THE TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA Play The Centre House Theatre, 3/19-4/11

Shakespeare's comic tale of wandering hearts gets relocated to the sunshine and shenanigans of the California Gold Coast in Seattle Shakespeare Company's production of The Two Gentlemen of Verona. Directed by Marcus Goodwin, The Two Gentlemen of Verona began previews on Thursday, March 18 and opens Friday, March 19 at the Center House Theatre. The Two Gentlemen of Verona will run through April 11, 2010.

In The Two Gentlemen of Verona, life along the Verona Gold Coast is sweet for buddies Proteus and Valentine. They dine in great restaurants, chill in the best clubs, and get to hang out on yachts. But when Valentine heads off to attend the university, fickle Proteus drops his gal Julia and heads off with him. While at school, the moony and misguided guys stumble over themselves trying to win the heart of beautiful Sylvia. When resourceful Julia gets wind of it, she devises a plan to win back her wayward beau.

"Although the characters in Two Gents are entirely lovable, they are a bit clueless," says director Marcus Goodwin. "As I was working on the show I became fascinated with television's focus on pretty, wealthy people behaving entirely in a wrongheaded fashion. Programs like 'The OC', 'Keeping Up with the Kardashians', and "The Real Housewives of Orange County' give a glimpse into lives of privilege, but they are lives replete with drama often brought about by that privilege. Our production of Two Gents takes us into the present day and mirrors that world, but treats the drama with a lighter, comic touch."

The cast of The Two Gentlemen of Verona features Daniel Brockley (Proteus), Samie Detzer (Lucetta/Ursula), Kelly Ehlert (Outlaw), Chris Ensweiler (Lance), David Goldstein (Speed), Emily Grogan (Sylvia), Hana Lass (Julia), Sean Martin (Thurio), Michael Patten (Duke/Antonio), Derek Petropolis (Outlaw), Matt Shimkus (Panthino/Eglamour), and Connor Toms (Valentine).

Set design for The Two Gentlemen of Verona is by Jason Phillips, with costume design by Doris Black, lighting design by Andrew D. Smith, with sound design by Robertson Witmer.

Performances of The Two Gentlemen of Verona are Thursdays through Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Saturdays at 2:00 pm (March 27 and April 3) and Sundays at 2:00 pm.

Special "Shakespeariences" will be offered in conjunction with The Two Gentlemen of Verona including: "Jumpstart into Two Gents" a facilitated introduction to the play (March 25 at 6PM - $10) and post play discussions on selected performances.

Tickets to performances of The Two Gentlemen of Verona are now on sale and range from $30-$36 for adults and $22-$25 for seniors and students. Pay-What-You-Will previews are on March 16 and 17 at 7:30 PM. Discounted tickets are available for groups of ten or more.

For ticket reservations, call the Seattle Shakespeare Company box office (206) 733-8222 or go online at www.seattleshakespeare.org. Regular box office hours are Tuesday through Friday 1:00-6:00 PM. During performance weeks, in addition to regular hours, the box office opens Saturdays 1:00-6:00 PM and Sundays 12noon to 4:00 PM. Seattle Shakespeare Company performs at the Center House Theatre at Seattle Center.

Support for Seattle Shakespeare Company's production of The Two Gentlemen of Verona is provided by the North American Coffee Partnership, the Mayor's Office of Art and Cultural Affairs, the Washington State Arts Commission, the National Endowment for the Arts, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, Seattle Weekly and KUOW.

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