ACT Presents THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL As Well As Dance, Theatre, Visual Art Events

Basic Monthly Members of ACT - A Contemporary Theatre have plenty to see in the month of May, featuring the debut of new works from KT Niehoff / Lingo Dance, New Century Theatre Company, SOIL Artist-Run Gallery, RAWSTOCK, and Hedgebrook's Women Playwrights Festival, as well as the 2010 Mainstage season opener, Horton Foote's enduring American classic The Trip to Bountiful.

KT Niehoff/Lingo Dance: A Glimmer of Hope or Skin or Light
A Central Heating Lab Event
April 22-May 15
Tickets: Single tickets start at $18 or included for ACT Basic Monthly and Charter Members
Seattle Magazine's 2007 Dance Artist of the Year KT Niehoff continues her search for potent environments that challenge audience/artist proximity - practically, metaphorically, emotionally, and psychologically. Serving as the final, culminating event of a three-month performance series launched late February, Lingo dance premieres A Glimmer of Hope or Skin or Light, a dance/theater/cabaret/glam rock musical commissioned and produced by The Central Heating Lab at ACT. Raucous and wild, Niehoff has expanded her posse of vibrant performers to include seven contemporary dancers turned "showgirls" and Ivory Smith's local indie band, Ivory in Ice World . Both Niehoff and Smith have borrowed inspiration from Pippin, Cabaret, and Moulin Rouge to create Glimmer's look and sound. An additional part of the Glimmer experience: up to 12 ticket holders per show can reserve spots to have a pre-show cocktail at a nearby bar with the Glimmer cast. It's a Dutch date - patrons pay for their drinks; Lingo for theirs. Reserve with ticket purchase, phone only (206) 292-7676 . Learn more at lingodance.com.

New Century Theatre Company: On the Nature of Dust by Stephanie Timm
A Central Heating Lab Event
May 5-30
Tickets: Single tickets start at $25, $15 students/people 25 & under or included for ACT Basic Monthly and Charter Members
Shirley Bliss has some growing up to do. When her teenage daughter, Clara, turns into an ape, then proceeds to devolve into more and more primitive species, Shirley's struggle to keep Clara within reach sparks an emotional evolution in herself and within her community. But will it be enough to save Clara? This quirky and poignant new comedy by company playwright Stephanie Timm examines the complexities of mother/daughter relationships, the mysteries of faith, and the benefits of fudge ripple ice cream. From NCTC, Seattle's exciting new theatre company (recently named "Theatre Of The Year" at the 2009 Gregory Awards) who performed the critically acclaimed productions of The Adding Machine and Orange Flower Water as a part of The Central Heating Lab of ACT.

SOIL at ACT
A Central Heating Lab Event
May 6
Tickets: FREE!
SOIL Artist-Run Gallery partners with ACT on First Thursday, May 6, to host an opening reception at ACT celebrating their new relationship and the cross-pollination of theatre and visual art. Commissioned by ACT, SOIL will curate and install two, four-month cycles of new art at ACT in the windows facing 7th Avenue, between Pike and Union, May 6 - August 30, with the second cycle, September 6-December 31. The cycle of window displays are inspired by ACT's 2010 Mainstage season in what Artistic Director Kurt Beattie describes as "an evolution of consciousness, a journey through the 50s to now." Each window, viewable from both the street and inside of ACT one hour prior to each show, will address important issues relative to each period using a limited color palette of whites and creams with one accent color and one recurring object in the style of its time. The result is a bright, fresh, rhythmic visual movement through the decades. Participating SOIL Artists: Julie Alpert (Project Director), Kiki MacInnis (Co-Director), Susanna Bluhm Callahan, Cable Griffith, Derrick Jefferies, and Timea Tihanyi.

Hedgebrook's Women Playwrights Festival
A Central Heating Lab Event
May 17
Tickets: FREE!
Now in its 13th year, Hedgebrook's Women Playwrights Festival has helped develop the work of some of the most compelling voices writing for the American stage, including 2009 Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage, as well as Pulitzer finalists Theresa Rebeck and Sarah Ruhl. The Festival offers four playwrights a unique opportunity to be in residence with their dramaturgs at Hedgebrook on Whidbey Island for two weeks, to develop new work. On May 17, ACT welcomes the 2010 Festival for a lively conversation with this year's playwrights: Danai Gurira, Sherry Kramer, Lenelle Moïse, and Sarah Treem, and to hear excerpts from all four plays-in-process.

RAWSTOCK Short Film Festival
A Central Heating Lab Event
May 19
Tickets: Single tickets start at $10 or included for ACT Basic Monthly and Charter Members
Now in its third year of partnership with ACT's Central Heating Lab, RAWSTOCK Short Film Festival continues to be Seattle's destination for cutting-edge animation, politically incorrect comedy, and relentless grindhouse cinema. This year's festival includes the debut of Everyday is a Journey, which launches an innovative new film genre: Synergistic Cinema, one story, told by six writers/directors via six individual "chapter" films. See each chapter unfold at each RAWSTOCK event May 19- November 17, culminating into the final full screening of the film in its entirety in December.

