year old historical building is managed by the Lafayette Association (LIA). Town Hall Theatre Company is located at 3535 School Street, in Lafayette, CA 94549. The Box Office is open Tuesday through Friday, 4:00 to 6:00PM, and Saturday, 2:00-4:00 pm, and can be reached at 925.283.1557. Information is also available at www.TownHallTheatre.com.

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