Short Stories Live at Town Hall: A Mother's Tale
A Central Heating Lab Event
May 23
Tickets: Advance tickets, $13/$10 Town Hall Members, seniors & students; $15/$13 at the door or included for ACT Basic Monthly and Charter Members; online at brownpapertickets.com.
Think of it as NPR's Selected Shorts, Seattle style: ACT Artistic Director Kurt Beattie selects compelling short stories based on a common theme; then local actors bring the stories to life during readings at Town Hall. This month's program is directed by ACT Literary Manager Anita Montgomery and features stories in honor of mothers: The Shawl by Cynthia Ozick (featuring Alexandra Tovares); A Mother's Tale by James Agee (featuring Morgan Rowe); and Eleanor's Music by Mary Gordon (featuring Jeanne Paulsen).

The Trip to Bountiful by Horton Foote
A Mainstage Play
May 7 - June 6
Tickets: Single tickets start at $37.50 (adults) $10/$15 (students/people 25 & under) or included for ACT Basic Monthly and Charter Members
In 1953 Houston, the elderly Carrie Watts dreams endlessly of visiting her childhood home one last time before it is too late. But first, before she embarks on a sentimental journey home, she must find a way to escape the suffocating confinement of an over-bearing daughter-in-law and under-serving son. Both heartbreaking and uplifting, this haunting American classic is an unforgettable meditation on the idea of home and its power to sustain us. Featuring the extraordinary talents of Ian Bell, Mary Kae Irvin, Charles Leggett, Jessica Martin, Marianne Owen, Wesley Rice, and Paul Morgan Stetler.
Launched in 2008, The Central Heating Lab at ACT serves as an incubator and catalyst for new works. ACT cultivates, produces, and presents artists working in all performance genres and provides an artistic home for a variety of local performance groups and artists. Relationships develop daily with individual actors, performers and playwrights while established partnerships with groups such as the New Century Theatre Company, RAWSTOCK, Seattle Dance Project, and Icicle Creek Theatre Festival deepen. New programs are added throughout the year.
With year-round programming produced by The Central Heating Lab at ACT alongside ACT's Mainstage season of plays, ACT offers its patrons a unique opportunity to maximize their theatre experience - the Basic Monthly Membership, an all-access pass to everything at ACT. It's like Netflix for theatre! For only $20 (under age 30) to $25 per month, Members can attend any ACT produced performance throughout any given month, provided ticket availability. It is flexible, affordable, and is the first of its kind in the region. There is no contract, members may cancel at any time, and there is no limit to the number of times a member can attend. For the month of May, that means a Member can see all six shows, if they so choose, for only $20 to $25 vs. paying the single ticket price of at least $110 (if buyer would choose to see all six shows).

May 2010 Summary:

KT Niehoff/Lingo Dance: A Glimmer of Hope or Skin or Light
April 22- May 15
Tickets: Single tickets start at $18, or included for ACT Basic Monthly and Charter Members

New Century Theatre Company: On The Nature of Dust by Stephanie Timm
May 5- May 30
Tickets: Single tickets start at $25; $15 (students/people 25 and under), or included for ACT Basic Monthly and Charter Members

SOIL at ACT
May 6
Tickets: FREE!

Hedgebrook's Women Playwrights Festival
May 17
Tickets: FREE!

RAWSTOCK
May 19
Tickets: Single tickets start at $15 or included for ACT Basic Monthly and Charter Members

Town Hall and ACT: Short Stories Live at Town Hall
May 23
Tickets: Advance tickets, $13/$10 (Town Hall Members, seniors & students); $15/$13 (at the door), or included for ACT Basic Monthly and Charter Members

The Trip to Bountiful by Horton Foote
May 7- June 6
Tickets: Single tickets start at $37.50 (adults); $10/$15 (students/people 25 and under), or included for ACT Basic Monthly and Charter Members

ACT Theatre
Ticket Office: (206) 292-7676
Group Sales (12 or more): (253) 839-4204
700 Union Street, Seattle WA 98101
www.acttheatre.org

About ACT - A Contemporary Theatre
Located in the heart of downtown Seattle and serving a population of curious, open-minded, and brave audiences, ACT - A Contemporary Theatre is the only local theatre dedicated to producing contemporary work with promising playwrights and local performing artists since 1965. A theatre of new ideas, ACT serves as a cultural engine that makes plays, dance, music, and film that touch us. Because contemporary life demands examination, ACT is driven to inspire and strengthen our diverse community through works that advance our understanding of human life. ACT is an interactive community where artists and the public witness, contemplate, and engage in dialogue on today's thought-provoking issues, ideas and art, presented with intelligence, insight, and humor.

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